Styling into the Holidays - Part 2: Holiday Work Party

It’s been five years since I lost my job at the university bookstore. As an assistant manager I was lucky to be able to wear business casual attire and sometimes went to work wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, especially if I was going to be book slamming - unpacking and shelving textbooks. However, once in a while I liked to get more dressed up to at least give the appearance that I was the second in command. Ha, ha. Today’s look is one that I might have worn during our holiday sales events.

When I was getting ready for my little photo shoot I decided to put volumizing powder in my hair. Unfortunately, I ended up putting too much in and I couldn’t even get a brush through my hair without nearly pulling my head off. Ha, ha, ha! I tell you what, us girls go through such feats to look beautiful. I tried to add some waves, but even the straight iron couldn’t make headway with my mess. So silly. There are times I really do feel like Lucille Ball. Ha, ha.

My thrifted, plaid Requirements blazer has been styled on the blog before. You can see that post here. It is a great piece, but doesn’t get as much love as it should since I only use it during the holiday season, which is very short. That is exactly why I pulled it out for this post. I really should try to wear it after the holidays. What do you think? Would you wear this before or after the Christmas season?

Denim skirts are trending right now, so I was glad to have another opportunity to wear this thrifted St. John’s Bay piece. This is a great pencil maxi whether you dress it up or down. My belt was also a thrift find.

I love this black turtleneck top that I found second hand. It is a brand called united.states.sweaters. It is soft and stretchy. A basic black turtleneck can be very flattering and can be dressed up or down. Just add gold or silver jewelry or a bright colored scarf and you take your outfit up a notch without really trying.

For my accessories I chose black for bag and boots and gold for my jewelry. My blag top handle hobo bag was a thrifted piece and a brand called Scarleton. You can find this brand on Amazon and they are very reasonably priced.

My black boots were a Black Friday purchase last year from Kohl’s and are Journee brand.

These gold tone jewelry pieces have been around for years, but always seem to keep their shine.

What do you think of this outfit? Would you have worn something like this to a holiday office party? What would you do with the pieces in your closet?

I hope you enjoyed this post and that it provided a little inspiration for your holiday get togethers, or just gave you an excuse to get dressed up to go to the mall or out to lunch with a friend. I have provided a few shopping links for similar items and I try to keep the price points more reasonable. These are for you to shop or to just draw inspiration from. These are affiliate links, brought to you at no extra cost. If you purchase something through one of my links I get a little kickback. I appreciate all of your support.

Leave me a comment or two. I always love to hear from you!

Denim Daze 2.0 - Pencil Skirt - Dressy

Tuesday you saw this dark wash, thrifted, pencil skirt styled with a pair of sneakers and a graphic tee. Today I want to show you how to style this same skirt for a look that would be night time and party ready. When you want to take a casual piece and make it more dressy, you need to think about the piece you are going to pair it with and the accessories. Bling and heels are always a quick way to bring a casual piece up a notch.

For this skirt, I decided to add an asymmetrical hem, tunic for a new and more upscale look. My daughter was getting rid of this Fred David tunic and I really liked the color of the print. The tunic is more free flowing and I’ve worn it with skinny jeans, boots and a turtle neck sweater underneath for a colorful cold weather look. You can see that look on my Instagram account here. This time I wanted to have a more feminine, body con look, so I chose to wear a wide black belt.

The high-low hem line allows the skirt to still be seen, so you could do this with any other skirt or even a dress for a different look.

Black seemed to be the right choice for accessories, but you could have also chosen shades of the pinky purple in the top, white, gray or even navy to tie everything together with the skirt.

This cute little necklace I found on a clearance rack some where. It has two layers and each of the little dangles holds a sparkly stone.

I chose my sparkly black clutch, as well. Sparkly, to me, always says dressed up, rather than dressed down. Don’t get me wrong, I have tee shirts with bling, but even those make me feel more dressed up, as opposed to a graphic tee like in Tuesday’s outfit.

I haven’t had many opportunities to wear these cute shoes. They are Aerosoles brand and so comfy. The heel, for me is just the right height, and I like the band across the top. They are easy to get on and stay put.

Here is a look at the outfit from the side.

Do you own a denim skirt? Is it a pencil skirt, a-line, pillar or tiered? There are lots of options for denim skirts these days, especially if you go to thrift stores. They are not tied into the trends or seasons, so there are more options available. If you don’t own a denim skirt, you could do this same thing with any pencil skirt you own. Dress it down with a tee and sneakers or dress it up like I have done here with a flowy top and heels.

I’ve included a few shopping links for fun clothing pieces and accessories. I hope you enjoyed this post and that it inspired you to see what you have in your closet that you could play around with to make great outfits.

These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Have a great weekend.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull. Make up Rachel Christensen.

Denim Daze 2.0 - Pencil Skirt - Casual

What could be more versatile than a denim skirt? You can wear it spring, summer, winter and fall. You can dress it up or dress it down. You can wear it with heels, flip flops, ballerina flats, and boots of every configuration. A good, pencil skirt in any fabric with stretch can be a great addition to your wardrobe. It can take you from work to date night and has unlimited potential for other outfits. When I found this stretchy denim pencil skirt at a thrift store. I knew I had found a piece that would get repetitive use.

This skirt is a brand called No Faze Jeans. This brand is no longer available, except for on Poshmark and other 2nd hand retailers. This is a case, where the brand is not as important as the type of skirt. As I said before, a pencil type skirt should have a little stretch in it for bending and sitting. While I like a medium wash in a jacket or vest, a dark wash is a good choice for bottoms. Darker usually gives a slimmer profile.

For this casual look I grabbed a thrifted No Boundaries tee with the word, happy, embellishing the front in different colors. This is a light weight semi-sheer tee, so great for summer, but opaque enough that you don’t need a cami, unless you are wearing a very bright or dark bra.

This next picture shows you the front tuck. The shirt is quite long. Doing a front tuck defines your waist and provides an interesting line from front to back. Some people call this the French tuck, as well. I have mentioned this before in an earlier post, but I like the front tuck because it allows me to show off a belt, yet doesn’t take as much effort as tucking the whole piece in.

Even though the belt doesn’t match any other colors in the shirt, I like how it makes the outfit look bright and cheery, after all, the shirt does say happy.

This choker was a clearance find either at Kohl’s or Penney’s. I like that it looks dressed up, but can also be worn with something casual like this. The faux pearls add just the right class. In addition I threw on a few faux pearl bracelets to match.

Besides a cross body bag, I like a small hobo bag like this, when I don’t want to carry my full load around. This small shoulder bag is just big enough for my wallet and a few other items.

Keeping the vibe casual called for my well worn pair of sparkly gray Keds. These sneakers see a lot of wear in the warmer months and have been through the washer numerous times. I’m not sure how much longer they will hold up. Ha, ha. Who doesn’t have a pair of well worn shoes that they pull on all the time?

This is a simple outfit formula: denim skirt, graphic tee, jewelry, bag and sneakers. If you wanted to, you could swap the graphic tee out for a plain colored one and wear layers of chains, pearls or even a scarf for a whole different vibe.

Thursday, I’ll show you how I chose to dress this skirt up.

Do you own a denim skirt? Do you like to wear it? How do you like to style it? As always, I love to have your feedback. Just leave a comment below. I always read and respond to your comments, so you can check back the next time you are on the blog to see how your comment helped me out.

I’ve included a few shopping links for denim skirts. I hope you see something you like. I usually try to stick to retailers I am familiar with and I also try to include at least one plus size option. These are affiliate links. I get a few pennies when you click on a link. All opinions are my own.

Have a great Tuesday!