Dresses — Fashion — Stylin' Granny Mama

Be sure to read to the bottom of this post for week two of the Between the Lines Series on women bloggers over 50.

Over the weekend I packed up a bunch of bags and headed down to my daughter's apartment to do a quickie photo shoot. I stopped at my younger daughter's first to get my make up done, then drove another 25 minutes to connect up with the other daughter. This was the outfit I wore that day, as we were going to go to lunch and a movie after the shoot.

Photo Credit Rebecca Trumbull, Make Up Rachel Christensen

I love my jeans. They are my go to for casual and even sometimes for dressy. These are Rock and Republic brand from Kohl's. They are now my faves. They are more expensive, by my thrift store spending standards, but they are worth it. The tee shirt is older and probably from Kohl's as well and so is the cardi. I like the fly away style of the cardi and it is the perfect weight for spring and summer. You can't see my necklace real well, but it is a long silver chain with a teal colored stone hanging on the end. Once again, I'm in my comfy, but sparkly Keds.

I wanted to show a dressier way to wear jeans, so I put this Vera Wang dress over the top. This was a last minute thought, so I would have dressed it up with other jewelry and maybe a pair of heels. I wore my sparkly thong sandals that I got last year. I also would have added a bag and maybe a shrug or scarf with white or purple to tie in with the flowers on the dress.

This was a last minute idea, so I'm not sure how I feel about it. What do you think? Jeans with a dress? Who knows maybe I'll start a new trend. I can remember when I was in elementary school my mother always wanted me to wear dresses to school, even through our Buffalo, NY winters. But, she would let me wear pants underneath to ride the bus or to go out for recess. You never know the pants with dress trend may come back. Ha, ha.

Shop A Similar Look:

Fly Away Cardi - J.Jill - $49.99

Jeans - Kohl's - $59.99

Tee - Talbots - $44.50

Pendant - Macy's - $32.00

Dress - Dressbarn - $49.50

Sneakers - Kohl's - $44.99

Sandals - Kohl's - $16.99

I hope you enjoyed my casual outfits. Click on the link below to see our next ten featured bloggers over 50.

I linked up with Jess at Elegantly Dressed and Stylish and with Catherine at Not Dressed as Lamb with High Latitude Style Top of the World Style Party and with Jo-Lynne at Fashion Friday.

Photo Credit: Rebecca Trumbull, Makeup by Rachel Christensen

Today you'll see the second outfit in my Spring color series. The color emphasis is on Pantone's Lilac Gray and Buttercup. I found the button up at a thrift store. We had a hard time finding a similar color, but here is a possibility. The bag I found on clearance at JC Penney and I really like it. This purse is roomy, but not overwhelming. I have a tendency to put everything in my bag. The muted color enables it to be carried with many other outfits, and the gold chain gives it a classy look without making it heavier. We found a similar bag at Kohl's.

The buttercup tee (another thrift store find) has an embellished neckline which goes well with the gold on my bag and shoes. We found a similar embellished tank top at Macy's. The skirt, simple black leggings, shoes, and yellow bangle are all second hand store finds but we were able to find you some inspiration from some other stores. Here is a skirt from Kohl's, black shoes from DSW, and a bracelet option on Etsy. As you can tell, I love to thrift shop. If I had been born in an earlier century, I would have been a pirate! Arrrrrrrrrggggg! I was excited to see that the low chunky heel is making a come back!

Obviously, the outfit could be retrofitted for summer simply by getting rid of the leggings and wearing a cute pair of sandals or espadrilles. Carry the button up as a covering for overly air conditioned shops or restaurants and you are all set.

Since, this blog is all about inspiration, I would like you ladies to start digging for treasure in your own closets. See if you have any of Pantone's Spring color line up. Throw an outfit together and have someone take a picture. Then send it to me via a Facebook message or you can email it to me. If you take a pic on your phone you can just text it to my email at guineapigtrekie@yahoo.com. I would love to see how I have inspired your fashion sensibilities and you might even get your pic posted!

Now it's time for our next Closet Clean Out Tip.

Closet Clean Clean Out - Tip 3 - Skirts and Dresses

I really do not know why I have so many skirts and dresses. I think it stems from my upbringing. Being raised in the church we always dressed up for Sunday service. As far as that goes, my mother used to make me wear dresses when I was in elementary school. Being a tomboy I grew to loathe skirts and dresses, although, I never stopped wearing them to church...until recently. However, I still do wear a skirt for work once in a while and if my husband and I splurge on a show I dress up.

Once again, I would say, start by organizing. You can arrange by color, length or type of skirt, or seasonal. The same goes for dresses. If you have room you might want to hang from shortest to longest. Organization is for your benefit, so figure out what is going to work for you. As you begin to organize take a hard look at what skirts and dresses you have. Do you love it? Does it fit? Is it in style?

Actually that is not a valid question any more. What isn't in style? Mini vs. maxi, plain vs. print, plaid vs. floral, a-line vs. pencil, pleather vs. leather.....anything goes! Style is what you make it. A dress you wore in the 80's may no longer be in style, but if you throw a chunky sweater over it, or add a black moto jacket and a pair of over the knee boots you can make it work. That's not something I have to worry about, since I can't fit into any dresses that I owned in the 80's. Ha, ha.

I have found that if I am unsure about a particular item, I put it in a pile, then when I have a significant number of items I try them all on. The item has to answer several questions: Does it have a slimming or smoothing effect? Is the pattern or color complimentary? Could I pair it with other items I have to make it work for me, like wearing a dress with a jacket or sweater over the top, or wearing a skirt with a wide belt and a tee shirt or tank top. How can I update my look if it is something I really love? I am getting better at putting things in the donation box if I am not absolutely convinced it works for me.

I hope as you reorganize your skirts and dresses you will be thinking about some of the things you have read here on my fashion blog. As you saw today, I paired a skirt with leggings, something I have never done before. Think outside the box, after all, you are women and we are more like spaghetti than waffles.

Be sure to come back next week. We'll have another Spring outfit and more tips on cleaning out our closets.

All photos by Rebecca Trumbull, Makeup by Rachel Christensen

Between the Lines: Week 2 and My Casual Vibe

Spring Colors: Lilac Gray and Buttercup