20 Days of Christmas - Velvet Floral Top

If you saw my post on Tuesday you already heard me talk about velvet. It seems, for a while, velvet only hung around on fancy drapes and a few relatively expensive clothing items. Now, velvet is every where. I have even seen men’s suit coats made out of velvet.

I mentioned in Tuesday’s post that many of the pieces we now have in our closets are made of a velvet that is manufactured from fabrics like polyester, nylon or viscose. These fabrics give the velvet the characteristics of ease of wear and stretchability. My jacket on Tuesday was more of a traditional velvet without much stretch. This type of velvet is perfect for a more structured piece like a jacket, but for a top we want something that moves with us. Today’s outfit features a piece that is just that.

I have featured this top on the blog before. You can see those posts here and here. This Notations brand top was a thrift store find. I fell in love with the soft, silky fabric, the floral print and the bell sleeves.

For this particular outfit, I thought it would be fun to veer away from the traditional Christmas colors and throw on my blush colored distressed jeans from H & M. These were a clearance find at the end of the summer. I had to make a gradual move into the distressed trend and personally like less rather than more. These jeans are perfect.

I thought gold would be a good choice for contrast with the dark back drop of the floral top.

I grabbed my gold clutch and added a few bracelets in complimentary colors.

These LifeStride ankle boots have a bit of a reddish tinge to them, so I thought they were the perfect accompaniment for the outfit.

What do you think of this outfit? Do you think this works as a Christmas outfit? What about it works or doesn’t work?

I think what makes this outfit work, is the combination of a dark floral print on a velvet fabric, embellished with a classic gold pendant necklace and a gold clutch. You could have chosen black pants or even a burgundy or maroon for a more elegant look. I was going more for biker babe meets princess. Ha, ha.

i hope you all have a great weekend. I’m not sure how much I’ll be posting over the next week or two as we will be celebrating with family, both in and out of town, but I’ll try to get something up here or there. How are you going to be celebrating? I love to hear from you all so leave me a little love in the comments.

Until next time.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

Here are a few floral velvet tops to look over. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Me? A Fashionista? Get Serious!

When I began seriously thinking about starting this blog, I laughed at the idea of talking about fashion.  My adult daughters would back me up when I say, I have not always been a fashionista.  I still have a long way to go. And posing in front of a camera, don't make me laugh!  Seriously, I am the one, who in every picture, has some strange contortion of the mouth. Either food is involved or I am talking passionately about something. I mean really!  Every picture. My husband of 28 years assures me that I am a beautiful woman, but the camera has yet to agree with him.

Photo credit: Rebecca Trumbull

With a new found interest in fashion, I began looking at magazines, noticing what people were wearing and perusing a number of blogs centering on women after 40. I am no expert, as I have already confessed, but I am fairly certain many women over 40 don't look like many of the bloggers that are posting pictures out there. Granted, I have only looked at a few blogs, but so many of them are pictures of thin, attractive women who are able to pull off skinny jeans without worry. This only fueled my desire to create a blog for actual women.

I am one of those women.  I am slightly (okay, so maybe moderately) overweight, my skin is beginning to look  like parchment and my hair feels more like dry grass than silk.  I am not a fashion guru and I have no desire to walk the streets of New York City in high heeled booties.  Sneakers, yes, or even a pair of stylish riding boots, but heels?  No way. Working part time, parenting adult children, loving on a grandson and working at a marriage, my style has developed just as I have developed as a woman.

Most of my clothing comes from second hand stores, although I do have a few favorite retailers that I will mention at some point. I am so new to blogging, I am still figuring out how it works, so bear with me. Rather than give you incentives to buy what I buy, I would like to encourage you to shop in your own closet. Most of us have too many clothes! God bless you women out there who don't like to shop. It is an addiction just like sweets and I hope to eventually get on that wagon too!

My desire is to show you how to feel good about yourself whether you work outside the home or inside the home; dress in suits or jeans; use top of the line make up or none at all.  The truth, ladies, is that God made women His piece de resistance. That's right, you are a jewel. Granted, some of us need more buffing than others, but I hope that you will find things on this blog that will help you shine.