Marvelous Maxis - Pleasantly Pleated

This is the first week in a series that centers around the marvelous maxi skirt. For me, a maxi skirt is a perfect option for summer dressing. As I have probably mentioned before, I have bad varicose veins. These began after my second daughter was born and then I started gaining weight. They are ugly, bulgy and cause my legs to be discolored a rather purply blue. While these can be somewhat treated, insurance companies can be rather persnickety about paying for a procedure that isn't an absolute necessity. Believe me, my veins are more of a pride issue than a health issue. Eventually, I will look into having something done, but they really don't bother me that much...I've had a kidney stone, so I do know pain. Ha, ha.

Back to the maxi skirt. These are great for running around town, hanging out at home, or going out with the hubs for a date night. They are comfortable and affordable. A maxi skirt extends all the way to the ankle and below. I prefer them to skim the tops of my feet so I am not tripping over the material.

Today's outfit is a pleated maxi. I love this piece and have featured it on the blog before, here

Look 1 - Casual

I wanted to show you two ways to style each of the skirts I will feature in this series. This first look is more casual. I topped the skirt with a gray slub tee. I love the drape and feel of this fabric. 

I opted for my macrame drawstring bag with wooden beads. It give the outfit a bit of a hippie look and the taupe color goes well with my shoes. 

I kept the jewelry very simple. I found this bead at a a little shop down near Mohican State Park called Creative Outlet Indian Store. They don't have a website, but you can click here to see some reviews. They have all manner of Native American jewelry, moccasins and CD's, as well as the usual touristy type stuff. I simply bought the bead, then looped a piece of leather through to make it into a necklace. Easy. 

Look 2 - More Dressy

For the second look, I swapped out the slub tee for a sheer top with a fancy crocheted area around the neck and down the front. 

I tucked the top in and wore a wide brown belt, to give the outfit a more polished feel. I carried my multi colored clutch and added a necklace and bracelet with a coppery tone.

For shoes, I swapped out the ankle boots for a pair of dark brown heeled cage sandals. 

Here's a look at the two outfit side by side.

A long pleated maxi skirt is a great addition to your wardrobe. I know for some petite women, finding a maxi that doesn't drag on the ground can be hard. There is always the option of having a seamstress hem it up for you. Also, check out the petites section of your favorite stores. Maxi's a pretty popular right now and they may have something just right for you. 

Thanks for stopping by the blog today. Be sure to check out Thursday's Awesome Accessory column, where I will be looking at summer bags. 

Below are a few pleated maxi's that I thought were pretty. This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own. 

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull. Make up Rachel Christensen.

Monday linking up with Catherine of Not Dressed as Lamb, and Jennie of A Pocketful of Polka Dots in the Ageless Style Link up.   Tuesday linking up with Jess of Elegantly Dressed and Stylish. Sunday linking up with Rena of It's All Fine. Whatever....

 

 

Denim Daze - Bermuda Shorts

I don't wear shorts much anymore due to bad varicose veins, an unfortunate genetic problem passed down from both of my parents. But for the sake of versatility I decided to don a pair of denim bermudas to show how they could be styled for a casual day at the park or for a dressed up evening with the hubby. I am wearing support hose, just to make my legs look smoother and less black and blue. Ha, ha.

Not sure what I was looking at in this photo, but you know me...silly most of the time. I really like these shorts as they do not have belt loops or a zipper. They simply slip on with little tugging and twisting and they stay in place. What a wonderful day it was when manufacturers decided to add other fabrics to cotton denim, like spandex and polyester. It allowed more movement with denim pieces and made denim a go to choice for all sorts of occasions. 

Graphic tees are in and always will be. What I like these days is that there are so many choices. I am really not one to advertise a product, like Diet Coke, although I am a die hard addict; or bands though I am going to see Alice Cooper with my younger daughter in October; but just a simple white crew neck with pictures that reminded me of my trip to England, I could do. I still may end up with a Diet Coke shirt or tee from the concert, but you don't have to settle for those types of tees when there are so many options available. 

I just wore a simple black and gold bangle and carried my boho drawstring bag. Perfect accessories for this laid back, casual look. For shoes I kept it simple and comfy with my black espadrille flats.

To dress the outfit up, I changed my tee shirt for a dressy feminine sleeveless top. This top has an asymmetrical hem, front ruffle and little bits of bling throughout.

I added a two layer black bead necklace, two bracelets with black and silver and an envelope clutch made with a sparkly gray material. The final piece to dress this outfit up was to swap out the black espadrilles for a pair of strappy black sandals.

I found these sandals at a thrift store and must say I love them. The black straps are elastic and are pieced together with strips of patent leather. The back of the heel is also patent leather and has a zipper for easy in and out. You can also see the hemline of the shirt a little better. Notice the sheer black strip around the bottom for added length, dimension and detail. 

Here are the two outfits side by side.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull. Make up Rachel Christensen.

Shopping a Similar Look:

Denim shorts - Macy's - $24.99

Graphic Tee - Kohl's - $26.40

Espadrilles - Zappos - $42.00

Boho woven bag - Rebecca Minkoff - $78.00

Feminine ruffle top - JC Penney - $15.99

Envelope clutch - Nordstrom - $49.00

Black sandals - DSW - $34.95

Hope you enjoyed this weeks' post. You can see how I styled a denim chambray shirt last week by clicking here. Let me know your ideas for styling a pair of denim shorts in the comments section below and be sure to like and share my page on Facebook. 

Check back on Thursday for ways to wear an awesome accessory.

Monday linking up with Catherine of Not Dressed as Lamb. Tuesday linking up with Jess of Elegantly Dressed and Stylish. Thursday linking up with Nicole of High Latitude Style. Friday linking up with JoLynne Shane for Fashion Friday and Jennie of A Pocketful of Polka Dots.

Denim Daze - The Chambray Shirt

Chambray is not a true denim. However, we can wear chambray like denim as far as wash and color. See the difference between these two fabrics by clicking on this link to Proper Cloth. That being said, I have included a chambray shirt in the denim series because it "looks" like denim. Chambray is much softer and more moveable than true denim, so I can wear a chambray shirt as a shirt or as a jacket as I show in my two looks for today, but I would not usually wear a denim jacket as a shirt as it is too stiff and thick.

For this casual look I tucked the polka dot chambray shirt into a pair of pink polka dot pants. Yes, I did some print mixing, but I felt that it worked because the print on the pants is so much smaller than the print on the shirt. I kept the look casual and a touch boho with my woven drawstring bag, beaded woven belt and the suede loafers as seen below. The jewelry is a simple strand of brown beads.

In the next look, the chambray shirt becomes a light weight jacket and is worn open over a light blush tank. These together, top a pleated maroon skirt. My pewter sparkly bag that I have used on other occasions (see here , here and here) is worn with the strap over the shoulder. I am showing the front and back of this look so you can see my hair which is pulled to the side in a chignon type bun.

In the above picture you can see the bling on the tank. Vertical stripes made with tiny metallic dots cover the top half of the shirt. It makes something so simple, dressy and I opted to not wear a necklace as the bling speaks for itself. I added a simple gold bracelet as my only jewelry. I love this bracelet. It has a spring hinge so it opens to put on and then snaps closed around my wrist; no struggling with a clasp. I wore my nude peep toe heels. I bought these shoes for my daughters wedding two years ago. They are classy, but fairly comfortable and with the strap there are no worries that my foot will fall out of my shoe.  

I'm really starting to sound like i have security issues aren't I? Bracelets that snap around my wrist, shoes with straps around my ankles and if you continue to follow me you'll find I keep most things covered up. Does that make me insecure or comfortable, confident and mysterious? It all depends on how you look at things.

So here are the two looks side by side. Which one do you like better? What else do you like to do with your chambray shirts? Leave me a comment below. 

Photo credits Rebecca Trumbull. Make up Rachel Christensen.

Shopping the Key Pieces:

Chambray shirt - Kohl's - $24.99

Pants - Boscov's - $27.60

Loafers - 6pm - $77.99

Pleated skirt - ASOS - $49.00

Tank top - Nordstrom Rack - $28.97 (no bling, but very cute)

Nude heels - DSW - $39.95

Clutch - DSW - $34.95