Lovely Lilac!




The sun is shining, it's warm, the trees are & flowers are awake with pretty colors and I decided to get in on the action!

When I was a kid, my absolute favorite color was purple. Everything was purple. Like, everything. I've since grown out of that, but I do enjoy a beautiful shade of purple, lilac, lavender, violet,plum and eggplant when I see it. 

My husband bought me this gorgeous Burberry crinkle scarf for Christmas a few years ago and I figured it was a no brainer to pair it with this perfect thin knit I purchased from the Gap a few seasons ago. I'm feeling very pastel these days as I often do when the weather warms up. Today, it's lovely lilac!

Enjoy your day everyone!

















































































Gap Knit (old)
Old Navy Jeans (old)
Burberry Crinkle Scarf Similar Here
Gap Trench Coat
Sunglasses
House of Harlow Necklace
MZ Wallace Tote
Burberry Watch
Smashbox Lip Gloss "Ultra Violet"









Back to Basics





The turning of tides is upon me. Could be because I am another year older- the yearning to change (or not change as it turns out)- or it could be because Spring is on the horizon. Maybe both?
Time to get back to basics. Fashion basics. MY fashion basics.

It's hard not to be affected by what's constantly surrounding you. For me, in the last year, I've noticed that all the style bloggers are kind of melding into one same blogger. Blanket scarves, utility vests, statement necklaces, etc. Its all looking the same to me and I can only go along with the crowd for so long until that rebellious black sheep in me blows the whistle says....uh uh. Not gonna be able to do it. I can't roll the same way everyone else does. It physically goes against me. I have fiercely fought for my individuality my entire life. It's everything to me to be ME. I don't want to be anyone else on earth but myself. Some call it a healthy self esteem, I say its borderlines narcissism. 
Either way, two very important  people (Shakespeare and my mama) have quoted to me many times "to thine own self be true."

Since I started blogging, I've felt the pressure to dress how other successful bloggers are dressing, I've fallen into the trap of buying a lot of the same things they did.
In recent years, I have even adopted this ridiculous (yes, I really do think its quite ridiculous) theory that it's a sin to be photographed in the same outfit more than once. I felt (and sometimes still do feel) that if I've "shown" an item before either on social media or worn something with my friends, it's unacceptable to wear it again. Thank you Kim Kardashian. Crazy talk. That leads to an unrealistic, silly, and expensive solution of overbuying.
I am not Kim Kardashian. I can't afford to buy a pair of jeans and only wear them once and toss em' after I've posted them.

I think I'm finally understanding what my inner fashionista has been saying to me. This was fun, but can we go home now? Yes. Yes, we can go home now. Back to basics.
So what if my wardrobe mostly consists of a gazillion blazers, and button downs?
So what if I'm most comfortable in jeans every day?! I like chunky watches, clean lines, thin knits, navy & brown, denim jackets and classic, relaxed american style. I'll choose the Gap over couture 9 1/2  out of 10 times.

Last night, I was pulling my hair out trying to decide what to wear today. I mentally went through everything I owned, pairing things together, mixing and remixing in my head and then I came across my navy blazer. Just like that, I was dressed. Jeans, white tee, blazer, boots, done. What's all the fuss about?? The classics have saved me once again. It's who I am. I like to dip in and out  of other styles but I will always come back to this one.
You'll probably see me in my favorite ripped jeans a few times a week, you'll see me wear a top or jacket (gasp!) more than once on my blog - sometimes in different ways, you might even notice a color palette trend that I stick to....and you know what? That's OK! 
I started this blog to show people who were interested in fashion how I dress - not how everyone else dresses. Back to basics y'all. 





















































Hippie Chic




Anyone who knows me, knows that my go to style is "classic". Blazers, jeans, button downs, stripes, cardigans, knits and clean, simple Americana if you will. Every now and then I enjoy delving into different genres of fashion. Sometimes I'll do a little street style, others I'll do super preppy, I touch on boho and femme and everything in between. I enjoy getting very creative and becoming someone new when I get dressed. I have my basics but every once in a while, ya gotta keep em' guessing! What I REALLY do love is the 70's era. I don't know what it is exactly  but I love the long bell bottom jeans, the chunky boots and wedges, lots of earthy textures and accents, headbands, turtlenecks.....I love it all. 

For those in New York, we got absolutely beautiful weather today. My husband was off from work this week and we decided to go on a date and enjoy the sun. It was a perfect excuse to get dressed and be someone else for the day. 

I dabbled in the hippie look today with distressed flared jeans, wedge sandals and a pretty, simple, flowy feminine top. I was going to add this really pretty gold headband I got at Nordstrom a few weeks ago but I decided to save it for another look I'm still building....

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. Now with Spring in full swing and  lots of social engagements on the near horizon, I hope we take advantage of how much fun getting dressed can be when we decide to try something new and step away from the same old.
 Unless you don't want to change it up of course. Sometimes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?!














































































Silver brand Jeans (Old) Similar here
Alfani gauze top (old)
Earrings
Cuff
Kate Spade Messenger bag (old)
Sunglasses
Wedges by DSW (old)






Happy Spring Y'all!
xo V.V.



On Wednesdays We Wear Trench Coats!




I do love a good trench coat. I'm not sure why exactly. It's not like I live in London or Seattle....
I think I respect and enjoy the fact that they make you look polished and crisp and put together no matter what you pair it with. Good structure, neutral color and quality material is an automatic style upgrade. It's a perfect layering piece for those in-between temps, also.

Dress it up for work, dress it down for casual hang outs.....either way, for me, it's a go!

I purchased mine at the Gap this year and this is how I styled it for a causal Spring day.

























































Trench Coat // Girlfriend Jeans // Striped Top (last season) //Booties Similar Here
Sunglasses // Tote Bag


















Back to Black




Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a nice weekend - it was great weather and I am feeling fantastic because of it!

Naturally, when Spring rolls around, so do the pastels. The brighter colors come forward and we tend to go away from dark colors that we've been living in for the last few months.

It just so happens to be for me, I fell back in love with black for Spring. A lot of things I am attracted to this season just so happen to be black. Don't get me wrong, I do love color, I'm just in a black moment. So what if it's warm out, right? When is black ever wrong?













































Jeans /
Jones NY Sweater (sold out) Similar here 
Sneakers 
Ralph Lauren Field Jacket (a few seasons ago) Similar here 
Watch
Sunglasses


















Hello Moto!




Spppprrriiinnngggg! It's finally Spring! I never thought I'd type the words! Was that not the longest and most miserable Winter ev??
Needless to say, I have been itching to ditch my Uggs and coats and get into warm weather fashion. And before it gets to be Summer (I hope not right away), I would like to get some use out of my lighter layers and jackets. For instance this moto jacket that I stalked from the Gap for a few months. I waited and watched and waited and watched some more. And then....like a lion about pounce on his pray, I scooped up the jacket on a ridiculous sale with a coupon code on top of that for $37!!!  Can you even stand it?  I was giddy. I let it sit in my closet very patiently until the time had come. The time is here! This is how I styled it. 













































Gap Moto Jacket (sold out)  - Similar hereherehere and here
Gap Portofino top (two seasons ago)
Old navy jeans (old)
Bag (limited edition color) - all current colors here
Sunglasses
Shoes
ABS by Allen Schwartz Earrings (Bloomies) - sold out - similar here


Enjoy the weather, everyone! Can't wait to see your Spring fashion too!

- V.V.