I must admit I’m pretty proud of the outfits I put together for Memphis Fashion Week so I figured they deserved a blog post of their own. I definitely feel like spending four day around fashion and really trying to put my most stylish foot forward set me on track to up my fashion game this year, plus the VBxTarget collection released right after so that helped too (I’ll have a post on that soon). Overall though these four outfits were a good example of mixing what I already owned with new and restyling some existing pieces in new ways.
Earrings: Kate Spade – these are out but there’s always cute ones on sale
Necklace: Anthropologie (this is from 2013)
To start of the events I wore my most casual outfit to the kickoff event. I was under the mis-impression that Nicole Miller (the headliner designer for MFW 2017) would be there so I wore a Nicole by Nicole Miller top. It’s actually off the shoulders but got pulled up a little from me razing my arms to take a selfie. (Side note, since Shaun isn’t a fan of being my insta photographer and I don’t have the budget for a pro I got a tri pod off Amazon so I can start taking my own). I debated for a long time on this top since it’s from the JC Penny line and not the actual designer collection – would I look cheapo and silly wearing it? I think it’s actually a really fun top and without looking for a NM piece specifically to wear during the week I probably wouldn’t have given this season’s should trend a try but I kinda loved it. I have a personally policy to not spend a lot of money on pieces I cannot wear to work so I’m not going out and buying 5 of them but I might get one or two more for the summer. Also, this forced me to buy a quality strapless bra which sadly I was lacking. The necklace is one I fell in love with back in 2013 when I saw it at a fashion show and while it’s a great statement piece and I always get a ton of compliments on it it’s something I haven’t worn in over a year so I’m glad for the inspiration to pull it out from the closet. As I continue with my closet clean out this year my goal is to wear the “special” stuff I own and donate what I just don’t wear not matter how pretty it is because it deserves to find a loving owner elsewhere. For now though, this piece stays.
Sunglasses: Charlotte Russe
Skirt: Charlotte Russe
Shoes Kate Spade (similar)
For my preview party outfit I already linked it on my post about that event because I was REALLY proud of this outfit. I feel like this outfit is the essence of my goal style – classic with feminine touches. A lot of my friends weren’t a fan of the bow top but I think this is one case where being a bigger (plus size AND tall) girl helps pull it off. I don’t think someone with a petite frame could pull this off but there’s enough of me that the fullness of the skirt and the large bow don’t overwhelm my frame. One of my friends posted on FB that the sunglasses gave an otherwise very feminine outfit a little but of edge and that’s EXACTLY what I was going for. Also, I just like posting fashion pictures better with sunglasses on for some reason.
Top: Old Navy
Skirt: Society +
Shoes: Lilly Pulitzer (similar)
Confession- I had a little wardrobe meltdown this night because I had planned on wearing this outfit the last night of MFW. But. when the 2nd NM top I ordered didn’t fit right I hag to scramble to look fashionable. Getting a Society+ sequin skirt has been on my closet goal list since the beginning of the year when I evaluated my wardrobe and when they went on sale I decided to take the plunge. I LOVE the fit and the length of this skirt! Styling with a simple button down was inspired from pinterest and while I think in the future I’ll wear a more structured white button down I do like the look and it lets the skirt be the star of the show. This skirt btw, is silver but it was sunset during this photo so it’s reflecting a golden hue from the light – but that’s kinda fun actually IMO that the skirt reflects the lighting of its surroundings. You’re going to see a lot of these shoes in my fashion pics for the next month or two because I’ve realized while I owned a ton of not so great quality cutesy shoes (most of which I’ve now purged) I’m seriously lacking in quality shoes and now that I’m done setting aside my fashion money for VBxTarget buying some quality pumps is my focus. When it comes to shoes I’m thinking I want to have more of a man’s typically shoe collection – less quantity more quality. But, I think a metallic shoe is a surprising neutral and it’s also my goal to always have a nice pair of gold and silver.
Earrings: Kendra Scott
Romper: Target
My last MFW outfit was completely unplanned and something I picked up that day while visiting Target to try and see where the VBx Target collection would be placed in the store so I could easily find it in the am. Target has really been impressing me lately with their fashion forward pieces! At the previous night’s show lots of ladies wrtr in floral prints so when I saw this I just felt like it was a good piece to wear that night. It’s super comfortable and while I usually think plus size gals should stay away from rompers the length and flow of this own is surprisingly flattering. I’m thinking of wearing to work in the summer with a blazer. While I think it’s cute enough of its own I decided for a fashion event it needed a little more and I decided to go the edgy feminine route again. When I put the denim jacket on it was meh but I love the sass of wearing it over the shoulders.
The denim jacket was recently passed onto me from my friend C when I made an off hand remark about wanting a denim jacket but not having it in my current budget. The dangly earring from the preview night were from a fashion swap a friend hosted years ago and I always gets lots of compliments on them. Using both of these pieces when I was trying to be super fashionable reminded me again how important it to pass along what you don’t wear or love anymore and inspired me to think about hitting up a thrift store next time I’m looking for something specific instead of just defaulting to buying new. We’re in the process of trying to pack up the condo right now but I am hoping that later this year I can host a fashion swap because they are really fun and I seem to get loved pieces out of them.
Besides seeing great fashion and discovering some local designers my biggest takeaway from MFW was a reminder as I why I started my closet project to begin with – so eventually it can only be filled with pieces that work well together and make me feel fabulous!