Firecracker's Blog

I didn't go full post-apocalypse, with the red polka dot skirt, but I was inspired by Angie's ensemble with this outfit. The jacket and boots are new, bought at my favorite boutique. The ensemble gave me the idea of wearing them together.

The outfit (worn to work):

Black French terry raw-edged loop-front jacket (Veronique Miljkovitch); black and muted red bubble-print skirt with raw-edged mesh hem (made by me); black pointy-toe boots (Donald J. Pliner); mauve and black reversible raincoat (Mycra-Pac); black satchel (Elliott Luca, Olvera).

How did I do? Is there a post-apocalyptic vibe here to you?
Thanks for looking!

Black isn't my favorite neutral, and it's not among my most flattering colors. Nevertheless, it remains a mainstay in my wardrobe. Sometimes I just want the toughness or depth that it brings to an outfit. A lot of times I end up with black by default (as in my Eileen Fisher skirted leggings and harem pants--I wanted the styles, and black was the color choice), and sometimes I actually choose black from among the available color choices (such as my black flat booties by Munro).

Here are a few black-infused outfits from the last several days.
1-2 (worn to work): black and white yarn-dyed floral knit sweatdress (made by me); black ponte leggings (Halogen); silver and pave long pendant (Lucky); olive leather moto jacket (AllSaints); flat black booties (Munro, Lexie); light gray backpack (Rebecca Minkoff).

3-4 (worn to work): black windbreaker taffeta dress with knit sleeves  and wired collar (Sun Kim); black leggings (Lysse); black and gray blurry puzzle print mesh knit shrug (made by me); gray piano wire necklace and bracelet); gray suede heeled booties (Paul Green, Delgado); not pictured, black satchel (Elliott Lucca, Olvera); mauve and black reversible rain coat (Mycra Pac).

5-6 (worn for teaching and partial day off): wine skinny jeans (Madewell, skinny skinny in cabernet)--yes! more wine!; black, red, gray, and ivory starry-print tee (made by me); black and white marled knit long cardi (Bobeau); black flat booties (Munro, Lexie); not pictured, black satchel (Elliott Lucca, Olvera).

And a hair update: photos 5-6 are post-trim. Stylist and I agreed we're going for a longer bob, just past my chin. We'll see how we like it when we get there.

Thanks for looking! I welcome your thoughts and suggestions.

Today I'm wearing my maroon jeans again (or "aged wine" officially). Same color I wore a couple of days ago, too. It's a color that I've been wanting to cultivate in my wardrobe, and in the last couple of months, I've gotten three things--the jeans, a tee, and a blouse. Aqua and teal are another color family I want to make more of, as the opportunities present themselves.

The outfits:
1-3 (worn for a day off): Maroon skinny boyfriend jeans (Rag and Bone); burgundy, navy, and olive striated funnel-neck tee (made by me); olive wool gauze drape front vest (made by me); navy trench (London Fog); olive belt (Fossil); gray distressed suede booties (Paul Green, Delgado); light gray backpack (Rebecca Minkoff).

4-6 (worn for a day off and teaching part of the day): navy skinny pants (Loft); blue, ivory, aqua, sage reptile print silk tee (made by me); aqua long cardi (Halogen); silver-gray skinny belt; gray distressed suede booties (Paul Green, Delgado); navy trench (London Fog); not shown: light gray backpack (Rebecca Minkoff).

7-8 (worn to work): black ruched tube skirt (Vince Camuto); dusty maroon polyester chiffon blouse (made by me); black sequin blouson  cap-sleeve top (made by me); black micro fishnet tights; black flat booties (Munro, Lexie); not shown: mauve and black raincoat w/ pleated collar/hood (Mycra Pac); espresso and black satchel (Joy Gryson).

Thanks for looking! I welcome your thoughts and suggestions.

Yesterday I made a t-shirt and wanted to wear it to work today. Since I couldn't wear jeans--which it will be easy to pair with-- I settled on wearing it with my cropped dark brown wool pants and a taupe cashmere blend shrug (after many try-ons, not pictured, with other things in my closet).
With this outfit, I tried out different combinations of footwear and semi-tucked versus untucked tee, which I photographed and thought I would share here. I decided to go with the first option pictured, but would be interested in your thoughts about which--if any--of these looks work and why.

The outfit: Dark brown wool cropped pants (made by me); teal key-print tee (made by me); taupe cashmere blend shredded-knit shrug (made by me); with taupe croc-textured booties (Donald J. Pliner, Dalis); brown metallic pointy toe heeled booties (Donald J. Pliner, Tillie); taupe cross-strap flats (Naot, Lan).

Thanks for looking! I welcome your thoughts and suggestions.

When I saw Janet in her deep burgundy boyfriend jeans, and then saw that they were on sale, I had to run out and get them. They were so much prettier on her than they looked on the website.
These are Rag and Bone, the Dre skinny boyfriend fit, in a color called "aged wine," which to me looks like an eggplant shade. It is just the color I wanted, and I love that they are not yet another pair of skinnies--my fall-back jeans fit, but I gotta say, some variety is nice! If I hadn't seen them on Janet, I probably wouldn't been moved to try them. Online I didn't think the color looked like what I wanted, they were expensive for me, and I hadn't had luck with Rag & Bone jeans I've tried on in the past.

They arrived yesterday and am wearing them today. Love them!!
I have other outfit plans for them, too, but today I had to wear something I could easily wear with a different pair of pants, because I'll have to change out of jeans to work for a couple of hours this afternoon.

The outfit:
Eggplant skinny boyfriend jeans (Rag & Bone); ivory long sleeved tee (Caslon) under mauve floral wool cap-sleeved tee (made by me); taupe
croc-textured moto booties (Donald Pliner, Dalis); long pearl-chain ivory stone pendant; pewter cutout belt (Fossil).

Thanks for looking, and thanks, Janet, for the inspiration to try these jeans. Suggestions welcome!

Here are a few outfits of late.
Starting with the tunic extender (thanks to Elizabeth P's comment on this thread--this is how I prefer to think of them, too) aka skirted leggings, aka butt vest, aka skirted leggings of controversy (SLOC).
Then a few skinnies outfits and a question about the skinnies.
 
1-4 (worn to work): Black skirted leggings (Eileen Fisher); stone angled-hem knit tunic (made by me); stone and black holey-knit shrug (made by me); gray shimmer suede oxfords (Naot, Kedma); mauve and black packable rain coat (Mycra-Pac); gray backpack (Rebecca Minkoff). I wore the outfit with the oxfords. Tried but not worn (photo 4): with gray distressed suede booties (Paul Green, Delgado).

5-7 (worn for a day off): dark wash skinnies (Mother, the Looker); black and white print and color-blocked sweatshirt (made by me); silver and marcasite long pendant and bracelet (Lucky); black leather cuff with silver studs; gray distressed suede booties (Paul Green, Delgado); dusty olive jacket (Laundry by Shelli Segal); gray backpack (Rebecca Minkoff).
8-11 (worn for a day off): light gray acid-wash skinnies (Eileen Fisher); aqua polka dot cashmere zip-back pullover (Halogen); gray shimmer suede oxfords (Naot, Kedma); gray and stone belt); dark olive leather moto jacket (AllSaints); gray backpack Rebecca Minkoff).

12-13 (worn for a day off): same light gray skinnies (Eileen Fisher); olive heather funnel neck long sleeved tee (made by me); olive belt (Fossil); metallic pewter peep-toe booties (Paul Green); dark olive leather moto jacket (AllSaints).

eta: 14-16: Same outfit as 8-11, but with medium wash skinnies (Lucky, Lolita) instead. Also tried no semi-tuck in last photo. I need a belt with the pants, though, so the sweater is hanging over the belt buckle. Seems the sweater is loose enough to work this way.

My question about the skinnies: I love the Mother dark wash ones. Love them. They are not only comfy, but I feel like I look my best in them. The light gray acid-wash ones, not so much. Why?? They are very comfy, too, but I just don't like the look of them on me as much as the Mothers or some other medium-blue-wash denim skinnies I have (e.g., photos14-16, which I added). I really thought it would be great to have skinnies in this color. I don't know if it's just an aversion to light skinnies or if I got the wrong size or the color is off  . . . or what. I do wear them, because in reality, I don't spend much time looking at myself in the mirror, and they feel fine. But I'm considering getting rid of them, because I wonder if I should keep pants that I just don't think I look fabulous in. Your thoughts??

Thanks for looking!