Pinspiration: Skirt Style

Maybe its because I'm sick of wearing tights layered, under knee high socks, layered under pants topped off with snow boots . . . but I've been longing for the days I can wear skirts (outside) again. Specifically, cute, flared, above-the-knee skirts. (I've also been researching caribbean vacay's, but skirt seems a little more realistic right now). I've been seeing them everywhere . . .  on Pinterest, in magazines, and on my classmates who are a little braver with this weather than I am. 

Then, finally, I saw the perfect one on my last trip to DC. And, since I had some money left on a Christmas gift card, I had to snap it up.  

Diane von Furstenburg
'Radella' Lace Skirt

(It's only available in one size, but you can find similar items here, here, and here)

I'm really excited about this latest addition to my closet and here are some of the ways I'm thinking of styling it (once the streets of new york stop running with slush).

Source Pinterest: 1/2/3/4/5

What do you think? Any clothing items you're looking forward to wearing again?

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P.S. want more cubicle catwalk? Follow me on twitter @cubicle_catwalk, on Pinterest (I also contribute to the Corporate Fashionasta style board), or on Instagram @MrsVonC. 

Pinspiration - Interview Style

Interview season is in full swing here at school. Even though no one has class for another week and a half, everyone is walking around in some sort of business/professional attire. That or yoga pants. It's a really odd juxtaposition. After a semester of networking events, I was starting to feel like my professional wardrobe needed a breath of new life--especially since my new suit is rather distinctive. Naturally, as with most things, I turned to Pinterest in my hour of need. 

In between looking at "25 best crockpot recipes" and pictures of kale salads, I spotted this image (source: The Classy Cubicle). It was one of the few times I'd looked at a Pinterest image and thought "huh, I actually already own items like this" (What, you're surprised I don't have a tulle princess skirt stocked away somewhere?)

I tend not to wear both pieces of my suit together. Instead, I usually split them up and wear a black blazer. I also keep it pretty simply--normally just a silk blouse and really simple jewelry. But I like the idea of mixing it up with a colorful sweater and chunky necklace. Here's how I would do a similar look using items that I actually own. 

Sweater: J.Crew / Blazer: Tom Ford  / Pants: French Connection / Oxfords: American Apparel / Bag: Kate Spade Saturday / Necklace: Forever 21 

In the photo, she is wearing the J.Crew sweater, similar to the Tippi style, that I've talked about before, but I own it in mint instead of pink, so that's what I would use. I did like the pop of pink though so I might try to incorporate it in either a necklace or earrings. I also think this would be an easy look to dress down for a more casual interview or setting. I'd just lose the jacket and switch out the shoes for some oxfords or simple flats. 

What do you think? Do you ever turn to pinterest for outfit inspiration? 

*Note: If I couldn't find the exact item that I owned, I found something really similar to use in the Polyvore set. For instance, while I would love to say that I own that Tom Ford blazer, I sadly do not. But, it's similar in cut to an Ann Taylor suit jacket that I have. 

Style Diaries: Part 1

So (I'm sure you're all wondering this) what is my personal style?  Ok, maybe you're not as vested interested in the answer to that question as I am, but how does someone figure out what their personal style is (especially if you spent the first 20some years of your life without one . . . don't judge, I was homeschooled).

If you'd asked me what my personal style was from the ages of 8-19, I'd probably have answered "whatever my little sister wears." In college, I probably would have expanded that to "whatever my sorority sisters wear." Then, as I entered the workforce, it became "whatever J.Crew or Banana Republic are selling." You can see a theme here.

Even though I liked clothes, they were a lot more about function than style and I kind of just adapted to whatever environment I was in--in early 2007 in DC, that was J.Crew and BR suits and separates. I'd like to say there was a light bulb that went off one day, but it was really a more gradual process.  For one thing, I realized that government employees didn't exactly set the bar in terms of fashion or style . . .  and I also started to figure out what I didn't like to wear (hint: suits and collared button ups).  Today, my style isn't complete, but it's definitely moved beyond just copying one store's catalogue.*  I would say that today my style is a bit of a hodgepodge of several things:

(also these are my definitions of these terms, so if that's not your idea of preppy, don't hate).

There you have it.  The four elements that most influence my personal style. Obviously it's not perfect and, in some ways it's a bit aspirational (as you might realize when you see me go to the grocery store in sweatpants). But it's a starting point.  The next step is to see how these styles translate into my everyday wardrobe and how they should serve as a "model" for what I should be buying.  Yes, I happen to like Rachel Bilson's style . . . ever since I got addicted to Hart of Dixie the OC. 

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• What's your personal style and how did you figure it out?
• Do you have just one style inspiration or several, like me? 

*for those who don't get sarcasm, please know that I don't really take myself that seriously.

Apartment Hunting in NYC

Living in DC, I am used to having to schmooze, charm, and finagle your way into the landlord's good graces so that he/she will deign to rent to you.  I also know something about paying a lot for small spaces.  Or sacrificing comfort (such as slightly lower ceilings in our current place) for location.  That said, New York is a whole other ball game. 

First, there are brokers fees (where you can't rent the apartment without paying someone up to 15% of the annual rent just for the privilege of signing a lease).  There are the bait and switch scams: You see a nice apartment and then find out it's unavailable BUT, the rat infested postage stamp is free for the same amount.  And, of course, there's the whole size issue . . . I'm still flabbergasted by how people live in some of those spaces.  But, of course, it's all worth it to live in the greatest city in the world, right? Right.

I knew that the apartment-finding process was probably going to be frustrating and tedious.  And, I wanted to make sure that I brought the right things to get me through the weekend.  We were going to be on our feet for most of the day, while we explored neighborhoods.  So, comfort was key.  But, we knew we would be meeting up with friends for dinner so we needed to look semi-presentable.  To top it all off, we were trying to pack light since we knew that we might be carrying all of our stuff with us if we went to see apartments on our last day (which actually happened).

This is what we fit into one suit bag and a tote:

(the striped dress I own is actually this one and I highly recommend it)

P.S. we did end up finding the PERFECT apartment at the last minute.  Literally, we saw the apartment at 11, signed all the paperwork by 12 and still managed to navigate our way through the Pride parade in time to make our 1 o'clock bus.  We were a sweaty mess but at least we looked cute :) )

Summer (Top) Lovin'

. . . had me a blast.  Summer loving, happened so fast . . .Anyone else feeling in the mood for some Grease? No?

Looking at my clothes by color yesterday was surprisingly helpful.  Looking at my closet, I've always assumed that most of my work bottoms fell into the black/gray/beige spectrum.  So, when I'd look for tops, I tried to find items that worked with those colors.  While it maybe true that my wardrobe, as a whole, my summer skirts and pants have a lot more color than I originally thought.  Given that I only have 11 summer bottoms, I'm a little embarrassed that it took making a color wheel for me to figure this out.  

This probably also explains why I sometimes have trouble putting my clothes together into outfits . . . it's a lot easier when you try to buy things that actually go together.  Excuse me while I go teach myself some basic logic . . . 

Moving on . . . I started looking around to see if I could find some tops that were a better fit for my summer wardrobe.  And, having those colors (blues, greens, pinks) in the back of my mind made narrowing down my options much easier.  Also, I don't know if the manufacturing gods heard my rant against polyester, but suddenly I'm seeing a few more cotton options than I was before.  Here are a few of the items I'm considering:

Summer Tops by kpcullen 

See! A lot more color.  Though it seems that with the exception of that green peplum, I'm gravitating toward one shape: boxy.  At least those items are easy to belt, right? Anyway, I'm not sure if I'll end up buying all some of these items but at least I have some more options and a better idea of what I'm looking for.  Though, by the time I decide on something and actually buy it . . . it will probably be fall.

Tops: Working for the Weekend

Since work-tops seem to be the one of the problem areas in my closet, I thought I'd start with a quick look at the types of work tops that I own.

*The items pictured are only examples that I pulled for each category, not necessarily the actual items that I own. 

The first thing that jumps out to me is how many long-sleeved and sweater items I have.  Only 25 percent of my tops could really be counted as "summer tops".  Considering I live in DC, which is a sweltering bog from June through September, that's probably not a good thing . . .  BUT, I don't want to draw any conclusions until will have to take a look and see how many other summer work items I own (dresses etc).  After the last time I jumped to a quick conclusion . . . I'm trying to be a little more prudent. Progress

It gets a little more interesting when I sort these by rating.  I know that I established a 5-point rating system (Hate it, Meh, Like but Don't Love, Wardrobe Staple, Feel Like a Million Bucks). While that is useful to a certain point, I've found that there's a pretty clear divide in my mind between items I love wearing (the wardrobe staples and items that make me fell like a million bucks) and those I don't really get excited about (everything else). When I grouped my work tops that way, this is what I found . . . 

Sooooo . . . good news is, I really like wearing the one long-sleeved work t-shirt I have (Winning!!!)  But, I only like wearing one of my six collared button ups (note to self, maybe don't by anymore of those anytime soon).  Also, apparently I'm not doing so well in the short-sleeved blouse department.   Oops. Hope my coworkers don't mind me wearing the same two sleeveless tops over and over again this summer . . . 

State of the Closet: Jeans

While I'm still letting the realization that I have 21 pairs of pants and skirts sinking in, I thought I'd tackle some low-hanging fruit . . .  my hefty jeans collection.  While it's helpful to know that I have 10 (Correction: I actually have 11 if you count my black skinnies) pairs of jeans, I really only had a vague idea of what type of jeans I owned.  (Wait, you mean to tell me I have more than the 2 pairs I seem to live in?)  So, *gulp* in the spirit of full disclosure, here's what I have:

My Jean Collection

Le sigh.  4 pairs of dark wash bootcut? While I go hide my head in shame, check back tomorrow for a rundown on how many of these I actually wear. 

Planning: Building a Roadmap

As anyone who has done any work in evaluations or data analysis knows, the first step in designing a project is figuring out what questions you want to answer.  Those questions become the guiding post for determining what data you need to collect.  Else you can end up with a lot of interesting "facts" or "trends" but no usable information.

 

Starting out, I had a ton of questions I wanted to answer.  The opportunities were endless! But, I realized that unless I want to give up my social life and spend the next year staring at my closet, I had to whittle the list down and make it more realistic.  (Though, without a social life I guess all I'd need were sweatpants, so problem solved!).  

 

So, here are the questions I'd like to be able to answer.  I've divided them into core questions, that represent my big picture goals, and side questions that it would be nice to answer but I can probably live with out:

 

Big Picture Questions

1. What do I actually own?
2. What do I actually wear and what do I love wearing? (conversely, what can I get rid of?)
3. Given my lifestyle (9-5 job, active, big social circle), what do I need to buy to make my wardrobe more functional?
4. What is my personal style? (not sure if this is a question data can answer for me, but we'll see!)
5. Once I have all the basic pieces, what should I be buying to make my wardrobe more me?

Side Questions--in no particular order:

1. Do I own a lot of any specific color?
2. How much do I normally spend on clothes? 
3. Are the things I spend more on, things I wear more often?
4. What brands do I buy from the most?
5. Ummm, what should I wear on Monday?

A Data Nerd's Approach to Fashion

For years, I've bought things because they were on-sale or a "good deal" or on impulse or out of desperation (i'm glaring at you pantyhose). Please tell me I'm not the first person who's gone on a shopping binge and ended up with a ton of stuff I didn't need and somehow still didn't own a white button up shirt?  And that I'm not the only woman who stands in front of a closet overflowing with clothes but often feels she has nothing to wear?  But, it's a new year and I'm on a mission to revamp my wardrobe, figure out what my personal style is, and hopefully be a smarter shopper.

I've tried using those "ten essential items" lists or "20 things every woman should own".  While helpful, those lists feel incomplete.  First of all, what exactly do I own? Secondly, what do I do with the wardrobe I have (which includes waaaaay more than ten items) and what do I need to buy (or throw out) to make it better?  Plus, what do I need aside from those first ten items to express my own, personal style?

I know . . . deep, deep questions.  Anyway, I had a lightbulb moment a few weeks ago.  In my normal life, not rambling on the internet, I analyze data.  (I know this is the moment you see me as a scary cat lady with spectacles and zero social skills. Don't worry that's a false stereotype.  Though I do wear glasses)  And, I started to think, if I can take a company's financial or personnel records and use them to tell them where they need to hire or cutback, why couldn't I use data, my own data, to be a better shopper?  Thus starts the nerdiest fashion project in the history of the world.