Teacher Style: Navy Dress

I picked only three dresses for you this week because, you know what? I own an exorbitant amount of skirts, but not so many dresses. Dresses perplex me. I find one that fits my upper half but then it will be too short on me. If I try tall sizes, they don't fit in width. So, the dress struggle is real. Anyway, today's dress is perfect, and I'd buy it in every color if they had it. I found it for a good deal this past spring at J.Crew Factory (only ever shop the sales...ever.)

(In image two, that is not a "scarf necklace," it is just a scarf instead of a necklace. Stupid error stays as it is. And, technically, an infinity scarf is like a fabric necklace.)

Look 1: statement necklace + flats

Mom bought this necklace for my birthday, and I simply love it. I immediately pictured it with this dress. I kept the look pretty simple. 

Look 2: scarf (not scarf necklace) + colored flats

I also added some big earrings. I think statement earrings work well with a scarf. I think I found me a new "formula." 

Look 3: colored cardigan + matching shoes and necklace

Oh, hey, it's the yellow cardigan again. Surprise. I think what makes it go with everything is its length. Perfect length for a dress. I wish I could find this perfect length and fabric again, but I bought the cardigan so many years ago. Why didn't my past self understand how awesome this cardigan would be?

Look 4: printed cardigan + statement necklace + neutral shoes

I really love these colors together. And this necklace finishes off the look quite nicely. Feel free to substitute your printed cardigan for a printed blazer.

 

 Look 5: heels + leather jacket

I wanted to show you how to take this look on a date if you're jetting off from work to a restaurant. I also now understand why some women wear heels every day. Hello there, leg muscles. Nice to see you.

Sorry for the crappy photo quality. I haven't seen my mom in a week and a half.  Plus, this school year is going to be crazy, so I'm not sure I'll have time for fancy posts (or any posts) once the school year (including grad school, round two) begins. 

Outfies? Can they be a thing?

Today, you receive crappy iPhone pictures. Some ladies have mastered the art of outfies (do you think I can make that word happen? It's like selfie meets outfit: outfies. Or is it like fetch from Mean Girls; I can't make it happen?) with the iPhone, but I have not. I want to blame it on the terrible apartment lighting, to which the let's-paint-the-walls-ceilings-and-baseboards-all-the-same-color room certainly contributes. Anyway, do you ever love an outfit so much that it must be memorialized in any way possible, no matter how grainy and terrible the photo quality is? Today's outfit might seem like nothing spectacular, but it scored me many compliments. Plus, I felt great wearing it, and who doesn't want to applaud an outfit like that? (Answer: anyone who does not openly and frequently post pictures of him or herself online.)

There's nothing a great scarf, comfortable heels, and a perfectly fitting dress cannot tackle.  Am I right?

Also, if you haven't voted yet for my student, please go here and vote for her to become a style blogger to watch for Teen Vogue! 

The Look:

Scarf: Target (last year)

Earrings: Francesca's (recent)

Dress: J.Crew Factory (I got it during a 50% off promotion. It's a comfortable dress with sleeves. Even though I'm not Catholic, I attend a lot of Catholic-type functions, so I love me a dress with sleeves. I believe in respecting the religious building I stand inside, and I know you technically shouldn't have bare shoulders in a Catholic church.)

Shoes: J.Crew Factory Sylvia wedges (which might be the best shoe purchase I've ever made...no lie...and they were 50% off)

"Reverse" 30x30: Navy Dress & Printed Blazer (it's a twofer!)

Thanks to Jess over at J's Everyday Fashion, you're meeting this outfit today. Until she said something, I had not even considered these two items (both from my Reverse 30x30) together.

The dress, thanks to this self-imposed challenge, will remain a part of my closet. I have not yet determined another way I'll wear it, but, my word, is it comfortable. Any item of clothing this snuggable (not a word?) deserves a million more wears. Plus, I could totally use the same formula again this winter: dress + tights + blazer + scarf + booties. Easy peezy, lemon squeezy.

The blazer might be taken out to pasture. I'm not sure how I feel about the fit. If it were a bit longer and a true boyfriend blazer, I could deal with its being a little looser, but it's not. I know a tailor could (maybe) take in a blazer to fit my itty bitty chest, but does it go with enough items in my closet in order to justify the expense? I'm not sure. I haven't given up on it quite yet. I'll try it with jeans and a blouse. Maybe a different silhouette under the blazer will breathe a new, better life into it? Crikey, I need to stop personifying my clothes. What are your thoughts (on the blazer's fit, not my need to anthropomorphize articles of clothing)?

Granted, my husband and colleagues approved of the look, so am I being too hard on the blazer? Give it to me honestly.

Oh, and I'd have better quality images for you today (crappy iPhone pictures in natural lighting versus crappy iPhone pictures in awkward, yellow lighting), but it's all wet snow filthy mcnastiness out there, and my husband isn't home yet, and my neighbors generally creep me out. Plus, I'm rocking out in front of my new floor mirror from Target. (It's this one, and I did in store pick-up, which might be the best invention...aside from the floor mirror, of course. It's $49.99. NOT bad compared to the prices I saw on Amazon, Overstock, and elsewhere!)

Reversed Item 1: Navy Dress (dress I took in from Old Navy 'cause it looked like a sack for spuds)

Reversed Item 2: Printed Blazer (The Limited)

Tights: Simply Vera via Kohl's

Booties: Old Navy

Scarf: Calvin Klein via DSW

Necklace: The Limited 

Let's keep a running tab of the items I reverse with some notes thrown into the mix. 

Feel free to tell me some combinations you see or ideas you have. This brain made of Swiss cheese could certainly use all the help it can get. 

Reverse 30x30 Items

1. coral and khaki skirt

2. gray and yellow skirt

3. white pencil skirt

4. teal velvet pants

5. polka dot tights

6. khaki pants

7. brown boots

8. black wedge booties

9. red heels

10. tri-color wedges

11. aztec scarf

12. teal necklace

13. striped dress

14. tan dress

15. navy dress (off probation but not officially reversed)

16. polka dot shirt (officially reversed)

17. polka dot cardi

18. polka dot blouse (tomorrow's look!)

19. printed blazer (on probation, might be leaving the closet)

20. chambray

21. paisley blouse

22. gray shirt 

23. paisley blouse 2

24. emerald sleeveless sweater

25. navy sweater

26. blush sweater with silver polka dots

27. silver sweater

28. black sweater

29. white lace sweater

30. orange sweater

Anyone joining me today?

Linking up with All Things Thursday and What I Wore to Work.