What We Wore: Lace Overload

These pics are horrifying. Our apologies. Our man's mirror sucks even worse than ours for proper lighting. But we wanted to share anyway...


We're wearing the green lace skirt we discussed in this blog, a white shelf-bra spaghetti strap tank from Vicky's ($30 for 3-pack), and a little black lace ruffle "jacket" (really more like a cardigan) that we bought on sale also at Vicky's, several years ago- we think we paid $30, down from $79. We thought it was going to be cold (it's not) so we threw this pashmina around our shoulders before dashing out the door (TJ Maxx, for a wedding last month, $12.99).

The jacket thingy is one of the most versatile pieces we own and it was a great investment (at $30; $79 was just obscene). It can be worn as a dressy dress cover-up, with jeans, with skirts... it really just looks great with everything. It's a nice summer tattoo-cover-up for the office, as well (we have a gigantic dragon on our bicep and while they don't mandate that it be covered, we prefer not to answer too many questions about it!)

We are not wearing any of our own jewelry today (for shame!) Our earrings are from Target. Shh! (If you don't make your own, it is a great place to find inexpensive accessories... but they do tend to fall apart).

There's a lot of lace going on here, possibly an overload, but we like it anyway. Do you?

What we're wearing today: Victorian Edition

Today is a "professional dress" day at work, which means that Houston, we have a major problem. You wouldn't say that "conservative" is a part of our general repertoire, but our boss actually said "wear THE MOST CONSERVATIVE THING in your closet." Technically, this would be an interview suit, but technically we are also NOT a size 8 right now and so technically we'd be busting out of said suit. So, the hunt was on for an outfit to cover up all of our naughty bits but not make us look like one of the Duggar girls (shudder)...


We chose an ankle-length black linen skirt with a drop waist and ruffles at the hem, quite similar to this one from Organic Bouquet (although without the drawstring). We absolutely adore ruffles, especially in black (again, the whole "punkish girly girl" thing is our favorite). They add so much texture and interest to what would otherwise be such a plain and, yes, conservative, look. We got our skirt at either Marshall's or TJ Maxx (oh, the love!) for under $20. If you have the time and patience to pore over the racks, you can find such incredible pieces, especially beautiful fabrics for a fraction of their original cost, like silk, linen and cashmere.

Up top, a plain black long-sleeved crewneck from Mossimo at Target, from the clearance rack, less than $7. We don't understand paying a lot of money for a T-shirt; therefore, we refuse. Our cleavage hasn't been this covered up since it was snowing- we keep checking to make sure it's there!

And over that, a simply divine burgundy velvet blazer with yet more ruffled trim... ours is from Kohl's, Apt. 9 brand, and was deep in the seasonal clearance racks at $17! We are still kicking ourselves for not grabbing the black one, too.

We absolutely adore a nice tailored velvet blazer... especially one with princess seams, "locked and loaded" construction (as Stacey and Clinton would say) and beautiful feminine detailing. We found this beautiful vintage piece on Etsy...

At $44.00, it's a bit of investment to us, but it really does look to be in pristine vintage condition, and look how gorgeously it shows off the model's curves! Yowza!


We also spotted this absolutely incredible equestrian-courtesan-gypsy-inspired corset jacket on a site we'd never seen before, Chinatowner, for $55. It's polyester, which is sad, but still, we're fairly sure we might die if we don't own this soon. Oh, the lace, the satin ribbon, the flared hem and bell sleeves, the *drooooooool*