Naturalizer Woman

Greetings, fashionistas! I haven't posted in a LONG time, but rest assured that the blog has hardly been forgotten.  I have been working a whole lot and not necessarily dressing to the nines. (Or the eights for that matter...) So not only have I not had time to blog, I haven't had much to blog about. At least as far as my own wardrobe is concerned.

Back in April, I mentioned in this post that my snake print heels were from Naturalizer. Ans they're actually cute!  Brands like Naturalizer, Easy Spirit, Aerosoles, and White Mountain get a bad rep as "old lady brands" because they are geared toward comfort. To be honest, they have traditionally put comfort over style, but that has been changing in recent years.

They sort-of match my decor.

Granted, my Naturalizer heels aren't my usual 4" stilettos, but they are almost 3" tall and the heels are thinner than my chunky heels from my last post.  At the bottom of this post, I linked the websites for the four brands I mentioned earlier.  Most of the brands can be purchased at stores like Macy's, Penney's, Bon-Ton, etc.  They all do have some definite granny shoes, but sift through the different categories and see what you can find!  Here are my recommendations for which brand to check out for different types of shoes.  Keep in mind, I only browsed the individual sites briefly, so this is just a generalization. (And my opinion!)
For Heels: Easy Spirit and Naturalizer
For Flats: Naturalizer and Aerosoles
For Wedges: Aerosoles
For Sneakers: Easy Spirit and Aerosoles (both have cute slip-ons, too... similar to Toms)
For Flip Flops: White Mountain
For Winter Boots (Uggs type): White Mountain

Site Links:
Naturalizer
Easy Spirit
Aerosoles
White Mountain

Keep your best foot forward!
~VeeLynn

BOOTylicious

I thought I should share this sooner rather than later.  Remember the boots I was wearing in my last post?  You don't?  No need to scroll down, here's a refresher:

Hey, there's my floor!

I got these on the SUPER CHEAP.  They were originally $69; way more than I was willing to pay for a pair of black faux-suede boots.  My current pair, though, was in dire straights and I was in need of this winter wardrobe staple.  How much did I pay?  $14.  Yes, you read that correctly.  FourTEEN dollars.

The secret to getting super cheap shoes is to wait until the end of the season. The temptation is a killer, but all good things must go on sale.  Then clearance.  I have to admit that part of my savings came from my employee discount.  But even so, they still would have been only $17.

The danger of waiting until the end of the season is that there are slim pickings by the time things are 75% off.  I lucked out because I am a size 5 1/2 and not many people can wear that size.  It's a little more difficult if you are one of the more common sizes (7 - 9).  The good news is that not many people want to pay full price for things, so unless there are sales or coupons, there is a decent chance that there will be lots of leftovers for us bargain vultures.

Have a general idea of what you want (ie, black suede flat boots) and go from there.  I know that "black suede flat boots" sounds super specific, but in the world of women's shoes... it's not.  Being uber picking can be detrimental.  "I want black suede flat boots with three buckles at the top and two around the ankle," limits your options severely, even at the beginning of the season.  Also, don't be hung-up on your shoes being "so last year."  Would you be able to identify what year a pair of boots is from?  Unless you're Calvin Klein himself, I doubt it.  But just in case you were wondering, Mr. Klein, these boots are by Rampage at Macy's.  This is where less detailing can be helpful.  More on that in another post.

Stay BOOTiful!
~VeeLynn

All Black Attack

So I work at Macy's.  I want a career in fashion, but I have a long way to go from being a retail associate. :-\  As a Macy's associate, we have to wear all black.  We can wear colored shoes and accessories, but mostly it's just all black all the time.  It's can be really easy to fall into a rut and wear the same old black top and black pants day after day.  It's also really easy to look frumpy in layers upon layers of black.  Yes, black is slimming, but piling on monochromatic layers could make even Kate Moss look a little lumpy.  Let's take a look at the VeeLynn approach:

Dork in the middle.

What makes up this ensemble?  Black sweater dress, black leggings, black boots, black bow belt.  I said we could wear colored shoes and accessories, but on this particular day (back when it was colder, obviously) I chose not to.  Another option is to wear a colored top under a black blazer or sweater.  I love a good blazer, but I hate wearing matching business suits.  Nothing against people who wear them, but I just can't pull it off. I think I look frumpy, and -- maybe this has to do with being five-foot-nothing -- I think I look like a kid playing dress-up.  Insecurities abound!

Anyhoo, this sweater dress is perfect because you don't need another layer on top of it to keep warm.  It's perfect with leggings and a pair of boots.  The neck line is interesting... it can be cowl neck or off-the-shoulder if you're feeling frisky. (NSFW!)  I adore anything with a bow.  That's why this belt is perfecto.  Cinches the waist, adds interest and a cuteness factor.  I'm also wearing earrings that you can't really see.  They are white plastic hoops with black polka dots.  A great pop of "color" and funk (yes, funk) while pulling it together.

What's the lesson here?  If you're going to go monochromatic (and for the love of all that is holy, please don't with anything but black or white)... keep it interesting!  Add details -- like a fun neckline or cute belt -- and a tiny pop of color or two.  It's a fine line between overdoing it and making it fun.  As Coco Chanel once said "Before you leave the house, take off one accessory."  Or... never put it on. ;)

Stay colorful!

~VeeLynn

In this outfit:

Sweater Dress ~ Candie's (Kohl's), Winter 20...10?

Leggings ~ Target

Belt ~ Charlotte Russe, 20...11?

Boots ~ Rampage (Macy's), Winter 2012

Earrings ~ Claire's?

Hair ~ awful.