Fashion

5 Ways – Military Fashion Made Girly

So as well as punk-inspired fashion, militray pieces are also really prominent this season. Camo, military jackets, khaki, boots, satchel bags, weapon-like jewellery, dog tags etc etc etc.

I like militray fashion, but, similarly to punk, it’s not exactly my sort of thing. I do absolutely love the more structured and tailored pieces that it can inspire though. If I do choose to wear a military piece, I feel the rest of my outfit has to be quite girly – more so than usual. So here is a bit of a brainstorm of my 5 military looks-a-bit-more-girly-style.

Click image for item details at Polyvore*

So the girly things I thought of were flowers, hearts, polka dots, bows, lace, ruffles (peplums), pinks, purples, skirts, dresses, sparkly jewellery, heels, bright colors, delicate fabrics, softened shapes, coloured makeup and larger scale earrings. I haven’t brought in all these elements here but I played with quite a few of them.

Camo Print – The camo print becomes such a pretty and delicate pattern in muted pinks and purples – I don’t think I would have recognised this as being camo if I didn’t know! I’ve seen this quite a bit in stores too – cardigans, skirts and tops with small scale camo print in similar colours. It becomes a subtle yet really beautiful statement.

Jackets – Military-style jackets are my favourite but I just feel so tough in them – so lots of flowers and usually something a bit more flowy (even though I usually don’t like flowy). Wearing a floral or lace scarf with one would be really pretty too.

Khaki – True khaki goes best with rich, earthy colours, especially browns. It also goes beautifully with a raspberry sort of a burgandy like I’ve paired it with here. I think it looks really pretty and feminine.

Boots – Instead of styling the traditional, more chunky style boots I opted for the a more sleek and stylised version of them. I think the traditional versions can look so great with skirts and dresses though. I quite liked this coat too – it has a bit of a military structure to it but with the added softness of the peplum and colour.

Satchel – I chose to do a bright pink satchel bag here. Even with the colour I felt it was a little too rigid for this look though, so I added this fun flower pin.

Anyway, that’s me. How do you like wearing the military trend??? And what ways are you most looking forward to wearing it this season??

Can you think of some other girly things to combine it with?

* I’m sorry I didn’t have time this week to source relevant pieces to feature here – I just got all these from the Polyvore vaults. They are all still for sale but mostly from the UK oddly enough. The featured pieces are all still farily inexpenive – except for the boots! But they are so pretty!

Linking up with:

IFB Project #114: Soldier Chic
Three-Fer Thursday, All Things Pretty, Friday’s Fancies, That’s My Style Link Party

10 Favourites: Punk-Inspired Wrist-Wear

Amelia Shopping

I’m hopefully going to start a few more shopping posts here. I love internet shopping/browsing, especially for jewellery. This week I collected some of my favourite bracelet finds. Punk fashion is supposed to be big this season. I’m not so much into the entire punk look myself but I do rather like the odd stud, spike or houndstooth.

How incredible is the watch!!! And that neon and chain bracelet!

1. High Voltage Spike Bracelets FOREVER 21 $8.80
2. Silver Blade Bangle BAUBLE BAR $32
3. Faux Leather Link Bracelet FOREVER 21 $6.80
4. Studded Wrap Around Watch FOREVER 21 $19.80
5. Curb Chain Bracelet FOREVER 21 $6.80
6. Hema Pave Link Bracelet BAUBLE BAR $32

7. Silver Pyramid Link Duo BAUBLE BAR $44

8. Chain Cuff Bracelet ASOS $14.50
9. Chain Woven Friendship Bracelet FOREVER 21 $3.80
10. Houndstooth Cuff Bracelet ASOS $18.12

These are all in US Dollars but should be all available internationally. ASOS is particularly good for that I’ve heard.

Like any of these pieces?? (How) do you like bringing a bit of punk style into your outfits???

Does anyone know of any other good US jewellery sites in a similar price range?? I kind of don’t know many as you can see here!

Going from Coffee to Cocktails with Carven Printed Cotton Poplin Dress

Amelia Ways to wear

I’m starting on a new kind of Ways to Wear today – these are Ways to Wear from one type of occasion to another. I really enjoy doing these ones, I think they are so fun to think about. Even though you can often create an outfit that would be somewhat suitable for both occasions, it’s just nice to change a look up a bit. I always feel better changing my outfit in someway between events, even if the current outfit was completely fine and lovely.

Today we are going from coffee with friends to an evening cocktail party with this gorgeous patterned dress by Carven:

Click Image for item details at Polyvore

So the amount of changing you’ll want to do will depend on the time you have, the practically of carrying stuff around with you and also what you personally like. Here are just some of the ideas I had when doing this particular collage:

Dress: Dresses are a great place to start for a transition piece as they are pretty easy to dress up or down. You’ll want a dress that’s simple and stylish – not overly casual or glitzy.

Bag: A sleek, simple bag that can double as a clutch is great. Even if it’s a little larger than most clutches, you can tuck the straps away and no one would know any better!

Layering: Layering is a great way to change the looks of a garment. I knew I wanted to break up the pattern in one of these looks. I could have used a scarf or jumper but I instead used a top to turn the dress into a skirt. If you have a plain dress you could add pattern through with the layering pieces. If you want less pieces with you, you could wear the jacket with a scarf as a casual look instead.

Earrings and Necklace: Jewellery is my favourite part of any outift so I used a lot here. There’s really no reason to change both though (or have both to start with). I think changing or adding at least one piece will make you feel a bit extra special.

Shoes: I’m not really a big shoe person so I didn’t change shoes here. If you love shoes, of course you can change them, but in this circumstance I didn’t see them as making a big difference to the outfit. I think pumps are probably the most versatile style to go with, kitten heels could be good too.

Belt: Like the bag, I looked for a belt that was simple and stylised so that it wouldn’t particularly stand out in either occasion. I wanted a bit of a wider belt here to break up the pattern and help tuck away the bottom of the layered top.

What do you think? How would you go about transitioning from coffee to cocktails??

Just to note – I spent the morning looking through so many different dresses. I swear I thought I was only looking at dresses from the States and under $300 – but somehow this one crept in without me realising. It’s from the UK and closer to $500! So sorry about that – I’m double checking this next time for sure. I really want to feature relevant items for these – although I hope you don’t feel to copy these exactly – it’s more the ideas that I’m hoping to share with these.

I chose all other clothes and accessories from the vaults at Polyvore. I selected them solely as examples for styling the dress. Most of them should be available for purchase although I haven’t looked into any of them.

Linking up with:

Friday’s Fab Favourites, The Blog Strut, That’s My Style, All Things Pretty and the Fun Friday Blog Hop

5 Ways to Wear a Flower and Diamante Necklace

Amelia Ways to wear

Click image for item details at Polyvore* – see note at bottom of post too

I’m featuring an Australian item(s) today. Lovisa has some incredibly gorgeous jewellery at the moment. Their In The Flesh and Luminous Pastels ranges are so absolutely adorable. These two necklaces in particular I have completely fallen in love with – the Flower and Diamante Collar Necklace and the Pink Glitter Flower Collar Necklace.

These are both so easy to style too as they work as a neutral and look amazing either dressed up or down. All the looks here would work equally well with either necklace I’d say.

[Item details]

Casual: This is a nice simple, comfy casual look with a touch of sparkle brought in by the necklace. I love the bright green and pink in this – it isn’t a typical pairing but I think it’s really fun. Stripes and flowers are a really great combination to play with.

Work: Not as much colour in this outfit but in keeping with the fun spirit of the necklace I brought in a pop of unexpected colour in with the shoes! This would look great with a neutral shoe too – or really any bright colour of shoe.

Lunch: This is another casual sort of a look but a little bit more styled with the inclusion of the belt and dressy sandals. I love light blue, pink and purple together. I think its really pretty. I think a simple pair of diamond studs would look great with this necklace too.

[Item details]

Party: I love this blazer! I think it pairs so perfectly with the necklace and this pink shirt. The star earrings and gold shoes are so fun. I think this would be absolutely perfect for any sort of a party.

Date: This is a simple, elegant and stylish look. I think this necklace dresses up really well here and I love it paired with these floral earrings too. I see this as being perfect for a dinner or any special occasion. I love orange and pink together. They are one of my favourite colour combinations to wear and look so pretty with the gold.

Which is your favourite look?

Hope there’s a few ideas for you to try out here anway. This is influenced by the Dressing Your Truth Bright/Animated style (Type 1). I don’t know the style too well actually but I couldn’t resist trying it out with these necklaces. You can learn more about Dressing Your Truth here at their site or there is lots to see at youtube too!

A few US alternatives:

How cute are these too?!?

(1) JCP // (2) Forever 21

You can see more of my Ways to Wear here
or visit my Ways to Wear Pinterest Board!

* I chose all these clothes for the vaults at Polyvore. I selected them solely as examples for styling the pieces I’m featuring. Most of them should be available for purchase although I haven’t looked in to any of them.

Linking up with:

All Things Pretty

That’s My Style

Friday’s Fab Favourites
Three-Fer Thursday

5 Ways to Wear a Leopard Print Scarf this Fall

Amelia Ways to wear

Leopard Print is a classic and a great way to add a bit of edge and interest to a basic outfit, particularly for this season with cat-inspired fashion being everywhere. To celebrate this trend and the beginning of Fall (or ending of Winter for me!) here are 5 Ways to Wear a Classic Leopard Print Scarf. This set is inspired by the Type 3 Dressing Your Truth Style.

Click Images for Item Details on Polyvore

Casual: I really enjoy playing with contrasting patterns and have always thought that leopard print looks great with stripes. This is a simple, relaxed weekend sort of an outfit. I love the impact that the hit of the green earrings bring into the all neutral look.

Work: Leopard Print isn’t a usual choice to bring into professional attire but with the right pairings it can look as work appropriate as any other pattern. I again played with the idea of contrasting patterns with this look by combining the tartan with the print. I absolutely love the colours in this bag! They are so perfect for Fall! I feel this look really needs the pattern of the scarf to add interest. If you were to take the scarf off you’d need something like a patterned shirt or statement necklace to retain the look’s impact. How amazing are these shoes though!??

Lunch: This outfit is a bit more fun and colourful and would be perfect for a lunch out with some friends! I played with some colour theory here – the green, purple and orange are triadic complements. I really love how these blocks of colour play off of one another. Wendy’s Lookbook has a great video showing how to play with this idea in the building of outfits. I used the shoes and belt to tie the browns of the scarf into the rest of the look.

Party: Another fun look but with a bit more bling this time around! I love how the tan leather jacket compliments the teal blue of the dress and the gold of the jewellery. The scarf adds some fun movement to the look and works really well with these colours. The pop of the orange shoes sets off the outfit and captures the fun spirit of a party. I love that gold clutch!!

Date: This is such a pretty textured lace dress. I kept the movement pretty simple in this outfit with the pattern of the scarf and the colour of the clutch leading as the statement pieces.

Leopard Print. What’s around???…

Click image for details at Polyvore.

or….USA: 1 . 2 . 3

UK: 4 . 5

Australia! 6

I’ve actually never owned a true leopard print myself as the brown doesn’t really suit me. I absolutely love wearing the coloured or black and white versions of the print though.

How do you like wearing your leopard print????

Linking up with:

IFB Project #111: Feline Inspired Fashion, Style Sessions, Putting Me Together: One Piece Many Ways, What I’m Loving Fridays

Getting Ready for Spring!

Amelia My Shopping

Instead of an outfit today I thought I’d share some of my latest purchases. I’ve had a good couple of shops the last week or so. It’s always exciting to see the new stock come in for Spring! I think accessories are the best (and most fun) way to update a wardrobe for the new season.

Rings

I am crazy for this pink and orange ring! It was from Target (Australia). The other three are from Lovisa. They were 3 for $10!!

Earrings

I got these 3 for $10 at Lovisa too!!

Black and White

So I bought another black and white bag!…. I just couldn’t resist this one. I got it for $5 at a thrift shop. It looks brand new too. This black and white scarf I got from Harris Scarf on sale!

Neon