Dressing up.

So during the school year, I tend to dress pretty terribly. When I’ve hit snooze one too many times, the last thing I care about is how I actually look when I show up to class. The fact that I didn’t even own a full-length mirror until eight months into the school year probably reflects that.

This is probably what I would wear, on any given day:

Daily school outfit.

Basically, a black North Face Denali jacket, Bullhead Venice jeans from Pac Sun, and Converse slip-on shoes (because I tend to be against shoelaces). My college roommate and I would joke that we developed a “school uniform” since we essentially wore the same outfits every day. You’re probably thinking, “That’s not so bad. It could be a lot worse.”

The only problem is, my shoes actually look like this:

Favorite (ugly) shoes.

I know. I need to throw them out. I even stitched them up with red thread where they had gaping holes. Man… I never realized how bad they were until I posted this picture, so they might actually be on their way out.

Anyway, I decided that since finals are over and I have plenty of free time in the mornings now, I have absolutely no excuse to dress like a slob and the weather is warm enough where people would actually be able to see my outfit. This is what I wore today:

Outfit of the day.

Please excuse the haphazard formatting… I signed up for a Polyvore account but the upload function seems to disagree with my web browser (Firefox). Dressing up a bit makes a world of a difference! It was pretty easy to do, and I felt fantastic. Here’s a breakdown of my outfit:

1. white tank top – anything will do. I tend to stick to the “long and lean” ones from Target because that’s exactly what I am, but you probably have your favorite already. I prefer mine longer so I never show any skin.
2. dark rinse skinny jeans – probably a staple you already have in your closet.
3. black leather bag – mine is the Parlour hobo from J.Crew. It sold out a month or so ago, but it has the same basic structure as the Gabby hobo. I think any simple black bag will do.
4. black flats – I could have worn my new Tory Burch Reva ballerina flats but I opted for these Marc by Marc Jacobs slingbacks instead.

Here’s what makes the outfit special…

5. peach double-breasted blazer – I got this on sale. I feel like I could easily wear this to work with some black pants or out downtown with the sleeves rolled up (to show the striped lining) and some tailored black shorts. Oh, and never button it up. You don’t want to look too serious.
6. bling – also from J.Crew. Statement necklaces are a big deal this season, and this one was definitely it for me. It gets noticed every single time I wear it.

Oh, and I’m currently wearing “Commander in Chic” by Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure. Taupe may seem kind of weird and dingy, but it actually can look pretty sophisticated. If you prefer OPI, “You Don’t Know Jacques” and “Over the Taupe” are some good ones. I heard Chanel “Particuliere” is THE taupe to end all taupes, but at $20-something a bottle I had to pass.

Sally Hansen Commander in Chic under artificial light

So there you have it. Today I managed to not look like a slob! Go me.

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