#5 Crisp White Shirt
J Crew
#4 Slim Cropped Pants
J Crew turtle neck sweater / Gap top / J Crew chambray top / J Crew short sleeve t shirt / Edith A Miller stripe shirt, $105 / Gap lined pants / Forever 21 lobster clasp charm / Aqua tartan scarve
This is probably my favorite piece because it is so versatile. You can dress these pants up or down. They always look fresh and very gamine. I personally would wear ballet flats or wedges with these looks, but you could also rock some Converse with any and all of the options! I love that these two accessories could be worn with each item adding a different look. I have this exact pair of pants as well as a red pair and blue. If you are trying to keep a minimal classic closet you could choose just one color. I would choose black, but the blue and red would work with these tops as well.
#2 Chambray
So, this is the aforementioned J Crew chambray. It is the second classic essential. It can be worn with just about anything. This week I chose to wear it with a surprisingly luxe looking pair of pixie crops from Old Navy. I am 5’11” and so I like to shop where they offer tall lengths. Although these pants would fit in a regular length as capris, I wanted to wear them as true crops. They hit just at the ankle on me in the tall length. They have a houndstooth jacquard print which is hard to represent in photos. I chose nude pumps and a chunky gold necklace. Here’s me:
#1 LBD
Ten Classic Items for Your Closet #1
#1 LBD
To achieve a classic look and never have to say “I have nothing to wear”, you must have certain essential items. Two years ago I made an appointment with a personal style consultant at J Crew. I wouldn’t have thought to do this on my own, but they sent me a gift card to use towards purchase if I made an appointment with one of their consultants. Free money? I was so there, even though I had my doubts. It wasn’t at all coercive or time consuming as I had thought it would be. When I arrived, she asked what I needed help with. I told her my dilemma; lots of clothes, nothing to wear. She asked a few questions like what I did for a living. She asked if I had a chambray shirt or a pencil skirt. A what? and no. How about pants? Did I like what I had? No. She gave me three pieces of clothing to try on. Only three.She didn’t try to sell me the entire store. I ended up buying an off white pencil skirt, and cropped skinny pants, both on sale. Their chambray was too expensive, so I waited and bought one online at J Crew Factory.
That really shook me up and made me look at things differently. With only a few essential pieces, you can create so many great looks and over 10 different posts I will introduce you to them all, starting with the little black dress.
This is one of three black dresses I own. This one is Ann Taylor Loft and came from that same hospital thrift store where I got the DVF wrap dress. All of their non-designer dresses are $6.99! I don’t know if you can see it in the picture since it is a black dress, but there are darts at the waist line which camouflage my tummy. It was missing a belt, but since you could basically add just about any belt to this dress and look fabulous, that wasn’t a problem. I chose a leopard print. I wore black wedges. Betsey Johnson drop earrings added a youthful touch.
Variations on this outfit include colorful and/or wide belts, a scarf, a statement necklace, a cardigan, and for fall/winter, tights and boots or booties.
Haute for Teacher 