A Date Night Look

The photo below shows one side of my tiny shade garden.

When I owned my previous home, I spent many hours working in my huge flower gardens every day during the growing season. It soon became way too much for me to take care of alone, so I had to hire help to maintain it properly.

I am enjoying a downsized version of homeownership very much!

This tiny garden still allows me to enjoy watching things that I have planted grow. That primal urge to dig in the dirt comes to me every spring without fail.

On a recent Wednesday date night, I wore a top that is a couple of years old from Chico's. The pants by Fabrizio Gianni are from last year. The shoes are by Sam Edelman from last year. The necklace is an estate piece from Finely House Couture in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. The sunglasses are by Michael Kors.

Blue has always been my favorite color, so mixing blues with white pants for summer still feels like a natural combination for me. I often look to nature for color combinations. Think of a vivid summer sky, white fluffy clouds, and the clear water of a lagoon surrounded by white sand and palms.

We had dinner on the terrace at the Blackthorn Club.

The flowers around the patio of our club are always majestic!

July 16, 2016, marks five years of Fifty, not Frumpy fun! I have enjoyed discovering what works for me and my lifestyle and sharing it all with you. I hope I have inspired you to only purchase what you truly love and to enjoy wearing it in many ways for years to come. These days I find that I am buying fewer items, giving me more time and money to enjoy fantastic adventures!

The small straw clutch is old from T.J.Maxx. I use accessories to change the look of my basics. Handbags, shoes, scarves, and jewelry are elements that can give your look personality. They can make my combinations of traditional things I have owned for years look more up to date.

Special Occasions

We never need a special occasion to get dressed up to go out, but we had two important events to attend on a recent Saturday evening. 

Thankfully, I was able to find something in my closet that was appropriate for both events.

The first event was a fundraiser for the Johnson City Symphony Orchestra held at the Blackthorn Club. We enjoyed visiting with a few players and the string quartet that performed this evening. There are seventy players in our Orchestra. It is such a joy to hear their performances.

The flowers at our Club are always gorgeous. It is a surprise to see how much they have grown each time we visit during the summer.

The second occasion of the evening was the 90th birthday party of my sweet friend Ruth's husband, Vinnie.

I was so happy also to see my beautiful friend, fellow life-long model, and neighbor Mary.

Vinnie has always been a great athlete, a devoted husband, a loving family member, and a loyal friend. More than one hundred guests from all over the country came to enjoy a formal dinner, drinks, and dancing in his honor this evening. I loved meeting his Italian nieces from New Jersey!

On this busy evening, I wore a black tank, Travelers pants, and a Travelers duster, all from Chico's last year. The bag is old via Saks Off 5th. The turquoise and blue glass stone earrings are old from Stein Mart. The Kenneth Cole sandals are old from Dillard's.

Building Blocks

Have you ever thought of the pieces in your wardrobe as architectural building blocks?

Do most of those blocks work together to create a cohesive look, or are they scattered bits of unrelated pieces with little in common? Think of a building designed and built using classic lines and details that relate to each other and include balanced proportions. The elements of a building that complement each other combine to create a whole that is pleasing to the eye.

This look serves me well throughout most of the warm weather months. I enjoy wearing flowing tunics with interesting hemlines and three-quarter length sleeves. These tops work well with most of my straight leg pull-on jeans. I look for pants with a smooth wide waistband so that lumps and bumps from regular jean style pants don't show through the fabric of the tunic. The long, lean line created by the straight legs balances the fullness of the tunics.

Add a bold necklace or a stack of related but different bracelets and some eye-candy shoes, and I am ready to go anywhere.

Notice the details. I have created a bookend effect by repeating the turquoise blue in the necklace with the same shoes. A bookend effect can also mean matching your hair color with your shoe color. Bookending means that you are beginning and ending your look with a similar color or tone within a color.

The gold reptile effect on the heels relates back to the straw clutch's gold bamboo effects and the gold details in the necklace.

The Vince Camuto shoes are old from Ross. The Lily Pulitzer clutch is old from Finely House Couture.

Combining various hues within a color can create a very soothing effect. For example, tan, paprika, and ivory are all in the brown family, and they look rich and elegant when worn together.

You can always combine the hues of a color combination with one of your neutrals. For example, my cool skin tone base neutrals include black and white. Your warm skin tone base neutrals might be brown and ivory.

The navy blue Clara Sunwoo top was sent to me by ShopMyFairLady.

Note the odd closure of the necklace visible in this photo. I tied the too long necklace strands in a loose knot and then closed it. It hangs too long, resting between the girls in a most unattractive way. We busty gals must be careful with necklaces and bags that are worn across or between the breasts. Unfortunate choices can share way too much information. I prefer not to draw even more attention to that area.

Walk on Wide Side

I hope you have enjoyed my experiment with breaking my personal style rules this week.

Certain lines and silhouettes look better on each body type. That doesn't mean you have to wear the same thing every day, but it is nice to know why some combinations look great on your body and others, not so much.

I rarely wear wide-leg pants because they turn me into a huge rectangle. I need the slimmer silhouette of straight leg, more narrow fitting pants, but I couldn't resist this unique style by Clara Sunwoo. These pants are made from the same very comfortable soft, flattering knit as the tunics you see me wear so often in warm weather.

This is the look I wore to brunch on Sunday at the Grove Park Inn. I attempted to make my top half look as neat and compact as possible to balance with the fullness of this fuller flowing pant style.

Photo from the Clara Sunwoo website.

There is a little tie wrap detail across the front so that you don't even realize they are pants until I walk or see me from the back. NOTE: If you order these pants, please size down. They do run large. I am wearing an extra small.

I wore them with my shortest tightest fitting white jacket over a slim fitting Chico's white tank top fully tucked in to balance the fullness. The white biker style jacket is from White House Black Market.

A key styling trick to remember is to balance the proportions of the top with the bottom. Two long flowing items worn together are rarely flattering on me. I find the looks that combine a narrow item with a wider item to be the most successful.

I want to share a safety note about wide-leg pants and long skirts. Stiletto heels are NOT a good idea with these items! The heels might get tangled in the fabric as you attempt to gracefully glide down the stairs. (Hmmm, could this be the voice of experience?) It is much safer and more balanced to wear these longer, fuller shapes with flats, platforms, or block heel shoes. 

This is the perfect pant silhouette for the pear-shaped body because it flows across your bottom half while bringing attention to your slimmer upper body.

Those cute little black and white flats I didn't know for sure that I would ever wear got a lot of "airtime" this week. They are by Circa Joan & David from Saks Off 5th. The gunmetal box clutch is old from T.J.Maxx.

Denim Jacket

If I never try anything new, you might start to yawn.

This week on the blog, I am breaking all my personal styling rules. So today, it's never close a double-breasted blazer.

This White House Black Market denim trophy jacket looked OK, even buttoned because of the closure angles and the buttons' placement. (I didn't keep it fastened all day.)

I am not a fan of denim trucker-style jackets because they just don't suit my body shape. In addition, boxy jackets are challenging to carry off when you are busty. This blazer, however, is right up my style alley. The angled lines and tailored style are flattering for my body shape.

I paired it with a slate gray tank and white So Slimming jeans from Chico's. The bag by Zac Posen and the Balmain sunglasses are both from Saks Off 5th. 

The shoes are old by Sam Edelman. Keep in mind that animal print is considered neutral. I wore these mostly tan ones with white pants. If they were primarily black with brown, I would have treated them as a dark neutral and paired them only with darker pants to extend my short legs' line.

Your BFF's Closet

Some of my favorite pieces in my collection were hand-me-downs from my dear friend Mitzi. A few years ago, we both lost weight. As she shrank out of some things, they still fit me because of my larger upper body.

This Ralph Lauren cardigan with a faux fur collar is a great piece to throw on with jeans and a Covered Perfectly Simple Comfort long sleeve top. I love that these tops can be tucked in since they are never bulky. 

I love the idea of a closet swap when you are losing weight. When I started my weight loss journey a few years ago, I wore some things only a couple of times before I shrank out of that size. My staff got lots of almost new pieces as my sizes changed.

Team up with a friend to swap clothes as you lose weight. It is a great way to stay motivated and not have to spend a mint on clothes as you change sizes.

These jeans are Girlfriend Ankle Jeans from Chico's. I wore Ralph Lauren crew socks with Calvin Klein booties. The bag is old from Finely House Couture in Blowing Rock.

Style Show at Chico's

Modeling for in-store style shows at my local Chico's is always a treat for me.

There is always a great selection of beautiful statement jewelry to complement each item in Chico's boutique.

If you are shopping for anything from a stunning evening cardigan to a great looking faux suede vest to wear with jeans, you will find a vast selection.

Eggplant is always a fabulous color choice!

Katherine Roach is the assistant manager of the store. She does such a great job presenting the clothing we show.

The beautiful lady to the right of me in the photo above is Kathryn, a Fifty, not Frumpy follower who came all the way from Greeneville to visit with me and watch the show. It was so much fun to meet her!

The excellent staff of the store did a fantastic job putting together the show and providing snacks for everyone.

This beautiful little four-year-old girl was such a delight! She was shopping with her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She thought the fashion show was the best thing ever. I think she had more fun than any of us!