Welcome to the 50's!

Happy IMOS, mi amigas! And sing the title to the tune of Hairspray's Welcome to the 60's. It makes more sense that way.

Anyway, I was inspired by the 50's neon. And in case your wondering, that does MOT mean poodle skirts. Even though I did wear a poodle skirt for a dance recital a long time ago. I was inspired by neon colors, with modern shapes. With a teeny tiny hint of early 1700's casual dress. Just a smidge.

On to the shoes.

{J.Crew}

I made my goal to use less J.Crew/Madewell/Hollister/AE and never use the same store for more than one piece in my outfits. And for this look, I wanted magenta sandals with a heel. Something refined, but fun and playful. And as I scoured the internet, I found that low and behold, J.Crew has EXACTLY what I pictured! 

Oh and the reason I didn't post the inspiration picture first is that I like to post the shoe first, because in this new template, some formats only show the first picture. And I want you to know what the shoe of the day is. It's International Month of Shoes. Not International Month of Inspiration. But that sounds cool. 

Again, I was inspired by the COLORS. Not 50's silhouettes. Even though I love those, too. 

Without further ado, the skirt.

{Juicy}

Are you not in love with those pleats? That's the smidge of early 1700's European casual wear. They wore pleats. They were also ahead of their time. 

And all it needs is a simple white drapey shirt. 

{Anthropology}

It needs to be drapey. If you take a regular semi-stiff Hanes t-shirt, it just doesn't work. It needs to be a bit less casual. And silk would work well in this situation, but I wanted cotton.

For my last attempt to neon-ify this outfit, I want aqua. At first, I wanted an aqua cashmere boyfriend cardigan. Then I realized that this only exists in my fantasy land. Well, lots exist, but either the color or the fit or something was off. So I decided I'd accept a not-necessarily-cashmere cardi or a not-necessarily-boyfriend-style cardi. And I came up with nothing. It was like that color just didn't exist. So I lowered my standards. And threw blazers into the mosh pit. That's when it all came together. 

{Rag & Bone at Bergdorf Goodman}

Sure, the color's not perfect, and the fit isn't what I had in mind, I think it totally makes the outfit. 

If you wanted to be really fancy, you could wear pearls.

{Tiffany & Co.}

So what do you guys think of my neon-inspired look? And how about those killer shoes? Am I the only one who's obsessed with the pleats on that Juicy masterpiece? I know how many people read this blog, and I know how many comment. That ratio is so off. I know you have opinions! Every human does. And probably lots of primates and dogs and such. First commenter gets an entire post inspired by/dedicated to her. Or him. So comment and tell me what you think or what your idea of the perfect outfit is. I'll definitely consider IMOS suggestions! So comment away!

Hear me Roar!

Hello, Birdies!  I hope your IMOS has been fantastic!

Recently, I've been experimenting with blog designs. And I changed it today. I don't know why, but my views skyrocket every time. Today, I got about 5 times more views than the average day! Should I change my design more often?

And today, the shoes are a bit on the wild side. They are seriously feisty. ;)

{Stubbs and Wooton}

Something about blue and green leopard loafers makes me smile. And I feel relatively matchy today. Don't get me wrong, I feel weird about it, but there are no rules in fashion. If I want my outfit to coordinate more than most, that's okay. And that's the point of this outfit: to show my little Birdies that you can be matchy and still look good. But you can also be random and look good. It's all about confidence and shoes. 

{J.Crew}

A little color blocking, madam? Why, of course, darling! 

{Arden B}

Yay cobalt! I predict it will be big very soon. Probably not for spring, but summer and fall, watch out. But it's just an educated guess. And by educated, I mean wild guess. But I like cobalt, and I'm seeing it more often. So it is an educated guess. Like a hypothesis.

And surprise! I have 2 options. They are the exact opposite of each other. I mean exact opposite. One is navy and green color block top with a cobalt skirt...

{Madewell}

...and the other is a navy sweater with a cobalt and green color blocked skirt. I said they were opposite, right? Well, I was wrong. They aren't exact opposites. One has navy and green colorblocking while the other has cobalt and green colorblocking. I was so close. Sooooooo close.

{Gap. Or is it The Gap?}

Who doesn't need a navy sweater? Well, technically me, because I've never thought, "Hmmm. What to wear, what to wear. Oh! A navy sweater with ________. Oh wait. I don't have a navy sweater." But now I'm thinking of all the ways I could wear it. So yes, everyone needs a navy sweater. 

Simplicity reigns. You don't have to be avant-guard with mixing prints and so on to look fabulous. A colorblocked sweater does the work for you. Add a flouncy skirt and loafers and you look ah-maze-ing. That's all it takes. Yes, the complicated print mixing and randomness can look oh so stunning, but you don't have to do all that to look sophisticated and I-don't-live-under-a-rock-ish.