Blogging Besties: Patriotic Superhero

Blogging Besties is a weekly series featuring Whitney of Whitney à la mode, Alex of The Cheerful Closet, Maricel of ::My Closet Catelogue:: and Selah of A Bibliophile's Style.  Each week, one of the bloggers will choose one component from the previous week's outfit to pass on in a brand new look.  This "take one, pass it on" challenge is an inspiration to stretch your closet and your imagination!

Last week Selah featured a great casual look for fall and had a little bit of fun with her son's Halloween costume (not pictured here).  She gave me the following prompts for this week: plaid, patriotic, menswear, or dress like a superhero!

I incorporated a bit of patriotism and a nod to my favorite hero, my brother-in-law, in my outfit today!  You might be thinking, "But she's not wearing red, white and blue or a mask of any sort!"  What I am wearing is the shirt I bought at West Point Military Academy while visiting Brad when he was a student there.

Regardless of your political opinion (and most of us have lots of those these days), I strongly believe that we should support the men and women who risk their lives to defend the values of our country.  

I would like to thank Bradford as well as anyone who has served in the military, past or present, for your courage, heart and commitment to our nation!

Love you, brother!

Here are Alex's prompts for next week: a college shirt, shades of grey, or something that reminds you of your brother!

Create28: Mixing Textures

One of my favorite things about winter clothing is soft, cozy textures!  And why wear just one when you can wear a couple at a time?  Mixing textures is an easy way to add interest to an outfit if you don't want to add more color or patterns.

My favorite texture to work with is lace but I decided to do something a little bit differently today.  It is, after all, Create28 where we put together 28 new outfits with what we have in our closets!

Here I've mixed the cable knit in the sweater with the flannel in the skirt.  Yes, the skirt is made of flannel and it has an elastic waistband.  Can you say hello pajamas in skirt form!?  It's difficult to see in the photos but my flats are quilted, adding a third texture to the mix.

The colors are subdued and there aren't a lot of patterns going on, but the textures make this outfit more interesting than just the basics.  By the way, I'm sorry about the poor quality of the pictures.  This is what a real teacher looks like at the end of the day: a little wrinkled with faded make-up but still standing and (kind of) smiling!

What I'm Wearing:

Sweater: LOFT (exact)

Necklace: Chewable Charms (exact)

Skirt: LOFT (similar, similar)

Tights: Anthropologie (similar)

Flats: Lindsay Phillips (similar)

Blogging Besties: Buffalo Plaid

Selah has the best collection of graphic tees so of course I loved her outfit last week!

I really wanted to copy her entire outfit but I thought it might be more interesting for you if I changed things up a little bit.  Here are the options that Selah gave me to choose from: "purple, a graphic tee, skinnies, dark wash denim, roses, ballet wedges and Buffalo check."

Since I'm all about the plaid (like everybody and their brother) these days, I chose to pass along a buffalo check shirt!  

Up until this week, I'd only ever worn this shirt with jeans and boots.  In fact, it has made only one previous blog appearance in which I asked for advice about how else to style the top.  Guess who suggested I try it with a feminine skirt?  Selah, of course!  To which I replied, "I'm thinking of a cute grey skirt that this could work with."

So, almost one year later, Selah has re-inspired me to get creative with my buffalo plaid!

For those of you following along, Alex will be passing on an element from my outfit this week and here are her choices: buffalo plaid, polka dots, pattern mixing, green, grey, ballet flats, or a glamorous necklace!

All Things French

I've mentioned before that I am a high school French teacher.  At this point, I've spent more than half of my life learning and teaching the French language and la culture française.  What started as a choice in 8th grade classes has become a lifelong love of mine.  I have traveled to France five times, including a study abroad trip and school year teaching English in Bordeaux.  When I'm not in France, part of me will always long to be there!

Along with the love of a beautiful country and its culture, my passion has also found me wanting to buy every single shirt, necklace and tchotchke sporting the Eiffel Tower or other French-related things.  Having already purchased a significant number of these items, I now have to stop myself and ask a couple of very important questions: "Do I need this?" and "Is this cool Eiffel Tower or cheesy Eiffel Tower?" (because there is a difference, mes amis).

I own several graphic t-shirts featuring French phrases, including this "Bisous" tee.  And now for your French lesson of the day: "bisous" means "kisses" en français!

I loved mixing the grey stripes of this tee with the printed polka dots of the skirt!  One handy trick to fail-proof pattern mixing is to keep your patterns in the same color scheme...like I did with grey!  Très chic, non?

And if you love French tees as much as I do, take a look at all of the lovely ones I've found below.  If you happened to send one of these to your favorite blogging French teacher, she would send you a great big "merci" right back!  (Click on the image to be taken to the store.)

What I'm Wearing:

Tee: Banana Republic (see above for similar)

Skirt: LOFT (similar)

Sandals: DSW (similar, similar)

Linking-Up:

Cha Cha the Fashion Genuis and Pink Sole- #HowISummer

DC in Style- Monday Bloom

Elegance and Mommyhood- Skirts Link-Up

Fizz and Frosting- Mix It Mondays

Greater Than Rubies- Remix Rewear Restyle: Patterned Bottoms

The Modern Austen- Sunday Best

Perspective- What I Wore to Church

Style Elixir- Style Sessions

Sister Snow Day Style

Well, I didn't get dressed today...but my sister did!  Let me explain.  I am currently enjoying the second of two glorious snow days during which I haven't changed out of my pajamas.  While leisurely enjoying my cup of coffee yesterday morning, my sister texted me for outfit help.  Now, there's nothing I like better than a good fashion challenge on a snowy morning!

My sister wanted to build an outfit around a J.Crew Factory skirt that I purchased for her for Christmas after she read this post.  My sister lives in Tennessee and I live in Virginia so I couldn't just pop over to check-out her closet and help her choose her pieces.  So here's where I relied on what I know of "outfit formulas" or pieces that always seem to fit together.

My sister's skirt is grey which makes for a lovely, neutral base for the outfit.  Next I asked her if she had any patterned shirts, from which we chose the polka dot blouse.  After that it was time to add a completer piece...the mustard cardigan is perfect!  And finally I asked her if she owned grey or black tights and boots.  I decided to go with black tights and boots to create a longer leg line.

I think that the outfit turned-out perfectly (it doesn't hurt that she's pretty darn cute, herself)!

What is your go-to outfit formula when you are in a bind?

What She's Wearing:

• Top: Kohl's (similar, similar)
• Cardigan: Target (similar, similar)
• Bracelet: Express (similar, similar)
• Skirt: J.Crew Factory (similar, similar)
• Tights: Target (similar, similar)
• Booties: Kohl's (exact)