Ella in an Old Dress.

Woke up early this morning. Had a little fun with Duchess. 

Enjoy :)

Shoes: Zara (sooo last season, though), Socks and Tights: H&M  --socks get lost & Duchess eats them, so I will be stocking up :) , Dress: Gift from my sister. Bizarre, cuz there's no label on this bad boy. Only the material +  wash instructions: 50% wool  + 50% Cashmere, so super warm & super soft. Sometimes, it's the other label that matters.  Learn to check your materials! If it fits well, wool is wool, cashmere is cashmere, silk is silk. I'm a label-whore myself, but I try not to get too caught up.  Blazer: Harvé Benard --Found this in a thrift store somewhere in Jersey. If you're a "thrifter" stop picking up garbage. Google your tag and avoid wasting your time & closet space.  Bag: Hervé Chapelier.  

Uniqulo, H&M & Macy's

              My boss has a meeting tomorrow I just remembered. I mean... I knew.. I just remembered how decent I have to look -_- Last minute (on a Sunday) I hit 5th Ave to see what NYC had to offer. I was very  impressed. I stopped into Uniqulo & got a full-out (mostly) wool suit with a long sleeve shirt. The damage was $130, but that's not bad for a quality suit, in my humble opinion. Not if you want to look presentable & not  cheap. & this is pretty cheap. The pieces are basic & "practical" as the company pitches, but most importantly, they fit me well. *shrugs* I appreciated being able to find something at a reasonable price at 7pm... on a Sunday. This is why I love New York! On top of that, it was my first visit to the store & the sales associates were super nice. I'll shop anywhere I feel loved. 

            I then headed over to H&M for tops. They usually have sales on the most random shit. The 5th Ave store has better product, to be honest. The 34th Street location was a let down on in the blazer department when I went on Friday, but I got a long dress for my job's holiday party that got a ton of compliments. It was the perfect length for my size (5'2) and the fabric's incredibly light. Also comes in purple. Unfortunatley, it's not available online. Look at the other dresses here. 

        oh & there's also a gift that came around for a friend's 4-year-old daughter (because I stole his gift card & decided to be unselfish for once. I'm growing up & it's so sad). Macy's has some good sales for those with kids (or holiday kids like mine smh). I like to get socks & underwear for kids. I figure they'll come in handy. I wouldn't know tho. I like panties and socks *shrugs* oh! & when shopping Macy's, make sure you always ask for coupons. There's more deals than they want to let you know. 

So... while I love to window shop Prada, this is where I really shop at. 

It's not a forever thing, though. No worries ;)

5th Ave Sundays.

So... Today, I shopped. Here's how NYC treated me. <3 

Night Outfit: Silver Spoon June Mixtape Release Party @ Katra

Dress: H&M

Feather Earrings: H&M

Cross earrings: Betsey Johnson

Watch: Skagen

Bracelets & Rings: Various, including Calvin Klein

Silver Necklace: Givenchy        

Purse: H&M

Shoes: Aldo

         Sometimes, the jewelry says it all because the dress won't  speak for itself. Whenever in doubt, I count on my accessories to create the outfit for me. I had no idea what to wear to Silver Spoon June's mixtape release party at Katra so I went for all black. All black works because no one knows if you've worn that dress out (whether you have or not). Most black dresses ultimately look the same until you get up close. If you want to make a statement with the "little black dress" opt for ones that have intricate details or tailoring that you can only see in person/up close. The dress I wore last night was a sweater night with see through patches. It can work well as a shirt if I put a tank underneath, but tonight I wore a slip to convert it into a slutty *cough* I mean, sexy dress ;) Look at the pics below to see the transformation. 

           I wanted to be low-key, but still stand out. So this was the perfect combination. I knew there'd be plenty other black dresses, but no accessories like mine. I also knew I was going out to a club and... I was more on business than anything else. So, I wanted to look like I wasn't supposed to be there. The bag I brought out was technically too big for the club, but... with a pair of flats, business cards galore and a clementine in case I got hungry, I needed room. It also gave me a...umm.. don't give a fuck vibe. Paired with the leather, open-toe clogs, I felt a little "rock star" coming on --and who gives a fuck less than rock stars? 

           As for the accessories, I piled them on.  I usually do, though. I like to mix gold and silver because it seems most people are afraid to. Also, I can never make up my mind so I wear both. The feather earrings were perfect in giving a soft touch to all the heavy metal (I'm such an effin rock star) I had on.  I also wore studded black belt you can't see in the photos simply because I felt I was too heavy on the top... meaning my outfit wasn't balance. Sometime your shoes do too much, or your earrings, or whatever. You have to balance the attention. Adding a belt allowed me to differentiate the top of my body from the bottom and provided that "hour-glass" curve we women of color tend to pride ourselves on :) Still, when I held my bag down by my waist, the bracelets and fringes from the bag helped with the overall balance of the outfit.

w/o accessories.

 W/ Accessories