Better than Pinterest- Fashion Edition 2 (GUILTY PLEASURE)

So of course after I write a post last week about how fashion can easily be done on a small budget... I bite my words and have to share a post about my GUILTY PLEASURE...

MY guilty pleasure is looking like a lady. I just love it and I really miss that this is not something that is popular in our culture. In addition to looking like a lady, I especially like to look like a lady in Free People clothing.

There I said it... two guilty pleasures (you know I am hiding a trunk full!)


With this quasi-disclaimer being stated I just wanted to get back to the list we initially talked about last week with the initial fall fashion blog post (Better than Pinterest- Fashion Edition). Here are some trends that I broke down as easy to find for the everyday fashionista that would transition well into Fall/Winter.

Stripes (even the faux pas horizontal)
Tartan plaid
Bold patterns, mixed
Color, not just fall colors, beautiful colors all types ♥
Outer wear... (Capes are in, although I am not sure I am exactly the right person to pull that off, I will see what I can do)
Knits, oversized or belted
Lace (can we ever go wrong with lace... ok, that is my own opinion) 10/15
Leather (boots/jackets, belts) 10/15
Scarves (who am I kidding, these never go out of style)
Hats (knits, scarves, head dressings) 



Since last week we really didn't explore any of these... we will take two on in this post...

Lace and Leather. In a BOLD WAY.

 As much as I complain that fashion doesn't push the boundaries much and that fashion repeats itself...over...and over... and over again.... One thing that I really love is the feminine look of beautiful lace paired with the harshness of leather... There I said it... another guilty pleasure (MAN I am just coming CLEAN today).


Now I would never be able to purchase Free People on my budget, it just does not make sense for me to spend the money on high end clothes. So as you may have guessed I scour my favorite second hand shops for some unique pieces. This dress on the other hand was an guilt pleasure (I bought it NEW). It was originally $150 and I got it for $35 at Marshall's. A normal splurge I wouldn't take but at the time we were in need of some dresses for me for an event so I took the plunge, and I am so grateful that my husband talked me into it ♥

Initially I would have really liked to pair THESE boots with my dress... I saw them in Nashville a few months back and well... who wouldn't want little skulls on their boots (ok forget I asked, lol)

Instead I settled for a pair of Steven Madden Boots that I have had for years, a good pair of boots will last you and are well worth the investment. These were one of those. (It also saved me $600 that the skull boots would have cost me!)

So together, I fulfilled many of my Guilty Pleasures in the one outfit. I felt like a lady, I matched my lace and leather, and I love love LOVE Free People clothing. All of this wrapped into one gorgeous outfit makes me happy, even if I only wore it to parent teach conference, it doesn't matter. I wore it for me and didn't notice anyone looking at me or asking me about it... which is fine by me. The goal of dressing up has to be for your own good, for only you. Any compliments are just that nice things that people say but ultimately YOU need to be the happy one and the compliments are just icing if they come. I may not have any compliments on this outfit, but it did its duty... making me happy and fulfilling my day by allowing me to feel like a lady.

If you like this post and want more inspiration on this project and my Fall/Winter Pinterest Board make sure to subscribe, either via email or google and check out my pinterest boards.


I hope you are having fun on my fashion on the cheap adventure... I am loving it. This is my favorite time of year and it truly only takes a few items to make a fashionista out of someone ♥

~Liz Hicks

Better than Pinterest- Fashion edition

So one of my many guilty pleasures (and well, rights of passage as a woman) is fashion...
I love cruising Pinterest and finding different outfits or color combos, especially for Fall and Winter...

Every year I study what the runways bring for the new year and I bring it down a few notches into something that I would actually wear.. I mean, I would love to pull up in the kids pick up line wearing
Alexander McQueen's run way finale look....

But I may get a few stares from the other moms... and well, we wouldn't want that...

So I love taking a look at some of my favorite designers and figuring out which of the trends would work for me as a mom, working mom... as well as a work from home mom (yes, these are a few of the hats I wear).

Here is my list of trend that I think a mom or woman on a budget can easily pull off... In addition I want to take a few posts this season to show you just how easy it is to pull some of these looks off, either from Pinterest or inspired by Pinterest.

Stripes (even the faux pas horizontal)
Tartan plaid
Bold patterns, mixed
Color, not just fall colors, beautiful colors all types ♥
Outer wear... (Capes are in, although I am not sure I am exactly the right person to pull that off, I will see what I can do)
Knits, oversized or belted
Lace (can we ever go wrong with lace... ok, that is my own opinion)
Leather (boots/jackets, belts)
Scarves (who am I kidding, these never go out of style)
Hats (knits, scarves, head dressings)

Here is a Pinterest board that I started to share some of the easy to replicate trends for Fall and Winter 2013. Check it out, I would love for you to follow me on Pinterest ♥

Liz Hicks Fall Winter Fashion 2013

A note to you: I like many other women out there have found comfort in my yoga pants day in and day out, and there is nothing wrong with that. If I want to have a yoga pant day, no one is stopping me... but what if we could explore our God given right as a woman and dress nice once in a while, not for anyone else, just for us. How fun would that be. It doesn't take much effort, or a whole lot of money, just a few simple staples that you can collect through out the year, and pull out when you feel like it. It really can be that simple. Just have fun... seriously in what ever you wear... be you. Be YOU-nique and just have fun. The most important thing is to pull off what is authentically you, yoga pants, dresses or jeans... be you but don't be scared of what may be stirring in your heart to try.

So in the spirit of having fun with Pinterest and my wardrobe, I decided to take one of my old pins and try and come up with an inexpensive alternative to it...

You may have seen me pin this last year...

original pin link- Fall Romantic Style

I had the dress and thought, I could totally find other items to make this cute ensemble work. Although, I didn't find the last piece to my outfit till this last summer.

Here are the two versions, one with a scarf and one without...

 

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If you click through to the link you will see that this original outfit could cost upwards of $400...

For my outfit:
Boots $40- Nectar Clothing  
(These boots are AMAZING and so comfy, I have had them for 2-3 years and love love love them)
Dress It was a gift, but I believe my mother in law got it for $20 on the clearance rack at Forever 21
Belt (not in original) $2 at a thrift store
sweater $8 at Plato's Closet
scarf gift from my sister in law, she found it at a thrift store.

Total cost: about $70, but items can be mixed and matched with other outfits.

Not a bad knock off if I do say so myself, and for a fraction of the cost just by shopping second hand stores and sales racks.

The key is to use your natural instinct to buy pieces that will work for a few different outfits for you (like a good pair of brown boots), rather than to invest all of your money into one time high impact pieces. Although the high impact pieces are amazing... they are not practical for everyday use. Believe me... I still have a glittered top that I have only worn once... because it is just not something I can pull of in the drive through pick up line at the kids school (luckily it only cost me $10).

So I hope you find my version of this cute outfit to be just as amazing as the original... I had fun sporting it to the kids school, and guess what... no one looked at me funny, lol... maybe one day I will have the guts to stand out in an Alexander McQueen ... but for now, Momma doesn't have time for that!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Liz ♥