How To Style: Casual Menswear 2021

As a child, my mother dressed me in plenty masculine clothes. Did I love it? Absolutely not! Ugh! I hated those baggy, brown plaid, squarely designed and patterned clothing. It was not me and I spent time trying to wear as many clingy pieces that I could when I got old enough. 

As an adult, I somehow always find the appeal in menswear. I style my husband and son quite often because I love the intricacies of suits and accessories, matching and contrasting colors, plaids and stripes. Once when my son had school pictures, I dressed him in a hoodie and jeans. I couldn’t be “normal” though so I had to add a blazer on the outside and a button up shirt underneath the hoodie. He felt so cool and I think I almost loved the outfit more than he did!

I was a bit inspired this time around to wear something inspired by what my son wears these days. He’s almost a teen which I can’t believe but I enjoy watching him put things together. It gives me inspiration to get put together on days where I feel like being frumpy. Since I still feel frumpy most days, I wanted to put an outfit together that not only reflects that but something of a outfit that I can go out for drinks in and still feel cozy. Maybe it’s just me, quarantine can really damper the desire to get all dressed up!

I grabbed what I had in my closet but with tags still on and created the look I was going for: casual menswear. One of the most comfortable things I wear are my husbands shirts and joggers. This time I wore my clothes even though I felt like I was wearing his…but in style!

Hat: Pretty Little Thing.

Boots: SOLD OUT.

Shirt: Calvin Klein.

Joggers (Green SOLD OUT): J Lux Label.

Blazer: Boohoo.

 

How To Style: The Comfort of Sophistication

“…go ahead and switch the style up…” -50 (shrugs).

Not the most sophisticated quote huh? That’s what I remembered when I decided that I would start blogging again. Things have changed for me though. Before, blogging was sheer experimentation with fashion. I’ve enjoyed playing with trends and toying around with colors, patterns, fabrics and eras that these fit into. I’ve always had a “style” but I figured I was boring. I needed to find some fun venturing into the broad lanes of fashion. I enjoyed the ride and am ready to be comfortable in my own style again. While venturing into fashion, I could’ve cared less about being polished or “put together”. Sometimes, my outfit just turned out polished. Being polished wasn’t my goal, experience was.

I now know what I love. Even more, I know what fabrics fall best on my body. I remember from my initial discovery of my style what colors I love to see against skin as well as patterns. I decided to only wear styles of skirts, dresses, pants, tops, etc that compliment my body no matter how gorgeous it looks on screen, mannequin or hangers. This is my style. When you find your style, you’re most comfortable. There’s something very sophisticated about being comfortable in your own style. Wearing things properly fitted in patterns that compliment the skin tone you have and accentuating certain parts of the body is sophistication. No NEED for “labels” or monograms, spending tons and draining the account. The comfort of sophistication costs nothing! I switched my style up…back to the original me and I’m comfortable with that!

Coat: Old, Pants: OhPolly (sold out), Bodysuit (similar): Pretty Little Thing, Handbag: H&M (sold out), similar: Rainbow, Belt: Vintage, Hat (Alternate Color): Pretty Little Thing, Sunglasses: Forever 21 (sold out).

Hello Y’all, It’s Me Candace…

Man. It’s been an incredibly long time since I’ve been on here writing. Quite frankly, I was feeling ashamed at my unintentional absence. Days turned into a week…weeks turned into a month…months turned into over a year. Smh. Yes, I’m actually shaking my head. I’ve been uninspired almost the entire time I’ve been absent. Life really just has been a lot to tackle over the past couple of years. I could go on with specifics, but I’m sort of a private person and out of respect for my family I won’t indulge.

Otherwise, I’m truly excited to be back! I’m not sure if I’ve ever shared my name but by now you’ve probably figured out that it’s Candace. I just wanted to reintroduce myself but in a private, personable way. Look, plenty of influencers take breaks and I’m no different. I never thought I would NEED a break from blogging because I loved it so much but this time off has taught me a ton! As a matter of fact, that’s the reason I wanted to start off by telling you guys my name. I intend to exude parts of my personality more in this style blogging thing-a-ma-jig. Y’all ready? Set? Let’s go! Let’s see what I come up with! To be continued…

(Why?) Thrifting Saves Personal Style From Going Down the Fashion Drain…Avoiding Fashion Nova

I think if you follow any bloggers these days you know that a ton are both fashion and style bloggers. But if you’re surfing for inspiration, it can be hard to decide what works for your wardrobe and what is just the white noise of the blogging world/pure entertainment. I remember even before I ventured into blogging my personal style, I used to see tons of pictures that showed fresh and new ideas, takes and angles on fashion and style.

As of recent, I can’t say that I really see anything that inspires me in the style/fashion blogging world anymore. It seems everyone is following each other’s lead, without even considering whether their wardrobe choice fits their personal style. This honestly makes everyone look redundant so to speak, with no bravery to veer off the mainstream path. I can’t say that I haven’t decided to ride the wave a couple of times but I quickly learned from my horrible mistake of second guessing myself! That being the case, what keeps others from truly identifying their personal style? Currently, everything sold in stores seems to push the “let’s all look alike” trend. Every store has all the trendy pieces and although you can still find classic and eclectic pieces, you won’t be noticed much if you’re not wearing and further exaggerating the current trends…or will you?

Probably a year ago, I vowed to thrift less and devote more time to grabbing newer, contemporary pieces. Well, rebuilding my staple closet pieces has been going well. Staying true to me? That’s been a little more difficult. Not because I am aiming to appear popular and poppin like those bloggers that mimick the Kardashian style but because the retail stores don’t have the variations of pieces that allow true style. My closet isn’t skimpy by any means but I purge and rotate frequently to keep my wardrobe refreshed, functional and age appropriate. When I’m looking to re-up on some things, I almost have to thrift for quality and options. At least I have more money left for savings while maintaining my sense of individual style and taste right?

The fact of the matter is that when buying clothes, quality is just as important as style. I’ve ventured into fast fashion myself and I can tell you that fast fashion is another name for throw away clothing. I recall putting on a dress and putting a hole in it. Smh, such a shame as I had no nails, not that that should have mattered anyway eye roll. I don’t even label clothing like that “pieces” because they really don’t add anything to a wardrobe. At the thrift stores, it’s completely possible to find quality pieces…even those that are on trend.

Vintage also provides uniqueness and quality on a budget without looking cheap, dated, or unpolished. Even though some boutiques offer polished wardrobe pieces, the quality is just not there. Generally, you’d have to spend major bucks to get a sturdy quality made blazer in a feminine silhouette at the department store. Try thrifting, often times you can find those blazers for about 95% off the original price! Of course you don’t have to buy designer pieces specifically, I don’t…but I recommend that you search for quality while searching for your style. This shouldn’t be hard since most times the fast fashion pieces never hold up long enough to even make it to the thrift store lol. Trends are are always revolving so thrifting allows you to find trendy pieces on a dime as well. These trendy pieces you can keep because the quality keeps on giving!

Tip:

Just like you would any department stores, hunt for your treasure! Be sure to visit various thrift stores in your area and in the surrounding area. Also, if you go traveling out of town, check out the stores in that area. Different climates and areas breed different styles and availability of trendy pieces. Use coupons and ask if there’s a mailing list to receive them. For online thrifting, check Etsy and Ebay…just remember not to pay retail prices for thrift items online! Have fun and be stylish!

Why I Needed a Blogging & Social Media Break…

I swear I never thought I’d get back to the point of being excited about blogging again. Quite frankly, blogging had become more of a chore and pretty much a bore…no “bars” intended lol.

If you’re a blogger of any kind, I think you can probably relate to how ruthless the blogging world can be. Since I hate drama and am content in my own little bubble, putting myself “out there” got me more than I bargained for. I expected more comraderary from fellow bloggers but ya’ll competition is real out here…even if you’re not competing. I won’t spend much more time on that negativity but to say with real things going on in life, I couldn’t fathom letting trivial bits of pettiness and mean girl personas to move me in any way. I had to focus on getting me back to my best self.

In the midst of blogging, I think I neglected myself more than I realized. Truth is, I neglected myself a ton! I spent a lot of time researching info, growing my Instagram and social media influence and that left little time to really take care of me. I’ve talked about some health issues I have before and not putting myself first was having a negative effect on those pre-existing issues. The oxymoron of it all is that all you saw was me writing about what I was wearing, my skin, my self care solutions. Sadly, I let…myself…go.

As if my own self sabatoge wasn’t enough, our family suffered a few losses last year. One loss this year. Yes I said a few and then one. Mentally, everyone who loses a loved one needs time to reflect and gather themselves to be emotionally fit to move forward. That’s just reality. When you have children, you need more time because children need consoling and nurturing. Ours (hubby’s and mine) are at the age where they are “aware” and have questions, legit ones, about the situation surrounding the death. After they are “okay”, us parents need to usher into self care.

I’m currently on that journey of self care. I suffered extreme hair loss, skin flare ups of all kinds including hives, acne and eczema, headaches, joint and muscle pain and more things that I’ll not have to mention because the above is enough. I had to get these things in order and fast! To resolve these issues calls for more than just some sort of salve or serum. Deep research, medical help and just re-acquainting myself with my body again was essential. Now while I am still in process, I am discovering other fruits that need pruning or plucking from my life. Not that they’re necessarily bad but they provide no enrichment or “nutrition” to me as a person or to my life.

Folks…rid yourself of people, habits, so called goals, mindsets, platforms, loves and hates that don’t help you to be a better person. We grow physically but mental health and growth is just as important…actually more important. Social media is social. It’s not essential in order for us to survive. If IG was shut down for good, if YouTube was outlawed, where would that leave you? I had to ask myself if I was too deeply enthralled with something that encourages faux realities. I actually became a part of it. I looked like I took better care of myself that I actually did. That’s the long and short of it. And look, we all neglect ourselves from time to time but I was extreme. I saw problems and put them off making excuses of not having time. Buy out time. (I got that straight from the Bible lol.) It will cost time from something else but its worth it.

Where am I now? Well I am still a blogger and I have some posts that will be coming out but I am pacing myself. I don’t have to post a new look every day or every three days. I’ve decided on once per week. Maybe a lookbook in between. I’m working on my social media plan but it can not overtake my life. Perspective is important and I’ve put things in perspective.

That being said, I am working on some things that I will share a little later. Hopefully, you guys will be as excited as I am about them!

Style Series: (Sweatshirt) Chic

It’s starting to feel like spring!

To me, late winter/early spring is perfect sweatshirt weather. I decided to do a two-part style series showcasing sweatshirts. Sometimes sweatshirts get a bum rap but if styled, they can be very chic. The sweatshirt I purchased is not typical in thickness so layering worked. What I love is the obvious label of “sweat shirt” on the front.   Check out how I styled it and let me know what you think!

Sweatshirt- SheInside
Distressed Jean Vest- Gadzooks
Fur booties- Shoedazzle
Skirt- Boohoo
Necklace- Jewelmint
Handbag- Justfab

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