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…

Goals! 

Plenty of us have things we’d like to accomplish. I’m finding more and more as the years go by, I’m reflecting on if I’m satisfied by my accomplishments. The verdict is: I’m not at all satisfied! I have some traveling that I would like to do, projects I would like to bring into fruition as well as some health goals I’m reaching towards that I’d like to accomplish. 

Nevertheless, I took time to reflect and plan on my next moves. While I won’t be sharing any of those goals here, I would like to encourage everyone reading to reach for a your goals. Let those goals be motivators for getting up in the morning. I have so many things that I put on a list that I wanted to conquer this year and I’ve done quite a few! I’m so proud of that! Moving forward, I am focused on not my fails but my progress…no matter how seemingly small. 

In the near future, you all will see my goals as I accomplish them and I will be sure to elaborate on them them. It is important that we not get frustrated at what seems like a fail. Each failure teaches us a lesson that can’t be learned any other way. Using focus, turn attention to all positives. Positive people, friends, thoughts and productive actions all help in gathering the gusto to check off those goals. 

Ignore the people that tell you that you can’t, the thoughts that take your confidence down and avoid procrastination. Don’t put off doing something because you’re afraid to fail. The weather isn’t always true to the current season but each season comes like clockwork! Things may not go right during a certain “season” in your life, leaving you to battle through treacherous storms but don’t put off your goals because of it. Makes accomplishments despite those storms. 

The Tiger Changes Her Stripes…

If you’ve been following my blog for a while then you may have figured out that I am a LOVER of stripes. Specifically, I have an affinity for black and white stripes. Black and white stripes is such a classic look from such a simple pattern. You don’t need to add much else to this pattern to make it great. I somehow always tend to be drawn to the black and white combination instead of branching out to other colors of this pattern. A tiger is allowed to change her stripes right?

That’s the thing about style, sometimes it revolves around feelings and circumstances. You can adjust and tweak your personal style as you grow and also to fit your feelings at the moment. I’ve changed and continue to evolve. If you do too, don’t feel bad. The fashion world does this all the time, they just called it “trends”.  Yep, sometimes it means going back to those old habits and loves. This is all a part of finding your “you” in style.

Lately I have been going back to my roots of shopping and extending my shopping searches to more than just the few places I had been before. This allows me to get a greater variety and choice of what I’m looking for. So a couple of months ago, I was able to pick up a striped dress at Justfab. Now the thing is, I had the option of grabbing my good ol comfortable, classic black and white combination but I opted for color instead.

The burgundy and navy combo is so beautiful…it’s quite classic in itself and I wanted to highlight the burgundy so I paired the dress with my suede burnt orange trench coat. The two warmer colors not only contrast but also highlight the navy in the dress allowing a great balance of color. The burgundy faux suede stiletto boots make the burgundy in the dress stand out as well as the texture of the coat. I simply added a simple choker and clutch to finish the look! Have you made any small changes to your style? If so, what changes and why?

Dress: Justfab. Shoes: Lola Shoetique. Coat: OLD. Choker: Forever 21. Clutch: TBA. 


Winter Time/Lumber “Jackie”

Yea so, if you live in the U.S., you know the weather is all over the place all over the country. It’s raining relentlessly in the south, cold in the normally warm west coast and cold in Texas. (Insert wide eyed emoji). I must say that I was not ready lol. Geez, I mean winter hasn’t officially arrived on the calendar but oh well. I had to get ready. Good thing I had been doing some shopping during the summer for fall and winter things here and there.

I grabbed this waterfall plaid vest that I’m wearing about 8 months ago. The original seller Choies, no longer has this in stock but I found an alternate seller because I love this vest (and you guys) so much! This vest is so warm and the design takes a normal lumber Jackie plaid look to a glamorous and chic level.

I am cold and there’s no other way around it so I needed to be comfortable first. I grabbed a faux leather jacket, a black turtleneck and a pair of black jeans. I added my new fave pair of booties, purchased from Target. They are so cozy and are designed after the wallabe shoe. The wedge on these boots allow my foot to stay warm and less likely to touch the snow. My faux leather adds extra texture and surprisingly warmth. The vest is the highlight of course and completes the layering aspect of this outfit. I’m outta here, going to grab me a coffee!

Vest: Here. Booties: Target. Jeans: Fashion Nova. Jacket: Sold Out.

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Grey Day…

It’s Saturday although I usually post on Fridays so we’ll just acknowledge the entire weekend instead lol. That means this post will be very brief. 

Unseasonably warm weather and the prediction of rain always puts me in a relaxed mood. I know, it seems a tad bit weird right? Well, I am going out with my girls so this is my comfy but cute outfit. The highlight? This oversized sweater. I love this piece so much because it’s so carefully constructed and made for the off the shoulder purpose. I paired this sweater with a pair of flared black pants from Forever 21 and platform booties. Of course pictures are to follow, what are you doing this weekend and what are your plans for an outfits? 

Happy Weekend! 

The Style Cake 💋

Sweater: United Front. Pants: Forever 21. Shoes: Poshmark (sold out). Bracelets: eBay. 

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Casual Friday: Gris Avec Rose Pale’ 

Happy Friday/Monday!

I know I was supposed to upload this Friday but I promise I didn’t for good reasons. Anyhoo, happy Monday too!

My obsession with pink and mauve grows. I was feeling rather girly and was going to opt for a totally different look but that girly feeling guided me right to this look.

Okay so look, I was torn between wearing a vest and a jacket because I sort of wanted to look like a bad girl and not so innocent” as softer pinks can have as an appeal. To remedy the looking too delicate, my pants have a teeny bit of deconstruction and I added a leather biker jacket. The info is all below! I’m out of here!

The Style Cake

Jacket: Forever 21, similar here. Jeans: Forever 21, similar here. Top: Missguided, similar here. Shoes: Lolashoetique.


Snapchat Photo:

Denim Done Right!

Jeans have been around for a long time. Since they’ve become part of fashion they’ve evolve and expanded in style to the simple category of: denim. Denim is coveted as an intricate part of casual wear but is often layered for classic looks as well. The variety available is expanded more than before and now denim has become a popular part of current trends.

We’ve loved denim jackets for a few decades now but over the past few years, they’ve become increasingly popular. I remember wearing denim in the 90s when there was no thought really put into wearing them, there was such an abundance of jean jackets that it was hard not to just buy one and wear it.

Since the overload of the denim trend is back around, I decided to add more of it to my personal wardrobe. I paired two pieces of denim with similar washes. It makes the outfit appear more uniform. This isn’t my first denim on denim look. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not buying a trendy design but participating in a trend with a staple piece is not a bad idea. My outfit is denim on denim and I am wearing a denim button up dress as a maxi denim cardigan/top. I’ll share my thoughts on this subject a couple of blogs from now. In the meantime, how do you wear your denim? I’ll be back tomorrow with a brief review…

The Style Cake 💋.

Top: Thrifted, similar here. Pants: Fashion Nova. Fur Scarf: Target. Shoes: Simmi Shoes. Necklace: Jewelmint, sold out. Glasses: eBay. 

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Flannel Friday

Happy Friday!!!

We made it! I’m so happy because it’s been a pretty long week for me. I wanted to relax but be cute for the start of the weekend.

Considering it’s cool out and I want to be cozy, I gravitated right to flannel! So months ago I purchased a really cute flannel button up from Brooks Brothers online. They were having a sale and I love to save my coins so I snatched this shirt up as soon as it went on sale. This flannel is so comfortable and warm, I didn’t need a jacket. I tied a denim blouse around my waist for an extra layer and pair both tops with pair of faux leather leggings from American Apparel. I added accessories and bolted out the door to get the weekend started! Let me know what you think of my look before YOU head out lol.

Have a great weekend!

The Style Cake 💋

Flannel: Brooks Brothers (sold out), similar here and here. Pants: American Apparel. Shoes: Poshmark (Forever 21 brand). Bag: eBay, sold out in black. Available (in a different color). Denim Blouse: Thrifted. Stud Earrings: Sugar Reign. Necklace: eBay. 

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Black Is the New Black

One month into fall and I still haven’t been able to wear much “fall gear” because it’s been so warm. Around this time of year, it’s usually in the 50s (degrees) so it’s kind of shocking that the temperature has been over 80. Just this week we had 87 degrees in the forecast. Am I complaining? Nope because as simple humans, we usually miss what we no longer have lol. I must admit that when summer was around, I eventually got annoyed with the hot and humid days and stuffy, still nights. 

Now, it’s been warm but in an intermittent type of way. Some days we have deep dips into crisp air but not long enough to get an outfit out there. Shoot, most of those crisp days it’s raining out. I snuck in an all black look on a week where the weather was swinging back and forth. Speaking of swinging back and forth, my mood has been swinging between blush, nude pink and black, gray and taupe. Everyone wants to claim that {insert subject} is the new black. Well I gotta say, my love for black is growing (more than I’d like it to actually) and I can’t help it. I’m sure you’ll see more black in my posts than previously seen. 

Black is the new black and I’m full effect for the season. As a matter of fact, it seem that designers are putting an emphasis on black as well as navy, plum and burgundy. I’m wearing a faux leather jacket, a black button up skirt, I wanted a nude effect under the lace for modesty and black shirt open toe boots. Check the pics and let me know what you think. 

Thank you for reading loves!

The Style Cake 💋

Jacket: Fashion Nova (sold out). Shoes: Shiekh Shoes. Tank: H&M, similar. Lace Top: Forever 21 (sold out), similar. Skirt: (old).