Who says a small versatile wardrobe has to be full of solid colored boring clothing? I find some of my most-worn pieces are the ones that make quite a statement. One thing I have always found useful in my wardrobe is a dressy t-shirt style blouse in a print. With my body changing, I found none of these blouses fit. As I mentioned in a previous Weekend Reads, I ordered this blouse from J. Crew and it was just the statement-making basic I needed.
blouse | pants | shoes | belt | bag | coat | sunglasses | earrings 
Blouse: J. Crew (14; on sale!) | Pants: Refined Crepe Ankle Pants c/o Talbots (16P but tailored to fit now; similar) | Belt: Leopard-Buckle Belt c/o Chico's (sold out; another cool belt) | Jacket: old gift from Talbots (similar concept) | Bag: Clare V. | Earrings: Jenny Bird | Sunglasses: Ray-Ban | Shoes: Nine West 
How to wear such a blouse? Pair with black ankle pants and leather flats or pumps for work. Tuck into high-waisted jeans in a dark wash, black, or dark gray with ankle boots for a night out. Leave untucked with white jeans and add color with a scarf. Wear under a suit, or with a blazer and your favorite skinny jeans. Tuck into a pencil skirt. Wear with faux-leather leggings and a boyfriend blazer. Pair with a colorful pair of trousers - go classic with a straight or full leg or trendy with a paperboy waist and tapered legs. Throw it on with a long cardigan, jeggings, and boots and look way more pulled together than if you replaced it with a t-shirt.
These are the same pants that are part of this suit. I don't separate this suit a lot because I don't want one piece to get more worn out than the other, but the occasional wear is fine. Even though these pants have a tux stripe, by being paired with this blouse it dresses them down to make them appropriate for day. Adding a belt also dresses them down.
The belt I wore in this post and even in this Instagram photo and I looooove it. I'm sad that I saw it still on the Chico's website this weekend but by time I wrote this post it was sold out. But this is another example of how a statement belt is actually a great wardrobe addition (this is the last time I got all wild and crazy with a belt). Don't believe me? Watch the runways where brands like Gucci are rocking belts with statement buckles. Below I have a carousel of cool belts I've found online that can bring some oomph to your wardrobe.
This coat was my first gifted item from Talbots back in 2014 and it remains one of my favorite pieces in my closet. It's one of those versatile coats that can dress up with a cocktail dress or be more casual with pants and jeans. Going through my archives wearing this coat I found this post, I almost forgot that my husband used to have such a beard!
