Casual Conundrum: Solutions

Dang sweater... nicely hung up on my booty in all the shots...

So yeah, the whole week was sort of a moving week, so Tuesday was another forced casual day.

I have a great friend, who, when she culls her closet, I get first dibs on them. I don't know how it works out as well as it does, because her style and my style are like 2 parallel lines (even in infinity, they would never intersect), and our body types are very different (she's Amazon, and I have a lot of midget-genes in my pool) but I get a LOT of great stuff from her. This sweater is one of them. As soon as I pulled it out of the bag, I knew I was going to like it. I could just tell from the feel of the material. Not to mention, I really love the color. I also really dig the collar, and the fact that it is meant to just be done up at the neck. Its very different from everything I own, so I am happy to add it to my closet. And that was Tuesday's outfit.

To get back to the casual conundrum, there are a few things I do when dressing comfortably that I feel raise the bar.

First is always have your hair did. For me, it actually works both ways. Call me crazy, but if my hair is looking like crap, I don't bother dressing nicely either. I guess it just feels pointless to me. Here's a basic rule of thumb. If you just let your hair air dry after coming out of the shower... its not done. Unless you are somehow blessed with very straight hair. Oddly enough, my sister can do that... but she's one of the chosen few. Odds are, you need to do something to it.





Second: accessorize a little. A nice pair of earrings isn't going to cramp your packing/cleaning/sitting-in-the-bleachers-watching-a-game style, but it is going to amp up your outfit. I'm not saying you need purse/belt/earrings/hat/scarf combinations in order to make the magic happen (in fact, that's all really too much) but a little something extra, is well... something extra.

Third: WEAR A GOOD BRA. This really applies to any sort of dressing you are doing, be it casual, professional, or Cinderella-at-the-Ball. Ladies. WEAR A GOOD BRA. Some curvy women are blessed in the booby department. Some are extra blessed. Some are a little less blessed. Whatevs. WEAR A GOOD BRA. See how I've said that three times in this point, and in caps no less.
This means I am serious. In case I wasn't clear yet. A bad boob situation could seriously make Kate frickin' Middleton look like a hot mess. Yes... even The Kate.

Fourth: Slap a little makeup on. Just a little. I am not suggesting you go all Divine on us, but its a rare girl that doesn't look a little bit better with some concealer and mascara on.  Oh, and a little lippy. Ok, lip gloss... it doesn't have to be actual lipstick.

And our fifth and final point of the evening: Work 'dem shoes. I think I mentioned this before, but sneakers are for the gym. Or working out in general. Or Nelly (speaking of... whatever happened to Nelly?!?).
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that you need to wear spike heels. I have 2 pairs of shoes that are low that I wear when I am being casual-like: my moto boots, and my cowboy style boots. Both are probably maxing out at maybe 2 inches from sea level, and they both have wide heels, so they are super comfy. Like, walk-in-the-mall-then-Target-then-the-outlets-on-a-cross-border-American-shopping-trip comfy. Just make sure they are fashionable. I know I am potentially going to offend some people with my next words, and I apologise, but its just how I feel you know?
I am not mentioning flats here, because I feel like they are not a friend to many of us. And by us I mean curvier women. I wear them sometimes, and sometimes I even feel like they look pretty good in the right application. But I am trying to make these tips applicable to a broad range of curvy women, and I will just end this by saying that flats are not doing some of us any favours. There. I said it. Sorry, but in a lot of cases its true. And, a lot of the time, they are trick of the light away from being slippers... and that's not going to help us dress up the casual.

OK, so, this list is obviously not exhaustive, but these are the top 5 things that I try and do to make a casual outfit look pulled together. I would really love to hear from you what you think the little things are that we can do to give a casual outfit a little oomph.

So in closing...

You'll never change my mind about sneakers. Don't even try.

Sweater: gifted

Tank: Old Navy (the Tami)

Jeans: Trusty ole Torrid jeggings (in a darker wash today)

Boots: Trusty ole Torrid boots (a few seasons ago; similar styles here)

Earrings: Spring Shoes (can't find 'em online. Love the horn backing!)

Bracelet: ebay. I want to get one in every color now.

Ring: can't recall, probably Claires (Clares?) or Ardene. Who cares. Its shiny.