Copying Steve McQueen Style

Now that it's starting to get a little warmer here in Minnesota, I figured who'd better to copy than the King of Cool: Steve McQueen. I fell in love with McQueen after watching The Great Escape with my uncle after one Christmas dinner. It is now one of my favorite movies, and McQueen is one of my favorite actors. So how does a tomboy chic girl dress like McQueen? Easy.

Start with the shades. Seriously, it's all about the shades. These Persol shades are the same ones McQueen wore. Next, add a sleeveless button-up. Steve was often photographed shirtless, in a classic white tee, or button-ups. To me a white, sleeveless button-up is the perfect mix of all three. Steve was also often photographed with preppy khakis. I'm not a huge fan of khakis myself, so I chose these light-wash straight leg jeans from Helmut Lang. Motorcycle boots seemed too easy of a choice, so I went for a pair of moccasin boots instead for a slight 70s vibe. To complete the look, I added this Jennifer Fisher gun necklace. To me, this gun necklace represents McQueen's effortless coolness as well as a shout out to many of the movies he played--cowboys, POW, etc.  And last, but not least, this Barbour Steve McQueen Collection Backpack is way cooler, and much more Steve-appropriate, than a purse. 

So what do you think? Will you try to copy the King of Cool?

How to Wear Earrings

Sometimes I look and the mirror and remember that my ears are pierced. I don't know what it is about earrings, but I always forget about them. This drives my mother crazy. She can't leave the house without putting in earrings. I remember many times before going out that my mom would send me back into my room to put on a pair of earrings.

But today, as I was looking into the bathroom at my naked ears, I remembered how she grew up in a culture were wearing earrings was important. It was the final step to any outfit. And this got me to thinking about how many times I actually wear earrings a month. Once? Twice? None? Why are my ears even pierced? I remember that it was something important to do at the time. There was even a time in high school when I had more piercings, but, as you may have guessed, I kept forgetting to put earrings in and so they shortly closed.

I'm not promising that I'll start wearing earrings. But, for this post, I did something a little different: I designed outfits around earrings. If I do wear earrings, it's a last thought sort of thing. An "oh, I haven't worn any in a while and I should so my holes don't close up." But I found that it's actually easier than I anticipated creating an outfit off of one tiny object: the ears.

For my first look, I decided to focus on beautiful dangle, or as I learned, drop earrings. These are way out of my budget, but I fell in love with the moons and sun. I decided that I wanted to keep the rest of the outfit simple, and so I paired it with an oversized sweatshirt and ripped jeans. To accessorize, I wanted a fun and colorful satchel, printed sneakers, and tortoise shell sunglasses.
For my next outfit, I wanted something a little more French school girl. I started with a pair of golden studs and added a simple white top with high-waisted black shorts. To keep it a little fresh and edgy, I added a belt with neon accents, knee highs, and ankle booties. As well as adding my new favorite accessory: the wide-brimmed fedora.
For this look, I really wanted to push myself out of the box some. I started with a pair of fun and bright parrot earrings. I knew with such a statement piece that I wanted to keep the rest of the outfit fairly simple, but I also didn't want another t-shirt combination. So instead I went for a sexy, and yet tailored romper with bright coral stilettos (playing off the Tropicana theme of the earrings). To finish off the look, I wanted something even more daring, and so, I added a head wrap.

Lastly, I chose a pair of silver hoop earrings. I find hoops to be the hardest earrings to get away with wearing. I don't know why that is, but for me, they are. Since I had the hoops, I knew I wanted something edgy, so I started with a leather biker jacket. I then surprised myself, by pairing it with a denim dress, cowboy boots, and turquoise ring. But I really like the complete look.

 

 

Alright, so I can't promise that I remember to wear earrings on a more daily basis, but it is a nice challenge to try every once in a while. 

Copying: Ellen Page Style

Hey everyone. This week my boyfriend and I re-watched Inception. I will go ahead and tell you that I'm not a huge fan of this movie, but I did enjoy it much more the second time I watched it. 

I've also been thinking of ways to get back into blogging. And well, I decided to do a copying style. Ellen Page's style has become more sophisticated, but it still has a little tomboy vibe to it. I decided to mix together a few of her "every day" sort of outfits (you know, the paparazzi type photos). I also wanted to add some hair and makeup ideas as well since lately she's been seen with wavy hair and a smoker eye. 

Anyway, I hope you enjoy! And be on the lookout for a variety of new posts including outfits of the day and diys.

Tee: I was inspired by the peter pan collar button-up she's wearing in the photo, but I wanted something I little more loose fitted.. cue in cross between Aerie Peter Pan Hi-Lo Tee.

Jeans: Ellen loves her skinny jeans

Scarf: For a while, there were a few paparazzi pics of Ellen rocking a scarf around her neck (just like her character in To Rome With Love).

Curling iron: Curling irons make great beachy waves. Just wrap the hair around the barrel instead of using the clip.

Eyeliner: In almost every picture I saw, Ellen has black eyeliner on.

Sneakers: I wasn't sure what kicks Ellen prefers so I stuck with a basic canvas sneaker.

Denim jacket: In photos of her at Cannes, she was rocking an awesome black denim jacket similar to this one by Dravus Girls.

Eyeshadow quad: Lancome Color Design, perfect for a quick smoky eye.

Hats Off to Spring

Sorry I've been a little MIA lately. I'm busy finishing up my last semester of grad school, working on my thesis, and the many other little projects I do. Hopefully I'll be able to start posting more regularly again after the next few weeks.

I've also been doing a lot of spring cleaning. My biggest task has been cleaning out my closet and getting rid of those things that don't really fit/I don't wear etc. I like to do this about once a year (usually about this time). This year however, I've really been gutting. In the past I might keep something I was on the fence about, but this year all that stuff is going! I'm trying to whittle down my closet to the essentials and things that fit amazing--not just okay!

Anyway, during my massive cleaning, I stumbled upon a few baseball hats that I completely forgot I had (oops). Baseball hats are pretty much a staple in any tomboy's wardrobe and they've become particularly popular in street fashion lately. So, how do I wear them in a nice-I'm-uber-cool-and-effortless-street-fashion way? The guide I've made today is just as much for me as for you. Hopefully it will help us all.

Outfit one:
I decided to start slow by adding a neutral-colored baseball hat to an outfit. Because of this, I could really go any were, but y'all knowing me, I decided to pair it with a girly, flowing top and some edge with a leather jacket. I thought that loose-fitting boyfriend jeans would balance everything out along with a neutral-colored satchel purse and cowboy booties.

Outfit two:
For my second outfit, I decided to go a little funkier and started with a studded baseball cap. I wanted this outfit to be sporty but also a little office appropriate so I paired it with a cotton blouse with leather edging--perfect to go with the punk-y hat--and a classic black pencil skirt. (I also added a black tank to be worn underneath). To keep it sporty, I added some funky sneakers and a classic satchel purse.

Outfit three:
Now I was ready to get colorful! I started with this awesome mixed print hat by Opening Ceremony and paired it with leather shorts. I wanted to add some more color, but also keep the outfit sort of basic to balance out the extreme hat so I paired my shorts with a classic v-neck tee and a bold orange blazer. I wanted some unexpected shoes so I added classic oxfords and a fun gold clutch.

Outfit four:
This final outfit is the most "spring" out of the bunch. I love the flower printed cap and thought it would  look great with a white dress. I toughed the look up a bit with a denim vest and bright purse, but completed the look with simple black flats.

I hope you are inspired by these looks and find new ways to wear your old (or new) caps as well!