#5 Crisp White Shirt
#4 Slim Cropped Pants
J Crew turtle neck sweater / Gap top / J Crew chambray top / J Crew short sleeve t shirt / Edith A Miller stripe shirt, $105 / Gap lined pants / Forever 21 lobster clasp charm / Aqua tartan scarve
This is probably my favorite piece because it is so versatile. You can dress these pants up or down. They always look fresh and very gamine. I personally would wear ballet flats or wedges with these looks, but you could also rock some Converse with any and all of the options! I love that these two accessories could be worn with each item adding a different look. I have this exact pair of pants as well as a red pair and blue. If you are trying to keep a minimal classic closet you could choose just one color. I would choose black, but the blue and red would work with these tops as well.
#3 Pencil skirt
#2 Chambray
So, this is the aforementioned J Crew chambray. It is the second classic essential. It can be worn with just about anything. This week I chose to wear it with a surprisingly luxe looking pair of pixie crops from Old Navy. I am 5’11” and so I like to shop where they offer tall lengths. Although these pants would fit in a regular length as capris, I wanted to wear them as true crops. They hit just at the ankle on me in the tall length. They have a houndstooth jacquard print which is hard to represent in photos. I chose nude pumps and a chunky gold necklace. Here’s me:
Shirtdress
#1 LBD
Ten Classic Items for Your Closet #1
#1 LBD
To achieve a classic look and never have to say “I have nothing to wear”, you must have certain essential items. Two years ago I made an appointment with a personal style consultant at J Crew. I wouldn’t have thought to do this on my own, but they sent me a gift card to use towards purchase if I made an appointment with one of their consultants. Free money? I was so there, even though I had my doubts. It wasn’t at all coercive or time consuming as I had thought it would be. When I arrived, she asked what I needed help with. I told her my dilemma; lots of clothes, nothing to wear. She asked a few questions like what I did for a living. She asked if I had a chambray shirt or a pencil skirt. A what? and no. How about pants? Did I like what I had? No. She gave me three pieces of clothing to try on. Only three.She didn’t try to sell me the entire store. I ended up buying an off white pencil skirt, and cropped skinny pants, both on sale. Their chambray was too expensive, so I waited and bought one online at J Crew Factory.
That really shook me up and made me look at things differently. With only a few essential pieces, you can create so many great looks and over 10 different posts I will introduce you to them all, starting with the little black dress.
This is one of three black dresses I own. This one is Ann Taylor Loft and came from that same hospital thrift store where I got the DVF wrap dress. All of their non-designer dresses are $6.99! I don’t know if you can see it in the picture since it is a black dress, but there are darts at the waist line which camouflage my tummy. It was missing a belt, but since you could basically add just about any belt to this dress and look fabulous, that wasn’t a problem. I chose a leopard print. I wore black wedges. Betsey Johnson drop earrings added a youthful touch.
Variations on this outfit include colorful and/or wide belts, a scarf, a statement necklace, a cardigan, and for fall/winter, tights and boots or booties.
Class. Classic. Classroom.
Class
: showing stylish excellence
: a group of students who meet regularly to be taught a subject or activity
Classic
: used to say that something has come to be considered one of the best of its kind
: used to say that something is an example of excellence
: used to describe something that has been popular for a long time
Classroom
: a place where classes meet
This year I had a major milestone birthday. I started seriously thinking about how I could express myself through my style. I’ve spent most of my life shopping sales and buying clothing one piece at a time. I would buy a top because I liked it and took no time to consider what I would wear it with or how many things I already had like it. I ended up with a closet full of mismatched styles none of which seemed to work together. I found myself always saying, “I have nothing to wear!” This past summer I spent a lot of time on Pinterest exploring looks and styles. I searched keywords like classic, classic style, icons, etc. Then within one week I found two different articles one in Elle magazine and one on a blog on how to look like you are rich. Now, I don’t care how much money you think I have but I do think there is something to that understated, non-logo/label, classic style that makes you look timeless and lovely. I deconstructed my entire closet, eliminated a lot of things that weren’t working for me, or I never wore, and started looking for classic pieces on the cheap.
It can actually take a lot of money to look like you’re not trying. My goal on this blog is to share how I am trying to live this look on a teacher’s salary. Welcome to Haute for Teacher. I hope you will join me in this virtual classroom as I share these basic tenets with you.
When a woman says, “I have nothing to wear,” what she means is, “There’s nothing here for who I’m supposed to be today.” – Caitlin Moran
DVF First Day of School
Today was the first day of school for many. I always want to look my best for that first day. I knew for weeks before today what I was going to wear, this Diane von Furstenberg silk wrap dress. I had never worn a wrap dress before. It is basically like wearing a robe all day. Wrap dresses will never go out of style and are very forgiving and flattering. This particular version is navy and cream, has bust pockets and hip pockets and fits like a dream. How does one on a teacher’s salary afford such a luxury? Thrift stores, eBay, sales, store reward cash and the like. This little beauty just happened to come from a local hospital thrift store. Like most hospital thrift stores, it is run by little white-headed old ladies who wouldn’t know DVF from FTL. This particular dress was only $14. $14!!! It looked and smelled like it had never been worn. Yes, I smell clothes before I buy them. Regardless of the non-odor, I did take it to the dry cleaners before wearing it.
I accessorized with small gold hoops, Timex men’s watch and Easy Spirit nude pumps. I get so many compliments on this Timex. $70 at Macy’s and I think I even got it on sale for $40 or $50. So much cheaper than the Michael Kors watches that will soon be out of style. I don’t wear clothes to advertise anyway. Let the designs do the talking, not the labels. All three of these items are beautiful and great quality.
Haute for Teacher 