Inspiration

Until about six months ago, I never really thought about copying styles that I like. Mostly, I just saw someone wearing a cute outfit, complimented them on it (or briefly admired it in a magazine/movie/blog, etc), and then didn't think of it again. With my recent addiction to fashion, however, I'm finding a lot of styles that I like and actually want to try.

My biggest source of inspiration comes from www.lookbook.nu-- but to give you a fair warning, it's more "Urban Outfitters" and less "Banana Republic". Since my lifestyle tends towards the more casual side, this style of clothing is probably the most practical. Most of my social circles lean towards the arts and less towards the corporate world, although I'd honestly love a job where I could wear pencil skirts and stilettos every day.

So today's outfit inspiration actually came from Pinterest (the photo above). It's a color combination that I wouldn't have thought of in a million years-- navy and rose. But I have pretty much everything to put the outfit together, so I decided to try it out.

First, I was torn between two blazers that I own: a more fitted pale rose corduroy or a more boxy taupe. Since I found the color combo more important than the fit, I went with the corduroy.

Secondly, I'm not thrilled with the new GAP tees. I loved the old v-necks they had, but these new tees shrink up quite a bit-- even if you lay them flat to dry! So my top, while tucked in, ended up being short enough that it kept untucking itself. Bleh!

I almost went for my high-waisted '70s style flares because I love the rise of the jeans in the "inspiration" photo. I decided instead to go for my skinnies, even though they're slightly-below-waist.

Lastly, I had a bit of an issue with the black boots. I tried my black motorcycle boots and they just didn't work. I thought about my black knee-high riding-inspired boots, but I already knew I wasn't a fan of black footwear with this outfit. Between the navy and the rose colors, brown seemed SO much more appropriate. But then . . . taupe was even MORE perfect. Steve Madden to the rescue!

These shoes (which are the most important part of any outfit-- only slightly more so than blazers/jackets, IMO) have an interesting story. Several months ago I started noticing the lace-up boot trend, and I wasn't sure I was on board with it. It just didn't quite look right to me. When I spotted these Steve Maddens, however, I started thinking I might could be convinced of this trend.

So, being more of a "quantity vs quality" shopper (I'll post more on that another day) I actually started shopping for a more affordable lace-up boot. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything that didn't either scream "Victorian stuffy!" or "Goth!" or "I look like a man's shoe!". When I walked by these Steve Maddens again on my birthday, I knew it was either going to be them, or none . . . so my husband got them for me as a present!

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of '70s inspired fashion, so these shoes fit me just perfectly-- platform sole, 5" heels, awesome buckle. The taupe color is amazing, too.

I really can't wait to try a few more styles I've bookmarked on Pinterest or spotted on lookbook.nu . . . or spotted on a friend and loved so much I have to copy the color scheme/style immediately.

Outfit info: blazer (H&M), tee (GAP), jeans (Express), shoes (Steve Madden).

What are your main sources of fashion inspiration, or do you like to "just wing it"?