Chicness is My Weakness (Right on Tori Spelling)

I spent a good chunk of yesterday trying on and organizing my outfits for my Senior Portrait. Oh yes, I am that anal (You should have seen me before our Holland trip! I took a whole day organizing my clothes into 6 or 7 different outfits, then switching the tops and bottoms around to create 6 or 7 new outfits for the second week, then I wrote every single outfit down and took that list with me). So it got me thinking....

SCHOOL CLOTHES

*Please keep in mind that for 11 school years I wore a uniform, and only two years ago did I start getting to wear "real clothes" to school, if you can call it that. Because my current school has all these weird "guidelines" that we have to adhere to in our dress code. For example: We can't wear jeans except for on Fridays, the top edge of our shirt can't be lower than two finger spaces below the collarbone (mind you, I didn't even know where my collarbone was in relation to my shirts until two years ago, and let me tell you, it's pretty high!), you can't wear shirts with graphics on them unless they are 3 inches in one dimension ( height or length) and the list goes on and on. So if these clothes are little bland, forgive me! :]

The typical pants that are worn at my school are cords and khakis. I have a plethora of them in a multitude of colors hanging in my closet right now. It is up to us to jazz up our outfits within the rules, and by starting with the pants above you have a leg up, so to speak. They are khakis, but they are straight leg, "skinny pants" if you will, so they stray away from the conventional blandness a little. $32.50-38.50

The reigning store brands at my school are stores like Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister, and American Eagle. Yes, we are a prep nation, for the most part. I cannot stand the first two stores, but I don't mind American Eagle. Above is one of their legendary hoodies, and I like it because while most of their hoodies scream American Eagle, this one only whispers it with a small AE in the corner. $39.50

Then again, I also like this one :] $39.50

Like I said, it is up to us to create our own creativity in our wardrobe, school or otherwise. I like these pants just for their shear outrageous color, and what do ya know? They also have 'em in purple! $39.50

I love this shirt a whole lot. Of course, immediately, the empire waist jumps out as an obvious plus. And while some empire waist shirts can be boring and drab, this one definitely isn't! $24.50

Again, empire waist, but so much more than that. If I had the materials and the means (i.e I knew how to sew) I would be making this kind of shirt every day. It's so pretty to look at, and the detailing is exquisite. $26.50

I do not even have to say what makes me love this shirt, I'm sure you can tell ;] Not only is this sweater conservative enough for my school, but it is ARGYLE. Ever since it began appearing in the JCPenney Back to School ads, I knew I had to have it. It's very Ivy League-y, but in a modern way. $24.99

First let me say, I love Kimora Lee Simmon's new show, Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane, mostly because she has everything I want, a huge house, lots of clothes and shoes and accessories, assistants (yes I'd love to have a life busy enough to warrant assistants), a size 4 shape, 2 beautiful kids, and an EMPIRE. But enough of my dreaming. This sweater is very school-appropriate and I have to say I also LOVE the skirt this is paired with. $79



I love this sweater vest. In Washington it is all about layers! Because when the weather is so cold that the high is like 40 degrees that day and you can still see your breath at 3:00 in the afternoon, it's icy. I could wear this with a long sleeve shirt underneath, some really dark jeans on a Friday (of course), and some Nike Court Force Lows (in my dreams, they cost like $80). Does it help that I saw a picture of Jessica Biel in a very similar outfit in a gossip magazine? Maybe... ;] $13.99

You'll notice that I have mostly tops on this post. And there is a reason for that. My theory is that you can only have a limited selection of pants and still have many great outfits and options as long as you have many tops to switch around on top. I had eight pairs of pants that I rotated Monday through Thursday (and wore jeans on Friday) and they were the same pants over and over again, but it wasn't that big a deal because I always wore them with a different top. Case in point, the tops of choice for both students and teachers (they like that you can button them up past your collarbone) are polo shirts. No graphics, high necklines, many different colors to choose from. And my favorite? The old Navy Stretch Pique polos, which happen to be on sale for only ten dollars. You're welcome :] $10