ESSENTIALS: Summer White Dress Perfection

Hey Dears!

I think we all have those non-stop days that make us nervous, because we know we will be moving from appointment to appointment throughout the day and we're not going to have that much time to change. Today's essential is THE perfect option, stay in the same dress and just change the accessories and voila!

A White Dress like this just HAS to be in your closet, its a maxidress so it has some sophistication implicit to it, I love the fit and V-neck, its very flattering to almost all body types + white is a universally flattering color :)

When looking for this essential on your next shopping trip, the main thing you have to check for is a quality fabric! The secret to a great looking white dress is the softness of the material, therefore a stiff fabric or one that easily wrinkles will not be the best investment, you either can go for a great jersey that has some good weight to it or silk, any of this two would be the safe way to go.

Below you can find the exact same dress I use for inspiration and two other options in different price ranges:

$$$$ NORMA KAMALI

$$$ Zappos
 
$$ Nordstrom

Enjoy shopping and thanks for stopping by!!

♥

Liliana.

ESSENTIALS #5: The Leather Jacket

Its that time again Dears!! Yeey! :D Essentials! Love'em...

I cannot begin to tell you how much I ♥ leather jackets, I mean, I don't think I could ever say I have too many :D For me, this essential has been always my staple even when they were not that much in fashion, I always felt that added edge and personality to my outfits, but also I find it very practical, since the care required is really minimum!

I have put 3 examples on how versatile the jacket can be, I hope you enjoy them, because I could wear any of this in a heartbeat :)

Now, lets get to the technicalities, shall we? If you are a normal human being...not like me ha-ha...meaning you're looking to have just 1 fabulous version of this in your closet then pay attention to the following:

SHAPE: This is the most important thing to look for, because, you can have a great material very expensive item and if it doesn't fit like a glove and looks amazing on you, guess what!? you are not going to wear it and you will end up having this baby waaaay in the back of your closet and your investment would be in vain. Particularly on a leather jacket that you want to use for different purposes, you want to get one that is nicely fitted at the waist to add that femininity that you will need in order to pair this with a nice dress for an example, if the shape is a little slouchy perhaps would look great with jeans but it will not transition well to a more sophisticated look.

MATERIAL: Whether you wear real leather or only vegan leather (faux-leather), fortunately there are great quality options in the market nowadays :)  Look for medium thickness in the material, if its too thin probably will need more care as it could rip easily and if its too thick its going to be probably to bulky for some looks or outfits.

HARDWARE: This, is a key point where you can tell the quality on leather goods, my rule? “If it looks cheap it will chip” ;) also if the hardware feels too lightweight more are the chances that it will appear not expensive looking.

Last but not least, here are a few options that I found at different price ranges:

$ AMAZON (The one in this post!)
$$ RIVER ISLAND
$$$ MUUBAA
$$$$ ALEXANDER McQUEEN

Good luck with your Essentials :) and Thank You for stopping by!
♥
Liliana.

ESSENTIALS #3: The Graphic Tee

Hi Dears,

The next Essential that you should always have in your closet is a Graphic Tee. It is important to have one that serves many purposes, so in order to make a good investment think about 3 things:

Quality: Tee’s are normally not dry cleaned or demand any sort of special care to them, so when choosing yours, go for one that is good quality even if you think that you are paying a little above of what you’ve normally pay for a tee, believe me it will pay off when you throw this in the washer and dryer and have the garment intact after many many uses. A poor quality garment can have stitches pulling out, can shrink in a horrible way or just loose its shape after a few cycles…then your investment would go to the trash…not cool  ;)

Boldness: You want to keep in mind you should be able to pair it with different type of garments, pretty much everything from jeans, to trousers, to skirts etc.. so it is important that your print does not scream “too crazy” and this would be the best way to assure that you will get the most out of one piece.

Appropriateness: I know we are in the Era of “Cropped” haha AND I agree Cropped Tops look extremely girly and flirty, BUT, if you think about wearing this for an example for a night in the town or with a tuxedo type suit for an evening formal engagement, a normal length tee would be the best  option since a cropped one would take away any kind of sophistication from your outfit making it look to young perhaps.

Here's the link for the one I use for this post ;) 

Thank You as always
♥
Liliana.

ESSENTIALS #2: Striped Boatneck Top

Happy New Year My Dears!!! :D

I am sorry about the absence, but as you can imagine I was enjoying a much needed break from my everyday duties and routine, now I am well rested, happy and ready to start this year with new adventures and goals and of course with plenty to share with you all!

So lets get started with the No.2 of our Essential Pieces...The Striped Boatneck Top. I've chosen this one because it has the infallible black and white combo that pairs with almost everything so you won't feel that its an impractical investment ;) I particularly like the boatneck because it gives this piece a little bit more of sophistication than your regular crew neck tee which could be too casual for an office setting for instance...I am showing here how versatile can be also for different weather and seasons. Also for those mornings when you are running late and screaming "OMG OMG OMG-what to wear?!" it can be a real lifesaver :D

I hope you like this Essential and if you don't have it in your closet here a few options:

$ MANGO

$$ Macy's

$$$ Saks Fifth Ave.

As always thanking you for stopping by and wishing you a successful and meaningful 2014 ;)

♥
Liliana.

ESSENTIALS #1: Leather Pencil Skirt

Hello Dears!

This is the first of a series of posts I'll be doing with specific garments that can kick any wardrobe up a notch ;)  We all have heard about “The Basics”, you know black blazer, white button down shirt, etc, my intention is to bring you "The Essentials" (wonderful items that add ESSENCE! to our closets) things that can take us from Basic Girl to a Fashionable One! :) Sometimes we want to stand out but we are also smart about our budgets and obviously we want to optimize our clothing as much as possible so I am showing you 3 ways that today’s item can serve many purposes, that way you are not buying a “one occasion garment” :) 

The LEATHER PENCIL SKIRT it’s a wonderful alternative that adds edge and personality to an outfit, not to mention that it's so NOW since we've seen the leather trend all over, since last year. There are different options and price ranges and here are a few options if you decide to give this Essential a try ;) :

$ Sears $29 USD
$$ ASOS $86 USD
$$$ Nordstrom $137 USD
$$$$ Net-a-porter $1533 USD

Let me know if you like it and Thank You for stopping by!
♥
Liliana.