Blogger Feature: Van of The Clothes We Wear

Today I'm so excited to get to feature Van of The Clothes We Wear. Not only does she have some of the best style in the blogosphere, but she is an absolute doll! I'm still sad that we didn't get a chance to meet up when I was in Portland - next time for sure!

3 words to describe your personal style?
This is a toughie. My tastes change so much depending on mood, which is often determined by how much coffee I've had. Word of advice, don't get dressed before morning coffee. Trust me, who knows what will emerge from the closet if you dress while half asleep!
And since my tastes are constantly evolving, I'll describe instead, what I want to accomplish: playful, eclectic and versatility. In fact, I'd love to get hear how others would describe my style.

playful: I like to have fun with my clothes. Some recent looks that embody this would be a) throw on something unexpected (neon sunnies and orange lipstick in an all neutral outfit); b) layering; wearing items in the same color family (multiple pinks); mixing patterns/textures (tweed and animal) or (soft and tough); c) statement jewelry (paired with a basic outfit)

eclectic (maybe some would call this manic): I like to try new things, and I also have flavor of the week where I'm obssessed with one color or one shoe or one pattern and wear it days on end and for weeks. To satisfy my ever changing tastes, I go for unique pieces, which is why I love thrifting and vintage. I'd say about 80% of my closet is thrift or vintage finds! This girl likes to hunt for good bargains.

versatility: To make the most of my closet, I like clothes that can be worn multiple ways and for many types of occasions. I like to wear items in ways that they are not normally worn to stretch my closet (skirts as dresses or cardigans inside out or tops backwards).

Who are your celebrity style icons?
I don't follow any celebrities and find more inspiration in bloggers as they are real people and more relatable, but when the following actresses are featured on a magazine cover, I'll almost always flip through to the editorial: Zoey Deschanel (vintage), Gwyneth Paltrow (effortless), Reese Witherspoon (classic). I also find ideas from non-celebrity, high fashion editorials, which is perhaps contradictory to what I just said about bloggers, since magazine shoots aren't based in reality. I view editorials as art. The stylings are often unexpected and imaginative. Take for instance, this recent photo I pinned, from an editorial in a European publication called L’Officiel Paris. [ http://fashiongonerogue.com/femke-alexander-neumann-lofficiel-paris ] A cropped jacket over a black blazer? Genius.    

What would you consider the 5 essential items to a fashionable wardrobe?
My five would include a military style jacket, dark wash skinny denim, a blazer, tall boots/heels and accessories (lots of them). These are my go-to items when I'm in a bind and want to feel instantly put together. This happens a lot, but I don't document it much on my blog--because there are lots of on-the-go days. Like this past week when I overslept after a late night working on a deadline. I had 20 minutes to get myself presentable and dress my son before heading to an appointment. I grab a pair of denims, a simple top, blazer, boot, and slapped on some red lipstick.

Who are your favorite bloggers, and why?
Another hard one. There are too many for me to list, but these jump out as ones I always look at in my reader:

B. Jones Style [ http://www.bjonesstyle.com/blog ] - Beth is a chameleon and layering guru. She always looks effortless and creative. One of the first blogs I came across when I got into fashion blog reading and continues to be a fave.

Hallie Daily [ http://www.halliedaily.com ]- Hallie has a knack for putting together unique looks, combining items from high street retailers to vintage & thrifted finds. Her looks are always rich in texture and color. Her adorable son Red Bear makes appearances, too!

H&K Style Journey [ http://hkstylejourney.blogspot.com ] - Heather and Kayla are a mother daughter duo. They do a weekly blog feature on Mondays and Fridays where they take a color, pattern or clothing item and remix it several ways, in their individual styles. I enjoy their personalties and love that they are writing a blog together. They're approachable and real--showing us that one can be stylish without breaking the bank.

Knocked Up Fabulous [ http://knockedupfabulous.wordpress.com ] - April is a mom of two. She started her blog while pregnant with her second and showed how one could wear items from pre-pregnancy to accommodate a growing belly (i.e. borrowing from Hubby's closet and wearing button up tops as cardigans). She has a knack for looking glamorous and remixing her closet. As her body continues to change post-partum, her style is also transitioning and even though I'm not pregnant, I find much inspiration from her looks.

Couple others that I'm sure most everyone is familiar with: Kendi Everyday (witty and charming) and Atlantic Pacific (layers, layers, layers).


You are definitely a mom on-the-go! How do you balance the functional aspects of parenthood with the fabulous aspects of fashion?
Definitely on-the-go!  The key to wearing motherhood well is comfort and ease. It's a work in progress and I aim to someday have a well curated wardrobe. This means owning pieces that I'm happy to wear and editing often. I don't have any attachments to my clothing, but do keep accessories and shoes for years. My closet is cleaned out every season to get rid of clutter. Having many versatile pieces that can be easily remixed and layered makes dressing easier! Purchasing pieces that can be layered without restricting movement and breathing is tops on my list ('cause a purple face and blue lips is scary looking). Being able to easily change up my look throughout the day is important since I often go from a Client meeting to a play date or night out. This usually means changing just a couple items, i.e. jacket and shoes. Simple?

Another thing that makes getting dressed simpler is an organized closet. Most of my shirts, dresses, skirts and jackets are hung by color. Pants and chunky knits are stacked on the top shelf. Belts are in a drawer. The color thing is something I recently did, during a bout of insomnia. When I saw this image [ http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/fashion-articles/designer-drop-in-spring-2012-j-crew ] from J. Crew's head women's designer, I went straight to rearranging my closet and purging--at 1 in the morning! That's dedication, right? It was very therapeutic, even cathartic. This image spoke to me because I start with a color, rather than type of clothing and create a look to suit my mood. Going to a color section narrows down the options of what is available to wear. (Though, it makes creating looks more efficient, there are still days when I can't get it right).

Honestly, the first couple years (when I was pregnant and until my son was one) I lost much of my desire to be stylish. It was such a new and time consuming experience both emotionally and physically. I fell into the category of women who think they can do everything, which left little time for myself. A very hard lesson for me to accept. After that first year, I realized how much I missed the "old" me and that's when I made more efforts to let go and prioritize. Most of the time I truly enjoy the process of getting ready in the morning--makeup, hair and clothes. It's" me" time and the way I look greatly affects how I feel and this confidence is very important. If I feel like my best self, than I can be a better mom, wife, friend, professional and woman--approaching life with my best foot forward! It doesn't mean that I have to spend hours on my looks and it certainly doesn't mean I feel bad when I don't get dressed--it's simply that the process is one that makes me pretty happy, so I do it! And blogging about it is a hobby that is quite satisfying because of readers such as yourself.

Make sure you head over to The Clothes We Wear to see more of Van's fabulous looks and peeks into her lovely life! :)