Stitch Fix #2: A Green Valentine’s Day

I am so excited to share my latest Stitch Fix box with you all!  In case you are reading this for the first time, let me tell you about how easy and fun this service is.  Stitch Fix is a monthly subscription where you get a personal stylist that sends you five items of clothing and jewelry based on your unique sense of style.  The concept is so simple.  You complete a questionnaire based on your style preferences, sizing, and other interests and pay just $20/month to have hand-selected clothes delivered to your door.  The $20 fee will be applied to any items that you choose, and if you decide to keep it all, you get a 25% discount!

As you may remember from last month’s post, I decided not to keep any items my stylist sent me.  I gave my stylist very specific feedback on each of the pieces, which proved to be very helpful this time around.  I was tempted to keep all five items, but I chose a few that I truly adored.  I loved the variety of colors at first glance, and I was eager to start trying them on!  Let me show you what I decided to keep, and what I passed on this month!

 

1.) Corrina Striped Dolman Top, Market & Spruce, $48

 

 

Let me just say, I LOVE this top.  I think I made my stylist aware of my obsession with stripes, and I have been begging for this shirt for over a month.  I was even more captivated by the color.  I don’t think I have anything green in my wardrobe, so it had me sold right away.  The shirt is incredibly soft, comfortable, and obviously isn’t restrictive in any way.  I was so in love with this top that I wore it to work today!  It is a versatile shirt that I can wear with jeans and my Tom’s booties for a casual look, or I can dress it up with a black shirt and heels.  I think I need this in every color, and my life will be complete.

Verdict: Kept.

2.) Filbert 3/4 Sleeve Popover Blouse, 41Hawthorn, $58

 

 

I originally requested this shirt in pink, specifically for Valentine’s Day.  But apparently they were out of stock, so my stylist sent the same shirt in teal.  I immediately loved this shirt once I put it on. I love the length of the shirt and the subtle tailoring around the waist. I am a fan of teal since that was one of my college colors at UNCW. The material was not as great as I had hoped, since it had a chiffon texture. But at only $58, I could not pass up a great fit and color!

Verdict: Kept.

3.) Holston Crochet Trim Solid Blouse, Fun2Fun, $38

 

 

 

 

Ick. I guess this was supposed to be my “Valentine’s Day” blouse. Although the price was $38, I still feel like it is WAY too high for this low-quality, terribly sewn, cheap material shirt. The sleeves were too puffy, shirt was too short, and it came up way to high when I lifted my arms. I had puffy sleeves of any kind. I love that it was a solid color, and didn’t have any crazy prints. My stylist did get that right when she sent me this piece. But I just hated wearing it. It was far from flattering when I put it on. I just hated it. End of story.

Verdict: Returned.

4.) Teresa Colorblocked Sleeveless Blouse, 41Hawthorn, $48

 

 

I pinned this shirt on Pinterest a few weeks ago. The shirt I had in mind had a magenta color on the bottom half. I have no idea what this color even was. It was too similar to orange, and you will never catch me wearing orange. EVER. However, I will say I loved how it fit, and the fabric was surprisingly thick and high-quality for the price. I just don’t see me wearing this shirt in FEBRUARY, and I have repeatedly said NO SLEEVELESS BLOUSES unless I specifically ask for one. It is supposed to snow here in Nashville this week, and there is no jacket or cardigan that would ever keep me warm if I wore this shirt within the next few weeks. And did you know that I hate orange? Haha!

Verdict: Returned.

5.) Ida Striped Shirt Dress, LA MADE, $98

 

 

 

I was majorly on the fence about this dress. From pictures I have seen from other bloggers, this dress was just what I wanted. I had originally asked for a different striped dress, but apparently they were out of stock with that dress as well. I noticed a lot of other bloggers mentioned they didn’t like the length of this dress, but I had to try it for myself. Again, this dress was way overpriced in regards to quality. It was literally a jersey t-shirt material. Although it fit great in the arms and waist, and would definitely be a “forgiving” dress on those days where I feel like I have eaten too much, the length is what ultimately made my decision for me. It fell right at my knees. Considering how short I am, it just was not working out for me.

Verdict: Returned.

Overall, I was very pleased with my box this month. I kept 2 out of 5 pieces, which is a big improvement from last month’s box! What did you think about my choices this month? I am already excited for my next box, since it should be arriving the day before my birthday. If you think you want to try Stitch Fix for yourself, click on my personal referral link here, you won’t regret it!

https://www.stitchfix.com/referral/4517397

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Love always,

Jillian Wade

Fashion Obsession: Mixing Navy + Black

We all can name a fashion “faux pas” that we usually try to avoid on any given day.  We try to play it safe by the “rules” that, in my opinion, are entirely outdated by today’s standards.  Rules like, “don’t wear white after labor day”, and “don’t wear black with brown”, don’t necessarily apply to us anymore. Who made up these rules? What century did they come from? Okay, well there are some fashion no-no’s out there that are valid. Those like wearing socks with sandals, or the visible black panties through skin-tight white jeans. But I digress. There are a few trends I am currently lusting over that I would have previously dismissed by my grandmother’s fashion advice. One of those consists of pattern and print mixing. Who would have thought plaid and stripes would be so brilliant?? I will dedicate another post to this trend later. What I want to focus on right now is pairing black and navy. Neutrals are my favorite colors to incorporate into my wardrobe. Two of the colors I wear the most of would be black and navy. When Pinterest and Stitch Fix  introduced me to the idea of combining the two, I was hooked. Contrary to its belief, neutrals almost always go well together. I say “almost” because it has to be done right. In my opinion, it is all about the shade of the neutrals in order to make it work. I have seen some horrendous pairings of brown and black that almost made me turn green. However, when the right shade of brown is used with black, it is simply perfection. The thought of wearing navy and black together used to make me shudder. This mentality I had developed really affected my shopping habits as well. If I found something I really liked in black, I would buy the same exact item in navy just to wear with other items in my closet to avoid the navy/black fashion no-no. But those days are behind me now, and I am embracing the fashion trend I once rejected. Still not convinced? Here are some pins from Pinterest and Stitch Fix that have me begging for more:

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Pinterest

via Stitch Fix

via Stitch Fix

And to show you how I have incorporated this trend into my wardrobe, I snapped a quick photo of myself with some of my favorite basic items from my closet (with terrible camera lighting included, sorry!)

Black Peacoat: New York & Co.; Navy Sweater: J.Crew; Black Leggings: Cabi; Necklace: J.Crew Factory; Shoes: Nine West

Love Always, Jillian Wade

Sunday Doodles

This should be a rather short post tonight, but I wanted to share what I have been working on this evening.  I am very passionate about creating my own artwork for my home.  Our guest room features most of my fashion paintings, since I have appropriately given it a “Sex and the City” theme.  I frequently get requests to do similar paintings for family and friends, so I thought I would share some of my projects with you.  I start by doodling on a piece of computer paper to refer to as I translate it onto a canvas.  I tend to paint “iconic” high fashion pieces, like Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo, Hermes, etc.  I am considering creating custom paintings to sell online.  So if you are interested in a painting of a specific item, let me know and I will try to create something just for you!  Here are some examples of what I have done in the past:

Classic Christian Louboutin black pumps

A quote from Sex and the City incorporated into a dress

Manolo Blahnik pumps

And here are some examples of my doodles before I paint on a canvas:

Sketch of a Birkin bag

Sketch of more Louboutin pumps

Sketch of Manolo pumps

Sketch of Louboutin pumps with studded points

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend, stay tuned for more information about my paintings and completed projects!

Love always,

Jillian Wade