HOW TO wear Jeans and a Cardi and NOT look like you're wearing a mommy uniform!
The Mommy Uniform. Ahhhhhhh! After my daughter was born, I sunk into the JEANS + CARDI mommy uniform. It might as well have been droopy yoga pants and a hoodie because it did NOTHING for me. Well, it did for about a minute, until I started wearing the same plain t-shirt/cardi/jeans combo over and over again, without any knowledge of how to mix it up and keep it vibrant.
I've got pep. And spunk. And zip. And I wasn't feeling ANY it.
Thankfully, I became a personal stylist and figured it all out through lots of trial and error. ;)
So now let's talk about HOW TO WEAR JEANS & A CARDI and not look like you're wearing a tired mommy uniform.
It's not hard to do. And you don't need a million cardigans to pull it off either.
To illustrate my point, I'm wearing the SAME JEANS AND CARDIGAN in three completely different looks - keeping things fresh and spunky!
LOOK ONE
MIX PATTERNS - you can almost never go wrong when you're mixing polka dots and stripes, so if you're new to pattern mixing, start there! REPEAT PATTERNS - there is something visually calming to the eye when repeat patterns are seen (in an outfit, or nature, or a living room). It's cohesion at its finest. Notice how I wore earrings that repeated the same polka dot pattern found in my shirt!!
LOOK TWO
ADD 3D TEXTURE - don't just throw on a plain cotton t-shirt for goodness sake, wear something with a little bit of three dimensional texture! Shirts with ruffles, scrunches or ruches are a dime a dozen at thrift stores (and retail stores), so make sure you've got a few in your closet for some additional vavavavoom.
REPEAT PATTERNS - Did you notice how my bracelet is repeating the same pattern as the stripes in the sweater? Coincidence? Hardly!!
Or how my wire human-form-earrings pair nicely with the wire-woven necklace I'm wearing? ADORN WITH FUNKY JEWELRY - my earrings, necklace and bracelet add character and whim to my look, without overpowering the outfit.
LOOK THREE
WEAR JEWELRY THAT STEELS THE SHOW - sometimes, our clothing can settle into the background while our accessories do all the work. Like a lobster is simply a vehicle for butter, the jeans + cardi combo here are simply a vehicle for some BOLD STATEMENT jewelry.
ADD TEXTURE - this time of the shiny variety! Throw in some metallics to liven things up, and do it more than once, as seen here with my silver shirt AND silver earrings.
Easy RIGHT?
Mix + Repeat Patterns. Add Texture, 3D and otherwise. Wear Jewelry that either Steals the Show or acts as a great set of back-up vocals.
Of course, you also have to make sure that your jeans fit (and don't give you muffin top) and your cardigans aren't too long or too short for your body shape. Baggy jeans with a too long cardi probably won’t give you the FEELS you wanna FEEL.
In case you're wondering, we practice THIS KINDA STUFF in Stasia's Style School, every single day, for five whole weeks! Yep, I said practice. Because learning how to do this TAKES PRACTICE!
xo Stasia