Excessorize

Top, Tracy Reese.  Skirt & belt, 3.1 Phillip Lim.  Shoes, Cynthia Vincent for Target.

I wouldn't go so far as to call myself a minimalist, but I've never been one to overload a look with extra pieces.  I tend to let the clean lines or fun patterns of my clothes speak for themselves rather than layering on belts and jewelry- I hate feeling and looking cluttered!  But going through backlogs of my blog (say that 5 times fast!), I can see that there is room to liven up my look with a few well-placed accessories!

The mission of today's outfit was to wear what I once considered to be 'too many' extras, and see how it looked on camera.  To my surprise, I think this outfit looks both fun and unfussy- even though I'm wearing a necklace, earrings, a ring, sunnies, and a double-looped belt!  Because the pieces I chose blend together so nicely, the overall effect is exquisite rather than excessive.

Bag & sunnies, vintage.  Necklace, So Good.  

Earrings/ring, H&M.

This top by Tracy Reese has a lot going on- the colors are vibrant and the print showcases people, buildings, and even donkeys!  I decided to center the rest of the outfit around the tan base of the shirt to tone it down a bit.  This 3.1 Phillip Lim skirt was the perfect neutral bottom.  I recently found it at Second Time Around during their Memorial Day sale- what a steal!!  It fits perfectly, and the double belt it came with is so different from any other belt I own!   Then I added my Cynthia Vincent for Target wedges, because they matched the colors in the top perfectly.   

Though the top and shoes are both full of color, I picked just one color to accent.  My orange earrings, ring, and bag pulled the outfit together and gave it a little kick!

And the shirt shows off my tattoo, which is always a plus :)

All in all, I learned a valuable lesson from this outfit: while simplicity always has a place in the fashion world, it's fun to ditch the classics and spice up your life with excessive accessories every once in a while!