3+ Ways 2 Style: A Green Blouse

For Work and Play!

Happy day, reader dear!

I hope you are safe and well. (And not yet going stir crazy.) I appreciate your visit, especially in these odd times. If this is your first visit, Welcome! I’m Liz Klebba, an Image, Wardrobe, and Color Consultant. I blog about (go figure) Image, Wardrobe, Color and Style. Fair warning: Some of the connections to one of those four topics might be pretty tenuous… If you are returning, Welcome Back! I’m thankful you decided to spend your time with me!

Tomorrow is the day everyone is Irish, or wishes to be. I actually am… Of Irish heritage, that is. My maiden name is O’Connell. Much to the consternation of many a computer system, I hyphenated my maiden and married names. As a St. Patrick’s Day present to you, I thought today’s post should style green, so please enjoy 3 Ways to Style: A Green Top! The easiest option is always blue jeans, so today we’ll take blue jeans out of the equation and replace them with… Wait for it… White jeans. Is that a cop out? I don’t think so. You’ll see why in a bit.

One question I am often asked is whether you should wear gold or silver jewelry with green, or blue, or pink, or black or… You get the drift! I’d love to say wear gold with green, or wear silver with green, but it all depends on your coloring and the undertone of the green you choose. (Or your team colors?) Emerald green looks beautiful with silver, olive with gold. Personally, I’ll always opt for silver since it is more flattering to my cool coloring, but if you want to channel that pot at the end of the rainbow, go for the gold!

The blouse I’m styling today is years old. I expect it to figure heavily in my Spring 2020 Capsule Wardrobe, as most of my other blouses are neutral. You could replace the blouse with a knit top or tee for a more casual relaxed look, and work these same combos. Here’s a few of the ways I’ve worn this blouse in the past year or two:

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Let’s style a work look first! I love layering a blouse over a dress. In particular, over this stylized leopard print dress that is close to 10 years old. I’ve worn my red polka dot blouse over it, and more than one denim blouse or shirt!

This might just be tomorrow’s choice for a networking luncheon on my calendar. For colder weather, I’d wear hose and boots. For warmer weather, bare legs and pumps or slingbacks. Hmmm. I could even wear my “new” sandals with this dress look for really warm weather. YES! (But not for the office. Sandals in the office are icky. Toes and heels at the same time are too casual for the boardroom.)

Let’s step down from a dress to something a bit more casual. I wore this combo last week for the #thriftedstylechallenge. I paired the blouse with my faded black cropped jeans and black denim Chanel-styled jacket, slingbacks for a suited look relaxed by the denim and ethnic jewelry.

Now onto the white jeans. How do I want to take these? I have two “white” jeans, one wide legged and the other narrow. First the wide! Since the blouse is also “wide,” meaning has a lot of volume, I’ll need to tuck it and belt my jeans to tame the volume. Even a 1/2 tuck will do! These crops need a heel to keep from looking stumpy. I chose the variegated dark pearls and earrings to balance the black on the houndstooth pumps.

Now onto the narrow white jeans. Again, I’m using black accents. If your Color Contrast is a 2C, then choose a neckerchief in a color rather than a neutral. Purple or orange would be fabulous with the green! If you’re not feeling that brave, blue or yellow (next to green on the color wheel) would be more subtle.

With each of these combinations, I’d be more than happy to carry the white bag above, or my pseudo-garden tote.

So… Which of the outfits above is your favorite? What are you wearing for St. Patrick’s Day? Do you celebrate? How are you managing with our current “new normal?” Have you had to make adjustments to your daily life? Do let me know your thoughts in the comments below…

Stylishly yours,