White Denim Jacket With Printed Dresses, Ankle Boots And Statement Necklaces

A sunny winter weekend gave me the chance to wear some pretty floral dresses. Both dresses only needed ankle boots and my white denim jacket to make them cosy enough for spending most of our time indoors.

What I wore:

Jacket: Cotton On girlfriend denim jacket in whitehaven
Necklace: Red multi strand beaded statement necklace
Dress: Jaase Celine autumn leaves mini dress
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff chevron quilted small Love crossbody bag in pale coral

Why I wore it:

I love the way this Jaase floral and leaf print dress looks with ankle boots. It's such a pretty dress! I've worn it with denim jackets before, but this is the first time I've paired it with the white one, Given how it matches the white in the print so well, I'm surprised I haven't worn the dress and jacket together sooner!

We had a kids birthday party to attend, so I just needed my essentials which meant this little peach Rebecca Minkoff small love bag was the perfect accessory. Just like the red statement necklace, it doesn't exactly match the colours in the print of the dress, but I think the accessories complimented the print nicely. This was such a comfortable outfit for a loud and busy (but fun!) party.


Last worn: white denim jacket, red statement necklace, Jaase dress, tan leather boots, Rebecca Minkoff small Love bag.

Other ways to wear: white denim jacket and maxi dress, Jaase dress and leather jacket, ankle boots and jeans, Rebecca Minkoff small Love bag and matching tee.

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What I wore:

Jacket: Cotton On girlfriend denim jacket in whitehaven
Necklace: Gold beaded statement multi strand necklace
Dress: Orange Sherbet Zoe tiered dress in geranium print pink (recent purchase)
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual plus Mimco gunmetal twisted bracelet stack
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff quilted maxi Edie crossbody in Porcini brown suede

Why I wore it:

Copied the outfit formula above for a busy morning, and then getting to spend some time relaxing and chatting at book club in the afternoon. While it was a warm day, I knew the denim jacket and boots would be much appreciated in the evening. It did start getting a little chilly later in the evening as we were sitting outside for book club, but that was a good sign we should probably wrap up and head home!

Just like the last time I wore this statement gold beaded necklace, I wanted to pair it with the equally chunky chain on this Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie bag. I like the combination even though the metals are not a match.

It was my first time wearing this pretty floral print maxi dress I scored from the Gladrags markets, so it made sense to wear it with some of the accessories I picked up at that market too, with the gold necklace and the Mimco bracelet stack. It's a lot of big accessories, but it was fun wearing them all together.


Last worn: white denim jacket (above), gold bib necklace, tan leather boots (above), Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie crossbody bag. First time I've worn the dress and bracelet stack as they were recent purchases.

Other ways to wear: white denim jacket and jeans, tan leather boots and skirt, Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie crossbody bag and stripes.

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Navy Stripe Shift Dresses, Boots and Suede Maxi Edie Crossbody Bag | Weekday Wear Link Up

For today's Weekday Wear Link Up, getting out my long sleeved navy stripe dresses again and layering them up a little for the cooler weather. Accessorising both outfits with my latest bag buy, this preloved Rebecca Minkoff maxi Edie crossbody.

What I wore:

Jacket: Witchery black belted moto leather jacket
Necklace: Gold beaded statement multi strand necklace
Dress: thrifted Kmart white and navy long sleeve stripe tee dress
Shoes: Asos Cleo leather boots in tan
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff quilted maxi Edie crossbody in Porcini brown suede

Why I wore it:

It was another really cold morning when I wore this for the school run and working from home. I'd planned to wear this white striped tee dress with sneakers, but realised that morning I needed extra layers, so added this Witchery leather jacket (a recent Gladrags market find) and my tall leather boots to try keep me cosy. Also went big on the accessories for a bit of fun, with this chunky gold statement necklace matching the chunky chain on the Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie bag well in terms of chunkiness. Even if they are different shades of gold I thought they complimented each other nicely.


Last worn: Witchery belted leather jacket, white and navy striped shift dress, tall leather boots. First time I've worn the gold statement necklace and Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie bag as they are recent purchases.

Other ways to wear: Witchery belted leather jacket and skirt, white and navy striped shift dress with pink, tall leather boots worn 30 ways.

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Rebecca Minkoff Suede Maxi Edie Reveal:

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What I wore:

Jacket: Jeanswest grey jersey blazer
Necklace: Red multi strand beaded statement necklace
Dress: Atmos&Here navy stripe tee dress 
Shoes: RMK Chester black ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff quilted maxi Edie crossbody in Porcini brown suede

Why I wore it:

Same outfit formula with the statement necklace, boots, and a navy striped shift dress, I just wore this into the office. Finally caved and pulled out my fleece tights for a cold winter morning! With them and my ankle boots I felt warm enough with just a grey blazer on top. The blazer made the outfit feel a little more office friendly. I liked the pop of red from the necklace with the neutral grey and navy too.

Again I wore my suede maxi Edie bag, I love it! Even though I don't need to carry much to work I've been enjoying wearing this new-to-me bag lately.


Last worn: grey jersey blazer, navy stripe tee dress, black ankle boots, Rebecca Minkoff suede maxi Edie (above). First time I've worn the red necklace as it was a recent purchase.

Other ways to wear: grey jersey blazer and floral dress, navy stripe tee dress and leather jacket, black ankle boots worn 30 ways.

Perfect for pregnancy: navy stripe tee dress in second trimester, black ankle boots in second trimester.

Weekday Wear Linkup #225

Welcome to the Weekday Wear linkup! A linkup for you to share your weekday outfits - whether that is office wear or stay at home mum wear - if you wore it on a weekday, you can link it up!

Guidelines:
1. Please link to a specific outfit post, not your blog homepage.
2. Link back to this post so others can find the link up.
3. Follow your host Away From The Blue on Bloglovin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube.
4. Add up to two posts and be sure to visit and comment on as many other posts as possible to get some weekday outfit inspiration!
Optional: tweet the post you linked up with the hashtag #weekdayWearLinkUp so I can retweet!

Subscribe for The Weekday Wear Linkup reminder emails

Email Address 

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Denim: Blue Dresses, Ankle Boots and Magenta Edie Crossbody Bag

I never tire of blue and pink together! I really like wearing this little magenta Edie crossbody bag with some of the many blue dresses in my wardrobe. Despite the different dresses here, I think it works so well with both!

What I wore:

Earrings: Colette silver filigree leaf diamante statement earrings
Dress: Target puff sleeve tiered denim dress
Shoes: RMK Chester black ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual plus Marc by Marc Jacobs enamel turnlock stripey hinge black and white bangle and Hermes pink clic clac
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Edie small crossbody bag in magenta

Why I wore it:

Wore this for my May wardrobe clear out stall at Gladrags markets in Bulimba. It was a lot of fun. I made a lot more sales than my first market, and I ventured out of my stall a few times to wander through the hall. I ended up spending some of my earnings with the other sellers, but I got some great bargains too!

While this dress was maybe not the most practical choice for setting up my clothes racks, it was definitely very comfortable, and with the leather ankle boots the thick denim kept me cosy on a colder morning. I wasn't sure what necklace to wear with this, so opted for statement earrings instead.

Once again, the little Edie crossbody bag came in perfect for holding my essentials as well as a little cash float for my stall. I like how organised it is inside with the different compartments.

After my success at the markets that morning, I then took my son over to his friend's house for a playdate that afternoon.


Last worn: tiered denim dress, silver leaf earrings, black ankle boots, magenta Rebecca Minkoff Edie crossbody.

Other ways to wear: tiered denim dress with red, black ankle boots worn 30 ways, magenta Rebecca Minkoff Edie crossbody bag worn 30 ways.

Perfect for pregnancy: black ankle boots in second trimester.
 

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What's In My Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Edie Crossbody

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What I wore:

Jacket: Cotton On girlfriend denim jacket in whitehaven
Necklace: Tiffany & Co silver 5th Avenue notes heart pendant necklace
Dress: Jeanswest 'Chelsea' printed dress
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Edie small crossbody bag in magenta

Why I wore it:

Another day where it was warm enough to go bare-legged, even if I did have a slip under this dress and added the denim jacket on top for a little extra warmth! I liked this simple outfit for the school run and working from home. A dress is such an easy instant outfit, even when you do add an extra layer like a jacket to it.

I was also surprised to find that I haven't worn this magenta Edie crossbody bag with this navy printed dress before! I have worn this dress in the past with a lot of pink bags, but not this one yet, even though this dress is on its 28th wear. I'm hoping to do a 30 wears post with it later this year, when the weather is warm enough to get it out again!


Last worn: white denim jacket, Tiffany necklace, blue printed dress, tan ankle boots, Rebecca Minkoff Edie crossbody bag (above).

Other ways to wear: white denim jacket and jeans, blue printed dress and sneakers, tan ankle boots and midi dress, magenta Rebecca Minkoff Edie crossbody bag worn 30 ways.

Perfect for pregnancy: navy print dress in second trimester.

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Chloe Marcie Bag With Skirts, Ankle Boots And Wine Tops | Weekday Wear Link Up

For today's Weekday Wear Link Up, I'm sharing these two similar outfits I wore recently. Both have boots, skirts, wine tops, an extra layer, and my Chloe Marcie bag. But they look very different!

What I wore:

Jacket: Witchery black belted moto leather jacket (new purchase)
Knit: thrifted Forever 21 wine ribbed knit jumper
Skirt: Target animal print ruffle hem mini skirt
Shoes: RMK Chester black ankle boots
Bag: Chloe Marcie medium shoulder bag in nut

Why I wore it:

It was a very cold morning for the school run and I regretted the decision to go bare legged and not add some leggings under this skirt! The burgundy knit was an opshop find and is a polyester knit, so I thought it would keep me warmer than it did, even with the leather jacket on top. While I thrifted the jumper a while back, I've just been waiting for the right weather to wear it and I knew it would look so cute with this leopard print skirt.

The leather jacket was a recent buy from the Gladrags market I went to in May - I spent some of my takings in some other stalls, and for $30 I was not going to pass up this buttery soft leather jacket. It came in handy with the cold weather snap in Brisbane. Even if it did warm up massively by school pick up in the afternoon, where I left the leather jacket at home, pushed up the sleeves on my knit and was grateful I hadn't added leggings that morning!


Last worn: leopard print skirt, black ankle boots, Chloe Marcie bag. First time I've worn the knit as it was a summer purchase, and first time I've worn the leather jacket as I bought it recently.

Other ways to wear: leopard print skirt and tee, black ankle boots worn 30 ways, Chloe Marcie bag and floral dress.

Perfect for pregnancy: black ankle boots in second trimester.

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The Latest Addition To My Handbag Collection:

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What I wore:

Jacket: Bubblegum denim jacket
Necklace: thrifted wooden yellow tassel necklace
Tee: Atmos&Here rolled sleeve oversized tee in wine
Skirt: thrifted Tree of Life ochre maxi skirt
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Chloe Marcie medium shoulder bag in nut

Why I wore it:

This was such a fun day! I started work a little later so I could join my youngest in a special free play day at school. It was so good seeing him running around playing with all his friends, even if I did spend a little too much time dodging tennis balls and basketballs on the courts, he had a blast!

As it was a cooler morning (thankfully not as cold as the one above) I layered up this ochre maxi skirt with my classic denim jacket and my tan ankle boots. I liked this deep orange skirt with a burgundy tee last time I tired the combination, so thought I would give it a go with this tee. It's really more purple than burgundy - wine is a very fitting name for the colour - but I still enjoyed this combination, especially with the extra pop of colour from the yellow tassel necklace.

The Chloe Marcie always looks great with a denim jacket, and I needed something big enough to hold a water bottle as I followed my son around all the different fun stations set up around the school.


Last worn: denim jacket, yellow tassel necklace, purple tee, orange maxi skirt, tan ankle boots, Chloe Marcie bag (above).

Other ways to wear: denim jacket worn 30 ways, purple tee over a dress, orange maxi skirt and band tee, tan ankle boots and dress, Chloe Marcie bag and jeans.

Perfect for pregnancy: denim jacket in second trimester, purple tee in second trimester.

Weekday Wear Linkup #224

Welcome to the Weekday Wear linkup! A linkup for you to share your weekday outfits - whether that is office wear or stay at home mum wear - if you wore it on a weekday, you can link it up!

Guidelines:
1. Please link to a specific outfit post, not your blog homepage.
2. Link back to this post so others can find the link up.
3. Follow your host Away From The Blue on Bloglovin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube.
4. Add up to two posts and be sure to visit and comment on as many other posts as possible to get some weekday outfit inspiration!
Optional: tweet the post you linked up with the hashtag #weekdayWearLinkUp so I can retweet!

Subscribe for The Weekday Wear Linkup reminder emails

Email Address 

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Floral Print Dresses With Boots and Cream Chloe Paddington Bags

Two floral dress outfits for autumn with ankle boots and little cream Chloe Paddington bags. One outfit for daytime, the other for a rare date night evening out.

What I wore:

Earrings: Piper glass beaded chandelier earring in cream and gold
Dress: Jaase Celine autumn leaves mini dress
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual plus silver vintage charm bracelet
Bag: Chloe small Paddington in 2006 blanc

Why I wore it:

Given that this dress is called the autumn leaves print I figured I should give it a wear in autumn! With the ankle boots it was perfect for lunch with my family down the coast. I thought that the cream beaded statement earrings were a nice bit of matchy-matchy with the little Chloe Paddington bag too. The cream is a very different shade from the whites and peaches in the dress print, but I still really like this bag and dress together.

As we were just heading down the coast for lunch and I didn't need to carry much, this little bag was perfect.


Last worn: Jaase tiered dress, cream statement earrings, tan ankle boots, Chloe small Paddington bag.

Other ways to wear: Jaase tiered dress and leather jacket, tan ankle boots and midi dress, Chloe small Paddington bag and jeans.

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My Chloe Handbag Collection:

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What I wore:

Jacket: Jeanswest black leather moto jacket
Earrings: Prouds gold and silver spiral drop earrings
Dress: Kmart long sleeve black tie neck dress in floral wisteria print
Belt: embossed tan leather belt from my Mum's wardrobe
Shoes: Asos Cleo leather boots in tan
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Chloe Paddington clutch in mastic

Why I wore it:

Date night outfit! I layered up with the tall leather boots and the leather jacket over this fun floral print dress. It is on its seventh wear, which is giving me great cost per wear as it was a $2 Kmart clearance find last year! I wanted to dress up a bit with a dress, but also wanted to be warm, so this was the perfect outfit.

We had a bit of an early date night for our wedding anniversary, enjoying dinner and a little stroll along the river (the leather jacket was definitely a good choice!) before enjoying a show at the Brisbane Comedy Festival. It was a lot of fun to go out kid free for a night. I dug out my old Chloe Paddington clutch bag - I wore this on my wedding day, and it has so much sentimental value, even if it's been a while since I last wore it.

It's definitely a date night only clutch - barely fits my phone, some cards and lipstick in it, as it's from pre-smart phone days, haha!


Last worn: spiral earrings, Jeanswest leather jacket, Kmart Wisteria print midi dress, belt, tall leather boots, Chloe Paddington clutch.

Other ways to wear: leather jacket and jeans, Kmart Wisteria print midi dress and floral bag, belt and shorts, tall leather boots worn 30 ways, Chloe Paddington clutch and little red dress.

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Navy Dresses, Blazers and Chloe Paddington Bags For The Office | Weekday Wear Link Up

While winter is just a few days away in Brisbane, I still have a few more autumn outfits to share, including these printed dress, blazer and boots outfits I wore to the office recently. While the commute was cold, it warmed up during the day, perfect autumn Brisbane weather.

I accessorised both of these outfits with my vintage Chloe Paddington bags. I felt they were overdue a wear, and while the style first came out 17 years ago (and both these bags were made in 2006), I still love the oversized statement they make.

What I wore:

Earrings: Piper gold and turquoise disc dangle earring

Jacket: thrifted Valleygirl navy jersey blazer
Dress: Jeanswest 'Chelsea' printed dress
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Chloe small Paddington in 2006 blanc

Why I wore it:

I like wearing this tile print dress with blue, but hadn't yet worn it with this navy blazer! it makes an easy outfit for work. And I like the little print mixing from the gingham lining you can see with the sleeves rolled up slightly.

Added ankle boots instead of my usual go-to Converse for the office as it was a cooler morning. it did warm up later though, didn't even need the blazer for the commute home.

The tassels on the neckline of this dress meant I skipped a necklace and wore these pretty statement earrings instead. And the gold in them matched so nicely with the big gold hardware on my little Chloe Paddington bag.


Last worn: navy blazer, gold earrings, navy print dress, tan ankle boots, small cream Chloe Paddington bag.

Other ways to wear: navy blazer with pink, navy print dress and scarf, tan ankle boots and maxi dress, small cream Chloe Paddington bag and jeans.

Perfect for pregnancy: navy print dress in second trimester.

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My Chloe Handbag Collection:

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What I wore:

Jacket: Glassons orange jersey blazer
Necklace: thrifted yellow beaded statement pendant long necklace
Dress: Shein navy flower print flowy dress (c/o) 
Shoes: Asos Cleo leather boots in tan
Bracelets: the usual
Bag: Chloe Paddington in 2007 Brun

Why I wore it:

Another printed dress and blazer combination - but with taller boots this time, and a slip under the dress, as it was a particularly chilly morning on the way into the office! Need my blazer for the commute home this time too. I like the red floral print in this dress, and how it goes so nicely with the orange blazer. I added another little bit of bright colour with this beaded yellow necklace I thrifted recently.

While the tan tall boots don't match the deep dark brown of the Chloe Paddington bag, I liked the two shades of brown with the floral print and orange, they were good neutrals.


Last worn: orange blazer, yellow necklace, floral swing dress, tall tan boots, Chloe Brun Paddington bag.

Other ways to wear: orange blazer and pencil skirt, floral swing dress and leather jacket, tall tan boots ans sundress, Chloe Brun Paddington bag and jeans.

Perfect for pregnancy: Chloe Brun Paddington bag in second trimester.

Weekday Wear Linkup #222

Welcome to the Weekday Wear linkup! A linkup for you to share your weekday outfits - whether that is office wear or stay at home mum wear - if you wore it on a weekday, you can link it up!

Guidelines:
1. Please link to a specific outfit post, not your blog homepage.
2. Link back to this post so others can find the link up.
3. Follow your host Away From The Blue on Bloglovin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube.
4. Add up to two posts and be sure to visit and comment on as many other posts as possible to get some weekday outfit inspiration!
Optional: tweet the post you linked up with the hashtag #weekdayWearLinkUp so I can retweet!

Subscribe for The Weekday Wear Linkup reminder emails

Email Address 

Follow Away From the Blue on:
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30 Ways To Wear: Atmos&Here Green Tropical Floral Print Tee Dress

I'm thrilled I reached 30 wears with this cute tropical floral print shift dress. Tee dresses are such a staple for me in my wardrobe, and this one always gets compliments. It's such a lovely print!

30 Ways To Wear: Tropical Floral Print Tee Dress

This is a fun dress, and with all the different colours, from the green background to the colourful tropical floral print, it's really easy to find pieces to wear it with in my wardrobe. It has the added benefit of being a nice light tee dress, perfect for spring, autumn and summer in Brisbane, it's one of those pieces I find myself reaching for fairly often. I have layered it up a little for cooler weather too, but the warmer weather is definitely when this gets worn the most.

I like the grey contrast sleeves - it has a grey panel on the back too, which makes it really easy to wear as you just focus on pairing things with the fun bright print and the rest is a muted neutral.

Cost Per Wear

While I have reached 30 wears on this dress, it's not quite at a dollar per wear goal so many people aim for. I bought it online from The Iconic back in September 2014, and with a discount code and it being on sale I snapped it up for $39.98. They had the same print in a shirt and I deliberated between the dress and tee, rationalising the dress was the better buy as I could wear it as a top too, which I have done a few times. So versatile, and it's currently at $1.33 a wear, with a lot of life left in it and a permanent place in my wardrobe. It may have gotten very little wear in the breastfeeding years, but I've certainly made up for that now with how often I reach for it.

Here are the 30 different ways I've worn this dress so far:

Floral Dress with Matching Colourful Handbags

Such an easy way to wear a colourful handbag with a bright dress - just pick a bag that is a similar colour to one of the colours in the print! Even if (like the burgundy crossbody bag in the middle) it's not an exact shade match.

Floral Print Dress With Blue Bags

Blue is my favourite colour and I have a lot of blue handbags! When I'm not sure what colour to wear with something, any shade of blue is an easy go-to.

Green Floral Print Dress With Pink Accessories

Pink and green is not a colour combination I wear a lot, but it's fun to try now and then. From a very subtle look with the blush pink sandals, or something a little bolder with the pink crossbody bag, pink accessories look great with this green printed dress.

Green Shift Dress Worn With Yellow

This is another example of matching something colourful to the colour in the print of the dress - the mustard cardigan and scarf, and little yellow crossbody bag look so good with the yellow in the floral print.

Floral Shift Dress Layered To Wear As A Top

I am so glad I bought the dress rather than the tee, as this dress can be worn as a tee so easily! I really like tucking it into skirts as it's a bit bulky trying to tuck it into shorts. It makes this shift dress office suitable if you tuck it into a pencil skirt, especially if you throw a blazer on top.

Layering A Printed Shift Dress

It's not just skirts you can layer this dress with - in the cooler weather I like cardigans, blazers, and of course the ever classic leather jacket to add some warmth to the short sleeved shift dress.

Wearing a Floral Shift Dress With Sneakers

Dresses and sneakers are a fashion staple and something I wear a lot of with my knee injury. I feel I default to sneakers a lot - and luckily this dress looks great with every style I have tried!

Floral Dress and Ankle Boots

Spring means the dresses, bare legs and ankle boots outfit combination is often on repeat! While I don't have a large collection of ankle boots, the different colours of the ones I do have all work well as neutrals with this colourful dress.

Similar Posts In The 30 Wears Series:

• 30 ways to wear a navy floral print duster
• 30 ways to wear a grey skater dress
• 30 ways to wear a floral maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a navy printed jersey maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a tie dye maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear navy floral kimono
• 30 ways to wear a pink maxi dress
• 30 ways to wear a grey floral kimono

For more outfit inspiration, you can see all the times I've worn this dress in my archives, or browse the 30 wears series too.

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Magnificent 8 - Western Style

For this quarter's Magnificent 8 style challenge, the theme was Western style. I admit my wardrobe doesn't really have a lot of Western pieces, and I don't own any cowboy boots! I had to think hard to see what I had in my wardrobe that would work for this theme, and that I would feel comfortable wearing, as of course everything I share on the blog is an outfit I've worn in real life.

In the end I focused on some abstract pieces of western style. Ankle boots instead of cowboy boots for starters. While I could do double denim I don't have a pair of flared jeans, so double denim with Bermuda shorts it was! I added tan belts to both of these outfits (with mixed success) and my recent purchase, my mini Darren messenger bag worked as a tasselled crossbody, although it is a little more structured than I'd think of for a "Western style" bag!

What I wore:

Jacket: Bubblegum denim jacket
Necklace: Jeanswest Taryn turquoise tassel bead necklace
Tank: Cotton On 'eternity' tank in charcoal marle
Belt: embossed tan leather belt from my Mum's wardrobe

Shorts: Jeanswest Trinity Bermuda denim shorts
Shoes: Atmos&Here tan Lola leather ankle boots
Bracelets: the usual plus turquoise and silver bracelet stack
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff olive mini Darren

Why I wore it:

Big thank you to my Mum for helping me complete this look! When I thought about trying double denim with a big belt with a statement buckle for this challenge I realised I didn't actually own a belt with a statement buckle. My mum had this thick tan leather one that perfectly matched my tan ankle boots though, so that was a winner. And as she doesn't wear it much any more, I got to keep it! Very pleased to add it to my wardrobe.

I think this outfit is a little more "slight Western vibe" than a true Western style but I liked how the pieces came together with the plain tank, double denim, and turquoise necklace. I'd considered turquoise earrings too but I figured my everyday studs would be better for a day that had over 5 hours of meetings that I'd need to wear my headset for. Luckily, while I was at my parent's place all day working on my laptop, mum took the kids out to enjoy the school holidays down the coast, so they had a lot of fun while I was in endless meetings.


Last worn: denim jacket, grey tank, turquoise tassel necklace, Bermuda denim shorts, tan ankle boots, Rebecca Minkoff mini Darren bag.

Other ways to wear: denim jacket worn 30 ways, grey tank and printed shorts, Bermuda denim shorts and kimono, tan ankle boots and dress, Rebecca Minkoff mini Darren bag and navy stripes.

Perfect for pregnancy: denim jacket in second trimester, grey tank in third trimester.

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Reveal: Rebecca Minkoff Darren From The Real Real

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What I wore:

Dress: Kmart long sleeve black tie neck dress in floral wisteria print (new purchase)
Belt: tan belt that came with an old dress
Shoes: RMK Chester black ankle boots
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff olive mini Darren

Why I wore it:

Another outfit that doesn't really scream "Western", but has little nods to the theme in it. I really love this dress, but the day and outfit didn't at all go according to plan! I'd stumbled across this $25 long sleeve black floral print dress in Kmart, reduced to $2, and just had to buy it. I had a night out planned with a friend so I figured this would be a good outfit to wear. And because it would be a little chilly by the water at night, I had picked out my black ankle boots to wear with it.

Unfortunately, my son fell sick the night before so the night out was cancelled, and instead I spend the morning shopping for a few essentials to help him feel better. I figured I'd wear the pretty dress anyway, even if I wasn't going anywhere exciting.

This belt was the part of the outfit that didn't really go to plan. I figured it might make the dress work for a Western theme, although the belt isn't the big statement buckle wide belt I would have wanted, it was the best I could find in my wardrobe! Being pleather and having sat unworn in my wardrobe for a few years, it was flaking a little. I thought that with the relaxed fit of the dress, the extra fabric bunched over the belt would hide the flaking parts where you could see the white fabric underneath. The photos prove that wasn't quite the case, and I was a little confused when I looked down at my dress when getting into the car to drive home and realised that it was covered in little pleather belt flakes. It looked really bad! The belt went in the bin as soon as I got home!

Despite it not really meeting the theme, the day and the belt not going to plan, I was able to get some treats at the grocery store to cheer up my son and soften the blow of having to cancel my night out and his playdates over the next couple days. And thankfully fully recovered quickly!

Last worn: tan belt, black ankle boots, Rebecca Minkoff mini Darren bag (above). First time I've worn the dress as it was a recent purchase.

Other ways to wear: black ankle boots worn 30 ways, Rebecca Minkoff mini Darren bag and jeans.

Perfect for pregnancy: black ankle boots in second trimester.

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How You Can Wear It:

When you have a challenging theme to dress for, try thinking outside the box! You might not have the perfect pieces for a head to toe Western outfit, but you can try some western inspired accessories.

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The Magnificent 8

The Magnificent 8 is a collaboration of 8 stylish women, ranging in age from early 20’s to early 80’s. The mission of this collaboration is to showcase how ageless style is. There are no age restrictions on style. So wear what you want, when you want, add a smile, and strut your style with confidence. And be sure to check out all 7 of these other amazing ladies at the links below.

• Grace of Graceful Rags
• Mica of Away from the Blue
• Roxanne of Glass of Glam
• Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge
• Rena of Fine Whatever
• Eugenia of Age of Grace 
• Lesley of Jodie’s Touch of Style 
• Charlotte of Jodie’s Touch of Style

Every quarter, the group chooses a theme and each create an outfit that suits our own personal tastes and fashion choices. We post them on the last Wednesday of every third month. Check out everyone’s posts with the links above for style inspiration at any age as they show you their much more themed Western outfits! Yee haw!

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