The Five Piece Rule

Created on the ASOS website

At my job, I'm always learning new stuff.  Like today, for example, I'm learning that I need more practice standing on my feet for a solid four hours without the dogs getting tired.

But I also learned about what is called "the five piece rule" while I was waiting for my shift to start.

So what is the five piece rule, you may ask?  Well, it's the basic style rule that in order for an outfit to be "complete" it has to have five pieces to it.

1) Top
2) Bottom
3) Third piece/overpiece
4) Shoes
5) Accessories

In the example on the left, I used the following five pieces: a cami (Top), a skirt (Bottom), A third piece (Blazer), Shoes, and an accessory (Scarf).  Probably the only way to break this rule is when you use a dress, but overall, a put together outfit has five pieces to it.

A note on a couple of the pieces:

Third piece/overpiece -- this can be a scarf, blazer, belt, jacket, etc. -- anything that goes over the clothes.

Accessory -- with the exception of blazers and jackets, certain overpiece items can also double as accessories.

So have fun when putting your outfits together.

Planning Out The New Closet: What Do I Need?

Okay, at some point I need to re-do my entire closet.  I lost a significant amount of weight over the past year, so I need to get clothes that fit.  If I were rich, I would hire someone to clean it out for me and tell me what exactly I need.  But since I'm not rich, I have to do some research on what is in a normal woman's closet.

Now, my husband likes to joke about how many clothes I have in my closet compared to him, but because I've been more conscious of other expenses over the past few years a lot of what I have now is not of the best quality and I've just had a lot of the stuff way too long (the only thing I've been buying on a regular basis is shoes, only because of my tendency to wear the same cheap pair of sneakers until they're worn out).  I just pared my closet down recently, and will probably be paring it down more as I get laundry done.

The thing I refuse to get rid of: my anime/pop culture t-shirts.  I still wear those to conventions so I don't look so much like someone's mom (even though I am, but I digress...).

The things I know I need for my wardrobe (to either purchase or keep):

Shoes of various types -- right now I have a pair of black sneakers that are going to need replacing soon, a pair of pumps that need to be replaced, and a couple of pairs of mid-heeled shoes. That's the wearable stuff. What I would like to get are a pair of good, long lasting sneakers, mid-heel shoes, flats, decent sandals (for second job), a pair of riding boots, and booties.

Little Black Dress -- I am probably the only person I know who doesn't own a "little black dress."

Black Suit -- I own a white suit, with a jacket that's too big on me now (the skirt fits, though).  I need something that fits me properly so that it doesn't look like I'm swimming in it.

Trousers -- a necessity in my particular wardrobe. I'll have to sort out what I have and see if I need to get any new pairs on my shopping trip.

White Dress Shirt -- I have a red one, and a white t-shirt, but no white dress shirts.

Dress/Skirts -- I have one dress that's somewhat wearable for special occasions, but for the most part I don't have anything I can really wear to work.

Tights -- I only have pantyhose that's ripped and unwearable, and with winter coming up it would be nice to have something that I can wear with dresses.

Camis/tanks -- To wear under jackets and shirts.

Jackets -- Now these I have for winter, and I have one red leather dress jacket that I bought several years ago that I still absolutely love.  I think I might need a couple of blazers, though. And I'm going to have to pair down my other jackets to see which ones I want to keep vs. consign.

Jeans -- I threw out all my jeans except one pair because they were all too big.  I need to get a couple more pairs in different styles.

Shirts -- Again, with the weight loss I'm swimming in a lot of my shirts now (some of them I'm wearing camis/tanks underneath them because the neckline is suddenly too low for my first job).

Capris -- I have PLENTY of these, believe me. When hubby's ex-wife started to lose weight herself, she gave me a lot of her old clothes, which included a lot of capris.  It wasn't that she loved capris in particular, but since she's not even 5" tall they fit her like regular pants. I'll have to go through what I have right now to see how many I can toss and replace them with regular pants.

Various accessories -- I've usually avoided accessories in the past unless it was something that meant something personal to me (like my class ring/wedding ring/engagement ring).  I don't think I could do the oversized rings (my hands are fairly small, they would just look "clunky"), but larger bracelets and necklaces I could probably do.

Is there anything I'm missing?  Let me know in the comments.

Two Recommended Blogs

There are two things you should know about me. 1) I'm a plus size gal (thus the title of the blog -- even if I were to get down to my ideal size, I would still be in the 12-14 range), and 2) I'm 40.  Here are two blogs that I discovered that I think I'm going to be relying on as I go on this fashion journey that help me with both challenges in getting myself dressed in the morning.

1) The Curvy Fashionista

This is a great blog, because this woman has attitude in SPADES.  She looks great in everything she puts on, and gives advice on how to follow the latest trends, especially on a budget.

2) 40+ Style

This one I just discovered today.  The whole site is designed as a series of classes in fashion and style for women over 40.  She has articles that give tips on how to dress for your body type, how to stay on trend and still look great, and also talks with other bloggers about their forms of style.

More Thoughts on 2014 Fashion Trends

Note: I'm going to be starting my job at Lane Bryant soon (my disclaimer), and in accordance with how I read the social media policy they have for employees, I've removed any references to their specific clothing from this post.  Note that when I comment on the trends, I'm not necessarily commenting on the clothing featured as an example, just on the trend itself.

Here is some more styles that I discovered in my research on current fashion trends.

1) Distressed Jeans

Alice&You Distressed Slim Mom Jean, $67.71, ASOS Curve

Who knew that my son was in style for the past few months? I just thought he had holes in his jeans...

Yes, having holes in your jeans is fashionable again, a rock and roll trend from the 1980s.  I wouldn't buy pre-holed jeans, mostly because I wouldn't have anywhere to wear them.

2) Peplum

Scuba Wrap Peplum Top in Floral Print, $67.71, ASOS Curve

Peplum is just another name for the little flare on a shirt or dress.  It's a cute look -- I plan on putting a couple of peplum shirts into my wardrobe.

3) Jumpsuits

Geo Print Jumpsuit V-Neck, $60.20, ASOS

I'm sorry...I don't know why jumpsuits are a trend.  The only time you'll ever catch me in a jumpsuit is if I happen to be cosplaying as a Ghostbuster.

4) Overalls

ZiZZi  Denim Dungarees, $100.90, Navabi

I'm trying to figure out if this is part of a bigger trend that I'm not aware of.  I don't remember the last time I saw someone wearing dungarees unless it was part of a Halloween costume.

I'll do some more as I discover them.

Okay, A Note On Trends

Note: I'm just about to start my job at Lane Bryant (my disclaimer) and in my understanding with their social media policy I decided to edit this post and take out anything that was from their website and replace it with another brand. Another thing to note is that when I am commenting on a particular trend, I'm commenting on the trend itself, not necessarily the piece of clothing that I chose to present as an example.

This is me doing "crash course in fashion 101."

Trends can last a month, or they can last  few years, or a lifetime.  Some lifetime trends can include jeans or the classic little black dress. Month long trends are usually just fads.

Sometimes trends will go out of fashion, but then come back.  For example, one rule to go by is that if it was popular in a particular decade, expect it to be back in fashion 20 years later. (I remember as a kid in the 1980s when tie-dye came back in style).  Then there are others that just die quick deaths, never to return.

From all the reading I've been doing online, here are just a few of the common trends that I've been reading about either coming up or currently going on, and my thoughts on them.  I'll probably do another post on more trends as I discover them.


1) Skinny Jeans

Ridley Skinny Jean in Acid Wash, $58.04, ASOS Curve

I had heard of "skinny jeans" before, but usually paired with the word "hipster."  Apparently this is a trend that has been around for awhile, and doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon.  When I eventually go to the dressing room for my shopping spree, I might try these on just to see how they look on me.

2) "Boyfriend" Jeans

Women's Plus Slim Boyfriend Jeans, $37.50, Old Navy

The name comes from the fact that the jeans look like you just pulled them out of your significant other's closet and put them on yourself.  This is the complete opposite from skinny jeans in that these are roomier.  I might venture to get a pair of these, as well.

3) Sheer

New Look Inspire Spot Mesh Skater Dress, $38.67, ASOS Curve

It's not really a look to wear to the office, but for a night on the town or more casual wear I think it's fine if worn correctly.

4) Digital Prints

Kay Unger Plus Size Digital Print Dress, $198, Saks Fifth Avenue

The term "digital printing" just basically means transferring a digital picture onto various media, according to Wikipedia.  This is one of those trends that I don't think will be so much a "trend" as much as a "method of doing things," because you can put any digital print on clothing.  The above example is a pricier example -- for something more affordable:

Digital Aztec Burnout Tank, $19.60, Avenue

The print is up to you.

Well, I'm going to leave off there for now.  Tomorrow, I might comment on some more trends that I stumble upon on my journey.

So What Makes This Blog Different From Other Fashion Blogs?

Well...it's because that, at the age of 40, I am just now learning about fashion.

This year I'll be working as the In School Suspension Assistant at the local high school.  As a second job, I was just recently hired at Lane Bryant.

Now, I am absolutely thrilled by this -- I love their clothes, mostly because their selection is stylish and it fits.  But I'm also scared by the prospect, as well.  Because as part of this job, I have to look "stylish."  My new boss said I didn't necessarily have to wear their clothes to work (although I'm sure it helps), but that the dress code was "stylish."  So I have to start paying attention to trends.

While I'm waiting for this new job to start, I'm doing research on what is currently considered "stylish" and "trendy."  And I am thoroughly confused -- I've never kept up with fashion, because most of the stuff that I wear has just been really, really basic stuff that would be "stylish" no matter what.  And with me being on a limited budget (last time I bought clothes for myself was at Goodwill last year, and that was only a few things), needless to say style has been the last thing on my mind.

And there might be some of you that might feel the same way.  So what do I plan on doing with this blog?

Well, here are my current plans:

1) Talk about things I've learned along the way.
2) Highlight my purchases (Mostly Lane Bryant, since one benefit of the job is a clothing discount, but anything else I happen to purchase for myself), as well as feature stuff I would LIKE to get
3) Give my opinion on current trends

I might do some other fashion related items on here as time goes on, but right now I'm just going to start with that.