Why you don’t need the ‘right clothes for every occasion,’ & how I do Coffee + Yoga in one outfit!

I’ve started to work out in the city three times a week, more to keep myself sane on an entrepreneur’s schedule than anything else. Every other morning, I catch a bus and head to a killer exercise class*, before walking into a coffee shop with my laptop to tackle the day’s work.

This, as you might imagine, presents a tricky style situation.

After all, how do you work out and still look street chic? Especially when you don’t really want to be toting clothes to your next engagement? Do you have to just grin and bear it looking like a street bum?

Enter the coffee + yoga ensemble!

…Just a teensy glimpse into how I’m able to make the one-bag closet work. I’ve also combined sweats with cardigans, glitter and tshirts, dresses over shorts… you name it!

Obviously, this doesn’t work if you’re doing crazy cardio and dripping with sweat after, but hopefully you’re heading to a shower in that case. This is more for those of us who like to multitask + hop from one thing to another, in which case dragging around extra clothes all day is, well, a drag!

It also works for any 2-in-1 scenarios where you want to be comfortable, but still look presentable. Hot date where you might be doing a couple miles of romantic strolling? Grabbing drinks at that fancy bar right after work? Got a business meeting on Skype but fighting a cold? A little creativity goes a long way.

Because it’s not about having the right clothes for the occasion. It’s about making the clothes right. If you don’t believe me, just replace ‘clothing’ with ‘attitude’

*I’m currently addicted to the Bar Method. A bit less calm than yoga, perhaps, but it’s a nice complement to the mental masochism of entrepreneur-ing! Plus, it does wonders for getting my energy up for the day.

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A note on the recent lack of posts: I’ve been positively STUFFED with ideas lately, but digesting slowly behind the scenes. So instead of my usual crazy 6-meal-course philosophizing, I’ve decided to just post a taste! OK no more of this metaphor. We’re talking style here, not food. (Though this does remind me of a certain fashion internship where no one ate more than espresso for lunch, but that’s a different story…)

Anyway, rest assured I haven’t forgotten about you! Good things are on their way. You may even have noticed the tagline for this site has changed. It’s a sign of things to come.

Hint: Personal style + a desire for creative leadership in life/work/the world = what might be one of the easiest paths to innovation, ever. Want to discover more? Stake a lookout here.

Forget What Not To Wear and Project Runway. Introducing Restyle It! TV (especially for the anti-fuss on-the-go types.)

Introducing Restyle It! A sparkly new series of tutorials + experiments for brilliant people who want to look the part.

AKA stuff you can try right now.

AKA#2 little magical secrets from my personal arsenal that I’ve never shared before. Discoveries I make along the way as I live stylishly out of a single carryon.

Oh and?

I hope you know this terrifies me.

I don’t do public speaking. Not as in it’s not my career. As in, I spent high school theatre hiding in pit orchestras and costume crew. And the only times I ever actually blush involve microphones and crowds.

So…Video? TV? What?

But style without visuals can be kind of lame. And I’ve found that videos aren’t too bad if you just make yourself march over to the screen and then (deep breath) post them with a flurry of clicks before you can change your mind! Speedy creations are something of a speciality…

…Which is why the first Restyle It! is ultra-easy and can be done ultra-fast.

From what I’ve heard from you guys, time and fuss seem to be big anti-style factors. And as a Sagittarius, I sympathize. Trust me. There’s a reason I’ve been whittling my closet down.

But you just can’t say no to the Insta-shirt. Made especially with the anti-fussy grab-and-go brilliant ones in mind…

There you go!

How am I going to keep this up? Glad you asked- with your help, of course. If you get inspired or make your own discoveries…

Yes, you can now post your own Restyle it! discoveries + experiments! I even started a Youtube Channel- that’s how serious I am, haha. The gorgeous Rhina was kind enough to share her glorious maxiskirt-to-turban restyle, and it’s the first one up on YOU Restyle It! for your viewing pleasure.

P.S. Don’t forget to grab your 5 Words + tell me what you’re ‘wearing’ on Facebook!

30-Day Challenge Finale!

THE END of my 30-Day Challenge! (Weeks One, Two, and Three!)

It’s been 30 days of pure crazy styling fun and experimentation. I’m surprised by how much I learned from this simple undertaking, and hopefully some part of it has inspired you! I’m incredibly thankful to everyone who checked in during the month & cheered me on, left comments, and the many friends who acted as my personal photographers! Love and gratitude to you all.

Recap post and overall gallery (if I can conquer yet another wordpress gadget!) coming soon, since I’m coming off a two-day department trip from New York City and it’s almost two in the morning, eek! Happy October

Days 19-28:

Day 29 and 30 brought to you from NYC, haha!

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Yay! Wonder what I’ll wear now?

(Sad but true: I haven’t even UNPACKED most of my clothes from the summer!)

Crazy Things Come In Sevens

30 Day Challenge, Week Two! (Missed the first restyled batch?) Seven ridiculous outfits for seven ridiculous days of training and escapades. Hope you find something intriguing below!

Day Six

Fulfilling my orchid craving! | Collared button-up worn without sleeves (just hung it around my neck).

Day Seven

Another theme day! Meet my twin, the gorgeous Eury. She was a trooper & together we masterminded duplicating from my limited wardrobe! | Tank worn inside-out underneath skirt worn as top.

Day Eight

Crazy makeup day…do you see the blue swirls? | Dress folded partway down over tank.

Day Nine

You know you have an amazing photographer when she scouts out the most kickass locations for outfit photos, without being asked! Thanks, Kara | Collared button-up over ruffled dress, funky accessories.

Day Ten

Staircase shoot! | Striped skirt worn as shirt, belted with leggings (very consciously testing the no-pants look, haha).

Day Eleven

Long day! Tired but happy. Shirt worn as skirt, leggings, new blazer! over shirt.

Day Twelve

My crazy room. Recognize the orchid from the first photo? Why it insists on residing over my head, I have no idea…| Skirt worn over dress, hoodie zipped up partway in the back instead of front.

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…What a week! This challenge is running a lot smoother than I’d anticipated, partly I think because so many of my friends on staff have been taking note & nudging me on (any RA’s reading this- holla!) Not to mention the support on here- thank you! I’m feeling amped on creativity & ready for week three.

What do you guys think? Hit me with your feedback!

How To Dress Like An RA

…I’ve got to live up to my reputation as the only Apparel major on staff, right?

The first (read: easiest) week of the 30 Day Challenge is hereby finished! You can see the first day’s outfit here.

The hardest part was participating in the Theme Days they added to training week. I had to skip Pajama Day for obvious reasons, but have managed to work the others so far!

Here’s me prancing around RISD…many thanks to my lovely friend Kara for following me all over campus taking photos

Day Two

[H&M shirt worn as scarf. Carrying: RA binder & an old issue of Vogue]

Day Three

[My personal favorite so far- this was for "Wear Your Clothes Backwards" Day. When I read it, I was like...have the prostaff been reading the blog? Haha. I loved the way the gray zip-up looked backwards and don't know if I would have thought of it otherwise! Also, rain boots for Hurricane Earl...]

Day Four

[Let the restyling begin! The skirt is the only new piece here, which I made from striped men's shirting fabric last year. Excuse the wrinklies and tiredness- this was after a very long day! Flower pin worn for a ridiculous dress-up dinner.]

Day Five

[All new pieces! This is a F21 dress I've owned forever but never worn, and what better chance than 30-for-30 to push it out of the closet? Today's all about doing room checks on my floor, and there's nothing like an empty loft for photoshoots!]

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That’s it folks! Hit me with any questions you have, tell me which one’s your favorite, and have a splendid Labor Day weekend.

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Subscribing to email updates here! I promise I won’t bombard you with spam or my face (one 30-for-30 post per week is reasonable, yes?)

30 Days and Counting!

30-for-30, I’m here to take you by storm! We’re busting out the ultimate restyling skills and never coming back! Ready…set….

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Actually, I’m more than a little intimidated.

For those of you who don’t know, 30-for-30 is a challenge started by Kendi to create 30 stylish, no-bullshit outfits in 30 days, using only 30 pieces of clothing (including shoes.) Now, I’m a girl who rarely wears a duplicate outfit in a year, much less a month. Massive restyling is my thing. I also own too many clothes for my own good, and this can make me lazy. So when I interviewed Frances and got overwhelmingly positive feedback, I thought, why not?

But as soon as I got back from camp and started unpacking my clothes, my heart started to race. It’d seemed so easy in theory. But can I really get 30 outfits out of this?!

[Raw materials. It doesn't look like very much...]

Fortunately I have you guys to hold me accountable, and I’m committed to this challenge come hell or high water. So, onwards!

Day 1

Here’s what I wore to my first official day of RA (residence assistant) training! Light ruffly blouse and seersucker shorts I’ve owned forever, & red cutout flats from Aldo. I figured I’d give the easy breezy pieces a whirl while the weather’s still hot, even if it means not looking like unicorn vomit, haha.

And yesssss accessorizing is allowed – besides shoes, of course! Promise I won’t wear an enormous scarf that covers half of my body, though! That’s an old Tokidoki bag, by the way, and a feather headband from Forever 21.

I’ll be posting bi-weekly from now on to break things up a bit, as I also have more regular articles coming. Expect to see the rest of this week’s restyling all together in a few days.

If you have any encouragement, input thus far, or just plan to be following along, I’d love to hear from you below!