I wore this Maggy London dress on the day I had to take new head shots at work, because I wanted to have a little bit of colour near my face. I also used that opportunity to road test a new way of doing my eyebrows … which, in retrospect, was a terrible idea. Inspired by my beauty idol, Jessica Chastain, I’ve been wanting to try lighter eyebrows for a while, and finally took the plunge after buying a cheapie eyebrow pencil from Essence. I think the results were … mostly ok, but not so much in front of the (professional) camera. My makeup looked natural enough in normal lighting, but I ended up looking pretty washed out in the profesh photos. Sigh.

As for the rest of the outfit, it was fine. Lace always feels a bit risqué to me, but I felt the were enough more conservative/formal elements to the outfit to balance it out. I think I’ll have to try is dress a few more times before I decide whether it’s a keeper or not.

I rarely wear head-to-toe black … though, I should do so more often because it’s so, so easy to feel polished wearing black … but I digress. I switched up my outfit plans on the day I wore this iteration because I had just thrifted these Stuart Weitzman pumps and couldn’t wait to wear them; a simple, all-black outfit seemed like a good idea given the bold look of these shoes. They remind me so much of the Roger Vivier flats I’ve admired on others but which I’ve found in the wild, err, thrifting; the only difference is that this pair has a low chunky heel.

The rest of the outfit is pretty straight-forward. The top is quickly becoming a favourite of mine; it’s by Theory, and it has a very flattering, subtle peplum and pockets. Yes, pockets! How cool is that? The pants are Talula brand (from Aritzia), and they’re a slouchier take on my usual Sloans, which somehow feels a bit more … elegant? Effortlessly chic? Something. Moving on, the blazer is another new fave — the heathered knit is a nice alternative to plain black, and it lends a bit of texture to the outfit. It’s hella comfy too. The necklace is an old J. Crew Factory one, and it always garners a compliment or two; it’s the only retail piece in the picture. But, let’s be honest: they’re all supporting players here. Those shoes are stealing the show, for sure.

Obviously, this is an outfit that belongs nowhere in real life … except my commute to work. It’s where casual and business-dress collide, and the results are sometimes kinda cute. Then again, it’s hard to go wrong with black and blue, and my favourite leather jacket. Err, make that my one and only (and awesome) (and faux!) leather jacket.

Someone on IG noted that the shape of the necklace kinda matches the shape of the dress sleeves (and skirt? a little bit?) and I wish I could take credit for that level of attention to detail but rest assured that it was pure coincidence. I can occasionally manage to look cute on my commute to work, but I’m not THAT on top of my game in the morning.