Skirt, Boss (via consignment); top, LOFT (via swap); cardigan, J. Crew Factory; necklace & shoes, J. Crew; bag, YSL (via eBay)
Skirt, Boss (via consignment); top, LOFT (via swap); cardigan, J. Crew Factory; necklace & shoes, J. Crew; bag, YSL (via eBay)

One of my most oft-repeated formulas is patterned skirt + neutral top + solid, coordinating colour topper. More often than not, the print is a floral. I’m very predictable, you guys. But having developed a cohesive colour palette for my wardrobe, mixing and matching all these separates is super easy.

florals, as usual
florals, as usual
close-up on bling
close-up on bling

I actually learned to appreciate the importance of colour palettes from J. Crew. You know how it’s easy to mix their pieces from different seasons? It’s because they tend to have certain colours that repeat (either as stand-alones or as part of prints). Even if you’re not as much of a matchy-matchy person as I am, having a number of complementary pieces in the same colour palette does make it easier to get dressed every morning. Take, for example, my burgundy pieces and accents in this outfit (all from J. Crew or the Factory store): the shoes, cardigan, and necklace. They ground the outfit in the same way that black would – except that burgundy is a slightly less expected “neutral” – and they all go together, which means I can be a little more bold with the rest of the outfit. Enter the florals. Always the florals.

sassy elbow pop
sassy elbow pop

6 Comments on The Formula

  1. I have pretty much the same formula although my skirts are striped, floral, spotty…anything really. I do like a nice pencil skirt.

    Love these colours on you, burgundy with your colouring is such a winner.

  2. Old Navy (of all places!) repeats colors as well: I bought a patterned cardigan and a dress at least five years apart and they use the exact same shade of cornflower blue. I was floored!

    I love that skirt!

    • I love when that happens! I wish more retailers did that for those of us obsessed with coordinating. Or for minimalists who like colour (some days, I swear, I could see myself having an all-blue wardrobe).

  3. Love the idea of outfit formulas – it makes it easy to plan your wardrobe if you know what those formulas are. For winter I like collared shirt, sweater, and pants. Still working on outfits with skirts, however.