Black Collar, Red Lipstick

Confession: I totally mucked up that title by forgetting to wear red lipstick. D’oh! Well, it’s kinda sorta red. And the bag is definitely red, so that should count. The rest of the outfit is super simple, which is just what my maximalism-loving self needs from time to time — a good reset. Black and white is a perfect palette cleanser, but it’s not all Snoozeville up in here. The shoes are a little funky (those cut-outs!) and the collar is a lot funky.

I tend to avoid white shirts like the plague, because they seem to wrinkle and wilt as soon as they come within a mile radius of my body. Not to mention, I’m a spill-prone klutz. This shirt, however, was too cute to pass up for $18 (at My Favourite Aunt’s) because of that adorable collar. The cut of the shirt is masculine enough to balance out the twee-ness, which is great. The only downside is laundering; white + embellished collar equals extra work for this reluctant domestic goddess. My process involves spraying the inside of the collar with Oxyclean before hand-washing with care (to avoid wrecking the jewels). It’s effective but more time consuming, and I’m lazy … so this shirt had better live up to its promise.