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Friday, October 3, 2014

The fails and fixes of 500

Yesterday marked my 500th post, and it's truly hard to believe that I've written that many! That's 500-ish outfits, y'all! Which is even crazier to think about in terms of outfits because I started photo documenting my OOTDs a few months before I braved the blogging world! I've done a few of these milestone posts before - you can catch yourself up here on how I celebrated 100, 200, and 1-year.

For my 500th post, I thought it would be interesting to highlight some of my fails. But so this doesn't turn into a Debbie Downer post, I thought I would not only share the fail, but also the fix! I've said before that the best thing about blogging is truly being able to *see* yourself in your outfit. And since I take my photos the weekend before I'm actually wearing them, that gives me time to make tweaks based on things I didn't really like. A couple times they were so bad that I re-photographed the outfits before publishing them altogether, but most times, it was just a matter of making a minor tweak here and there to make an ok outfit a great outfit.

Original post here

I already commented about this fix and fail in the original post, so I thought this was a good one to start with to refresh your memory. The outfit on the left could actually work with bare legs and neutral sandals, but trying to winterize the metallic skirt with taupe tights and metallic booties was a disaster. The plum skinnies was such a better life choice and I'm really loving how those booties add shine to the look on the right.

Left: Never published | Right: Original post here

Holy slouchy, Batman!! I look so scrunched up and sad in the left photo! Not to mention like a really bad fashion victim with a fur vest AND a furry bag? What the heck was I thinking? Then I try and add in a leopard belt and moto boots. I wonder if I thought there was an award for the most trends I could wear all at the same time. It all was just a hot mess, so it never got published. I was determined to wear the vest with the red skinnies, though, and it's amazing what a few tweaks will do. I still have the leopard I love, but keeping it monochromatic with the other accessories and just letting the pants be the one pop of color simplifies the entire look and puts me at ease. The vest is also its best when it is the only textured piece I am wearing, and zipping it helps eliminate the frump factor.

Left: Never published
Right: Never published - Cardi: Halogen | Tank and Scarf: Express | Jeans: Forever 21| Wedges: Sperry

OK, so this is me just being a girl. At first glance, the outfit on the left doesn't look like anything out of the ordinary, right? Oh but trust me - the pants were tighter than they should have been and it was giving me crazy muffin top. I really don't know how the husband didn't notice this while he was photo'ing me. God bless him and his love goggles. It looks like just bunching of the tank in the front, but that's muffin top, folks, and there's also terrible creasing at the waist, through the cardigan, right below the arm holding the bag. If you can see muffin top through a cardigan, it's time to change and retire those pants. I realize you all may never have noticed this had I not mentioned it, but no one needs to see a muffin top. And while I could have just edited the photo and posted the outfit anyway - I just choose not to edit my photos for cosmetic purposes like that. The pants didn't fit me, so I didn't need to be wearing them in public, period. So, I ditched the white skinnies for some grey skinnies that actually fit me. I ended up liking the wedges better than the nude flat sandals, and added the coral leopard scarf for my must-have color pop. I can breath easier in the outfit on the right - literally and figuratively.

Left: Original post here | Right: Original post here

I ended up switching up my shoes to the flat sandals because this was right after my 39 mile walk and I couldn't fit my feet in anything else. But outside of that, I think I just really have trouble styling these gold shoes. The only time I've truly *liked* an outfit with them is this one here, but otherwise, I just feel so. Tacky. Should I just give up?

Left: Original post hereRight: Original post here

See, case in point. Another outfit where the metallic oxfords ended up getting ditched. Granted, it's not really the shoes' fault in the left pic - it was my fault for over accessorizing in the first place! OMG, I really cannot take myself seriously in the left photo. It's so awful. I think I'd rather wear the first outfit in this post with almost-pantyhose than wear this gaudy combo again!

Left: Original post here | Right: Never published

OK, I'll stop being so hard on myself, I promise! This is a good note to end on. You see, nothing is worse than spending 2 hours or so getting ready and taking photos than downloading the photos just to see that the outfit was off. I lovedddd the outfit on the left so much, but it was really distracting to me to see my pants super bunchy at my knee! Plus, I felt like I was showing too much ankle with these booties. Those two scenarios were making me look pretty stumpy. So, the actual day I was wearing the outfit, I decided to change into a different pair of pants - the pants were more mushroom colored than olive colored, but the fit was so much better. Look how much more long and lean my legs look. And your eye doesn't get distracted by my bare ankles anymore either. Since there was such a small gap between my booties and my pants hem, I was also able to wear my Keysocks, which not only help for foot comfort and warmth, but they help keep my pants in place vs riding up on my knees/calves. It really is amazing how fit can change the whole outfit!

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We can add all these outfits to a "things I have learned from blogging" list! It's definitely very gratifying to see the before and after shots of these fails and fixes. Someone told me that they're so glad that even *I* have to make tweaks to outfits before I wear them. Oh yes, you better believe I do! I only *wish* I could just throw something on and look flawless without even checking the mirror. I do wonder how people get dressed without a full length mirror - I don't think I could function. But now as a blogger, I can't function without seeing the photos! A picture is worth a thousand words, right? 

Thanks for going down memory lane with me! It's been such a great 500, to say the least!! Can't wait to see how I evolve over the next 500!!

30 comments :

  1. Such a good post. You look amazing in ALL the photos but I really enjoy this idea. Just the other day some of my friends and I were talking about how taking selfie of yourself before you walk out the door is better than a mirror! But anyway, love your style!! :-)

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    1. Amazing what photos can catch that the mirror can't! Or perhaps it's easier to scrutinize a photo! I don't know - but it's definitely helpful! Glad you enjoyed this!

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  2. Great post, Love all the fixes and you are every accurate. I actually think the stripe cardigan never published one is quite nice.

    xo
    PinkSole

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    1. I will have to wear it again with pants that I can breathe in! Nothing is worse than feeling uncomfy in your own clothes!

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  3. Congrats on 500 posts!!! I laughed as I read through these "confessions"! You always have such great pieces it's hard to imagine anything ever needs revamping :-) The one that struck me the most was the last one with the Herringbone vest...I was playing "find the difference in the pictures" and couldn't quite figure it out...then in reading you comments I'm stunned that switching your pants made you look totally different!! Your legs in the second picture look sooo long and lean!! Fun post!! :)
    Kellie @ www.ie-style.com

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    1. Haha!!! Well that's funny that you couldn't tell the difference at first but I'm so glad you understood my switches in the end! It really makes me shiver thinking of all the times I've left the house without the opportunity to overanalyze the outfit in a picture beforehand!!! Eeeee!!

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  4. Congrats on your 500th post! I loved seeing all of your outfit tweaks!

    Jill
    www.dousedinpink.com

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  5. 500!!! Holy wow!! That is so impressive. You are so dedicated and great at this, and I love that you keep it down to earth with posts like this. I don't think any of these outfits are as bad as you think, but it is fun to see the progression and how just the smallest changes make a big difference. I actually have a post similar this on my list for October so I hope you don't mind seeing my version. :) Oh! And the gold shoes. Hm....even on your favorite outfit of those with the leopard portofino, I do feel like you have about 163 other pairs of shoes that would have looked just as good as the gold ones if not better. I'd probably let it go, but you are more adventurous than me. :)
    Gina - On the Daily Express

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    1. Yeah I think I need to let them go! They are fun but too much. And you know I love being obnoxious but I just feel silly in them. Add to my sell list!
      And yay! Can't wait to see your version of this post! Glad you enjoyed it! I wasn't sure if it would be too negative of a post.

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  6. Congrats on 500 posts!! This was such a fun post too, it really is true that taking photos lets you truly see yourself in an outfit. I def rethought some of mine after taking pictures!

    Brooke
    www.pumpsandpushups.com

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  7. Good for you and 500 posts!! This was such a fun post and so interesting to see how those little tweaks make a huge difference.

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    1. Happy you liked this! It's helpful for me to look back at stuff like this!

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  8. I so love this post. It is good to know that I'm not the only one that look at an outfit, and realize that I don't like the end result. Congrats on the 500 post!

    Kreyola Jounerys

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    1. Thanks so much! And no, absolutely you're not the only one! Love that about fashion - it's ever evolving!

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  9. OMG you are too much, if it wasn't because you pointed out the "muffin top" I would have never seen it, and I like that cardigan with white jeans :)
    and that last set of pictures, I died, if you showed the pictures to someone else they might say it's just the lighting that makes the color look different, leave it to us women to call it more mushroom than olive.

    Natalia

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    1. Yes - for sure women articulate colors differently than a man!
      And I know, I know - the muffin top is my own self consciousness - but you know there is that one person that is zooming in on their iPhone disgusted that I would post such an atrocity! ha

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  10. Congrats on your 500th post! I'm cracking up on the muffin top pic and your comment about your husbands love goggles! I actually looked at those two pictures and thought you looked adorable in that one....it seemed to capture your personality so I totally would not have noticed the "muffin top".

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    1. Well sounds like you may have borrowed the love goggles from the husband! :) Thanks for the kind words. We're our own worst critics for sure!

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  11. What a great post! Thanks for sharing both the beautiful and the real. :) I truly loved the outfit where you pointed out the muffin top (which I could barely notice even after you pointed it out!) and I think you should get some white skinnies that fit better and try again! :)

    Thanks for linking up at the Weekend Wind-Down party!

    Nicole =)

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    1. Glad you enjoyed it! I have a couple of other pairs of white skinnies, which just happened to be dirty of course when I wanted to wear them! I will definitely try that outfit again - I did very much like the concept!
      Thanks for hosting and for stopping over here!

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  12. Hahaha... Ok this was a great post! The ability to look at yourself and say -- hmmm, nope, that was a fail, is A BEAUTIFUL thing! I would have to agree though that the first pic with the metallic skirt...yeah chile...lol, that probably would have been the first time I did not comment on a blog post of yours. But, you are so awesomely stylish that you definitely can get a pass. We all have fails. Live, learn and most of all, laugh about it.

    Thrifting Diva
    www.thriftingdiva.com

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    1. Well well! Now if you don't comment, I will be worried that you hated my look! Haha! I know what you mean though, and I know not everything we wear will be perfect, but that's also a part of the style evolution, right?

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  13. Congrats on 500 posts! :)

    I love that you had the before and after photos! I always take photos when I'm on the way out of the house to go somewhere, so there is no time to review the photos afterwards or change my outfit. I've posted a lot of fails in my time - but everyone helps me learn a little better I think! :) Or I hope! haha! :)

    Away From The Blue

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    1. We all learn from each other and ourselves, I'm sure of it!
      Glad you liked this!

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  14. Congratulations on 500 amazing style posts. Loved reading these and taking your failures and turning them into successes. The last outfit is my favorite. And I adore your gold oxford shoes - you are being too hard on them lol.

    I am reaching my 1000 post soon. WOW, time flies!

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    1. 1000 is such a big feat! That's crazy! But time surely does fly. It certainly does not feel like 500!

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  15. Such a great post, Carylee! Congrats on reaching 500 posts! What am amazing accomplishment and inspiration to newbie bloggers like myself! BTW, I own those same gold Sam Edleman oxfords and agree that they are difficult to style! I cannot for the life of me come up with an outfit to wear with them! Totally love your pairing of them with a leopard print blouse and jeans! I guess I will continue to try...the thought of giving them up makes me sad because they are so cute and unique! Let me know if you come up with any other ideas and I'll do the same!

    Robyn
    http://feelgreatfashion.com/

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    1. Sounds like a deal to me! They really are great shoes! I really wish I could give them the attention they deserve!

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