Jalisa’s Fashion Files

COAT: Calvin Klein (Nordstrom Rack)// ROMPER: Marshalls// LEGGINGS: Marshalls// BOOTS: Nine Wes// SCARF: Jones New York (TjMaxx)

Hey Girlies,

Today it began to snow for the first time in New York and I honestly don't know how I feel about it. I mean, last year was pretty traumatizing for all of us in the Northeast because of the several intense snow storms we experienced. Don't get me wrong, it's beautiful to look at and it sure does help us all get into the holiday spirit, but it does get annoying when it comes to shoveling and trying to maneuver around the streets that have yet to be plowed, ugh, I'll just embrace it for now. 

Even though it was snowing (it didn't actual begin to stick until after we took these photos), I wanted to wear this black and white striped romper that I purchased over the summer. I've been planning on wearing it with black leggings and booties for a while, actually since I purchased it when it was somewhere around 80 degrees... because in fashion, our minds are always ahead of the season! I had purchased this red coat in the early weeks of fall and thought it would look great with the romper, adding some color and festiveness and I love the way it came together and I hope you all do, too! 

Now, when it comes to horizontal stripes, as seen in the romper, it can be a bit tricky, when we're dealing with placement and our body shapes. Generally speaking, you'd want to place these sort of stripes in areas where you'd want to add some visual width, but since this romper features the pattern throughout the entire piece, the placement of other pieces and accessories can truly make all the difference. The fact that I'm wearing a scarf looped around my neck in a way that drapes loosely in the front adds some visual length because it causes the eye to look downwards, where the scarf ends and where the tassels are. This, in fact, is a great way to wear a scarf if you're petite because it will visually elongate your upper body. I know, it seems very simple, but sometimes it's those simple things that really make all the difference in an outfit and for our figures!

Speaking of elongating, another lengthening effect we've created here is the black legging and black bootie combination. Since the two colors are the same, it creates the illusion of a longer leg. This is also why I'd suggest booties over every other style of boot to those who are petite or who have shorter legs. The more of your leg that's exposed, the longer they'll appear. Since we used two methods of elongation, the width created by the romper is visually balanced out...mission accomplished ;)

I hope you all enjoyed this post and felt inspired to recreate it on yourselves! Check back tomorrow for a video featuring holiday outfit ideas! 

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COAT: Vince Camuto (Marshalls)// TOP: H&M// JEANS: New York & Company// SHOES: BCBGeneration (Marshalls)// PURSE: Michael Kors (Marshalls)// WATCH: Michael Kors

Hello Beauties,

I hope you all had a wonderful start to your week! Today's pairing is quite feminine, since I chose to wear a softer color palette, blush pink and grey. These two colors work great together, since blush pink has a bit of an ash grey undertone, making it the perfect match with grey bottoms! This particular top is ultra feminine because of the embellished neckline. I personally love tops that have this, since it helps to eliminate the stress of having to find that perfect necklace to wear. To top of the look, I wore this statement coat, which is in a luxurious burgundy/wine color, with a faux fur collar. I shared on Facebook the other day how much I love grey and burgundy during this time of year; I created a look demonstrating how well they really do look paired together. In general, neutral, jewel toned, and deep colors have a very luxurious tone. Neutrals tend to have a light and feminine feel and jewel toned and rich (vibrant) colors have more an intense feel and when combined, they can make for beautiful combination and when you through fur (faux) into the mix, girl forget it! You'll look ultra glam ;)

When it comes to your body shape, one thing to keep in mind if you're a pear or hourglass, and thinking about purchasing grey jeans is the fading. There are grey jeans that don't feature a fading section of the jean (the center of the thigh) and are just a solid grey, while others, like the one's I'm wearing do. If you happen to like the fading, you may want to select a pair that have a straight fade down the center of the leg, while the rest of the jeans are a solid grey. This will ensure that your legs don't appear any larger than what you may want them to appear. The opposite goes for all you apple and rectangular shapes. You on the other hand want to add some visual weight to your bottom half and an easy way do so is to select jeans that have fading regardless of the intensity. The light will reflect, causing your legs to appear fuller.

Thanks so much for stopping by!

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CARDIGAN: Marshalls// SHIRT: Max Studio (Marshalls)// JEANS: New York & Company (HERE)// SCARF: Steve Madden (Marshalls)// RAIN BOOTS: Coach// PURSE: Louis Vuitton Trevi GM 

Hey Girlies, 

This is a look I wore yesterday, which was a very gloomy and rainy day, however, the temperature wasn't too bad, which was nice! Since it was unusually mild, I was able to ditch the heavy coat and instead, wore this black waterfall cardigan I've had sitting in my closet for ages. Waterfall cardigans are a great way to add some dimension to both your upper and lower half, in a less dramatic way. It also helps to visually elongate the trunk of the body, making it appear longer and leaner, especially when worn in black! I decided to wear a striped t-shirt underneath with a pop of color in my scarf, to add some contrast between the shirt and cardigan, but let's further discuss the striped tee. The stripes in the shirt I'm wearing are horizontal, which will obviously cause the eye to move across the top of the body in most cases and as a result, certain body shapes, such as the apple, inverted triangle, and rectangular shapes can appear even wider than they naturally are, but this doesn't necessarily mean that those of you who have these shapes can't wear them. I generally prefer suggesting vertical stripes for the shapes listed above, but they can be a tad difficult to find in a casual tee (they tend to be more popular in dressier or collared blouses) and so, I would suggest selecting a tee that has black as the base and white for the stripes, exactly the opposite in color pattern than what you see in my shirt. The black will visually slim the area and since the white (remember, white highlights) stripes are rather thin, you won't have to worry about will appearing larger! Check out an alternative look I created based on this suggestion. I also changed the style of cardigan to a cocoon, which will help add some visual width to the hip area ;)

 

It's amazing to me how much the little things in our clothing can make such a huge difference and I believe that's why I'm so passionate about discussing and providing suggestions or styling mechanisms and clothing for the different body shapes.

Since I'm wearing dark denim jeans, this look would definitely be appropriate for a rainy dress down day at work. It reads casual, fun, yet put-together at the same time. I added my favorite Coach rain boots to tie in with the hot pink infinity scarf I wore and loved the way the look turned out. As mentioned in the is week's video, this Louis Vuitton damier printed purse goes great with the look, but I also did mention that the shape of the purse can either make the look casual or dressy and with this particular style, the Trevi GM, the looks appears a bit more dressed up, which is why I would consider perhaps the Neverfull purse as a possible everyday purse for this particular print, since it's large enough for anything you'd possibly need, if you were considering purchasing one this season :)

I hope you all loved the look and that it inspired you to recreate it! Thanks so much for stopping by and showing love!

 

XO- Jalisa

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BOMBER JACKET: Marshalls// JEANS: New York & Company (HERE)// PURSE: Errelleventidue (HERE)// SHOES: Steve Madden// NECKLACE: New York & Company

Hey Girls,

I hope you all had an awesome weekend! Today's look is a fun and interesting one, since we have the mix of colors and patterns, but in a way that's more subtle. If you remember a few weeks ago, I recorded a video, How to Pattern Mix Like a Pro, in which I explained some of the methods you see demonstrated in this pairing. First, you'll notice that I selected my upper body to feature the largest and most vibrant print and the shoes to feature the smallest and darkest. The location or placement of the size of the print will vary depending on your body shape and where you want the pattern to stand out most. For me, since I'm a pear shape, I want the volume to be placed up top, to balance out my hips, which is why I opted for this bomber. 

Another strategy you'll notice that I mentioned in the video, was the colors used for both patterns. I mentioned in the video that if you're not certain if a print goes together, select patterns that feature the same or similar color scheme, to create a nice blended look. That's exactly what I did here. Both pieces have blue, white, and a deep red, which creates a cohesive and blended look, one that doesn't clash. 

Below is a very similar look I created, regardless of your body shape. Although I mentioned above that the location or placement of the prints will vary depending on your body shape, if you happen to like this very look, I'm giving you an idea how you can still pull it off, regardless of your shape or silhouette. Remember, in fashion, there are generally exceptions to the "rules", it's just a matter of selecting pieces that can help bring the look together in a way that's flattering to successfully pull it off!

If you have larger hips, i.e. a pear or hourglass shape, you can wear the look as I'm wearing it above with a dark wash skinny jean. Although the leg is slim and can make the hips appear wider, the fact that it's in a dark wash with minimal fading will help counteract that. However, there is another style that would work and that's a flared leg in a dark wash. 

If you have a larger bust or midsection, such as an apple or inverted triangle shape, a light wash bootcut with a substantial amount of fading, will help in preventing the bust or midsection from appearing larger, due to the volume of the bomber and print. The width of the bootcut will help balance out the width up top and the lighter denim will help add some visual weight to your lower body, since white and lighter colors help reflect light.

I hope this post inspired you to play around with some paisley and polka dotted pieces you may have in your wardrobe!

PS: The 7 for all mankind jeans seen in the set I created above can be found at an outlet store or search your local Marshalls, Tjmaxx, or Burlington Coat Factory for a much more cheaper price!

XO,

Jalisa

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Hello Loves!

This week's video will hopefully give you all some ideas and inspiration for your Thanksgiving get-together next week. Can you believe that Thanksgiving is already next week?! I know I can't! Before you know it, it'll be 2015! Anyway, before I become stressed by how fast time is flying (lol), I came up with three different looks that I feel are perfect for the holiday. Watch the video below and check out the photos for a closer look of each piece (click the comment button to take you over to the photos!)

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