This outfit was years in the making and came together like long lost puzzles pieces snapping into place perfectly.  Okay, maybe that's a little too much, but I was elated when I put these items on together and it just worked. Each piece is from a different time and bought for a different reason and has a different story, making the final product that much more special.

Packing for nine straight days of traveling was a major challenge for me and my crazy outfit rules. As an added twist, almost this entire trip was casual wear. If it had been work wear, I would've gone directly to my four years of well-documented outfit planning in my closet app and easily picked my trusty power outfits for the proper weather and activities. My casual wear is not nearly as well documented...until now

I plan to wear as many maxis as possible over the next couple of months.  Let the temperature climb and the skirts flow!

The other weekend I made a trip to Target to buy some new hair ties and perhaps browse the bathing suit section.  Two and a half hours later, I emerged with a complete summer wardrobe!

Signs of summer in New York are here.  For one, I planned this week's outfits while dipping my toes in my apartment building's pool.  The more annoying and unavoidable sign of summer is showing up to work a wilted, melty, sweaty mess with your clothes sticking to you.  Once you dry out and try to make yourself presentable again, you shiver in freezing office AC the rest of the day. Repeat until September. 

I spent quite a bit of time thinking about how I would resume my shopping when the month past. I wanted to have a strategy so I didn't go back to old ways of over-shopping. I focused in on pieces that I thought would really move the closet needle: statement necklaces, power dresses and sandals. 

Every woman should have a pencil skirt in their closet. With the right fit, a pencil skirt can flatter any figure. In a past career, I met with potential clients frequently, so I wore a lot of pencil skirts in black or shades of grey paired with a crisp button down. Boring. Since then I've pushed the pencil skirt beyond the business suit scenario to really own it and feel confident. 

I made an impulse purchase of a sleeveless trench a while back.  It hung in my closet through a whole month of no shopping without being worn, begging for its shot, yet intimidating the crap out of me.  I must’ve made about five different outfits with it as the main piece and each one just didn't feel right, until today.

It occurs to me that I have a bit of a stripe obsession. I wore a striped dress last Monday and wrote about them another time in May. It happened a little at a time, but I now own no less than eight striped tops and four striped dresses. 

I'm so looking forward to creating power outfits with my new, comfy Adidas Originals. I will take full advantage of the sneaker trend as long as it's in style--my feet are thanking me!  Today, I will be skipping home from work :)

No matter how many times I flipped through my closet, IRL or digitally, I was still working with the same pieces. I have to recreate pieces that I've already created power outfits with and shared into new power outfits. What better place to start than with my magenta blazer!?

I've been (not very) patiently waiting for the weather to warm up enough for bare legs and bright colored dresses.  The time has finally come!  Why is this so very exciting? I'll give you several reasons.

This morning I left my IRL closet a mess with rejected clothing, but I still managed to leave for work feeling good about my outfit. Here's to a fourth season and beyond of wearing one of my oldest and dearest items.

Last night as I clicked "place order" in Amazon for a pair of shoes I was contemplating for a couple of weeks and then felt incredibly guilty, I decided to go on a shopping fast.  I will not buy any item of clothing for myself for the next month.   A month may not seem like a long time for you, but I'm a serial shopper with a serious addiction.  

One of my absolute favorite parts about New York is you can never go too far with your wardrobe. There will always be someone who pushes the boundaries further. While I'm too afraid to try outrageous styles, I love experimenting with bold colors and color combos.

About once or twice a month, I take a train from New York to visit our Washington, DC headquarters. I personally love DC and welcome the change of scenery. However, planning for an overnight business trip takes my usual outfit planning to an insane level.  There are so many factors to consider!

I've been eyeing flowy trenches for awhile, but one morning on the train platform I saw the most beautiful draped, pastel lavender trench, and I immediately put all of my clothing browsing efforts (a whole lot more than I'm willing to admit) towards finding the most perfect flowy trench to own.

One of my favorite warm weather items are a crisp pair of white jeans.  I've paired them with bright colors, patterns, black and monochromatic white-on-white.  They can be dressed up or dressed down with the right shoe and accessory pairings.  With all the possibilities, why wait until after Memorial Day to pull out the white?

I often talk about how shoes can make (or break) an outfit.  Necklaces can do the same.  I learned this the other morning when trying to run out the door on time, but not totally loving my outfit.  I don't usually share my outfit fails, but they happen and this is the "real clothes for real women by a real working girl" blog!  

I strongly believe that all dress-wearing women should have a go-to dress they can wear in any season.  It's a safe choice you can always count on, even during a season transition.  This also speaks to the power of accessories, especially footwear!