How to Outfit For the Holidays 🎁

A soft and sexy guide!

After publishing our article on outfit formulas, Emily’s phone started blowing up with texts from subscriber, actress and very stylish friend Caitlin Brodnick. She had some notes. The main ones being TEXTURES (silky maxi skirt with a fuzzy top) and LINES (belts, jewelry, and crops)! Soft cozy, sleek sexy!

Feedback is a gift! So, we picked a date and time and met Caitlin in a dressing room at the J.Crew where she threw us in outfit after outfit pointing out what works and what doesn’t. We said it wouldn’t hurt to find a few holiday looks. The result? Invaluable advice.

Join us in the dressing room and see what we learned!

What Burgundy Bottom Pairs Best With Lilac Cashmere?

The slip skirt was a great idea but the outfit on the right was the clear winner. Tucking the brushed cashmere shrunken sweater into the form-fitting burgundy kickout sweater pants gives your eye a break and accentuates the waist. The pointy metallic bow pumps create a really nice line. Emily tried the winning look with a chunky shoe but the pointy heels were much more flattering.

The very long pavé heart charm necklace (pictured on Emily above) was an IMPORTANT takeaway. It adds visual interest and dimension while keeping the eye moving. When a necklace lands right at the bust (pictured below on Deanna) it’s an “eh.” Landing at the same spot as the bust does not add value, it just highlights a good idea. Basically, it’s a wash. When choosing a necklace go high or go low.

Caitlin’s suggestions for how to add visual interest at the waist:

• A cropped sweater

• A belt

• A long necklace (like above)

Caitlin says much like a work of art, it’s important to move the viewers eye through an outfit.

‘Tis The Season For Red Cashmere

While arguably both outfits work — Deanna felt a bit top heavy in the brushed cashmere T-shirt sweater and sailor denim trousers on the left. The outfit on the right was a brushed cashmere cropped v-neck sweater tucked into a wrap skirt in faux red patent leather. The v-neck extends the eye down and creates balance. Doing two different reds felt risky, but they didn’t clash. Instead they created a monochromatic moment without being boring or looking like a uniform — great call Caitlin!

The skirt was giving pure 80s power biatch.

But we were just getting started!