If you’re a mom and into fashion, you’ve probably heard of The Mom Edit by now and if you haven’t yet, well, you’re missing out. I’ve mentioned my love for Shana, the site’s creator, before and shared some of the art collaborations we have done together for The Mom Edit. Last month, we were talking about what direction we should head in this year for our monthly art/style collaborations when Shana suggested doing a mini shoot featuring both my style and my art. We were already at the beach, and a few glasses deep into our bottle of white wine so we figured why the heck not?! And then last night I got a text from my best friend who said she just spotted my feature on The Mom Edit, so I thought I would share some of the photos here too!
I am a child of the late 80’s/early 90’s and I loved every wacky, bodacious second of it. Although as we reflect back on those years, it is undeniable that an overwhelming majority of our most painfully awkward and embarrassing pop culture moments occurred in the 80’s. It was a decade that produced some of the most memorable cringeworthy style fads of all time, such as: Acid wash jeans, scrunchies, hairspray and perms, neon colored wind suits and of course harem pants. Inspired by the greats of the era, MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice.
(I still firmly believe those were the greatest fashion years of my life. Sometimes I wonder if it was growing up in the late 80’s early 90’s that gave me my flare for the dramatic when it comes to clothes (hence wearing an oversized jumper in 2015 and loving it))
Just recently I saw a picture of everyone’s favorite overgrown man child, Justin Beiber, wearing some serious harem pants and I literally said outloud: “Hammer did it better.” Bc. how could anyone forget this:
or this:
and while we’re at it, this:
unfortantly, hammer pants were one of the few fashion items my parents refused to purchase for me (along with glittery pink, fringed cowboy boots). I see now that my parents were doing me a favor because i have a feeling my hammer pants wouldn’t have gone over very well with all the kids at my school in West Texas. So, thanks guys for that.
But that doesn’t mean I can’t fulfill my Hammer Time fantasy as an adult! I am free to make my own bad decisions! Sometimes being an adult IS great, because no one can tell you “no” if you want to buy an oversized diaper jumper and wear it in public!
I was pleasantly surprised with how it fit, although it’s a very thin jersey knit fabric so it attaches its self to unappealing areas (the crutch and the butt). I did wear it on a really windy day which didn’t help with that though. It is really comfortable and I actually really like the styling and draping of the fabric. I had to be careful when I walked because this particular jumper always ended up giving me a wedgie. The jumpsuit I purchased was the cheap version (as usual) which may speak to the thinness of the fabric. Shopbop has a designer brand option which is undoubtably better quality in their Basic Terrain Harem Jumpsuit, for $158.00:
to wear or not to wear:
It’s not an item I will be wearing very often but it’s really fun to have in my closet for days when I am feeling bored with everything else in my closet and also because I like to put it on and do the Hammer Time dance in the mirror when I need a quick trip down memory lane. Plus, I bought mine on Amazon for less than $15.00
“Summer isn’t over, summer isn’t over.” I am hoping that if I keep telling myself, I can make it true, or at the least live happily in my own delusion for a little while longer and the reason I am determined to do this post even though it’s practically September and everyone is about ready to gear up for Autumn.
Apparently my refusal to accept that summer is over is subconsciously coming out in the clothes I am choosing to wear. Walking down the stairs today, my boyfriend greeted me by saying “Ahoy sailor,” and saw that I looked like I was ready to set sail on a catamaran in the following outfit:
not that I minded being mistaken for an overzealous mariner…..As a fairly new resident of Michigan, the magic that is summers on Lake Michigan has yet to loose any of it’s potency on me. I could spend all day walking up and down the Lake shoreline gathering driftwood and pebbles, or laying on the sand and reading cheap literature until my skin is burnt to a crisp and spend every night watching the sunset over the lake, and drinking unhealthy amounts of white wine with friends around a campfire….There is no better medicine for my soul.
So that’s my excuse for spending an absorbent amount of time putting together my first style board set on polyvore
on which I spent an unhealthy amount of time obsessing over and that I awkwardly titled “Final Beach Day Trip of the Summer:”
You know those trends that come and go (mom jeans, Birkenstocks, dr. martans, etc) but you can’t let go of? They always hold a special place in your heart and your wardrobe, and no matter how “in” or “out” your beloved trend may become, you cling stubbornly to it and refuse to let die.
Fringe is that for me. Well, one of many in a long list of fashion faux pas I commit every time I get dressed.
But no matter how ridiculous I may end up looking I pass up a good ole fringed clothing item without picturing myself twirling gaily in the wind wearing said fringed clothing item, ala Buddy the Elf…
Usually these daydreams involve meadows and music and ponies….but that’s a story for another day.
I stumbled upon my new favorite fringed clothing unexpectedly while browsing the boutiques on a mini vacation to Traverse City. I almost passed it up because even for me, I was worried it might be a” bit much” (and for me that’s really saying something) but the imagined twirling I was doing while wearing that skirt was too glorious to pass up.
It’s finally summer (hooray!) But of course, I can’t just enjoy the weather I’ve been waiting for all year long and instead I have to find something to stress over.
The summer weather poses a few problems for me:
1) Blindingly white, pastey legs.
2) Lots of uncomfortable sweating in areas best left unacknowledged.
3) And Shaving, lots of shaving…hours and hours of shaving…
Solution to this very first world problem:
Maxi dresses!
1) Complete coverage of said sunless legs.
2) Comfortable breeze to sweating nether regions.
3) Coverage of lazily shaved legs.
The above maxi dress is from Forever 21 although it looks like it’s not available anymore I found a similar dress also from Forever21 that I think I like even more than the one I purchased:
hooray for all things Spring….Sun, flowers, rain, birds, allergies. I’ll take it all if it means I can stand outside for more than a minute without getting frostbite. I’ve been waiting for a day that was nice enough to wear my Free People Parker Dress. Although there aren’t enough photoshopping or fliters that help my legs look less blindingly white and pasty.
I’ve rounded up some of my favorite floral spring dresses I found online:
Today when I stepped outside, I smelt spring and was about as happy as this baby and her camel:
I was outside in a dress, with bare legs and I was starting to believe this day would never come. I swear if I see a single snowflake before Christmas next year, I will walk all the way back to California.
Anyways, after a few hours doing this:
I was excited to bust out all the spring/summer clothes I’ve been daydreaming about and this is what I came up with:
I am so so excited to be collaborating again with the AMAZING Shana, and her equally amazing blog: The Mom Edit on a series of monthly fashion themed art pieces.
Shana’s latest spring OOTD on the mom edit.
I love being able to collaborate with Shana. She has been an enthusiastic supporter and an advocate for me and my art, even when I usually can’t stand whatever it is I’ve made. supporter and cheerleader She is passionate, enthusiastic and just all around bad ass. I love all of her style and she approaches each post with honesty and frankness about life that makes me laugh out loud.
I was really struggling creatively the last few months and this collaboration has breathed new life into my art and given me a new purpose and direction. This project has also been hands down the hardest artistic challenge I’ve undertaken simply because it’s so scary for me to have my artwork “out there” to be seen and judged. I usually have two modes: 1) being super impulsive about what I publish on social media and then afterwards feeling embarrassed or 2) overthinking and analyzing every thing I make until I just stop mid-way through and never finish it.
Here is the March art piece I did for The Mom Edit along with Shana’s picks to go along with it:
She is an architect and urban designer with a passion for vibrant colors and a sense of style that is one of a kind. I first discovered her via Instagram @monlinglee fell instantly in love with every single one of her photos. She combines her unique and brilliantly colored personal style in perfectly coordinated urban environments.
By following her instagram account, I found out that she was teaming up with J. Crew to “Test-drive” Their new spring accessories on their blog: hello.jcrew.com. And was inspired to try to create my own color blocked outfit with my skirt I bought for a penny at Nordstroms Rack. JCrew and Monling Lee are having an instagram contest on how where you wear (and pair, and pile on) your J.Crew accessories with the hashtags #ACCESSORYFIX and #JCREWCONTEST for a chance to win one of three $1,500 shopping sprees. And although I don’t have a new spring accessory to actually join in…here are my outfits:
I don’t wear white often because of a few reasons (like being unable to go more than 10 minutes without spilling something) but the after Labor Day rule isn’t one of them . But, I’ve seen a lot of cool styling this winter with white denim or trousers and I don’t know if it’s becoming more fashionably acceptable to wear white after the designated time. I kind of think wearing white is perfect in the winter, especially when I am getting sick of all the black I wear in mourning for the summer.
so here are three different ways to casually style white denim jeans for winter wear….
How do you guys feel about white denim during winter? Yay or nay??
Greetings from Arizona! I am not used to this warm, winter weather but I am definitely making the most of it. It’s nice to see the sun and to remember there is such a thing as summer….
I really, really love the midi dress look and I emphasis the word look because the way a midi dress looks on a model (stunning) is not how a midi LOOKS on me. The models’ curves (or lack of them) are perfectly highlighted in the form fitting style of a midi and the length accentuates their slim legs. I don’t know if I really thought that I would look the same as the 100 pound 5ft 9 model did in the same midi.
Here is the midi dress I purchased:
Asos Midi Cami Body Conscious Dress
but…SURPRISE! I didn’t look anything like the model. It accentuated my curves alright, every friggin nook and cranny was on display. It probably didn’t help that the midi I bought was thin jersey fabric, which is probably one of the least forgiving fabrics there is. So I buried the dress in the back of my closet and tried to forget I ever thought I could pull the look off.
The thing is…I’ve never liked my body, but I also think most women in America have struggled with loving and accepting their bodies at some point. I’ve been working up to writing about the journey I am on to loving myself and it’s been a long, bloody battle for me but….(and I swear all this has to it has to do with the midi dress!)
But since I turning 30 this year, it really hit me how much of life I have wasted and how many experiences I missed out on because I’ve been to busy disliking myself and caring to much what people think.Doing these self-absorbed, materialistic Personal Style posts was a coconscious decision of mine to do what makes me happy and to (try) not to worry about whether or not people like it. Also, it’s nice to actually start caring about myself again 🙂
So, when cleaning up my closet, I stumbling on the crumpled up midi dress of disappointment and gave it another go (outfitted in my spanx body armor) and decided to give it another try and I came up with a few different ways to wear a form fitting midi with more confidence.
#1 Oversized Cardigans like this one from Revolve Clothing, are your friends.
Wearing a big, drapey cardigan helps me feel like I have a layer of protection and it keeps all my lumpy areas that I am self-conscious about covered. But the open front still shows off the cute length and style of the midi.
#2 Wearing shoes with heels (booties are my favorite for winter) add much needed length to your frame.
Here are a few pair of booties that give me the warm fuzzies and that I think would look good with a a casual style midi dress:
Most midis cut off at around calf-level (depending on height) which I love but also has the tendency to make legs look shorter and bulkier.
#3 Layer it up to create different looks.
A midi is fun to play around with different looks and is a versatile dress that can be simple and classic or fun and trendy. Adding colorful layers, like my favorite crazy plaid pants, creates lines, and helps to “distract” the eye from those worry areas.
A split sided basic top is perfect to throw over a midi because it covers my least favorite areas (my tummy and the booty) and I like the look it creates.
#4: Spanx is also your friend.
Good ole trusty spanx, instilling confidence into the self-conscious since the dawning of time.
for less than $15.00
, $79.00 on 
$120.00
, $53.30, 
, $13.00,
(53.00)
$43.00 on 
, $90.00 via 
, $84.80 available on Amazon:
. Although there aren’t enough photoshopping or fliters that help my legs look less blindingly white and pasty.
, $69.00:
:
, $98.00:
, $148.00:
:
, might be my new favorite dress for spring. Surprisingly, I found it on 
also found on Amazon and bought specifically for all the outdoor activities I told myself I would be doing this summer:
Here are a few similiar/different options of the same outfit:
jessbobess 
