fashion friday

I don't normally do Fashion Friday but I thought I would share what I ended up with from my shopping. To be honest I have very little clue of what is 'IN' for the Fall--seriously I have no clue...by the way, are vests back in? They are all over the place here and if they are I have one that I made in 10th grade clothing design that could totally make a statement! The statement might be 'I'm dressed like a third grader' but oh well. Anyway, I just know what I like and go with it. I wear mostly basics and throw in one or two pieces to accent. Of course I already showed you my new Crocs. Yes, I may be a little bit addicted to buying/wearing Crocs. Not hardcore fashion by any means but they are comfy and I do what I can to make them work. I have a few basic rules when it comes to fashion. They have definitely changed over the years but this is a list of my current thoughts when shopping and dressing.

1. Most important...dress for your body type. Don't dress for the body that you wish you had, or used to have. I may want to be the size I was five and a half years ago when I got married but I'm under no illusions of what three pregnancies and three c-sections has left me with. If I get there again, great! If not, then I should do my best to look good like I am.

2. Dress for your appropriate age and life stage. I should not show up somewhere wearing the same outfit as a sixteen year old, unless she's dressed like a twenty-nine year old mother of three. I am not in high school and my outer appearance should reflect that. Now a sixteen year old and a twenty-nine year old can wear similar looks but there are definite changes to be made.

3. Be comfortable. This was not always my philosophy. I used to wear some things that were not comfortable (ie: too tight, revealing, etc.) in order to look good but age and a few extra pounds have me singing a different tune. I will be quite honest, I do not own a pair of heels. I have some shoes with some height to them such as these and these, but that's about it. Comfort is the name of this game. And if I'm up all night with a sick kid and feel like going out in sweats, you better believe I will and I will feel good doing it.

4. I think the last of my rules is dress to make yourself happy. Even if that means wearing a hot pink Ben & Jerry's t-shirt that used to be your moms, has holes in it and is easily 20 years old (me! me! me!). Let me tell you, those people on What Not to Wear would have a field day with some of the things I own. Yes they usually know what they are talking about but I think it's just mean to make someone throw away their favorite t-shirt just because it's not in fashion. Of course they aren't dressing stay at home moms that trek around third world countries and occasionally are in and out of villages that don't have power or running water.

So, all of that just to show you my new finds.

My new bag. The brown is much more obvious and the green a little more subtle in person. I just loved the not quite matching flowers and texture of the fabric.

Some necklaces. Yes two red, I couldn't decide and red is my favorite AND everyone needs a little flower power (the other red is one long one that can be a single strand or looped). The turquoise will also go with so much that I have.

Scarves are new for me but I like wearing the few that I have so I thought I would try a couple new. The camel is pashmina and is wide enough to be worn like a shawl and I loved the color combination on the purple. And they say that purple is good for brown eyes...we'll see how I do with those.

I would love to hear what everyone elses fashion rules are and see some looks you like for fall. Post away, I'm interested in what's new that I'm totally unaware of.