Recently in Style Rules Category

Q. Is it okay to wear trouser socks with printed or colored shoes in the cold months, or do I need to freeze my feet to be fashionable?

A. Generally speaking, ballet flats are meant to be worn with bare feet. However, we’re guilty of wearing the occasional trouser sock or pair of tights with ballet flats when the weather is chilly. The key to doing this in a chic way is to match your sock color to your shoe as closely as possible (black with black is of course the easiest). This might not be as easy with your colored flats, so you should try to match your tights to your pants or skirt. But, rules are made to be broken - the black tights/red shoe combo shown here actually looks pretty cute! The key to pulling off any of these looks is to ensure that your socks fit well and don’t sag or bunch up.

Q I just bought a wonderful black sequin jacket at a great price. Unfortunately, I’m not quite sure what to wear it with! Is it possible to wear it with something besides formal clothes?

A. You can absolutely wear your sequin jacket with casual clothes - in fact, we encourage it! Pair it with a pretty feminine top or even a simple tank and jeans for a casual chic look. Take inspiration from the Iisli Women’s “Tiffany” Lace Cotton Blazer shown here (from bloomingdales.com) to see how great a plain white tee and dark jeans look with the sparkly blazer. Try it also with a day dress or even a pair of man-tailored trousers for some more dressy/daytime pairings.

Q. Do you have any suggestions for “spicing up” a very boring maternity wardrobe? I am seven months pregnant, and so bored with the styles. Any help would be great!!

A. Unless you’re lucky enough to have that famed pregnant glow, it’s usually somewhere around the seventh month that women start to feel big, uncomfortable and just plain “blah”. Of course this carries over to your appearance and feeling uninspired by your maternity wardrobe is quite common. Since you have only a few months left to go, it doesn’t make sense to invest in expensive maternity pieces that you’ll get very few wearings from.

Instead, add some spice to your maternity wardrobe with accessories: a gorgeous statement necklace, head-turning handbag, a fresh scarf or even some great shoes (comfortable, natch). These will freshen up the clothes you already have and can be worn long after the baby arrives. Here are a few ideas for you (click on each for store info):

Q. I just bought a pair of lovely leather gray boots. I know it is a neutral color, but I am surprisingly having a difficult time matching it with other colors. Does it work with black leggings? Would it look to harsh with dark indigo jeans? A bright colored top or neutral color? Ahhh, help me!

A. You’re right, it’s a neutral, so you can wear it with just about anything. Your black leggings and dark indigo jeans would look fabulous, as would a lighter jean, cranberry tights, purple dress, red top, pale pink sweater, etc. In other words, wear them with dark colors, bright colors, pale colors - anything!

Q. I heard that satin will no longer be in this summer, I recently bought and already own a few satin tops that are really cute and I can combine with several other clothing items. Can I still wear them and not look outdated? Please advise…

A. Of course you can wear satin this summer! Don’t worry so much about what is “in” or “out” - if you love something and feel good in it, then wear it. Yes, fashion can be fickle, but other than super trendy items, most items (and fabrics) can be worn for years without going out of style. In the case of your satin tops, it is more about the silhouette of the items than the fabric when considering whether they are stylish or not.

Here are several pretty satin tops to wear now, this summer and for years to come: