Style: With a Polka Dot Top
My outfit was a last minute switcheroo, but I like it even more than the original one I was going to share.
The sheer pink polka dot tights I had based my whole other look around ripped. And not just a little rip that I could have fixed in Photoshop, I’m talking about the kind of rip that essentially turned my tights into cutoffs. So I grabbed a polka dot shirt instead. I just wish I had realized that I also grabbed the same skirt I showed last month. Oh well. I suppose the lesson here is that a white pencil skirt is more of a wardrobe staple than you might at first think.
Here’s how to get the look:
A note on some of the items I’m wearing that are no longer available: As I mentioned last time, my skirt is seven or eight years old. I’ve had the shoes for just as long, and I bought the bag in 2008. Actually, I featured it in my first ever style post, and suddenly it’s on trend! My sister keeps begging for it when I “get sick of it” and I keep telling her it’s not gonna happen. And I’ve featured the necklace before as well. I scooped it up at 75% off when it went on clearance.
Tanya from Dans le Townhouse
April 24, 2012 at 9:18 amYou look great! I’d be a little worried about getting a white pencil skirt dirty, but if you’ve had it that long, I feel a bit more confident about the prospect.
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 12:30 pmAs long as you don’t sit on the ground outside, you ought to be fine!
Laura
April 24, 2012 at 9:50 amLove it. I really like the necklace too. I have a similar one in silver – it was my mom’s from the 60’s and everyone always asks about it.
Emi
April 24, 2012 at 9:51 amNicole, I know that this is not a fashion blog, but since you posted about fashion I have a question ; )
How do you decide which pencil skirt style to get? I am not sure if its my body type or if I am getting the wrong size in skirts. I love this look (having a shirt tucked inside) but for some reason it just does not look good on me. I am between size 4 and 6 in skirts. Size 6 fits me a little loose in some areas but then size 4 fits me a little too fitted. Basically, I would like to know how a skirt should fit. For example, should it be very fitted at the waist or should it be a little loose? Thanks! and sorry about the rambling : )
Alexis
April 24, 2012 at 12:15 pmI would buy the size 6 and bring it to a tailor. I always have to get pencil skirts and tailored dressed altered to fit me since I have a small waist compared to my wide hips. Good luck! I love this look, too.
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 12:35 pmTailoring is a good idea if you can’t find a brand that fits you off the rack. A pencil skirt should be tighter rather than looser, but not so tight that you feel (or look) like a sausage. The waist, especially, needs to fit well.
Emi
April 24, 2012 at 2:24 pmLOL! about the looking like a sausage comment : ) LOL! Thank you ladies for the tips.
Weiya @ enjoyer of grace
April 24, 2012 at 9:56 amI have this top too and I totally love it! Thanks so much for the tips… excited to try it out with a skirt now :)
Hope you can come by and visit me sometime. Have a lovely day!
erica
April 24, 2012 at 9:59 amYou are a great outfit curator. Love these posts. And I need to pick up that top !
jawsie
April 24, 2012 at 10:08 amlooking very slim ms. balch!
tracy
April 24, 2012 at 10:24 amwell done!!!!!
Melissa
April 24, 2012 at 10:25 amI’m loving this new series, Nicole! The top is fantastic.
Amanda
April 24, 2012 at 11:25 amI was wondering if you had a recommendation for skinny jeans that don’t stretch out over the day and come up high enough to hide a tummy AND come in petite lengths. This will truly make you a style guru.
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 11:32 amI loved Gap’s Always Skinny jeans in the mid-rise option, but they don’t make them anymore, so I’m on the look out as well.
Amanda
April 24, 2012 at 8:30 pmOh I feel you soul sister, I used to LOVE Gap’s skinny jeans, but now their rises are so low that it is laughable.
Pst
April 24, 2012 at 12:16 pmYou look great! Brandon is a lucky man;-)
Sandra
April 24, 2012 at 12:26 pmLove your outfits – you are such a natural model too!
And I have to add that every shot in this room I think, “oh, the Billy bookcase – so stylish with the doors”. Haven’t we all had Billy bookcases at one time or another?
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 12:37 pmYes, they look a million times nicer with doors on! People email me all the time, asking where my bookcases were from. Nobody ever suspects the humble Billy shelves!
Tangled Sweetpea
April 24, 2012 at 1:50 pmJust started following your blog – love it! Gorgeous outfit! Don’t think a white skirt would fair too well with a toddler and a baby :)
Victoria xx
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 2:07 pmI have a toddler and a baby, and mine has held up just fine!
Julia
April 24, 2012 at 2:10 pmthe first two links don’t work. Love all your outfits BTW.
Making it Lovely
April 24, 2012 at 2:11 pmHmm, they’re working on my end. The necklaces are from Nordstrom and the is top from Old Navy.
Annie
April 24, 2012 at 3:03 pmHow is it that you managed to make an Old Navy top look like something from Anthropologie? I salute you and your excellent outfit skills!
Holly
April 24, 2012 at 4:59 pmYour glasses are so cute!
I also love the Billy bookcases! I have one in the dark finish with the door to house my supplies, fab!
jj
April 24, 2012 at 6:51 pmyou look marrrrrrrrrrrrrvelous!
Brittany Lauren
April 24, 2012 at 8:13 pmI haven’t met a polka dot top I didn’t love! So cute. For a casual look, white jeans would look great too :)
Evelyn
April 26, 2012 at 10:16 amCuteness overload! I love the nail color in the terrarium shots as well! More photos of you modeling! They’re some of my fave posts!
Charlotte | Living Well on the Cheap
April 27, 2012 at 7:35 amNicole, have you been losing weight? You look great! I’m massively pregnant right now and feeling more encouraged seeing you. Maybe I, too, will have a waist again someday!
Making it Lovely
April 27, 2012 at 11:00 amYou’ll get there!
kolisach
April 27, 2012 at 8:54 pmthe Kate Spade necklace is still available and on sale! just snapped it up!!!!
Ashley
April 30, 2012 at 12:02 amYou look absolutely fab in this! Like a classy librarian. :)
Danielle
June 1, 2012 at 4:58 pmBeautiful! Sadly the Old Navy top didn’t look nearly as cute on me, but I have high hopes for the nude pumps! I’ve been wanting a pair, but haven’t been able to find ones that I liked. These look great and the price is right, too – thanks!!