Category Archives: dressing for work and dressing for an interview

5 Ways To Wear The Oversized Top Trend

Posted in clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing for your age, dressing your best, dressing your figure, fashion trends, how to, How to wear the trends when you are over 40, personal style, Trendy at any age by
Half tucked sweater and joggers
Styled with the Half Tuck
Oversized blouse with a skirt
Styled with a skirt
Oversized knit top with a vest
Styled with a Vest
Sweater layered over a blouse
Styled Over a Blouse
Oversized blouse with leggings
Styled With Faux Leather Leggings

A lot of my customers try oversized tops, blouses and sweaters on and just assume they are too big. If we are not there to help them understand the trend, they usually just size down or skip it all together, missing out completely on the trend and style. I get it; most of my customers are over forty and in the thick of their careers and raising kids. Who has time not only to stay up on the trends but also to figure out how to wear them? Most of the professional women I know are just trying to keep their heads above water, balancing family and work. They need their clothing to be simple, not complicated. And then there is the intimidation caused by not having an answer to the dreaded question, “Am I too old to wear this?” Having a few years under our belts, we know that wearing a trend that is too young for us OR wearing it wrong are both equally cringe worthy.

But, have no fear, the oversized top trend is completely doable for this age group, and it is surprisingly easy and comfortable to wear, when you know how. Here are five ways to wear oversized tops, blouses and sweaters.

  1. Pair and oversized sweater with dressy joggers and use the “half-tuck” (tucked in the front and left out in the back) to minimize the bulk of the sweater and show off your waist and hips. This is by far the easiest way to style an oversized top, and it can be worn this way not only with the dressy joggers we have pictued at the top, but also with your jeans. Finish your look with shoe boots, and you are good to go. Easy-peasy.
  2. Pair an oversized top with a skirt. Choose a straight skirt, as shown at the top of the page, when you want to leave your oversized top out. If you have a full skirt that has an a-line cut, you can use the half tuck method to minimize the extra bulk and keep you from looking like a box. Finish your look with heels or shoe boots.
  3. Wear and oversized top with leggings and layer with a vest. This is a great dressed up casual look for your day off or for going to your kid’s after school activities like games. Don’t worry about the top hanging out from under the vest. This is part of the look. If the top has too much fabric for you, you can also knot it at the hem and to one side. This will pull our the bulk of the fabric so it fits your body better. Finish your look with fun tennis shoes.
  4. Layer an oversized sweater over a blouse. This classic look works with regularly sized sweaters and oversized sweaters equally well. You can leave your blouse untucked so the hem shows below the sweater and then wear it with your skinny jeans or leggings. Finish your look with some shoe boots.
  5. Pair and oversized blouse with faux leather leggings. Polyurethane leggings are the rage right now, and they are a great way to wear the oversized trend. You can style them with and oversized white blouse and let it hang out, as pictured above. You can also style them with an oversized sweater worn loose and out. Finish your look with shoe boots.

I hope these 5 ways of wearing an oversized top, blouse or sweater have helped you see that this trend is totally accessible for those of us over 40. Leave the knee high boots and short skirts to the twenty-somethings, us middle aged gals can still rock this trend!! To see more examples of these five ways, watch my Wednesday Night Wardrobing Live Video Wednesday night at 6 p.m. MST. I will be dedicating this video to the oversized trend. You can watch live here: Wednesday Night Wardrobing Live Video: 5 Ways To Wear The Oversized Top Trend.

All of the looks at the top on the page are available in store or online at Fashion Crossroads Inc . We ship fast and free from our storefront in Casper, Wyoming where we cater to professional women looking for clothing for work and dressed up casual for the weekends.

5 Ways To Make Casual Friday A Slam Dunk

Posted in dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing your best, fall fashion trends, fashion trends, handbags, how to, personal style, tips and tricks, travel clothing, women's clothing tips by

Casual Friday means employees get a green light to wear jeans at work, but most employers want a dressed up casual style that still feels professional but is less dressy than the normal Monday through Thursday dress code requires. As a society, we are becoming more and more casual, and sometimes we forget how to do a casual style that is more than yoga pants and a sweatshirt. This blog post will give you 5 tips for making your Casual Friday wardrobe a slam dunk that still makes you feel great in your clothes and offers elevated style that is appropriate for work.

Tip #1: “Joggers” or pants that are banded at the bottom but slimmer in fit than a typical sweat pant are a trendy style right now. Most of us wouldn’t even consider wearing a jogging pant or sweat pant to work, but when you put this style in the right fabric, it can totally work. Take this olive green jogger set that is in the first picture as an example. Because this look is using a heavy weight travel knit that is a dressy and luxurious fabric, suddenly this style is taken up to a level worthy of the office.

Tip #2: Layer, layer, layer. You can easily dress up a simple sweater and jeans with a vest and boot and make the whole look not only trendy but dressy enough for the office on a Friday. Feminine details like the puffed sleeve on this sweater also add an element of dressiness. Clean jeans that don’t have any distressing can still be trendy when you have a bitty bootcut, like this style in picture number 2.

Tip #3: Printed denim is so in, and you can easily dress it up with the right top. I love how this waffle knit in olive green in picture number 3 is elevated by the banded bottom and the feminine button detailing on the sleeve. Look for added details like these to really help you do dressed up casual. The other tip that makes this look work is the dressy shoe boot and matching handbag. Keep in mind, your accessories really matter. This look, for example, would take on a whole different feeling with loafers, as an example.

Tip #4: Wear a blouse as a “shacket.” Stylish women have been using this trick for ions. Something magical happens when you take a simple blouse and layer it over a tank. It dresses the whole look up and adds dimension. This is another example of how layering can be used to give your look more dimension and style. The dark denim, skinny jeans and high wedges also help this look to be dressier, as do the accessories and handbag.

Tip #5: Take a work blouse, like the look in picture number 5, and make it more casual by pairing it with colored denim, which is dressier than regular denim. Oftentimes, it is difficult to tell if a colored bottom is actually a jean, so many women can get away with wearing colored denim for their Monday through Thursday office looks. Complete the look with some dressy shoe boots and a fun handbag, and you have a dressed up casual style that will have you feeling comfy and classy.

These tips can also work for dressing for work related travel when you need to be comfortable but still look nice when you arrive. If you want to see some more ideas, watch my live video tonight at 6 p.m. MST. In the mean time…thank goodness it is almost Friday! I hope you will try out some of these tips!

5 Steps To A New Year Closet Clean Out

Posted in dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing your best, healthy lifestyle, how to, tips and tricks by

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It’s a new year…the time to move out the old and move in the new!  Perhaps you’ve already made a few New Year’s Resolutions.  I like to start the year by getting organized.  I find, when I feel organized, I feel more in control and less frazzled.

One of the first places to get organized is your closet.  There is nothing worse than starting the day out with a harried rush to put together an outfit and putting on and then taking off several outfits before you decide on one.  You can make getting dressed in the morning a breeze and a pleasure with a few simple tips on closet organization.

  1.  First, each year you need to remove the items you haven’t worn in a year.  So, if you didn’t do this at the start of the winter season, do it now.  You will be tempted to talk yourself out of removing items, so don’t second guess this process. Don’t worry that you will have to get rid of anything.  Instead just separate out all of those items and lay them somewhere out of eye sight.  We will get back to this pile later.
  2. Second, separate your tops, bottoms and dresses and put them together.  This will make putting an outfit together so much easier, and you will begin to see holes in your wardrobe that you never noticed before.
  3. Third, within your tops, organize them so that the short sleeved tops are together and the long sleeved tops are together.  If you have both summer and winter in your closet, also separate them by season so the summer are together and winter are together.  Do this same thing with your bottoms.  Put your leggings, slacks, jeans together by category and season. Last finish with your dresses.  Put your sleeveless, short sleeved and long sleeved dresses together and separate them by season.
  4. Fourth, color code each section.  Do you remember learning how the memorize the colors of the rainbow with the ROYGBIV acronym?  It stands for red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.  Put each section, for example short sleeve tops, into this color order.  Keep the hues together: pinks go with reds, turquoise with blue or green depending on the color, etc.  Finish with your neutrals in this order: white, tan, brown, grey, black.  When you are finished, you should have each section organized by color.
  5. Fifth, now let’s tackle that pile from step one.  First go through it and separate out any item that is out of date, pilled, stained, torn, un-hemmed, etc.  These go in the donate pile.  Then, consider each remaining item carefully.  If it is a classic piece, like a black blazer, keep it.  If you love it and can’t part with it, keep it one more season, but if you haven’t worn it when you repeat this process next year, donate it.

Now, stand back and admire all your hard work.  You now should be able to clearly see what you have and what you don’t.  What do you notice.  You probably can quickly see that you tend to buy certain colors.  You might notice that you are really short on blouses but have a ton of pull over tops.  Or you may see that you need some more long sleeve tops.  Perhaps you have too many jeans.  When your closet is organized, it will talk to you, and you can be a smart shopper in filling in holes rather than just buying because you love it.

The other benefit to this process is ease of putting outfits together.  Now, when you choose your slacks for your work day, you can go to your jacket section and choose one that matches and then to your shell section and choose a coordinating shell.  No more searching through an unorganized mess.

If you’re feeling really industrious, why not do this with your purses and shoes too?  Believe me, it is worth the effort!

What is Wardrobing?

Posted in clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, how to, tips and tricks, travel, travel clothing, value by

For those of you who might not be familiar with the term, wardrobing is a method of mixing and matching your clothing to maximize the number of unique outfits you can create with the smallest number of pieces possible.  It is how you shop, travel and dress like a boss!  The concept is simple really, but perhaps no one has ever taught you how to do it.  That is the purpose of this blog post, and my live video coming up on Saturday, February 24th at 10:15 mountain.  You can listen in on the video by joining our Fashion Crossroads Fashionistas Group Page.  I’ll be giving away a Treska necklace at the end of the video.  To get entered to win, just comment on the video while it is live by telling me something you like or even asking a question.

Wardrobing is the art of combining bottoms, tops and cover-ups in multiple ways by layering the pieces and adding accessories to change the look.  I’ll be using Sympli to demonstrate this tomorrow, so let me use some of their pieces to show you how it is done.  Take a look at the pictures above: Let’s call the leggings on the left picture 1 and the cropped top on the right is picture 4.  Assuming the model is wearing pants (and not leggings) in picture 3 and 4 and the white top in pictures 3 and 4 is the same top, how many outfits can you create with these 6 pieces?

Playing Jeapordy music now…..

How many outfits did you come up with?  Let’s see if we found the same number…

  1.  4 outfits as pictured
  2. Dress over leggings
  3. Dress over leggings with crop top
  4. White top under dress without leggings
  5. White top under dress with leggings
  6. White top under dress with smock over top without leggings
  7. White top under dress with smock over top with leggings
  8. Black crop top under dress without leggings
  9. Black crop top under dress with leggings
  10. Smock over dress with leggings
  11. Smock over dress without leggings.

That’s 14 outfits with 6 pieces.  Now, imagine we added into the mix a tunic and a jacket, like the ones pictured below.  I’ve demonstrated the concept, let’s see how many more outfits you can come up with?

Honestly, just adding the jacket over the outfits creates another 5 possibilities.  If you put the tunic over the dress and leggings, you get another 2 possibilities.  The tunic with the leggings and the pants, another 2 possibilities.  Now, with only 8 pieces, you have a possible 21 options.  And we haven’t even discussed adding a few accessories like a kimono, a couple of scarfs and a few necklaces, and a belt.  This adds an at least 15 more outfits.  It’s like a puzzle, and it is a heck of a lot of fun to see how many combinations you can create.  This is wardrobing, and it is a handy little tool when you need to stretch a work budget, pack for a two week trip with a carry on, or just simplify your closet.

Want to see it in action?  Join me tomorrow, and I’ll show you how it’s done.  Be sure to join the group prior to the start of the video so you can watch.

Sympli

 

How To Wear Velvet In The Day

Posted in clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing for your age, how to, personal style, product review, tips and tricks, trends by

One of things that trips us up sometimes is when a traditional way of looking at a fabric gets turned on its head by a new fashion trend.  This is the case with velvet this season.  Traditionally, velvet has been a dressy fabric, reserved for special occasions, holiday parties, and lounge lizards…smile.  (Don’t ask me why, but I just had an image of John Travolta singing “ah, ah, ah, ah…staying alive”).

Well this season, velvet has emerged as an every day fabric that can work for cozy weekend, work and date night.  Those of you who still think of  it as dressy only, may be struggling to figure out how in the world to wear this new trend.  The answer is really very simple: pair it with a casual fabric like denim.

Let’s face it, while the head to toe velvet active wear jogger is trendy right now, most of us (uh, um) older ladies are not going to go for that.  We can still do velvet, however, by toning it down and mixing it up.  For example, pair a velvet kimono with beat up boyfriend jeans and shoe boots.  Wear a velvet top with dark denim skinny jeans and boots.  Pair a velvet tailored jacket with a classic button down blouse, black slacks and heels.  Do you get the picture?  You have to re-think your old way of seeing velvet.

The truth is, this luxurious fabric is fun to wear.  What is not to like about velvet, unless you are like one of our employees who is wierded out by the fact that if you brush the velvet one way, it’s soft.  But, if you brush it the other way….yikes.  She is just skipping the trend all together.  If you have texture issues, you might want to join her.  For the rest of us, however, velvet is a wonderful fabric and should find a place in our wardrobes this season!

Travel Like A Boss!

Posted in clothing, quality, value, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, how to, personal style, product review, tips and tricks, travel, travel clothing by

Mom and I just returned from a market trip to Dallas, Texas.  Hopefully, you have already checked out my blog post on our Treska Warehouse tour.  If not, do it now so you can learn all about how a Treska necklace is made from start to finish!

Today’s post is on a different topic, however.  I want you, our precious customers and loyal readers, to know that we absolutely, positively, believe in the lines we sell at Fashion Crossroads.  How much, you ask?  So much that we wear them and use them when we travel!  You all know that we women take our very favorite things with us when we go on trips.  The ho-hums in our closets never see the inside of our suitcases and travel bags.  Oh no, only the coziest, cutest and most comfortable items get that special privilege.  For me and my mom and our trip to Dallas, those favorite things were Sympli and Vera Bradley.  Let me tell you why.

IMG_4216Sympli is the most wonderful line (not kidding) that I have ever worn.  It looks amazing because it has a fabulous fit, and it is oh so comfortable to wear.  Because you can pack it without worrying about wrinkles and because the line is so well thought out, you can literally grab two bottoms and three tops and have a whole week worth of outfits.  For example, I brought my Sympli leggings and mini skirt (I always wear these together) and my capris for my bottoms as well as a white pair of jeans.  Then I threw in my sleeveless Cascade Top (see picture above), my cold shoulder Nu Urban top, my Go To Tank Tunic and my favorite Sympli jacket.  These 7 pieces saw me through 5 days and took me from seminars, to show room floor, to dinner out on the town.

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When it came down to packing, both mom and I chose Vera Bradley travel gear even though we each have other options.  My mom took her Vera rolling carry on in black. She was able to push it through the airport with ease due to the four wheeled bottom.  I was able to lift it above my head to put it into the carry on luggage rack without breaking my back!  Yeah for me!

I took my Vera Grand Traveler soft sided bag, my Vera tote and my Vera cross body cell phone purse. You can see some of these items in the picture below.  The tote bag worked to hold my book, spare cell phone battery, headphones, files, Kind bar, and iPad while I was on the plane without being too bulky to fit under the seat in front of me.  The cell phone purse was perfect to sling across my body to keep my cell phone, driver’s license and credit cards handy and within reach while I was going through security and waiting to board the plane.  When it was time to get on the plane, I just took my cell phone purse off and put it inside the tote, and I didn’t have to get in a fight with the gate agent about having too many carry-ons.  Inside my Grand Traveler bag was the Vera hanging organizer that I could simply hang up on the back of the bathroom door and reach all my cosmetics easily without cluttering up the bathroom counter.  I also had my Vera jewelry organizer which kept my earrings and necklaces and bracelets in separate compartments (I love organization, especially when I travel). Then, while I was at market, the Vera tote worked perfectly as a brief case.  I have to say, I really do love these products.  IMG_4230

When I convince my customers to buy a product we sell based upon my recommendation, I take that very seriously.  Know that before I will tell you it is a wonderful product, I have put it though the test of my own life.  If we sell it, we believe in it!  We have just marked down a special rack of discontinued styles and colors of Sympli to 30% off.  (Mark downs in this line never happen so grab them while the gettin’ is good).  We also have several patterns of Vera Bradley that are 25% off, and we are expecting our new fall arrivals from Painted Medallions and Falling Flowers any day!

Happy travels, and don’t forget your Sympli and Vera Bradley!

What Is A Waffle Top?

Posted in beauty, clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing your figure, how to, personal style, product review, tips and tricks, trends by

One of the big trends this season is the waffle top.  It took be a bit by surprise because here in Wyoming, waffle tops are something we wear in the winter and not the summer. We call them thermals.  But, the powers that be in the style world have decided to fly in the face of tradition and saturate the market with waffle tops for spring!

Waffle top with cold shoulder and crochet details available online at http://www.fashioncrossroadsinc.com
Waffle top with lace sleeves available online at http://www.fashioncrossroadsinc.com

The descriptor “waffle top” refers to the fabric.  It’s a bit hard to see the texture of these tops in the pictures above, but if you were able to zoom in, you would see that they have raised, nubby fabric.  If you have ever bought a thermal tee to keep warm, you can compare the fabric to that.  Of course, the spring waffle tops are not as heavy as what you might expect from a typical thermal top, so you can still wear them without getting hot.

The benefit to textured fabric is that the more body a fabric has, the less likely it is to lay against your figure and expose all of your lumps and bumps.  Heavier fabrics are more figure flattering that lighter weight ones.  Texture also helps draw the eye away from figure problems like muffin tops.  This is because the sheer weight of heavier fabrics pulls them downward, creating a better drape.

The nature of the waffle fabric lends these tops to pair best with jeans or casual bottoms.  Wearing them to work would be like wearing your thermal to work.  I’m guessing your boss might frown on that.  But, for a casual weekend, these tops make a great, trendy choice.

The two tops pictured above are available on our online store.  If you want to know more about other important spring and summer trends, check out my blog post 5 Key Summer Trends.  

How To Wear A Midi Cardigan

Posted in beauty, clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, fashion, how to, personal style, product review, tips and tricks, Uncategorized by

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One of the best new cardigan trends this season is the “midi” length cardigan.  These longer cardigans hit near the knee, and come in hemlines that are asymmetrical, even or hi-low.  It’s a great new twist on an old staple.

Midi cardigans can be found in many materials from sweaters to light knits.  I have seen them plain, like the grey one on the right or embellished with stones or tie dye like the one pictured on the left.  A nice sweater knit midi cardigan, like the one in the center, is a great choice for work and can be paired with slacks and a blouse for a professional look on a cold day.

These versatile cardigans can be paired with short tee shirts and jeans or work great as a jacket for a tunic and legging.  I prefer them with slim legged pants and or leggings to help balance out the length.  If you are shorter, you may want to wear a boot with a heel to give your body some extra height.

These three styles are available in our store or on our  online store.

How To Wear Suede and Fringe For Work

Posted in business, clothing, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, fashion, personal style, tips and tricks, trends by

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Cooler weather is just around the corner and stores are stocking their new fall every day.  I love this time of year!  Being a cool weather lover, I can hardly wait to put on my cozy sweaters and leggings.  I’m looking forward donning to the cute boyfriend jeans and plaid shirts I have added to my wardrobe as well.  But what I truly love is suede.  It feels amazing against your skin and exudes, if worn right, classy.

Fringe and suede naturally pair well, but it can be easy to over do it.  Head to toe fringe or suede borders on hot mama.  You may want that look, and if so, go for it.  Your employer probably won’t love it, however.  To keep this trend classy, choose one piece of fringe and one piece of suede per outfit.  For example, you might pair a suede dress with a fringe vest.  Maybe you could wear a suede skirt with a nice blouse and add a fringe handbag as an accent.  Or, you may want to wear a nice slack and blouse with a shoe embellished with fringe.  The key principle: for work, keep it simple.

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Celebrate Color

Posted in beauty, clothing, color trends, dressing for work and dressing for an interview, dressing your figure, fashion, personal style, tips and tricks by

I love that this season offers two radically different color palates – soft and feminine as well as bold and bright.  We just received this new group from Multiples in lime and royal, and I could hardly wait to get it in the window.  I’m not sure any color screams summer quite like lime.  IMG_2662

I always feel a bit sad when a customer tells me they shy away from wearing color.  I don’t know about you, but in Wyoming when I am surrounded by brown, white and grey from November to March, I am ready for some color come April and May.  It literally brightens my mood to wear something cheerful, and, for me, cheerful means color.

If you are one of those people who feel intimidated by wearing bold colors, dial it down.  Wear one bright item and pair it with foundation pieces in a good neutral like grey, black or white.  Put your colorful item on the part of your body you like the best and wear the solid neutrals elsewhere.  My bet is you will have a million compliments from your co-workers who are used to you just blending in.

If you are comfortable wearing bold, then this is your season!  Get out there and get some color!  You have just 4 short months before the cool winds of September will force those summer colors to the back of the closet.  Make your wardrobe reflect your sunny disposition and how happy you are that warm days are just around the corner!