In-Vest

It truly doesn’t get any more flattering than a body con sweater dress in my favorite color purple. I’m a purple junkie through and through, literally see the world in purple and serve purple on the menu a lot more than other colors. It’s most certainly the color of happy if you ask me. Purple, violet, lavender, amethyst, eggplant, indigo, magenta, boysenberry, pansy, mauve, iris, lavender, periwinkle, indigo, whatever we call them, I’m fixated on them.

I maximized the pure elegance of a not so simple but heavily textured vest with its long silhouette by pairing it with a sparkly ribbed sweater dress in purple. It is the season to sparkle after all. Texture say hello to texture! But wait a minute, don’t you just love sweater dresses! So cozy and so cool, a definite rarity in fashion. I can’t get enough of them! 

The elaborate cowlneck of this sweater dress added versatility and I went innovative real quick, (LOL) wearing it as a hood, off the shoulders, or just sitting pretty around my neck at other times. Purple mirrored sunnies made for a playful, cool yet commanding presence while beautiful autumn leaves created a soft and colorful background. I hate to see them replaced by bare branches in the winter, so sad. Both pieces were very heavily textured so I kept the jewelry to a bare minimum.

Vests are quite popular year round and make a perfect layering piece from the light weight ones in the warm months to the thicker puffier ones in the cold months. Cropped, quilted, long, textured, this quintessential item of clothing is sure to compliment your outfit while keeping you warm and stylish.

These sleeveless coats can be worn over anything and everything. Style your vest with jeans, over dresses, skirts, shorts or even as a stand alone piece (yes, show some skin). Look boardroom ready by pairing your vest with a pencil skirt or slacks. Belt it up to accentuate your waist. Go for a dressed up look with a faux fur vest or a dressed down look with hooded zip front vest for casual Friday. Give your weekend uniform a lift with a smocked waist or drawstring vest. I love the casual chic look of a denim vest over a classic white shirt, sleeves rolled up for an effortless flair. Stir things up with a leather vest in black paired with skinny jeans for that biker chic look we all love. 

The long vest was used as a dress bodice back the 19th century. How’s that for a throw back? The wheels of fashion continue to spin and fast forward to 2014, this trend was sprinkled all over the spring summer ’15 runways and is catching on with A-listers like Olivia Palermo and Kate Hudson. Reed Krakoff and a few other designers served this trend beautifully. 

This is definitely one of my favorite trends and I’m looking forward to rocking the lighter weight versions come spring. In-vest in one or two or three (why not?) and on those days when it’s a little balmy for a coat, don’t get mad, get in-vested.

Outfit Details
Sweater Dress By Bebe
Long Vest By Bebe
Glitter Pumps By MiuMiu
Sunnies By Linda Farrow

Have a fabulous day, keep thinking the purple thoughts, Xo...