This is my outfit from yesterday. It is actually a look that I started rocking back in college. Except, back then, I wore it with this really cool tuxedo shirt with embroidered details and a little light blue denim vest. The vest has since been donated, but the shirt is in the closet waiting for me to find some replacement cuff links and figure out how to make it white again (how do you get rid of that “yellowed” look? I’ve tried vinegar with bleach. What about baking soda, vinegar and bleach?).

Anywho, what I think makes this outfit work is the proportions. The cropped vest nips in the look of a long shirt (which is not meant to be tucked) over wide leg pants. Again, these are very old items. The vest is probably almost 15 years old and came from Contempo Casual (are those still around??). I’m not sure where I bought the blouse, but I do know that those were gorgeous pleats in the front that the dry cleaner ironed out:/. Those would have made the look nicer. If I didn’t hate ironing, I would have re-created them. You could probably find a shirt similar to this by checking out the maternity section of a Target or Kohl’s or whatever. The pants are from H&M back in the day and part of a suit. I actually bought two pair as I love the fit so much! And the shoes, which you’ll see below, are from Nine West, I believe. My sister picked them up for me and I think she got them on sale … like, for $19. She got a pair for herself on sale and when she saw them again, she hooked a sista’ up;)!

My ring is a little piece of costume jewelry that I probably picked up at Marshall’s or Macy’s or somewhere like that. My earrings are clip-ons (they are actually comfortable; didn’t bother my ears ALL day!) that I acquired during my Goodwill haul from a couple of months ago. I got them and a matching pin that didn’t work with this outfit, but I can’t wait to wear them all together.

One thing about this outfit, you might need to adjust the cut of the shirt or pants if you are top-heavy or have a large stomach. If you’re top heavy, a looser vest may be better than a fitted one. A fitted vest may be too snug and make the bossom appear larger still. The reverse is true for the shirt if you have a larger stomach. I would suggest going for a straighter cut shirt with a long hemline that will skim over your stomach and hips and not blouse out so much. This will help avoid looking pregnant. But, if you are pregnant, I think this is a totally cute, professional look for work! For both the top-heavy and those with larger stomachs, a narrower, straight-line slack might help slim the look as well. Finally, you can make this look work for the summer too by switching out the wide-leg pants with cropped ones and replacing the pumps with wedges!!

So, how’d I do with this one?