Let's Pretend

Today let's pretend that I have on black dress pants instead of dark-wash jeans. Because when I chose this outfit I fully intended to design it around black pants as the long-overdue follow-up to my Fashion Rut series. Does everyone remember our friend Martha, and how I banned her from wearing black pants for a month, and promised to do the same myself? Well the truth is I had no problem at all avoiding black pants for a month; in fact it's been well over TWO months since I even thought about wearing them. And frankly I would've gone on not wearing them had it not been for the fact that I promised to do so. But when I pulled out my one and only pair of black pants I found that they are actually too short to wear with heels, and my backup pair, which are charcoal gray, had a hem coming loose. I had no choice but to substitute these black-ish jeans and call it a day.

So assuming these are black dress pants, here's what I did to make the outfit interesting. First, I kept the bulk of the outfit to neutral colors -- white, black, and gray -- and added just some small pops of color with the necklace, shoes, and coat. What you don't want to have is a block of bright color floating in space against a background of black. Next, I added a pattern and texture mix with the top layers -- a striped button-down shirt topped with a sheer black top with a subtle floral pattern. The sheer top adds depth and softens the look of the solid black pants, while the pattern mix adds visual interest. Finally, I jazzed it up with the pops of yellow, since after all it is spring.

I'd love to tell you that I'll be back with more ideas for wearing black pants later in the week, but frankly I don't want to lie to you. And anyway, I hate black pants and am planning on getting rid of that one and only pair, since clearly I never wear them. I can only hope that Martha, as well as any other readers who followed my Fashion Rut series, have outgrown their dependency on the black pants by this point.

Shirt: Promod
Sheer top: Noa Noa
Belt: Red Dress Shoppe
Pants: Level 99
Shoes: Gabriella Rocha
Coat: vintage
Necklace: Dana LeBlanc Designs