Style Stories: Simply Elevated and Summer Sparkle
Style Story: Simply Elevated
Summer casual becomes elevated by keeping it simple. A monochromatic pairing of our main items look more pulled together and expensive than one with multiple colour breaks. My ivory wide leg trousers, Zara, have a lot of movement but they’re structured unlike a pull-on palazzo pant so they have more of an elevated feel. I’ve paired them with shorter length sweatshirt, Uniqlo, with rolled sleeves to emphasize my casual vibe. The contrasting fabric weights with the heavier one up top against the flowy bottom keeps my look neat and in control.
I also used a monochromatic caramel colour scheme for my leather belt, Vintage Gucci, vintage bag, and sandals, Sam Edelman. It’s the perfect neutral colour especially for Summer because of its red, orange, and brown tones. I’m able to throw in little dash of boho with an ivory/red cotton headscarf, Mango and red coral necklace. I finished it off with a pair of classic gold hoops that tie back to my gold belt buckle.
*pro-tip: keep it clean, simple, and uncluttered.
Style Story: Summer Sparkle
I learned so much about fashion and style from my mom. Unlike her and her generation, I didn’t categorize my clothing into casual, dressy, professional, etc.. I remember a couple of times coming out of my room dressed for elementary school in a category mix and watched her completely lose her mind. I’m sure she thought the same of me but she had the power back then to make me go back and change. Thankfully, styling/merchandising is less restrictive and we can really wear our garments and get the most out of them.
I purchased this sequin beaded top decades ago to pair with a nude, matte jersey, long, slim skirt for a friends wedding. These days, I wear it with jeans, cutoffs, and pareos, etc. Today, I’m wearing it with an organza midi, H & M in a gorgeous bronze colour. The skirt has small clusters of beads and sequins on the front and the back is clean.
For my accessories, I’m wearing a vintage watch and bracelet in rose gold. The colour works so well with the bronze skirt.
I tone down the look with a pair of beige, low kitten heel, leather, sling backs, Sebastian Milano and a beige/white silk bandana pattern headscarf, Amazon. Colour wise they work back to my beaded top, but everything together creates a pretty innocuous look. Is it dressy? Is it casual? Does it matter? NO!
*pro-tip: classifying garments or people or anything else keeps us from seeing the possibilities.
*please treat your wardrobe well. many people work very hard to get it to you.
The tomato behind The Three Tomatoes.
Cheryl Benton, aka the “head tomato” is founder and publisher of The Three Tomatoes, a digital lifestyle magazine for “women who aren’t kids”. Having lived and worked for many years in New York City, the land of size zero twenty-somethings, she was truly starting to feel like an invisible woman. She created The Three Tomatoes just for the fun of it as the antidote for invisibility and sent it to 60 friends. Today she has thousands of friends and is chief cheerleader for smart, savvy women who want to live their lives fully at every age and every stage. She is the author of the novel, "Can You See Us Now?" and co-author of a humorous books of quips, "Martini Wisdom." Because she's lived a long time, her full bio won't fit here. If you want the "blah, blah, blah", read more. www.thethreetomatoes.com/about-the-head-tomato
