style blog – Page 4 – Ensemble of Elan

The Weird Off: Zara vs. Goodwill

Lately, the two of us have been in a “weird off” of sorts when it comes to choosing outfits for shoots. Our taste in fashion has definitely gotten funkier, so we can’t always find what we’re looking for at stores that mostly focus on basics, like H&M or Express.

We each chose statement tops and eccentric footwear on our trip to Nashville this past weekend, where in between watching the eclipse in the band of totality (life-changing) and eating at the Cheesecake Factory (SO good), we noticed that one of us was all decked out in Zara (H) and the other in Goodwill (S).

The realization that these are the two places we most commonly turn to for quirky clothes made us ask the question of who is weirder: Zara or Goodwill?

Off-the-Shoulder Top and Statement Purse

The outfit I’m wearing is almost entirely from Goodwill, which is quite a change for me because I’m usually the one in the all-Zara outfit. But, Hannah has lured me into her thrifting ways, and now I’m completely addicted to hunting for the strangest pieces I can find hidden in the overcrowded racks of secondhand clothing stores.

Goodwill is the place where people donate anything and everything, and as a result, you can find literally anything in there (I once found a Christian Dior shirt that I will not shut up about). You do have to hunt for those pieces, though, because most of them will not jump out at you from the moment you walk in the store.

You need to filter through every single piece on every single rack sometimes to find that one piece that takes your breath away. But rest assured, when you do find that one silk top with the puffy sleeves that tie back to the days of the Revolutionary War (like this one), it will give you chills because you know you will likely not ever meet another person who owns that shirt. As someone who loves to stand out, I can’t beat that.

-S

I think if there’s one thing we can rely on when it comes to being fashion forward, it’s the element of surprise. From fishnet socks to statement earrings (like Sabrina’s here), this year has been one for the books when it comes to odd fashion trends.

First, let me say that I have always been–and always will be–the thrifting queen. Until recently, I only ever used to shop at secondhand stores like Goodwill whenever I was looking looking for unique, one-of-a-kind pieces. Yet in the months since we started Ensemble of Elan, I’ve become more and more enamored by online brands that are known for their out-of-the-box, statement pieces.

The one place I can always find the on-trend, Pinterest-worthy pieces is none other than Zara. Every time I visit their site, I fall in love with everything from their funky flare pants and open back button downs (and then get my heart broken when all of the clothes in my cart go out of stock, because they’re so popular)! I snagged this off-the-shoulder top and polka-dot mini skort during one of Zara’s amazing sales for under $30.

Thrift stores will always have a special place in my heart for finding unique vintage pieces, but there is also something about Zara that makes my heart flutter.

-H

Geometric Sunglasses & Statement Earrings

Goodwill and Zara are odd in each of their own magnificent ways, and honestly, we cannot choose whom to award the title of “The Best Place to Find Weird Fashion.”

What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Hannah’s Wearing:

Sabrina’s Wearing:

The Art of Putting Together a Great Outfit

Putting together a great outfit truly is an art form. It takes a while to develop the skills to throw on anything in your closet and fool people into thinking you spent hours in front of the mirror perfecting your look.

To help you out a little, we’ve come up with some tips and tricks that we personally use when creating outfits:

For all the girls out there who are sometimes late to class or (even ditch going) out of fear of being seen in an uninspired, boring outfit, worry no more because this one’s for you. Many of us, myself included, have two types of styles in our closet: the most trendy, funky styles and the classics. When I stand in front of my closet in the morning and inspiration fails to strike me, I immediately turn to classic styles.

The great thing about classic styles is that they compliment more “of-the-moment”, trendy pieces, like how these raw hem distressed jeans complement this clean, airy top. I always tread cautiously when it comes to trends (can you blame me, anyone remember hair feathers?), but the more I’ve started branching out as a fashion blogger, the more I’ve realized that mixing trends and classics is one of the keys to putting together a great ensemble!

Lastly, I’ll leave you with a tip. I’ve always had my closet color-coded and grouped together efficiently, but recently I’ve gotten a bit lazy and started simply throwing my clothes in there wherever, and I honestly think it’s been for the better. Making a rainbow out of my clothes was fun and all, but it was poor in promoting creativity in fashion. Sometimes I let the closet do the work for me by hanging anything anywhere and disregarding order. I have found outfits I would have never thought of just because they were side by side in my closet.

-H

Believe it or not, I never used to be much of an accessories person. I carried the same purse every single day, never wore jewelry, and didn’t see why women got so carried away about shoes. But, a few years ago, I realized my outfits could only be so good if I didn’t pay attention to the accessories. Lo and behold, shoes and handbags and stackable rings are now my favorite things to shop for.

I’ve come up with a couple rules for pairing clothing items and accessories to make it easier to create a great outfit. Rule #1: Do not just stick to basics. Resist the urge to wear your black flats every day because they “go with everything.” Mix it up by pairing some fun shoes with your outfits, and you will soon start to see the light as to why women are obsessed with footwear.

Rule #2: Create a color scheme. (Anyone who knows me knows that I love creating color schemes.) Pull some colors from your clothing items; for this one, I focused on the pink from my dress and paired a matching choker. Even doing this for one color will make your outfit feel more cohesive. Then, choose whether you want to wear primarily gold or silver (you can definitely mix the two, but one needs to be the primary metal). I wear gold 90% of the time because my skin has warm undertones, but I still like throwing a silver ring or two in there to add a modern twist.

-S

Hannah’s Wearing:

Sabrina’s Wearing:

Mastering the Edgy Cool Girl: Happily Grey

Mary Seng of Happily Grey has long been one of our favorite fashion bloggers and Insta-girls. We love her edgy, yet feminine sense of style and how she can make anything from leggings to ruffle dresses feel effortlessly cool!

Here’s our take on how to emulate her fashion sense and photography style:

Delicate Gold Necklace and Emerald Dress

What I love about Mary Seng’s blog and Instagram feed is that even though she wears a wide variety of styles and colors, it all feels cohesive due to the nature of her styling and photo editing.

When I was choosing an outfit for this shoot, I went through several of her favorite styles in my head: ankle boots, statement sleeves, funky footwear and more before I settled on wearing a pair of white, wide leg pants with a feminine, floral detail.

I didn’t want to make this outfit too girly by adding ruffles or a colored top, so I stuck with a simple black cami and added a mesh bomber jacket to give this outfit the sporty edge it was lacking. I finished off this look with these pale blue, strappy mules because Mary Seng is not one to stick to neutral, basic footwear.

If you want to create a look inspired by Mary Seng, I would suggest you pair clothes that you wouldn’t normally think to put together. Wear a fun, off-the-shoulder dress with tennis shoes or layer a top with statement sleeves under a dress or overalls. Mix and match styles, but remember to not try too hard because if there’s one thing that sets this fashion blogger apart, it’s that even though her outfits are unconventional, they always look natural.

-S

So Mary Seng’s blog, Happily Grey, is literally my favorite blog in the world. My role model, my icon, my inspiration to start a fashion blog all comes from this fashion influence in Nashville, TN. I was drawn to her because I was surprised that such an edgy, modern presence like Mary could come out of the rootin’ tootin’ south. It made me believe that I could make my footprint on the fashion industry too.

What I love about Mary Seng’s style is how she is never afraid to break the rules. Her style is the epitome of the edgy cool girl, but she also breaks out flowy dresses and skirts from time to time, which is how I chose my ensemble (see what I did there). I leaned towards Mary Seng’s more feminine side with this emerald green dress, which I paired with black heels and gold accessorizes. I even styled my hair in the famous Mary Seng low, messy bun!

One of the reasons I think I was so drawn to this blog was the photography. I found Mary’s photographer, Alaina Mullin, on Instagram, and I must say this woman knows how to take some damn good photos. There is always so much movement in her photos, and the editing is incredible. They keep a pretty unsaturated background, usually urban and grey (hence Happily Grey), but they keep the subject in bold color! The skin tones are pretty dark, so if you were trying to edit similarly, I would suggest keeping the exposure down and bringing that contrast up to the moon, baby.

-H

Mary is relatable because unlike many fashion bloggers who take some truly daring style risks that don’t always work, her style is always easy to love. We adore her, and we think you will too!

Check out some of her looks at http://www.happilygrey.com.

Sabrina’s Wearing:

Hannah’s Wearing:

The Dynamic Duo’s Guide to Beachin’ on a Budget

A trip to the beach is the quintessential summertime vacation, but it can be out of reach for a lot of people simply because of the expenses.

Hotel? Gas? Food? Drinks? And not to mention swimwear and stylish beach accessories?

It can add up very quickly. But, we managed to embark on a weekend-long beach getaway for us and our baes for a grand total of around $500.

Here’s how:

We were lucky enough to be able to stay with one of our friends in Perdido Key, which is on the line between Florida and Alabama. We saved quite a bit of money this way, but even if you are not fortunate enough to have a friend who lives on the coast, a hotel is something you should save on. You are not going to be spending much time there anyways, so it’s really not worth it to spend $200 a night on a fancy resort. Find a place that has a bed, a shower, no frills (and no bed bugs), and only hang out there when you want to go to sleep.

We did splurge a little on going out to eat by treating ourselves to brunches and dinners for two days, but that’s more doable when your trip is shorter, like ours was. If we were going to be there for a week, we definitely would have stopped by the grocery store to at least grab some burgers to grill or some lunch meat for sandwiches to make some of our meals cheaper. Also, when we went out to eat, we usually all ordered waters instead of cocktails (which I can’t even order yet anyways) to make those dinners a little more affordable because a drink usually costs as much as an entrée by itself!

I unfortunately broke my only pair of sandals right before we left for this trip (unbelievable, right?), and you can’t go to the beach without sandals, so instead of buying myself a brand new pair, I borrowed my mom’s sandals for the trip. They weren’t my favorite, but I simply took them off for photos, and they got the job done!

-H

Right before we went on this beach trip, I was really struggling with what to buy for myself. I knew we were going to do at least one photoshoot, so I wanted a new swimsuit (or two), a beach towel, a beach bag—the whole works. Unfortunately, the more logical side of myself knew that I shouldn’t splurge on all of that, so I had to pick and choose.

I already had a new swimsuit (this amazing blush pink one!) that I bought a few months ago and hadn’t worn yet because I wanted to save its debut for the beach. So, one swimsuit down! All of my current swimsuits were solid colors, so I really wanted one that had a fun print. I did not want to spend a lot of money on it, so I turned to Amazon and found a cute one piece with a palm tree print. It was only $15, so I bought it. I actually didn’t even end up getting to wear it on this trip, but at least I’ll have it for my many days by the pool this summer.

As for the rest of the stuff, I borrowed a beach towel from the friends we were staying with and made peace with the fact that I would not be able to get an Instagram-worthy photo with an on-trend, circular patterned beach towel because it cost $45. I repurposed a cheap, lightweight tote bag into a beach bag instead of shelling out $70+ for one of those awesome straw ones. I figured out what was most important to me, spent money on it, and saved money on the rest. You don’t have to completely deprive yourself of what you want when you’re headed on vacay; you just have to prioritize!

-S

What are some ways you’ve found to save money at the beach? Let us know in the comments!

Here are some of our favorite candid moments from the trip!

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Hannah’s Wearing:

Sabrina’s Wearing:

Trend Tips: The Graphic Tee

The graphic tee: everyone knows it, everyone loves it, but not everyone knows how to style it. To keep your look from venturing into middle school/Hollister tee territory, stay up to date with these easy outfit tips:

The graphic tee is one of the biggest trends of the summer, but (ironically) because this piece is so versatile, it can be difficult to style it in a way that feels fresh. I paired this graphic tee from Natural Statement with a side-split maxi skirt to make it feel a little more feminine and make me feel as though I could be walking along a beach somewhere.

I found these chic, black loafers AND this woven purse at Goodwill the other day (score!), so I thought they would be the perfect additions to keep this look easy and casual. If you are going to try out a maxi skirt this summer, go for one that doesn’t feel basic (so 2015). Try out various, ankle skimming lengths, or find one with some sexy slits in it (or create the slits yourself, like I did!).

-S

As much as I love chic, summer colors–vibrant yellow, classic red, and everything in between–there is something fashion forward about going monochromatic when putting together a summer outfit. Everyone owns and wears graphic tees on a regular basis, so I didn’t want this look to feel as though I just threw it together on my way to class.

I pulled out the block heel booties I usually reserve for fall and tucked in that graphic tee to accentuate these high-waisted shorts and add a street style feel to this ensemble. I added a denim jacket to throw in a littttllllleeeee bit of color (but not much), so I wouldn’t be mistaken for gothic, and so I could swing it around when I wanted to and feel like a runway model.

-H

Sabrina’s Wearing:

Hannah’s Wearing:

Photos by: Rainwater Reflections Photography