June Pinspired: Styling the Red Slacks

I'm linking up today with a new-to-me link up, "Pinspired" by the brilliant minds behind Mix & Match Family, Pinterest Told Me To and The Larson Lingo.

Each month, bloggers link up outfit posts that were inspired by their Pinterest boards.  I'm excited, because I want to be more creative in my outfit planning, but can't quite keep up with What I Wore Wednesdays or some of the other style blogger events that occur frequently.  Once a month is a commitment I think I can handle :-)  Thanks for dreaming this up and doing the work to host, Shay, Sheaffer and Mel!!

I was definitely skeptical of the colored jeans/slacks trend at first, and I still haven't quite accepted mint as a color meant for pants  **braces for shocked reactions.**  But, at the New York and Company outlet near Cincinnati over Christmas break, I found a pair of red-orange slacks that I thought were pretty cute.  They fit, and while I wasn't CERTAIN I'd get a ton of use out of them, at redline clearance prices, I was ready to give them a try.

I figured I'd wear them with white... white blouses, white sweaters of various weights... then I discovered that I LOVE wearing them with a yellow cami and this gorgeous blue cardigan I have.  I SHOCKED myself with this outfit, but it gives me a lot of confidence and makes me feel as sunny as it looks.  But still, two combinations aren't quite enough to make me feel like I am being creative or getting a lot of use out of these newly beloved pants, so I decided that this would be my June "Pinspired" challenge and turned to Pinterest.  (Follow me if you'd like!  I have about 60 boards... I'm a bit of an addict.)

There was a recurring theme among the pictures I found that seems so obvious... now.  I had thought to pair the pants with white, but never considered adding black to the mix.  Black, white and red are so classic... duh, Katie!!  Anyway... here are some of the pictures I found of this basic outfit.

Cute - even if there is no WAY I could wear something that low-cut without being terribly self-conscious. :-) This was the first picture I saw of this combination, and the one that made me facepalm a little bit! Although I did have to Google Whitney Port... never did get into watching The O.C!

Next up is the lovely Jessica Alba, who accessorized it with black shoes and a black purse, which I thought was a better pulled-together look...

And last but not least... if it's good enough for the Duchess of Cambridge, it's good enough for me!  I liked her slightly more casual blazer, and got to thinking that if I could find the black jacket-y blazer thing I got a few summers ago, it just might work :-)  Unfortunately, I don't have a summer-weight scarf in those colors, but I was pretty sure I could do a close approximation of these outfits using things already in my wardrobe.

We got the chance to meet up with a sweet friend from Ohio who is interning for the summer a little less than 2 hours from us down here for lunch, and I decided that this would be the perfect time to try out my new outfit.  :-)  

• White Tank Top: The Loft (birthday gift from a couple years ago)
• Black Jacket/Blazer/Thing: Belk (two or three summers ago)
• Red-Orange slacks: New York and Company (clearance for <$8!)
• Black Flats: had 'em since high school, soooo who knows!?
• Black Purse (that you can barely see on my left shoulder, oops): Esprit (on the Champs-Élysées while on our honeymoon)
• Necklace and Earrings: Always, Katie
• Diet Coke: less of a fashion statement and more of a necessity... but it MATCHES!

Photos of me are big thanks to my handsome husband!

This necklace has been one of my favorites to wear!  I don't have any listed in my shop right now, but I would love to make one for you in whatever color/s you'd like :-)  This pendant is discontinued (from Michael's), but there are so very many beautiful options out there that I'm sure we could find the perfect one for you or someone you love!

We had a wonderful visit and delicious lunch with our friend and I really enjoyed wearing this comfortable and cute new outfit - made up of stuff I already had on hand! It feels like I got new clothes without spending a dime :-)   I'll leave y'all with a cheesy group selfie of Ethan, Abby and me...  I hope everybody got to have some fun like this this week!

Always,

Katie