Impromptu #OOTD: Playing With Plaid (Feat. SheIn)

If I had to pick one pattern that I was an absolute sucker for, the pattern I would have to choose is plaid. I don’t know why, but something about the look of overlapping tartan squares has always been appealing to me. Perhaps this is just due to nostalgia, because while I was growing up, all through elementary and middle school, the skirts for my school uniforms were plaid. Whatever the reason though, plaid always seems to be the most dominant pattern in my wardrobe and I continue to have so much fun styling these pieces. Recently, I had the chance to add yet another fabulously checkered piece to my closet, and this new piece would be the latest dress I received from my longtime sponsor, SheIn.

The Casual Cowl Neck

Though normally I try to avoid styling dresses in the winter due to the cold and snowy weather (here in the ‘Burgh we’ve gotten about a foot of snow in just a matter of hours— my classes at Point Park were actually cancelled yesterday due to the poor weather conditions), I was honestly a bit overly eager to style this adorable shift dress, and jumped on the first opportunity I had! So, on Monday I decided to step out in this pretty dress for a casual lunch date at Dominico’s after my morning classes, and I have to say the reactions I got from this darling piece did not disappoint.

Firstly, as mentioned earlier, the plaid pattern of this dress is honestly my favorite thing about it, but along with the pattern, I also adore the color combinations. Though I am normally not a fan of blue and yellow together, in this particular instance these two colors really work together to create a very visually pleasing color palette. This is due to the fact that the yellows and blues work transitionally through out the dress, making the shift from warm to cool colors less harsh. I also love how these colors play off of one another and how natural and earthy all of the colors are, making this piece great for both the fall and winter seasons.

The dress itself is honestly just an overall great piece. I would recommend this piece to anyone looking for a nice, casual, fall or winter dress to add to their wardrobe. Aside from having great colors for each of these seasons, this dress is also made of wool, meaning it is a thicker as well as heavier material which is perfect for winter because it will surely keep you warm. Personally, that was the biggest “win” for me with this dress. I also adore its cozy cowl neck design, which is great for a laid back look either on campus or just a relaxing, low key day out. This dress’ loose fit and high-low cut also adds to its casual chic appeal, because these qualities give the dress a fun and flowy look. Lastly, like every piece of clothing I have received from SheIn, this dress is incredibly well made and fits true to size.

To style this dress for my lunch date (as well as for this impromptu outfit of the day post) I chose to keep it simple and leave my accessories at a minimum. First I chose to pair this dress with these adorable Nova Fringe Earrings by Perry Street, and this dainty, gold, choker by Rudiment. The reason I chose these earrings to style with this look is because I felt they added a whimsical and fun feel to this cute cowl neck dress, and I chose such a dainty necklace because I felt a more prominent necklace would be to overpowering. I then chose to carry my market bag with this dress simply because the colors just matched perfectly and the bag itself also has a relaxed vibe to it. And to complete this look, I topped it off with my absolute favorite booties, which are also from SheIn. The reason I felt these were the best choice to complete my outfit is due to the fact their tan color plays well off of the dress’ earth tones.

Lastly, I want to talk about my makeup for this kicked back look. As always, I used my go to Mattifying primer by Julep (you can read more about it here!) and bareMinerals BarePro Liquid Foundation. But I also got some new goodies from Julep that I took the opportunity to use and those would be Julep’s Eyeshadow 101 in Shimmering Orchid and Julep’s Skip The Brush Blush Stick in Passionfruit. And though these products will be appearing in a later post, I have to say these products work great and I absolutely adore them! The colors have great pigment and they’re long lasting which is great for all day wear. I finished off my makeup look with NARS Fast Ride lipstick. The reason I chose these colors for this look is I felt their deep and earthy tones complemented my over all look.

One Last Look

What are some of your favorite patterns to style? Let’s chat about them in the comments below or you can tweet me at @StarkRavingChic! Have a fabulous plaid dress that you have just been dying to show off? I’d love to see it so feel free to tag me in you Instagram Story at @StarkRavingChic. Later, babes!

Xx, Bree

P.S. Psssssst! If you love the jewelry I styled in this post as much as I do, you can try Rocksbox for a whole month 100% FREE when you sign up using my promo code "starkravingchicxoxo". Don't know what Rocksbox is or how it works? You can learn more here!

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