Outfit for a Wednesday: Linen in Winter

Traditionally, linen is a fabric associated with the warm summer months, ocean-brine infused tropical breezes, and light-hearted lazing and relaxing. In an attempt to harness some of these sentiments and perceptions in the final thrusts of winter, and during the drudgery of the office, I adapted the linen look for the season and for cubicle-sitting. In addition to having an amazing pattern, which almost alludes to a zebra without being a blatant animal print, the linen fabric of this dress offers some different texture. Naturally, I enjoy the soft cream coupled with the black, and to combat the chilled breeze of February, wore a black cardigan and opaque black tights underneath.

This black cardigan features slightly ruched sleeves, which hit right at my elbow. The shorter sleeve worked well with the shorter length of the dress and the covered legs; although the dress hits about mid-thigh or so, the plain black tights facilitated an office appropriate look.

I love that the pattern on this dress is large and bold, but simple with the cream and black. The cut of the dress is a basic sleeveless, almost Jackie Kennedy O type shift, with some tucks around the neck, adding just a touch of accent and texture.

I found these Salvatore Ferragamo kitten heels at a relatively new vintage boutique in my town, when one of my dearest friends from university, and roommate of four years, Katherine, was paying a visit up north. She now resides in Richmond, a delightful town according to anecdotes, and I cannot wait to return the favor. She also found an amazing pair of vintage Ferragamo's while browsing this cluttered and cramped shop; although the pricing varies wildly from pleasantly surprising to ludicrous and nonsensical, each pair set us back only 25$. These shoes have proven incredibly versatile, given the amount of black and gold I wear. The slight sheen of their fabric also lends an easy, immediate polished look to any outfit.

The bow and gold detailing of these shoes are simply darling. Being Italian, they are, of course, very narrow, which I generally need for my feet, however, by the end of a long day, despite having a lower heel, they can cause some mild discomfort. No pain, no professional or sartorial gain.

Once more, the gold barbed wire bangle, along with my grandmother's golden maple leaf necklace and some vintage coral earrings.

This necklace is one of my favorites, for both aesthetic and sentimental reasons; I remember discovering it stowed away with some other pieces belonging to my father's mother, a few years after she had died. I love how it appears to be golden lace. Originally, I found the leaf strung with a plain black string; my mother gave me the gold chain and I switch various pendants, often large brooches adapted to be necklaces, on and off.

These earrings are a simple shape, and just the perfect splash of grapefruit, coral color for this cream and black based outfit. The almost swirled look of the coloring reminds me a bit of hand-blown glass. The film maker enjoyed these in particular, out of the bevy of my earrings, and likened them to a glowing cold red star. Although for the most part, I like to choose between either necklace or earrings for an outfit, I was brazen and donned both, again, with the earrings providing just a bit of warmth on a gray, middle of the week day.