Working With a Difficult Shape

This was a casual Friday outfit, and despite its simplicity I had to play around with it quite a bit before I was happy with it. I just love the details on this top, but its multi-layer bulk combined with its difficult shape and length puts a lot of emphasis on my upper thighs. I did a few things here to counter this effect. First, I tied bows at the shoulders rather than letting the ties hang down; this gave a little more width to my narrow shoulders to help balance the bottom of the shirt. Next, I added the long scarf to slim my middle section. Finally, I slipped a narrow belt between the top and bottom layers of the shirt to define my waist a bit more; though the belt got a bit lost among all the layers of fabric, I still thought it helped.

Though I was able to effectively work with the shape of the top, there's just no denying that this color is deeply unflattering to my skin tone. I think I might try to overdye the top, perhaps giving it a dark tie dye effect if I can figure out how to do it. I'm not willing to give up on it at this point, but I do want to find a way to make it more flattering.

The big move is happening this weekend, so I'll be out of the blogging loop for a few days. I've got outfit posts lined up for early next week, but there will be a gap in internet access during which I won't be checking in on your blogs. I'll be back mid next week; until then, have a great weekend everyone, and happy May!

Shirt: Manuela Roth
Scarf: Banana Republic
Belt: Lazaro
Jeans: Acne
Shoes: Fly London