Why I Love Men's Shoes: Top 10 Reasons (Part II)

Well Happy Wednesday my loves!

Only 2 more days left in the work week and I'm hella excited. This past 3-day weekend just didn't seem to be enough for me.

There are some pretty exciting things going on in the blogosphere today; for one Marion over at MarionBerryStyle is hosting her monthly trend challenge. I'm also hooking up with Laura at ALittleBitOfLaquer for Work It Wednesday.

This season I'm really into oxfords. I just don't feel up to putting on heels everyday so they are my go-to fashion item. Last week, I expressed 5 reasons why I love these English brogues in Part I of the 'Why I Love Men's Shoes' series.

If you missed Part I, don't fret...view it here!

Today I want to share with you the remaining 5 reasons why these babies will be the first shoes that I grab for after getting dressed.

REASON #6: They're courageously colorful. This yellowish/rare gold hue immediately caught my eye. As they did everyone else's. I hate when people don't understand your style so they find everything negative to say to express their huge dislike for something that you have on. I never get dressed to please others-that's exactly why it's called personal style right!? Anyhow, I figured that though this color is bold and bright, I could pair it with the many neutral hues that I have so as to make for a great statement piece.

Oxfords-Bare Feet

Skinnies-Thrifted

REASON #7: They're very versatile. I love that you can pull off so many different looks by pairing them with skinnies, boyfriend jeans, and also shorts.

REASON #8: They have plenty of personality. Need I say more- these brogues have a mind of their own. They speak volumes of 'effortless chic' without saying much at all.

Belt-Thrifted

Cropped Tee-TJ Maxx/Clutch-Wet Seal

REASON #9: They're some kinda stylish. They're classy on men; sexy on women and they come in a variety of different styles. Whether you like high heels, flats, or even sneakers-oxfords undoubtedly have a style to match your flava!

REASON #10: They're freaking fancy. Over the weekend I paired my oxfords with a flirty skirt and I felt like a doll. Follow me on instagram (@sherockwell) for updates on that outfit. I also love the fact that they can be dazzled up and worn with party dresses, tuxedo pants, maxi skirts, and blazers to make for a more sophisticated look.

Sunnies-gifted

I could go on and on with reasons why I love these shoes but I think the 10 points I listed are more than enough. Maybe I will make this a regular series highlighting different things in my closet that I love, similar to the 'I Really Love My' series that they feature in People Style Watch Magazine.

How do you feel about oxfords this season?

Are they hot or NOT!?

Thanks for reading.

XOXOXOXO

Linked to:

Work It Wednesday

Marionberry Style

Blonde Episodes

Thrifters Anonymous

Rolled Up Pretty

The Pleated Popppy

Casual Friday

Savin' Maven Monday: DIY Coffee Table

Happy Monday loves.

I hope you all have had a great holiday weekend. Mine was full of grilled food, studying, and catching up on some much needed reading-what fun! My girlfriend and I have planned to go thrifting and window shopping at Target today so we shall see how it turned out in a later post.

Today's DIY is a very simple one. I recently moved into a new residence and we all know how that can be. In an effort to start fresh, I trashed most of my old furniture-leaving me with random pieces throughout my house. Since I have lived alone, I have never had a coffee table-how weird is that? So when I found this coffee table at Goodwill for 

**10 bucks**

a couple of weeks ago I knew it had to be mine.

The only issue that I found with the table was that the color didn't exactly match with my dark floors so I decided to pull out a little spray paint.

I like the consistency of the Krylon brand so I purchased two cans of Satin Black (only one shown here) and used Primer that I had leftover from a previous project. I made sure to choose the Satin finish versus the Matte finish because I wanted it to have a little bit of shimmer and shine!

I'm not sure that I need to list the steps for this DIY because it's pretty self-explanatory. 

Prime. Spray. Dry.  

The most important thing to keep in mind when spray painting is to obviously complete the project in a very well ventilated area-particularly outside. Oh, and please wear gloves! Otherwise your hands will look like this:

Here's my table after one coat.

***I allowed at least 24 hours between applying the first and second coats***

After two coats, there's really not much difference...

And that's it!

 I wiped it off a bit and tah-dah! 

Here you have it, set and semi-decorated.

Please keep in mind that I still have more decorations to add so it looks a bit bare at the moment.

Have you spray painted any of your furniture before? 

If so, what was your experience like?

Thanks for reading!

XOXOXOXO

Linked to:

Thrifters Anonymous

Liz Marie Blog

Thrift It Linky Party

 

 

 

 

Why I Love Men's Shoes: Top 10 Reasons (Part I)

Happy Thursday lovelies!

I hope you all are having a great week thus far. It's almost Friday so I'm super excited about that.

Today's post was roused by this inspiration board and my new-found love for English brogues-better known as OXFORDS!

Let me tell you the reasons why they make my days complete...

REASON #1: They're cutely comfy. I love that I can still be stylish and 'appear' to be dressed up with these babies. They are great for those excruciatingly long work days when heels are not an option.

Blazer-Thrifted (American Eagle)

REASON #2: They're fabulously feminine-even though they were inspired by menswear. They can be pulled off with with a variety of different 'fits and never lose their feminine touch. I particularly like to cuff the bottom of my pants to show off the shoe and all of its beauty.

Brogues-Dollhouse

REASON #3: They're pretty preppy. I  have always been drawn to the 'preppy' feel of button ups and cardigans so being attracted to these oxfords was a no brainer. They have the ability to make any look appear clean and polished.

Sweater-Thrifted (Old Navy)

REASON #4: They're totally timeless. Season in and season out, oxfords will remain doable. Wear them without socks in the spring and summer and when transitioning to fall and winter the addition of tights and/or leggings will keep you warm.

REASON #5: They're incredibly inexpensive and if you know me well enough, then you would know that I like to shop logically and wisely-especially for trends like this which for some,  may be considered to be out of style within a month's time. I purchased these oxfords last year for $7 during a season-end clearance sale.

Skinnies-Gap/Purse-Thrifted

This is Part 1 of a 2 part post.

Stay tuned next week for more reasons why I love oxfords.

Thanks for reading.

A very HUGE THANK YOU to all of my new followers and subscribers.

XOXOXOXO

Linked up to:

Work It Wednesday

Thrifters Anonymous

Fashion Friday

Rolled Up Pretty

The Pleated Poppy

Casual Friday

Trendy Tuesday: Ombre Nombre

Happy Tuesday loves...

I have finally ordered studs so that I can create something from the inspiration board that I created last week. I'm so excited about it! I'm gonna go 'stud crazy'! Before I could fall totally in love with the studs, this trend caught my attention:

Ombre Nombre... by sherockwell featuring a one sleeve cocktail dress

I love the effects of the contrasting colors and I can't wait to try my hand at creating something lovely, maybe even a new manicure.

What trend are you coveting this week?

XOXOXOXO

Savin' Maven Monday: Make Every Accessory Count...

Happy Monday lovelies....

I hope each of you had a great weekend. Mine wasn't too bad at all; I spent some time with my friends, began my summer classes, and best of all I went shopping-this time for accessories.

I think that great accessories can take an outfit over the top if you style them correctly. Here are three things that I like to keep in mind when I'm shopping for accessories.

TIP #1-Go bold. Bold colored accessories accentuate classic and neutral outfits. Since I can't be overly bold when dressing for work and church, I incorporate bold colored accessories to give my 'fits a burst of energy.

TIP # 2-The more color, the better. I always like to choose accessories that include a variety of colors so that they can easily be paired and remixed with several different outfits.

TIP #3-Spend wisely. Lots of times I have purchased accessories from places such as Forever 21 and H&M only to have them break or tarnish. From that I have learned to spend less on accessories by either shopping the clearance racks and/or second hand stores. For those items that I just have to have, like this 80's chain necklace and spiked bracelet, I don't mind spending the money.

Here's what I snagged over the weekend:

I love this multi-colored statement necklace. Although the colors are bold, they still fall into the neutral category and can be paired with an endless amount of 'fits.

Plato's-$5

This jewel-toned cuff bracelet is also one of my faves because the variety of colors allow it to go with just about anything.

Plato's-$5

I picked these earrings because I loved the shape and print of them. They are also very lightweight.

Plato's-$3

There was no method to justify why I picked these fringed beauties. I guess the main reason was because they were only $2 and I don't own any purple accessories.

BareFeet-$2

There you have it...my accessory filled weekend-all for less that $20! I can't wait to style these goodies.

What are some tips that you keep in mind when shopping for accessories?

Do share...

XOXOXOXO

Red Lips: Make It Work With These 4 Tips

Happy Wednesday loves!

How is everyone's 'hump day' coming along? Fine, I hope. It's still a little dreary in my area so once again I felt the strong urge to stay in my bed and call out of work....but I didn't.

When I originally picked out this 'fit, I wanted to highlight the Liz Claiborne beaded sweater that I thrifted for 99 cents.  How it started out as a beautiful white treasure until I stuck it in the wash with something pink, therefore turning the whole sweater a salmon color. And how I then had to bleach it 4 times to turn it back to its original color.

Sweater-Thrifted (Liz Claiborne $.99)

But then I decided that I would instead highlight this awesome red lip gloss that I found at Bath and Body Works a number of years ago during one of their Semi-Annual sales. A friend of mine used to tell me that red lipstick was for hookers and whores and I beg to differ. For a while I thought the same thing, I thought it looked downright tacky. I even thought that my lips were to full to be covered in red paint-I would look like nothing short of a clown. Until, I tried it!

Shorts-Thrifted and DIY'd (GAP $.99)



Goldie Gloss-Bath & Body Works (Pomme)

I actually think its quite chic and sexy. And above all, it's a classic that will never go out of style. Of course since first trying it, I have found some tips that are particularly helpful when wearing it. 

Trick #1-Go light on the rest of your makeup to avoid looking like a clown. For example, instead of using bright eyeshadow, use neutrals or maybe opt to only use mascara for the evening.

Trick #2-Make sure your nails don't clash. If you are going to wear red nails, try matching both of the reds. Otherwise, go for a more neutral color polish.

OPI-Coney Island Cotton Candy

Trick #3-Keep the rest of your wardrobe simple.

Clutch and Vest-Wet Seal



Belt-Thrifted ($.99)

Tip #4-Be precise. In order to avoid smudging lipstick all over your teeth, refrain from applying it while riding in the back of a taxi. To prevent your lipstick from bleeding, apply concealer or a light colored lip liner. After applying your favorite shade of red, put your finger in your mouth and purse your lips around it; pull it out slowly to remove excess color.

I hope you all have enjoyed these tips. If you know of any other suggestions that would help feel free to share.

Thanks for reading.

XOXOXOXO

Linked up to:

Work It Wednesday

Rolled Up Pretty

Thrifters Anonymous

Fashion Friday

The Pleated Poppy

Casual Friday