Economy of Style
A notebook on evolving trends, fashion sense and cents

West County Center x H&M Spring Giveaway (5 Winners)

I’m so thrilled to be partnering with West County Center, home of the flagship H&M store in St. Louis. FIVE winners will receive an H&M spring box curated by yours truly AND a $50 gift card. You already know how H&M has been bringing it. It’s one of our go-to places for fresh finds, and spring is already shaping up to be super fabulous. So, I couldn’t not share this giveaway opportunity with you. Entering is easy. Text SPRING to 444-222 (through March 21, 2021). That’s it! Want to read more details? Go here.

Check out how I’m wearing some favorite H&M finds: Purple sweater (shop it here), orange voluminous dress, and, kelly green sweater.

Shoulder Pads: An Easy Option For Rocking The 80s Trend Now

I have the fondest memories of shopping my mom’s closet as a young girl. Every time, I’d encounter pieces with shoulder pads, though, I’d cut ’em out. Lol. Today, I love the architectural interest shoulder pads add to basics. My favorite blazers have sharp shoulders. My new favorite black shirtdress has accentuated shoulders. No matter your taste, the shoulder pads trend for fall could add a little pizazz to your style.

shoulder pads
What I’m wearing:

Dress | Sandals (now 40% off) | Fedora

Beltshazzar Jewels  Necklace (STL designer) | Kendra Scott earrings (on sale)

shoulder pads

As  you can imagine, the trend for fall is bringing options for every style preference, from subtle to square to over-the-top, voluminous shoulder pads. This basic dress from Zara (also available in blue and tan), which retails for just $25.90, is so simple but stuns because of the sleeveless, shoulder detail.

Sizing? I’m wearing the dress in a size Medium.

shoulder pads

To pull the entire look together, I added slide sandals, a fedora, and a long statement necklace. The result is a simple, yet infinitely chic combination. The sharp shoulders are largely responsible for that, of course.

For more easy and affordable options for rocking fall trends, go here, here, and here.

Fall Trends You Can Rock Right Now

It’s been a year filled with unexpected turns. And, here we are in August. A flashback post on one of my social channels reminded me that we’re usually talking excitedly about fall fashion around this time. It prompted me to begin identifying my favorite styles for the season ahead. I’ll be sharing all those top picks in a series of posts beginning today. For today’s edition, I shopped my closet to showcase the ruffles trend and the puff sleeves trend.

ruffles trend

What I’m wearing:

Puff-sleeve denim jacket | Ruffle skirt(50% off, limited stock) | Stripe tee | Sandals | Fedora | Earrings

ruffles trend

Ruffles

The ruffles trend is going to be huge this fall. I love the drama and interest ruffles can add to otherwise simple pieces. In the right fabric, ruffled items can be versatile too. My ruffle skirt is by Topshop (inventory is very limited now because it’s 50% off). I bought it early in the year, and as you can imagine, I haven’t worn until now. I’m wearing it casually today. But, since it’s a taffeta skirt, I could easily dress it up for a fancier affair.

Puff Sleeves

Thank goodness, right? If you’re a fan of puff sleeves, you’ve probably amassed quite the collection of items with full sleeves. Well, the trend is here to stay. We’re going to see puff sleeves on everything from sweaters to coats. I bought my puff-sleeve denim jacket  during a huge Zara sale at the top of the year. It has quickly become a go-to casual topper. No surprise, Zara brought it back (see it here).

It feels good looking forward to the season ahead. Stay tuned for more chats on fall trends. Go here for another fall transitional look.

Fall ruffles trend and more:

 

Stylish Summer Staples Right At Target

I’d been eying the Who What Wear puff sleeve dress for a minute. It has a perfect breezy, babydoll silhouette and right-on-trend puff sleeves. I hesitated because I could only find it in black in-store, and I didn’t want another black dress. Imagine my delight, then, when I stumbled upon the fabulous frock in yellow. And, if you use Target Circle Offers, all Who What Wear items are 5% off right now (ending today). There are so many summer staples.

summer staples
What I’m Wearing:

Dress | Fedora | Sandals | Long necklace | Michele watch (on sale)

The puff sleeve dress has a wide neckline, which makes it easy to drape the sleeves off the shoulders. It’s simple yet stunning. Remember my ruffled midi skirt (see it worn here)? It’s also from the Who What Wear summer collection, which is packed with fabulous summer staples. See more of my favorites in the widget at the end of this post.

summer staples

Since this dress makes a statement with its fabulous details, I kept my accessories simple. My Kendra Scott Zorte long pendant necklace, for example, has a modern and minimal design with its shiny hammered pendant. By the way, it’s on sale (through 5/25).

Location: Grand Center Arts District, St. Louis

summer staples

Shop More Who What Wear Summer Staples:

Cut It Out: The Coolest 2020 Swim Trend

One-piece swimsuits have come to prove that they can be just as sexy and more interesting that bikinis this year. Enter, the cut-out swimsuit! Since it’s never too early to get ready for swim season, I’m checking in with several affordable options in the coolest swim trend of 2020. Psst…my suit is from Target. I kid you not.

cut out swim trend

What I’m wearing:

Cut-out swimsuit | Kate Design cover-up | Dale Kelley hat | Sunglasses

Earrings | Anklet | Lip: Mac “Ruby Woo”

It’s totally still winter in St. Louis, but I’m working with the St. Louis Boat & Sportshow this weekend. I had a ton of fun of exploring the largest yacht at the convention. Of course, I had to style the moment.

Dale Kelley Hat

My black one-piece is $39.99 at Target. For size reference, I’m wearing a small. I was immediately drawn to this beauty because of its striking silhouette with front and back cutouts. It also offers a great deal of coverage for a swimsuit with so many openings. The bottom is high-waisted, and the leg cut can be adjusted to your personal taste.

cut out swim trend

My cover-up is actually a robe by Kate Design St. Kitts. I’ve always found it too adorable to just wear at home. And, my magnificent hat (did you peep the details on the top?) is by Dale Kelley of Dale Original Art & Style in St. Kitts.

cut out swim trend

Et voila! I had the perfect yacht day style.

Going on vacay? Check out some fly vacation style options here.

Location: St. Louis Boat & Sportshow

Shop the cut-out swim trend: