THE CITIZEN INDEX

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Outfit Post: Grey Matters

Layering up smartly in a heady mix of texture + pattern- tweed, argyle + honeycomb plaid make the grade in this winter look.

Note: This is a sponsored post featuring Karina Dresses.

Clever me. I'm getting used to this grey business of the Pacific Northwest. Overhead, an ongoing mosaic of cloud cover, swirling like paisley, pulsing with rain. Indoors it may be toasty, but this girl is going places- and I need to get there regardless of the weather. Tired of jeans and flats, I decided to doll up, while dressing for comfort and easy mobility. The grey day go-to: my "sweet" Carolyn by Karina Dresses.

Street Style SEATTLE: Bella likes to strut her stuff on the city sidewalks. Texture + pattern play dazzle the grey day.
The dress may look familiar. I've worn it several times on the blog- HERE and HERE.
It happens to be a dress that I wear a lot in real life, on the weekends usually, when I'm running around but still want to feel "cute." I have a certain uniform that I'll put on nearly every Saturday, and this dress essential to it.  Let me confess- I liked the cut and print of this dress so much, I actually own two. Yup. Two of the exact same. Ya know, so one dress is always clean when I want to wear it.
Looking Smart! The Carolyn dress in Honeycomb Plaid is as versatile as it is comfortable.
Since Seattle is a bit more grey and rainy than my old stomping grounds, I'm learning the smart value of layering. This breathable micro-fiber frock gets the "Diamond Treatment" and paired with a classic winter pattern, Argyle. The soft lambswool and mohair grey-on-grey-on-a-rainy-day pullover feels perfect, and I couldn't help but style the look "oddball style" as I love a good twist on a great classic. Silly little argyle ankle socks slipped so comfortably into my thrifted black leather pumps. I felt warm, and cute and best of all, I was able to run my errands on foot feeling comfortable and looking good. The grunge hat by the way, was inspired by Beryl, +40 blogger friend and former Seattle-ite. She's given me loads of good advice about living in the emerald city. So Beryl: this grunge's for you!

Don't think I'm leaving out the grey wool coat- this coat is a TREASURE. A gorgeous, perfect condition 1950's nubby grey tweed pillar coat- it has a silver lining- or at least a shimmery satin grey one, and I love this coat so much! At the time that I bought it, it was a bit of an investment, but years later, worth its weight in gold. Silver linings indeed. That's also how I feel about my collection of Karina Dresses. Whenever I want cute, chic and EASY, I grab for my Karina. You can too- the Fall/Winter 2012 collection can be shopped online by clicking HERE. Don't forget to use the coupon code ROSC30 at checkout for $30 off your order. <--That's a no-brainer.

So grey matters. To combat the blahs of a winter grey day, I used texture and pattern play to spice things up in this fairly simple look. Dress. Pullover. Socks + Shoes. Coat. The look is  comfortable and cute with my signature quirk. The Karina Dress is a dress every wearer makes their own.  Smart, huh?
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post by Karina Dresses. I was given compensation for this post. However the experiences and opinions are 100% my own. Interested in sponsoring a post? Contact me for rates and details.

37 comments:

  1. I happen to love socks with dress shoes and those argyle ones are tres adorbs!

    Looking forward to your link-in on my Countdown to Kitschmas.

    thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com

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  2. Oh, I love your shoes!! You look so cute...and so does the cat!!

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  3. Two thumbs up on the socks and shoes.

    Bisous
    Suzanne

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  4. I love the different shades of grey & the different textures in the outfit! :)

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  5. How cute! I understand why you like that dress, it looks fabulous mixed with anything !!:)

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  6. Loooove your socks! I've never seen monochrome be so colorful! ;)

    xoxox
    theefface.blogspot.com

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  7. Loving those cute ankle socks and that coat is a beauty! x

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  8. I'm marveling that you own two of the exact same dress, and I'm mad that I never thought of doing this myself. This dress is perfect and versatile and I love it. And your argyle sweater. I just thrifted one. It needs an outing asap :)

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  9. Awesome outfit, it reminds me of the Marc Jacobs' collection for Perry Ellis in the 90's, the grunge-chic one: the tartan checks, the beanie hat and the lovely dress are a great combination that totally recalls that fashion era!I love the socks with the maryjanes too!
    xxxx

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  10. Oh Bella - you are the sweetest! And this is just my favorite type of post. You, looking cute, in something new and something thrifted. Plus, it's sponsored, which makes perfect sense, since you give us so many ideas for how to rock that cute plaid dress. And for the touch of Seattle perfection - a grunge hat! Yeah!

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  11. You and Terri are the best pattern mixers! I need some lessons from the two of you.

    You look really great in grey - not many people do - including me (but I still wear it).

    I hope that someday I come across a fantastic coat like that in my secondhand adventures. I bet thrifting is great in Seattle, yes?

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  12. I love this dress and all the different ways you wear it! :-)

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  13. Gorgeous coat and LOVE the socks with the shoes! Sarah xxx

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  14. I love, love the way you've styled this Karina dress - and the socks are great with it. Gray is one of my favorites colors too.

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  15. A little bit of Argyle Heaven! I love it with the Karina Dress.

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  16. Love the all grey outfit very snazzy!

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  17. Such a cute look - I like all the grey and black patterns in this. And how clever of you to match the cat in the background!

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  18. Love the outfit--so cute!! I now NEED me some argyle!!
    I'm gonna put some Karina dresses on my hint list for xmas!!

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  19. I love your grey outfit Bella! It works. I've been wearing a lot of grey too recently. It just feels right this time of year!

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  20. I love the shoes and the argyle socks. Very cute look. Preppy and a bit edgy.

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  21. You are in Seattle now? Welcome to our rainy city.

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  22. I love the length of your coat! I like the color grey and have a few pieces in my closet, but sometimes I just don't feel like wearing it.

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  23. Beautiful combination! those socks and shoes give a surprise effect!

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  24. In perfect harmony with the grey weather in Seattle...
    Hang in there.
    xo
    Anne (Playing with Scarves)

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  25. I love the Honeycomb plaid dress with the plaid tights. And with the striped shoes. Fabulous!

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  26. Damn, you made a boring color look awesome. Love the mix of patterns. And your stalker cat.

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  27. Thank you for stopping by my blog and for the sweet comment! I love the versatility of this dress, and you can never go wrong with a vintage coat. Vintage clothing is so well made!

    Adrienne
    What Lola Wants

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  28. absolutely fabulous layering, I'm loving your outfit, its mixed textures, that pretty dress and all that gray color that I like so much!
    besos fabulosos

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  29. Grey is one of my favorite colors. Love those shoes and the socks!

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  30. You have a flair for making grey look very lively!

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  31. You have layered the grey to perfection and topped it all off with a great piece of headwear. The pumps with the argyle socks have your name written all over them!

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  32. A dash of grunge and a dash of cute - excellent!

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  33. Bella, you are stunning! I love everything about this outfit - your cap and silver-lining-coat, pins, argyle sweater and socks, the whole pattern mix in grey, which is a particularly favourite colour of mine. Awesome!!!

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  34. Grey days often have me pulling out hot reds, electric blues, and bright colours. This fabulous ensemble is the perfect example of how to do something I find rather challenging - grey shades for grey days.
    That coat is definitely a treasure, it's absolutely gorgeous! And looks fantastic on you.

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  35. The grey mix with the red plaid accesories--Wow. You always make me think new thoughts!

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  36. You've managed to out maneuver the grey palette and make it blooming Bella style.
    x Laura

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You are rad. Thanks for your comment!