Fashion Week Day 2: Get Inspired

Happy Halloween!!!

I think we all get stuck in fashion ruts. We have our favorite things we like to wear and rotate through the same items over and over. I have tons of items in my closet that I like, but sometimes am just at a loss as to how, when, or where to wear them. As I've said before, I also like buying items that can be worn for school or everyday wear. I try to purchase items that are versatile, but sometimes I need ideas on how to make them work in different situations.

Over the summer I enjoyed looking three things that inspired my wardrobe... Fashion blogs, Pinterest, and Polyvore. I'll be talking about Polyvore a bit more later in the week so I won't go into much about that today.

Blogs: I can't remember how I stumbled upon J's Everyday Fashion, but this was the first fashion blog I really got into. Even though J isn't a teacher I really like how she shops with a budget and how she uses her wardrobe items in creative ways that I wouldn't normally think of. I've recently discovered a few other blogs and quite a few by teachers for teachers.

Here are a few I've found that I think you should check out:

• Mix and Match Fashion
• Apples and Pencil Skirts
• Casual and Clueless
• Classroom Chic
• Cupcakes and Cardigans
• Hope and the Dress Code

Pinterest: I think I'm more obsessed with Pinterest than Facebook now. I got into Pinterest at the beginning of the summer and it was all downhill after that. I have a board on Pinterest dedicated to clothing. My Outfit Inspirations board has over 500 pins of clothing and outfits that I like. I've actually been using it for inspiration! Some days when I'm at a loss for how to wear something I log onto there, find an outfit with similar items, and get ideas on new combinations. If you haven't been on Pinterest before, you should check it out. If you're a member, check out my boards and follow me!

What I'm Wearing Today: I'm actually out of the classroom 3 1/2 out of 5 days this week for various conferences and meetings so I'm going a teensy bit more casual than normal. I think jeans can be dressed up for most occasions and there are some days when I do wear jeans to work. (We actually do jeans with our anti-bullying tees on Tuesdays and with school tees on Fridays to I really only have to "dress up" three days a week. Not bad, huh?) I still sometimes just have the desire to look like a "real person" and wear normal clothes to work (aka jeans). Some of my clothes just look better with jeans and I fully take advantage of this when I can.

Source: polyvore.com via Conolley on Pinterest

This is a Polyvore replica of what I'm wearing today. It's not the exact items entirely, but it's pretty much the exact look I'm rocking. (If you must know, the sweater and scarf are pretty much the only items that aren't actually things I own.) I wanted to be comfortable enough to sit in a conference all day and then go work the after school tutoring with the kids later in the day. I rocked my more festive Halloween outfit on Friday so I didn't feel like doing a repeat since I'd be spending the day with some of the same people!