5 Essential Accessories For An Instant Style Upgrade
One of the first thoughts that popped into my head on New Year’s day was that I wanted more sparkle in my closet. For over a decade, I have focused on the organic aspects of my life; clean eating, recycling, and minimalism. I brushed aside anything opulent. Living in the country, teaching martial arts, and raising three kids required a fuss free style, so my closet became monochromatic. Jewelry disappeared into drawers. Sneakers replaced high heels. Bare necessities replaced fashion accessories.
It was time for a style upgrade! Since the new year, I’ve been making an effort to wear bolder accessories, and have found some fantastic new ones. Accessories are easier to buy online (one size fits all), often versatile, and can quickly transform your style. If your closet needs a quick renewal, here are my 5 favorite accessories. They’ll give you a style boost and maybe a little extra sparkle, without a lot of effort.
The Cuff Bracelet
As much as I appreciate a stack of charm bracelets, I find that they just get in the way of, well, everything. A cuff bracelet gives you big glamor for little effort.
This is one from my jewelry drawer, but similar ones can be found at Stella and Dot, Alexis Bittar, and Kendra Scott.
The Statement Necklace
A bold necklace takes your outfit from daytime to night, from everyday to special occasion. I never have the time to layer (read, detangle) pendants, so even with a t-shirt and jeans, I prefer a statement necklace over delicate chains.
Mine is another past purchase, but this Elizabeth Cole/Banana Republic collaboration is still available. They also have one on sale right now. There’s also a Kate Spade floral necklace that just arrived at Nordstrom.
Sculpted Earrings (Mismatched If You Dare)
For the past couple of seasons, designers have been showing single earrings, or mismatched earrings on the runways. The boldest look is one shoulder grazing statement earring. A more subtle look would be this Mounser coordinated pair. You can also create your own pair with two similar styles, such as these crystal drop earrings, and these longer ones. Asymmetry is striking, so even if you wear the same outfit that you’ve had for several years, mismatched earrings will give you an instant update.
Shoe Accessories
During the holiday season, I found some great new pairs of shoes, but ran out of time to make the purchases. Steve Madden’s Carabu heels were one of my favorites, but since they would not have arrived when I needed them, I ordered some feather shoe clips from Amazon Fashion with my Prime membership, to add to my favorite heels.
My shoes were already metallic, so a feather pom-pom worked better than a sparkle clip. If you have some pumps that need an upgrade, absolutelyaudrey.com is an entire online store dedicated to shoe accessories.
The Geometric Embellished Bag
I’ve been taking a look at the Spring 2018 runway shows for handbag inspiration. Some of the most striking ones were geometric (bucket, circular and box shaped), adorned (fringed, embroidered and monogrammed) or both!
Right now, I’m using my fur trimmed, raffia bucket bag from Zara. Looking ahead to Spring, there are a few styles that I have my eye on. Kate Spade has a line of handbags that you can personalize with embellished flaps, straps, stickers, charms and wraps! This Soeur Du Maroc Tassel Straw bag is fun for spring and summer. For some extra sparkle, this Whiting & Davis bracelet bag is perfect for an evening out.
What accessories do you have your eye on? For more ideas, follow my Jewelry and Accessories, Shoes and Handbags boards on Pinterest. If you would like to have my next post sent to your inbox, send me a comment and check the boxes below it!
