Feminine Meets Masculine | A merging of styles…

Happy Friday friends!  Wow, has this week flown by!!  I don’t know where the time is going!  It needs to slow down though, because I have a to-do list about 238746 miles long… 😬 I’m beginning to accept that this is just how life is going to be for a while though, and that all I can do is my best!  I was having little bit of a melt-down yesterday, feeling like I was a mess and behind on everything.  Then I had such a wonderful time at the Stylishly Sonesta Lookbook launch last night; I left feeling so inspired and encouraged!  I was so touched by the friends of mine who showed up or texted me if they couldn’t come, by how many did show up, and by all the kind words from everyone!

It was just the pick-me-up (God always seems to know just when I need one! 🙂) and reminder I needed that while sure, life is hectic right now, I’m working 75-85 hours a week, have little-to-no free time, and am behind or barely keeping up with a lot of things, at least I get to pursue a career I’m in love with, where doors are opening & growth is happening (in me and Belle by Laurelle!), and there are many of you guys who care and/or actually enjoy and appreciate the content I create!  I have no illusions that I’m anyone special; I’m just a girl who loves fashion, beauty, and trying to curate a fun & beautiful, yet meaningful lifestyle, and I’m so happy if I can inspire or help anyone by sharing things that I’ve learned or inspire me and for those of you who have decided to follow along on my journey.

It also left me feeling so thankful for all the grace that God has been filling my life with lately .  Whether it be strength and motivation from Him to get through a busy day, kindness, understanding, and help from Ross when I take a week to fold the piles of laundry in our room and only cook two nights a week, patience from friends and others when I forget to send an email or take way too long to reply to one, or even just a kind word when I feel like I look like a mess or my content is silly or not as useful as I’d like it to be.  I think sometimes I feel I need to be perfect & on top of everything, or close to that, to be accepted and loved.  But I’m so grateful that God and the people in my life don’t hold me to that standard, rather constantly remind me I’m loved and accepted as I am, and all that I need to give is my heart and my best!  It’s funny how it can be so easy to give advice like that or show grace to others, but it can be so hard to live out that advice or show that grace to yourself.

I wasn’t planning on getting all deep here today, I just wanted to share with you how I’ve been loving merging feminine and masculine elements in an outfit to create a really chic look.  But I hope what I’ve shared touches some of you out there and reminds you to give yourself grace when you just don’t feel like you’re measuring up. 🙂

Now, on to what this post was actually supposed to be about!  I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to describe my style, and I’ve come to realize it’s actually a blending of styles that makes mine what it is.  Probably one of the biggest things that characterizes my style is that I love to mix more dressy or polished pieces with more casual ones.  I also really like to mix softer pieces with edgier pieces, and masculine with feminine pieces.

The blazer I’m wearing is actually a great blend of masculine and feminine elements, and I absolutely love it for that!  A blazer is such a masculine piece, with its structured shape and origin as a men’s piece, but the blush color makes it so much softer.  I featured this blazer in black a few weeks ago, in this post in my capsule wardrobe series, and I fell in love with it so much, I decided to get it in blush!  If you’re toying with the idea of adding a blazer to your wardrobe but aren’t used to having masculine or structured pieces in your wardrobe, a blush one is a great way to add one to your wardrobe.  Plus, it’s perfect for spring!    I paired it with this gorgeous ruffled blouse from Revolve and what is now probably my favorite timepiece, a very classy and masculine one from Rosefield Watches, to even out the masculine and feminine elements.

Do you like to mix and match different styles?  Let me know in the comments below!

Laurelle

Blazer :: Lioness via Revolve | Blouse :: L’Academie via Revolve | Shoes :: Steve Madden |

Watch :: Rosefield Watches | Denim :: Abercrombie & Fitch