The Casual Crop

Cropped tops are, by far, one of my favourite trends, however, I have come to associate the crop with fairly dressy occasions (dinner dates and the like), paired with a midi skirt or tailored trousers. Incorporating a crop into uni attire can prove to be a challenge considering the general consensus of dressing down rather than up. In my short stint of four years, it appears that looking overdressed is as much, if not more, of a faux-pas as looking like you've just willed yourself out of bed and forgone the preparation altogether. This proves to be a bit of a daily challenge for those, like myself, who are more predisposed towards heeled boots, chiffon shirts and the like.

In an effort to tweak my usual 'dressy' style, I paired the crop top with an oversized grey marle t-shirt and white denim. The grey marle draws attention away from the slight sheen of this Zara crop, making it less fancy-schmancy and more uni-appropriate. If you haven't tried a long-sleeved cropped jumper yet, now is definitely the time with winter fast approaching. Fluffy cropped jumpers are on my radar at the moment, more on this soon...

Of course, since all my preppy tendencies were being suppressed thus far, I couldn't hold back with the jewellery, rose gold accents were the choices of the day; my laptop case matched conveniently here and I couldn't resist.

Photo Credit: Jude Newton (Facebook) (Instagram)

Cropped Jumper (Zara - in store only)

Grey Marle T-shirt (Dotti)

Jeans (Oasis)

Boots (Mode Collective - on sale!)

Laptop Case (Mimco - sold out, check out their beautiful tablet pouches!)

Watch (Mimco)

Midi Rings (Lovisa - sold out,)(similar ASOS)

Of course I shot a dressier look with this crop (versatile is an understatement) so keep your eyes peeled for that in the near future, that's all for now folks.

Happy Shopping!

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Transitionables

Because a few rainy days was all it took for me to miss Summer and because I spy a few days in the mid-20s coming up despite it being the start of autumn, I thought I'd go ahead and post my last warmer-weather-appropriate outfit(s) for the season...

An important skill that would have saved me hours of stress in the past, is being able to to quickly and easily transition an outfit from day- to evening-appropriate. With long 10-hour uni days, it can be difficult to find the time to run home, change and make it to an event on time so I've learnt a few things through trial-and-error to maximise efficiency and cater to my laziness (changing in a uni bathroom is the last thing I want to do after a full day of classes). Read below to see how a casual uni outfit made it through the day and to the Chadstone AW14 runway show later that night.

Pick a simple silhouette that can be dressed down or accessorised later on, for me this was a leather skirt in a skater style and a double-layered tank; the lower layer was tucked in and the shorter cropped length was left out. These pieces can easily be called wardrobe staples and are used and abused often thanks to their versatility and basic design. Pair the all black look with a pair of brogues, a denim jacket and basic jewellery and you're ready (and maybe even awake for your 8am lecture). To keep things interesting, don't be afraid to mix metals when picking jewellery, this was a big no-no for me for a long time until I actually gave it a go; here I've mixed silver (necklace, earrings, bracelet), rose gold (jacket buttons) and gold (watch and sunglasses).

Photo credit: Thilina Appa (Facebook), editing by Jude Newton (Facebook) (Instagram)

Double Layered Tank (Portmans - sold out) (Similar from Portmans)

PU Skater skirt (Dotti)

Denim Jacket (Portmans)

Brogues (RMK - on sale!)

Sunglasses (Tiffany & Co. - sold out) (Similar from Tiffany & Co.)

Watch (JAG)

Earrings (Tiffany & Co.)

Necklace (Lovisa)

For the runway show, I swapped the denim jacket for a dressy black blazer with a baroque embossed design; contrasting textures and fabrics is the oldest trick in the book to keep black-on-black looks from looking bland. A pair of white lace up heels, a red envelope clutch and a matching lip colour took all of 2 minutes to add and I was all done and barely able to contain my excitement long enough to shoot these looks before I went to drool over everything at the show.

Blazer (Forever New - sold out)

Heels (Novo - sold out) (Similar from Spurr) (Similar from Tony Bianco)

Clutch (Jo Mercer - sold out) (Similar from Marc Jacobs) (Similar from Olga Berg) (Similar from The Mode Collective)

Happy shopping!

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Denim/Leather Mix

Now that the weather is starting to cool down, its time to start thinking about long pants and layering and the easiest options are, by far, denim and leather. The first combination that comes to mind is a pair of jeans in a classic blue wash and a leather jacket that will see you through the entire season. This is all very well, but if you're up for trying something a bit more interesting, why not turn this on its head? I was ecstatic when I found a pair of white leather or "jeather" Bettina Liano pants on sale earlier this year and they are definitely proving to be a highly used-and-abused wardrobe staple. The practicality factor was a big motivator for this particular purchase; white pants in other, more 'high maintenance', materials such as silk are beautiful but not viable for the uncoordinated and accident-prone such as yours truly. This tougher denim/leather mix has the advantage of being resistant to stains (no one will know when you've spilled a drink) and machine washable; I am in no way organised enough to visit the dry cleaners on a weekly basis so this is just as well. Pair it back with a casual denim shirt and dress it up with a pair of heels and statement jewellery to keep it from looking bland and you're set. 

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Photo credit: Jude Newton (Facebook, Instagram)

Denim Shirt - ASOS

Leather Pants - Bettina Liano (sold out) (Similar ASOS) (Similar Lover)

Shoes - Siren (sold out) (Similar Giuseppe Zanotti)

Necklace - Lovisa (sold out)