building blacks, part 2: it's all in the accessories

Anticipatory Set: I know, I know... productivity is down this week.  I am in a tough bout of stressing and hating my job pretty much all the time.  At least today was my last reevaluation conference of the year so there is at least one dim, blinky Christmas light at the end of the tunnel. But!... Happy note!: I am about to get dressed for my belated Valentine's date with Paul tonight... really I guess it is just a regular date.  Only extra fun because we're going out for a fancy shmancy dinner in Atlanta.  So for now, I'll do a little part 2 action of my Building Blacks "series."  Can I call it a series if I've only done one?  Well, I am.  (Along with [drumroll]... a part 1 update with my very first 'fitting room confessions' in the Final Notes!)

Objective(s) Addressed: Building an all black wardrobe; accessorizing aforementioned black wardrobe

Featured Sources... the polyvore skills of the lovely Liz of Lizzy Punch!

Input: If you were here for part 1, I jumped in to Building Blacks by accessorizing an all-black ensemble with whimsical, colorful belts that not only define the waist but add a little color and personality to an otherwise plain and simple outfit.  Well, Liz at Lizzy Punch heard my online cry and came to the rescue with not one, not two... but four polyvore sets that use accessorizes to "punch" up an all black ensemble.  What lovely blogging friends I have here! (I'm tellin' ya... this community is the bomb.com.  You guys always come to the rescue with support and ideas for improvement or jazzing up a simple outfit.  Love it, love it, love it.)  Here are two of the four outfits she created that I thought would work best for the setting in which I'd be wearing them...

Obviously, she knows how much I love my black and brown together!  And aren't those bangles such a fun, colorful touch?  LOVE this for summertime.  Perfect.

This one, I am just loving the red/coral color in the accessories.  Just a little but enough to really jazz it up and make things fun.  (How freakin' cute is that tote?  Want it.)  This would be a great one for the Spring and Fall crazy transition weather we get down here.

See all four on her blog or click through on Lizzy Punch to her Polyvore page.  So cute.  Thanks, Liz, these were just too fun not to post!
Final Notes: Last week, I featured three Anthro dresses that fit into my all black category and that could be functional in the setting I need them for and (hopefully) beyond.  Since Paul spent most of Valentine's Day working and my parents had already claimed keepsies on him for the day, I ventured to a Lenox for a while and popped into Anthropologie to check those sale racks for my two favorite dresses I posted about last week and, of course, torture myself by petting and trying on lovely clothes I can't afford right now.  So I bring you my first Fitting Room Confessions.  I would've never tagged myself for the type to do this... not in a million years... but other peoples' fitting room reviews have helped me on a number of occasions so maybe this will do the same for someone else. 

Found all three dresses on the sale rack on Sunday... the Hold-the-Lines Jumper was honestly not great at all in person.  The fabric felt really cheapie and the fit was horrid on me.  Kinda looked like a potato sack on me which was disappointing - I thought this one would at least be cute and most versatile.  Live and learn, people.  Would like great, though, on someone petite and slender. 

Second, I found the Peseta dress but it didn't really do much for me on the rack so I didn't even try it on.  The sequin-like "studs" were coming off at the seams and the fabric was too sheer for my taste.  Since it's Springy/Summery, I don't want to be dealing with a lot of slips or underlayers to combat the see-through factor .

Finally, the Starbound dress by one.september which was my favorite one to stalk online and turned out to be my favorite in person as well.  The fit was great on me, better than the picture shows, and I was surprised by the quality.  It's a jersey fabric but it's swingy and heavier than most so you don't feel like you're wearing a thin secondhand t-shirt.  The top is a little drapey so being small-chested brought the scoop a little lower but since it's jersey and silk it's easy to swing up and keep it there (Easily adjustable, in other words.).  The beads were sewn on well and, of course, the beaded sash is gorgeous!  (But also removable if you want to switch it out for another belt.) Couldn't pass this one up... if it weren't so freezing cold out, I would definitely debut it on our date tonight. 





A few more confessions from Sunday coming soon but I'm outta internet breath from such a long post! 

Have a fun all black outfit or polyvore set to share?  Send it my way, I would love to post it!  Don't forget to stop by and see Liz's other takes on the all black ensemble at Lizzy Punch. :)