The skirt is by Jones New York and the blue top by Anne Taylor Loft. I didn't notice it when I wore this top with a suit jacket in January, but it gapes if the wearer bends just the right way. I didn't discover this before I left home that day and thus had to move very carefully for the three hours of class. While I like the appearance of the outfit, for classroom functionality, it gets an F!
The scarf rosette, as well as all other items were thrifted.
I'd love to hear about some of your wardrobe malfunctions and how you coped with them when changing wasn't an option.
This post is a part of Patti's Visible Monday round-up at Not Dead Yet Style. Come make yourself visible with the rest of us.
I just bought my very first pencil skirt in red just the other day! I'd LOVE to have a wild patterned one. I was always afraid of looking too 'top heavy' in a pencil, but I'm gonna try it. Maybe a tuesday post?
ReplyDeletethanks for the comments yesterday-the most comments since the give-a-way ;)
Hugs
Reva
Reva--Can't wait to see you in the pencil skirt...although if you are like me, it is sometimes MONTHS after I purchase an item before I wear it on the blog. Your rant deserved all the comments it received. Keep up the good work.
DeleteOh, I love pencil skirts, too! Funny about hiking it up to run! I always had tough time going up the stairs with them.
ReplyDeleteGreat color combo Terri! The brooch is perfect!
Jeannie--I mention hiking the skirt up to run...because I've heard feminists remark that pencil skirts are "oppressive". I see their point, but have thought about it enough to know that I could protect myself in a pinch. Can't imagine many situations in which I would have to do that though.
DeleteOh, always carry a boo-boo kit with tape, safety pins, and bobby pins/hsit ties! They've all saved me before. Oh and also finger nail polish in clear.
ReplyDeleteReva--I have paper clips, bobby pins and hair ties in my book bag. Now that I think about it, a bobby pin might have solved the problem.
DeleteLooks great! Love the skirt and how the scarf rosette adds some colour on top and how it just matches so perfectly both skirt and blouse! With blouses that are quite open in front I always wear a light top underneath just in case.
ReplyDeleteCharlie--I should have worn SOMEthing under this top! Wish I discovered the problem before I left home.
DeleteThe scarf rosette just makes the outfit.I usually go for comfort so I don't recall any embarassing moments.
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy but the rosette was a $1. A simple accessory CAN make the outfit. As I studied it's construction, I realized how easily I could have made one for myself.
Deletei can see why you love pencil skirts. you look amazing in them! i have an obsession with high low skirts right now! they're fun to walk in because they sashay as I walk :)
ReplyDeletehttp://spinning-threads.blogspot.com
Claire--I've not tried the high/low skirt although I've noticed a lot in the blogosphere. I think it would bother me from behind.
DeleteOoh, it is looking beautifully summery where you are! Very cute ensemble, I love the funky red gingham skirt! In fact you have given me a great idea, since I have a load of red gingham...
ReplyDeleteI always have a few safety pins attached inside my bag... just in case ;)
Carolyn--the sunshine is an illusion. Today, it has been cool and overcast. I think I can dress the gingham down in a lot of fun ways this summer. Making a note to self--put safety pins in my bag.
DeleteShame about the top because the colour and the cut look wonderful on you - I do like pencil skirts and like you have several in different colourways now as they are great for work.
ReplyDeleteVeshoevius--Yes, I love these for work. They look polished and sexy at the same time. I have other tops I'll wear with the skirt.
DeleteI agree with you about the pencil skirt...it is my new favorite since beginning to blog! I hate having wardrobe malfunctions at school and now keep a jacket or cardigan handy just in case. BTW: I think I needed all black today after a week of extreme color overloads!! Your whole look here is a great summer style!
ReplyDeletePam--I'll keep a sweater during the colder months, but I thought those days were passed for the season. And thank you.
Deletei love the skirt, shame about the blouse! its a lovely colour though!
ReplyDeleteFranca--thank you. I think you'll see the skirt several times over the course of the summer.
DeleteThe outfit is great so it is a shame the top is "gappy".
ReplyDeleteDarla
Darla--I agree that visually it is a nice outfit, but I really need to solve the blouse problem...somehow.
DeleteI love your outfit! I live in skirts but I mostly wear A-Lines because I can move around better in them. :) I have to put a safety pin in every wrap-top I wear or they gape. I'm visiting from Visible Monday. It's nice to meet you!
ReplyDeleteSherry--Welcome to Rags! I wear a lot of cotton A-lines in the summer. I love them with tees and flip-flops! I'll return the visit.
DeleteGreat outfit, Terri, I *love* the scarf rosette. I always have a couple of safety pins on me, and at work I can beg for masking tape if needed! But it still makes for an uncomfortable day, I must say.
ReplyDeletePatti--I have an abundance of paper clips in the bottom of my book bag, but nary a safety pin. I need to put together an emergency kit I think. Luckily my "day" was just 3 evening hours.
DeleteBummer about the gaping! I wore a button-down shirt to campus a couple of weeks ago and was halfway through the day before I noticed that if I moved in certain ways it created gaps between the buttons through which you could see my bra. Who knows how many of my students and colleagues got a little peep show that day?
ReplyDeleteRaquelita--I often wear a short sleeved tee or sleeveless shell under my button downs, more for color contrast than coverage. I can't really recall ever getting a peep as a student, but I do have indelible memories of some of my instructors outfits.
DeleteI'm more of a full/pleated skirt gal myself, but you look smashing in your pencil skirt!
ReplyDeleteSal--I've experimented some with skirt profiles. I really like pleated skirts, but I fear they make me look like a woman trying to be younger than I am. And thank you.
DeleteI love that skirt!
ReplyDeleteKim, USA
Kim--thank you. I love it too and suspect it will show up at Rags in several stylings over the summer.
DeleteLove the skirt AND the top. Haha! When I have gaping shirts, I use masking tape folded to make a temporary double-side loop and for hanging hems, I've sometimes used staples (if tape wont' do)!
ReplyDeleteNarda--I probably could have rounded up some masking tape--in a complimentary blue no less.
DeleteI have a small chest and usually avoid tops that criss-cross like that because I don't have enough to fill them out. If they're loose they gap more easily.
ReplyDeleteThat said, since I'm usually working on adding bulk, visual or otherwise to my chest I'd probably have some kind of layering top on underneath.
RoseAG--Well, I can somewhat fill them out, but the flesh is NOT as firm as it once was. It is nothing I want my students to see!
DeleteI should have tried something under the blouse.
Isn't that what a stapler is for? (Wardrobe malfunction) ;-)
ReplyDeleteApril--a stapler would definitely have worked. I probably didn't think of it because I'm forever fuming at different thrifts for the flaws they introduce into fine fabrics with their staplers.
DeleteI love pencil skirts, even if they probably aren't the most flattering skirt silhouette I could choose. You wear them fantastically well. I love that it's gingham!
ReplyDeleteAna--I would think a pencil skirt would be very flattering on you with your long legs and slender hips!
DeleteThe outfit is great - chic and neat and flattering and lovely colours. Too bad about the lack of functionality - I have some clothes which are fine as long as I stand or sit still, but they don't cope well with movement!
ReplyDeleteMy worst instance was a new (to me) thrifted top with cute little buttons on the front. One by one they all popped open as I ... well, just as I breathed really. I was going to a friend's for coffee, so I took it off, kept my cardigan on for modesty, and borrowed a needle and thread to sew those button holes up. It's fine now! Another disaster was a maxi skirt - beautiful, great fit, fabulous print, but narrow bottom - NO allowance for my long stride. I had to shuffle in tiny steps as though I were a geisha. Not good up hills on the walk to school in the morning... Never worn it again, it's in my sewing pile waiting to be shortened. xxx
Curtise--I've taken photos of me in the dress you sent and it fits like a dream.
DeleteI've had those thrifted blouses with too slippery button holes. I also had a thrifted maxi--in a knit--that was a wee bit small around the bottom. Women of our generation do have larger strides than women did once upon a time.
Terri you look lovely! Yes, wardrobe malfunctions can certainly be an energy drain!
ReplyDeleteTamera--thank you. You would think by my age that I would never have such problems!
DeleteYou look fabulous; that blue is amazing on you. Those faux wrap gaps are exactly what I whip out my Fasheners for. They do tend to sneak up on you, usually at a work-related event ;P
ReplyDeleteLynne--I kept trying to think of a way to place the rosette in the gap, but decided that might draw attention to the problem.
DeleteI love pencil skirts too, but fear I need to branch out into more color. I'm stuck in the neutral camp with all of my pencil skirts.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see a detail of your scarf rosette.
With your shirt, it sounds like you just need a tank top underneath for modesty. For problem outfits, I generally button a cardigan up to cover whatever is ailing me — I seem to always have one on hand since I get cold easily. Man, I sound like my grandma with my cardigans.
Jacqueline--until I started blogging, I wore only grey! Making a note to self about better detail shots.
DeleteI keep a cardigan in my office during the winter--thermostat is set "academically" low.
Oh goodness, my university installed a new thermostat in my office because what I would set it at was never what came out of the heaters or ac. Well it turned out that the new thermostat has no way for me to control it. All last week I had no heat — office was below 60 degrees. It seemed silly, but I blasted my space heater.
Deleteoh no- you must have been so distracted during that class! My wardrobe malfunctions are usually spill related...
ReplyDeleteMeri--I have the spill problem too, especially in the winter while I'm trying to drink coffee during my commute.
DeleteYou really know how to wear a pencil dress and I can see why you have them in many colors. I have just begun to wear them and have discovered a new love. A side effect of living in the world of blogs.
ReplyDeletePS - Skirt, not dress. A side effect of posting before reading!
ReplyDeleteJudith--you'll look gorgeous in pencil skirts with your slender figure!
DeleteOoh two of my have things: gingham and red/white/blue - lovely outfit, Terri! Sarah xxx
ReplyDeleteSarah--I give you partial credit...for bolder use of color!
DeleteI love that second photo of you! You do look fabulous in the pencil skirt. I had a big malfunction when the elastic in a pair of old tights failed catastrophically during a walk home. Thankfully(!) I was wearing a maxi denim skirt which hid the fact that my tights were around my knees, although that didn't quite explain the quick baby steps...!
ReplyDeleteMelanie--I have a pair of tights--my only brown ones--that do this VERY thing! Your comment made me snort as I pictured the baby steps.
DeleteA lovely skirt and it looks like you have beautiful weather to enjoy it in.
ReplyDeleteAs for wardrobe malfunctions - I always carry safety pins!
Jane--sounds like I need to carry safety pins and tape at a bare minimum. Must get my emergency kit put together. Usually, I'd ask the department secretary for help, but on this particular day, my time begins after she has left for the day.
DeleteNow this is a cheerful outfit, I dig it. Perhaps blue shoes would top it to an A+?
ReplyDeleteWardrobe malfunctions? I only have a few pieces of clothes, but do carry along a few safety pins ( already in the hem/ inside of the piece of clothing.
Mette--I do have a couple pair of blue shoes--one is absolutely a flat and the others are more formal pumps, neither is quite right for the look.
DeleteOh, the hem, is a great place to stash the safety pins.
I've wanted a pencil skirt for a while, but I can never seem to find one that suits me. I am very fond of yours though! It looks great, and the colour is very nice.
ReplyDeleteI've had a similar gaping problem before, and haven't realised it until I've gotten to the shopping centre & The Boyfriend says, "Hey, did you realise you can see inside your shirt when you stand like that." I usually have to get him to "spot" for me then, and I'm all, "Can you see them now? How about now?".
Stacy--I'm glad the boyfriend says something. I'm afraid DH would simply enjoy the view and only tell me HOURS afterward.
DeleteI'm with you, I never get tired of a pencil skirt. I need to add a few more to my closet. Thank you for participating in our scarf roundup, you looked great and I loved seeing your scarf in detail! XO, Jill
ReplyDeleteJill--I think my scarf could have stood for a good pressing, but none of the ways I found to tie it really showed the mushrooms to full effect.
DeleteYou look great in pencil skirts. I use to work as a teaching assistant in a class for dropout kids. I once popped a button on a blouse and had to wear my coat closed up the rest of the day. I was sweating hot! Miserable too!
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I really like your scarf post outfit!
Joni--the audience in your case would have been merciless on you. As a teacher, it can be hard to be so scrutinized. And thanks for mentioning the scarf post.
Deleteyou look fabulous in your pencil skirt, sorry it's not a comfy cloth!
ReplyDeleteAnd I also carry some safety pins in my bag for that kind of blouses/shirts or any other accident that would happen to me all day long!
besos
Senora--thank you. I'm realizing that the safety pins are a definite must. I'm pretty much a minimalist in the things I carry in my bag.
DeleteI'm a pencil skirt fan too, and I love the subtle print of this one. One wardrobe malfunction that I've experienced is getting a huge run in my tights. Luckily, I was wearing boots that day so I was able to just take them off without baring too much skin.
ReplyDeleteShea--there have been days I've had runs in my stockings and I just grin and bear it, kind of like I did in early high school! I tell myself that my students can just think I'm a "poor" teacher.
DeleteThat expression is slightly unnerving...
ReplyDeleteIt's meant to be...would you wear something as confining as a pencil skirt?
DeleteLove your pencil skirt! The gaping problem is why I hardly ever buy anything wrap style. They always gap on me.
ReplyDeleteMegan--while I don't have much to reveal...I want my students to focus on American Literature instead of the instructor's wardrobe malfunctions.
DeleteHey Terri, our gorgeous pink rose is a Granada. Is that the same variety as yours?
ReplyDeleteOh, and thank you so much for your compliment on my dress! :)
DeleteHi Terri!
ReplyDeleteThe skirt feels great and I hope to do this again with a dress for summer and sandals.
Hugs
reva
I'm glad you like this style of skirt--I want to SEE you in it.
DeleteI like this red, white and blue outfit and you look good in a pencil skirt - the second photo made me smile!
ReplyDeleteThat's Not My Age--I suspect we've all had moments like this if we've ever attempted a pencil skirt in anything other than a knit.
DeletePencil skirts are so lady like -
ReplyDeleteI like the outfit, you look so well put together, i admire that it was all thrifted :)
In regards to wardrobe malfunctions i can say that my worst was a strapless dress that would not stay up. I was desperate and just pulled out those thin laces (that i cut most of the time) that are used to hang up the garment and wore them as a "strap" -
Lorena--those clothes hangers would work great as tiny straps. I know in a bridal shop one time, I saw a strapless dress that had slipped off the store mannequin in a display window...it was a hoot.
Deletepencil skirts are definitely a staple in my wardrobe, but it's hard to find ones that fit just right...not too long, not too tight, etc. i have this satin-y silky wrap dress that ALWAYS unties. it seriously almost untied and opened up completely one day. luckily i felt the breeze, looked down, and caught it! i have to double and triple tie it now.
ReplyDelete[oomph.]
oomph--yep, wrap dresses are right up there in the category of wardrobe malfunctions! I've had those close calls myself.
DeleteOh I do love gingham paired with blue blouse.
ReplyDeleteI always have problems with my breast popping out,so I carry lots of safety pins or I usually wear a tank top if the top is too revealing.
Besos
La Dama--but your cleavage is generous. Part of what is so awful about mine is that it is small...and uh, older.
DeleteLovely outfit, Terri, those bright colours and the body-con style really suit you.
ReplyDeleteWardrobe malfunctions are pretty frequent, I'm always getting my heels caught in the hem of a maxi skirt and ripping the stitches. I always have a few safety pins in my purse, just in case. x
Vix--Welcome back from Goa. I've caught heels in hems before...though usually because I put shoes on before dressing.
Deletelove love love the pencil skirt....and you wear it well!!
ReplyDeleteYoung at Heart--thank you! Just wish they made gingham in a stretch fabric!
DeleteIt may get an F for functionality, but it's awesome! I really like the colour combination and the kimono-style of the top.
ReplyDeleteMost of my wardrobe malfunctions are of the too-floaty-dresses-that-always -end-up-tucked-into-my-tights variety, and also the too-short-to-cycle-in variety. The former I just try to be aware of, the latter I just try to ignore... I'm not very socially acceptable I guess.
Emily--at my age there is very little floaty left! I'm just beginning to think about cycling (retirement is imminent)...and somehow I doubt that I'll be doing that in pencil skirts.
DeleteNavy is a very good color on you- just saying. Oh I hate wardrobe malfunctions and yeah I've got a few stories- the last one being looking down and seeing my boob hanging out of a tank top. Lucky for me it wasn't in public but at home and noone to oogle me but myself.
ReplyDeletePencil skirts looks so chic but as a bike rider they do me no good.
Bella Q.--I'm just beginning to take up bike riding. DH has been repairing one that we thrifted and the plan is to go together. Cycling would give one a whole different set of considerations.
DeleteI've had dreams that I went to work bare-chested!
I love your fashion shots! Great skirt and loving the contrast of the blue blouse.
ReplyDeletePS I received a package from Marketplace today. Can't wait to open it.
Bella--I'm relieved to hear that the package arrived! Hope you'll model it on your blog!
DeleteLove this skirt and the flower on the blouse! Hope you are having a wonderful day!
ReplyDelete-Jyoti
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Jyoti--I wish I knew how to MAKE the rosettes from scarves...I think I would wear scarves more often that way.
DeleteI'm just beginning to embrace pencil skirts!! You add further inspiration to the game.
ReplyDeleteMost of my fashion angst involves gaping tops-buttons that pop off or unbutton, unbeknownst to me. I always carry a stash of little safety pins or better yet, wear things that don't open in the front at all.
Jean--I find that these wardrobe malfunctions are sometimes a hidden side-effect of thrifting. Sometimes, I've worn an item several times before I discover the likely reason in was donated to the thrift store in the first place.
DeleteHey there are using Wordpress for your blog platform?
ReplyDeleteI'm new to the blog world but I'm trying to get started and set up my own.
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