Gun Metal and Sequins

Romper: lotus, Shoes: ShoeDazzle, Jacket: Ivy & Leo, Vest: Hong Kong Vintage, Belt: Banana Republic, Necklace: Forever 21, Purse: Off Broadway, Bracelets: Stella & Dot, White House/Black Market, Macy's (photos: Carrie Hawkins Foust)

A lunch break trip to lotus a few years ago lead me to this romper. I fell in absolute LUST with it as soon as I laid eyes on it. The lovely lavender top with open, flowy sleeves made me (almost) wish the top was a blouse to I could wear it with other things. It is not a separate piece though, it is a fabulous one piece with a "skort" bottom (yup...that is not a typo...a "skort" half shorts/half skirt). The bottom half of this wears like shorts, but the flap in front that comes across your waist gives the illusion of a skirt on the front. It's pretty short, which is fine if your legs are tan (God's way of airbrushing out imperfections) but if it is November and you gave up visiting a tanning booth long ago (like me) then you simply pair it with a pair of tights and this fun summer romper seamlessly transitions into fall and winter. I initially paired it with this sequined jacket because it is a little cold outside (note that lotus is carrying a jacket just like this in black and tan right now!!), but once I had the jacket on it made me think of this great black sequined vest that I have. Well, technically the vest is supposed to be worn as a shirt. I found it in Hong Kong Vintage. It should be worn with the zipper running up the back, but because it was really uncomfortable worn that way, and because I look ridiculous in crew necks I flipped it around and tried it on as a vest. BINGO! I paired gunmetal, silver and pearls with the look to compliment it. The silver accessories inspired me to pull out these fierce, studded stilettos. Beware however...the studs on these shoes are not plastic. They are metal and they hurt when they come in contact with your skin. I made the mistake of taking my right foot and rubbing it against my left calf to scratch an itch the last time I wore them. The result, it looked like I scuffled with Wolverine and lost. I could not shave for days (not that I minded).  The romper looks great on its own, with a jacket, or with a vest. It could also be worn however with a blazer, cropped leather jacket, or even a long cardigan. The belt was also an added accessory. The romper has ties that go around the waist to cover up the snaps and to give the illusion of a belt, but I simply wrapped them around my waist, knotted the ties in the  back and put this sparkly belt over it all. I love this look for a date night, Christmas Party, or a night on the town. The only downfall to the ensemble is going to the bathroom. You have to essentially get completely undressed to pull of a trip to the john. Although, you may very well spend more time in a public facility than you ever care to do when you wear something like this, don't let that deter you from rocking it. Just think twice about ordering that second (or fourth) glass of wine.