Tuesday Top 5: Gimme the Details!

A couple weeks ago I was reading the always-amazing Karla's Closet and came across this outfit:

So glamorous, right?

Now, the thing that makes Karla always-amazing, besides her perfectly defined jawline, is that homegirl knows how to do details: just look at the jacket, the shoes, the hat, the earrings, the sunglasses, the brooches, the nail polish, oh my! She's a beautiful girl with a killer sense of style, but it's really the details that make her outfits so memorable.

Looking at her photos, I had a profound epiphany. It went something like this: "Winona, stop wearing boring outfits. Be more like Karla! Work on the details!"

You know the old adage, "Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off"? Well I'm trying the opposite: "Before you leave in the morning, put one more thing on." It helps me focus on those easy-to-overlook details even when I'm rushed in the morning, and on more than one occasion it has ensured I wore pants to work. Phew.

Here are some little details I've been adding to my outfits before I leave the house:

1. Flower hair accessories. Lots of flower hair accessories.

My first order of business: head to Etsy and spend my life savings on flower-themed items for my hair. I got a giant red rose clip, a blue flower headband, and these yellow rose bobby pins that I absolutely love:

Put on a potato sack. Stick a rose clip in your hair. Feel put together and chic!

2. Watches

My boyfriend has a great watch he got as a gift in high school: it's silver with a blue face and he keeps it by the door to remind me daily of how great it would look with all my outfits, but he never wears it, and he won't let me wear it because he says I'll break it. [Editor's note: This is a completely reasonable thing to say, especially since I borrowed his ipod last week, added "Lean Like a Cholo" to his playlist, and then dropped it on the treadmill.]


Anyway, the point is: it was time for me to take charge of my own watch destiny. I love the look of men's watches, so I bought my own for $2 at an antique store. I also unearthed a couple of my great grandma's old Timex watches, and the giant, rhinestone-encrusted watch I got at a seaside giftshop a few years ago. Sometimes I wear them all at once, but I'm still late everyday, because none of them work.

3. Sunglasses

I favor vintage aviators the size of dinner plates, but round with polka dots or hot pink heart-shaped ones are good too.

My BFF Katelyn and I are happy to model some options.

4. Shiny, Happy Shoes

Life is too short to wear boring shoes. That might sound like a quote from Forrest Gump's mom, but seriously, it's so true.

When I wear my neon plaid flats instead of basic flip-flops or boring sneakers, good things always happen--I might have a good hair day or win the lottery or find a perfectly good donut on the ground. And spring is such a good time to try some bright, sunny shoes like these. Or how about these?

Definitely not boring.

5. Knee Socks

My friend Becca and I recently visited the Sock Dreams outlet in Sellwood, and it was awesome. If they had been serving mini muffins and screening Seinfeld episodes, I would have thought I'd died and gone to heaven.

I bought a pair of cream-colored knee socks, and I've been pairing them with bright blue tights and brown boots--the combo is really pretty and surprisingly subtle. I think Karla would approve.

Are you detail-oriented when it comes to fashion? What's your favorite way to make an outfit stand out?