Trapezin'

I had such fun with this floral Trapeze jacket today! A lot of Trapeze jackets are popular in heavier materials, like wool, but I love that this particular jacket is light and airy - it goes along with the more aerodynamic fit of the jacket (and by aerodynamic, I mean something that picks up the air and is affected by movement of the air, which, incidentally, happens to be quite the opposite of what "aerodynamic" in itself actually means, right?, for trapeze artists are aerodynamic in the sense that they take advantage of the resistance of air, otherwise, they'd just swing around at the same - or increasing! - velocity, unaffected by the friction of air. Think aerodynamic like a trapeze artist, not aerodynamic like planes/Lance Armstrong/a bullet. Like a feather, not like a bowling ball.)

I belted my Trapeze jacket, but trapeze jackets are a ton of fun not belted, too! Throw on a skinny belt around your waistline (a little more than halfway down the trapeze jacket) if you want some more definition and structure to the outfit to fit in a work setting. Definitely only stick to skinny belts with trapeze jackets, though, as chunky belts would weigh down the jacket too much (especially since trapeze jackets tend to be a little thicker and shorter to begin with). I used this skinny silver belt that I have from Gap, but it's actually meant to be worn slung lower around the hips - thus, there weren't enough holes in the belt. When this happens you can either take a push pin and whittle in some holes for yourself, or you can get creative! I once saw a celebrity who took and belt and wove it in around her waist - not only does it look great, it makes your belts so much more versatile, so you're no longer just constrained (literally) by the number of holes punched in. Here's a visual:

Sorry for the rather poor quality, but if you can't see, you basically wrap the belt around your waist as you normally would, take the two ends, which should have plenty of length left over on either side, and kind of weave the ends into each other around the front of your waist. Try not to just wrap one end around the other one, because not only does it loosen up pretty quickly because it's not truly "woven" in, it also just doesn't look great. Try to weave it in a couple of times - as many as you can manage while still being able to breathe, so that it stays put. Voila!

True to my promise, I incorporated some gray/silver tights into my ensemble - much needed in the intense air conditioning of the office!

Trapeze jacket: hand-me-down (aunt's: Noa Noa) | skirt: Ann Taylor Loft | Tights: hand-me-down (sister's) | shoes: Ralph Lauren