For an introduction to the 6 Scarves 2021 project, see this post.
For a description of my method, see this post.
I have been looking forward to the December additions to the Kiwi wardrobe with this inspiration scarf and color palette because I am the captain of Team Red for Christmas! And I like to wear my Christmas red with black.
I have had various favorite red Christmas pieces over the years. For a while, my stand-by was a traditional twin set (sleeveless sweater shell and cardigan) in red with a black vine-like pattern in the classic "dress up or down" category. I have also leaned heavily on red Ts and red cardigans and the occasional red dress. Since its purchase in December 2019, this dark red cable knit pullover sweater has been my go-to option. I wore it 12/23/19, 12/24/20, and 12/25/21. One of the things I like about it is that it's cotton, so it's not too warm (looking at you, acrylic) nor is it finicky to clean (looking at you, wool/cashmere). But woman does not dress by sweater alone, so a pair of black jeans and a fun striped shirt round out December's garment additions.
Black jeggings - ana/JCP - 22W - $26.40 - 9/2019
Faded brights striped shirt - Lands End - 2X - $19.98 - 9/2020
Dark red pullover sweater - St Johns Bay/JCP - 3X - $9.99 - 12/2019
This festive yet cozy set of accessories, continuing the red, black, and crayon color palette, looks just right for December. There are four colorful scarf options, including the white ornament scarf that I have worn on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day each of the last four years. The choker necklace will fit into the neckline of the striped shirt. Owls may not be a classic Christmas icon, but with that color scheme, they fit right in. For footwear, we have two choices to match to the situation: snazzy tweed loafers and warm fuzzy boots.
White/red/blue ornament scarf - Kohls - $8.49 - 11/2015
Red/pink/black peacock scarf - gift - 12/2016
Black/blue/orange floral scarf - Kohls - $11.17 - 5/2015
White/red bead necklace - made by RB
White/red/blue faded stripe scarf - thrifted, ThredUp - $2.18 - 12/2019
Gold/red/green owl earrings - CJ Banks - ?
Black/gold/jewel tone tweed loafers - Shein - $20.57 - 7/2020
Fuzzy black boots - Walmart - $20.00 - 12/2014
Let's put these garments to the test by building outfits from our new additions. Outfit #1 is based on the simple button up shirt + pullover sweater + jeans outfit formula with colorful pops of red that lend a Christmas-like vibe without a Christmas themed item in the set. I would 100% wear the shirt untucked and peeking out from underneath the sweater. The stripe + tweed print/pattern mix feels festive.
Outfit #2 involves a bit of compensatory dressing...the boots are warm, so I'm keeping the top half a bit lighter with just the shirt and no sweater. The infinity scarf adds a delightful print mix and can be adjusted to add more or less warmth to the outfit as needed.
Outfit #3 is a dead simple sweater + jeans combo but looks styled due to the addition of a couple coordinated accessories.
Finally, Outfit #4 is the cozy casual "Yes it's definitely Christmas!" look that even brings in the traditional red + green color combo with the earrings and Christmas-themed scarf.
Looking back through my OOTD photos, I realized I don't tend to take outfit photos on Christmas...other things to do, I suppose! But I did manage to find an office outfit featuring the Christmas ornament scarf from a work day in mid-December, just before my vacation that year. I'm wearing a plain white long-sleeved T but stretched out the infinity scarf and folded it into the front of the jacket so that it has a bit of the look of a crossover top. It's not intended to fool anyone into thinking it actually is a top! I just liked how spreading out the scarf this way highlighted the seasonal print.
I haven't seen this on any lists of 99 ways to wear a scarf, though I wouldn't be surprised if a thousand women haven't independently developed this technique. There are various tutorials online for wearing a scarf as a top...most of which are well-suited to wearing with a sarong in place of a bikini top, but not really on point for a winter office outfit. But if you are interested in styling your scarf in place of a blouse (over a camisole), Alison at Wardrobe Oxygen has a method that uses a large scarf with non-scandalous results.
In this March casual Friday work outfit, the red sweater is paired with dark denim and brown, which is such a lovely, rich combination. If you find yourself stuck in a red + black rut, red + brown is a wonderful alternative!
I couldn't find a winter outfit photo featuring my striped shirt, but as I purchased it with warm weather in mind, perhaps it's appropriate to share this early October, last gasp of summer 2021 outfit with a stripe + floral print mix and a serious #neckmess.
In this layered necklace, I have:
-Two DIY multi-strand seed bead necklaces (navy and red/gold)
-Four purchased seed bead endless strands (red, blue, green, yellow)
-A purchased multi-colored seed bead + pearl/chain double necklace
-A DIY gold paperclip chain with an Alice in Wonderland charm (blue dress version)
-A fine chain with two heart pendants (red crystal and white crystal), both gifts from my mom
-A gold herringbone chain that my mom gave me from her collection
Now to end on a high note we have our new rabbit for December: meet Regina the tricolor Mini Rex! We have seen rabbits in our various capsules that have a broken pattern...white that is "broken" up with areas of another color, such as black, brown, or red. But this rabbit has a pattern with two colors breaking up the white! This is what happens when a rabbit with two copies of the gene that create the black and red/orange stripe pattern (ej ej) also has the gene for the broken pattern (En en). Uh-oh, Regina has a disapproving look..."Enough about these jeans and genes, I want my dinner now, human!" Of course, Your Majesty.
On Christmas Day this year, I wore the dark red pullover + black jeggings + white ornament scarf + owl earrings featured above, plus my White Rabbit pocket watch pendant and red/black plaid sneakers (forgot to take a photo again, haha). What color(s) did you wear for Christmas this year?
In my next capsule post, we will look at the December additions for our fifth wardrobe: #5 Brown & Black, Nelly.
Blogs I link up with are listed here.
I think red is such a festive colour too! I wear it year-round but it always seems so perfectly suited for December! I really like that march outfit you shared as I have a very similar leopard print scarf! I don't have a lot of brown in my wardrobe to wear it with though, mostly just brown bags, haha!
Thanks for joining the #WeekdayWearLinkup! Hope that the first week of 2022 has been a good one for you :)
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