5 Reasons To Accessorize

 "Friends don´t let friends leave the house without accessories"

I don´t know who has said this originally but it describes very well my own situation. My best friend usually remind me to add jewelry with my outfit. Although I´m jewelry maker, I usually forget to add accessories but why the accessories are so important? 

When I studies to be an interior designer, I spend Sunday evening to plan my next week´s outfit. I took few hangers where I put my planned outfit so I could see how it look. After planning my entire week´s clothing, I planned also how to accessories them. At the time, I usually worn same outfit two days but I got whole new look with different jewelry. This is main reason to use accessories with your outfit.

Ciara is American singer, writer, dancer, producer and actor.
She sings R&B, pop, hip hop and dance music.

5 Reasons To Accessorize:

What accessories really are and what counts as a an accessories? I would say that accessories are everything that you add in your outfit like eyeglasses - some people have many eyeglasses and they change them according to their outfit. Sun glasses can be that too depending your work. Other accessories are necklaces, earrings, bracelets, cuff bracelets, rings, brooches, bow ties, ties, belts. watches, cuff links, gloves, bags, handbags, scarves, hats, tie clips and even shoes although some doesn´t count these as an accessory category but shoes are actually great accessory. So how these affect in your outfit? Below is 5 good reason to use accessories.

1. Accessories bring out your personality

If you happen to work place where you need to dress certain way, you can bring out your personality with jewelry. Jewelry and other accessories are best way to add in your outfit so you can bring out part of your personality like sense of humor or that you like bright colors.

2. Accessories bring out your best side

Accessories can be also use to bring out your best side and they can draw attention away from those areas what you disfavor. Let´s say that I disfavor my stomach area, I can use statement earrings to draw people´s attention away from my disfavor area or I can use blouse that have pearl decoration on the shoulder.

Accessories and jewelry can be very useful and highlight different areas in your body. Let´s say that you´re very slim person, you can use waist chains to create waistline or body chains to create more curves. 

You can simply stand in front of mirror where you can see your entire body from head to toe. Think which areas you don´t like and draw attention towards those areas which you like.    

3. Accessories can make your outfit look expensive or cheap

Accessories and jewelry has the power to make your outfit look expensive or very cheap. Even if you dress up with jeans and Walmart´s T-shirt, you can make your outfit looking more elegant and expensive by adding pearl earrings, necklaces or bracelets.

If you wear very expensive dress but you add plastic jewelry or very big statement jewelry with your dress, it may cheaper the dress although it have cost you a lot of money.

4. Accessories gives trendy look 

Accessories and jewelry gives easily trendy look in your outfit. If you don´t afford to buy trendy clothes, you can easily choose Chanel´s belt or bag to bring more trendy look into your outfit. Many designers and fashion brands have jewelry and other accessories which includes in their collection like gloves, belts, scarves etc. which usually sells less cost than clothes or bags. 

5. Accessories give the final touch

My final tip is that jewelry and accessories gives the final touch in your outfit whether your dress for work, casually in home or going to have night out with friends. Jewelry and accessories can highlight your eye color, hair color or compliment your skin tone. 

Jewelry and accessories makes your outfit more interesting and  gives more finished look.

Less is more...

Do not use too much accessories or jewelry since they might make you look odd, exceptional or inappropriate for the work or any other occassion you are attending. Pay attention also how you hairstyle look. If your work place is more conservative, do not use bright hair coloring or make Star Wars Admila´s hairstyle. 

Bonus Tip:

Styling tip: If your outfit is colorful or have many colors, pick one color from your outfit  and use the picked color in your jewelry or accessories. Do not use different color jewelry and different color accessories since your wholeness may suffer and result may be too confusing. 

If you want to create dramatic but elegant look, you can also combine your jewelry color with your lipstick or nail polish color. This way the picked color act as a highlight color. 

~ Minna

Don’t Forget To Accessorize!

Are you those people who have multiple projects going at the same time and you constantly rushing everywhere? If say yes, please take some time to read my blog post.

I’m one of those person who have always multiple projects going, I do little that and little other thing, third thing and so on. My head is full of ideas and I constantly perform different task thinking that after this I have time. Because of constant rush, I usually forget to put any jewelry although I have many beautiful pieces that my friends have given me and some I made. Why? Because I haven’t planned them beforehand!

This one of my favorite quote but this only applies when you speak English. In Finnish we probably can say this: "I only wear jewelry on days ending with "I" that way only Wednesday will be out since it´s only day that ends with letter "O".

Jewelry is a necessary accessory that will give beautiful finish to you outfit whether you dress casually home day, date night or office. Many forget to add jewelry in their outfit when they’re heading in their busy day. Me is one of them so how this can be avoided?

Many people have beautiful jewelry in their jewelry box and sometimes you might you make discoveries in your jewelry box and wonder why you haven’t wear this lovely piece of jewelry for a long time? Sounds too familiar?

Here’s my tips how to use more jewelry in everyday:

1. Plan your beforehand your entire week’s outfit in one day or evening whatever time suits you best

2. When you have planned your entire week’s outfit and hanged them in separate hangers, take your jewelry box and plan your jewelry. They’re as much important as how you dress to your work place

3. Place necklace in your hanger’s loop so you can see how the necklace will look like

4. Place your selected bracelets into your hanger’s loop with your necklace if ended up using the bracelet

5. Hang your earrings in the blouse button hole if they’re dangle earrings and if they’re stud earrings, place them next to your car keys or home keys so you can add the earrings while you’re heading into your busy day

If you have table or chair where you can leave your next day outfit, fold them lightly and leave your selected shoes in front of chair. Place selected jewelry on the clothes so you will remember to add them too.

You can also put your jewelry up for the next day like Christina from Lakemanhaus do: 

 These are her favorite things:

• striped rainbow cardigan

• beaded hoop earrings

• leather diffuser necklace

• English oak & red currant oil

• circle ring

• grey booties

I love the way how she shows her jewelry. This way you can easily see how the jewelry will look with your selected outfit and I´m sure you will use these jewelry when you have put them up in front.

Lakemanhaus have beautiful handcrafted jewelry with custom possibilities which she makes from high quality materials. Visit her shop here: Lakemanhaus

I used plan my whole week outfits and jewelry every Sunday evening what I will wear each day when I went to Interior Designer school. This planning saved precious minutes from my morning when I felt that I needed to rush already to school again. Plus I didn’t needed to “fight” with my closet that this shirt doesn’t feel good this morning. My usual conversation with closet went before planning something like this: “ Oh, did I take again this shirt, not this one, where the heck is that nice shirt that I desperately want to wear today. “

Planning your outfit and your accessories beforehand saves your morning time and your nerves when you most likely have busiest time.

I hope these tips helps you to wear more often your beautiful jewelry and if you feel that you need to buy some new jewelry, you are warmly welcome to visit my BlueBellJewelry’s Etsy shop to check what’s new.

~ Minna 

Dress Codes & Jewelry - What to Combine? Part 1

My newspapers & ads distribution work has kept me busy this week. I took one extra district to distributed and in two days I have been cycling a lot more than normally I would but I don´t complain, since weather has been Sunny and warm. My work is independent, I get nice tanning and exercise in fresh air. 

Although, in this unfortunately COVID-19 time you can´t host big parties, I want to write a little bit about the dress codes and what kind of jewelry you could combined with the dress code outfits. 

If you’re lost with these dress codes, then don’t worry, I’ll tell you about each dress code briefly. Please also remember to read my last blog post, as those tips are also useful for these dress codes & jewelry post. You can find my last blog post HERE.

WHITE TIE:

This dress code are most formal one so what should you pick?

Women can select floor length formal gown and gloves. 

Men can select suit with vest and white bow tie or wear a tuxedo.

Jewelry to combine with this outfit:

Women: As a jewelry, choose as authentic as possible but stick to small jewelry. Good choices are genuine gemstones, pearls and diamonds. If your dress is simple, you can put earrings, necklace and bracelet. If your dress have some embroidery in top or rhinestones, choose just earrings and bracelet.

Men: Choose cuff links with genuine gemstones and luxury watch. 

BLACK TIE:

This type parties are usually after 6 p.m and weddings. 

Women can select floor length formal gown. 

Men can select suit with a black bow tie.

Jewelry to combine with this outfit:

Women: What comes to jewelry, stick in small jewelry and select genuine jewelry materials like pearls (seashells, freshwater pearls...), jewelry that have genuine gemstone or classic diamond jewelry.

Men: Choose cuff links with genuine gemstones and if you like or own, add a luxury watch.

LOUNGE SUIT:

Lounge suit parties are during lunch time or if you are English, timing is during afternoon tea.

Women Can choose preferably knee-high dress or formal gown. 

Men can simply choose suit with a tie.

Jewelry to combine with this outfit:

Women: As a jewelry, you can choose less formal but pearls are always suitable as long they aren´t acrylic or wax pearls. Choose preferably glass or crystal pearls if you don´t own any genuine pearls. Swarovski Crystal pearls are closest in real pearls, they feel little cold towards skin since the pearls have crystal core. Plus, Swarovski pearls comes in variety colors. If you like to add a necklace with your outfit, choose something simple like a pendant necklace. 

Men can choose classic cuff links and classic watch.

COCKTAIL:

Cocktail attire is a standard dress code for parties and evening functions.

Women can choose dress that finishes at or above knees. Also short black dress is appropriate. You can also select evening pantsuit. What comes to shoes, select high heels that are neutral colors or black

Men can select dark colored suit and tie is optional.

Jewelry to combine with this outfit:

Women: Choose sparkling jewelry like anklets, pearls, cubic zirconia jewelry or any other high quality jewelry. 

Men: Choose pendant necklace, sparkling cuff links or statement watch. This time the watch doesn´t needed to be classic and restrained, your watch can be eye-catching. 

I have divided the dress code attires in two parts in order to keep my blog post in decent size. I will post later second part of dress code attires. Special thanks to my stylist friend Annika, who keep Finnish style blog called Ihana Tyyli.

 ~ Minna