Visible Monday: How I want you to see me.

If, after a year and a half of blogging outfits, I have a style formula, this is it:

An easy but sophisticated dress, striking shoes, and vintage costume jewelry. This looks and feels like me. Because I'm in the process of planning and packing a wardrobe that will get me through four to six months of traveling for work I've been giving the idea of creating a 'formula' more thought than I usually would. Outfit blogging (at least the way I've been doing it) seems to be about experimentation, about stretching your style wings and seeing if a particular look soars or flops. I've tried a lot of different things here on the blog, with varying degrees of success, but this type of look epitomizes how I want to be seen. Comfortable, stylish, not too fussy, but with some personal touches that reflect my (hopefully sparkling) personality. Add a few hats and a couple of cardigans to this formula and that's me in a nutshell. Or rather, in a small suitcase.

The feather print dress is new, from the Canadian company Smoking Lily, a souvenir of the Victoria BC stop of our recent Alaskan cruise. The multiple strand bead necklace is one which used to belong to my 'step' grandmother, part of a collection of her things I received recently which I jokingly call 'my inheritance'. The shoes are strappy platform sandals in a color enticingly called raisin, which it turns out is indistinguishable from plain old brown.

I'm wearing the dress sleeveless, with my tattoo showing, today but when I'm working I'm planning to layer a 3/4 length sleeve boat-neck shirt underneath. Also, these awesome but impractical shoes are not coming with me. This time.

I'm linking up to Visible Monday over at Not Dead Yet Style. Click on over and say 'Hi' to Patti and all the other stylish folks who hang out over there.