This is the second post I’ve written as part of my Paper Doll Project. The aim of The Paper Doll Project is to get a fresh perspective on my style, to encourage me to get more wear out of the things I already own and to wear things in new ways. To do this, I’ll be inviting one of my friends to go through my wardrobe and create a couple of outfits for me, using things that are already in my closet.

 

 

Today’s guest is my friend Katherine. Katherine is one of my good friends, and she also happens to be Ross’s sister. Kath and I have known each other for eight years. We have heaps in common, including our love of Harry Potter and fantasy, and enthusiasm for vintage clothing and a mutual penchant for antagonizing Ross. Kath’s personal style is very feminine, and has a strong vintage influence. She has a lovely collection of vintage and retro dresses that I’m so envious of. Also, the fact that Kath looks more than a little like Audrey Hepburn only enhances her ability to wear vintage ensembles with flair.

Kath came over to my place and dressed me before we went shopping together on Saturday morning. This is the outfit she styled for me:

 

I am wearing:

– Black lace corset dress from 7 Angels

– Red and white polka dot tee shirt from Free Fusion

– Black corset belt (gift from Ross)

– Red mary janes from I Love Billy.

– Amethyst ring

– Bambi pendant from Equip.

 

 

What I thought of this outfit:

To be honest, this isn’t the sort of outfit that I expected Kath to put together for me. I thought that Kath’s outfit would be a lot more floaty and feminine, with a much stronger vintage influence. I was really surprised by her choice.

 

 

I really love this outfit. Each of the items in this ensemble are things that I wear all the time, but never together. I’ve been experimenting lately with wearing t-shirts over dresses for a different look, but until now I’d left this dress out. It has a very detailed bodice, and I thought that it would look lumpy and funny if I put another top over it. On the contrary, it turns out that this dress is ideal for layering with other tee shirts. I don’t think this would have worked if Kath had chosen a really form-fitting tee shirt to put over the top. The red shirt is a bit baggier, so it works well.

 

 

I adore the addition of the corset belt over the top of the shirt. It really helped to define my waist and broke the outfit up a bit. The contrast between the sweetness of the polka-dots and Mary Janes and the roughness of the leather belt and the jagged skirt intrigued me. This outfit turned out to be an excellent marriage of pretty and tough.

 

 

Thankyou so much to Katherine for taking part in The Paper Doll Project. There will be plenty more Paper Doll posts coming up, so stay tuned!