I’ve been feeling a little uninspired with my wardrobe lately. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been getting dressed every day (thank goodness for daily Instagram posts haha). However, pulling an outfit each day has become increasingly arduous.

One reason for this is the famous, or infamous, polar vortex that has overtaken my life. Seriously, my kids have never had school canceled so much before and since we are hibernating inside, I would much rather bundle up in cozy sweats than put on a nicely put-together outfit. As I sit here writing this, I am wearing an old hoodie and track pants with a scarf wrapped around my neck…inside. The other reason is the shopping ban that I have committed to, which I wrote about here. Normally when I am feeling a little bored, I simply find something new (or new to me) to add to my wardrobe. This is obviously a shopping trigger for me, and not being able to rely on it is challenging.

Which brings me to Pinterest. In times of wardrobe un-inspiration, I usually turn to the platform, and particularly the boards that I have created for style inspiration. I add to these boards gradually as I find outfits that appeal to me. I have 2 style inspiration boards which I add outfits to. One is a cold weather board for fall and winter outfits. The other is a warm weather board for spring and summer outfits. Today I will focus on my cold weather inspiration board.

How do I select which outfits to include on my Pinterest inspiration board?

The following process is the one that I use to add outfits to my Pinterest inspiration board:

1. I prefer looks that are classic but simple. Think of a white tee with a pair of jeans and a blazer. Or a pair of trousers with a cashmere sweater, sneakers and a smart wool coat. And always minimal, classic jewelry. To find these types of outfits, I search for phrases such as “minimalist style”, “minimalist fashion”, “minimal style”, “simple style”, etc.
2. If I know that I want to style a specific item, such as my grey wool pants, I’ll search for “grey wool pants outfit women”. Or for black jeans, I’d search for something like “black jeans outfit winter”.
3. Once Pinterest has populated the search with a bunch of related outfits, I go though each one and select the ones that I like.
4. I add it to my board ONLY if it consists of items that are similar to the ones already in my wardrobe. Since the point of the inspiration board is to help me during a dressing doldrum, I want to be able to refer to it as I am getting ready in the morning. So not having a particular item would make the pin pointless.
5. If I don’t have the exact item featured in a Pinterest outfit, such as a black wool coat, I will substitute some other black coat or a different color wool coat. For example, if an outfit combo on Pinterest is black wool coat + grey cashmere sweater + blue jeans + white sneakers, I will substitute a camel wool coat. The combination then becomes camel wool coat + grey cashmere sweater + blue jeans + white sneakers.

What does my Pinterest cold weather inspiration board include?

Most of the outfits on my board follow a couple of silhouettes. One silhouette consists of a slim fitting top and pants with a looser overlay such as a coat or cardigan. Another combination is a slightly slouchy sweater with looser fitting trousers. These are silhouettes that I feel the most confident in and that I know work for my body. As a result, I have taken the guess work out of getting ready for the day. I can simply rely on an outfit combination that I am feeling inspired by that day.

The following are a few captures of my “Style Inspiration – Cold Weather” board on my Pinterest account. You can see the rest of it here.

How do I style specific outfits from my Pinterest board?

For this post, I selected 3 outfits from my cold weather inspiration board and I will illustrate how I interpreted them with items from my wardrobe.

For one of the outfits, I have almost the exact items that are shown. For the second outfit, I have similar items but I did improvise a little. For the third outfit, I have very similar items. However, I felt like they were a little basic, so I added onto them to complete the look.

Outfit No. 1

This is perhaps my favorite look on this Pinterest board. I have been really into blazers lately, in a big way! I didn’t even own a blazer until about 6 months ago. Since then, I have managed to assemble a small blazer collection that I am very proud of. I believe that a nicely tailored blazer elevates a simple look of a tee and jeans, making it more appropriate for dressy occasions.

I have a vintage black silk blazer that is very similar in cut to the one in the pictures. I layered it over a black long sleeve tee and added my light wash Agolde jeans (similar). I added an old belt and a gold pendant that I have had for years. I also added a pair of simple gold hoops to complete the look.

Outfit No. 2

I am really into the cool, casual look of this second outfit. Even though it has a more relaxed vibe, this looks equally appropriate for a day at the office (with a more casual dress code) or for meeting friends for brunch. The classic button up and the black/white color scheme help to elevate the look to casual chic.

I don’t own a black turtleneck sweater but I do own a black sweater and a black cotton turtleneck. Therefore, to get a similar look, I layered a white silk button up over the black cotton turtleneck and added the black sweater on top. Then I added vintage black riding pants and my black Moto boots for a little edginess. It isn’t an exact replica but I am pleased with the end result.

Outfit No. 3

I was really drawn to the pairing of the more formal items in this outfit (the turtleneck and trousers) with the casual sneakers. Black, grey and white are such classic colors and I have very similar items in my current wardrobe. For this outfit, I paired the same black cotton turtleneck that I used in outfit 2 with a pair of thrifted wool pants and a pair of Veja sneakers (secondhand via eBay).

I think that these pieces are a great base for an outfit but it felt a little incomplete for me in terms of winter styling. Thus, I added a pair of grey socks, a black belt bag and a vintage grey wool coat. And voila…

That’s it folks.

I hope you enjoyed reading about how I find outfits for my style inspiration board and then use those outfits to style the items that are already in my wardrobe. Sometimes it isn’t a new item that we need, just a new outlook!

If you are interested in following my Pinterest account, you can do it here.

Do you use Pinterest for outfit inspiration? If so, I’d love to hear about your process in the comments below?

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Until next time,

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