I already know what you’re asking yourself. “Why does Lauren think we care about making leopard casual?” — guys, I get it. It might not be a thought you have every day and to be honest, it’s never been something I asked myself in the past. Until I went to fashion week.
One of the best things I could have packed for NYFW was my Adidas. Actually, scratch that. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I packed for NYFW WAS my Adidas. Hands down. The best. When I say I wore these bad boys every single day with almost every single outfit, I’m not kidding. I heard horror stories of girls running around NYC barefoot because their feet were in so much pain from bouncing to and from shows and appointments. I was not about to let that be me. So, my classic kicks became a girl’s best friend.
I scored this leopard dress from ASOS right before I left for my trip and had this vision in my head of exactly how I would wear it. I loved the sporty spice meets scary spice vibes not to mention how comfy and lightweight it was. I knew right away I wanted to go for a more casual vibe. To be honest, pairing this with heels just seemed a little too extra.
I clearly have a thing for leopard but when it comes to a piece like this that’s a little more bold, a casual approach seemed to be my best bet. I threw on my go to yellow slides. Didn’t work. I tried flat OTK boots. Hell no. And then, as if the heavens opened up and the golden light appeared at the sneaker end of my closet, I remembered my Adidas. By the way, this is NOT a sponsored post. I just love these bad boys. I immediately slid into my favorite kicks and boom – there you have it. An outfit was born. Probably my favorite outfit from NYFW.
When it comes to dressing down a look, ask yourself…
What is the statement piece? For me, it was obviously the leopard dress with sporty striped details. That was the main focus and nothing else should combat that.
What vibe are you going for? I knew right away I needed to play up the sporty vibe. I mean, the leopard served up enough fierceness so the yellow slides and OTK boots took this way over the top – which was the opposite of the direction I wanted to go in.
Will you be comfortable? This is a a necessity for any and every casual look. Le duh. Comfort is key. This dress was super easy and lightweight and I wanted my kicks and other accessories to play that up. In comes sneakers. I also carried around a denim jacket to keep me warm and this simple cross body was perfect to hold my phone, lip gloss, shades and wallet.
Whether you’re trying to make your leopard a little more casual (I mean, aren’t we all) or just looking to pull together a more toned down #ootd, the most important thing is to just do what feels good. The best part about casual style is that you don’t have to overthink it! I’m totally guilty of trying a little too hard to look chic and casual – like it’s just my cool girl style. But I have found that the days that I just throw on pieces in my closet, those are the days I feel most put together. So have fun and relax – you got this girl!
[bctt tweet=”#LaurElyStyleTip: An easy guide to effortless, casual style ” username=”laurenelyce”]
