If you’ve been reading for awhile (hi! thank you!), you probably have become familiar with the 10×10 challenge – 10 pieces of clothing to make 10 outfits over 10 days. Started by Lee Vosburgh and Caroline Rector, it’s a way to practice contentment with your closet, to get creative with what you already have, and to get inspired by other people doing the same.

In the past I’ve had fun with the challenge and learned something (click that 10×10 link in the first sentence to read up on all that). But this time around, I’m skipping it.

It’s not because I don’t think I could pull it off; ironically, I’m pretty much living a 10×10 all the time thanks to an edited maternity wardrobe.

Variations on themes here, people.

As I wrote about here, I’m feeling mighty content with my closet at the moment – to the point of not thrifting in any regular manner (what??).

I’ve also realized that I tend to pick 10×10 pieces that stand on their own, or combine in very specific, well-trod ways (e.g. button down + sweater + pants +boots) that don’t allow for as much creative mixing and matching. As I ran through potential 10×10 outfits in my head this time around, I realized that all I want to wear is dresses and the only way to make “new” or stylistically interesting outfits would be to throw on a white denim jacket or swap out a shirt on the rare day I want to wear the two pairs of shorts that currently fit. Hardly groundbreaking.

Last but not least, the style of the folks who participate in the 10×10 tends to echo Lee & Caroline’s – minimalist patterns and silhouettes that, while aesthetically quite pleasing to my eye, bear no relationship to how I dress in real life (as opposed to in Instagram-influenced fantasy land).

So I’m good on my usual reasons to do a 10×10.

What about you? Where do you fall on the goals for a 10×10? Are you participating this time or sitting it out – or curious to try it? (If it sounds intriguing to you, though, hop on over to www.stylebee.ca to learn more, or search the #10×10 hashtag on Instagram for inspiration.)

Here are my last three outfits of the Winter 10×10 (which I did wear in sequence, but did not post on in sequence. It’s been a week).

Day 8
Buttondown shirt by F by Façonnable
Cardigan by INC
Pants by Elie Tahari
Boots by Lucky Brand – everything thrifted but the boots

So I like how classic (button down + khaki-ish pants) blends with funky here (waterfall-ish cardigan with zipper details + snakeskin ankle boots). And the slightly longer length and the curved hem of the button down avoid the “chopped in half” look. Not something I would’ve thought to try without this challenge; also not something I loved so much I’ll do it all the time. I give it 7/10 for unexpected success.

Day 9
Button down by F by Façonnable
Hi-lo cableknit sweater by Workshop by Andrea Jovine
Paige denim
Puma sneakers – all thrifted

The only thing in this outfit that was in my original 10×10 was the button down. Oh well! I’m back in my comfort zone here with some great shirt tails peeking out, lovely summer-y colors on top, and some texture thrown in for interest. Wearing my snakeskin ankle boots would have added just that much more pattern to break up the long block of navy on my lower half; 9/10 for this slightly more casual, monochrome look.

Day 10
Left: Button down by Ralph Lauren
Blazer by H&M
Ryder pants by J. Crew
Boots by Lucky Brand

Right: Button down by Ralph Lauren
Sweater by Old Navy
“Mom” jeans by Gap
Puma sneakers – everything thrifted but the boots

This was Sunday morning – church, aka work – and Sunday afternoon, respectively. Again, the only thing in either of these outfits that was in my original 10×10 picks is the button down shirt. At least it was in both!

First, Sunday AM (on the left): I LOVE these Ryder pants – they are sort of canvas-y in texture yet much more polished than chinos or more casual pants; they fit like a dream. The boots add some fun and work superbly with the length/taper of the pants; but the rest of the outfit is boring, with a harsh contrast between the white/navy and my face. It just washed me out. I did look quite professional for a post-church meeting, though. (And let’s take a moment to appreciate my beach-vibes hair, which happened on the blustery walk home.) 5/10 ’cause I like the bottom half but not the top.

Sunday PM (on the right): once again with sweater-over-button down – now that I’ve figured out the formula I apparently can’t stop wearing it. The mom jeans + looser sweater together reads a bit too baggy for my taste, but I have to admit it was a super comfortable outfit, which is just what Sunday afternoon calls for. The warm-ish gray and light blue of the pants also does my face a lot of favors – much less harsh than the outfit on the right. 8/10 and would up that to 10 if I could do the colors of those jeans in a slimmer cut.

Conclusions & Musings

I’ve successfully figured out how to layer a sweater over a button down – the keys being a thick enough sweater to stay put and not show shirt folds; a slim-fitting button down; and shirt tails long enough to poke out from underneath the hem of the sweater. As mentioned above I am wearing on semi-repeat; enjoy :)

I happily threw the challenge out the window 2/3 of the way through when I felt like I had gotten all the “interesting” outfits I could out of what I had chosen, and instead spent 3 of the last 4 days wearing new-to-me things I was excited to style (and which I learned from – e.g. nope to the white shirt + navy blazer combo!). Note to self: maybe don’t thrift stuff right before the challenge and then not include it in your 10×10. :)  As Carol commented, “If you have something new to you, of course you want to wear it right away!!!”

What I enjoy from these 10x10s is that the constraints help me find interesting or unexpected ways to wear things I already have. I didn’t feel that way this time, at least in part because I picked some pretty similar pieces to start with.  In previous 10x10s (spring; summer; fall) I gave my choices more thought and ended up with more engaging possibilities.  So if I want that feeling back next time, I’m going to have to plan a little more than “what do I feel like wearing the next 10 days?”

What do you think of the outfits I came up with – both inside and outside the lines?

Click here to read about the 10×10 challenge and see my picks for this go-around.

We’re almost halfway through the Winter 10×10; today I’m recapping looks 1-4. Let’s get started!

Day 1

Ralph Lauren button down
Loft sweater
Paige jeans
Puma sneakers – all thrifted

As mentioned previously, I have struggled with layering button down shirts under sweaters. One of my goals for this 10×10 was to give that combo another try, with better-fitting shirts and a thicker sweater to help everything lay flat. So I gave it a shot right out of the gate – and behold! I succeeded. I really enjoyed the crispness of the white collar against the soft, snuggly sweater; the simple color palette; and the way the sneakers just barely kept it from veering into preppy suburban mom territory.

I also love that the Polo logo on the Ralph Lauren shirt is on the cuff; I can keep the very obvious branding out of sight simply by cuffing the sleeves, which I often do anyway. And when I want to wear it sans sweater, there will be no logo marring its lovely lines:

I also think this white shirt fits Light Summer’s “cloud white” nicely.

Rating: 10/10.

Day 2

Blue sweater by Loft
White cardigan by INC
Paige denim
Puma sneakers – all thrifted

I was excited to find this waterfall-esque cardigan with gold zipper details at Restoration Project in Belmont, but it’s proved harder than I thought to style.  The (Light Summer) lightness of the upper half of my body doesn’t look like it belongs with the lower half, and the shawl collar ends at a spot that kind of cuts me off in the middle.

I do, however, love those gold zippers and am committed to giving this another try:

Rating: 5/10

Day 3

Banana Republic turtleneck
Cardigan by INC
Pants by Elie Tahari – all thrifted
Socks by Target (retail)
Shoes by Clarks (retail)

I wore this to church which is why my shoes are fancier and I made the effort to match my socks to my turtleneck. Also why the pants aren’t jeans – although they’re basically the stretchy chino version of jeans. Suuuuuper comfy (but no pockets – boo).

This turtleneck is super soft and has a great cut; but again, the cardigan cuts me off in the middle. This time it doesn’t seem quite as harsh – maybe because these are all neutrals?

Speaking of which, now that I’m trying out more color, the all-neutral look I used to wear a lot doesn’t seem nearly as interesting. These are all Light Summer colors (or my approximation of them as I’m learning my color palette), but it falls a little flat. I think the lesson here is that I need some color.

Rating: 6/10. It’s polished, but not exciting.

Day 4

Plaid shirt by Lands’ End
Sweater by Loft
Paige denim
Rain boots – all thrifted

I’m disappointed that the collar doesn’t show more above the sweater, although I like the pops of color on the cuffs. I think this sweater works better with the white shirt – the intensity of the plaid colors seems too much for the calm of the neutral sweater. I thought about wearing the purple corduroys with this (and may yet do it) – but that may not solve the bright/muted problem.

PS You can’t tell, but there’s pink in the shirt that matches the pink in the boots.

Rating: 6/10. The colors clash and it’s just not as good as the white shirt.

Let me know what you think of the outfits – and come back Friday for looks #5-7!

Click here for part 1, an explanation of the 10×10, and what’s included in my 10×10 this round.

Day 6: Olive, Plaid, and Camel Riding Boots

Part of the reason I didn’t count shoes in this 10×10 is because I wanted to mix in fall shoes that either are new to me (hello olive ankle boots) or that haven’t really cemented their place in my wardrobe yet. For example, these Coach riding boots:

This is why you read the blog – so you can see the trash can blooper shots that never make it to Instagram.

As you can read in this post, I was uncertain how their looser shaft was going to look, particularly over skinny pants. I’ve let a mental image of…floppiness? keep me from reaching for them. But how great do they look with these corduroy pants, which are also a touch on the looser side?

I love how the bag and boots play off each other without being the exact same shade. And as someone on Instagram said, that scarf makes the whole look.

Let’s get a closeup on that tan-navy-sky blue plaid over the olive sweater:

10/10 on this outfit. I love that while it’s mostly made up of neutrals, it’s still a very warm and visually interesting palette. Plus the scarf/boots/bag brings the polish that makes me feel really put together for work.

Day 7: Bling Sweater and Bronze Flats

This outfit feels very…ritzy PTA mom to me. It has polish, but in a way that feels less interesting, more expected. I think my olive ankle boots (or taupe/cream snakeskin boots!!) would have kicked this up a notch, but I needed something I could really walk in for the day’s activities, so flats it was.  5/10 on this outfit.

So shiny!

These socks are meant to be Donegal tweed-esque but in photographs just end up looking like they have lint stuck to them. If my cream/taupe chevron socks hadn’t been in the wash they would have been a much better choice:

Day 8: Navy + Purple

From PTA mom we go all the way almost to athleisure, with that vest and those Puma sneaks. It’s actually the “shop my closet” version of these New Hampshirite outfits I admired a few weeks ago, and I love how the navy and deep purple turned out with the light sweater providing some visual relief from the dark colors:

I love that hi-lo split hem peeking out! Just a little visual interest to keep it fun.

For those of you keeping score at home, this vest was not in my 10×10.  Yep, I “cheated,” and it totally made the outfit:

10/10 on this one.

Day 9: Charcoal & Purple

My notes from last week’s outfit with this sweater were right on – the slimmer-fitting pant makes the silhouette. I feel like the 2017 version of the Chico’s women I aspired to be when I was 12:

The colors here are stellar even though, let’s be honest, this pale skin was not made for how dark this all is – at least not without some kind of dramatic eye and lip makeup. 9/10 for that.

You know it’s right when the keynote speaker at the conference you’re attending compliments your boots:

Day 10: Bling over Cream

Despite the expression on my face, I think this is actually a better incarnation of this sweater than Day 7. Somehow the cream cords instead of dark denim makes me feel less like Alison from Orphan Black:

It also made me look more dressy for church, since this was worn on a Sunday. The expression you’re seeing is my “I just emoted for 6 hours straight without a nap” face.  xD

8/10 on this one – it’s amazing what a change of sock and color palette will do!

Wrap Up

Here are my 10 outfits:

What I learned:

• My faves are 1, 5, 6, and 8. (Honorable mention to 9 except it’s so darn dark!) I think the common thread there is the warmth of the palettes (except 8) and the fact that they all have some little extra attention to detail – a scarf or a vest that makes the outfit.
• I’m excited to keep mixing and matching these sweaters & cords and to bring my green and grey cords and my other sweaters back into the mix (plus the two other pairs of tall boots I bought in preparation for New England and haven’t even worn yet!).
• I think I’m honing in on that warm but muted palette I liked here (olive, taupe, caramel, cream, salmon), so it will be fun to try to focus on that amidst all the possibilities in my closet and in the thrift store!
• I’m also going to try to continue playing with volume and drape on top, too – the dishwater, batwing, and semi-cropped loose sweaters were a lot of fun and reminded me that not everything has to fit slim for me to like it.

Which was your favorite of my 10? Did you do the 10×10? If so, what did you learn?