ROCK ON!

It's my birthday week, which means I've been in a great mood lately because I've been able to see all my friends and both of my parents are coming to NYC this weekend to celebrate #BLESSED. I feel so fortunate to have so many friends and family that want to come out and celebrate with me! This is my first time celebrating my birthday after moving out on my own, so the fact that I have this great support system here and a group of people who are like my second family is truly amazing (love y'all :)).

This week's look goes a little edgy. I love vintage rock band tees, so I thought it was about time that I threw one into one of my outfits. I have a deep appreciation for classic rock because my dad and brother would listen to it in the car all the time while I was growing up, so any time that I was in the car with them we would be listening to the likes of ACDC, Led Zepplin, Nirvana, Santana, The Eagles, you name it. We would always play this game where my dad would cover the dashboard when the song would come on the radio and I would have to guess the name of the song and who it was by. I was never really good at that game. But I probably have a larger knowledge of classic rock than most girls my age from it.

Anyway, this outfit is pretty straightforward. I had this awesome ACDC tee that I found at a thrift shop (it's called Rags A GoGo and Cindi Lauper was actually there when I was there so you know it's legit) a couple weeks ago that I wanted to feature and I had also gotten this knitted jumper dress recently on sale at Townhouse Shops, one of my fave boutiques in the city (it's legit actually affordable WOOOT). I love layering tees with jumpers and dresses and since this jumper sits so low, I knew that you could still see the ACDC logo if I paired the two together. To accessorize, I wanted to keep it very edgy, so I put in this awesome choker that I got from a brand I'm collaborating with called Boho Queen Jewelry (it's under $50 bucks too which is awesome) and put on these lace-up sandals. They're actually my roommates, but we literally share closets, so it's ok. haha

I know that I went for a super edgy look with this, but if that's not your thing, don't worry! Here are a few tips that I have if you really want to hop on the vintage band tee wagon (and you should because it ROCKS - haha puns):

1. Pair your tee with something that really fits your style. Vintage band tees are kind of edgy in themselves, but if edgy isn't your style, you can still totally wear them. If you have a very feminine style, tie it in a knot at your waist and pair with a loose and flowy skirt and booties. If you're a little edgier, pair it with a leather skirt and combat boots or with some ripped jeans. And if you have a very simple style, a good go-to look is pairing your tee with black jeans and white sneakers.

2. Match colors. So if your tee has a red and gold pattern to it, go with a red or gold shoe, or pair it with neutrals and go for a bold red lip. Try to match a color that's featured in your vintage tee with something else in your outfit (shoes, pants, skirt, lip/eye color, purse, etc.). It will really tie the whole look together. Or you can even match patterns. I don't mean match them exactly, but if your tee has a geometrical look to it, pair it with something that's more structured (like an angular skirt).

3. Don't cut it! THIS IS SO IMPORTANT! If you buy an authentic vintage band tee, don't do anything (I mean anything) to it! These shirts are meant to be worn as is. And replications are the only thing that can be made from this point forward. I know there's a huge trend of cutting up shirts and having them look distressed, and YES I love the look of that, but if you buy a real shirt, that is how it should look. If you want a cut up one, go to Urban or Forever 21 and get one of those. Honor the band tee! Let distressing come from you wearing it too much or getting it snagged on a zipper. You'll have more stories and it will stay 100% authentic.

Rock on!

xoxo

Lex