THE CASUAL OUTFIT
I personally love this outfit for casual day wear on Valentine's Day, granted it may be too obvious for some peeps, what with all the hearts and all that...However since the heart pattern is on a T-shirt (alternative here or cute heart print jumper here and here), I think it lends a perfect understated nonchalance, a casualness that would have been impossible with the formality of a blouse.
The long brown crossbody (from New Look, yonks ago, similar here and here) also adds an extra relaxed element to this easy on-the-go kind of look. The black jeans (similar here) as you know from previous fashion posts are a staple in my closet and what I consider to be my "comfort zone", but you could easily pair this top with a flowy skirt for an even more girly look.
As for me, my girliness is in the shoes (found some cute heart print ones here)! Slightly more raspberry toned IRL (and not such a good match to be honest), the lowness of these M&S heels makes for easy walking (it's 3 inches, I can't do much more than 4 inches without a strap for support, similar here). However, if your town is full of cobbled streets (cough...cough Brussels) then my all means put the heels away and try and go for some red flats. You definitely want to add that pop of red on your feet to break up the dullness of the black jeans.
For makeup I wanted to keep it simple, so I did my everyday eye look (Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner in 02 Bold Brown on the top lash line not in my waterline and Lancôme Hypnôse Mascara in Brown) and added a more natural red stain to my lips (...not that red is very natural) with the Bourjois Lip Velvet in 03 Hot Pepper. I love these lip velvets because they give a smudged-out effect to your lip line (a bit like air brushing) and since it doesn't have such a "hard" edge your lips keep that easy casualness while still wearing a red! Now I know mattes aren't for everyone, that why I've also shown a Revlon Lip Butter in 063 Wild Watermelon (now discontinued), it's a bright muted red with a lovely glossy finish, the "shiny" variations of the casual red lip!
THE FORMAL OUTFIT
I first saw this dress in HelloOctoberxo's Kendall Jenner Modern Muse Le Rouge Tutorial and just knew I had to have it! I had been looking for a formal red dress with a lace décolté to be able to wear at Christmas time or for possible winter weddings, for ages! And this dress from Missguided but bought on Asos (similar here, here and here), was exactly what I had envisioned. The dress has a very similar feel to the Chi Chi brand (like this one); knee length, tulle volume and lacing (I love those dresses, very girly and not stupidly short like most dresses I see on the high-street. Not everyone wants to be showing off their knickers, you know!).
Come Christmas time, the family had gotten tickets to go see The Nutcracker on Ice, so with plenty of time to spare I found these gorgeous red heels to match (also from M&S). Different from the ones in the previous casual outfit above (yes I have a #Shoeaholic problem!) since they are more orange-y red, have a rounded toe and 4 inch heel (similar here) I found them during our family November shopping trip to Bluewater.
Now came the clutch: after a thorough look at all my go to shops for clutches; New Look, Dorothy Perkins and Accessorize and seeing zero red clutches, never mind "glittery", I went where I always go...eBay! This little beauty only cost me £2.50 plus shipping. Now sadly I didn't get to wear it, since my big boo got a kidney stone as a Christmas present (that was one Christmas Eve that my family is not likely to forget anytime soon...happily he's fine now).
However, come June I've got some new tickets to go see Swan Lake, so this beautiful outfit will get to see the light of day then (or evening should I say). Since you've probably sussed out by now that I'm a #singlepringle and my Valentine's Day night is going to consist of stuffing my face full of chocolate whilst watching all the romantic films (how cute would this heart print pyjama set look?), wouldn't have it any other way #Heaven #1DayOfTheYearItIsSociallyAcceptable
For makeup; I would up the amp with my eyes and put my eyeliner on my waterline, instant drama! And go for a dramatic red such as this new one from KIKO’s “BFF” Collection in 01 Candy Red, now if you need a "kiss-proof" lipstick then I think the Sephora Cream Lip Stain in 01 Always Red would be a great contender. Finally, on my nails I'm wearing Essie's Red Nouveau, also a more orange-y based red, but there are endless amounts of good red nail polishes out there, so be my guest!
There you have it, my casual and formal outfit options for Valentine's Day, or any day really.
What is your go to outfit for Valentine's Day? You don't have to be in a relationship to dress for the day!
Are you more the type to treat it as any other day? "Coincidently" having heart-shaped chocolate surrounding you?
Or do you absolutely hate Valentine's Day and everything to do with it? In which case so sorry for this post, things will be back to normal soon, I promise! :P
xxxemma