Fashionrework's Blog

Awhile back in beautiful sunny San Diego, my friend and equally fashionable  Teressa and I had our first Fashion ReWork opportunity  with the talented photographer and good friend Julia Turnbull. Teressa and I found her closet full of great items since creativity and sense of fashion run hand and hand with her photographic business and aesthetic, it was perhaps an easier job to come up with fantastic outfits for her. However, with this in mind we tried to work with items that have not been used at all. Our second objective was to keep in mind her needs. For Julia, she wanted outfits that looked good for formal events such as weddings, big business events but she also had her flexibility and comfort in mind when shooting. Lastly, Julia wanted outfits for weekends or that could go from day to night easily.

The difficult job in ReWorking a closet is changing people’s perspective about what they have and how to look at using it. The following pictures are the prep and photo shoot shots taken by me.

This first outfit was not included in the final shoot, but I think it had some potential. I love the color of the  American Apparel pencil skirt with the vintage flowery button down top. The vest did not work however, the outfit became too slouchy and sloppy.

The final shoot

Julia has a gift for finding great vintage boots, her collection is one to envy. She found these boots but found them difficult to wear with other outfits. I believe she said this was one of her favorite outfits that she did continue to wear out to fun events she would go at night or during the weekend.

Outfit Anatomy 1

Her outfit is includes 2 buys from Buffalo Exchange.

The top came from a Buffalo Exchange in Portland .

The vintage suede boots came from one of the Buffalo Exchanges in San Diego.

Her blue pencil skirt is from American Apparel.

Her necklace was actually a gifted bracelet from a Wedding she was in Colorado

Her pretty cuff was  from one of the talented artisans who sold through a recent  Thread Show in San Diego

Here is an example of an outfit she could wear to an event or wedding for one her many photography clients. Her main go to default outfits centered largely on black and she felt color would be a nice change. We focused on using this purple blouse. Although it is has a slight vintage feel to it, it is a contemporary designer and cut. The draping of the fabric around the neck in the collar is so feminine its such a great piece. We took the pencil skirt and shimmied up the waist to make the top almost an empire waist. With pencil skirts like this knit/stretch blend you can come up with countless options for them.

Outfit Anatomy 2

The top is another great Buffalo Exchange find

The pencil skirt in black is from American Apparel

The black, leather kitten heels are from Forward Footwear in Pacific Beach

We wanted this outfit to be more appropriate for work or for the day. However, we wanted it to be easily taken to a night appropriate or date appropriate level too.

Simple transformations can happen with shoes and hair. With this outfit, Julia simply let her hair down and put on these sexy patent and snakeskin gladiator heels.

Outfit Anatomy 3

Patent Gladiator Heels from Forward Footwear in Pacific Beach, San Diego, California

Outfit Anatomy 4

American Apparel T-Shirt and black leggings, Fyre Boots, Buffalo Scarf, Rat Pack Straw Hat purchased off the boardwalk in Pacific Beach

This last outfit we wanted something that would be casual errand outfit but also transition into other activities- like going out for lunch with friends, etc. We also looked to combine colors and textures that are not typically combined. We used this beautiful off-white scarf contrasted its warm tone with the cool tone of the gray in her shirt. Likewise we did with her black leggings and her shoes, the iconic brown leather Frye Boots (not shown in the pictures….sorry!!) However, the colors balance within the varying items. The black works well with gray and the off-white but the warm off-white works with the warm hues of the brown leather in her boots. We tried bringing another hat into the mix, but I don’t think it works well. The hat has a wicker like texture, too Summer and contrasts with not only the scarf but also the industrial boots. However, to stress the importance of working something, anything works on someone who has confidence and especially in Southern California.

Much More too come from us…..

Lastly, I wish I had more pictures of outfits to put into this post but on the upside, Julia and I will be meeting for New Years in Buenos Aires, Argentina and a decent length jaunt through Brazil. Needless to say, we will be having all sorts of fun, adventure and perhaps a little trouble too (just take a look at our eyes in the pictures above…).

Our times spent together is frequently marked by obsessive needs for over the top fun photo shoots we dream up cracked out on our many episodes of lack of sleep thus our ensuing quest for hard to find accessories and the perfect outfit for the perfect night out make us two very hard to hide ladies.  Yes, our falsies (false eyelashes)  will be in hand as divadom can be expected however, we are not high maintenance girls. If we could have it our way, we’d go with the bare minimum set up, our mac book pros, nikons, lenses, my mino hd Flip camera for all the youtube-worthy moments, passports and nothing else! Oh sweet liberating nakedness….

To check out Julia’s photography please go to

http://juliaannphotography.com/