plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

The Magnificent 8 are Putting Pins on Things

January 26, 2022 / 46 Comments
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

The Magnificent 8 is back sharing with you some unique and interesting ways to style brooches or pins. If you know me at all, then you know that I have small collections of all sorts of different fashion items…shoes, kimonos, hats, gloves, tights, socks, coats, jeans, scarves, and many more. So it should come as no surprise when I tell you that I also have a small collection of brooches that I have acquired throughout the years. Some are vintage and antique, some are heirlooms, some were thrifted, some were gifted, and some were bought at retail stores most likely on clearance. But all of them have a special place in one little drawer of my jewelry dresser. Yet I somehow forget to wear them more often than I should.

We left it up to Grace to choose the style challenge for this month’s collaboration since she is currently studying abroad in Ireland and is working with a minimal wardrobe. So far, her style posts from Ireland have be totally on point with her capsule travel wardrobe. I can certainly learn some things about packing for my upcoming trip to North Carolina!

Anyway, let’s get to the subject we are here to discuss…brooches and pinteresting ways to style them. In ancient times, brooches were used in a functional capacity to fasten or secure clothing. The earliest known brooches consisted of thorns, sticks, and flint. The metal pins that we use today were first introduced during the Bronze Age, but they were still intended for practical use not ornamentation. Brooches began to lose their practical purpose after the Middle Ages and made the transition to purely decorative adornment.

While my brooch collection is intended for ornamentation, decorative pins still can serve the practical purpose of securing or fastening clothing while also adding an interesting focal point to your outfit. In fact, I just used a brooch to secure the top of a furry vest for my Opposite Day outfit last week.

plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

For today’s style challenge, I actually started with the outfit without any idea in mind about pinning brooches on myself and where. I went shopping at Target last week and found a few really cute things like this velvet duster and the plaid mini skirt I am wearing here.

The skirt was on the clearance rack (my favorite place to shop) for less than $15. I have a soft spot for plaid mini skirts and green and blue is such a rich color combination that I could not resist the deal on this one. As you can see, I paired the skirt with a dark green turtleneck, tights, over the knee socks, and gloves. Then I layered on a thrifted black velvet blazer and added black patent Mary Janes because they go with the academic vibe of a plaid skirt and blazer.

I have had this light blue slouchy hat for a few years and I love how perfectly it picked up the blues in the skirt. And then I had my pinteresting brooch ideas hit! I love adding a sparkly pin to jazz up a hat. That is probably the way I wear brooches most often. Or on my coat or blazer lapels in the traditional way. I have this pretty sparkly green flower pin that I wore on a different hat styled with a reindeer dress.

The color was perfect with this new outfit so I pinned it on my hat. Then I decided I wanted to wear my gold owl brooch because it, too, goes with the academic theme of my outfit. These days when I add a pin to my lapel, it usually gets lost in my hair or competes with my necklace. In his case, it was doing both, so I moved Mr. Owl down to my pocket so he could see you and you could see him. I like him much better there than on my silly lapel, I think.

plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
patent Mary Janes, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

I had intended to photograph my complete collection of brooches but I forgot and then ran out of time. I always have big intentions like that which never pan out because I am so lazy!

Before we get to the creative pinnings of my magnificent friends, I want to share my new DKNY puffer coat that I found when I was decorating my Happie Hippie Hallway. I have been wanting a long black puffer coat like this for a while. I bought a navy blue belted one about 5 years ago that has served me well, but the belt annoys me and I was getting kind of bored of the navy blue. I love the oversized coziness of this black one and have worn it every single day since I bought it. The retail price was $320, but the TJ Maxx price that I paid was $49.99. It is definitely worth all of that because it keeps me super warm in this brutal cold.

plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
plaid mini skirt, velvet blazer, thrifted style, brooches, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

And now I am going to wrap it up and send you over to check out my magnificent friends to see how they have pinned things. Just click on the links to their blogs below.

The Magnificent 8 is a collaboration among 8 stylish women, each in a different age bracket, ranging from early 20’s to early 80’s. The mission of this collaboration is to show you just how ageless style is, how we can each dress however we’d like and in ways that make us feel fabulous. There are no age restrictions on style. So wear what you want, when you want, add a smile, and strut your style with confidence.

Every quarter, we choose a theme and each create an outfit that suits our own personal tastes and fashion choices and we post them on the last Wednesday of every third month. So be sure to go check out everyone’s posts for lots of style inspiration at any age!

Let me introduce the ladies of The Magnificent 8.

Keeping it on the edge,

Shelbee

Linking up with these Fabulous Link Parties.

Outfit Details: Coat-DKNY (TJ Maxx) / Blazer-Thrifted / Turtleneck-Charlotte Russe / Skirt-Target / Tights-Sock Dreams / Socks and Shoes-Torrid / Gloves, Hat, Earrings, Necklace, and Brooches-Old

I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.

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Shelbee on the Edge