sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

The Magnificent 8 in Versatile Vest Styles

October 27, 2021 / 30 Comments
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

Vests have a been a garment that have sort of confused me for my most of my life. However, I have always had a few in my closet dating back to early childhood when I proudly donned a black zipper hoodie layered beneath a denim vest in perfect Chachi Arcola style. I might have even tied a red bandana around my thigh back in those days!

I also recall a favorite outfit of mine from elementary school that consisted of olive green corduroy kickers with matching fair aisle socks that pulled up to my knees and were snuggly secured by the elastic band of the knickers just below my kneecaps. There was a sweater vest in the same fair aisle pattern as the socks that I layered over a button down shirt or a turtleneck depending on the day. I always wore my brown fringed ankle moccasins with this outfit and I wore it on a weekly basis. I am fairly certain that it fell apart long before I outgrew it. The whole look was very reminiscent of a 1930’s schoolboy.

As you can see, my fascination with menswear style goes back a long way to that little Gemini girl of the 1970’s and 1980’s, the tomboy who loved to play dress up in frilly lace dresses. While vests have always made occasional appearances in my wardrobe circulation, they have never really held a prominent position in my closet room.

It wasn’t until I started this little blog of mine that I discovered how much versatility a vest offers for cool layering options that add extra interest to an outfit. And now vests are available in so many different styles, fabrics, and prints that they do add value to one’s wardrobe for injecting an extra bit of layering creativity.

To avoid any linguistic confusion, I am using the very broad Merriam Webster definition of vest: “a sleeveless garment for the upper body usually worn over a shirt.”

sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

When the Magnificent 8 settled on our theme of vests, I honestly wasn’t sure which direction I was going to go. I have a few furry vests that I love so much as we enter the colder months. I also have quite a few long lace and other flowing duster length vests but those seem better suited for much warmer weather. I ultimately settled on this black and tan striped waterfall sweater vest that I spotted in a clear bin in my basement, a bin that happened to be filled with sweater vests!

This vest dates back to the very early days of my blog when I styled it with this exact same dress. The two pieces were purchased from two different retail brands but they look like they were meant for each other. And now I struggle to style either piece with anything else but the other. I guess when a magical combination happens, you should just stick with it!

When I first shared this outfit back in 2016, it was a post about shapewear because I definitely needed some help getting into this dress back then. I actually had put this dress into my Poshmark pile and had it actively listed because I just didn’t like the way it looked without shapewear and I despise wearing shapewear so I ditched the dress. But since that first styling of this outfit five years ago, I have lost 41 pounds so I figured I would try this dress again. Well, I quickly unlisted it from Poshmark because I don’t need shapewear now and I freaking love the way this outfit looks now.

The first styling was in the summertime so I wore cream colored crocheted sandals and a necklace made of seashells. For fall styling, I went with my red patent ankle boots, red knit beret, and some bold red statement jewelry. The clashing of black and tan stripes moving in all different directions is quite enough for the eyes to behold that you don’t need much more to make your style point. And my style point is this…what a difference a vest can make!

sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge
sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

Won’t you stop by and visit all of my magnificent friends to see how they have styled vests. 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.

sweater vest, striped maxi dress, double stripes, black and tan, ageless style, red beret, red boots, fashion over 40, Shelbee on the Edge

Keeping it on the edge,

Shelbee

Linking up with these Fabulous Link Parties.

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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