This week is the last part of my 3-part outfit photo series showing you how to use a versatile fitted blazer to make Working Mom Outfits in 3 of the 5 levels, from a Level 2/Weekend Chic all the way to Level 4/Client Meeting.

Today we’ve reached Level 4, Client Meeting. This level is going-to-work friendly. It’s all business!

The outfit shares two of the three main foundation pieces from Level 2 and Level 3: the blazer itself and the V-neck sweater.

But now we’ve ditched the denim and gone all the way to a skirt with tights. Instant transformation.

I could have kept the scarf and boots from Level 3, but I wanted to up-level everything, so I opted for a chunky glass bead necklace and kitten heel pumps.

In the end, it’s a lot of earth tones, so if I wear this outfit again, I will look for ways to inject some color, like coral or aqua.

Blazer: Calvin Klein (similar, on sale for $180, Ann Taylor).
Sweater: Banana Republic (similar, $21, Coldwater Creek).
Skirt: LOFT (similar, on sale for $105, Bergdorf Goodman).
Shoes: Aerosoles (similar, on sale for $59, Zappos).
Necklace: Stella & Dot (similar, on sale for $54).
Outfit level: 4

[Disclosure: Some links are affiliate links.]

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I don’t know about you, but I was still struggling to form my sense of style at 25.

In fact, at 41, it’s still evolving.

I can only hope to keep getting better at it the older I get.

That’s why I’m most inspired by several fabulous personal style bloggers who are all, as the French say, women “of a certain age.”

So when I grow up, I want to be as fabulous as these ladies:

• Une Femme d’Un Certain Age. Did you meet her in my Site Spotlight in October? I love the way she injects French glamour into everyday (and work-appropriate) clothing.
• Not Dead Yet Style. How’s that for a blog name with a sense of humor? As Patti says in her “About Me” statement, “We are not dead yet, so let’s enjoy every sandwich and gild the lilies.”
• Advanced Style. Soon coming to a bookstore near you, this well-known street style blog by Ari Seth Cohen captures the outfits of New Yorker grandes dames in their 70′s, 80′s and beyond.
• Style Crone. Another personal style blog title with tongue in cheek. I’m a big fan of hats and no-one wears them better than Judith (who sells them, too).
• Over 50 Feeling 40. Pam’s journey to reclaim her style–and herself–began when she turned 50. Now her mission is to “inspire women over 50 to look and feel their best… to strive to be women of strength and dignity…and to enjoy every single day of life.”

And although she never blogged, I also count as an inspiration my grandma who was dressed to the nines all the way into her 90′s. I guess it runs in the family!

Your turn

• Do you read personal style blogs by women over 40? (Or even 30?)
• What do you want to look like when you grow up? :)
• If you’re feeling especially brave–how old are you? (I’m always curious to learn more about my readers.)

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This month in the Site Spotlight is Audi of Fashion For Nerds. It’s one of my favorite personal style blogs because Audi’s fashion sense is so utterly her own. She has a way of pairing items that is unexpected and original while also remaining wearable. I’m always inspired to try something new after reading her posts.

About Audi

I’m a 42-year-old scientist who works for a small start-up biotech company that is working on novel therapeutic treatments for cancer. I live and work in San Francisco, and am passionately fond of my city and its culture. I would describe my lifestyle as having an alternative bent. As a hobby I make hats, and sometimes sell them through Dark Garden corsetry here in the city.

I also occasionally do custom projects through the Etsy shop that is now mainly run by my husband Mark, who makes leather accessories. I enjoy San Francisco’s unique nightlife and events, dining out, travel, and live music. Mark and I share our home with a chuckwalla lizard and 2 beautiful pit mix dogs.

About Fashion For Nerds

I started Fashion for Nerds mainly because at the time I was working for a company where most of my coworkers weren’t concerned with clothing as a creative outlet, and I wanted a place to connect with other people who shared my interest in dressing for fun and self expression.

For the most part the blog is a daily lookbook, which allows me not only to catalog what I wear for future reference, but also to get feedback from others.

Often I try to dissect each outfit and explain how I put it together or how I could style it differently, and occasionally I write tutorials about specific topics such as showing tattoos (or not) for job interviews, layering, shopping, etc.

About her audience

I think my blog appeals to women who are wanting to add more flair to their outfits, are looking for different ways to style the items in their closets, or are trying to infuse their corporate or academic wardrobe with individuality.

Because I don’t have kids, I have the time to focus on things like fashion; as a result, many of my readers tend to be working moms who have spent years putting their own desires last and are ready to turn that around. That was an unexpected surprise for me, and I love it; I think it’s great to connect with people whose lives are very different from my own and to think that they might take something useful away from what they see or read on my blog.

I think my blog also appeals to women in their 40′s and 50′s who still want to have fun with clothing but who have the obvious constraints of work, being active and busy, and having to live within a budget.

I enjoy challenging the typical expectations of how a woman over 40 should dress but at the same time I have no desire to pass myself off as younger than I am, and I think this is a particular challenge for many women in my age bracket.

Her favorite posts

• ’50s Style for a Wedding
• Tattoos and Interviews
• San Francisco Travel Guide, Part 1: Shopping
• Downtown (things will be great when you’re downtown)

[Site Spotlight is a feature on the third Thursday of every month that brings you a new or noteworthy style and fashion blog.]

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Thanks to Audi for participating in this month’s Site Spotlight, and thank you for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

Related posts:

1. Site Spotlight: Fashion with a sense of humor from Looks Good From the Back
2. Site Spotlight: Real fashion advice for working women from The Working Closet
3. Site Spotlight: Wardrobe Oxygen’s breath of fresh air

Related posts:

1. How to make 3 different level outfits with one blazer (part 1)
2. How to choose and buy an amazing blazer
3. Working Mom Outfits Level 4: Client meeting

Last season on Project Runway, one of the designer challenges was to create a garment for a male client’s girlfriend or wife–based entirely on input from the man.

It was up to him to tell the designers what the woman in his life was like, and not only her aesthetic preferences, but her shape and size.

I’m sure you can guess what the results were!

Even if you’re not the subject of a TV design challenge, there will be times in your life (like Valentine’s Day, perhaps?) when your honey will go shopping for you.

Why not make it easier on him or her?

Help your partner know your style with this little cheat sheet about you:

• My favorite designer(s):
• My favorite clothing label(s)
• Places I like to shop:
• My favorite thing to wear:
• I would never wear a:
• My favorite colors to wear:
• I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing these colors:
• I’ve always dreamed of wearing this garment:
• My style icon is:
• I would describe my style as: __ classic __ chic __ trendy __ rocker __ bohemian __ retro
• My measurements: shoulders __ bust __ waist __ hips __ (Don’t know? Here’s how to measure yourself.)
• My sizes: shirts __ jeans/pants __ dresses __ bra __ panties __ swimsuit __ ring (left) __ ring (right) __

If your partner is less of a stylista than you are, he or she may not always know what some of this information means. But that’s OK–bringing this sheet with him will help your hubby when he walks, bewildered, into your favorite boutique (which you wrote down on line #3, right?).

And guess what? Now you know a little more about your style, too!

Your turn

• What would you add to this cheat sheet?
• Can you answer all of these questions?

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Thanks for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

[Photo credit: Shawn Campbell, Flickr]

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Whether you’re dining at the chicest chef’s outpost or simply adding candles and flowers to your own dining room table, the biggest Date Night of the year, otherwise known as Valentine’s Day, is just around the corner.

What’s a chic mom to wear?

Here are some ways you can spice up your Valentine’s Day with an outfit (and an evening) that’s truly a Level 5.

• If you’re going out straight from work. Obviously you can’t spend a day at the office in your LBD. Or can you? Unless it’s cut too high or cut too low (and if it’s both, it’s a bit too much for dinner anyway), make it work friendly by topping it with a fitted blazer or even a belted, beaded cardigan. Wear a strand of pearls and you can keep them on all day. Take off the topper and swap your pumps for strappy heels, and you are Level 5, lady.
• If you’re leaving after the babysitter arrives. Unless your kids are older, you might have to dodge sweet and sticky little fingers up until the moment of your escape, so the LBD is a little less practical. Think sexy top (sequins, low cut, velvet, whatever you’ve got!),  pencil skirt and your blingiest, shiniest necklace. Save the skirt for the last minute, or put a robe over everything, until you hear that doorbell.
• If you’re having your romantic dinner at home. Who says you have to save Level 5 for going out? This is still Date Night, my friend. Sure, you can slip those high heels off whenever you’d like (and you should be taking them off eventually, wink wink), but why save your best dress for a night out?

No matter which scenario is yours, you’re not necessarily limited to a dress or a skirt. Your main goal is to feel fabulous, so wear what you know looks fantastic on you, whether it’s a pair of well-cut trousers or skinny jeans, and include a little skin and a little shine.

Add perfume and heels (how high you can tolerate is between you and your feet–or possibly your podiatrist) and you’re done.

What to buy

Awards Show Stunner Dress in Red
$105 – modcloth.com

Bettye Muller patent leather shoes
$89 - jildorshoes.com

Steve Madden Walltz peep-toe sandals
$90 - stevemadden.com (heads up: free shipping on orders over $75 with code SMFREESHIP for a limited time)

Jessica McClintock quilted clutch
$45 – zappos.com

Moschitto Designs geometric jewelry
$42 - nordstrom.com

Dereon tear drop earrings
$32 - maxandchloe.com

[Disclosure: Some links are affiliate links.]

Your turn

• What are you planning to wear for Valentine’s Day?
• What’s your favorite look for Date Night?

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Related posts:

1. Outfit post: Level 5 date night
2. Working Mom Outfits Level 5: Date night
3. Series: The 5 Levels of Working Mom Outfits

Related posts:

1. Outfit post (Level 4): Electric blue
2. Outfit post (Level 4): Re-using a winning formula
3. Outfit post: Level 4 client meeting

You’ve heard these terms before, right? They’re the slightly awkward, and not always flattering, ways we try to describe a woman’s body shape.

Perhaps more accurately, they are an attempt to describe a set of body proportions: the relationship of widths across various points in the body.

Fruit metaphors aside, what’s the point of knowing this information?

It’s to properly dress your body.

And by “properly,” I mean in a way that fits and flatters you.

This is not about looking thinner. Not really. It’s about looking balanced. (Skinny girls can have hips wider than their shoulders, too.)

But before you can read any article or book or blog post about dressing for the “x” body shape, you first need to know what yours is. It starts with a measuring tape.

How to figure out your body shape

Get out that measuring tape, and take and fill in these measurements: bust, waist, hips and shoulders.

(If you need help with this, just Google “how to measure ____” and look for any one of a number of videos demonstrating how to.)

Then translate your measurements into body shape. Here are the most commonly used shapes and their formulas:

Triangle: You’re wider on top than you are below; that is, your shoulder measurement is more than 5 percent larger than your hip measurement. Also called the apple shape.

Pear: Or dewdrop, or inverted triangle—this is the opposite of the triangle, so the proportions are flipped: your hips are more than 5 percent larger than your shoulders.

Rectangle: Aka, the flute. Your shoulder and hips are the same or nearly so, but your waist isn’t much smaller; it’s 25% less at the most.

Hourglass: This one’s easy—your shoulders and hips are the same or very close, and your waist is more than 25% narrower, usually about 10 inches smaller.

Not as tricky as you thought, I hope?

Now when I talk about how to buy and dress the x shape (such as this guide on buying blazers for the pear shape), you’ll know which advice is best for you.

Your turn

• Did you have the body shape you thought you did?
• Which body shape metaphors do you prefer (triangle or apple, inverted triangle or pear, etc.)?
• Or should we come up with less silly names entirely?

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Thanks for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

Related posts:

1. Swimsuit shopping solved: Tips for the triangle shape
2. Ask the Closet Coach: What’s the best T-shirt for my body shape?
3. Why an ideal body shape is a myth

 Your turn

• How would you answer these questions?

Share the love

Thanks for reading. Did you like this post? Please leave a comment or share it with someone else; just use the handy sharing widget below.

(Want to get more shopping tips and fun insider stuff? Join The Style List. It’s like a secret club in your email inbox! And when you join, you’ll get my free email series, 7 Days to Better Shopping. It’s my gift to you!)

Related posts:

1. Friend Fridays: How I’m wearing my favorite fall trends for 2011
2. Friend Friday: Blame Missoni: Trends, fads and the “in” crowd
3. Friend Fridays: Trend aware vs. trend follower