old school


they say that the clothing we wear speaks volumes about us.
if that is true, then this skirt is a textbook on my style.
all these years later the simplicity, ease and structure of a uniform has never left me.
  i lived in a similar skirt throughout my catholic school education.
and i'm telling you that i loved that uniform.
as we got older, most of the girls in my class began to rebel and hate the uniform, but not me.
on the rare free-dress day, i often wore my uniform in a reverse rebel sort of way.
that really showed them!





vintage mossbrook wool skirt - $2 yard sale find.
j. crew chambray
navy kitten heels - goodwill $3








i hope whatever you're wearing today says something nice about you.

xo
janet




36 comments

  1. I like the old school look...it's so cute from the back. :)

    I bought a red shirt the other day...that's about as rebellious as I get!

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  2. Adorable kilt, looks great on you. I love them, but I know Catholic school educated folks who developed an allergy to plaid from the repeated exposure!

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  3. Oh my gosh. You look so cute, and so vavavoom all at once. That's a silly adjective, maybe I mean HOT? Have a good weekend!

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  4. That's a kilt Milady, you'd be right at home here!

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  5. Janet, that looks is one of my favorites! I've always loved kilts and the chambray shirt with it --- perfection!

    I had a red plaid kilt I bought on a trip to Great Britain years ago, I loved that skirt! Wish I'd kept it.

    Barbara

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  6. Love this skirt on you! This is similar to my Brora skirt and this is the vibe I was going after. And I already said you wear that chambray shirt so well, you totally own the look.
    Have a great weekend!

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  7. I love a uniform too...love the skirt on you.

    I am wearing sandals today...a welcome relief for my broken baby toe. The weather here in Toronto is fabulous. And new cropped jeans..I can never wait until sock season is over..I HATE socks with a passion.

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  8. I love your kilt and just in time for St. Patricks Day.
    You wear "old school" very well indeed.

    Have a fun weekend Janet!

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  9. Well you know I was the one always busted for rolling my skirt as short as I could, then being made to kneel on the floor and unroll it till the hem touched. Must have given me quite the waist in retrospect...

    Your waist on the other hand looks very thin.

    I have just become a hater:-)

    xoxo jane

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  10. I loved wearing a uniform in high school...in a Southern California public school...a rule left over from the Great Depression era. A new girls' vice principal said it was unconstitutional and she could not enforce the rule. What a shame, it was downhill from there and all too quickly the have-nots were separated from the haves. And thus, this bargain-hunter-gatherer was born!
    Love your style and the "Cauliflower Steaks over Cauliflower (with Kale!) Puree" with gardein scallopini was fantastic!
    Thank you, Janet!
    xo, Chris

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  11. Classic and wonderful. If only my plaid skirts still hanging in my closet fit.

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  12. So cute, and I love how you update it with your trusty chambray shirt!

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  13. gorgeous. you so don't seem like the conforming type. :)
    xo t.

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  14. Hi Janet,

    It may be 'old school' but I like it very much. A beautiful classical outfit!

    Wish you a happy weekend,

    Madelief x

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  15. I loved my Catholic schol uniform, too!

    Today, I am wearing a white and navy pinstripe tee, black leggings, and a ruby red pedicure... Perfect for a trip to our tiny zoo with my three wee ones!

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  16. OK, you can pull that "uniform" skirt off really nicely. I too wore the uniform for many years. While I loved not having to compete with stylish outfits every school day (games and weekend activities were stressful!) I hated ironing all those pleats and the white blouses -- I avoid ironing now at all cost. Have a great weekend.

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  17. Janet, continually amazed at how you pull the simple together to look chic. I am about to get dressed to go out, and planning an outfit that will scream don't care. I will go and look for something better now. Janey

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  18. You look very proper but cute at the same time.

    My outfit today is yard work clothes. Rolled up jeans and sleeveless top so that I don't get a farmers tan....80 degree weather in the Midwest in the middle of March! Crazy.
    But my kind of crazy.

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  19. I love you in that skirt, Janet. I have a maxi length one I've never worn, maybe pairing it with denim would stop me looking so costume-y. How fab that you loved your uniform. I went to a strict all-girls grammar school and our uniform got voted "worst in Britain" on a TV programme. x

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  20. We don't have yard sales with stuff like that. All we can get are Danielle Steel paperbacks and smiley face mugs.

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  21. Hello Janet:
    This post has certainly revived old memories of both school days and, of course, of faithful fashion friends!

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  22. I love it, and I am loving how your hair is coming along, too--Very much.
    -Suzanne in Illinois

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  23. I love the skirt. An excellent uniform look.

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  24. Beautiful outfits! I am inspired once again to head for the local Goodwill! By the way, even though we are not Vegans, your recipes are a big hit with my family! I had to laugh at your last statement, got my ugly ol' paintin' clothes on...I guess it's nice that I'm painting :-)
    kim

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  25. If you look on my February Miss Cellany blog you will see that I've never kicked my school uniform habit either - I just love a gymslip!
    (I've worn quite a few kilts in my time as my mother was Scottish and I used to wear my elder brothers kilts when he had grown out of them.)

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  26. Janet, I have always like the preppy school look. wish kids loved it today. You are so cute . Smiles, Susie(She Junks)

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  28. You look lovely. I love these skirts too! Great find.

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  29. I love the plaid skirt! =)

    http://pinkchampagnefashion.blogspot.com/

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  30. Hi Janet

    I loved wearing a uniform to school. I found uni confronting having to dream up new looks every day altho now that is one of my joys!!!

    Baby turns one later in the week.

    Am deadset emotional. In a good way xxx

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  31. Always stunning!
    I wore a uniform for 7th and 8th grade and despised it. Even the dress code at work is getting to me after only 3 weeks because clothing and style have always been a way to represent who I am. To be limited in such simply feels like a restriction of my "freedom of expression".
    By golly, you've just given me a blog post idea.
    You are so inspiring in so many ways dear Janet!
    xoxo

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  32. I think you look stunning! You look as fit as a fiddle and I think you could do a marvelous jig in that kilt.
    I love old school classics, plaids, pleats, and chambray.
    Many thanks for the b-day wishes and next time I find a four leaf clover....I know whose name it has upon it...
    I will send it to you.
    pve

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  33. A lovely twist on a classic.
    I love how you're embracing navy. It's such a great colour and (I'm beginning to realise) much gentler than black.
    I made your vegan pancakes for my son this morning and they went down a treat!

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  34. You have always marched to the beat of your own drum and that is inspiring. I would never had have the guts to wear school uniform on mufti day!

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  35. So funny to be reminded of school uniforms and how they shaped adult approaches to clothes. I can admit all these years later that I secretly loved the Catholic school uniform too, tho I never admitted it at the time and affected disdain for it. And the "free dress" days -- hadn't heard that phrase in a while! I never participated and wore the uniform as a rebuke to the notion that we'd be "allowed" free dress for a day. What complexities can be squeezed from uniforms! Thanks for the reminder. And you still wear it well!

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kindness is never out of style.

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