Classic Black With Pearls

I feel like an all black ensemble paired with pearls is about as classic as a look can get, but for some reason I never seem to reach for pearls. I've had this 3 strand faux pearl necklace for a while now, but I'm always afraid pearls might be a bit too firmly associated with the "50's housewife" look. It would perhaps be better to consider that stereotype as a creative challenge. How to make pearls less prim?

By contrast, wearing all black is much more comfortable for me! I used to wear the shade almost exclusively for several years back in college, and it's still a reliable look to fall back on when "I've got nothing to wear!". I did however make a mistake when constructing this black wool pencil skirt that is only thing keeping it from being a true favorite in my closet. The waistband is just a bit tight, the rest of the skirt fits fine, I just needed to give myself a smidgen more room when I finished the waistband! So it isn't my most comfortable skirt, but really I should try and fix it- even just moving the skirt hook could help a little bit. The wool is really lovely and I have another similar length of fabric that I bought the same day to make an A-line skirt that I haven't gotten to yet. One can never have too many basic black skirts in different fibers and weights of fabric!

I was happy to finally wear the ivory wool beret hat that I bought last spring in Paris at the famous Galeries Lafayette department store. Even they have a cheesy touristy stuff section despite being one of Paris' biggest and most fancy department stores, and that section was where I picked up this beret. A bit nicer in quality -and pricier to match- than the other 2 euro berets on every tourist stand (I snapped up several of those too!), the all wool hat was helping to keep my ears (well, one ear really) warm on this rather chilly day. The lovely matching ivory doors behind me here are on the campus of the University of Colorado Boulder, which technically is a rival school of my own alma mater Colorado State University, but I'll admit Boulder's campus is prettier than CSU's. I don't have many historic buildings to admire here in Colorado, so I don't mind wandering around college campuses just to admire the architecture.

I just can't believe it's nearing the end of January already! I feel like I am only just waking up from my holiday-season-hibernation and have a ton to do, but I always feel like there's a ton I want to do. Instead of work however, I'm going to go see Phantom Thread this afternoon with my mom :) One can't be working all the time right?

Skirt: Made by me
Top: Banana Republic
Fishnets: Amazon
Shoes: Royal Vintage Shoes
Handbag, Belt, & Jewelry: Vintage
Beret: Galeries Lafayette