I got it from my mama...

Growing up, we didn't have a lot of money. My parents are immigrants and like a lot of immigrants, they experienced their fair share of challenges when coming to the country. We were never short of any necessities but my parents made it very clear early on that all our money was better spent on piano lessons, dance classes, tutoring sessions rather than nice clothes and nice cars. So what happens when you get a fashion crazed girl being restrained by her parents' tight pursestrings?

You get a girl who raids every family member's closet for things to wear. I have a little brother (little is loosely used, he's about 7 inches taller than me now) and I love wearing his old tee-shirts and his old blazers. My mom had a bunch of suits and jackets and dresses she used to wear in the Taiwan that she has since outgrown (having two kids, she reminds me, will do that to your body so enjoy it now!) that I have now adopted into my own wardrobe.

Even now that I am on my own, I still revert back to those staples from my mom and my brother and I will often shop in the little boys section. If you're looking for menswear inspired things that are all the rage right now with labels like Rag & Bone, The Row, and Current/Elliot, look into little boys brands. Some of my favorite pieces are from the boys section. I favor abercrombie kids guys jeans, polo ralph laurent boys rugby shirts, and boys prep-school inspired blazers. The other great thing is that they are often heavily discounted at TJMaxx, abercrombie Kids, and Target.

Here are some looks I owe my mom and Jon (my brother):
Look #1


















Dress: Mom's dress circa 1990 (free)
Necklaces: vintage pendant ($18), Forever21 Layered Chain ($9)
Belt: Vintage MCM Ostrich ($3 at a sample sale)
Clutch: Topshop ruched champagne suede ($24)
Shoes: Jessica Simpson Gladiator Platforms ($89 full price)

Look #2

Jacket: Mom's houndstooth wool blazer (free)
Shirt: J.Crew Tank ($18)
Jeans: brother's old abercrombie Guys Jeans ($15 on sale)
Shoes: BCBGMax Azria pumps ($70 on sale)
Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs ($498)
Scarf: vintage Bayou tapestries scarf ($3)
Bracelets: Zipper bangle ($18), Forever21 studded bangles ($4)
Sunglasses: Ray ban Aviators ($129)