Under the {fashion} influence: Leighton Meester

I think I have mentioned before that I have a notebook at home full of Lucky magazine cut outs and WWWD email print outs that I like to use as a lookbook. Not to be confused with my digital Lookbook account, of course. Instead this notebook is handier to me because I can pick it up and quickly flip through to my sections I have labeled according to season and occasion (dork, I know). I had to wean myself off of this lookbook because after I first completed it several months ago, I noticed I was picking it up every morning before work. This felt like cheating to me because I was no longer creating new outfits on my own. This lookbook was supposed to be for emergencies only—basically those mornings when I was really having a hard time putting an outfit together and was running late to work. It was supposed to be a privilege, not to be "abused" like I had been doing.

Anyway, I recently found myself in this exact predicament late last week when I need to something to go from "work to play" again, but I was running out of time to try on different ideas. So I snatched up my lookbook, found the above image of Leighton that I hadn't yet tried to recreate. I thought it would be a fun outfit that would transition perfectly from work to a girls night out at an Alabama Symphony Orchestra event with Time for Three (Which was incredible, btw. TF3 played Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and also Imogen Heap's "Hide and Seek" with the orchestra. AH-mazing). Turns out this image of Leighton was from a WWWD October 2009 e-newsletter, but hopefully something within two years is still in style...right?

Here's the cheapskate version outfit breakdown:

1. Dress, Anthropologie ($39.99)
2. Sweater vest, Forever21 ($5.99)
3. Skinny belt, Charlotte Russe ($3.33)
4. Knee socks, Century21 (?? - old)
5. Heels, Nine West Outlet ($29.99)
6. Doctor's bag, ATL Market ($30.00)
7. Owl ring, ATL Market ($2.50)
8. Gold "snake" earrings ATL Market ($2.00)
9. Gold cuff bracelet (gifted)
10. Gold bangles (gifted)

ps. I am by no means trying to compare myself with Leighton Meester, other than the fact that I tried to create a similar look. Let there be no misunderstanding that I think I look like her. ha!