Style (E)scapes: What's In Jen's Closet?

Talk about kicking off a week with style - how about a gal who creates it, photographs it, and sells it?

I'm talking about the amazingly talented Jen Gotch, whose photography I fell in love with at My Polaroid Blog. I then proceeded to fall in love with her (and Jamie's!) creations over at ban.do. I finally got to meet Jen when I was photographed at her house for Lucky Magazine. Fate. Because, that my friends, is when I fell in love with her wardrobe! I asked Jen to share her closet and her favorites in it for spring because this girl has a serious eye for vintage gorgeousness. Let's have a look shall we....?

well, hello! I’m jen gotch - a photographer, stylist, blogger and ban.do maker. i am so happy to be here, especially since coco+kelley is on my list of daily reads.

i think it is safe to say that i could be described as a clothes horse (def: refers to a person excessively or obsessively interested in clothes, often to a humorous extent), oh and a pack rat, too. see a pattern? i don’t like to get rid of things. so, as you might imagine, my closet(s) are bursting at the seams. of course a lot of what is in there doesn’t fit, is stained, ripped or totally out of style, but still they’re there.

my wardrobe philosophy is as follows:

*1. matching is a crime
*2. buying an outfit off of a mannequin, also a crime.
*3. sequins are as important as vitamins, and should be treated as such. a day without sequins is a bad day.
*4. if you feel great in it - - that’s all that matters.
*5. it’s ok to splurge on shoes and jeans that make your butt look great. i’m guilty of both.
it's also ok to spend 3 dollars on a dress. guilty of that as well, and it is one of my favorites.

Jen's Top Picks from Her Wardrobe for Spring...

gold and silver shoes. my addiction to shiny sparkly things (like a moth to a flame) has drawn me to several pairs. these are my favorite. from left to right: vintage slippers with a kitten heel from long beach flea market $5, super cute gold dancing shoes. a cinderella story really... i was with two friends at the pasadena city college swap meet and they spotted them first. they were too big for one friend and too small for the other, and yes, you guessed it, they fit me perfectly. sold, 20 bucks! finally, a splurge, but quite possibly my favorite pair of shoes. purchased 4 years ago at sigerson morrison. price...unspeakable.

this style of dress probably has a name, but i just call it awesome. gold and silver metallic thread. sparkles, again. i think i was channeling rachel zoe that day. the good news is that i didn't have to drop thousands of dollars at decades in order to do it. $60 bucks at the rose bowl flea market. now i just need a party.

my summer shades. way too big for my face, but totally glamorous. they are sabina by oliver peoples in crystal/rosaline wtih cherry bomb gradient. cherry bomb gradient? i don't even know what it means, but i love the sound of it. these would be a total splurge, and one that i would not be able to make at this time, but i got them as a gift (they retail for $375). oh and if you go to the oliver peoples site, there is a cute movie starring zooey d.

ok, well you can't say i didn't warn you. i am a sucker for sequins. i think i must have been a vegas showgirl in a past life. i wish i could have kept the same body for this life! this is my carry all. my friend and ban.do partner, jamie, bought it for me for christmas. forever 21, $30 . . .of course the shoulder strap broke the first day i used it (maybe due to the weight of the contents). apparently it is much more fashionable to carry the bag by its little handles, so i'm good.

ahhhhhh, trifari. i almost lost out on this one in a horrible bidding wore with a bitchy british girl that had crazy teeth and didn't know what windex was. in the eleventh hour she caved . . . it was my birthday after all. i promised her and the dealer i would wear it every day. i broke the promise, but i still treasure this piece. from the rose bowl flea market, $35.

something new from ban.do. a sneak peek of sorts. we are creating all of these really fun collars. i plan to rock the big black bow all summer long!

Lessons to be learned from Jen? She totally owns her personal style - she knows what she loves, and isn't afraid to rock the sequins from morning to night! Embrace your style and wear it with confidence. She's also a hunter - don't forget that some of the most gorgeous pieces are hiding away in flea markets and thrift stores (and yes, sometimes even in Forever 21). And, just in case you're dying to know more, I have a little Q+A from this talented gal to come..!