How to Use an Inspo Outfit to Create Your Own Unique Look on a Budget

3 Materials
$12
10 Minutes
Easy

Do you see beautiful outfits online and wish that you had them in your closet but the price is out of reach? Your dream style can be yours for a fraction of the cost.

I have so many outfits pinned on my Pinterest board, I thought it would be fun to recreate some of them for as little $ as possible and show you how I did it, plus how to use an inspo outfit as a springboard into creating your own unique outfit.

In this photo, the long belted blazer ( a trend right now) over a feather skirt gives a fun high-end fashion style. I am sure the skirt alone would break my budget for this look.

I already owned the long black blazer, I have had it for over 20 years, but black blazers are easily found for under $10 at your local thrift store. Consignment stores,Poshmark, eBay, Mercari or borrowing from friends are all great ways to piece outfits together for recreation and stay under budget.


I knew the feather skirt would be near impossible to find on a small budget, but at my local Goodwill, I did find a $4 mermaid style lace skirt, which gives the formal style like the inspo. In recreating an outfit, don't get hung up on trying to get the same exact things, you want it to be your own look, the key is to try to keep the lines the same.

A black belt with a large gold buckle is also an easy thrift find, but I changed it up a little when I saw this beautiful gold jeweled belt. The thrift price was only $4.50! This is another example of taking the lines of the inspo but adding a little of your own style to it.


The vintage gold and black striped tie was also $3 thrift find. Again, not in the inspo photo, but I knew it would look great with the belt.

I was able to recreate the same lines and color as the inspo photo, providing extra visual interest in the belt and tie. The mermaid lace skirt which would normally be used for a more formal outfit, like the feather skirt, gets toned down by the long blazer, making it more wearable for the office.

Making this inspo more into my style, I took off the blazer and tucked the tie into the belt. Not something you see every day, but it again creates visual interest which always makes an outfit stand out. I used a ruffled high collar shirt, instead of fold-down collar to wear the tie. the ruffle mimics the mermaid skirt and balances it out. Losing the blazer and having the button-down shirt, tones the formal skirt down even more, but the gold & jeweled details add back to the glam style.

The gold detail in the tie and belt is also picked up in the detail on the strappy Aldo heels.

Don't be afraid to wear more formal pieces in everyday office wear, pairing them with less formal things will tone down the formality and make them more wearable.

Keeping everything black makes the gold accessories the main focus of this outfit. Aviator sunglasses give a more casual look. A quilted bag with gold detail keeps the overall theme. This outfit only cost me $12 to create since I had the top and blazer already. A unique outfit created from an inspo look. A lot of style punch for very little $.

Blessings,

Eden

Suggested materials:
  • Skirt   (Goodwill)
  • Belt   (Goodwill)
  • Tie   (Goodwill)

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