In my last post about expanding your wardrobe with a 2 piece dress, I showed quite a few mix and match possibilities starting with a matching coral top and skirt. In this post, I’ll show the various options using the top and a pair of coral pants. Since coral is one of my favorite summer hues, I already had all of the pieces except the 2 new ones.

One big, important thing for you to know…I’m a personal stylist and wardrobe consultant. I am NOT a professional model or fashion blogger! (And this blog isn’t suddenly going to become a bunch of “what I wore” posts.) And I didn’t have a professional photographer…just my beloved husband! I didn’t even use a real camera, just my phone.

I was actually very surprised that my coral wide legged pants match with the coral, ruched top. (The pants always seemed a little more reddish.) This feels like the dressiest look of all of the pant looks. It somewhat imitates the look of a jumpsuit, so it could be perfect for a wedding shower, a casual wedding or an evening out. And as I outlined in the previous mix and match post, this could be perfect for a business trip/conference, especially one where there’s not a lot of down time for changing clothes.

So if you were in meetings all day with a dinner afterwards, you be able wear the above outfit with the blazer (pictured below.)  Lose the blazer and you’re ready for dinner!

This next 2 outfits includes the same pants, my Elie Tahari blouse I’ve had for a long time, and the same jacket…(that I got on sale 3 years ago!) It’s perfect for a day of client meetings, trainings, etc. It’s certainly a more professional look with the jacket, but the blouse has great coverage, so if it were too hot for the jacket, all would not be lost!

For casual Friday or a day of site seeing, etc. this next outfit would be perfect! The two Majestic tops are actually linen knit, essentially t-shirt material! And because they’re matching, it gives a more polished look than a t-shirt alone.

And not being a professional model/fashion blogger/photographer, I just remembered we forgot to take a photo of one of my favorite combinations! I’ve often worn the Elie Tahari printed blouse with the coral pants and the Majestic cardigan over it.

So…if we count the last undocumented outfit along with all of the other photos in this post, we have 6 outfits added to the 6 outfits I created with the skirt for a total of 12 in all! And this is the beauty of capsule or cluster dressing. I created 12 different outfits from 8 pieces. Were I strictly following the rules, (for creating a capsule,) I’d have been able to coordinate even more outfits!

When you buy quality clothing that you love, you can add new garments into your closet to pair up with the older things, and it’s virtually like revamping your entire wardrobe! Not only am I not spending a ton of money each season, but I save shopping time as well. But I really think the biggest benefit to shopping this way is that you get to continue wearing things you love, lower the cost per wear, and see them in a whole new, exciting light!

If you’re a client or a friend, you can pretty much count on seeing me in one of more of these outfits this summer! Luckily, none of you have included coral on your “don’t like” lists!