When Carolyn reached out and expressed interest in a closet overhaul/wardrobe refresh, I immediately jumped at the chance. You know that one friend that you never fight with? Who lets you vent to her even though you haven't checked in in months? Carolyn is that friend for me. When I was desperate to find another job, she took time out of her insanely busy schedule to critique my resume and help me with my search. I could never repay her for all she's done for me, but a fashionable afternoon sure is a good start.

Carolyn has a similar problem that many of us ladies face...closet full of clothes, nothing to wear (pretty sure that's an SATC quote). So our objectives were as follows:

find new outfits within closet and pull together pieces that Carolyn wouldn't normally wear
de-clutter and make room for wardrobe staples
compile a reasonable list of new acquisitions

Carolyn gets stuck with how to style certain pieces, and sometimes finds herself reaching for the same top and jeans again and again. I think this is something we all do; heck, my whole style philosophy basically revolves around the principle of wearing the same outfit over and over and just changing up the "add-ons." So the very first thing we did was take a piece that Carolyn has worn dozens of times and change up the add-ons to refresh the piece.

The piece in question is the gauzy jewel toned top you see here. Carolyn usually wears it buttoned up over a tank, with a belt. When I suggested putting it over the white, flowy tank and scarf (Carolyn loves scarves), she said, "I never would have picked this!" Bingo.

Carolyn has been wearing a lot of skinny jeans lately, so to switch it up, I asked to see her boot cut jeans. Another unexpected pairing but Carolyn liked the way the outfit turned out, and I think she looks adorable and comfortable, yet put together.

Speaking of unexpected combinations, following her business casual dress code at the office has left Carolyn occasionally feeling like she's rewearing the same pieces (see the pattern here?). Though she likes the fact that she can throw on comfortable jeans and head out, she still wants to feel polished for work.

Carolyn loves v-neck shirts and I happen to know for a fact that she looks fantastic in a wrap dress. As we were going through her clothes, I came across this kind of tie-dye cardigan that Carolyn uses as a beach cover-up. But I had an idea. We wrapped it, tied it, and covered it with a blazer - instantly work appropriate with that same silhouette that works so well for her. We paired it with dark, high-waisted jeans and knee high boots.

Last but not least was deducing a way to keep this awesome blouse that Carolyn hasn't figured out how to wear yet. I simply would not let her get rid of it because she looks so beautiful in navy, right? So again, we took some high waisted jeans and an old brown belt...