Your Best Tips: Sonia from In Pursuit of Style

This week's tip comes from Sonia from inpursuitofstyle.soniasgupta.com. If you have a beauty or style tip you'd like to share, email elleseesyou@gmail.com.

Color Outside the Lines

It's my pleasure to be a guest blogger on Elle Sees! As a real girl trying to make it in the big city, I hope my tips on how to look trendy on a budget help out budget-friendly trendsetters everywhere. After so many seasons of boring, neutral palettes across the fashion world, COLOR is back in a big way! For Spring/Summer 2011, vibrant pinks, greens, blues and oranges walked down the runway of our favorite design houses:

{ Celine, Gucci, Prada }

Since not everyone can blow four figures for a high fashion hue-tastic look, many mainstream designers are interpreting the look in an understandable way – and as far as I see it, the key to strutting in all different shades is minimalism.

Bright colors really stand for themselves, and you don’t need to keep adding layers to be ‘in fashion’ – keep it simple & chic. Here are three easy, foolproof ways to follow the trend without breaking the bank:

One: 2 colors + 1 neutral = Perfection

Vibrant separates can be a lot to take when you aren’t used to wearing colors (reference: New Yorkers all in black) – don’t overwhelm with too many colors. I have found that 2 hues are just the ticket. Offset the eye-opening color with that neutral bottom hanging in your closet.

{ Cardi: J.Crew } { Tank: H&M } { Pants: Zara – previously owned } { Shoes: Bakers – previously owned} { Necklace: F21 } { Total Cost To Trendy: $65 }

Two: Stripes

Mixing a few colors may be uncomfortable to some –stripes are a great way to tone down the colorblocking. Keep the colors of your stand-out piece in tandem with the stripes – and add a neutral 3^rd piece to dress it up.

{ Blazer: Gap – previously owned } { Shirt: Zara } { Pants: Zara } { Shoes: Zara – previously owned }           { Sunnies: River Island – previously owned } { Total Cost To Trendy: $110}

Two: Alarming Accessories

As usual, accessorizing in the season’s palette is the easiest (and cheapest!) way to update your style without going into debt. Mix that LBD with a bright necklace or throw on some sassy shoes with a vibrant handbag, and you are so 2011.

{ Dress: Zara – previously owned } { Necklace: Chinatown NYC } { Shoes: Cynthia Vincent for Target } { Sunnies: Banana Republic – previously owned } { Total Cost To Trendy: $50 }

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