Dressing up Flannel Y'all

These are the awesome "Boyfriend Shirts" at J.Crew. So cute!

Lets talk about some flannel!!!! Okay so literally within the past three years I've noticed that flannel is becoming really popular. Flannel is not only for the guys or "lumber jacks" but it's now being worn by girls. Not only is flannel being worn by girls, the girls are dressing the flannel up. When I say flannel I don't mean like flannel pajama pants but flannel shirts. The flannel shirts I am talking about are not baggy or loose either. Nice flannel shirts (from good stores) are fitted like a nice women's button up shirt. I'm so guilty of dressing up the boring flannel shirt and making it dressy. There are tons of ways to dress it up and I want to tell you how to do it.

Sporting the chunky pearls with the casual flannel

I became a flannel owner three years ago when my ex boyfriend invited me to go to his fraternities Fall House. For those of you who don't know what Fall House is, it's this amazingly fun weekend where fraternities go to the mountains and rent these huge mountain houses and everyone throws a wild party. So to prepare for the upcoming weekend, I went to J.Crew (one of my favorite stores ever) with Mommy during fall break. While I was shopping at J.Crew, I bought a few sweaters and one flannel shirt. I wore that flannel shirt under a cute knit sweater but I have also dressed that flannel shirt up a with a black scarf, skinny jeans and a cute pair of my brown boots, and some jewelry. Since that first experience from buying flannel led to so many wardrobe possibilities, I got two more flannel shirts.

This girl knows how to dress up her flannel shirt.

With these two new flannel shirts the wardrobe ideas began bouncing around in my head. Now, I only have 3 flannel shirts but I really think more than that would be flannel overload! But, when I wear these flannel shirts or when y'all pick out a flannel shirt and you want to give it that something something then simply follow these rules to dressing up your flannel. I know I said earlier that I wore boots with my flannel but that's not all you can wear with it. Literally any shoe will do, especially a cute ballet flat. Moving on though, you can obviously wear a scarf like I said early and tie the scarf in which ever way you like. If you don't want a scarf go for a vest. Any type of vest will do. I like to wear my flannel with one of my fur vests because I really feel like it completes the the outfit. If you don't have a vest then you can find a cute sweater that will compliment your flannel shirts colors and you can sport that look. (It's a good look. I've done it plenty of times).

This woman has paired her flannel with the classic fur vest and scarf. She's also wearing 3 bracelets.

If a scarf, vest or sweater isn't you, then there are plenty of other ways to dress up flannel. J.Crew is the master of dressing up flannel. They will pair a basic flannel shirt with a gold sequined mini skirt, black tights and black velvet booties. That's not really my style but I've seen someone at Wofford wear this look on a Friday night and I can honestly say, that if worn on the right person, it can work. But of course that look isn't for everyone.

Cute look. Cute red flats. See, no boots here. 

So, not only can fun skirts dress up a flannel shirt but cute pants can as well. Just because you have a flannel shirt on does not mean under any circumstances that you only can or have to wear a pair of blue jeans! No, no, no!!!!! I mean you obviously can but lets try and be more exciting than just a pair of jeans. SNORE! I personally don't love jeans (that's why I don't have a lot) so I try to find a pretty pant to wear with my flannel shirt. A colorful cord is always a fun route to take, but just make sure it's not too much. Even a bold printed pant is something you can pair with your flannel, if you dare. Some stores are trying to get people to accept cheetah print and flannel together in the same outfit. That idea goes against one of my fashion rules! When picking out an outfit you can't have two strong prints. Just like in a marriage you can't have two overbearing and dominant people, you can't have two strong prints because the two will clash! Play it safe and pick one bold print each day but pair that bold print with a fun color pant or shirt that compliments it or matches it.

Daring look. But try it if you think you can pull it off.

Now when it comes to flannel and jewelry, the possibilities are endless! I love to pair a flannel shirt with a strand of big chunky pearls. My mom used to want to steal my multiple strand necklace of chunky pearls to wear with her flannel shirt because she liked the idea. She found a chunky pearl necklace at J.Crew but I got mine years ago at Forever 21 and it wasn't expensive. Many stores sell them, so go get one and jazz up your outfit. But if you're not a pearl girl (like me) then you can go with the trendy over sized rhinestone necklaces. I have one and I love it. Any statement necklace, as long as it matches will look great with flannel. Most all earrings look great with flannel too. Big or small and as long as they match, you can wear them. Same goes for bracelets and rings. Don't over do it with the bracelets! You want to have some arm candy but you don't want a fashion cavity. Put 3 or 4 bracelets (or less), paired with your watch and that will really make your flannel shirt pop!

Pretty flannel shirt. (I have that shirt).

These are just a few tips that I believe really help to dress up a flannel shirt. If you think of flannel shirts as being boyish, "lumber jack" or even sloppy then think again! There are literally endless possibilities to make flannel look more dressed up. Why wouldn't you want to dress up a shirt that is comfortable and soft? If you don't own any flannel then go out and buy a flannel shirt and dress it up. I promise you, that you'll love the way you look.