Hooks the Look

Would You, Could You? Double Belted, Double Denim

Double double, toil and trouble … can I charm you into trying a double-belted, double-denim look? Indeed, there’s a bit of witch’s brew styling inspiration going on with this outfit.

Would You, Could you? is the guiding theme for my posts that are published on the second Saturday of the month. Such is the question one might ask of oneself when happening upon fashion inspirations in magazine articles, store displays, or social media. Or you might find inspiration in an unexpected place like a sunset, or a desert landscape, or a plate of food.  Sometimes it might just be the heap of cast-offs in your closet.

In the case of today’s look, I can assure you that it’s not the result of an evil spell. Despite my butchering of a literary classic, the inspiration for my outfit came from combining details I saw in retail advertisements from two different retailers. Last month, I noticed outfits like this one style with two or more belts of different colors, widths, and textures. More recently, I spied this look on Refinery29 among the look-ahead views of the upcoming Target collaborations. Double your pleasure, double your fun?

Technically, I’m sporting three denim items; I could have gone for more but I thought a little restraint was a wise move. And as typical for me, the whole of this look is a combination of retail and secondhand purchases. The dress (also seen in Would You, Could You? Dress Over Palazzo Pants and Fresh Focus: Buffalo Plaid) as well as the braided black belt were retail purchase items. The jeans, the bronze belt, the boots, and the vest were secondhand purchases with the last being a recent find that was made just this past week.

I like the look of a long tail of a belt being looped over so when I bought the black one, I sized up and got an XXL for the extra length. Since the belt is braided, there are no set holes and it’s quite flexible making it possible to achieve the loop-over look. I also interlinked the belts to visually “connect” them and so that they would stay together. The loop-over also helped to keep the tail of the bronze belt from flapping freely.

My approach in putting together a noteworthy double (or triple) denim look is to treat each piece as if it’s a tonal pattern of blue. Like you would do with any monochromatic outfit, it’s important to consider whether or not the patterns and colors of the garments compliment each other. In my experience, not all denims play nicely together. Pairing up a lighter and a darker shade can keep the look from being too matchy-matchy if that is your preference. You can also use a completer piece, like a vest or scarf, to tie two other pieces together.

Let’s Wrap This Up

Now, onto the Fine-Whatever link-up. My featured blogger from the last week’s link-up is Laura, an on-the-go mommy striving to make the most out of her budget, closet, and life in general. Pop over to her blog, I do deClaire for her insights on making fashion less time-consuming, less expensive, and less uncomfortable.

Have I successfully influenced you to give either a double-belted or a double-denim look a go? Or both? Are these looks you would or could try? What are the biggest influences on your style choices? Where do you find your fashion inspirations? Do share your thoughts in a comment.

Stay well and let’s keep in touch! Subscribe, tweet, follow, friend, pin … all options are available. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

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Note: This is an unsponsored post; however, some or all of the links to clothing items are associated with an affiliate program where I earned a few cents for each click.

Photos: MMPerez

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42 Comments

  1. terrigardner1

    Love what you have done here and went to take a look at Target’s u[coming collection. I got a smile when I saw Rachel Comey. She is one of my favorite Vogue Pattern designers. I do wear blue chambray with denim a lot. The belt idea is a good one. I just don’t know if I have two belts that would pair as nicely as what you’ve done. I like yours better the one at Banana Republic-it was just too heavy a look for that dress, I thought. Take care, Terri

    • Rena Post Author

      Terri, I’m glad that you like my spin on the double-belted look. I didn’t know that about Rachel Comey but I did notice the details that her designs have which I really like.

  2. Cool Esse

    Denim on denim is tricky, you put this look together well! Thanks for the link up! 💜

    • Rena Post Author

      Double denim is indeed a tricky combo and I’m glad that you like how I’ve done it.

  4. Gail Hanlon

    One of my favorite looks on you! Very cool and contemporary

    • Rena Post Author

      Gail, I’m so pleased that you find this look to be “cool and contemporary”. A compliment like that is hard to beat.

    • Rena Post Author

      Laurie, how wonderful. I’m so glad that you like this look.

  6. Nicole from High Latitude Style

    This outfit is stunning. Perfect for summer to fall transition of a rainy day at the end of summer. It works despite of being technically three denim pieces because they are distinctly different colors. Yes, I would wear a look like this.

    • Rena Post Author

      Nicole, thank you for this amazing compliment. It would be great to see your spin on these styling ideas.

  7. Pamela Graham

    Wow triple denim looks great! Actually love the way you’ve looped the belts, I always wonder how to make them work!

    • Rena Post Author

      Thank you, Pamela. A blog post idea I’d kicked around for a while was to do a quad or quint denim look; head to toe, jacket to shoes and everything in between. How crazy would that be?

  8. thisblondesshoppingbag

    I say you did a great job with this one, triple denim is even better than double denim. Thanks for the link up Rena, have a great weekend!
    xo,
    Kellyann

    • Rena Post Author

      Kellyann, why stop at two when three could be better, right? Thank you for the compliments and for joining the link-up.

  9. ratnamurti

    It all looks good, and original.. Would I? Could I? seems to have become my default dressing style during lockdown.

    • Rena Post Author

      We all need to be a bit braver and take chances with what we wear.

  10. Mica - Away From Blue

    I’ve never seen triple denim before, you wear it so well! I’ve not tried the doubled belt trick either although I do have one belt that’s meant to be worn wrapped around twice – I used to wear it a lot to the office with dresses but it hasn’t been worn much with working from home life – need to try work it into my casual wardrobe more often I think! 🙂

    Thank you for the link up!

    Hope you are having a nice weekend 🙂 Busy Sunday here, after 3 parties yesterday we have another one to go to today!

    • Rena Post Author

      Mica, what a dear compliment. Thank you. I like the idea of a wrap-around belt but I’ve never come across one. It certainly sounds like you’ve had a busy weekend.

  11. Sheila (of Ephemera)

    Rena, this is such a fun outfit! I love the triple denim (that’s a 9.9 degree of difficulty!), and the double belts. I struggle with double belts, myself, due to big boobs and a short waist – all that belting in the middle does the opposite effect for me and makes it look like I have zero waist! But if you do a topper piece…oh, you are so clever! The braided belt is such a good idea to get in the XL version for the extra length too!

    Thanks so much for the link party! Rock on with your bad self, baby!

    • Rena Post Author

      Sheila, degrees of difficulty 🤣. Thanks for the chuckle and the compliment. I also have a generous set of boobs and I’m short waisted so I know that not all styles with look like I want them to look on me but that doesn’t mean that results are not good. And I do think that the vest helps out a lot. I typically wear a topper (I kind of feel over exposed without one).

    • Rena Post Author

      Thank you, Heather. I’m so pleased that you like the look.

  13. laurabambrick

    I never would have thought of using 2 belts! It’s a fun take on layering! Love the double denim and you did a great job with it by mixing up the shades! Thank you so much for the feature!

    • Rena Post Author

      Laura, you’re most welcome for the shoutout. I’m so pleased that you’re making my link-up part of your regular routine. The double-belted thing certainly caught my eye when if first say it and I’m glad you like my double-denim look.

  14. marsha57

    Oh, I love this denim on denim on denim look! I admit I’ve shied away from the denim on denim look because of the Canadian or Texas tuxedo thing. But, thinking of them as different shades of blue makes perfect sense! You’re making me wish I had a denim vest! And, like Sheila, I’m short waisted so I don’t know if I could pull of doubling belts, but I am going to be checking my belts for a long one to try to wrap it like you did!

    Thanks for the link party!

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

    • Rena Post Author

      Marsha, I can see how double-denim can easily be a miss rather than a hit. As for the double belts, I’m also short-waisted with a generous chest which has had me shying away from wearing any belts for a long time. However, I think it works in this look because the long line of the dress and the vest visually slims my upper torso.

    • Rena Post Author

      Thank you, Jan. I enjoyed the challenge of putting it together and I’m glad that you like the look.

  16. Karen

    Love this look. You absolutely nailed this double denim look, Rena!

  18. shelbeeontheedge1

    This is such a cool outfit, Rena! I really like the idea of double belts and I love the way you twisted and looped them together. I always buy my braided belts larger for the same reason…so I can do fun little twisty styles with them! Your new thrifted vest is wonderful! What a cool print and it works perfectly with you other denim pieces. I agree that not all denim works together and getting the perfect washes together can be difficult. But you nailed it! I love this whole look!

    Shelbee
    http://www.shelbeeontheedge.com

  20. Lauren Renee Sparks

    I like the double denim. I would have never thought of double belting. I don’t belt much at all since I have a thick waist and big boobs.

  21. The Grey Brunette

    I’m really not much of a belt person — not because I don’t like them, but simply because I just never feel quite ‘right’ in them. It sounds daft, I know! I really need to try and get over it. I absolutely LOVE what you’ve done here. I like the look of double denim, and you’ve nailed it probably better than anyone else I’ve seen in a long time! I love everything about the top, and the jeans. It’s absolutely fabulous, Rena!
    Hugs
    Suzy xx

  22. aquamarinastyle

    Rena, this is such a cute look! I have a denim tunic and will definitely give this outfit a try! Thanks for the inspiration–and the witch’s brew.

    xx Darlene

  25. thestylesplash

    I’ve never seen the double belt trick before but I really like it! I love the denim on denim too, the vest over the long shirt looks great! Thanks for linking up!

    Emma xxx
    http://www.style-splash.com

  26. Lucy Bertoldi

    I love this whole belt creativity! Especially with the denim- loving this look!

  27. Graceful Rags

    I’ve never thought about wearing two belts before! I like how unique the look is. I think the only double thing you’re missing is two crossbody bags – remember when that was briefly a trend??
    Thanks for joining my linkup, and I hope you’re having a great week!

    Miles of smiles,
    Grace

    gracefulrags.com