Style Icon: Spencer Hastings

Dear Readers,

It's a sad day. It's such a sad, sad day indeed. Today, I watched the Mid-Season Finale of 'Pretty Little Liars' and my life is now as empty as my purse. I'm not kidding, especially about my purse being empty.

In order to fill the void that will permeate my existence each and every Wednesday - I watch PLL online each Wednesday since I don't have ABC grrr.. - I decided to dedicate a style icon post to each of the Pretty Little Liars over the coming weeks. I might also do a post on the HUNKS in this series. They do have some seriously handsome men on that show, my God!

I'm starting with my favourite character, hands down: Spencer Hastings. Not only is she the most interesting character on the show, she's definitely the most stylish as well. Personally, I find that Spencer's style says a lot about her upbringing and background. Spencer is an overachiever, the daughter of a very prestigious and demanding family. Therefore, Spencer grew up to be an impeccable perfectionist, and this character trait is definitely reflected in her sense of style.

Double Denim!

Spencer Hastings is Pretty Little Liars' equivalent of Blair Waldorf in 'Gossip Girl'. Like Queen B, Spencer's style is extremely preppy and put together. Spencer is not the girl next door, she's refined, polished and very, oh so very, neat. However, her style differs from Blair's quite significantly. Unlike B, Spencer wears plenty of trousers. Both Spencer and Blair like structured, tailored pieces, but Spencer incorporates male-inspired pieces in her style too. On the one hand, Blair's style is highly feminine, on the other hand, Spencer plays with feminine and masculine pieces. I personally love how she always waters down male-inspired pieces, such as boyfriend blazers, with feminine details like pretty blouses or belts. Whilst Spencer's style might initially seem very conservative - let's face it, she's always dressed as if she was going to the Country Club - she does include some 'trendier' or 'bolder' elements in her looks. Let's not forget that Spencer was the little liar who was brave enough to wear double denim and a shoulder-less shirt! To boil it down, Spencer's style is all about preppy looks, structured pieces and plenty of layering.

Layering rocks.

Okay, let's break down Spencer's style slowly. First of all, what are Spencer's wardrobe staples? Her basic items are typical preppy staples. Spencer is as mad about blazers as I am. She has hundreds of structured, clean-lined blazers that she wears to perfection. As I already highlighted, Spencer likes masculine-inspired pieces, so her boyfriend blazers are an essential item in her closet. I remember she once wore an amazing denim blazer - that is something Blair would never wear, ever! - which proves that she likes to vary her blazers too. Since Spencer is all about layering and mixing textures, she wears a lot of cardigans, tights, little belts and blouses. She also likes button-down shirts with vintage accents. Like every preppy lady, Spencer usually buttons up all her shirt. She's doesn't really do cleavage. Another staple item in Spencer's wardrobe are tight, skinny pants and jeans. I noticed that she has a thing for ankle-length trousers, and I adore her for that! Spencer does wear skirts, and when she does, they're usually fitted, bodycon skirts.

With regard to shoes, Spencer makes extremely stylish choices as well. Loafers, brogues and Oxfords are her bread and butter. We all know - or should know - that all three shoe-types are the basic preppy / geek chic shoes. In a couple of episodes, Spencer opted for equestrian, knee-high boots. She did, in fact, pair her double denim combo with such boots. Just in case  you're wondering, yes, Spencer wears flat shoes most of the time.

Before moving on to some Spencer-inspired sets I styled for you, I want to mention Spencer's choice of colours. Neutral colours are Spencer's favourites, and she frequently wears earth tones as well. Other colours like navy blue, deep red and mustard were also worn by our favourite Hastings girl.

So, as promised, these are a couple of sets inspired by Spencer Hastings style that you can use as reference. I obviously used the guidelines I described in this post to come up with the outfits. Enjoy!

-B