Beauty...
Be your own
kind of beautiful
Be your own
kind of beautiful
By Mollysims.com
We delve into all things spring style and travel with Mary Lawless Lee, entrepreneur, blogger, and travel expert! From wardrobe essentials to career pivots, Mary shares her incredible journey from ICU nurse to the creator behind the beloved blog Happily Grey. Known for her distinctive fashion sense, which often blends timeless elegance with contemporary trends, and top-notch travel guides, Mary reveals how she finds beauty in the everyday and embraces life’s unpredictability. Plus, Mary lets us in on the trends she’ll be embracing this spring (and which ones she’ll be turning a cold shoulder to), along with her insider travel tips with kids, dream travel destinations, and where she’s vacationing next.
“If I had to describe my fashion style in one word, it would be textural. If you’re wearing one color head to toe, adding some texture can make it so interesting. My fashion sense has evolved in different seasons and it’s very dependent on the mood. By mood, I don’t mean day by day, but more so over a few years. I’ve departed from trends and now all I crave is classics and wardrobe staples. I have three kids so I need an outfit that I can run, play, and pick them up in, but still want to feel chic and sophisticated. I love the warmth of a chocolate colored piece and it pairs well with cream and black. I feel like the versatility of a chocolate piece is really becoming a wardrobe staple for me. This is not true to my past, but I also love girl core, like bows, ruffles, and lace. It feels kind of like a departure from my day-to-day life with three kids. Recently, I’ve been playing around with bows to feel young and carefree, and lace to feel a little witty and romantic. “
“A trench coat serves whatever city you’re in and it can come in many different forms. You can dress it up or you can dress it down. Exaggerated details are what I look for in a trench coat. I think being playful with the trench and finding one that’s a good length and has those dramatic details allows you to take it from day to night. You can also just throw it on over a sweatsuit or pajamas. I feel like women sometimes feel like they’re engulfed by a trench because they think, the bigger the better, but cinching the waistline helps. Season in, season out, another must-have for me is a white dress. I don’t follow the don’t wear white in Winter rule. The crisp white dress sounds boring, but it’s such a staple piece that you can pair with a knit sweater or a denim jacket over. There’s an elegance to it, but it’s also just functional. Both of these are seasonless pieces that you can easily transition for any look.”
“I don’t know if people are going away from this, but I’m going away from this – the daytime clutch. Have you seen women carrying a clutch during the daytime? It’s cute and I do love the look, but it’s just not realistic. I tried it the other day and I have like 50 things that need to go in my bag, especially as a mom of three, so I need a sack like Santa Claus. I have all this random shit in my bag so it’s a no on the daytime clutch for me. Again it’s chic, but not realistic.”
“You know what’s made me better? I don’t know if I’m incredible, but I’ve definitely gotten better – kids. It’s a whole new ballgame with kids because anytime we’re traveling, I have to plan every look that I’m wearing. There’s no more packing all of the things that I love right now and just styling it when I get there. There’s no room for that because of how strategic I have to be with space. Now, I plan all my outfits. I try everything on before, I take a picture of the outfit on my phone and then I create a folder for each trip. The folder’s name is whatever city I’m going to and the dates of the trip. It’s great because I then have a reference on the trip, especially when I’m traveling for more than 3-4 days. I also don’t want to pack 5 bags with me.I do the same pictures in the folder process for my 3 kids. I lay out all their looks and take pictures of everything. My husband thinks I’m crazy and then he packs like six things in the suitcase and ends up being the one that’s out shopping. I will say it’s better to over-pack than under-pack. In addition to the looks I pack, I also throw in four or five other pieces that are staples that can transition throughout multiple looks.”
**Click HERE to shop all the products mentioned in this episode.**
