Just a quick note before we get into things - I promise to try to work on the pictures I take. But here's the thing - 500 sq. ft!! My husband did take most of the pictures beyond the 2nd or 3rd post. I just don't have room to get far enough away from him to help the angle, if you want to be able to see the pants. The apartment is also not lit very well, as it gets almost no natural light, so we're limited to a chandelier and a floor lamp. Can you tell that I hate this apartment?!? That said, I'll do my best to try to make the pictures better - for me as well as for you!! There's nothing worse than thinking you look good all day and then seeing pictures of yourself that suck.
So, now to the real work.
Some of you may have seen my post on the Fashion and Beauty board on the Nest. I have an Admitted Students Weekend up at Hamline on March 14th and 15th. I called, and was given sort of an outline of the dress for the event. Friday night is a cocktail and hors d'oeuvre reception at a pretty nice hotel in Minneapolis. The cheapest room is $150, and the pictures make it look like a pretty fancy place: http://www.thedepotminneapolis.com/hotels/renaissance-hotel.asp. They told me first business casual, but then the girl kept talking for a while, and made me think that probably the casual part should be dropped - making it business wear. She said this was appropriate for both days.
On Saturday, I was planning on wearing the outfit a couple posts down: coral wrap shirt with black lace cami, gray wide leg pants. I'll probably wear different shoes though, since I don't know where all we will be walking. I got a GREAT deal at Kohl's the other day on a pair of shiny black ballet flats, so those seem like a good choice. I don't have a picture of them yet, but they look like these, if you can imagine them all solid black.

That outfit is very comfortable, and it looks great as well. I do have one concern with the flats, that maybe someone can help me with. I think I have high arches. A lot of the time, heels are more comfortable, simply because the shoe's arch more closely matches mine. Flats don't offer any support, so I end up with aching arches. This would seem to have an easy solution - wear mostly heels! But the problem is that up until the past year and a half or so, I was a tennis shoe girl. When I was in high school, I would wear down tennis shoes to the point where they had actual holes in them inside of six months, because I wore them all day every day. While my high-heel-walking skills are improving, they still aren't perfect. Has anyone had any success with insoles for flats?
Now, the more complex outfit - Friday night. From what the girl said, it doesn't sound like cocktail dress, but it sounds like what I would consider probably formal business wear. I probably won't make H wear a suit, but I don't think he would be out of place doing so. I don't know if I explained myself properly on the Nest, so I'll try again here, but perhaps I'm just overthinking. I have a full tuition scholarship to this school. I plan on meeting and networking with professors. While I know it's more important that I show them that I'm worth their money in the classroom, I can't help but feel like I shouldn't look like a total mess. I want to look really pulled together and polished, for me and for them.
(Sidebar: I'm finally getting to know what it feels like when you wear clothes that you really feel good in. It makes a HUGE difference!)
The wonderful ladies on the Nest suggested a sheath dress with a jacket over it. This was my interpretation of that:
JCPenney, $24.99
Target, $29.99
Thoughts?
I also like this from Newport-News.com:

This is actually part of their 10 Items 10 Ways Feature. I like all of it, except for the 1st and last outfits:
http://www.newport-news.com/shop/category_splash.aspx?gp_coll_id=9&gp_cat_id=1649&gp_fashcoll_id=201
Are they horribly, horribly wrong for me?
A final note:
I'm learning to like color. I'm trying very, very hard. For my actual clothes, I'll probably stick to my black/brown/blue standbys, plus the addition of jewel tones like you all suggested. But, accessories can be any color! How fun! They can be bright! I decided I wanted a new purse for spring, and I was wandering around Gordman's. I said to myself, if 2 of my three sisters can carry bright red purses, why the heck can't I have a blue one? So I bought it! I have a bright blue purse with white polka dots! It's not going to be something that I can use all the time, but how fun for spring and summer!