Runway to Real Way: How to Wear the Gothic Romance Trend

This whole "new romantic," "Gothic romance trend" is all the rage right now and I LOVE it. But translating this look from the runway to real life can be a challenge. Halloween is coming up and I don't necessarily want to walk around like a character from the Jane Austen zombie movie. (Yes, that was real.) But I do know that sooooo many of the pieces in my closet fit into this trend. I found the key to making this look less serious and brooding is to pair one Gothic-romantic piece with something fun or edgy. Think distressed denim, bright colors, statement jewelry and shoes in any color other than black.

High-neck blouses and tulle can look a little fussy, so here I mixed it up a bit by pairing a very Gothic-romantic top with distressed jeans, a chunky vintage necklace, bright clutch and lace-up red shoes (because hey, I have to throw in a ballet reference).

To keep things from getting too serious I styled a romantic black lace-trim dress with fun accents -- a burgundy feather necklace and the same red lace-up shoes.