Here is my first style board of the year. (Sorry, I didn’t get to do one for January because of the holidays and getting back into the swing of things.) Remember, this is a monthly feature so come back in the beginning of March for something new.

This month, in an effort to realize a style for myself that doesn’t involve spending much money, I’m focusing on wardrobe staples. I’m learning more and more that if you love fashion and style in this economic age, you have to learn to be a really thrifty shopper with an ingenious eye for seeing the potential in a single item of clothing. If it can’t be re-mixed in a handful of different ways, why bother?

So here is my little list of things that I think are wardrobe staples for me:

• Oversized denim men’s shirt with black skinny pants
• Denim jumper-esque dress
• Basic striped boatneck tee
• All purpose cardigan
• Tweed shorts
• Plaid button down
• Navy pencil skirt
• Gray skirt (with or without tights)
• Bonus: Sailor-inspired coordinates
• Easy canvas pull ons
• Vintage-inspired oxford pumps (so trendy right now but still such a classic look)
• Simple oxford flat

My staple items all have a definite menswear vibe in a neutral palette which I really love as a base for layering on girly, pretty things in bright colors or patterns. Each one of these pieces could be worn any number of different ways using various seasonal accessories. To me, their silhouettes have a timeless appeal that I won’t have to worry about going out of style in 6 months.

So there’s my first attempt at a style board. I used a mix of Polyvore and Photoshop to create it.