
Pleats are the secret miracle workers of the fashion industry. These guys can change the silhouette of a garment, make something more figure-flattering and add a whole lotta visual interest to an outfit. While we’ve already professed our adoration of accordion pleats, there are a ton more players in this pleat-filled game (box, knife and penny, to name a few). Here are 17 fabulous ways for you to fall in love with ’em all.
1. Pleated Midi Skirt in Floral Print ($77): This cheery floral midi would be great for a fun summer outing. We’re lovin’ the color scheme of this outfit.
2. Sweet Pleats Shorts ($23): When was the last time you saw an adult look this good in a skort? That’s right, we’re reviving this childhood trend.
3. Skater Dress With Pleats in Geo Jacquard ($61): This vintage print combined with the collared style just screams ’50s. Someone, please throw a Mad Men viewing party and wear this to it.
4. Inverted-Pleat Tulip Skirt ($69): Remember how we said pleats can totally change the silhouette of a garment? This whimsical tulip skirt is all the proof you need.
5. Skater Dress With Pleated Skirt ($77): Light and breezy dresses like this one are all that we want to wear during this time of year. We’d definitely pair this with a fresh flower crown.
6. Loosen Up Pants ($78): Oh, man! Just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, we discovered these billowy pleated pants. Tuck in a cute blouse and you could absolutely wear these to work.
7. Midi Skirt With Bold Pleats ($58): This simple skirt is an excellent way to add a pop of color to an outfit. We’d wear it exactly like this. See? A good crop top can be classy.
8. Crepe Shorts With Pleat Front ($113): Orange is absolutely a hot color this summer. These shorts could easily be dressed up with a tucked in blouse and a nice structured blazer.
9. Saya Shorts in Print ($61): It’s a little bit hard to tell because of the awesome print, but these shorts are extremely pleated. As in, they’re completely made of pleated fabric.
10. Accordion Pleated Maxi Dress ($120): Speaking of things made completely from pleats… how is it possible for a dress to be sostylish and comfortable at the same time?
11. Vintage in Shape Shorts ($128): Let’s take a trip back to the ’80s, shall we? We’re seriously crushin’ on everything this outfit has to offer, from these fantastic shorts to those metallic sandals.
12. Pleated Keyhole Blouse ($50): We seem to keep mentioning cute blouses when talking about work wardrobes, so you might want to add this to yours. That keyhole cutout is the perfect cherry on top.
13. Big Box Pleat Skirt ($157): What an ideal skirt for New Years! Although, we’ll probably end up wearing it many, many times before that. Sometimes, all you need is a single pleat (and a little gold).
14. Scuba Skater Skirt in Blue ($27): This simple blue skirt won us over within the first seconds of us seeing it. There’s just something so appealing about that pastel shade.
15. Skirt With Origami Pleat ($23): Forget boring box pleats, check out this origami pleat! We need to see lots more of these.
16. Garden Party Jacquard Dress ($73): Wait, sorry. We still love box pleats. If not worn to a garden party, this dress would be well-suited for a daytime wedding.
17. Pleated Maxi Skirt ($67): We’re huge color fanatics at Brit HQ, so skirts like this one really excite us. Maxi skirts just mean that we get to see even more of our favorite colors!
Which pleated garment are you totally obsessed with right now? Tell us in the comments below!
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures