Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
Today is a rare day. I actually wanted to wear a pair of pants. And then did! I'm not a huge pants-wearer. I don't even own that many pairs. This is one of the few pairs I own. They are a pair of cropped plaid pants that are somewhat business dressy. I like the look of cropped pants with boots, so to keep the neutral color scheme going I pulled my tan boots out of the bottom of the stack in the closet and paired it with my JCrew crest sweater.



These crest details that JCrew uses on their clothes and accessories are my weakness. I just adore them. How cute is this lion rampant?



Also loving the orange! I paired a JCrew equestrian patterned headband in orange to tie back to the orange in the crest.



The Focal Point
I've decided that it's all eyes on my boots today. They are a nice neutral camel color and have a great heel, shape and height. They're so versatile too. I wear them with pants, jeans and skirts. But the material (a faux leather) lets them be sturdy enough for rainy weather, which we are getting some today.



I like the pants but I'm eager to get back in to a skirt. And more color.

Professional in Pink at Work

A while back I had talked about how you need to be willing to be brave and maintain your personality and sense of fun in your work space. I thought I would show you that I really put that into practice in my own work space.

Here's my desk at work right now:

Taupe walls are a neutral backdrop for my fun stuff, all of which cheers me up during the day. My laptop and blackberry are there on the left. Then we get into the pink. Going from left to right I have Carrie & Danielle's Manifesto of Style tacked up (3, 7, 11, 15 and 19 are highlighted) with a few magic wands, a Hello Kitty, and a Waterford letter opener stacked in a pink FredFlare smiley face cup.

Next in line is the Domino calendar tacked up next to fuzzy Princess heart car dice with my ShoeDaydreams business card tucked in. Below them is the Andy Warhol Shoes book behind a vintage owl statue. Next to that is a picture of a dear friend, my doggies and a pink luck cat.

Next on the wall is a picture of my rooster Napoleon with more pet pictures, a FredFlare mushroom timer and another small vintage owl (yes, I still love the owls). Tucked in are a piece of pyrite, a photo I took at Biltmore of St. Francis, a pink luck cat phone charm and a caledar of insprational quotes. You can see actual piles of work stuff there but behind that I have a cute pink knitted cupcake on a giant pad of paper.

Of course there are family and friends photos throughout. It's all me and all mine.

The rest of my desk is filled with a mix of work stuff and fun items. I'll have to take more photos!

So as you can see, my life spills over into my work because they are both a part of who I am. They should appreciate that side of you as well. And have fun!

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
I'm all Anthropolgie-ed out today. I'm wearing a red cardigan with giant black buttons. The skirt is a winter white, almost felt like material and I have a black cardigan and black tights.



The Focal Point
My lacey Nine West Ruffle shoes. I actually saw a version of this outfit with these shoes in a magazine a while back.



I liked the shoes so much and the combination of the cream skirt and the dark tights that I had to go right out and create a version of it for myself. The colors are strong but sort of muted which keep them perfect for these dreary winter days.

The Language of Flowers

We all love the new versions of flower feet with their sculpted heels but I also like these delicate sandals with their large frothy blossoms.



They're the most delicate blush pink with the tiniest of straps. The flowers (full blown roses? peonies?) are dusted with crystals for extra sparkle.

I don't want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic. I try to give that to people. I do misrepresent things. I don't tell truths. I tell what ought to be truth.



Oh look, we have created enchantment.



I need to drape some scarves over my lightbulbs, wear a sheer dress and immerse myself in a fantasy.

Feathers and Rope

That header sounds far too kinky for such a refined and delicate shoe.

I'm totally crushing on these lovely peep-toe pumps from Alexandra Neel (at Saks - $695).





The shape is just perfect and they actually look comfortable and wearable.

Of course, they are just a substitute for the feather bedecked heels I really really want and am totally pining away for...



Oh Alexander McQueen, will I ever own these????



Le Sigh!

Sparkling Diamonds

The harlequin pattern and name has historic roots but was transformed when the "clown" or comedic servant, dressed in this traditional street performer garb was a key character in the Italian theater, the Commedia dell'arte.

From that time, the jaunty pattern has been predominantly associated with the clown and often trivialized in fashion.


Coco Rocha in Numéro

But as fashion searches for inspiration and as, more and more it looks to it's theatrical roots, the pattern is poised for a resurgance in a big big way.


Kirsten Dunst in Miu Miu Spring/Summer 2008

I'm already starting to see the pattern popping up on clothes and accessories. The pattern, like much of what is coming out for this season, is full of color and life. It can transform with each color combination and will go well with pastels or brights depending on what colors are used. I like using it to add a punch of excitement to a streamlined outfit.

Susie of StyleBubble, has a version of the harlequin tights and pairs them with a darker dress and jacket.




And it looks like we'll be seeing the darker versions on into Fall and Winter of the year. I like that it's being adopted more into clothes and not just kept on the safe sidelines.


Marc by Marc Jacobs Fall 2008 RTW

Since I'm loving all the patterned tights available, I was excited to find a version with smaller diamonds all in great bright colors of rose, pink, yellow, grey, blue and green. I wore them today with a pink crewneck sweater, a grey corduroy skirt and my pink JCrew satin mary janes.



I debated a while this morning about what shoes to pair with them. I didn't want to go with basic black (although you could, to jazz up a more somber ensemble). I wanted to be bright and fun and add more color.




I've received a lot of comments and compliments. My favorite was that I looked like a cupcake with all the festiveness going on.



Like my upside down legs? Here's a close-up of the pattern and colors...



I bought them from Joy of Socks, which is where I've purchased a bunch of tights recently. They're very comfy and such fun!


From Moulin Rouge and Marie Antoinette in the movies, to Lacroix, McQueen and Galliano on the runway, we're seeing a continued increase in excess, fantasy and theatricality. I only hope it continues so we can see more of this integrated into "regular" life.


Additional Info:

Buy tights at Joy of Socks

Queen Michelle at Kingdom of Style likes tights too.

Check out the harlequin gloves by Julia Jabour over at She Breathes Life. Fashion Culture.

Getty Images has a great overview of recent harlequin sightings.

Ensemble du Jour

Okay, I lied. I'm not wearing more new tights today. I was out all afternoon looking at photoshoot locations and then I cam home and worked most of the nights, so I was too tired to plan an outfit. I've been wanting to wear my neon bracelet from Etsy, so here was my five minute outfit for today.

The Outfit
Mizrahi polo dress with ruffle collar, the Etsy bracelet and my ShoeMissy shoes.



The dress....



I just love these shoes. They have a kind of 80's plastic-but-in-a-good-way feel about them. I thought they would go well with the neon pink bracelet.



The Focal Point
This is what inspired it all. It's that great neon orange pink that just vibrates! I love the mix of modern acrylic with the pearls. I probably say that every time I wear one of these bracelets, but I just do!



I love the more classic tan one too.



Okay, I stayed up much too late last night. I need to go to bed early or my eyes are going to become this color.

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
I just got a bunch of new tights from Joy of Socks which I will be totally rockin' all this week. They're all patterned so it's going to be a fun challenge. Today I wanted to wear my new star tights but what would be more fun and quirky than just black on black.

So I'm wearing a Black Watch plaid wrap skirt with 3 buckles and a black v-neck sweater. The tights are black with silver stars.




For jewelry, I'm wearing my lava stone necklace and a silver bangle bracelet with a heart charm on it.



To keep with the shine going, I'm wearing my black patent heels from Target.



The Focal Point
This is going to be a reoccurring theme, because it's all about my tights. Well, the tights aren't too crazy but trying to find less typical ways to wear them is. At least for my area. I've got some great patterns coming up with the other tights. It's going to be fun and colorful!

Target & Converse

I was in Target the other day (even though I totally should not have been!) and I saw that the Target Converse One Star line would out in force.

If your a fan of Converse but find their typical prices too high, then these are for you. Now I'm a big fan of the Chuck Taylors. I have low tops and high tops in white, cream and red. So I liked the options in this line a lot. At first I thought about getting these candy pink ones from the kids line. They were only about $20.



Then I saw these light pink ones with the scrolly black vines on them. In the store they were not slip ons. I liked these even better but the adult ones were $35! So I ended up putting them both back (along with a whole cart-full of clothes. Seriously, I have a problem. I cannot go in there without supervision).




They have plain light pink ones for five dollars less. I didn't see these cute buttery yellow ones with the white dots or I would have been tempted by them too.


The line has shoes for men, women, boys and girls and they are also doing a bunch of apparel. You can see everything in the link above. Most of the clothes are athletic or casual, like this henley. I think it's cute but I'm kind of skeptical about that star placement.

What's up with that?




But they have a few really cute items like this dress. Not what I would expect from the Converse line, right?



What a cute drawstring neckline. I know it would look horrible on me so I hope someone out there goes and gets this because I just love it.



Not to be snarky but this looks more like a Keds dress to me.

Project Shoe Clips

So I told you I was inspired to embellish stuff and was getting all crafty over the weekend. Well here are the first fruits of my labor. Since, you know I love the shoes and anything about shoes, plus my love of ribbons and vintage, I decided to make some ribbony shoe clips.

I made eight different pairs out of materials that I had - lots of ribbon, vintage clip earrings, buttons and Swarovski crystals. All images enlarge so you can see the details better.

The pieces are:
1. Vintage silver feather earrings with fuschia bows
2. Pink ribbon with black edging and carved black buttons
3. Grass green grosgrain ribbon with green Swarovski crystal
4. Preppy variable stripe grosgrain ribbon with 4 clear Swarovski crystals
5. Butter yellow grosgrain bow
6. Preppy variable stripe grosgrain ribbon with grass green button
7. Fuschia grosgrain ribbon with vintage painted heart buttons
8. Brocade ribbon in creme, blue and brown

I'm planning on charging about $8 a pair, depending on the materials used.











I still have a few kinks to work out and am testing out how comfortable they are and how well they stay on the shoes. I think they turned out super adorable and plan on putting them in my Etsy store over the weekend.

What do you think?

Mirror, Mirror, On the... Floor

As I've mentioned, I have a deep love for my closets. I miss having a walk-in closet and have to make do with the small closets in our old house. I aspire to have an airy, girly dressing room that has room for a vanity, chaise and lots of room to play dress up and experiment with my clothes.



But, no such luck, at least not at the moment. I didn't even have a mirror, other than our medicine cabinet mirrors. I couldn't fully see myself until I got to work. And after an incident with a dress of questionable length, I decided I needed to find a full length mirror.



The problem is that most decent floor mirrors are pretty expensive - from $100 - $500 dollars. The other option was a really cheap mirror that mounted on a door. And I didn't want to put a mirror on the door, so that option was out.

Then I decided to make a three panel mirror. I'd seen the folks making 3 panel screens on several HGTV shows and figured that this couldn't be that different. This weekend, we finally got around to making it and it actually was pretty easy.

I decided to use the really inexpensive mirrors ($5 each), MDF and some pretty hinges we already had. We had the MDF cut at the store to have 6" above and below the mirrors, with 3" on either side. The mirrors are 4 feet tall so the total mirror is 5 feet tall. You could make this taller if you wish, of course.

I then staple-gunned the fabric to the panels. The fabric is actually a twin sheet set. It was only $5 on sale. I just cut the flat sheet in half for two of the panels and then used the fitted sheet for the last one. You can click on the image to enlarge.



Once the panels were covered (staple the short ends first then the sides, pulling tightly to get the fabric very taut), we hinged them together using three hinges on each side.



Then we screwed on the mirrors. I may actually paint the mirror edging to be brown which will tie in with the rest of the room and cover the screws. The entire mirror cost about $45 dollars and took only a few hours. If you are going to make this, make sure you assemble it in the room where it goes or have someone help you carry it. It's pretty heavy.

More metamorphosis projects to follow!

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
Today's outfit has a mix of patterns and colors. I'm wearing an argyle v-neck sweater and a black skirt with my new black andwhite graphic heels.



The sweater is a bright royal blue with an aqua, green and cream pattern.



The Focal Point
I think it's the mix of patterns today. They tie together with the colors but are contrast-y with their patterns. I actually added one of my shoe clips in green to tie the shoes to the sweater.


By the way, these shoes are just as cute in person and actually pretty comfortable.

Eeeewwww!!!

These shoes are as odd to me as the high heeled hiking boots a few years ago.



I just don't see one remotely attactive thing about them. The don't look fun or cool and I can't even imagine what you would wear with this that would look good?



And when you have to write a description like this...

Our sporty look is taking a walk on the chic side, and the result is one funky style.

... you know you are really lame. It's like the dorky kid who writes fake messages from the cool kids in their yearbook. Seriously, a walk on the chic side?



Sadly if you like these monstrosities, they are no longer available on ShopBop, but they have two other equally hideous styles for your shopping pleasure.

Metamorphosis

As the new year just begins, everyone makes their goals and resolutions. I don't usually make resolutions because they seem fleeting and impermanent. Each year I write out goals for the year. As the year goes on they give me structure and benchmarks. And at the end of the year, I see what I have accomplished and what needs to continue on into the next year.

One of the goals a lot of folks say is to spend less, shop less, buy less. And that is something that I want to try and work on as well. But, while financial reasons are compelling, I also want to do it to push myself to be more creative with my clothes and accessories. There are so many inspirational folks and images out there. I want to take all of these influences and find ways to combine ideas and create new pieces and looks. And I want to embellish more of what I wear. Ribbons, beading, ruffles and bows. All things I love. Plus layering elements on simple pieces and play with color too.

The other day I was in Michael's and it was filled with so much great stuff, from beads to ribbons, and it was making me a little sad that I didn't have any projects in mind. I felt like I was wasting my time by not tapping into my creativity to personalize the things I wear. I also want to be better about repurposing clothes that may feel tired and extending the things I have by adding new elements to them to give them a new fresh feel.

So, here are some of the projects I'm planning, some of which I hope may even be Etsy-worthy.

1. Finish knitting 2 scarves

2. Ombre dye stockings ala The Coveted - I plan on doing lavender, grey, teal and pale yellow.

3. Quick skirts ala Queen Michelle - I have been holding onto some upholstery fabric to do a skirt and this pattern seems like an easy one to make. I also have some fringe and ribbons I can add.

4. A ruffle purse as seen on Style Bubble - I either have to find this or create it somehow.

5. A 3-way mirror - I'm finally sick of not having a full length mirror, so I designed a simple 3 way mirror and this weekend the husband helped to build it. I'll take some photos and talk through the process in my next post.

6. Shoe clips - while I love these JCrew heels, it seems silly to pay $228 when I have patterned shoes and tons of ribbon. So I'm making shoe clips from my ribbons, vintage clip earrings, interesting buttons and crystals. I'm going to put some of these on Etsy because I think they turned out really cute.

My other goals are to look more into the vintage and thrift stores in some of the bigger cities near by. I don't think we have a lot in our town but I do need to give them a once over just to get a better feel of what's out there. I also want to try to be braver with layering and combinations. Most of my clothes are so streamlined that this may be challenging so we'll have to see how that works out.


I feel like there are so many opportunities out there. I just can't wait to get started.