A Tempting Tease

So they arrived! Dum da da DUM!

But you get none of that until I find the right shoes to go with them. So it will be a little while until the full unveiling.

And I have more lovely tights winging their way over to me as well - check them out!

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
The clothes were simple - black v-neck top and black swishy skirt. But it was just a backdrop for the shoes and my cute new Etsy necklace.



Adorable pink cameo from Zombuki.



In person, it is a bit lighter pink.



But the big piece of the outfit was the shoes....



Yes, these...









Lush!



I'm finally, finally, finally wearing my Alexander McQueen rose heels that I got about a year ago.









What have I been waiting for????

Wish Upon A Tsar

I've been falling more and more in love with Alexander McQueen's runway shows. Along with Lacroix and Galliano, he appeals to my excessive embellished soul. When I was looking at his Fall show I felt that he was channeling the rich looks of traditional Russian folk dress and the decadence of the court of the Tsars.

The tooled leather tall boots would be perfect under heavy wool ankle legth skirts.

The rich reds and golds of this Legend bag seem pulled from Ivanov's painting of the Tsar's procession.

There's no mistaking the Fabergé influence in McQueen's Empire clutch.

Not that I'm a big fan of fur but this leather, velvet, fur and ebroidery embellished Fable bag looks as if it was pulled from a portrait of Catherine the Great.

I love these heels drenched with soutache trimwork. They look like they were pulled straight from the headdresses and folk dress.

Most people experience love, without noticing that there is anything remarkable about it.

Doctor Zhivago

I will be the first to say that I am no expert in Russian history or cultural influences. These are solely my perceptions.

Would that even a fraction of these details make it into a pairing at Target.

Bravo!

I haven't been a huge passionate fan of Daphne Guinness but I think I'm a little bit in love right now. She does have a fearless style, and the body and money to pull them off of course, but I love love love her attitude as reported here by Vogue -

As the modern fashion industry becomes increasingly globalised, style maven Daphne Guinness, writing in the Financial Times, is celebrating a return to individuality.

"Between couture fashion and street fashion, there is a certain continuity. It's great to go to London's Camden Market or downtown New York and see what the kids are wearing," she says. "Today, you don't even have to travel to do this; all you have to do is look at fashion blogs."

"On one site you might see a hipster in Williamsburg, New York, for example, in very tight, very shrunken jackets and trousers, and then you jump to another and see a different type of person wearing an oversized shirt, belted with silver tights. It's like a bunch of ad-hoc experiments going on all the time."

With the media focusing increasingly on which celebrities are wearing which labels - or, indeed, collaborating with them - seeking out individuals with style is more refreshing than ever before, Guinness adds.

"Celebrities almost never look good unless they are 'out' at something or other, while real fashion animals always look a little interesting, even if they are only going to Starbucks. Individuality will always exist," she asserts. "It's more that it has become very underground and doesn't infiltrate the mainstream as much as it should, so you have to search it out, which is getting more difficult, but also more rewarding."

"It's exciting to see people inhabit their look, wearing clothes from morning to night. Fashion at its most interesting and purposeful, whether it's the most expensive clothes being made or the least expensive, is not about showing off - it's about creation."

Now, if only the mainstream fashion industry would see and respect the role that individuals and blogs can really play. I think it's getting there but there is still a bias. But I feel that this is changing. I know that I'm inspired far more by how people are getting dressed and having fun with it every day rather than a whole bunch of celebrities and stylists.

Tied up in Knots

I'm seriously considering getting these two pairs of shoes.






They're not bad. Cute shape, nice style. A little trendy, yes, but that's okay because.....

Their combined cost is about $35.

Yeah, they're from Payless.

I used to be a total Payless snob but I have to give them props for trying right? I know they aren't the best quality and I'm sure they "inspired by" a designer shoe but, eh, I don't care.

I like the style and I've been looking for some like these for Fall. Since they're a bit trendy I'm not looking for a long term investment and I won't have to worry to much if they get knocked around. I'll probably have them shipped to the store for free and, then if I don't like them, I can return them right there.

What do you think? Give them a shot?

Ensemble du Jour

I had yesterday off, which was great, but I still had to go out and about. I met a friend for lunch to talk about some website help he needs and then I had to get my 4th shot. I also made a quick stop by Michael's to get a frame for my new poster from Nubby Twiglet.

I have not had an opportunity to wear this dress yet so I decided to wear it for going out to lunch.
It's a Mizrahi for Target dress and is kind of a busy floral pattern in yellow and orange, which I almost never wear.


What I liked most about it was the shape of the dress and the contrast-pattern pleats going down from the waistline. To go to lunch I paired it with a cropped green cardigan and green Nine West Sandals that I've had forever.



They're actually a mite big on me.



But I liked the shape and design so much (and they were on sale at DSW) that I got them anyway.



Today we had to go for the installation of a historic marker at this 1815 home in our town. It was going to be a small garden party and open house, so I wore the dress again, but this time with a white cardi, keds and my white lace parasol. I have to keep my pasty white skin covered from the sun at all times!

But actually it is a gorgeous day out. I let the chickens out early to free range and we have a backyard Movie Night tonight. And I got my timesheets done on Friday night so I am all relaxed!

Thakoon at Target

So the rumor mills have been flying but it seems that Thakoon is the next Go International designer parter to do a collection with Target. What is surprising is that this collection is scheduled to run starting in September and none of the image albums are on the Target News site yet.

We'll be going into Fall, so will we see pieces with navy, purple and grey tones and cool graphics?



Some wintery florals and boyfriend cardigans?



Or some kicky tweeds and mini-skirts (which always seem to be a part of the Go collections)?



Plaid and dresses would be fun too, especially with colorful tights.



And the fact that this is to run through the holidays, could we possibly see some slinky dresses?



They don't usually do shoes with the Go collections but wouldn't some graphic strappy sandals like these be cool. Especially in a shiny patent.



Of course, the rumor of McQueen being an upcoming partner would be a dream. Especially if he infused his line with whimsical nods to his couture lines.



Of course, I doubt we'd get this...



But the ombre and the colors and the prints could easily be incorporated into more simple designs and pieces, making them really special.



Besides Galliano, McQueen would be a great collaboration. I wonder if his pairing will actually happen if it would be a decadent Holiday/Winter collection or a detailed Spring?

Week In Review

What's been going on this week? Well, I've had a ton of work so I've been running around. I'm also trying to keep up with my "chores" during the week so I don't have to spend all weekend staring at a huge pile of laundry while I watch 10 hours of The Tenth Kingdom.

And then I get sucked into Twitter and goof off on Flicker, so I've been slack about playing on Polyvore or updating with outfits and all.

On Monday I wore this outfit - light weight argyle sweater from Target and Gap denim pencil skirt.



Yes, I'm wearing argyle again! I want Fall to get here already. I'm pining away for cool weather and sleeping with the windows open.

I wanted to wear my new Report heels with their cute little v-notch so everything was around the grey of these.



Yesterday I remembered I had these cute micro-fishnets in pink so I decided to wear them with a black jersey top and my flippy black skirt from Old Navy.



I have some pink and black kitten heels but in the end I wore my grey Head over Heels bird pumps in all their super-soft grey suede lusciousness.





I'd just sit there and stare at them all day if I could.



Today's outfit is in honor of Miss WendyB and how she is on the forefront of the "bringing rolled-up jeans back" trend.



I just used my Gap jeans and, since they are long despite being Ankle length, they could stand to be rolled up. I pulled out a weird mix of clothes and accessories to wear with them.

First of all is this crazy vintage necklace of winged serpents. I've had this piece since early high school. No "now we know it's vintage!" jokes, I just had a birthday. Don't rub it in.

Maybe I really had Miss Wendy on my mind when I pulled this out of the back of my jewelry drawer.



I liked the shiny brassy gold color and was pairing it with a textured 3/4 sleeve jacket, so yes, let's layer on some very patterned shoes. Why not!



See.... rolled up!

Okay, who's next?

Two Times the Temptation

I know lace stockings are going to be all the rage for Fall and, I'm also trying to order like four pairs from Bebaroque but what I'm really really really pining for are these two-toned Chanel tights.



Oh yeah, and both pairs of shoes too. You don't need this many pictures to get the idea, but I just like looking at them. Le Sigh.









I've got my name on a waiting list for these.

Now all I have to do is track down the shoes!