haha sound.

Th oppressive weather & vague stress = lack of inspiration to update or even put thought into an ensemble. Case in point: today it is impossibly mild (high 70s! In July! In th SOUTH!) but I am wear a pair of jeans & a striped deep v-neck tee. Despite this rut, I have been accumulating like mad recently, even more so since th last post’s list, & still have a hefty wishlist. I feel a bit sheepish regarding th amount of online shopping I’ve been doing; it’ll be like Xmas when the ELEVEN separate parcels arrive (& maybe more to come, I have my eye on a few more things.) I even bit th bullet & ordered a standing garment rack, as my WALK-IN closet is brimming, to th point of nary a single new hanger will fit. I have several things to purge (sell & donate) but it won’t be enough of a dent. I might even buy a glut of fancy wooden hangers, I mostly use plastic ones & kind of hate them. I also am searching thrift/vintage/antique shops for old hardbody suitcases as a pretty alternative to storage bins. No luck as yet, though I did thrift a framed print of an angry bear fighting bees yesterday (& a linen tank & vintage mini-length slip, something I’ve been searching  for ages for!).

At the top of my wishlist is a new camera. My old Canon Powershot (four years old I think?) is disappointing me at every turn lately, & I think I’m finally at th point to upgrade to a DSLR. I’ve researched models obsessively, & th short-list of contenders are: Canon Rebel T2i, Olympus EP-2, & Pentax K-7. HD video capability is a must for me (I did go to film school, after all…) so the Canon is #1. Any advice/recs?

A couple things on my wishlist are big-ticket items: th ever-elusive Chloe Silverado wedges (found on ebay in my size & a bargain, but still a bit expensive…); YSL Arty Oval ring and/or Matina Amanita baubles (for 300ish/ea, not going to happen any time soon.) I would like to have a few key ‘investment’ pieces, as a means to assure myself I Am A Grown-Up. & it’s not like I haven’t been a big-spender on fashion in th past; I mean, my lolita wardrobe, short-lived as it was, cost a pretty penny (especially calculating in shipping from Japan & shopping service fees!) & I never batted a lash at that. I want a wardrobe full of quality, & while I refrain as best I can from high-street shopping (thankfully there are no H&Ms, Topshops or Zaras within my vicinity!), I still possess a lot of chaff, so to speak. I’d like to edit my wardrobe a bit, especially considering my spatial constraints & thrift glut lately, but we’ll see if that is done before fall rolls round.

More attainable things I’m lusting after: vintage black fitted leather jacket, which I promise myself I might be able to wear when visiting Montreal next month. Seen here on Dum Dum Girls & (amazing vintage YSL!) Eleonore Bridge:

Other wishlist items: an Edwardian lawn dress, though white doesn’t look amazing on me, & I’d probably hem it shorter (ruining any historical authenticity.) Picnic at Hanging Rock is an all-time favourite film, & I just want to swan about until tragedy strikes, too. Effie of The Snail & The Cyclops pulls off th Miranda look perfectly:

Thankfully I’m v. petite, so finding a dress on ebay in my size is no problem. Just need to find a good deal…

& last major want: Underground Originals monk strap creepers. I’ve debated these for years, & I think my personal style can finally support such a perfect statement shoe (aka almost-ugly amazingness.) Should I get the black/grey suede or just black suede or black leather? I cannot for th life of me choose.

& here on a person:

Wow, this post has taken over five hours & many stops & starts to write. I have one outfit to share:

I think I was dancing to Beat Happening here…

close-up of th deetz: horse, stripes, pale floral

Worn 27 June. It was mild enough for otks! Silk floral blouse is thrifted…..linen tap shorts are thrifted…..belt is thrifted…..vintage Etienne Aigner bag, ebay’d…..striped otks are Hansel from Basel!……wedges are Korkease.

under ice.

Th heat of another deep South summer is upon us, & lethargy has already set in. Getting dressed is a chore, hence th lack of outfit photos. I loathe summer. Th romanticized vision of airy summer dresses does not play out as planned when said gauzy fabrics only cling to a sweaty figure with nary a cooling breeze to be found. Even though I live five minutes from th ocean, I am not a ‘beach person’ — th sun destroys me, I can barely swim, th salt air wreaks havoc on my thick wavy hair, & I hate sand. I dream of New Zealand, but almost anywhere well south of th equator would suffice.

I’m hoping I can motivate myself to write something interesting soon; I am thisclose to finally sewing some things! Until then, some leftover outfits.

details – th embroidery is really delicate! it also has a peter pan collar that my pesky hair is covering.

Worn 28 May. I snagged this perfect little blouse for about 8USD, ebay’d of course. Th deetz are th best, but hard to photograph. Vintage skirt from hasbeenthenagain on etsy. Eyelet socks, Target. Little belt is thrifted vintage, 50 cents! Favourite pale pink oxfords, vintage Bass, from ebay. I suppose I was channeling 60s schoolgirls here.

Worn 1 June. An oxford blouse I’ve had since high school, thrifted at my hometown favourite Salvation Army. The little medallion pattern! Skirt is another from hasbeenthenagain‘s etsy. Vintage tooled leather belt with scallop design is thrifted. Th socks are scrunched-down kneehighs from Celeste Stein, featuring photos of cats — a gift. Go-to vintage oxfords, Joan & David, ebay’d ages ago. Vintage crossbody bag, Burberry, ebay’d as well.

Worn 8 June. I wasn’t terribly happy w/ any of th photos from this set; I’d just biked about 1.5 miles & was sweaty & red. I do love th giant trees in this tiny park, though. Th tiny check oxford is thrifted (recently, been on an oxford kick!) Vintage skirt is (again!) hasbeenthenagain; same little thrifted belt & Burberry bag. Ankle boots are Dolce Vita, ebay’d for a fraction of th price. & new sunglasses, Fred Flare.

a weird self-taken shot, th camera fell into th bushes.

Worn 15 June. My apartment has a pool, & I might actually start taking advantage of it. I need a decent swimsuit; I have a vintage 50s one-piece, but it’s so heavy when wet. I want a vintage-style modern suit, ideally two piece w/ a high-waisted, boy-cut bottom. I’ve tried everywhere w/ little luck; though I have issues w/ AA and UO, they both have one that might fit th bill, though (& cheaper than Free People, Anthro or Modcloth!) This pale blush silk blouse I thrifted earlier this year, along w/ its sister in a pale blue-green colour. Vintage floral skirt is a recent thrift find, as is the beaded vintage belt. Socks are probably Target. Vintage suede oxfords w/ suede flower adornment are ebay’d Maud Frizon.

Finally caught up! I haven’t taken an outfit photo since that last batch, but hopefully that will change this week. I have a huge wishlist, too, but it’s mostly silly things.

ghost or halo.

I’ve been scarce lately; th internet has been rather slow of late, so I haven’t uploaded any new photos to flickr. Instead, as a placeholder (hopefully will get round to a real post tonight/tomorrow), heads up alert: Hansel from Basel has a massive clearance sale on, & I def. just shelled out $80 for 10 pairs of socks. I hate that th Curtain Tights are sold out, but I snagged two pairs of the kneepad otks! image from RobberStore.

uniform of defiance.

The title is a snippet from John Waters’ new book Role Models (which I have been ogling at th bookshop every trip, must get!):

You don’t need fashion designers when you are young. Have faith in your own bad taste. Buy the cheapest thing in your local thrift shop — the clothes that are freshly out of style with even the hippest people a few years older than you. Get on the fashion nerves of your peers, not your parents — that is the key to fashion leadership. Ill-fitting is always stylish. But be more creative — wear your clothes inside out, backward, upside down. Throw bleach in a load of colored laundry. Follow the exact opposite of the dry cleaning instructions inside the clothes that cost the most in your thrift shop. Don’t wear jewelry — stick Band-Aids on your wrists or make a necklace out of them. Wear Scotch tape on the side of your face like a bad face-lift attempt. Mismatch your shoes. Best yet, do as Mink Stole used to do: go to the thrift store the day after Halloween, when the children’s trick-or-treat costumes are on sale, buy one, and wear it as your uniform of defiance.”

(Thanks to Eline for originally posting th quote on her blog!) My problem with the online surge of fashion blogging is how the personal, intriguing bits of individuality get lost amidst a torrent of lookbook waifs in flowy, ‘ethereal’ garb. I’m not preaching a special-snowflake philosophy by any means, & I am guilty of wearing a bit of a uniform that is prominent round th blogosphere: high-waists, oxfords, vintage, etcetcetc. I wear what I like, just like everyone else does. & we that blog about our fashion choices seem to gravitate toward similar looks. That isn’t a crime (even for th fashion police), but I am getting sick of looking at the same thing every day, with little/no interesting commentary (whether it be personal, political, feminist, whathaveyou) to put something REAL behind it all. Just a small rant, & a query: Any recs for feminist/sociopolitical fashion blogs out there? I read Threadbared, but would like some more!

Anyway, I went to Charlotte this weekend, thrifted quite a bit which I haven’t taken any photos of yet. I feel weird taking photos of recent acquisitions that aren’t on my body, I can never find a decent place to show them off (& I have no pretty wooden hangers atm.) Instead a detailed description of some of my finds of late:

A pair of black, perfectly broken-in Justin lace-up boots in my size for $1.99…..A 1980s mustard rayon blouse with lovely squiggle embroidery in black down th placket…..Two tapestry pencil miniskirts from Express circa 1990…..A pair of high-waisted linen shorts in th perfect shade of peach…..A 1990s floral rayon mini dress……A staple I’ve been searching ages for but has always eluded me till now: vintage BLACK (why o why are plain black items th hardest things to thrift?) silk blouse with a button-down collar……several vintage rayon skirts in various patterns in dire need of a shortened hem……& more that I found yesterday back in Wilmington. After a year+ break from thrifting, I am back in full swing.

Here are some old outfit photos, from 20 May-24 May. I hope to finally get caught up soon. I neglected my photo taking while on th trip, & only got some forlorn shots of my shoes against th grey slab floor at th con.

Th first commemorated th birthday of my friend Lauren; several of us went to th Little Dipper, a fondue place downtown. We feasted like kings & I completely forgot to snap some photos of us & food at th table. Our waiter had a full head-tattoo (hidden under a wig) & was v. personable.

I love image blur & th backs of people in photos, I suppose the candid intimacy appeals to me more than strained, ‘artsy’ poses.

More image blur, I was walking away at that point.

Outfit deetz are as follows: Express silk gingham blouse, the perfect staple for me, thrifted……vintage linen high-waisted shorts, thrifted……vintage woven leather belt, thrifted……eyelet kneehighs, Target……vintage Keds Grasshoppers, ebay’d, as are all baubles/adornments.

Some creepy-ish takes in th back office. This blouse is amazingly perfect, a great medium-weight rayon that falls beautifully with the best teardrop/ova? print, obvs. thrifted…..shorts and belt also thrifted…..socks Target…..oxfords are vintage Joan & David, ebay’d.

a bit pin-up, in chambray…

Yes, th blouse + shorts combo seems to be a new uniform. I can’t help it, simply too comfortable. Outfit deetz: Ralph Lauren linen blouse, thrifted…..high waisted chambray shorts, ebay’d…..thrifted belt…..otks are a mystery…..standby Joan & David oxfords from ebay.

And now for something I thought I’d never wear again: JEANS. Until this year, I refrained from wearing pants for four years, for a variety of muddled reasons, aesthetic as well as political. I rediscovered my interest in traditional UK skinhead/rude boy culture & fashion a bit ago (expect a long, thought-out post regarding this in th future!), & hence I have taken back my aversion & am embracing pants again.

Blurry tie-neck dapperness.

A pants outfit. From me! Vintage silk tie-neck windowpane-esque print blouse is thrifted…..dark skinny jeans are thrifted (& I never find pants thrifting!)…..vintage Joan & David boots, th best tromping boots ever, from kenaione’s etsy shop.

That was a long enough post, I think. Hopefully another later today?

fin de siècle.

So according to the car shop, there isn’t anything wrong with my car. Though I don’t really trust this, I’ll try riding about town prior to embarking on a four hour road trip to test this. (My car has been leaking coolant & running hot-but-not-overheating lately off & on, so I don’t know if they just missed something major or what.)

In honour of my maybe-trip to come (leaving tonight, prefer night drives), here are some photos taken in th afterhours of my SO’s job:

Dancing to th Smiths.

Basically everything here is thrifted: silk polka-dot blouse with great sheer sleeves, linen pencil skirt which seems made to fit me, vintage belt, vintage Italian leather t-straps. Jewelry & otks not thrifted (ebay & Target respectively.)

Here are a couple silly shots in the same locale (backroom):

Mimicking th keyboard cat facial expression.

Tee is obvs. from Threadless (only meme I’d plaster across my chest)…..skirt – etsy…..socks – Target…..ankle boots – Dolce Vita…..vintage belt – thrifted.

I might drag my laptop with me on th trip, so expect some updation!

glacier heart.

So, life caught up with me a bit, hence silence for the past few days. My last day at my student job was Monday, my car is in the shop, & I need to sell some things to make ends meet this month! But in spite of difficulties, I’m traveling to Charlotte with th SO this weekend, for nerdy adventures at the annual Heroes Comics Convention. I hope to take th weekend to hit all my favourite Charlotte-area thrift shops & other haunts (Common Market, Landmark, Lunchbox Records, etc.)  & try not to spend too much money. If th thrift loot is decent, I might reopen my Etsy shop as a means to make some money while waiting to hear word on potential jobs. I’m trying not to get discouraged, but may submit an application for unemployment if things don’t look up soon.

Anyway, soon there will be posts about cultural/political/feminist interpretations of my own personal style & such, but for now, outfit dump.

From 15 May. Vintage 60s toile bird/floral pintuck dress – ebay’d….vintage tooled belt – thrifted….socks – Target?….platform sandals – Korkease….vintage Burberry bag – ebay’d….vintage lobster sweater guard – ebay’d.

Hopefully another quick post tomorrow to catch up, in between packing & picking up my car.

sneaky feelings.

Discovered an unlocked wifi network (only strong enough from th office, thankfully whilst sitting at the desk!) so posting may come more often. Just to ease myself into th blogging sphere and crank out some of these older photos languishing in my flickr, here are a couple of quick outfit photos from last week (14th & 16th):

Fuzzy fuzzy indoor, self-timer photos, bleh! I’m desperate for a nice dslr that shoots hd video, but haven’t th cash for one, so my 5 yr. old Canon Powershot has to suffice for now. Hey, at least you can read some of th titles on our bookshelf!

These were both quick, hot-weather outfits thrown together. Th first: my favourite tee, from one of my favourite films OAT, Nobuhiko Obayashi’s Hausu (1977). Purchased from Criterion Co., it receives lots of strange looks/comments. Shorts are Rodarte for Target, snatched from th 75% off rack for th lowlow price of 6$. Socks & knee-bruise are of unknown origin. Oxfords are th dutiful Joan & David vintage ones I wear constantly, ebay’d years ago. Th second: vintage 40s rayon little girl’s dress, ebay’d in a giant lot which averaged out to about 8$ per dress (I need to press & sell some of them, too kinderwhore for me.) Socks = ?, shoes are vintage Keds Grasshoppers, so comfy for summer, ebay’d.

Yesterday my favourite sunnies (white heart-shaped Lolita-esque ones) broke, which gives me an excuse to change it up and find some others. I’d die for some Karen Walker‘s, but obviously cannot afford them. I ordered these from Fred Flare today:

Similar round shape to th higher-end glasses I’ve been drooling over, slightly goth, much less cutesy than my former dead ones. Hopefully they won’t snap in two. Now to cap a film or two, do some laundry & maybe do another post in a few hours.

13th May 2010.

So begins th documentation. These were taken in th field/tiny forest area across from my flat; lack of decent locations plagues me, but I kind of enjoy th desolation — no dreamy picturesque fantasy-world/Paris/other pretty blogging place here. It’s already summery here; I was a bit flushed after traipsing around for an hour as th sun started to set.

Love mixing stripes & florals, though it might be a bit rote nowadays. Every piece here is super comfortable, throw-it-on & adventure about effortlessly. I think I’ve worn a variation of this at least once a week since receiving this skirt in April.

Rundown: Oleg Cassini striped tee – thrifted….vintage floral skirt – etsy….vintage tooled leather belt – thrifted….organic socks – Target….leather ankle boots – Dolce Vita….vintage Burberry bag – ebay.

A flurry of posts are forthcoming.

a new leaf?

So. I now possess a B.A. in Film Studies & am soon to be unemployed. I’ve been searching for jobs, as grad school is on hold till 2011. I’m trying not to panic, so I have taken up a resolution to document my summer, focus being on outfits, at th very least 3x a week; I’ve only missed 2 days since th 13th, once because I was wearing th same outfit (slept over at a friends’ after a wacko night) & yesterday due to lack of light.

I’ve become active on tumblr lately, as it is th easiest way to ‘blog’ (aka mindless image consumption) & fits my intermittent internetting lifestyle (still no internet at home).

I want to become better at photography & have looked into dslrs, my top choices being th Pentax K-X, new Olympus Pen, & Leica M9 (dream camera, like I’ll ever have $10k lying round). I especially want something that takes decent video and is easy to handle.

As for this blog, I hope to add more content as time goes on, possibly branching out into film criticism territory. I’ve always enjoyed taking film stills & post them on lj whenever I can, so that could be a way to segue from solely visual to a more critical approach in my online presence (hey, I was awared the excellence in critical studies award out of my graduating class!)

For now, though, have some photos with small captions.

 

Prior to my dedication to documentation (!); fun in a park, I just really love th composition & photos-from-th-back (blame Edward Yang’s Yi Yi). Wearing: 50s silk UNICORN print blouse – ebay’d; vintage high-waist shorts – thrifted; suspenders – thrifted; eyelet knee highs – Target; vintage Ferragamo suede oxfords (which are now sadly unwearable due to bad soles) – ebay’d

So as not to overwhelm myself w/ one huge post to catch up, I will end here & create small separate posts for th other days!

When I’m feeling kind of slow.

Uni has me snowed under, so no telling if I ever update regularly. I haven’t been taking daily outfit photos, I want to get back into film photography (I used to develop my own b/w stuff.)

I recently received my coveted bag, a Maxine from Minna Parikka:

Besides that, I have tonnes of new things to photograph and ensemble-ize, but I can’t find time.
I also wrote my first short screenplay for class; besides getting one of the only A+’s the prof. has given out in 10 years, I am really really proud of it. I might have to have a side-gig!

I’m also obsessed with molding film soundtracks; on my list of must-haves for a film I create:

Brian Jonestown Massacre – “(David Bowie I Love You) Since I Was Six”

Beach House – “Home Again”

Slant 6 – “Ladybug Superfly”

Hopefully it won’t be another month before I post again.