watercolor wash

floral dress, zara. wedges, target. necklace, soho street vendor.

if you look closely, it looks like the floral print on this dress was painted on in watercolors... perfect for a warm spring day.

with all the recent sex and the city 2 hoopla, i was reminded of the season when carrie, not in the least bit apologetic for it, unveiled the bright straps or band of her bra in nearly every ensemble. people were divided: was sex and the city challenging the norm that underwear should always remain under?

oh, the politics of the bra.

i love this dress, but the cut-outs in the back pose an annoying dilemma. luckily, i own a floral print bra in the same exact color scheme of this dress, and from far away, the band (kind of) seamlessly blends in. the straps, however, scream, "yeah, I'm showing my bra!!"

for those of you who, like me, aren't flat as a board, how do you feel about outfits that complicate what you need to wear underneath? do you avoid them altogether, or do you go to great lengths to find the perfect strapless/backless contraption to keep it all together?

too cool for school

purple-diary

chloe never ceases to amaze me. the fact that sometimes i hate her outfits and still manage to love her anyway makes her a fashion hero in my book. most of the time, though, i covet everything she wears.

where can i find this belt or something like it?!? i've been obsessed for weeks.

i lost two cities, lovely ones

jacket, walmart. t-shirt and skirt, vintage. feather cord, forever 21. chain bracelet, ann taylor loft. sheer socks, h&m. heels, born.

i have an awful, awful habit of losing jewelry that holds sentimental value: the watch that was the first gift my dad ever gave my mom (luckily, recovered); the gold snake bracelet i bartered down from $80 to $25 at an NYC flea market; the blue elephant charm i bought in san francisco's china town.

wearing them almost daily, these pieces became my trademarks. i was wracked with guilt when i lost the watch, knowing i had lost a piece of my parents' history together. when i found it buried under the seat of my car five months later, i was elated. i don't wear it anymore out of fear of losing it again. the bracelet and necklace are gone, though, and honestly, whenever i think about them, i feel a little pang of sadness - and guilty for my carelessness.

clothes can tell a story, too, of course, but most of what i own is cheap and replaceable. but this shirt, like the necklace and bracelet, has become a part of me. i've probably worn it once a week for the past six years. i bought it at an amazing, enormous vintage store near my hometown. in high school, i would spend hours scouring their racks for t-shirts, boots, chain necklaces and purses. i remember feeling devastated when i learned that they were downsizing from a warehouse-sized space to a tiny, overstuffed closet a couple of streets over. i'm kind of embarrassed to admit it, but i would cry if i lost this shirt.

i think most people would tell me that it's silly, or even superficial, to get so emotional over pieces of jewelry or clothing... but can't we value a watch or a t-shirt as much as or even more than a photograph?

what a beautiful buzz

with tomorrow's re-release of exile on main street and jimmy fallon's dedication of an entire week of shows to the stones and their new documentary, it seemed timely to devote a post to my two favorite stones girls: anita pallenberg and bianca jagger.

all pictures, fashionspot.com

both shared a love for quirky headgear and the ultimate cool girl's uniform: a menswear suit. what i love about anita and bianca was their ability to seamlessly shift between the masculine and feminine. they were equally at home in a suit with hats and boots as they were in sheer dresses with glamorous furs and feathers.

sometimes you have to go the originators for real inspiration... the kind of inspiration that makes you want to wear a glittery turban out to a bar, a suit and hat on your wedding day or shorts so short they should be illegal.

leather and lace

leather skirt, vintage. tank, paul and joe for target. bra, urban outfitters. necklace, vintage.

my recent leather fixation was spurred by the discovery of this skirt at a local vintage/consignment shop. part biker, part dominatrix, part ridiculously eighties, i tried to temper the severity of the skirt with this delicate sea foam green camisole... then, i got carried away with the addition of my beloved strappy bra, which kind of brought me back to square one.

i'll save my vintage leather mini skirt for another post. currently on the hunt for a pair of buttery taupe or tan leather shorts...

update: http://www.whowhatwear.com/website/full-article/go-buy-now-all-weather-leather/

^^yeah, pretty much everything i could ever want but not afford^^

wasteland

tank, thrifted. necklace, forever 21. skirt, forever 21. wedges, cynthia vincent for target. scarf, urban outfitters.

glorified scrubbing

style.com

25% of alexander wang's spring collection could be described as glorified "scrubbing," as we used to call it back in the day when you wore a hoodie sweatshirt and gym pants to school. at first, i wasn't really sure that i could get behind the idea of designer sweatshirts with voluminous sleeves and leather accents. but then, my persistent desire to be comfortable (yes, i repeatedly commit the sin of letting my ass hang out in leggings while wearing crappy old t-shirts and boots to the supermarket) got the better of me.

sweatshirt poncho, target. white tee, gap. tangled cross necklace, forever 21. jeans, target. bag, old navy. motorcycle boots, vintage.

i'm kind of obsessed with this hoodie/poncho hybrid right now. it's just too damn comfortable to take off. even if i had the money, i don't think i'd spend $400 on an a.wang sweatshirt. $400 on one his body-con cut out dresses? different story. but this $20 "thing" from target satisfies that lazy, "i don't want to get dressed" feeling i always get on the weekends.

i also scored the bag for $6 bucks from old navy without realizing how evocative it is of the handbags in his S/S 2010 collection, chunky silver trim and all. yes, alexander wang has certainly hit the mainstream.

nights in pink satin

shirt, bcbg. shorts and ankle boots, urban outfitters. necklace, vintage. studded cuff, express. men's nail bracelet, aubaine.

never, ever did i think i would say this, but lately, i've been really into pale pink. my wardrobe is pretty much a monochromatic wash of black and gray, and i've always loathed pink in all its inherent girly-ness. now, i find myself scanning the racks for neutral shades of pink, taupe and tan, eschewing my usual black and gray. and if it's lingerie-inspired or lace-covered, then i'm buying it.

i found this $200 bcbg max azria top at tj maxx for $40. it was one of those brilliant shopping moments when your boyfriend is dragging you out of the store (because the only reason you were there in the first place was to buy him shorts) and you're telling him "just one more minute, i swear!" and then some gleaming, beautiful, misplaced satin thing catches your eye. i think this was hanging off the end of the women's plus-size pants rack. i really love this shirt. it encapsulates everything i want for spring right now: neutral, lacy, and lingerie-inspired with corset-like detail. and, it goes perfectly with my fake-chloe scalloped shorts and painful chunky pink wedges that i can't wear for more than five minutes at a time.

le smoking, le sigh.

helmut lang's inconic photo / stylefrizz.com

currently loving anything menswear- or tuxedo- inspired. since pure and unadulterated le smoking is pretty severe, i've been looking for other ways to channel the look (and because really, i have no place to go that would warrant wearing a sharply tailored suit.)

blazer, banana republic. vest, target. satin cummerbund belt and shorts, express. oxfords, aerosoles.*

bodysuit, zac posen for target.

long vest, forever 21. lace-up boots, urban outfitters.

give me pretty florals and subtle nudes, but i'll always love black menswear silhouettes with a feminine twist.

*confession: i have grandma feet that hurt like hell in heels. i'd totally wear orthopedic shoes if they were stylish. aerosoles are the only three to four inch heels that i can tolerate for more than an hour at a time.

if i could wear pajamas every day i would

romper, charlotte russe ($12). beaded necklace, forever 21. bracelets, vintage.

summer stopped by for the weekend: it was almost 90 degrees on saturday and sunday, and not without the gross and oppressive jersey humidity that tortures us every year (ok, i'm sure people in florida would tell me to shut up and stop complaining)... perfect weather to run around the park in my cheap new romper and mess around with my expensive new camera!

so it's not the black one-shouldered debbie-inspired number i've been coveting and which i have yet to find. however, during one of my usual lunch-break power-shopping trips, charlotte russe lured me off the beaten path at woodbridge mall with the promise of $12 rompers. hoping for black, tiny and one-shouldered (nope!), i settled for black, button-down and scoop-necked instead.

the minute i tried the thing on, i didn't want to take it off. soft, comfortable cotton + swingy, loose shorts = pajamas that are permissible for day-time wear.

gladiator sandals, vintage target (yeah, these are the infamous 4-year old "hermes" sandals).