Oh fox confessor, please, who married me to these orphaned blues?

I'm having a pretty quiet, lazy Monday which is all right with me!

This Tulle jacket is basically a fitted sweatshirt. It's perfect for these in between temperatures we've been having in Jersey. Not too hot, not too chilly, just right!

 (Tulle jacket, Threadless tee, thrifted skirt and belt, probably Target stockings, vintage boots from Vintage Cowboy Boots)

 I thrifted this skirt in either high school or college. Either way, I've had it a very long time and still wear it pretty frequently! I miss my thrifting days. Most of my old favourite thrift shops are long gone. I need to get out there and find new spots.

Oh, Threadless... I could spend so much money on so many fantastic t-shirts. Not only am I a big fan of Neko Case (which I'm sure you could already tell), but my boyfriend has called me Fox (almost) since we met. Pretty much had to get this one!




Title from "Fox Confessor Brings The Flood" by Neko Case.

They smoothed her hair with cinnamon waves...

Knee highs and shorts are becoming a bit of a uniform for me this year.  They're both super comfortable and don't take too much thought (which means I don't have a giant mess to clean up after getting dressed... I really need to get better at planning out what to wear)!

 (Mystery cardigan, thrifted (long ago) top, Tulle shorts, ModCloth socks, Chelsea Crew heels)

I love when I have time to take photos on the weekend. Running out to take them in the last light of the evening during the week is always a challenge.  I appreciate some good ol' sunlight whenever I can get it!

These heels are corduroy! I'm a corduroy nut (I was definitely born in the wrong decade, I know), so obviously I couldn't turn down corduroy shoes. Any way I can wear it, I will!



Title from "Margaret Vs. Pauline" by Neko Case.

The days get shorter and the nights get cold...

I feel like this outfit just screams autumn... Which I've been doing every time someone around me laments the loss of summer. Usually, I'm right there with them. My long days, my beach bumming, my Stephen King novels read by the handful, my iced coffees. Yes, yes, yes, all wonderful things. It just didn't happen for me this year. So, AUTUMN! That's what I say.

(Tulle top, vintage skirt from Mod Elle Vintage, ModCloth heels & knee highs)

I also just feel like I have more options, more opportunities to get creative with cooler weather outfits. I love the ease and freedom of throwing on a sundress or shorts and a tie-front top. But I always find myself longing for stockings and pulling out old pieces and figuring out ways to make them new again. The heat and humidity do tend to limit my options... And my energy!

I love this skirt. Love, love, love. It's the perfect length and colour. And it's wool, so I'll be able to comfortably wear it all fall and winter.

Have a great weekend everyone! Any fun plans? 

Title from "The World At Large" by Modest Mouse. (Even after hearing this album thousands of times over the years, it still rips out my guts. That's good music.)

Do you miss me, Miss Misery?

(I'm leading with a photo today because what I felt like writing about has nothing to do with the outfit or style at all. But there is, in fact, an outfit.)

I spent this entire summer on a sort of music strike. I listened to one band and one band only... Fall Out Boy. Yes, you read that correctly. I've made my way through nearly their entire discography (I refuse to listen to their latest album), becoming obsessed with each album and each song as I went along.

Why, for the love of music, would I do this?  

Well, I have the tendency to get sucked into music in an extremely personal way. It's normal to relate to music. The extent to which I take it, or it takes me, is not normal. I'm fairly certain of that.

So, essentially, I needed a break from my intense relationship with music. I needed to listen to something fun. I needed to drown out the nagging bits and pieces floating around my head for a while. I needed to put aside the heaviness of mostly everything else I listen to... The songs I've carried with me through almost three decades. I cling to them so tightly, drag them through the mud over and over and over. It gets to the point where I can no longer separate myself from them. That's quite a bit of extra weight to carry around all the time.

And so, I let myself enjoy something for what it is and nothing more. I took a break from myself more than anything. (As a result, I annoyed the absolute hell out of my boyfriend and my friends... which was rather enjoyable, really!)

(Everything is ModCloth except the skirt... That's another mystery. One pitfall of not blogging and keeping track of purchases for two years.)

But today I had a quiet day in the office. So, I put all of my songs on shuffle. And no FOB came up. Not a single song. Instead, Elliott Smith, Elvis Costello, the National, Tom Waits, Bruce Springsteen, Rilo Kiley, Ryan Adams, Brand New, and so on. Quiet songs. Old favourites. It was as though my music collection had suddenly become sentient and somehow knew this was what I needed (well, I did just upgrade my phone to iOS7). 

All of the songs that came up still carry quite a bit of weight, but I hadn't listened to them in months. Instead of weighing me down, they felt good. They felt familiar and were, in their own ways, refreshing.

Title from "Miss Misery" by Elliott Smith.

Where the woods and marshes meet...

I went for a long bike ride at Estell Manor Park today. It was sunny and perfectly chilly!

They have tons of bike trails, but they also have a beautiful wooden boardwalk that leads you through the woods and the marsh.

Boyfriend being a ham.

Of course, I took no outfit photos while we were there (it never occurs to me while I'm out!). So, I just ran out and quickly snapped this when we got home in the evening.

(F21 plaid shirt, Society 6 Tom Waits tee from my BFF, shorts could be Target?, Wanted oxfords)

Back to work tomorrow. Hmph! Can't I have a do-over for Friday and Saturday now that I'm feeling better? No? Ah well.

Before I forget! I'll probably be playing with the look of the blog soon. It's about that time. So, if things get a little wonky around here for a bit, I apologize in advance!  

The time has come for colds and overcoats...

It's finally here! Happy autumn!

With the heat and humidity gone, I can start blogging on the back porch again. It's so nice and peaceful out here. The only noise is the random acorns falling on the deck outside. It sounds like hail! 

I'm feeling mostly better. My fever is gone and my eyes aren't burning today. Pretty over this pollen season. It does seem to be calming down though.

(Cardigan - Maybe TJ Maxx?, ModCloth top & tights, BB Dakota shorts, Adrienne Vittadini heels)

I wore this to just bum around in today. I found these shorts yesterday whilst putting away my summer clothes and knew I had to pair them with my faux knee highs! 

Tomorrow I'm going for a massive bike ride at one of my favourite parks! It's gorgeous there, so I'll be sure to take plenty of photos.

Title from "I Will Play My Game Beneath the Spin Light" by Brand New.

Mint & Mustard.

I spent my day sick at home, but here's a brief post!

(UO cardigan, Threadless tee, ModCloth skirt, vintage belt and boots)

(I think I look just like my mumma here... which is basically my goal in life.)

I always try to tell myself that if I act like I'm okay, I'll be okay. So, I made myself get up and get dressed. I think it helped a wee bit?

Anyway, I'll be back in full force soon!

What a lovely way to burn...

I left work early with a fever and sore throat (lovely!), so this is going to be brief. One nice thing about it, though, is that I got to take photos with good light left!

(ModCloth cardigan, tights, and heels, dress is a mystery... No idea where I got it.)

But don't let these photos fool you! I'm now in pajamas and ready to curl up with a hot toddy and watch some Broadchurch (good show!). Hoping this is just a bit of hay fever!

A perfectionist's exercise in imperfection...

I'm fairly certain this dress used to be longer on me. Whoops. Getting dressed ten minutes before I have to be at work definitely has its downfalls sometimes. Ah well, what can you do?... And don't say get up earlier! That's totally not going to happen.

(Knitted Dove blazer, ModCloth dress and socks, Adrienne Vittadini heels)

I really wanted to get more (and better) photos of this outfit, but I got home late and just ran out of time. No biggie, though. As a perfectionist, I have to keep reminding myself that this blog isn't about perfection; it's about being creative every day. It's about being myself, not about being flawless.

That doesn't mean I don't care about what I'm putting out there. If anything, I care too much. I write and rewrite. I edit and re-edit. I shoot and reshoot. It just means I'm trying to be okay with not loving every single photo or every single post. Especially because tomorrow is another opportunity to do better... Yes, that is still the mentality of a perfectionist... But one that is learning to accept imperfection and move on.

So here's to being all right with this post and moving on to tomorrow's!

Knee Highs & Paisley.

And then some days you wind up taking three hundred photos in the weird evening light. You trudge inside with a cold, red nose, convinced all of your effort was for naught. But you throw all of the evening's pictures onto your computer anyway... And as you scroll through, you're pleasantly surprised...

 (ModCloth cardigan & heels, Target dress, F21 belt, Sock Dreams over the knee socks)

I really thought I was going to have to scrap every single photo and try again another time! What a relief. I tried three or four different spots in the yard over a few hours. After all that, I'm just  thrilled happy to have a few good shots!

 

Anyway, enough of that nonsense! I really do love this outfit, and I was thrilled to pull out my knee highs this morning. One thing from my childhood I've never been able to shake is my love of paisley. I'm such a sucker for a good paisley pattern. So, when I saw this dress in Target last year, I just couldn't pass up the teal & rust paisley-esque pattern (they don't have wee tails, so they're more just tear drops... But that's close enough for me)!

Any style choices that seem to have stuck with you for life? A pattern, material, or colour perhaps? 

You're standing on my neck...

I wasn't exactly a grunge kid (I loved Nirvana for all of ten minutes until my mum caught on and became obsessed with them), but My So-Called Life and Daria were two of my favourite shows growing up. These 90's shows made so much more sense to me than anything from the 80's.

I was too young to catch onto wrinkly jersey floral dresses paired with boots and flannels, but everything about the decade struck a chord with me. From the music (Pavement was my first indie band love) to the tv shows to the blasé attitudes, it all resonated with me. 

(UO dress, vintage belt, vintage boots from Ambient Attic, Ruche bag)

I really didn't care much about how I dressed then. I was beginning a rebellious period that began with chopping my long hair (it was down to my arse!) to about an inch long, two at most. I traded in my brightly coloured tie-dye t-shirts for a giant military green jacket, black t-shirt, jeans, and boots. Equipped with a mean (and sincere) Daria impression, I fell hard for 90's indie rock which led me to a life-long love affair with both indie and punk. 

(By the way, braided pigtails are the maximum effort I'm willing to put into my hair... Yep. )

The effects of the 90's have stayed with me. My favourite tv shows of all time are The X-Files and Northern Exposure. I still listen to my old punk and indie bands daily. This dress mixes several of my favourite things. The cutout front, the colors, the tie-dye (I really did live in it for years. I almost always avoid it now). But it also just feels like a nice nod to a fantastic decade that was filled with as much wonder and self-discovery as it was pre-teen angst and anguish.

Title from song of same name by Splendora (aka theme song from Daria).

Beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena...

These days, I have no trouble admitting that 2012 was a very rough year for me. So, this past winter when I finally started coming out of my haze, I adopted Wonder Woman as my spirit animal. She serves as a reminder to myself that I am more than grad school (and dropping out of it), I am more than a desk job, I am more than an age (this year is a big one for me), and I am more than all the sorrow and frustration the world can heap on any of us at any time. 

(UO cardigan, WW tee from Amazon, F21 skirt, Target tights, ModCloth heels)

While I still have my days (who doesn't?), I generally feel better than I have in a very long time. This post/outfit (and getting back into blogging in general) is about feeling like myself again and finding a foothold in reality through the things I enjoy most in life (however unrealistic and fantastical those things may be).

I'm going to go enjoy the rest of my weekend, and I hope you're enjoying yours!

Turquoise & Moss.

I always appreciate various shades of peacock colours. Especially in the form of a comfortable, cool outfit! Hopefully today will finally be the beginning of the end of this heat.

(Modcloth top & heels, Tulle skirt, F21 belt)

I basically live in these shoes. They're no longer available on the site, but I actually bought a back up pair for when these finally trot off to the trash bin. I do plan on wearing them until they fall apart. I am forever on the hunt for simple, comfortable black heels. And these are the best pair I've found yet. 

Happy almost weekend!

I turn my camera on...

Sooo, a couple of days ago, my boyfriend says, "You know my dad's old camera is up on the bookshelf, right?"

Ahem... No, no, I did not realize that we still had it (I had borrowed it months ago to take a friend's engagement photos and thought we'd given it back).

Which means this whole time I've been struggling to take photos with my phone, this fancy shmancy Canon has been laughing at me from the bookshelf.

Yup. So, even though my camera is still out of commission, I'm back in business!

 (ModCloth head to toe. Dress & top are old.)

This skirt is actually the dress from this post! I tied the ribbon around the waist and tucked it under this blue sleeveless blouse (... 92 degrees today...). 

This is easily one of my favourite warm weather outfits that can easily transition to fall (if it ever cools down).

Bear with me while I try to get the hang of this camera. I've never been a Canon girl, so I've been a little reluctant/easily irritated with it. But when you've been using a phone, a camera is a camera!

Title from Spoon song of the same name.