Urban Active

Here's that other purple dress I was telling you about in my last post. It's from Athleta, a store I probably wouldn't have checked out if it weren't for the fact that Sal has put together so many cute outfits with their stuff. With a name like Athleta I'd have thought they carried strictly athletic clothes, but it turns out they make all sorts of clothes I would categorize as urban active, which is exactly what I need to accommodate my long walks to and from work.



The dress is comfortable and breathable, machine washable, and the quality is great. I took this dress with me on my recent international trip, and it was just perfect for travel.

Shown here are two different outfits with the dress; the second photo has a lot of glare from the sun but I included it to show you what the upper wrap portion looks like.

Dress: Athleta
Jacket: Shawna Hoffman
Belt: thrifted
Boots: Brako

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Urban Active

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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone! I'm back from my trip to Germany and France and have finally recovered fully from the jetlag. I spent a delightful weekend in Paris that was cold but mostly sunny, and filled with great food and even better shopping (photographic evidence to come!). Now that I have a little time off I'm hoping to get caught up with my blogging and post some photos from my trip.

In the meantime here's a recent outfit featuring this cute new dress that I found at a shop in on Fillmore Street; it turned out to be the second of two long-sleeved purple dresses I bought that day. Ordinarily I would've avoided buying similar items, but this one is a much lighter weight dress whereas the other is more of a winter weight, and this was so deeply discounted that I couldn't pass it up. You'll be seeing the other purple dress in an upcoming post.

Wishing you a happy holiday season!


Dress: Kew
Necklace: Manu Lizarralde
Boots: All Black

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Merry Christmas

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Janet

Recently I had the honor of being featured by the fabulous Sarah Von on her blog Yes and Yes. If you haven't done so already, go check it out!

Looking at these photos, which are now several weeks old, makes me realize how badly I need a haircut. Usually when I get my hair done I make my next appointment then and there, so as not to forget and let too much time slip by before the next cut and color. But for some reason the last time I forgot, and the other morning I realized that my hair has begun to look like Janet from Three's Company. Which was cute... in 1982.



Not exactly the look I'm going for in 2011, though.


Of course making the appointment has been on my to-do list for the last week and a half, but somehow I just haven't managed to remember to call during business hours. I'm hopeful that this is the week I'll actually make it happen.

My aunt gave me this cute top, which has a panel of sequins that show subtly through a layer of sheer chiffon. I like how the soft neutral color looks contrasted against the black shrug.

Top: Express
Shrug: Cenit
Necklace: from a glass shop in Venice
Skirt: Noa Noa
Leggings: Black Market Baby
Boots: All Black

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Janet

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Elfin

I always feel very elfin when I wear this dress, but never more so than when I put it on with these little boots. The flippy hairstyle accentuated the effect, I think.

The boots were purchased a couple of weeks ago after a several-months' quest for Cydwoq boots. After I bought my gold flats, I knew I wanted a more enclosed style, but I really wanted to wait until just the right pair came along. I'd looked at several styles online but wanted to see them in person and maybe try on a few pairs. As luck would have it, a recent Girls' Night Out found me standing in front of Bulo shoe store with 15 minutes to spare before I was due to meet my friend Laura. The newest arrivals had just come in that week, and these boots immediately called out to me. They look black in these photos but are in fact a rich purple that is more intense around the edges of the seams. They look great with both skirts and pants, and will be just perfect for traveling.

Interestingly, my other pair of Cydwoqs made their debut on the blog when paired with this very same dress. It could be coincidence, or perhaps it's a little bit of elfin magic.

Shirt: H&M
Dress: vintage
Scarf: local import store
Belt: Audra Jean
Tights: Foot Traffic
Shoes: Cydwoq

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Elfin

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New Incarnation

These shoes arrived last week after I found them for a steal of a price on Amazon; they're by Fly London and are remarkably comfortable even though they're not broken in yet. I'd had my eye on them for awhile, but Fly London is a pricey brand and I was hoping to snag them once they went on sale. The timing couldn't have been better; I wanted to bring a few pairs of flats to this week's conference, and these arrived just in time to make the trip.

The minidress is another old 90's romper that I had turned into a dress at my local tailor's. I never wore it all that much as a romper, which I guess is why it still looks like new. Why I didn't get rid of it years ago is a mystery, but I'm glad I didn't because I think it's much cuter, and much more wearable, in this new incarnation. It's short enough that I'm not really comfortable wearing it alone, which is why I decided to layer the tulle skirt underneath. This is a fun way to give minidresses a completely different look, since the skirt gives the outfit a long, lean, 1920's flair.

Shrug: Noa Noa
Minidress: vintage 90's
Skirt: Noa Noa
Shoes: Fly London

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New Incarnation

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Unexpected

I really love the vibrant and unexpected combination of purple and teal. With this outfit I decided to go for a colorblock effect, thus I used only solid-color pieces. The gray dress makes a nice neutral backdrop for the saturated colors and keeps them from sitting right next to each other. If it were a little cooler I could've added my cheeky peacock feather hat to strengthen the color combo, but spring isn't really a good time for thick felt hats, I'm afraid.

This cardigan is really versatile with its long flowing wings that can be tied in any number of interesting configurations. It was a real workhorse when I was traveling in Paris and Iceland last year, though oddly enough I haven't worn it all that much since I've been back.

Cardigan: S
Dress: Red Dress Shoppe
Leggings: Sock Dreams
Boots: Fly London

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Unexpected

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Suddenly Sheer

Here's that old romper I turned into a dress awhile back, making an appearance here as a tunic. And here's that annoying skirt which, after the removal of the underneath layer, is now perfectly cling-free. The only problem with it now is that without the double layers it's downright see-through when I'm in direct light (though you can't tell here), which is why I chose the romper/dress to wear over it. The length of the dress allowed me to go without a slip, which otherwise I'd have needed under the suddenly sheer skirt.

Interestingly, it felt sexier to wear a semi-sheer skirt underneath the dress, even though the amount of coverage was in fact greater. Revealing your shape through a sheer garment adds drama and sex appeal, even when the area of your body that you're revealing is an area you don't really need to cover anyway. Sheer clothing hides imperfections in the skin, all the normal lumps and bumps that us humans possess, and, if you're like me, the complete and utter lack of a tan.

Cardigan: Max Studio
Dress: Express (90's)
Skirt: Sisley
Shoes: John Fluevog

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Suddenly Sheer

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A Day at the Races

No, I did not attend the Kentucky Derby and wear this outfit. But I really should have, shouldn't I? I'm determined to attend next year and make myself a big, gorgeous, and somewhat over-the-top hat for the occasion. In the meantime, this outfit was my homage to spending a glamorous day at the races.

This is one of the hats I made in my millinery workshop last year. I'd never really given much thought to straw hats, but Wayne's class changed all that. When I realized that parasisal straw is smooth and pliable, that the tight-woven straw is super high quality and durable, and that it comes in about every color under the sun, I was a convert. I originally thought I would reserve this hat for summer weddings and other such occasions, but I couldn't resist pulling it out and giving it its first airing, having been so inspired watching the Derby over the weekend. I currently have a few straw hats up for sale in the Etsy shop if you'd like to see some other variations.

Cardigan: Noa Noa
Top: Mica
Belt: Audra Jean
Skirt: Ann Taylor
Shoes: Gabriella Rocha

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A Day at the Races

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Proportions

This little dress is so darn comfy; I just love it. Somehow it manages to achieve that perfect balance between not constricting my waist, and yet still flattering my figure. I really dislike most empire-waist tops and dresses because they make even the skinniest gal look pregnant. And looking pregnant is fine, if, ya know, you're pregnant. But not otherwise. I don't care how comfortable the garment is, hiding your figure underneath a tent is not flattering, ever.

The secret to this dress's success lies in the shaping of its bottom half. The small pleats in the center and the slight flair at the bottom make the dress drape nicely around my curves while still leaving plenty of swingy space for me to feel comfortable and unrestricted in. And then the belt isn't right up under my bust, but down just a smidge towards my natural waist, which, though probably due in part to the fact that I don't have a big bust to fill out the top half, does help to even out the proportions.

I'm spending this weekend in Arizona, where I'll be meeting Mark's family for the first time. Wish me luck, everyone! I'll be back next week to announce the winner of my anniversary contest. I'm so glad I'm not one of the judges, because everybody looks fantastic! Best of luck to all my entrants, and thank you so much for participating. By the way, there's still time to submit entries through the end of the weekend!

Hat: San Diego Hat Company
Dress: Red Dress Shoppe
Shirt: La Redoute
Leggings: American Apparel
Boots: Fly London
Bracelet: Betsey Johnson

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Proportions

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Voluminous

***DON'T FORGET TO ENTER MY CONTEST! TIME IS RUNNING OUT!***
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't wear this skirt very often because it tends to drive me a little nuts. Though I adore all the pleating and volume, I hate the fact that it bunches up on itself and gets stuck around my legs when I walk. I'm constantly fighting with it during the day; just walking down the hallway is a chore, and trying to pee is an absolute nightmare. To show you just how voluminous this skirt is, and how much fabric I have to cope with when I wear it, I did a Kasmira-style twirl for you. That's the remote for my camera there in my hand, in case you're wondering.

After examining the construction of the skirt more closely, I realized that the problems stem from the underneath layer of fabric, which is not a simple lining but another full circle skirt. The 2 layers of fabric rub against each other and bunch up because both are the same clingy cotton. So after years of owning this nerve-wracking (albeit lovely) garment, I finally figured out that if I just cut out the underneath layer and wear a slip instead, it'll be a lot more bearable. Too bad I didn't figure that out before I wore it today.

Drape-neck tank: thrifted
t-shirt: Supermaggie
Skirt: Sisley
Scarf (as belt): Express, circa 1992
Tights, socks: Sock Dreams
Boots: Fly London

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Voluminous

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Memento Mori Redux

It was downright HOT in San Francisco today; a rarity indeed. I figured I'd better take advantage of being able to bare my legs, since my fickle city might very well send this lovely spring weather packing in a few days. It was the first time my Memento Mori tattoo has seen the light of day since it was finished a few months ago. You might remember what it looked like without color; here is what it looks like now. It just barely peeks out of a dress like this, but when I sit down and cross my legs it's mostly visible, which is exactly how I intended it to be seen.

I really wanted to wear a belt with this outfit, but I just didn't have the right one. I figured a wide belt would overwhelm the light colors, but I didn't have a thin one in the right color. In the end I decided that no belt was better than the wrong one, and added a little contrast with the layers of bronze necklaces.

Keeping with the skull theme, I also wore my Betsey Johnson necklace and bracelet. One can never have too many skulls, really.

Cardigan: Solemio
Dress, skull jewelry: Betsey Johnson
Bronze layered necklace: H&M
Shoes: Azura

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Memento Mori Redux

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Etsy Shop is Open!

I hope everyone had a lovely Easter weekend; we enjoyed some really wonderful sunny weather here in San Francisco, and I was incredibly productive with my hatmaking. So productive that I finally launched my Etsy shop! I still need to do a little work on the look of the shop's home page and add some more info to my profile section, but at least I've gotten it off the ground. The shop features lots of my handmade hats as well as belts, bags, and other accessories made by Mark. A few of the listed items are shown below; the hats are shown on my very photogenic 'model' Tina.

Today's outfit:
Dress: Target
Cardigan: H&M
Tights: Monsoon
Shoes: Gabriella Rocha
Scarf: a gift long ago

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Etsy Shop is Open!

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Against The Rules

Here's an old garment that has had new life breathed into it. This floral minidress started out as a romper back in the early 90's, with me as its original owner. I remember purchasing it at Express back when they were still a fairly new chain, and I remember it being one of my favorite things to wear. After I decided that it was out of date and no longer wearable I still couldn't manage to part with it, so I packed it away in a dress bag and stashed it under the bed. Last month I thought it'd be fun to pull out that collection of clothes and see if anything could be restyled; among those old things I found this and another floral romper, plus the velvet vest I wore a few weeks ago. After well over a decade they suddenly looked wearable again, albeit with some modifications in the case of the rompers.

I got the idea to turn this into a dress from Erin over at Work With What You've Got. She did the same thing with a romper and it looked so cute I had to give it a try myself (it was actually her post that prompted me to brave the dust bunnies and pull the dress bag out from under the bed in the first place). Sure, I know it's against the 'rules' to re-wear a trend you sported the first time around, but hey, the trend back then was rompers, whereas this is a dress. And there's nothing exclusively 90's about floral dresses, now is there?

Also, I'm pretty damn stoked that I still fit into the same things I wore when I was 22. If that's not reason enough to break the rules, what is?

Silk shirt: thrifted
Romper: Express
Tights: Sock Dreams
Boots: Fly London

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Against The Rules

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Dead Stock

I got a lot of compliments on this outfit at work today. And really, what's not to love about a mid-1960's dress and jacket set that hasn't ever been worn until today?? I found this at the Vintage Fashion Expo over the weekend, and the sales lady told me it was 'dead stock' -- apparently an item that is unworn but vintage. I'm pretty certain that I gasped upon rooting this out of a tightly-packed rack of garments; I may have even emitted a squeal of joy as well. Even Mark had to agree that this one was made for me.

I was extra motivated to wear this set today because with the increasingly springy weather, I feel like my window of opportunity for wearing a thick, lined wool dress might be closing for the season. And anyway, this bright lemon yellow is just perfect for spring, while the dress itself is plenty warm and insulated for the still chilly temperatures.

I think I prefer the outfit with the jacket on but left open, though I've included a picture of it closed as well so that you can see the shape of the jacket. I also love the fact that the jacket is designed to be flasher-length -- that is, longer than the dress it's made to be worn over.

Turtleneck: H&M
Tights: Sock Dreams
Boots: Fly London

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Dead Stock

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