the clothes 2011

"The Marchesa lived partly as a slave to her dream world. She had two venues; her palaces and her aristocratic circles. They served as stages where everyone was usually an actor, but when she made her entrance, they automatically became spectators or background extras." -Alberto Martini

I'm wearing the dress Modcloth named after me when they made me their "Blogger of the Moment." It's rather wonderful when one is having a less than grand day to throw on a dress that was named in their honor...very surreal. When I started my blog I didn't have any expectations or goals; I just wanted to write a blog. So everything that has come of it is unexpected.

Sometimes I like to think that when I'm old and hunched, I can show this to people and say "you wouldn't know it by looking at me..." Perhaps, I'm too focused on the distant future, but I've stopped cutting up my fashion magazines. My mother never kept her clothes (and I don't know that she even read fashion magazines...), but I often wish that I could loot the closet of her youth. So, I'm making an effort to preserve my magazines so one day I can pass them on to a grand-niece or something. This dress isn't typically what I would imagine as a keepsake piece; I usually think vintage or designer (one day!) as items worth preserving. But a dress named after me? Priceless. This is never leaving my closet...that is until I find the proper person to pass it on to many, many years from now.

"Life is made up of small pleasures. Happiness is made up of those tiny successes. The big ones come too infrequently. And if you don't collect all these tiny successes, the big ones really don't mean a thing." -Norman Lear

Outfit details: coat- Tulle, headband- vintage, dress- Modcloth Clothes Horse dress, belt- self made, tights- Fred Flare, shoes- secondhand, ring- The Quotation

I'm really drawn to photographers and editorials that offer a sense of escapism. Whether it be the perfected elegance of Rodney Smith, or the imaginative offerings of Tim Walker, both capture a view of the world that is unreal. Lately, with a desire for brighter skies and warm, golden sand, the photographs of Wendy Bevan are captivating me.

This particular set is full of washed out tones and soothing blues; she shoots a lot on Polaroid and prefers natural lighting. There's a narrative quality to her pictures as well, as if these could be the stills from a Godard film. All in all, it's making me long to run away to the beach in faded basics and nautical stripes...

"To me, style is just the outside of content, and the content the inside of style, like the outside and the inside of the human body. Both go together, they can't be separated." -Jean Luc Godard

all Wendy Bevan

I'm having an impossible time taking pictures lately; the weather is just so miserable. I got rained on for these and I can only bare that for a short period of time since my camera is not waterproof!

If there is one common thread amongst fashion bloggers, it is our tendency to talk about the weather. We have our reasons: after all temperatures greatly effect outfit choices. Further, when you blog regularly you might just run out of things to say...

On weather affecting one's wardrobe: I'm a firm believer in wearing dresses in the dead of winter, come snow and ice. This can leave one's legs quite chilled, though layering tights and leggings is helpful. The thickest, coziest tights I currently possess are a recent gift from Ozone Socks. I was pleasantly surprised by the sweater-like feel and thickness. They will definitely be keeping my legs "snug as a bug in a rug" this winter and the pattern on them is adorable too. Style and substance? It is possible!

I hope you all are not too bored with BlogMeetBlog stuff yet, because here's a few more links to check out:

-lots of pictures by Mike Adams of the event here (I look like a midget next to Kam in a lot of these...I should wear heels to parties!) via Urban Fashion Network

-a very sweet write up by The Jaunty Magpie (who wears the awesome shoes and socks in my "official" post)

Outfit details: coat- courtsey of Shopruche, scarf- YarnOverMovement, cardigan- H&M, dress- White House Black Market, tights- courtesy of Ozone Socks, shoes- Seychelles

Bows, birds, and masked beauties (masks are really starting to be a trend on the old blog)? The drawings and paintings of Charmaine Olivia are sweetly detailed; a wonderful mix of realism and whimsy. The colors in many of her illustrations remind me of a dish of sherbet, which is always a good thing...

BlogMeetBlog (the Seattle blogger meet-up that Kam and I put together) was last night. Everything exceeded my expectations and it was really wonderful to see everyone, even if I didn't circulate enough to talk to them all!