the clothes 2011

I like to post my daily outfits on wardrobe_remix and garner inspiration from the other wonderful people who post there. The approach to fashion is different--it's all about remixing what you already have and creativity is definitely encouraged. The inventor of the group runs a blog as well and once a week she posts the "wardrobe remixers of the week." This week I'm one of them. Here are some other amazing looks that made the cut.

Blue is my favorite color. It's so soothing and is even found in soothing things--pools of water, wide open skies, babies eyes, etc. I used to have a problem where the majority of my wardrobe was blue and I would go an entire week with wearing only blues, or at least the main garment being blue. I intentionally sought out buying different colors and forcing myself to wear other items, but lately I've been thinking, if I prefer this dress in blue why should I buy it in red just for variety? I might just start wearing more blue again...

The blazer is also new, although I've had it for nearly a month without wearing it. I'm not entirely certain how I want to wear it and it has also been too warm most days to experiment with...

One of my other new pairs of shoes (I mentioned there are three) are these very Chloe-esque heels from Nine West. Gorgeous, no?

I took the pictures on one of the paths in the woods at my school (I've gone here before) and the sun was setting. I'm not super pleased with the picture quality because the lighting started to die on me. But I do feel a bit like a wilis in Act II from Gisele. The pale skin and dark clothes definitely make me feel like some sort of vampiric ghost...

While I was on my path taking pictures, a group of youth that are visiting our college walked on one of the paths nearby. I could see and hear them, but they were oblivious to me. One wanted to go on the path I was on, the others wouldn't let her. Apparently this path is unsafe and someone lives in the woods along it who might attack them! How ridiculous. It is especially funny considering that this particular walkway leads to the house of the president of our college...

Outfit details: dress- Forever 21 (added the ribbon with a pin), shoes- Nine West via Amazon, tiara- ChicAllure from Etsy

I recently acquired three new fabulous pairs of heels, since I am convinced that it is time I grow up and learn how to walk in heels. I wore these out right away and they're super comfortable. They have the strangest shape to them on the bottom and make me feel as if I am floating.

Then, I had an epiphany--I realized what they remind me of and why I loved them so much--geta! It is precisely the same sensation I had from walking in geta (while in Japan). Love these! They're shaped like getas on the bottom, just the lines are smoothed. It's like walking on a solid wave...

Outfit details: shirt- secondhand, skirt- American Apparel (and yes, I'm wearing it again!), belt- secondhand, shoes- Seychelles via Amazon.com, bag- old army bag (it's actually my favorite bag, ever)

I've waxed in-eloquent before about the various meanings behind flowers, but at the moment I am passionate about wild flowers (or "native species" as scientists would prefer them to be called). I've noticed that I have a great tendency to talk about the weather and the season and how both of these seem to affect my mood as much as my wardrobe. I'm beginning to think that I'll always need to live in a place that has all the seasons, because I need the change. However, when you have rainbow showers trees in Hawaii (the petals of the flowers on this tree shift colors through the year), do you really need full-blown seasons?

An update on the Kaboodle contest (because I know you're all dying to know); if you still would like to vote for me, go here. (Note: if you need to register for a Kaboodle account it's free, you can have one for every e-mail you have, and they DON'T spam).

On blogging news: I am updating my link list, as you should be able to tell. If your link has disappeared/is misspelled/is broken, please let me know so I can fix it. Also, of you would like to do a link swap with me, let me know now. If I've never visited your site before, I can't promise to link to you; I like to familiarize myself with peoples' sites before I add them to my list.

Finally, the outfit. I'm obsessed with pastel tights at the moment and received my order of three pairs from We Love Colors awhile ago. It was finally cool enough to wear them out--yay! And here's my first foray.

I saw my first firefly of the summer today—I was walking to the playground on campus as is becoming my evening practice and there it was glimmering in the twilight air. Nearly every night I make this pilgrimage across campus to ride on the swings. Sometimes I go with a friend, sometimes I talk on the phone to family, and many times I go alone listening to my ipod and walking through my memories. I love the feel of the cool breeze against my skin, the soft caress of my hair against my cheek and the repetitive motion of my legs pumping again and again. Through the canopy of branches I can look up at the stars and see a ring of clouds around the nearly full moon. It is liberating to close your eyes and soar through the air, to feel your stomach drop as you rise gently and briefly from your seat. One might grow too old for the playground, but one never ages out of a swing set...
Grr...forgot the details until now: short- Gap (2 summers ago), shirt- Banana Republic (3-4? years ago), shoes- H&M, necklace- self made

Lately, I've been thinking about those breath-taking, self-possessed girls I used to admire so in junior high (and even in high school). They were usually only a few years older than me, but they just had this sort of presence. There was no real specification on their style or social ranking that impressed them to me, more it was their posture and ease. I've always been shy and rather a nervous person (still am) and they seemed so comfortable and confident (and beautiful). Mostly though perhaps what it was was that they seemed "polished," all their rough edges had been worn away—replaced with breezy small talk, bright smiles and flawless hair and makeup. They seemed to tower above me in their composure and grace.

Is it just part of life that when we are young we will pick out certain aspects of people and then put them on pedestals without ever really realizing what they are really like? I saw pretty shells and was humbled, but if I ranked them in terms of GPA, peer pressures, lifestyle choices and so on, I would not admire many of those girls I did before. But that's the problem with putting people on pedestals...they don't belong there.

I'm seriously in love with crowns (as if you didn't know that from this and this post), but these might be the best I've seen yet. I like how they're made out of such natural elements and soft tones, but will last longer than anything I might try to twist out of twigs. After my next paycheck I will probably be ordering one of these.

A true sign you have become a blogger is when other blogs really start to seep their way into your psyche. For example, today's color scheme is very reminiscent of this post by the Cherry Blossom Girl and my nails were clearly inspired by the Freelancer's Fashion Blog (I really love how she seamlessly mixes the vibes of rocker and cuteness).
Outfit details: shirt- Banana Republic Outlet, skirt- American Apparel (it finally came! backordered for weeks), shoes- China Town, necklace- self made

From a thoroughly modern editorial to more historic works of art (though still very modern in their techniques and experimentation), my inspirations are random and rampant.
This is the artist Titian (or Tiziano Vecellio), who largely influenced my desire for red hair. In the sixteenth century his paintings of what he considered ideal women popularized red-blonde hair color in Italy. What I really enjoy about his pieces are his exploration of color and the charged brushstrokes he was known for later in his life.
A few of my favorites are:

Images by Sandra Freij via Foto Decadent.

EDIT: Sometimes I am a dolt... I'm a semi-finalist for the Kaboodle contest and I didn't even know! Ha! Anyway, PLEASE vote for me. I can't think of when I've ever won anything, other than the worst score in bowling at a birthday party...yes, they do give prizes to the worst scorer at parties.
I like wandering around my campus (even in the blistering heat) and finding places with dappled sunshine that remind me of The Secret Garden. When I was little I was desperate to find a place like the secret garden--my own private, beautiful place. Now though, I think I would rather have a secret library. It would be ideal to have a library housed in a greenhouse, but I fear the humidity would ruin the books...
Outfit details: shirt- Urban Outfitters, skirt- some shop in Sapporo, Japan, shoes- Urban Outfitters

All of us have visited various beautiful places (or at least they are beautiful to us) and we collect these moments and images and store them away in our heart. What if, instead of hiding them away like buried treasure we shared them with each other? Well, Sylvain of Your Lovely Places collects images of everyone's favorite places and posts them on his blog. By scrolling through the places we get to see captured moments from strangers lives. In the process of sharing others' lovely places, his blog has become a lovely place.

Examples others' of lovely places from the site.

I sent two of the first images that came to mind when I received notice of this blog. The first is one of my favorite pictures (ever), I snapped it on a military base in Hawaii (in fact several scenes from Pearl Harbour were filmed on this base). I remember the day vividly; I was there with my mother and we watched my sister and her friend take wind-surfing lessons. The second image is of a sea arch near the lava flow on the Big Island of Hawaii. In the other direction you can see the "plume" (where the hot lava hits the ocean water there is a cloud of steam) and my family hiked there together--another beautiful, wonderful day and memory.

So, what are your beautiful places? Will you submit a picture and a piece of your memory?