rawr...

 

thrifted top: Banana Republic

thrifted jacket: no tag :( I love it, though!

 

Short post because I have a lot to do tonight :). I am sorry to say that I was not totally happy with the outfits I picked out for myself this week! You can't win 'em all, but I think my problem is that now that it is warmer (well, not today, but for the most part) I don't want to wear stockings anymore, but I had built my wardrobe around them so I'm not used to having my legs exposed.

 

Above is what I wore on Monday, I think. I was happy with this outfit! I was able to use a trend that is super hot right now: mixing prints. The top has stripes, and the skirt is plaid, and they look cool together. Sometimes putting an outfit together is a simple as not having a plan and just going with what feels right that day. On this particular day, I felt like prints. A picture without the jacket is below:

 

thrifted skirt: New York & Co. 

 

dragon roll: Rock 'n Sake

 

Do you get it? RAWr, because raw fish + roar = rawr. HA! I order dragon rolls all the time, they are my favorite type of sushi roll, but I have never in my life seen one shaped like an actual dragon! He is really cute, and that is a pretty good dragon face representation. They even gave him wings!! He looks mad, too. Why you mad tho, dragon??

night and day...

 

thrifted shirt: Banana Republic

skinny jeans: TJ Maxx

 

I am wearing this outfit tonight, probably with a sweater, to get sushi with some friends. I love the top! The swirls are different from what you would normally see on a tank top. Banana Republic is really great about taking a regular type of shirt and tweaking some aspect of it to make it special. That is probably why they are so expensive normally. Good thing I don't have to worry about that!

 



 

thrifted pants: Banana Republic

 

Here is the above top with black capri pants. As you can see, a nice top is good for day wear and for night wear. There really is no replacement for a dressy sleeveless top: You can wear it with or without a jacket, you can dress it up with nice pants or dress it down with jeans, etc. I encourage you to get creative with your pieces; mix and match combos you wouldn't normally wear. This will get you out of your comfort zone and lead you closer to a better personal style.

 

The best thing I did to get more creative with my outfits was to look at what celebrities wear and try to emulate. They have endless funds to wear whatever they want, so it is much easier for celebs to find their best personal style. I suggest this: take a picture of a celeb outfit, and look in your closet to see if you have any clothes that match what they are wearing. Then, wear the outfit. You will be surprised at what combinations you have in your own closet already!! I do this all the time, and in addition to being a good idea, it adds an element of fun to the process. Plus, if you squint your eyes just right, you might look like your favorite celebrity. Haha, not.

 

thrifted shoes: Ann Taylor

 

Finally...look at these!! Ann Taylor heels. Aren't they ADORABLE!! I LOVE the little piece of leather on the back, so hot. Oh, thrifting, you so crazy. There actually was a stain on one shoe, but I cleaned it when I got home and it came off! Score! While getting these, I also found a huge tiki mask decor thing. I really wanted to buy it but I didn't, mostly because I saw that episode of The Brady Bunch where they found a tiki idol and I didn't want disaster to fall upon me :) .

festival finds...

So I took a few days off from blogging...that might happen from time to time so I can cook up some new ideas!! Because festival season is gearing up, I thought I would give you guys some festival wear ideas. Coachella is next weekend (I would give anything to go) so I decided to get creative about what to wear to our own little Lafayette, Louisiana festival, Festival International, coming up in a few weeks. Jazz Fest in NOLA is also soon, I might get to go, but I'm not sure yet. If I could go to festivals all the time like it was my job, I would.

 

I thrifted this shirt today! I really like it, it has a small hi-lo thing going on, as I show you below. I also like that the armholes are not too big. Unfortunately, I got to Goodwill 15 minutes before they closed (the website said they closed at 7, but, surprise! 6) so I only got this shirt and a skirt. The skirt is super cute, I might show you later, but it didn't exactly scream "festival" so I didn't include it in this post.

The material of the shirt is super breezy, perfect for warm festival weather. I paired it with shorts, sandals, and a hat. Take care of your skin, peeps! Wear sunscreen! The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists (10 points if you know what I'm referencing).

 



Speaking of me doing things like it's my job, I have been tanning like a champion lately. It is so unbelieveably nice to NOT HAVE HOMEWORK and be able to go lay out and read a magazine and listen to music if I wish. I discussed this with a friend who also has a full-time job: while it can be exhausting at times, it is a joy to not have to take your work home with you and get to enjoy a few hours with nothing to do.

 



Here is another option! More breezy fabric. I feel like I have been waiting to wear this dress FOREVER, and now that festival season is here, I can! It was also thrifted, I think my mom thrifted it and then gave it to me. She gives me a lot of stuff. I might be misremembering this, though. You could pair this dress with sandals, boots, anything really. As I'm sure you guys know, comfort is key at a festival. Staying clean, however, is optional. The closer you get to smelling like patchouli, the better. :)

 



 

I decided to show you a picture of my baby, Kitty! His Christian name is Dmitri, but I only call him that when he is being bad (all the time). Isn't he beautiful? I can't believe of all the kittens I could have possibly found, I found the most beautiful of all! Haha. He is a joy to have, in spite of how bad he is. He is such a sweetheart. Doesn't he look wise and all-knowing here? I have almost had him a year. That is hard to believe.

 

FINALLY, MAD MEN PREMIERES TONIGHT!! I CAN'T WAIT.

Devil's in the details...plus a goodbye to Ebert...

thrifted shirt: Banana Republic

I didn't include a total outfit picture; I hope you guys will forgive me! I am getting tired of not being able to show my whole self in these posts. I want you to get the full effect, and if keep not showing my head you aren't getting that. I still plan on setting up a photo-taking location in my apartment. That is what one of my favorite bloggers, J's Everyday Fashion, does. She takes her own pictures in front of a white wall, so every post is uniform. I follow a lot of bloggers, and I have to say hers is the only one that has a self-starter feel, as the others all have someone else take their pictures. I think it makes her blog more personal. The other blogs have their advantages too, though. If they didn't, I wouldn't follow them :) .

For today, let's focus on the details. Above is a thrifted top. I love it! Not only is it purple (I work at LSU, if I can find something purple to wear, it's a good day) but the sleeves are adorable. They almost look like seashells, and they give an otherwise one-note shirt a pop of something special. 

thrifted shoes: Ann Taylor

As you can see, I wore this shirt with brown pants and these Ann Taylor kitten heels I recently acquired. I suppose I gravitate toward witchy-looking shoes (does that say anything about me?). I have a lot of them. I mean, give me a hat and a broom and you could sing Witchy Woman to me all day (or Desperado. Seinfeld reference ftw). In spite of all this, aren't the buckles cute?? They're tiny and give just enough character to make these shoes stand out. 

Pizza: Schlittz & Giggles

Finally, I included a picture of the pizza ('za) I had for lunch today. The crust was especially delicious!

I also wanted to discuss the passing of Roger Ebert. I can't claim to have read much of his work (although I would like to start) but I am a major fan of movie, television, music, and fashion criticism, and wouldn't mind writing some of my own if ever given the chance. It is one thing to go to a movie and think about what you just saw; it is quite another to open up the movie for discussion with others by writing about it afterwards. It creates a whole other dimension of enjoyment, and I think when people see a movie simply for the sake of seeing a movie, they miss out on an opportunity to learn something new about the human condition through discourse. Now, like I said, I am not very familiar with his particular work, but he has inspired many of the writers that I follow today, and for that I am thankful. He has been a presence in my life for all of my life (as I'm sure he was in yours), and as Oprah tweeted about him today, it is truly "the end of an era." Rest in peace, Roger.

At least I wouldn't skin a collie to make my backpack...

skirt, thrifted: Ann Taylor

booties: Maripe

 

My outfit of the day for today borrows from the style of one Cher Horowitz. The plaid skirt is so 90s! I actually get nostalgic for 90s fashion, being a child who came of age in the 90s. Grunge was awesome, and fashion was definitely influenced by the music scene (as it usually is in every decade). Of course, the skirts that Cher wore in Clueless were pleated and mine is a mini, but who's counting. Plaid is plaid. 

 

Speaking of past decades, I am so incredibly ready for Mad Men!! Today on Facebook I saw some stills from the new season, and it looks like the fashion is moving on from the 60s into the 70s. Sideburns, plaid jackets, and turtlenecks, oh my.

 

A couple of years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of wearing any sort of skirt, but now I wear them all the time. I guess I assumed that I couldn't pull them off or something?



The same with skinny jeans! Nowadays, you seldom see me in anything else on the weekends, but there was a time that I was truly afraid that wearing skinnies would make me look like a poseur. I think I give myself too much credit that people are actually worried about what I'm wearing.

 

I overcame my reservations about wearing skinny jeans by wearing them in front of the Psych 110 classes I used to teach. College kids are a tough crowd, and they all seemed to be ok with what I had on. Now, I consider skinnies a MAJOR part of my wardrobe and I am so glad I got over myself. Are there any items of clothing you hesitate to wear because you don't think they suit you?

 



 

sweater: Talbots

skinny jeans: Levi's

flats: Dexter

 

Above is what I wore last night to hang out with one of my best friends, Laura. Nothing thrifted in this outfit! This is a rarity these days. An oversized sweater, skinnies, and flats is my go-to chill out outfit. We went to Starbucks and talked about our lives. I got a grande decaf mocha frappachino with whip, if you care about that sort of thing :) .

 



fashion formula...

t-strap heels: Nine West 



I'm having difficulty getting started on this post! That never happens with me and talking about clothes. It might be because I am not totally stoked about what I'm wearing here. I think my major problem with this outfit is that the pants, while a fun hot pink (which is never a bad thing), don't fit like I want them too. This could be the biggest challenge with my entire wardrobe, really: I have trouble with fit! I'm much too lazy to go to the tailor's, to my detriment.

 

On to the positives about the outfit. Do you have a piece of clothing that is sort of outrageous, and you never wear it because you don't want to start a fashion scene (or attract unwanted attention)? This is how I felt about these pants for a long time. Luckily, I couldn't wear them anyway, because it's been too cold. Now that it is springtime and they are more appropriate, I have been trying to figure out ways to wear them without going overboard on color.

 



sweater: H & M

pants: Banana Republic

 

A good way to do this is to pair a statement piece, such as these pants, with more conservative counterparts. In this particular outfit, I chose a brown sweater and brown t-strap heels (from a previous post) to counteract the hot pink of the pants. Having two brown pieces really helped to tone down the whole look. Below is a pretty good formula to follow any time you have a louder piece you want to showcase without making a fashion faux pas:

 

1 interest piece (here, the hot pink pants)

1 basic (the brown sweater)

Accessories (the heels)

Finally, a completer piece (like a jacket) that I didn't include in this outfit because I live in Louisiana. It's already too hot for jackets, haha.

 

I can't take credit for this fashion formula, I found it on Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/pin/267682771571444028/.



flapper chic...

 

pleated skirt: Forever 21

mary janes: Mootsies Tootsies

 

Happy Monday! Thus far, my most-viewed posts have been the ones where the title of the post is some adjective (such as golfer) with chic added to the end of it. Perhaps you guys think this is funny? I sure do. I am not one to disappoint my audience, so flapper chic it is! Flappers are pretty chic on their own though, so maybe "flapper chic" is a bit redundant. Both the length and type of the skirt and the mary janes add to the overall "flapper" look that I didn't mean to go for but ended up with nonetheless. I think I was born in the wrong time because I LOVE clothes of different eras. Don't get me started on the 60s (which ruled any way you slice it). The 20s were especially beautiful, though.

 

I don't often shop online, but this skirt is a result of one of my first forays into doing so. I have had this skirt about two years. It is really quite adorable! I knew I wanted a pleated skirt, and I knew I wanted white or tan. I looked online and Forever 31 (typo and it stays) had what I was looking for.

 

Unsolicited fashion tip: let's say you want to grow your wardrobe, but don't know where to start. I didn't even know I wanted or needed a tan pleated skirt until I saw one in a magazine. Just flip through a fashion magazine, writing down a few items that your wardrobe is lacking, things that catch your eye, etc. It doesn't have to be too many items! Start small. Then order them online. I know I push thrifting, but ordering online has its advantages. If there is a specific piece of clothing you are looking for, online is the way to go. See, if you just went to store and started shopping, you wouldn't get the core pieces that a good work (or whatever) wardrobe needs. Just going shopping is great, but having a plan works too!

sweater: Banana Republic
 

I paired the skirt with a thrifted green sweater. Mixing thrifted and store-bought items is what it's all about!

 

Shoutout to my dad, Frank LeBlanc, who has a birthday today! I love you, Dad! This is not an April Fools joke it actually is his birthday :) .