A few sights on the way to work

Red, torn flesh. A tendon connecting two bird feet. And a few steps away, another red ribbon tying together two matted, wet wings.

In the park, remnants of snowballs littered the lawn. A large snow sculpture of a dog faced the sunrise.

And when I came back home, the same sculpture, but with the head knocked off, by now melting as noon climbed higher.

Nothing really to connect these two images, nor to connect them to this blog.

They did seem, though, like a primal part of life, laid naked.

And the bird missing its body, and the dog, made me think of absent things. And how we try to but cannot ever clothe those things.

Waiting

notes to self. please ignore. it's rather shameful.

anthropologie...jeans
creatures of comfort...sandals, shorts
shopbop...pants, jeans
neiman marcus...mini skirt, silk top
nordstrom...boots (2)
la garconne...ballet flats

Record rainfall

The black galoshes should come in handy.

Repetto "Chignon" flats

I think gold can work as a neutral, just like grey and black and white. Especially as accessories, like handbags and belts. They add a little bit of color to an outfit, but still go with everything.

I love the grosgain ribbon that edges this flat. It's sweet but grown-up.

At last

The top that I have been stalking for a few months have finally been marked down to about 1/2 price.

This top reminds me of the silky, satiny material that you can find at oriental shops. I used to have a pair of kid's pajamas in this kind of material, complete with an arc of frogging that buttoned up one side.

More crap, incoming

Worishofer Red Slip Ons

...for summers. I think it would go well with a denim mini and airy white tops. Kind of casual, but still a little more neat and pulled together than Birks.


Levi's Capitol E Boyfriend Jeans

...I wear my oversized jeans more than anything else. I like the androgynous potential of denim.







Karen Walker high-waisted shorts

...my favorite color blue. And I think the little ties on the side add a touch of whimsy. I like Karen Walker, too. She has cool, understated clothes that don't announce designer. This looks like something you could find in a thrift store, if you only had 10 years to find it.





& Theory black wool pants, Seven for All Mankind slouchy jeans, Marc by Marc Jacobs boots

I fully expect (and hope) that I will be sending some back.

3.1 Philip Lim blouse

I covet this men's style button down. Normally I don't like button downs. They just feel too stodgey and ... well, buttoned up. But this is special, and alas, sold out.

I have a craving for men's-style clothing right now. Perhaps the sweatshirt got me kickstarted. But I want a pair of wide-legged trousers. men's oxfords. and this men's shirt.

Men's oxford shoes, II

I know exactly what I'm looking for now.

shapely
black
shiny/patent leather
men's style
dress oxfords

No to orthopedic.
No to German comfort.
No to Doc Marten.

The good and bad

So I think the main difference in how I approach fashion now as opposed to a few years ago would be that I put more thought and analysis behind what I wear and like. I save pictures that I come across and like on my computer, and I clip editorials from magazines that catch my eye. Then every few months or so, I'll open up that file and review some of those images. From that, I've come to figure out my style. To where, when I see cute things on the rack, I can now say to myself, "that's pretty, but not my style." Before, anything that I thought was cute was sufficient criteria to try on and buy, but not necessarily to wear.

In addition, I think I've become a smarter shopper. I analyze potential purchases for how they'll fit into my wardrobe. I imagine occassions and outfits that would justify the purchase. I also try to imagine how that style or material will hold up after repeated wears. And if I find myself imagining myself in that outfit...suprisingly, that means it's a no. If I have to persuade myself into it, it almost invariably doesn't work for me.

So a few random things I've learned:
* J.Crew is not good for accessories like scarves and slippers. These get nappy and piley after just a little bit of wear.
* Splendid, Ella Moss, Velvet and C&C--all those luxury tee companies--are actually worth the money. Kinda. If those things are on sale. The modal, lyocell, and other fabric blends actually make their basics drape well and hold up nicely.
* Buy in a color palette. Save prints for special items, like a pretty vintage blouse or a party frock.

Roll call

Back goes everything that came recently in the mail, except for the J. Crew basics.

Men's oxford shoes

I'm on the prowl for a pair.

I used to wear them in college, as part of an overall aesthetic: tee shirts, short shorts or skirts, and clunky shoes. It was partly coltish, partly androgynous, partly nerdy girl. I have a picture of me on the steps of the Arc de Triomphe, wearing just such an outfit. Perhaps in some way, it conveyed a sense of style. I remember being stopped 3 or 4 times during my visit to Paris by Parissiennes asking for directions.

Then I thought at some point that it was time for me to "grow up." And by grow up, I think I thought I needed to become more feminine. So away went the oxfords with no socks, and in came the ... Birkenstocks. Okay, so not much of a leap, but you have to remember I was a girl who wore overalls on a date.

Anyway, I want a pair again. I was inspired by the appearance of these old artifacts on the fashion runway (Karen Walker, top right, among others), worn in the way I used to. Kind of louche, defiant, and tomboyish.

J Crew Featherweight Layering Tees

I got 2 for $40. In grey and white cotton. And then another one in "sea salt" wool jersey.

Very comfortable and perfect for layering, or not, once I break the seam on the neck. I hate any sort of binding around my neck, except for scarves. Everything else makes me feel like I'm suffocating.

Her wedding

The brides wore a strapless white wedding gown and a burgundy beaded ballgown.

I wore a knee-length silk dress in a watercolor print. And a blue mesh jacket over that.

Bad weather, bad poetry

It's the season for wet, dragging hems.

Sleeping, the sound of rain.
Waiting, wondering whether to dress for rain.
Walking, to school, through puddles.
Home. Damp ankles.

Hello, world

I shaved my legs this morning. The hairs looked like clumps of seaweed in between the razor blades, waving under the stream of water.

Now I feel newborn.

Wedding

The boy likes the jacket!

uh oh! There goes my budget. Well, I still have a few more things coming in this week, and I'll be deciding between them then.

What does one wear to an outdoor wedding in Texas in November? I checked the weather report and it says highs in the mid-60s, and lows in the 40s.

So I'm thinking:
dress...silk or cotton, to the knee...yes
high heels...no (I'll sink into the dirt)
boots...maybe
flats...maybe
some sort of wrap or fancy sweater...yes
or, my long coat, left open...maybe
sheer hose...maybe

Uh oh

I think I actually like the Mint Cropped Felted Wool Jacket. Must canvass for opinions. I was hoping to be sending this one back.

Cotton tights

I'm reminded today of Ramona Quimby, scabby-kneed heroine of my youth, who was fascinated by the continually sagging pantyhose of her schoolteacher. She would watch the hose crumple around her teacher's knees and pool in a nylon puddle at her ankles as the schoolday wore on.

My black cotton tights made their first appearance today, too. They are thick cotton and long, and so they wrinkle a bit. Or rather, they "slouch," in the modern lingo, reminiscent of Prada's highly coveted stockings sent down the runway a season ago. (Of course, Prada would be the design house to give librarian, intellectual frump a sexy edge.)

So I'm rather pleased with the cotton tights. I'm pleased about standing quite literally between two disparate moments in my life, and seeing some continuity.

Roll call

Kate Spade sunglasses, with kelley green holder
black cotton tights
Zooey elbow-length peasant top
Zooey tank with ruched shoulders
Elevenses red corduroy skirt with military buttons

in the mail
Mint cropped felted wool jacket
Belle by Sigerson Morrison knee boots
Karoo cashmere dress
JCrew layering tees, wool jersey tee, and cashmere long johns


I'd like to be warm this winter...

Plainer and plainer

The older I grow, the more I gravitate towards minimalistic clothing with clean lines and muted, monochromatic color.

So no to patterns, ribbons, frippery of any sort in clothing.

Sweatshirts

I've avoided wearing these for most of my life. I've always thought them to be despairing, slobby kind of clothes. The kind you wear when you've given up on life or your looks, when all you want to do is stay inside all weekend eating Haagen Daz and listening to the rain.

Today came close enough. Rainy, wet weekend with the prospect of work and more work in front of me. So I pulled on the boy's grey sweatshirt (I don't own any myself, and his are nice and worn in). Lo and behold. I got compliments on the sweatshirt. Not from strangers, but nearby boys. From various strangers, though, as I later skulked through Nordstrom with all its highly coiffed women, I got scrutiny.

This situation confused me, so I asked the guys who complimented the sweatshirt. One replied that it's cute in the same way that wearing your guy's button down is cute. And the boy remarked that wearing something plain puts everything else in high relief. It's good to know that I could have avoided spending the hundreds of dollars I've spent so far, and just got down to Wal-mart and gotten a few Hanes Her Way.

(Not really. If we set as our standard, male approval, what bottom dwellers we would be.)

Shift

It's close to time to shift from wearing sweaters and a rain jacket to full-blown winter gear: wool coat, gloves, hat. Sheesh, it was cold tonight!

Boots & skinny legs

I've always had skinny legs. In middle school, I developed an extreme self-consciousness about them, and I never wore skirts for that reason. I didn't want anyone looking at my legs. When I worked as a door-to-door canvasser for an environmental group in Texas (babes in bear country), I wore jeans the entire long hot summer cause I wouldn't wear shorts in public. I actually didn't wear a tank top until I was 24. I basically wouldn't wear any clothing that would invite scrutiny of any sort.

Despite the fact that an ex used to call me "chicken legs," I don't care so much about the skinniness anymore. I'll wear skirts and dresses, anyway. But the skinny legs still get in the way of my finding the perfect pair of boots.

Boots are a tricky item of clothing. With the wrong details on a pair, and suddenly you're a cowboy, a butch lesbian, a hooker, or an inter-galactic space traveller. For me, though, the trickiest detail has been the circumference around the calves. They're always cut wide and so gap and flap around my legs. No matter the style of boot, I always end up looking like I'm wearing puddle jumpers.

So imagine my surge in optimism when I clicked on "Narrow Calves" in the boot guide on Nordstrom.com and a few options came up. My greatest hope comes in this form, on its way to me in black and brown and arriving next week.