No more

In order for the new quality over quantity equation to work, I actually have to reduce the number of things I buy. I've already upped the quality (and the price). That part is easy.

I turned away so many cute things this weekend. Didn't even try them on. But my willpower fell when I stepped foot into Anthropologie, specifically when I ventured near the sale rack. I had already decided not to get any more Anthropologie brands (the in-store brands that is their bread and butter), but only actual designer brands that get marked down cheap there. Last night, though, I came across a lot of bargains that I usually don't find.

. Joe's jeans ... marked down to $20 from 158
. wool maxi skirt ... marked down to $30 from 218
. Venera Arapu wool vest ... $30 from around 158
. Velvet jersey dress ... on sale (that's all you need to know)

With savings like that, it was practically free.

However. I have a shameful confession to make. The salesgirl recognized me from my place of work because "I always see you wearing Anthropologie clothes." Arghhh! I vowed then and there to start frequenting thrift stores again. That's the problem with chain stores. They're like one night stands.* Cute and cheap, but everyone is wearing them.

* not first-hand knowledge

Gryson

I finally caved and ordered one the other week. This was the handbag that I've been coveting for about 6 months, and I was getting worried that the stock would run out entirely.

Yes, the leather is love. But being a first run, there are some quality issues with it--the leather binding around the handle had become undone, and there were faint smears of glue on the handles themselves.

In addition, the double straps were awkward, and they got in the way when you tried to get in and out of the bag. The zipper didn't work well, either.

Like all things, a handbag should be functional, not just pretty.

Camo

So of the latest wave of online purchases, I'm only keeping a few things:
. Mulberry Bayswater handbag in chocolate. It's a classic bag that I can use for work.
. A.P.C. inverted pleat chino miniskirt
. A.P.C. sheer merino wool sweater

I've really fallen in love with A.P.C. stuff. It's a cultish French label that's known for its under the radar logo, high quality materials, and cool simple designs. It was the pleated top that I got last year that started me in my "investigation" into better quality clothes.

I like to think of it as an investigation, or research, because this past year wasn't just about getting cute things. I think I was also looking into the accoutrements of adulthood, these indicators of your status, experience, and place. Along the way, I made some mistakes in the things I've acquired, but as a whole, I'm satisfied that I've learned a little bit more about how one assembles a visual self to present to the world.

I've long thought of clothing as camouflage. And before I could figure out what to put on, I had to discover the place I was a part of.

Compliments

Perhaps I'm too testy about it. But when women compliment me on my clothing or appearance these days, my hackles go up. My guy friends say that I am overly suspicious, but they haven't been a women for all these many years, and they don't know how competitive women can be with each other.

Maybe if someone well-dressed said something nice to me, with a smile, I would be able to accept the compliment.

But when I hear someone preface their compliment with, "I thought I had good fashion until..." or "you can wear anything and make it look good...", then I think. Oh oh. Insecurity alert.

Or maybe it's just me. Having been not complimented for so many years--geez, so many years--it seems odd and disengenuous to hear it these days.

Refurbishment

color palette:
creams, whites, browns, yellows, and bright blue. a shot of red in small accessories.

to fill out my wardrobe:
long necklace
ankle boots (prob vintage, for the look and price that I want)
structured, well-made short skirts
new handbag. something smaller and v. cute.
unstructured bras

Lucky

When the magazine first came out, they tried to entice me to get a subscription by asking whether "I felt lucky." Uhm, no.

So I didn't get an issue, at least not immediately.

At the time, I was in my late twenties, entering the workforce, and absolutely clueless about how to dress myself. I had never paid attention to these things when most girls did, in middle and high school and college, and I felt far behind the bell curve.

During a phone conversation with an old friend, she advised that I solve my clothing confusion by taking out a subscription to the magazine. So I did.

And X years later, I still have a subscription. I still like flipping through the magazine to get ideas and to see what's out there. One difference now though is that I can actually afford these items. In fact, I've recognized some of my recent acquisitions in some of their spreads.

When a girl's thoughts turn to spring...

After a week of being snowed in, it's finally starting to thaw. The snow is running in streams down the gutters, the moss is peeking out from under rocks, and the temperature is slowly rising.

Spring and summer has always been so much more fun for me to dress for than winter. I drown under my soggy woolens.

But I'm super excited about getting to wear, perhaps soon:
* my red orthopedic sandals from Germany
* my bright blue high-waisted shorts with the u-pockets
* a short cotton gauze dress with yellow butterflies on it
* a brown jersey swing tank with an adjustable string tie
* my collection of slip dresses and mini skirts
* the knee-high boots sans tights

Thrifting again

It's been awhile. Recently, I've been researching higher-end goods and shopping at nicer stores, at least nicer for me. After which, thrift stores started to not look so good. The smell, the film of dirt over everything, the time investment without payoff--they didn't seem worth it. And I got rid of so many things that I had acquired at a thrift store only a short time before. I was determined to break that cycle.

But I've gone back for several reasons. I've decided I need to slow down on the spending (as soon as winter sales stop tempting me, damnit!). I think a few original, quirky pieces will really perk up all these higher-quality items I've been getting. I've noticed that my favorite wardrobe items are all thrift store finds.

Anthropologie cruelty

I hadn't visited in quite a long time, but I stopped by the other day to browse. It was mid-week, and the SAs were putting up new displays. Part of the display, interspersed among the ferns and mushroom prints, were small fishbowls with one or two goldfish in each one.

Maybe I've read too many fishkeeping books (and I've read a lot), but I was rather shocked. Those fishbowls are too small for even one small-sized fish, let alone two mid-size ones with rocks and decor.

Badly played.

Update on Boxing Day sales

I kept the J. Crew cords and oversized link bracelet. Everything else went back.

Kaboodle

A way to bookmark the items that you come across and like. I have two subsections in my page, Shopping and Wishlist. Wishlist are things that I think are pretty but have no intention of ever getting. Shopping includes items that I mostly covet from afar, but may someday get. Some items in my Kaboodle:

Silly plastic shoes in my favorite bright French blue color. I love the d'orsay style (cut out sides).

Ever since the glitter shoes, I have gotten more and more ridiculous with my shoe selections.


Chloe shoes. So high, such a mix of toughness and prettiness. And so overpriced. Even with $500 knocked off the price.








I like the backward slouch of this beanie hat. Stalking the sales...










The color of this silk top is so deep deep blue. The pussy bow makes it louche and cool.









A fairly ordinary bag in this picture, but I've been interested in this label for about a year now. At half price, I'll risk paying return shipping just to check it out.

Friendship

I am wearing pajama bottoms that I bought maybe 8 years ago when visiting in the wintertime a friend who lived in Massachusetts. Coming from Texas, I was woefully unprepared for a drafty turn-of-the-century New England house in the winter, with its temperamental and inadequate pipes.

So when I was wandering around the kind of downtown people call "quaint," I popped into the Gap to find a pair of warmish pj's. The only ones on sale were a salmon-colored set, with cropped pants edged in lace. I got them, and wore them, and was almost warm (but the cold came not from an external source).

I've kept them all these years but had lost track of them under a pile of concert tees and ragged skirts in the Boy's dresser (I appropriated a couple of his drawers). I rediscovered them yesterday after he finally cleared out the space in front of the dresser so that I could actually pull out the drawers.

It feels really good to wear these old, worn-in pj's. I don't have a lot of outside clothes that are that old. I guess something about pj's don't garner your attention, so that the years pass by without you really noticing how the holes have developed, the threads unraveled, or the elastic stretched.

And then, 8 years later, they reappear almost like an old friend.

I've since lost that connection to the friend I visited in MA. In fact, he doesn't even live in the state anymore. He has moved south, to where it's warmer and you probably don't need pj's.

First day

Today was a day of first impressions, and as such I had to make a good one. I put on the clothes of the ruling class, like a good little girl, although I neglected to tuck in. Ha ha ha! My one act of rebellion (besides the striped Doc Marten sneaks). The man does not own me yet!

So it's into the tricky part of dressing, where I have to carefully examine outfits for their appropriateness. I always thought it was so sad to see the women in an office dressed as if they were trolling for dates at work. What a whiff of desperation, never a pleasant odor.

So I try to avoid the office skank style. The tight polyester black pants. (Always black. Have you noticed that? to visually reduce the size of the caboose. Only the interns wear tight grey flannels.) The wrap top that highlights the boobage. The high heels.

For me, though, I have a different list of contraband separates, mostly because my work environment isn't really an office setting. So no:
* Paige or Earl jeans
* short skirts
* boots with bare legs