zebra and polka-dots

I had one of those "Eureka!" moments when I thought to wear this zebra belt with my polka-dotted skirt. It made me feel fun and sassy. My students liked it, too.

I made this skirt when I was studying in Paris during my junior year of college. That will have been ten years ago in the fall. It has a matching camisole and bolero jacket, but the camisole is too tight now. Too bad I don't have any fabric scraps left to piece in and make it bigger.

I think I'll start with the bolero jacket the next time I challenge myself to find a new way to style something I haven't worn in a long time. Any suggestions as to what other colors I could mix with the gold/white polka-dot print?

Is it just me, or does my head look huge here? I blame the microwave. Or maybe it's because Bryce took these shots, and he's tall, so the camera is up high.

Cardigan: H&M, with black flower patch added by me to cover ugly spot.
Blouse: H&M.
Skirt: made by me.
Belt: thrift store.
Fake pearl earrings, necklace, and bracelet: Rite-Aid (yes, the drugstore).
Boots: the Danskos as usual.

What color should I overdye this jacket?

I overdyed this jacket from a pale greyish-pink to its current rosey-pink shortly after I bought it. The rosey-pink color is brighter than it looks here (darned camera). Funny how the camera makes it look more like the original color.

I have worn and washed it a number of times over the few years since then, and the color has started to fade, so I've been thinking of overdyeing it again (that's why I haven't bothered to press it lately). But I am thinking I might wear it more if it is a deeper and/or brighter color.

To keep the color bright, I will have to stay on the side of the color wheel that is furthest from green - so reds, oranges, pinks, purples, and maybe blues are my best options. Since green is the compliment of red (of which pink is a very dilute mixture), if I overdyed it with green, then the color would come out muddy and dull. If I really wanted to go toward green or yellow, I could first treat it with Rit color-remover and then dye it. But it's an extra step, an extra expense, an extra abuse to the jacket's structural integrity, and that product is terribly caustic, so I avoid it except when necessary. I have minor residual lung damage from a time when I used it with less-than-responsible precautions once during my grad student years. We think we're so invicible, don't we?

It's all cotton except for a teensy bit of spandex, so it should take color pretty well. Any suggestions? I'd love to get some input, especially from the bloggers I think of as my styling muses who have so graciously posted comments on this little start-up blog of mine in recent weeks. You have made me feel like I'm part of an online blogging community. It's a warm and fuzzy feeling!

Oh, and Jacket: H&M.

Mixing plaids! And weighting a hem with ball-chain?

I have so much respect for people who manage to post what they wear every day or even a few times a week. I work 60-80 hours per week when in the peak of the theatre production season (as in now), and can't imagine finding time to post every day even if I had a "normal" job working 40 hours per week. I was very excited last night that I had finally gotten around to uploading the handful of outfits that I remembered to photograph over the last couple of weeks, but the files became corrupted when going from my camera to my hard drive. I was SO disappointed. :-(

But wearing this today has perked me up!



I have had a hard time finding ways to wear this plaid jacket and plaid top. I had them both in my hand while deciding what to wear last night, because I've been challenging myself to find new ways to style problem garments such as these, and then I realized that I could probably get away with wearing them together! I just love the idea that I'm wearing two plaids right next to each other. And the print on my scarf (around hair) uses the same colors as the top, even though it's completely different and would look jarring right next to it. I wanted to throw in another color, hence the tacky purple bracelet and Mardi Gras bead necklace (seriously, it's a souvenir from when I attended the 2008 Costume Society of America Symposium in New Orleans in May).

This top has always felt like it needed to be a bit longer or a bit shorter, and also it never seemed to hang right. The hem was always bunching up over my butt, even though it has plenty of room to go around it. So I raised the hem a mere inch and a half, and encased a ball-chain all around the hem circumference, and now it feels like a much more flattering length and the hem stays down because of the weight of the ball-chain. It's a trick I have used in a lot of skirt hems, too. But I better not wear it for going through airport security.

I have tried adjusting every light and color setting I can find on my camera, and still all the pictures I take with it look washed-out. The blues and purples in this picture are so much brighter in person. I'm starting to wonder if the lens is foggy?

Scarf: belt from Old Navy pants
0acket: Loehman's
Top: Body Central (shorted by me)
Jeans: Express
Shoes: Danskos, as usual
Necklace: souvenir from New Orleans
Earrings: ?
Bracelet: Mandee or Body Central?

another work uniform

This is another example of what I think of as one of my work uniforms: a fitted jacket worn with casual jeans.

The jacket used to be more of a pale green, what I think of as seafoam, but it wasn't working for me. So I overdyed it with a bright green, and this is how it came out. It has gotten a lot more wear since then.




Corduroy jacket: probably Burlington Coat Factory.
Broach: ?
Black sweater vest with attached snow leopard-patterned sleeves and dickie: Z Ladies Boutique.
Jeans: Express.
Shoes: Dansko.

black and blue

This is a denim dress that I bought with Kysha in mind, but she gave it a "no, thanks." I think it's going to get a lot of wear year-round because it's so versatile and easy to layer or wear alone.





I kept the vest buttoned-up for warmth under my coat when travelling, but I think it's more flattering worn open over this particular dress. When it's closed, I think it actually makes my waist look thicker, contradictory as it may sound.

And when I got too warm, the vest came off, and the sweater could also be easily removed without removing the dress because it's just a dance shrug.


Dress: Payhalf.
Velvet vest: hand-me-down from Grandma W, if I recall correctly.
Shrug: probably from Discount Dance Supply.
Thermal leggings: Wintersilks.
Thigh-high socks: a hole-in-the-wall shop in the subway under the clothespin sculpture at 15th and Market.
Earrings: Dots.
Broach: ?
Boots: Dansko.

silly flower belt

I picked this belt up on super-clearance for $1.50. It's silly and impractical and I know that I probably won't get much wear out of it, but I couldn't resist!




Sweater: H&M
Tunic: ?
Belt: MaxRave
Jeans: Express
Jewelry: dollar store, modified by me
Shoes: the ever-present, practical Danskos

pretty in pink

I have had this dress for over three years. It's almost impossible to have a bad day if I'm wearing it.



I went through a phase for a few years in my mid-twenties when I avoided anything empire-waisted because I didn't want anyone to think I was pregnant. I started letting empire waists back into my wardrobe a few years ago because they're just so darned cute that I couldn't resist. And now I figure "what the heck," they'll come in handy if/when we do decide to take away the goalie.

Dress: Payhalf.
Slip (visible only at neckline): thrift store.
Plaid socks: a little shop in the Philly airport... Afaze?
Thermal leggings: Wintersilks.
Boots: Dansko.
Jewelry: Claire's.

I took these photos in the Drexel University costume shop, where I have been working a lot lately, due to a show that opened on the 22nd. A couple of upcoming outfit photos were taken there, too.

inauguration day

I have managed to take photos of quite a few favorite outfits lately, but being in front of a computer long enough to post them is a challenge. This one just can't wait any longer, though. Because Mr. Obama has been our president for over three days!

I'm still trying to figure out why these photos look so washed-out.


This outfit is all about the belt. It says "OBAMA" on one side and "WE DID IT" on the other, and there are photos of Martin Luther King Jr, Mr. Obama, and the White House. It's cheesy, and I absolutely love it. My students thought it was "awesome."


Bryce took these photos for me when I arrived home after midnight, ending a 15-hour workday that had been split between Rowan and Drexel Universities. I would have thought that I'd look far worse. It must be the inauguration glow.


You can't tell from the photos, but the red shirt and the red headband have nearly identically-sized white polka-dot patterns. I figured it couldn't hurt to up the cheese factor even further.

Cardigan: H&M
Red t-shirt: Ross?
Skirt: H&M
Boots: Dansko
Belt: a guy in the Philly airport
Headband: Kmart
Thermal leggings: Wintersilks

braving brown

Until a year or two ago, I rarely wore brown. It made me feel blah. Then I had to have these boots, which meant that I needed to start adding brown back into my wardrobe. This is probably the most head-to-toe brown I have ever worn. I love it. Punching it up with blue and orange accents especially helps it to not feel blah.

Dress: Ross
Thigh-high socks: a hole-in-the wall shop in the subway
Cable-knit leggings (barely visible): Mandee
Boots: Apepazza
Scissors and key on cord: never seem to go away
Cheap plastic bracelet: Claire's

I wear that cheap plastic orange bracelet as a reminder to try to take myself less seriously. There is a funny story about how I acquired it. No time for that now, but I will try to remember to share it when it shows up again.

potential Mom wardrobe picks!

Hi, Mom! So, you know that grey sweater that I gave you for your birthday along with the Mama Mia DVD? Well, in the pre-Christmas rush, I bought it in three different colors because I couldn't decide in the store which color would be best to give to you. I settled on the grey one because I remember how much you liked that grey dress I bought the last time you were here. I intended to return the other two, but I failed to do so before it was too late, so they've joined my wardrobe de facto. I will certainly wear them, but it's not like I need two more sweaters. So I thought I might as well ask if you'd like to buy one of them from me. They were $14 each. The colors are actually brighter than they look on my screen. They may display differently on yours. I've been noticing lately that the colors in my photos have been looking washed-out. I've tried experimenting with different camera settings to no avail.

So, if you say "yes, I'd like the _____ one," I ship it to you and you send me $14 through Paypal or by check via snail-mail. And if you say "no, thanks," then I get to keep them. This is the first of what I hope will be many posts of this nature, as explained in this previous post that was directed at both you and Kysha. I think you will enjoy it. You should read all of the Kysha post if you haven't already, so that you understand exactly what my intentions are with this little experiment.

Post questions or comments here as you wish, but it would also be good to e-mail because I'll get that message first. I may not check back here very often.