Preppier than thou...

Beret - Myer
Blouse - Munky Bizness
Cardigan - SES
Skirt - Myer
Tights - Voodoo
Shoes - Ebay
Bag - Vintage (Ebay)

Today was mostly spent at uni editing an essay, which I handed in just before lunchtime. As such, I was very much in the mood for the preppy look this morning. I always tend to go for geek chic or preppy when I've got a lot of uni work to do.

The ribbon bow I'm wearing was actually tied evenly, the angle of the picture makes it look lopsided, I know.

How do you dress when you're under a bit of pressure? (Academic or otherwise)

Tagged...

Today's blog entry is answering a tag, it was far too rainy for pictures!

What are the last three things you purchased?

1) A terribly cute bento box with matching bag from Ebay

2) A Ped Egg (a device to make one's feet soft) from Ebay

3) A cream duvet cover from Ebay

What are the last three songs you downloaded?

I don't download anymore, so the last three songs I listened to are;

1) Weapon - Matthew Good

2) This will make you love again - IAMX

3) Bette Davis Eyes - Leighton Meester (that one's quite embarrassing, I admit)

What are the last three places you visited?

1) The Blue Mountains, Australia

2) Auckland, New Zealand

3) Melbourne, Australia

What are your three favorite movies?

1) Gone With The Wind

2) Show Me Love

3) Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

What are your three favorite possessions?

1) My Nikon D40

2) My antique writing desk

3) My MacBook

What three things can you not live without?

1) My laptop + internet

2) Copious amounts of tea

3) Timothy

What would be your three wishes?

1) Enormous but discreet wealth

2) Global peace and end to poverty

3) A life long enough to read everything I want to read

What three things haven’t you done yet?

1) Gotten my driver's liscence

2) Travelled without my parents

3) Sucessfully applied eyeliner

What are your three favorite dishes?

1) Jamie Oliver's meatballs
2) Bagels with smoked salmon and cream cheese
3) Almond croissants

Which three celebrities would you most like to hang out with?
1) Patrick Wolf
2) Chris Corner
3) Matthew Good

Name three things that freak you out.
1) Parasites
2) Getting essays back
3) Financial responsibility

Name three unusual things you are good at.
1) Tetris! It's my number one talent.
2) Choosing good hotels (part of my office job).
3) Putting together furniture from flat packs.

Which three things are you coveting?
1) A white drop waist vintage tennis dress
2) A perm (yes, that's right, a perm)
3) A red lipstick that suits me

To pass on the trend, I'm tagging...
Danielle from The Portrait of Lady

Alice in Wonderland

Today I went to my dear friend Katy's 20th birthday party, which was an Alice in Wonderland themed evening tea party. I've always been a great fan of Lewis Carroll, dressing up and of course of tea, so it was really terrific fun! It was a small party - just five of us, and we've been friends since we were about eleven, so it was really wonderful to be with old friends, being silly and scoffing scones.

Now, the pictures! I was Alice, and quite the Disney version at that.

Dress - Vintage (Op Shop)
Headband - Diva
Apron - Napkin sewn to a piece of ribbon
Petticoats - Esprit tiered boho skirt
Tights - Columbine
Shoes - Pulp


My dear friends - Laura as the Queen of Hearts (left), Katy as the Mad Hatter (right) and Rebecca as the White Rabbit (kneeling).


The lovely Sara as the caterpillar.


All of us, sitting on the wall.


Laura again, because her skirt is truly amazing; she made it herself and it has 16 panels.

And me again, attempting to find an angle where I looked gigantic.

Best cupcakes ever. And we obeyed them!


I love Katy's attention to detail - the bow tie is made from a real tie (just like in the book) and the sign on the hat is just like in the book as well.

I absolutely love dressing up, and I'm lucky my friends do too. I'm jealous of you Americans, you have Halloween! And, I'd like to know, dear readers, what is your favourite costume that you've ever worn?

The Librarian Look

Glasses - Ralph Lauren
Cardigan - SES
Brooch - Surry Hills Market
Skirt - Hand-me-down from my Auntie
Belt - Op Shop
Tights - Columbine
Shoes - Op Shop

As some of you know, I'm aiming to become a librarian after I graduate (and after I do a Master's in Information and Knowledge Management), so yesterday, I had fun playing this up. I was trying to look stern in the picture, I don't think I did a very good job of it though! I don't wear my glasses very often, but I like them every now and then. And, my gosh, another pencil skirt! I've actually gained a little bit of weight lately and thus have a slightly curvier lower half - and I'm pleased! I was perhaps a little too fond of the waif look and diets in my high school years, so it feels rather good to be happy with my figure now. The shoes didn't come out at all well in the picture - they're not bright white and plain!

Close up of the shoes:

The ever lovely Tim was wearing my all time favourite garment of his yesterday (the jacket), and looked terribly cute, so here he is!

Jacket - Rozelle Market
Shirt - ?
Tie - ?
Pullover - Op Shop
Jeans - Cheap Monday
Shoes - ?

The jacket is tailor made and was for a military uniform of some kind. The buttons are silver (though they don't appear it) and wonderfully shiny. A jacket like that has the potential to look a little bit emo when worn with black skinny jeans, but I think that the maroon pullover, shirt, tie and lack of heavy eye make up ensure it doesn't look like that at all.

iSew

Today I had a bit of a sewing session. I decided to try to make a shift dress, and traced around one I already have for the pattern.

This was my first attempt;


It worked quite well, except that I didn't allow for going from stretch fabric to non stretch fabric - and thus the bust is too tight. I love the fabric, so I'm going to make another that fits better in the same.

I also cut up a crocheted doily I found in an op shop, and decided it made a pretty cute collar. My head is removed because my boyfriend took the photos very quickly as it was getting dark and in all of the pictures after the first one, my eyes are either shut or look very peculiar.


I then made a slightly larger busted version in black. Success!


I loved the collar against the black - also hides the fact that I haven't finished off the neck yet. I'm going to adjust the arm holes slightly as well - they stick out a bit too far, if that makes any sense.

I also hemmed and altered a few things, though I have a big pile left to do. I'm going to start a Sewing Book, and list all of the sewing jobs I need/want to do, from fixing a button to actually using particular patterns or fabrics. It's amazing how much of my wardrobe needs something done to it, and much of it I can't wear until I have.

My sewing burst was partially inspired by rereading bits of "Green is the New Black" by Tamsin Blanchard, which set me thinking about environmental, ethics and fashion all over again, so expect a post about it immanently.

A very sunny day!

Headband - Diva

Blouse - Princess Highway via Op Shop

Shorts - Miss Shop

Sandals - Op Shop

Parasol - Glebe Markets

Today was ridiculously and unseasonably warm, and I managed to get terrible heat stroke and spent most of my day indoors and complaining after that. Given the incredible heat, I am not wearing stockings or tights of any kind! There was a time when I would have worn nude stockings under my shorts no matter what the weather, but I am quite glad to have moved on - I suffered enough as it was. I have a feeling I was inspired by recent episodes of Gossip Girl featuring Blair in the Hamptons.

Now that the sun has gone down, I'm eating frozen yoghurt and playing Trivial Pursuit with Tim - we're both pretty awful, but it's a lot of fun, and it's so nice to no longer be too hot!

I am now ridiculously jealous of all of you charming Northern Hemisphere dwellers approaching fall and winter.

Fun with inspiration!

Dress - Vintage (Market)
Cream Tights - Voodoo
Black tights - ?
Shoes - Jane Debster (via Ebay)
Bag - Scavenged


Close up of dress detail

Today when I was about to get dressed I decided to try something new. I have scrap book full of pictures I've cut out from magazines (in fact, I really only buy magazines so I can cut them up - the sacrilege!), so today I decided to flip it open at random, and to base my outfit on whatever I found.

This is the page I flipped to;

As you can see, I don't put pictures together by theme, or by magazine they're from or anything, it's just what will fit on the page - which actually makes it much more interesting! The large picture is from the Alexander McQueen AW 08/09 runway show, which was all very gothic inspired - so that was the inspiration for the black dress. I have no idea where the legs with the white lacy/textured socks and lace ups is from, but that inspired my choice of shoes and leg wear today. I was very happy with the result, though Tim objected to the polyester of the dress as he took the photo. He's not at all keen on polyester! While I don't love it, I don't mind if the garment is otherwise nice.

I thought I'd share a few more pages from my scrap book - I apologise for the blurriness, I took photos of the pages rather than scanned them, and also for the lack of artistic sense with which they were put together; I've seen some beautiful scrap books, and mine is not one! But I love everything in it, so I hope you, my dear readers, will not mind too much!

The shorts are by Lacoste, and I absolutely adore them. I am scouring ebay and etsy for gingham shorts, to no avail so far.

This page is far more thematically related than most - I am embracing the idea of pink, and have an obvious love of two-tone shoes.

Next winter, I WILL have a red cape - either the internet will provide, or my sewing skills will improve, but I WILL have one!

I'm afraid I can't credit the pictures, they might be from Australian, French or UK Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, In Style, Shop Til You Drop, RUSSH, Frankie, Sunday Papers or any of the publications I've found on public transport. Note - I don't buy any of those regularly except Australian Vogue (I just got a subscription) - I am a student, after all!

Given that I've always said this a style blog rather than a fashion blog, it might seem strange or even hypocritical to have a scrapbook of pictures from recent fashion publications, and to so obviously be inspired by them. However, I find that good magazines are full of wide range of really very varied styles, themes and ideas and that having so much means I can pick and choose exactly what I like. I like and thus cut up only a tiny proportion of the pictures - I'd say an average of 1-2% of the magazine; there's so much "fashion" that I don't like and thus completely ignore. (I do recycle what's left over! And use a lot of it for making cards and wrapping paper and draw liners.)

On a serious note, I'm having a problem at my university; I'm being harassed by a mature age student who's convinced that he's in love with me (I don't even know his name). It's quite worrying, and may affect my blogging for a while - it already has in the past few weeks, if anyone's noticed that my posts have been less frequent.

Note: I seem to have worried you all a bit too much, which was not my intention! My university security know all about this and are handling it for me, and it's actually all very much under control. He's not violent, just odd. Really, it's all okay! But thank you for your lovely and supportive messages!

The ladder and the pencil skirt

Beret - Myer
Pearls - Gift from my Mother
Cardigan - SES
Top - Sussan
Skirt - Hand-me-down from my Auntie
Tights - Garage Sale
Shoes - Scooter

Today Tim and I came across this seemingly pointless ladder at uni and just had to use it for pictures. My very kind Auntie gave me some of her clothes (that probably count as "vintage"), and this skirt was among them. I never wear this shape or this colour, so this is most definitely counts as experimenting! I even like how it gets wrinkled at the front, though I'm not sure why. I also enjoyed wearing a beret today, but it really is getting too warm - and that means I'll have to start thinking about what to do with my hair. Berets are very easy!

I wore the freshwater pearls my mother gave me today, I was slightly worried they were a bit corporate, but I like them so much;



Tim was looking particularly wonderful today, though was not very appropriate for the weather.


He refused to get on the ladder. Oh, and absolutely everything he's wearing is second hand - very impressive!

Rules to Break

In the spirit of experimentation and challenging myself, I thought about all the "rules" I have, conscious and unconscious. And there are lots I want to break.

Personal Rules To Break

1) Never wear jeans. I think this one is because I feel jeans are so ubiquitous that they're just...boring. And make me look boring, from hip to ankle. The remedy? Jeans that aren't boring! Introducing my latest online purchase, which should be flying towards me as we speak:


Yes, high waisted flares! 70's vibe, 40's silhouette - yes please!

2) Never wear T-shirts. I felt that t-shirts were too casual for my aesthetic - but I think there are occasions at which being casual would be quite fun. And I have one that says "So many books, so little time" - and as a future librarian, I think it would practically criminal not to wear it.

3) Never have bare legs. Even in summer, I never have bare legs. I wear nude stockings if I want the look of bare legs. This isn't something I'll completely give up on, but nude stockings with shorts is really getting silly.

4) Never wear your hair up. I confess, I can't stand how I look with my hair up, but I'm learning to get used to it and to have fun with it, particularly since it's getting quite long.

5) Tuck everything in. This was a reaction to never tucking anything in, I think. But I'm getting really rather interested in wearing blouses un-tucked - perhaps even with pencil skirts, which leads me to the next one.

6) Only wear skirts that flare from the waist. This is because I am rather conscious of the fact I was not blessed with curves in the hip and buttock region, and flared skirts hide that fact. I am, however, a bit sick of only wearing flared skirts, and will embrace my junkless trunk (a real pop culture reference - probably another rule broken there!). Though, how wonderfully absurd are these; padded panties.

7) Always emphasise the waist. Probably a product of being sick of awful smocks everywhere, but I'm now really getting into shift dresses, as the last post shows.

8) Never wear the same colored shoes and tights. This was because I always used to wear black shoes and black tights because I was too shy to wear colored tights, but it's time to get rid of that one! I'm also quite keen on putting cream tights and cream shoes together, and maybe red and red - I'm sure some people won't love it, but I think it will be a tad awesome.

So, I am somewhat liberated! What are your personal "rules", dear readers?

New Season, New Silhouette

Dress – Op Shop (Altered)
Tights – Shopping Centre Stock Stall
Shoes – Jane Debster via Ebay
Bag – Scavenged
Bangle – Hippy Store in New Zealand

Yesterday was the first day of Spring (where I live), so I dressed accordingly. It was quite warm, so I didn’t suffer for it. The dress was originally quite long and very wide when I bought it, so it has been much altered – and I know how much it needs ironing! I resisted the urge to belt it – I might wear it belted at some point, but I actually rather enjoyed just wearing it as a shift. The tights I’m wearing are a very pale pink – so pale they barely show up in the photo. But, it is certainly a change from my usual red or white. This is the first time I’ve worn the shoes since I got them, nothing seemed to look right with them. And, again, my hair is up! I’m actually having quite a lot of fun with high swishy pony tails, I need some coloured ribbon to complete the look.

You can see my boyfriend and photographer in the reflection of this photo. For him, Spring has not sprung, as he was in a shirt, tie, woollen vest and blazer jacket.

And, a gigantic apology to all of you! I haven’t updated for a whole week, I know. I was in absolute essay hell – I had two essays due yesterday and last week I had presentation and source analysis. Everything is very much under control now though, and I shall attempt to post at least every second day, as I said I would.

And, I’d love to know what you, my dear readers, were wearing on the first day of spring (or autumn, as the case may be, or “fall” – I do like that term!).

Apologies also for the way this post is formatted, it will be fixed tonight - I'm on a slightly dodgy computer at university right now.