Alphabet Soup

When I was a kid, my mom used to make soup noodles with a can of Campbell's vegetable soup. I used to love taking my soup and fishing out the alphabets. The concept of alphabet-shaped letters were very fascinating to a young, impressionable lass (how did they make 'em?).

I still get the canned vegetable soup and use them for various things, but the soup I buy don't have the alphabets in them anymore. I'm suddenly feeling nostalgic for them after my much awaited crazy alphabet tights, which I wrote about months ago but were back-ordered, finally got here this week. I'm surprised by how easily they integrated into my wardrobe; while alphabet tights are not something that people see everyday, the colors are fairly muted, so the tights do not scream out loud. They do make enough noise, however, to keep things interesting.

[Michael Kors leather hoodie, Love Yaya tunic, The Limited necklace, House of Holland x Pretty Polly tights, vintage ankle boots.]





I'm going to be out of the country for the next couple weeks. I'll try to see if I'll be able to post--I'll have my laptop with me, but the question is whether I'll have the time to do it. If I don't get to post during my trip, Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Layering Chains

My work style for the past several weeks had been rather woeful. I didn't really have much time to think about what to wear--just throw on something black or gray and face the long day ahead. This week I finally got back on track, and it's quite fun to make work outfits interesting again. It also helps that the heat waves have finally come to an end, and I can work with layers.

Although I tend to make some rather outrageous jewelry for myself and for the shop, I haven't been very adventurous about layering chains. My style tends to be fairly predictable--something bland mixed with a statement piece or two--so it's a good time to try something different. Like Elaine at Clothed Much, I got inspired by the J. Crew catalog's idea of layering necklaces. I'm more of a minimalist, so here's my take with faux pearls and a silver multichain cluster necklace I picked up from the BCBG outlet:

[Love Yaya tunic (worn as top), secondhand pencil skirt from clothing swap, a really old Tally Ho sweatercoat purchased from Ross many, many years ago, faux pearls ripped from a Forever 21 top and converted into a necklace, BCBG cluster necklace, Hue tights, Calvin Klein pumps.]





My eyes locked onto the cluster necklace the minute I saw it at one BCBG outlet, but I didn't pick it up until later, when it was marked down. The necklace a very simple piece, and it's easy to just throw over my head and go. The clusters are really cute (love playing with them) yet sophisticated. Since it is somewhat of a hybrid of a chain and beaded necklace, I can mix it with colorful beaded necklaces or silver chains. It is very contemporary and livens up a classic look--it punches up pearls in a "not your mother's pearls" fashion.

I've been debating about wearing patterend or colored tights to work. What do you think about that? I've seen a court reporter wear a plum pair of tights with a black shift dress, and she looked very polished (we actually had a conversation about that after a deposition, which was pretty cool). I have a lot of tights that have fairly conservative patterns, but once in a while I want to wear something more adventurous. The checkered tights above are a little more out there, so I kept everything else rather low-key (except for the layered jewelry). I probably won't wear these to court, but it was refreshing to see someone at a hearing wearing some fabulous knitted pattterned tights with a pair of black Loubotins and a beige trench--very businesslike, but definitely not boring.

Animal Instincts

My Halloween costume this year is not quite as flashy as last year's, but it deserves an award for the effort I've put in to put it together. I only had 4 hours before the party to get everything I needed--namely the skirt, vest, and gloves. The gloves were the easiest to find--I knew that there were a few places that would have them. I've always wanted a pair of long leather gloves, so I'm glad to finally have them. I knew that I wanted something with a leopard print for Halloween, and I originally wanted a funky blue leopard print dress. However, it didn't come in my size, so I opted for a leopard-print skirt--which ended up working out better than what I had originally wanted.

The furry vest was the toughest one to find. I had originally spotted one at Zara, but I didn't feel like spending $80 on something that was nice but did not quite fit me the way I wanted. I hit Forever 21, H&M, and other fast fashion chains in search of a furriness that wasn't too shaggy, too fake, too loose, or too expensive, but there was nothing satisfying. As time was running out, I gave myself 5 extra minutes to hit other stores that I normally would not go to. If I didn't find what I was looking for when time was up, I was just going to have to do without the furriness.

At my very last stop for the day, I felt like I hit the jackpot. There were furry vests of all different sizes and colors. I finally nabbed the one that fits perfectly, and I was told that the style was 25% off. Woot! I rushed home, did the makeup, put the clothes on, and off I went to the party. I had a great time as Cruella DeVil: The Early Years.






[Vintage coat, BB Dakota furry vest, F21 skirt, Zara gloves, J. Crew wool tights, BCBG pumps with leopard print trim.]

As always, you can bet that the components of the costume will get remixed (two-tone hair not included). Stay tuned.

Weekday/Weekend: Vested Interest

I usually don't care for half the junk mail that come through the email inbox associated with this blog, but one got my attention. I got an email about Bluefly's America's Most Stylish Blogger challenge. The challenge of the week happens to be the boyfriend vest. As gimmicky as the challenge seems (it is, after all, used to promote the products they're selling), I have to admit that it's pretty cool to see how the vest was styled by different bloggers.

Since I've been super-busy with work lately, there's been very little time to shop, not to mention I haven't been in much of a shopping mood in these past few weeks. That's a really good thing, as it pushes me to go back and rework pieces that I haven't worn much lately. Seeing the blogger challenge reminds me of the vest that needs to be worn more, now that the weather has cooled significantly. However, there are still days when the sun is out strong, so I can still combine spring/summer and fall/winter pieces in a way that I think could only be done in California weather. It would probably look quite strange elsewhere.

The vest has been mainly a work piece, but the mild temperatures from last weekend allowed me to use it for something more casual:

[J. Crew gold lame shirt, F21 vest, American Eagle Outfitters shorts, Express blue tights (from last Halloween), Dolce and Gabbana mary janes, Liz Claiborne bag, cuff from Etsy.]