Planning something new

As followers have surely noticed by now, this blog hasn’t been updated in about two years. I’d always had plans to return to daily outfit posts, but as I progressed further into my education, time for photos and writing became non-existent.

This coming weekend, I finally turn in my capstone project, and will be finished with my undergraduate career. Of course, I need some time off to decompress and relax (and play the 87 video games that have been piling up in my queue), but there will be more blogging. However, not at this website.

I will no longer post to this blog, but I will update it one last time once I have a new project set up. My style has been moving in a somewhat different direction, and I have a lot more Thoughts on my style as it relates to my gender, so the new project will also focus on that.

It may be a few months or even another season or two before that happens, but it was definitely time to say good-bye to this site. Thank you all for following me on this initial style journey, and I look forward to sharing something new!

Outfitblogging 2 June 2015

Untitled

Shirt: karaoke league (spring 2015)
Cardigan: Target (spring 2014)
Belt: unknown
Maxi skirt: Target (spring 2014)
Shoes: J-41, at DSW (spring 2013)
Earrings: Torrid (fall 2006)
Necklace: gift from Matt’s parents (Christmas 2011)

On Tuesday nights, I work with the communications team of my karaoke league, posting photos and notes from that evenings performances to Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. As part of staff, I get a nifty official black tee shirt, which I decided to wear to work on this day, instead of changing outfits once I got to the venue. I haven’t done this every week, but I have been purposefully planning my outfits to match my black shirt so I don’t have to lug around an entire change of clothes.

Untitled

With the ensemble fully black and grey, I decided to add some color with the bright hot pick earrings.

Untitled

These shoes are super comfortable for a night of standing, dancing, and making my way through the crowd to get the perfect shot; however, I did keep stepping on the back of my skirt as I crouched down on the floor to get different angles. Oops!

Outfitblogging 28 May 2015

Untitled

Dress: sewn by me (spring 2015)
Camisole: Target (spring 2015)
Belt: unknown
Earrings: Amazon.com (spring 2015)
Necklace: birthday gift from a friend (fall 2013)
Shoes: Spring Step, at DSW (summer 2011)

It’s a dress! That I sewed myself! The fabric feels as comfortable as wearing pajamas, but the pattern makes it appropriate for work days (with the cami) and party nights (without the cami—vavavoom!). I originally planned to make my own maxi based on a really simple tutorial, but after sewing, felt the pattern too busy for a full-length dress. I cut the hem to my knees and like it much better this way.

Untitled

I’ve been wearing these hoop earrings pretty much non-stop. This day I added the Weeping Angel necklace and it’s a lot of fun watching people figure it out and then get a little nervous checking out my jewelry.

Untitled

These shoes. Four years. They had a good run, and this is the last time they will appear on the blog. I spent the workday with uncomfortable feet, and on my way to karaoke that night, I stopped off at DSW and picked up a new pair of tan flats, which I’d been wanting for a while but put off buying.

Outfitblogging 7 May 2015

Blue stripes over a skirt

Shirt: sewn by me (spring 2014)
Skirt: Eloquii (winter 2015)
Socks: Target
Shoes: Fluevog (summer 2014)
Necklace: gift from Matt’s parents (Christmas 2012)
Earrings: gift from parents, Alaska (fall 2011)

Oh, I so badly wanted a swingy midi skirt. They looked so gorgeous on other bloggers, and the item sat patiently on my wish list for so long. This winter, I finally ordered the ponte circle skirt from Eloquii, and as soon as it arrived, I eagerly tried it on. The color was beautiful, and it was amazingly comfortable… and it looked terrible on me. The hem hit at exactly the wrong place. I paired it with both flats and heels, and neither worked. Perhaps midi skirts just aren’t my thing.

I loved it so much, I didn’t want to return it, so I chopped off about 87 inches to create a knee-length, and lo! It’s perfect.

Almost. Halfway through the work day, I realized there was a huge gash in the back. Centered on my butt. On only my fourth wear. Luckily, it’s right on the seam, so I should be able to easily sew that up.

Black and silver

Gift earrings and gift necklace. A winning combination! Also new glasses. I have two new pair: these, which are fabulous, and a purple pair with little sparkly bits.

Dots and oxfords

Who says you should never wear stripes and dots together? These cuties were just made to be worn with the Fluevogs.

Outfitblogging 4 May 2015

Black dots

Shirt: Kohl’s (fall 2014)
Skirt: Lane Bryant (spring 2009), altered by me
Shoes: J-41, at DSW (spring 2013)
Earrings: Amazon.com (spring 2015)

This outfit is nearly perfect. I really like this shirt—I bought it on sale at Kohl’s, and altered it to remove the elastic hem and shorten it a couple inches. It’s cute and comfortable, but seeing it here, I think I know the problem now: the neckline! Perhaps unbuttoning the henley or widening the neck would work better.

The skirt I altered is holding up quite nicely. I’m still experimenting with altering my clothing. I recently bought a fun new dress (also on sale!) even though I wasn’t 100% into it, because I knew that if I shortened the straps about an inch I would be in love. My sewing skills are still rudimentary, but have been giving me more confidence about finding, fixing, or making clothes that fit me.

Large hoops

I really wanted some large silver hoops, so I bought these large silver hoops on Amazon, and now I have the largest silver hoops ever.

Black sandals

I’ve had these shoes for about two years, but I think this is the first time they are appearing on the blog. They are comfortable, but I’ve now learned I cannot wear them on the walk from my new apartment to work. It took practically two weeks for the blisters to heal.

Outfitblogging 27 April 2015

Stripey sweater vest

Shirt: Lane Bryant (spring 2011)
Vest: Hand-knit CustomFit, using KnitPicks Stroll and Felici (winter 2014)
Skirt: Lane Bryant (fall 2010)
Socks: gift from parents (Christmas 2014)
Shoes: John Fluevog (summer 2014)
Earrings: vendor at Nerdapalooza (fall 2014)

This lovely little vest has been put on a shelf in my closet, not to be worn again until fall. It’s so comfortable to wear, and I love love love the way the stripes turned out. The look here with the black pencil skirt isn’t too off, but I think I do prefer wearing this one over fuller or flippier skirts.

Tea kettle

One day I will take a photo of this earrings set together. Here is the kettle! Last year, I photographed the tea cup.

Fluevog

I can’t get enough of these shoes. They have become my most-worn pair of Fluevogs. I’ll probably still get to wear them with outfits in the upcoming warmer weather, but not as often.

Outfitblogging 21 April 2015

Cardigan over plaid dress

Dress: eShakti (winter 2013)
Cardigan: Hand-knit Soay, using Quince & Co Chickadee (winter 2014)
Socks: gift from parents (Christmas, 2014)
Shoes: Dansko, at Walking Company (fall 2014)
Earrings: vendor at Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival (spring 2013)
Necklace: Claire’s (fall 2008)

Ah. It’s been a month from wearing this outfit to posting it. How silly of me! I remember thinking that I needed to wear this sweater just a couple more times before the weather got too hot for it—and now it is probably put away until the fall. I’m working on some springtime knits, but those may not be seen until next year.

Knitting needle earrings

To go with my hand-knit sweater, I wore the earrings made from recycled knitting needles.

Black oxfords with green socks

They don’t come across well in photos, but these socks are totally the same green as in the dress.

Outfitblogging 18 April 2015

Spring dress with hat and shawl

Dress: eShakti (summer 2013)
Hat: Nine West, at Macy’s (spring 2010) with additions by me (spring 2015)
Shawl: hand-knit Sunflower Shawl, using Bittersweet Woolery Star Dust (summer 2013)
Shoes: b.o.c. at DSW (spring 2014)
Earrings, necklace, bracelet: Vintage 360, Etsy (winter 2012)

Just let me start off by stating that this outfit was all about the hat.

After each season of karaoke, a bunch of us celebrate with a huge brunch, including as many bottles of champagne as we can handle. When the fall season ended in December, we made the brunch theme “ugly Christmas sweater”, so for this brunch, a Spring/Easter hat theme was decided.

I had a few ideas of which dresses I could wear. This one, and the accompanying shawl, was worn for my friend’s fall garden wedding over a year ago. As soon as I spied the bright green dress with the embroidered flowers, I knew it would be perfect.

Sunflower shawl

The shawl was hand-knit by me over several months, and I was so super pleased with how it turned out. The pattern was a gift from a friend a couple years ago, and I finally found the perfect yarn for the job at the NY Sheep & Wool festival in 2012. It is one of my favorite knits.

Spring hat

Also: this hat! It was really all about the hat. For the base, I recycled my old floppy hat, which was starting to get a bit worn. I also bought a scrunchable floppy hat last year, so this one was seeing fewer and fewer wears. Now it’s got a fresh life as that wonderful ode to spring brunch, with its bright flowers and tiny martini glasses.

Sandals

While the shoes are comfortable and pretty, there’s not much more to say about them, after the shawl and the hat.

Outfitblogging 11 April 2015

Cardigan over jeans and a tee

Cardigan: Target (summer 2011)
Tee: Target (winter 2015)
Jeans: Torrid (winter 2015)
Shoes: Converse, at DSW (winter 2015)
Earrings: Torrid (winter 2006)
Necklace: gift from Matt’s parents (Christmas 2011)

Casual Saturday! A few of us have started a graphic novel book club, and on this day we met for pizza brunch and discussion of both The Sixth Gun and Sex Criminals. Can I tell you how much I am loving The Sixth Gun? Because it is so good. We’re switching up books every month, so even though we aren’t on schedule to read the rest of the series right now, I picked up more. Of course.

I’m still iffy on jeans in general, but these are fitting much better after a couple washings. Once the weather gets even just a little warmer, these will go into the bottom of the drawers. I don’t think I will ever understand how people can wear these things in summer.

Double hoops and a guitar pick

I grabbed a couple tee shirts when Target was having a sale, but it’s still too cool to wear them alone. But… tiny flamingos! I added the cardigan for warmth, but then also included double hoops, pink to match the colors in the shirt and white just because.

Black chucks

My green Chucks are nearly nine years old and getting a little worn, and I figured why not pick up a new pair before needing them becomes immediate. I also chose the classic black so I could complete my Tina Belcher cosplay. Of course.

Outfitblogging 2 April 2015

Cardigan over striped tee and black skirt

Cardigan: Target (spring 2013)
Shirt: sewn by me (spring 2014)
Skirt: Lane Bryant (spring 2009), altered by my
Socks: gift from parents (Christmas, 2014)
Shoes: Dansko, at Walking Company (fall 2014)
Earrings: Torrid (winter 2006) and Torrid (summer 2012)
Necklace: thrifted, Goodwill (fall 2011)

I’ve got a bit of a backlog of photos on my phone, but I won’t post everything from the past month. I’ve gotten a little better at taking the photos before I leave for work, but somehow I’ve fallen out of the habit of posting them. Let’s get to it!

This outfit, I realize, has the same base as the previous one I posted: the same shirt and the same cardigan over fairly basic bottoms. I swapped out the jeans for a skirt—one that I altered from a maxi skirt that ripped! Instead of chucking it, I cut off the ripped parts at the waist, folded over the edge to make a casing, and inserted elastic for a new waistband. It’s nice enough for work but also perfect for throwing on with tee shirts on the weekend. Win-win!

Red beads and white hoops

I’ve worn this shirt before with a chunky red necklace, but this time paired it with the smaller red beads. Included the white hoops and tiny cherries for added interest (although I still think the tiny cherries kind of look like scrotums).

Black oxfords

Classic, comfortable shoes. I am on the lookout for a tan pair for summer!

My parents also gave me a bunch of socks for Christmas. My mom was apologetic about only buying solid colors, since my family knows how much I love cute, adorable socks, but they have come in handy! I had so many socks with patterns and happy little animals on them that the solid socks were a welcome addition.