thank heaven it's two thousand eleven!

Hoping everyone has a Happy New Year! Have fun tonight, you guys!

velvet dress - thrfited, sparkly tights - costume shop, earrings - claire's, shoes - jeffrey campbell, nails - midnight blue by sinful colors, lips - really red by revlon

snow days

So this snow is actually from before Thanksgiving (absolutely crazy for Washington, let me tell you) but this is just about what it looks like outside right now too. And actually, come to think of it, yesterday I was wearing about the same outfit too.

I was in Seattle the night before last, at a Festivus party, and stayed the night there. In the morning, peeking out the window to make sure I hadn't gotten a ticket, I noticed a few snowflakes starting to fall. Shortly after, while we finished the game of Seinfeld Monopoly we had started the night before, I got a text from my mom telling me there were 4 inches of snow at home and I had better head back soon. Instead, Justina and I went to Ugly Mug for coffee (their Mexican Mocha is incredible) and sandwiches (the bulgogi sub J gave me a bite of was amazing) and then to Neptune Music for used records and tapes. This is something we have not done in a LONG time but it was incredibly enjoyable. I miss just hanging out in the city like that.

floral dress - thrfited, coat - urban outfitters, shirt - old, leggings - target, boots - thrifted, lipstick - revlon really red, camera - vintage yashica fx-3

The day these photos are from, I skipped work because of the snow (the roads were bad that time, not this time) and wandered around taking photographs around my house. I still haven't gotten the film developed yet (I have like 4 rolls that need developing) but I'll post it when I finally do. I gotta tell ya, I love this kind of weather. I mean, I love sunshine as well, but storms and things. This winter has been good so far: two respectable snowstorms and a flood.

lost in forgetfulness

90s dress - thrifted, cardigan - urbout, boots - thrifted, purse - thrifted coach, glasses - zenni optical

This outfit sure had a lot of thrifted elements. This was right at the beginning of the fall. My college student friends all wanted to go out the night before and celebrate and take full advantage of the last day that could do that on a weekday without having to go to class hungover the next day, so we went to a bar in Ballard. The night before I had some knee socks on too, and at work before going out, I had a longer skirt worn over this dress. So basically, I got three outfits and two days out of this one dress. I stayed at Amanda's house and we went to a rather sweet cafe maybe 20 minutes walking distance from her house the next day. 

On our way back we walked through Gasworks Park (have you ever seen 10 Things I Hate About You? remember the paintball scene? it was filmed there) and took pictures. This was one of the last days I felt comfortable with bare legs this year. It was a cool enough for a sweater but I didn't terribly miss tights or tall socks. This kind of lazy day, drinking coffee, eating sandwiches, going to the park, with your best friend is one of the best things in life, for realskies.

And, to top it all off, we found this Christmas tree ornament hanging in a tree outside my friend's apartment. It was a little early at the time (these pictures have gotten kind of lost for more than a little while) but now it's only just past the proper day.

still haven't got that damn gold paint of my boots

striped tee - old, flannel - gap, skirt - thrifted, hat - gift, tights - target, boots - thrifted, purse - thrifted coach, lips - revlon really red

This is a work outfit from when my computer was out of commission. The hat was a present from my great-aunt, who my mom got to see at Thanksgiving and I did not. It's super cozy and surprisingly works really well over my hair pinned up. I wore it over braids a lot during our crazy snowing/flooding/super cold weather that we had way too early in the winter.

Merry Christmas to All!

Hope all you lovely bloggy friends are having a wonderful Christmas. Additionally, Happy Hanukkah, Solstice, and Kwanzaa to those that celebrate, and to those that do not, have a cozy winter season.

inclement weather

sweater - stepdad's, skirt - thrifted, tights - garage sale, purse - thrifted coach, shoes - aldo, scarf - christmas present in highschool

Wow, so things have been kind of crazy for the past month or two. The weather was insane in November. I honestly can not remember a single time that we had snow that actually stuck before Thanksgiving, but it happened this year. I had to leave work early in order to get home safely, and the drive that usually takes me all of forty minutes took over three hours. Luckily I had my friend to keep me company, but goddamn it was intense. Periodic stops every hour or so kept me from going insane, but I was not dressed for the weather. Shoes that offer some traction are an awful nice thing to have when you're trying to not fall on your ass in icy parking lots.

When I left for work that day, it was barely snowing at all, and definitely not sticking. I thought it would be no big deal. I won't say I wasn't cozy, since this sweater keeps me crazy warm and there is nothing like a good thick scarf wrapped around your neck three times, but little oxfords with extremely flat and smooth soles are not the best choice for weather like this. If I'd only known. We did get home safely, and honestly, it was kind of fun. Justina bought me coffee since I came I did pick her up from work and there's probably no one better to get stuck in a snowstorm with.

Guys, I'm awful. I've been totally MIA because my computer crapped out on me. Sad face times a million. I miss blogging and reading all my favorite blogs, but it's library computers or nothing right now. Hoping to have a computer again soon and then I'll be back with a vengeance. I've got major weather pictures just waiting to be posted. In the last month we've had a big snowstorm and a flood so things have been exciting to say the least. Miss you all!

piecycle pie oh my god yum

tee - depeche mode concert, sweatshirt - old navy, beat to shit denim jacket - thrifted levi's, blanket skirt - thrifted, tights - target, shoes - aldo, purse - thrifted coach

I still go hang out at my spot by the river on my lunch breaks, usually to smoke, but damn is it cold now. Snow and everything. So weird. Anyways, later at Shane's we watched a ton of tv and ordered pie and this time I actually got a picture of the pie guy. He's a cutie! We got sweet potato, and he gave me some tips on making good pecan pie for Thanksgiving. He's even willing to share his knowledge. Good god, I've been talking about food a lot lately. Blame it on the holidays!

it's not like being an oncologist . . . i don't need to do a bunch of coke to be happy

shirt - target, sweatshirt - old navy, skirt - bb dakota, tights - urban outfitters, shoes - aldo

I love this skirt. I ought to wear it more. This was just a work outfit, plus hanging out with my dear friend Tommy afterwards. We made Mac and Cheese Pancakes, which are delicious. Like seriously, please try them. They sound so weird but they're really so so good. Make sure your cheese gets kind of crispy on the outside, and serve them with some butter and good maple syrup. It's amazing. And watch this video, because dude is hilarious.

fantastic fall

flannel - gap, sweatshirt - old navy, thermal - target, cutoffs - diy, polka dot tights - target, socks - target, boots - thrifted, purse - thrifted coach, glasses - zenni optical

This was a super fun day Justina and I spent walking around the park and collecting pretty leaves. I wore this new lipstick I picked up by Revlon. I love the super dark, purpley color, but I feel like it's a bit too extreme for every day wear. Like it would be weird to wear to work. But I do love these shorts with the dotty tights and I've been wanting to wear my glasses a lot more.

I also took a lot of pictures, and found this super cute tree. The knots naturally formed hearts and the carving is by a local artist named Dan Cautrell. He creates these carved wood pieces and fits them onto existing knots on trees, cut branches, and stumps. And then, in addition, there's the little love note initials? Cuteness.

school uniform style

shirt - thrifted gramicci, bow tie - random grosgrain ribbon, skirt - thrifted, tights - target, shoes - aldo

I've been watching a metric ton of this Korean drama, Playful Kiss, and love the clothes in the episodes, especially the early ones. When they're still in high school, the characters wear the cutest school uniforms and one of them has this cute little bow for the girls. So that's where that came from.

thanksgiving baking

sweater - american rag, corduroys - j.crew

This was a total lazy day at home outfit. I love this sweater but I don't really know how to wear it. Like every outfit I wear with it feels like it could be better, but I don't know how. But the kimono sleeves and smocked waist are just so rad!

Also, I made the BEST Cranberry Curd Bars with Walnut Shortbread Crust for Thanksgiving. Seriously, click that link and try these! They would be great for Christmas too, and they're really pretty easy. I almost fell on my kitchen floor when I tasted the curd. They are the prettiest pink color!

you'll know what makes the world turn

dress - thrifted, moccasins - minnetonka, belt - thrifted

I've had this dress in the back of my closet for ages and just never wore it before. It's super comfortable and the color is crazy. So blue! The belt is also from the thrift store and it's this great rainbow woven leather thing. One of those weird sorts of things that thrift stores are so great for.

feather floral

dress - old navy, moccasins - minnetonka, bag - liberty of london for target, peacock feather earrings - gift from j, beaded bracelet - diy

Guys, this is what I wore when we went and saw Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe which was so good. I had to work, which sucked because it was insanely hot that day and we had to move like half the store because the floors were getting stripped. The vibe was definitely a kind of hippie/safari chick. My favorite earrings are definitely these peacock feather ones. Actually I really like all the accessories here. I miss wearing my moccasins now that summer is over and I'm too cold for bare legs.

modelo and bright tights

dress - from cousin, tights - target, flats - target, sunglasses - thrifted humphrey's

These crazy brightly colored tights are awesome. I pretty much always wear them with a simple black jersey dress. Do you think I should branch out and find different ways to wear the tights? I like watching my little lunch spot change from day to day and season to season. That empty Modelo can was by that rock for about a week. And my goodness, I miss those bright summer days and wearing sunglasses all the time. This spot is currently covered in snow and ice. I'm posting this, selfishly, because I want to feel warm.

apple picking/scavenging

shirt - thrifted, sweatshirt - gap, jeans - gap, sneakers - pf flyers, watch - grandpa's, glasses - zenni optical

I went to this park in Redmond to scavenge apples on a day I thought was going to be all cool and fall-like but ended up being way too warm for the layers I decided to wear. But we explored the community garden and I took masses of pictures of pretty flowers and things. It was really nice. Later, I went shoe shopping and bought my mom some cute flats as a late birthday present.

policeman in the clouds

sweater - step-dad's, 90s dress - thrifted, pleated skirt - thrifted, tights - old, clogs - jeffrey campbell, purse - thrifted coach, lip color - just bitten lipstain by revlon in gothic

Guys, I think this might be one of my favorite outfits in a really long time. I wore this to work, for no special reason, although everyone kept asking me if I had a date or something. Hehe. The heels were a little intense for a whole day of work, but I stuck it out. I had flats in my locker just in case but everyone was so doubtful that they would be comfortable that I just had to stick it out. They are mad comfortable, but 8 hours in heels is kinda too much for me. But SO cute, god I can't even handle how much I love these clogs.

This is such an example of how goth-y I've been feeling since I dyed my hair darker. So much grey and black. I mean, I loved a bit more color for awhile, but deep down, I'm a black kind of girl. And dudes, how great does that pleated skirt look under the floral dress? I'm rambling, and sadly don't have any exciting stories to go with this awesome outfit, but yeah, wearing rad shit makes me stoked.

total shit and the normies

tee - pacsun, cutoffs - diy/thrifted, socks - target, boots - thrifted, bag - thrifted coach, necklaces - talonalia

Guys, is there anything better than gross house parties in the summer? I'm talking about the sort of thing where you can't tell if what's trickling down your back is your sweat or someone else's and you can barely breathe in the house. Add cheap beer and a lot of it, shitty punk bands, and a trashy outfit and things are guaranteed to be great. This particular night I wore my hair down, which was gross because it was so hot, but also really fun. A gay guy got tangled in it and a drunk girl asked me if she could have it. I flirted shamelessly with boys and had the greatest time with my awesome friends. My friend's band, the Normies, played and then my other friends' band, Total Shit, was supposed to play, but there was a noise complaint and the cops showed up. They decided to risk the fine and play a short set anyways and it was brilliant. So much fun. Also, on our way back from the convenience store to get beer, we found a whole wall of Scott Pilgrim posters. Of course we had to take a picture. I'm not entirely sure what is going on with our faces...

army floral

jacket - cotton on (australia), dress - thrifted, shoes - beat to shit converse, tote - old navy

I am racking my brain to try to remember when I wore this outfit and I just can't. I think I was going out, but I just can't remember where. This is yet more evidence of my slacking off as a blogger. I obviously should not wait this long to post pictures. This summer was crazy, in both fun and unpleasant ways, which got in the way of blogging in a big way. But the summer is over and while I've been trying to get back into the habit, I still have had some pauses in posting. Just going to keep working on it since I would really like to be a regular and consistent poster.

bookstore browsing

sweater - gap, skirt - thrifted, tights - target, flats - target, watch - grandpa's, buttons - diy, concert, gift, tote - old navy

I spend so much time at used bookstores. I love the independently owned ones, especially any that are random and weird and small, but Half Price is great because they sell tapes. Also, it's a really convenient place to wait for Justina to get off work before we go out. It's basically a great meeting place, although I always leave with more books than I need. Which happens at every bookstore ever. I mean, I already have stacks and stacks of books to read, do I really need more? But I just cannot resist the lure of books, especially cheap ones. I have certain shelves I regularly check, favorite authors that I know will never disappoint. Inevitably, I leave with an armful of books and tapes. 

stylin' in my nightclothes

nightgown - liberty of london for target, cardigan - urban outfitters, moccasins - target

You know all those drunken summer nights at the lake I mentioned? This is what I ended up in at the end of most of them. I wore this little Liberty chemise so much this summer. I adore it. And, this may be weird, but I really like the fact that my cardigan is longer than my skirt. Even when I'm drunk, I coordinate my shoes with my clothes. Which happen to be pajamas in this case. I remember, that particular night I was about to slip on brown moccasins to go turn off the water in the greenhouse but just couldn't do it knowing I had these pink ones. God, I mis the summer. Lake water was so good to my hair. Like seriously, do you see that? I could never get it to look like that if I tried. And yeah, that's my probably still damp bathing suit hanging off the edge of my desk.

beach bums

tee - urban outfitters, cutoffs - diy/thrifted, flipflops - target, sunglasses - stolen/found in oly

Another post left over from the summer. Totally a going to the beach outfit. Only enough clothes to cover my bathing suit and make me decent for my short drive up to the lake. I wish more of my summer had been like this though, warm and full of lazy times at the beach.

train trestle

flannel - thrifted, skirt - thrifted, polka dot tights - target, boots - thrifted, tote - old navy

Flannel and sheer tights are a great transition from summer to early Fall. (Obviously, I wore this awhile back, I think September?) I'm really jealous of all the stylish bloggers who live in warmer climates and can do bare legs into the Fall. Maybe I just have a low cold tolerance? I mean, I know I radiate heat like crazy, but maybe that just makes me lose so much body heat that I get cold easily. That makes sense, right?

reorganizing my bookshelf

sweater - stepdad's, romper - urban outfitters, socks - sock dreams, glasses - zenni optical, nailpolish - black out

I hope you all know the joy of being totally lazy all day. A couple days ago I called in sick, despite feeling only sort of horrible. I spent a couple hours in bed watching Korean dramas on Hulu and then read a book in the bath. Occasionally, never getting dressed in real clothes is exactly what you need. This little romper I got last spring and it is exclusively sleep/lounge-wear. But it is getting colder, so I threw a giant sweater (I seriously love this misshapen, moth-eaten thing) on over it and pull on some tall scrunchable socks. Maximum coziness. 

I dyed my hair a week ago, sort of for Halloween. I wanted it darker in general, but I also thought black would look better with my Halloween costume. I'm kind of loving it now, but it has kicked me out of my previous fall mood a little bit. All those fallen leaf colors I was so into, browns and golds and rusty reds and burnt oranges, are not working so well with the hair. I also bought a new gel eyeliner that looks so amazing applied heavily, especially after sleeping with it on, and these two things are getting me in a darker, more goth and spooky sort of mood. I also discovered I love the top knot/Swedish bun an insane amount. I didn't redo my hair to go to work the next day, so it was even messier, but I still got a ton of comments and compliments. 

gothic

flannel - thrifted, cardigan - urban outfitters, corduroys - gap, bag - vintage dooney & burke, shoes - vans, lip color - just bitten lipstain in gothic by revlon

I kind of love the more blunt bangs with red lips. My coworkers think it should be my new thing, and I'm inclined to agree. Red lips just look so good. This lipstain, despite a really dumb name and commercials, is pretty nice. It's a felt tip marker type one, very similar to one by Covergirl that I already have and use. This is a pretty nice red, but I hate the balm that comes with. It's sort of salty tasting which is just weird.

summer memories

I think I've mentioned that I've got a stockpile of photos from the summer, when I wasn't blogging. They are so completely out of season at this point, it's almost embarrassing, but I like them to much to not post them.

These are from one of the best days of the entire summer. It was one of our only really hot days this year. Amanda came over, we drank too many gin and tonics, and watched The Virgin Suicides. We made delicious grilled zucchini, feta, and provolone pizza for dinner. Later, we went up to the small lake our friend lives near. We swam out to the dock with bottles of Session in our bathing suits. We also brought our vodka lemonades down to the public beach in travel coffee mugs, talked for hours in the dark, smoked too many cigarettes, and went drunk night swimming.

I totally love this great handmade vintage shirt I bought early in the summer. C'mon, it's yellow, sheer-ish, striped, and has floral print and ruffles. While I haven't embraced mom jeans, I am totally in favor of hacking off the legs of the awkwardly high, button-fly ones, cuffing them or leaving the edges raw, and wearing them as shorts. So I guess I could just say I am a fan of mom shorts. There was also a great pleated khaki pair earlier in the summer I quite liked.

As you can see, I was totally nerding out with the vintage cameras. Unfortunately the Polaroid had some issues, but I did take a roll of film with the Yashica. I haven't gotten it developed yet - I am terrible about that - but when I do, I'll definitely post a few shots.

shirt - vintage (valley of the roses), shorts - thrifted, sandals - online, belt - thrifted, cameras - vintage polaroid and yashica 35mm