Blue Collar Red Lipstick

02
May
2014

Return of the Paisley

categories: style

What I Wore: Shopping

LOFT paisley skirt; Marc Jacobs Courtney hobo — Skirt, LOFT (via eBay); sweater, J. Crew Factory; vest, Old Navy; shoes, Tory Burch (via consignment); bag, Marc Jacobs (via consignment)

After a lot of neutral and monochromatic outfits, this one felt a bit … loud. The funny thing is, this is something my, say, 2012 self would have loved to have worn. Crazy print, lots of colour, bam. But now it feels … loud. And I’m not crazy about how it looks in the photo, either. Change is a funny thing. As is personal style, apparently.

(Aside: I don’t know why my leg is moulting in this photo, but one thing’s clear: I need to find better opaque tights.)

But, you guys, what I really really want to talk about is: Game of Thrones. What?! Let me back up.

I wore this outfit on the day I stopped in at Value Village, and scored one of my biggest thrifting successes to date. More on that in another post. The other thing I picked up at VV that day was the first book in the A Song of Fire and Ice series. I’m one of those people who pays for HBO only to watch Disney Junior on endless loop, but I don’t actually live under a rock so I am fairly well-acquainted with the Game of Thrones universe. I’m not a big fan of the whole fantasy genre, though, so I’ve never felt any particular interest in catching the show … though I would by no means be averse to having Kit Harington try to persuade me otherwise. Or Nikolaj Coster Waldau. Ahem, I digress. I’m not sure why I finally felt the need to pick up the book; I think all the chatter about the Red Wedding being the shockiest shock that ever shocked the nation may have done it. ( Do NOT tell me anything about it, or I will never, ever, ever forgive you, okay? Even if you are Kit Harington, and you are not wearing a shirt.) On the other hand, you know what’s not shocking? That I’m totally hooked. Of course, I am one of 5 people in this entire universe who has only read one of the books, and I’m married to one of the 3 people who has not read any of them. Which is to say: woe is me. All I want to do is talk about GoT, and I don’t have anyone to do it with.

01
May
2014

Flannel Days

categories: style

What I Wore: Running After Kids

J. Crew green plaid flannel shirt — Jeans, RACHEL Rachel Roy; shirt, J. Crew; jacket, Old Navy; shoes, J. Crew Factory; bag, MbMJ (via eBay)

Ready for another dose of ~~glamour~~ reality? Feast your eyes on this fashion statement. In fairness to my flannel, it is perfectly suited for the tasks most frequently at hand: running after kids, deciphering toddler melodramas (which requires a primal-screams-to-English dictionary), and disposing of toxic substances. Some days – more than I’d like to admit here – I don’t reach even this level of put-togetherness; it’s sweats and a T-shirt that saw its glory days about 47 wash cycles ago.

But on this day, we were visiting the grandparents, so I not only upgraded to jeans and a button down, but I even wore a pair of “nice” flats. Visiting the grandparents is serious business. There is candy involved. And the kids usually get some treats too.

30
Apr
2014

Stripes … Again

categories: Pearls of wisdom, style

What I Wore: Girls’ Brunch Date

Max Studio striped column dress — Dress,, Max Studio (via eBay); jacket, Old Navy; boots, Josef Seibel; necklace, House of Harlow; bag, MbMJ (via eBay)

I have been eyeing the Bailey 44 column dress for a few months now, and by “eyeing” I mean obsessively checking eBay. Unlike many of my eBay stories, this one doesn’t have a happy ending; I never found one within my admittedly small budget. But wait! It was not an entirely tragic ending either, because I found this lookalike and the nice seller took pity on me and let me have it for $40, shipped. (Did I ever mention how much I hate shipping fees? A lot. This dress only cost $20 to start with.) I like the dress a lot, but it’s not without its issues. It’s definitely body-conscious in the most, um, conscious way possible (more on that in a minute), and it’s a smidge shorter than I’d like. Definitely not work appropriate, on both counts. All in all, a bittersweet tale.

OK, guys, can I get personal for a minute? Can we talk … unmentionables? Specifically, shape-wear. I have 2 kids. (You’re shocked, I know. Because I never, ever talk about them.) Anyway, sometime around the 4 month mark of pregnancy round #2, my abdominal muscles were all, like, “Eff it, lady, we’re out!” I haven’t seen them since; they are probably auditioning as extras on Jessica Alba’s torso. But I digress. Post-babies, my stomach is … well, there is no nice way to say it. Smooshy. It’s smooshy. Which means that I’ve had to reconsider my previous, belligerent stance on shape-wear, at least on occasions when I’m wearing something like the dress above. And by reconsider, I mean that I went to Target and got me ~~the mother of all granny panties~~ a pair of these:

Self Expressions by Maindenform Body Con High Waist Boyshort

These are rated for “firm” rather than maximum support, which means I can still breathe while wearing them. And at least look at a restaurant menu.

I also got a half slip, which I’m hoping will prove to be my secret weapon against skirt- and dress-static next fall and winter. As an aside, I can now answer the question “When did you first feel like a proper grown-up?” It was April 11, 2014. Because nothing, and I mean nothing, will make you feel more like you’re turning into your mom (the benchmark for adulthood, surely) than buying a slip.