Black and White

This is the new leather skirt I mentioned last week that I picked up at a thrift store for nine bucks. The belt was a gift from a dear friend. I've never worn it before today, but I quite like it, especially with this black and white ensemble. 

Outfit Details: Sweater, Forever 21. Skirt, Thrifted. Tights, Target. Belt, Gifted. Shoes, BCBG (Purchased at Marshalls). 

Brown and Gold

Feeling much better today. This brown skirt is one of my recent thrift store finds. It fits like a dream. The tights are literally a decade old (maybe older). They used to be my mom's until she gave them to me five years ago or so. They have a great stripe detail in them and I thought they worked well with the weave of the skirt and the striped texture of the sweater. Come spring I think I may shorten the sleeves on this sweater, as I always push them up when I wear them. 

Outfit Details: Sweater, Ross. Skirt, Thrifted. Belt, Arden B. Tights, Gifted. Shoes, Payless. Earrings, Target. Bracelet, Claire's Boutique (I think). 

25 Random Things

Hello my lovely readers, 

I am not feeling well today. I've been struggling with a head cold for a few days and decided to forgo make-up and just be comfortable today. But I didn't want to leave you high and dry... so here is a little bit about me, from the recent "random facts" tag that's been circulating. See ya tomorrow! 

1. I was born on New Year's Day. 

2. I am terrified of spiders. 

3. I have adored Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman my whole lie. Some of my earliest memories are of watching that show. 

4. I have been told I make a darn good roast chicken. 

5. I taught myself to bake and made my first cake and icing from scratch at nine years old. 

6. I have been to four Comicon conventions. 

7. I have lived in nine states: Alabama, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida. Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, California and Missouri. 

8. In my twenties I took classes in all of the following: horseback riding, violin, massage therapy, bellydancing, yoga, ballroom dancing, swing dancing, hip-hop dancing, ballet, kick-boxing, quilting, French, fashion design and acoustic guitar. 

9. I play Lord Of The Rings Online, and have a 60th level Elf Champion. 

10. I am quite crafty, and can sew, crochet, embroider, bead, cross-stitch, and latch-hook. 

11. My boyfriend sometimes calls me Mango, after the character on SNL. "You can't handle the Mango!" 

12. I have written two novels. 

13. I have played every Tomb Raider game that has been released for PlayStation 1, 2, and 3. 

14. I have been to Paris twice and dream of living there. 

15. The last concert I attended was Parliament at the Belly Up in San Diego. 

16. I am an only child. 

17. Colors my hair has been dyed: Blonde, Pink, Green, Purple, Red, Black, Burgundy. 

18. In high school I went through a rebellious phase and shaved the sides of my head and wore a bullet around my neck. 

19. My mom is a retired artist and my dad is a fire captain. 

20. I try to read at least 52 books a year.

21. I studied Egyptology in College. 

22. Though I don't currently have one, I absolutely adore gardening. 

23. A year and a half ago I decided to change my life. I cleaned out my life savings and my 4O1k, left an unhappy marriage, my pets, the city I'd lived in for 12 years, my job of 5 years, my family and all my friends and moved to Kansas City, a city that I'd only seen for one day, to take a try on a relationship with a man I'd known for 5 weeks. It was the best decision I've ever made. 

24. I have a garden gnome (from my balcony garden in SD) who sits in the windowsill of my loft. I believe he steals my socks, and occasionally my gloves. 

25. My boyfriend and I have an invisible dog named Chupie. We blame all "mystery" odors on Chupie. 

Hearts and Pearls

This dress is one of my brand new finds from my recent thrift shopping expeditions. I got it for $3 and absolutely adore it. But I have to be honest, dear reader, the boots were only worn for your benefit. I didn't actually go anywhere today, so this is what I wore while doing housework. Yep, the rest of the day was spent in those fuzzy slippers (bottom photo). But here is why this little red number is my new favorite dress: when my guy came home and saw me he said that I looked, and I quote, "glamourous". After doing laundry and cleaning all day!!! I'm giddy. 

Outfit Details: Dress, Thrifted. Tights, Target. Socks, Hot Topic. Necklace, Newport News. Boots, Nine West. Headband, drugstore. 

(Sorry for the shiny boob! darn flash!) 

Circles and Butterflies

I just love this dress but I haven't worn it all winter... until now. Thanks to the inspiration from Lisa over at Thrifty Muse and her "Dress Layering Challenge" I realized I could put a turtleneck and tights with this and "winterize" it. I love feeling cute and warm! 

Outfit Details: Dress, Dress Barn. Turtleneck, Old Navy. Tights, Target. Butterfly Pin (at waist), Gifted. Shoes, Liz Clairborne (purchased at Marshalls). 

Red, White and POW

So what if it's 17 degrees outside? 

This is my lounging around the house outfit today - heels and all!  I'd say it's a vast improvement over old sweats and whatever t-shirt I slept in. I'm wearing my beloved Frida Kahlo bracelet. I tried to get a close-up photo of it, but I couldn't get the camera to focus on my wrist. I was more successful in getting a nice pic of my earrings. 

Outfit Details: White short-sleeved turtleneck: Kenneth Cole (purchased at Marshall's).  Red Dress (worn as a tunic) Victoria's Secret. Black Skirt, Target. Frida Kahlo bracelet: San Diego Museum of Photography gift shop. Belt, Arden B. Shoes, Newport News. Earrings: Claire's Boutique. 

California Euro

In my quest to find good lighting for photos in my loft I've moved into the bathroom (yes, that is my shower curtain in the background). Today's outfit is a little artsy, very California (probably because I lived there for 20 years before moving to KC), with a little euro thrown in with the scarf (at least I think so).  I wish I would have had a nice cropped blazer. I think that would have really finished this outfit nicely. I looked for one while out thrifting again today, but no luck. I did find a rockin' white leather high-waisted pencil skirt for nine bucks though, which I thought was a big score. I'll wear it soon so you can see it. 

Outfit Details: Scarf, Ross. T-Shirts, Old Navy. Jeans, Seven (Yes, this is their fourth appearance this month. What can I say? They're my go-to piece at the moment). Belt, Target. Socks, Hot Topic. 

I Heart Fashion!

I had a lot of fun with my outfit today. Got some nice compliments too! The tights have a great pattern in them, and the skirt is a brocade weave (see detail photo below). 

I went thrifting today, which I haven't done in ages, and had so much fun! I found three pieces that I am very excited about, and it all cost me under $10! That's what I call a bargain! 

Outfit details: Turtleneck, Old Navy. Skirt, Express. Tights, Coat and Pin (on hat), Gifted. Boots, Nine West. Hat, can't remember - have had for over a decade. 

Winter Warmth

There is so much to be done when you get back from a trip. I'm almost done with the laundry, the kitchen cupboards no longer resemble Old Mother Hubbard's, and the various dusting, mopping and cleaning is nearly complete - just in time for the big mamba jamba: Spring Cleaning. Here's my outfit for today: Something warm and good for running errands. I like the green of the undershirt and how it coordinates with the vest, and though I am not often a fan of faux fir, the trim on the vest makes this a little more fun, I think. I had boots on earlier when I went to run errands, but I traditionally shed my shoes at the entryway, so they were already off by the time I got upstairs to take these photos. 

Outfit Details: Vest and Shirt, Old Navy. Corduroy Jeans, Charlotte Russe. Headband, Claire's Boutique. 

Mahalo

This is from my last full day on O'ahu. I was finally starting to feel human again and went out to enjoy the last bit of my time on the island. Though the weather had been amazing all week, this day was windy and rainy. 

Outfit Details: Jacket, Reference (with buttons sewn on by me). Shirt, H&M. Denim Capris, Express. Scarf and Earrings, Target. Purse, Coach. Shoes, Payless. 

As for today I'm in Pajamas and planning to stay that way. Paradise was nice, but Dorothy had it right when she said, "There's no place like home!"

She Lives

Day two, three, and most of four were lost to the confines of my hotel room to the afore mentioned food poisoning. This is what I wore when I finally felt well enough to venture out for a dinner at one of Waikiki's nicer restaurants (which, luckily for my energy level, was located in my hotel). 

Sorry for the poor quality of this photo. I only brought my iPhone on vacay, and it takes terrible photos at night. 

Outfit Details: Shirt, ModCloth.com. Pants, Limited. Earrings, Target. Purse, Coach. Shoes, Payless. 

Island Girl

Here is the dress I wore the first day in Hawaii. I've had this for years, but only wore it once before now. It's shorter and more body-conscious that I am normally comfortable with these days, but I figured I was on vacation so what the hey, why not flaunt it a little. The photo really doesn't do justice to what a pretty, rich blue it is. And see how happy I look? How healthy? Yeah, this was taken minutes before I stepped into the sushi restaurant I would come to sorely regret visiting all too soon.  

Outfit Details: Dress, Victoria's Secret. Bracelet, Vintage. Purse, Coach. Shoes, Payless.

Best Laid Plans

My intention for my holiday in Hawaii was to continue blogging and sharing my vacation outfits each day, but that didn't happen for two reasons: one, painfully slow and frequently dropping internet connection in the hotel and two, a horrible bout of food poisoning I caught the very first day in Hawaii and didn't shake for four days. But, I did get a few outfit pics from the little bit of time before I got sick and then after I recovered well enough to leave the room without frightening the other guests with my gaunt, pale, sunken-eyed self. (If you've ever had food poisoning you know what a painful, frightening, dignity-robbing experience it can be.) 

Sorry for the quality of the trip photos. I left the fancy schmancy camera at home and these are from my iPhone.  

Here is what I wore on the flights from KC to Honolulu. Photo isn't that great, and I look all jaundiced from the plane lights, but you get the idea. Planes do uncomfortable things to my contacts, so I just wore glasses. I'm particularly proud of the jacket. I've had it for years. It's a lovely color - aqua blue - but had some horrible plastic buttons on the same color that made it look cheap. (Well, it was cheap, but that doesn't mean it gets to look cheap!) So I marched over to a fabric store, bought some beautiful stone buttons and sewed them on, and I think it gave this jacket a whole new life. 

Outfit Details: Jacket, Reference. Turtleneck, Kenneth Cole Reaction (Marshalls). Jeans, Seven. Shoes (not shown) Sketchers.  

Pajama Clad

I never made it out of my pajamas today. I've been doing laundry and packing and attending to last minute details at home before my trip tomorrow (not to mention watching two playoff games), so after my shower I went right back into pj's. No picture today, but stay tuned, dear reader, because tomorrow begins "What I Wear When I'm Not in Pajamas - Hawaii Style". 

Physical Graffiti

Today's outfit is a reflection of what happens when you listen to Led Zeppelin while getting dressed: mismatched patterns and colors that somehow feel totally "right" in that psychedelically charged moment. I actually quite enjoyed this outfit's funkiness. It fit my mood today, born while trying on every outfit I'm taking with me to Hawaii, including shoes and jewelry. (Anal, I know, but now I feel much more prepared). Thanks for the inspiration, Jimmy and Robert :)

 Outfit Details: Shirt, Express. Pants, Ross. Belt, Don't remember. Necklace and Hat, Target. Slippers, Gifted (Thank You, Malinda!! Can you believe I still have them? :)