Black on Black on Black

The lovely Fashionista Next Door has challenged us to wear all black as part of Style Me Friday.  And y'all?  This was crazy hard for me.

That's right, I had trouble putting together leggings and a tunic.

The thing is, I don't wear black from head-to-toe.  I pretty much have to have a pop of color; scarf, earrings, something.  Or something shiny.  I had to force myself to back away from my Foxxy Anubis brooch this morning.

However, I (sometimes) like a good challenge so I bit the bullet and resisted the urge to add color or shine, depending instead on different textures to (hopefully) add interest to my monochromatic look.

I, apparently, also wanted to show how it was possible to wear head-to-toe black and not look sleek and cool.

But, enough about my enduring fluffiness.  Let's get back to the texture:

Yes, my sweater is texturally interesting.  And yes, I do have to make that face when providing a close-up of this tunic. Rules is rules, folks.


Happy Friday, All!

Gracey

SIA: The Woman And Her Chair

This is the painting Salazar, of 14 Shades of Grey, chose for today's SIA Challenge:

Cecelia Beaux "After the Meeting"

And this is what I wore:

Yes, that's right, I am dressed as both the woman and her chair.

When I first saw this painting on 14 Shades of Grey, I was immediately drawn to the mix of the floral on the chair and the stripes on the woman.  I also love the the rich warm tones of the painting and wanted to incorporate all of those things into my outfit.

The result is a mix of stripes (Target shirt, Vince Camuto skirt), floral (handmade vintage coat-dress-thingy) and leopard (Nine West):

Yes, I know there is no leopard in the painting, but I'm pretty sure that woman sitting on that chair would have some leopard in her life.  She's seems like a bit of a bad-ass like that.

For more inspired looks, pop by Salazar's and take a gander!

And have a Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Oooh, I almost forgot.  I'm linking up to Visible Monday over at Not Dead Yet Style because I felt highly visible in this mix of prints and awesomeness.

Literary Stylings # 4 - Obvious Orange

Quick confession.  This dress:

... has nothing to do with this book:

The author and her fellow inmates didn't wear orange, they wore khaki.  Most prisoners nowadays don't wear orange.  They wear head-to-toe khaki or denim and only wear orange when they're being transported.  Because the bright color makes the inmates easier to locate if they try to escape.

But, obviously there was no way I was going to pass up the opportunity to wear orange.  Especially in a fruit print:

Fruit also has nothing to do with this book.  Except, wait... yes, the author ate as much fresh fruits and vegetables as was available to her in an attempt to counteract all the starch our penal system feeds prisoners.

So, there we go.  My fruit dress represents the author's attempt to stay healthy during her prison stay!  Yay, me!

And now it's your turn; you can link up below:

Happy Tuesday, All! Gracey

Literary Stylings Reminder

Hello Dearest Reader Friends!

This post is just a friendly reminder that it's nearly time to link up to the Fashion for Giants Literary Stylings Link Party.  Per usual, the party will be held the first Tuesday of the month, which is next Tuesday, October 1st, and will be open for linking all week long.  You can find more information on this awesome literary adventure here.

Here are the books I'll be choosing from for my look.

This month, I read Kapitoil, by Teddy Wayne:

Image via goodreads.com

This was a good book but not necessarily one I enjoyed reading.  I will try to explain.  The lead character, Karim, is from Qatar and is really quite lovely but most of the other characters were not.  It got to the point where I dreaded his interactions with the mostly horrible Americans he came into contact with.  And from the stand point of this challenge, there really wasn’t much inspiration there so I don’t think I’ll be using this one.

 

I read The Roaches Have No King, by Daniel Evan Weiss:

Image via www.bookfever.net

The Roaches Have No King was… interesting.  But, I think the author’s device of writing from the POV of a roach back-fired on him in the end.  The book got increasingly graphic and, well, disgusting as it progressed, and by the end I was no longer sure what point the author was trying to make.  It got drowned out in scatological observations and inter-species sex.  And although those two things might make for an interesting challenge look, I think I’ll probably end up going a different route.

I read The Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy and Hard Times by Jennifer Worth:

Image via thebooksmugglers.com

The Midwifewas an absolutely lovely book.  Jennifer Warner isn’t the best author in the world but that didn’t stop me from enjoying this book.  I’m delighted she put her experiences in East End London after World War II down on paper because the stories are wonderful.  I definitely recommend reading it and I’ve heard the PBS series, Call the Midwives, is pretty darned good as well.

And I'm finishing up Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women's Prison, by Piper Kerman:

Image via goodreads.com

The author of Orange is the New Black, Piper Kerman, isn’t exactly a great author either but she gets her point across and I’m glad she wrote the book.  Like Warner, Kerman doesn’t try to glamorize her experiences and both are honest even when it doesn’t portray them in the best light.  I definitely recommend this book and have heard this series is pretty good too.

My Literary Stylings outfit this month will most likely be based on one of these last two books unless I come into possession of some cockroach-colored patent leather and then, well, my choice is obvious.

What about you, Reader Friends?  Have you chosen your look for next Tuesday?

Gracey

Perfect 10 Remix Recap

From the 9th to the 19th of September, I participated in Coffee and Cardigans, Perfect 10 Remix Challenge and it actually went pretty well.  I was concerned because I don't do well with these sorts of challenges; I'm usually pretty fickle about what I wear.  But this time I was able to select and actually stick with ten items of clothes for ten days.

What I didn't do very well was wear all of the items equally.  For example, I wore one pair of shoes, my Rieker huaraches, nine out of ten days, essentially ignoring my yellow platform sandals.  I also wore my striped Vince Camuto quite a bit and probably could have actually worn it more.

Here are my favorite outfits from the challenge:

As you can see, they all include my Rieker shoes and three out of the four include my striped skirt.  What can I say, I like to be comfortable, which both of those pieces are.

In truth though, I'd say I liked every outfit I wore during the challenge.  I was worried that my choices were kind of boring, but they really worked for me and I don't think I would have changed any of them.

Again, thank you all for reading along.  And a big thanks to Callie for hosting this challenge; it was nice to do one that was manageable and didn't make me cry for the rest of my wardrobe.

Happy Monday, All!

Gracey

Day 8: Stripes and Floral

I think it’s safe to say that my striped Vince Camuto skirt is the MVP of this challenge as I wore it yet again for Day 8:

Well, co-MVP.  I’ve actually worn my Rieker shoes the absolute most during the Perfect 10 Remix Challenge and am wearing them again today:

I can’t help it.  The skirt and the shoes are the some of the most comfortable pieces of clothing in my entire wardrobe much less in this little mini-wardrobe.

In addition to my much-loved skirt (Nordstrom, plus available here) and apparently-favorite shoes (thrifted, exact), I also wore (finally!) my cropped floral jacket (vintage, thrifted).  It’s still too warm to really layer, so I just buttoned the jacket and wore it as a blouse.  I also added a belt (thrifted, similar), for a peplum effect, a chunky gold bracelet and red drop earrings (similar here).

My sister and Ferge didn’t like this outfit at all, stating that it was too much, but I, predictably, loved the combination of the busy floral and the bold stripes.  

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

Day 7: Alien Fox & Miss Sassypants

So, I think this is actually Day 8’s outfit, but I didn’t wear anything other than work-around-home clothes on Day 7 so we’re calling this Day 7:

Jeans: Old Navy   Top: Caslon via Nordstrom  Shoes: Rieker

It is also the outfit I wore to see my blogger friend Rinda, of Miss Sassypants:

She was in town for work but we got to spend a few hours eating and shopping and talking and laughing.  And you guys?  She is amazing.  She is gorgeous, funny, willing to do the running man in public, super talented and believes there is no merit to high-waist short-shorts.  So, she's, you know, basically a genius.

I had a ton of fun shopping with Rinda, and one of the stores we stopped in was a packed-to-the-brim vintage shop that had a lot of crazy amazing stuff.  I especially liked a lot of their brooches but I was completely enamored with this one:

I call it my alien fox brooch but I guess it could just be a "stylized fox" brooch.  Nah, that's boring.  It's an alien fox brooch commissioned by an alien visitor to our planet to commemorate their favorite pet (alien) fox.  Yes, I have decided.

Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

Day 5 & 6: Stripes on the Bottom, Stripes on the Top

For Day 5 of the Perfect 10 Challenge, I wore stripes on the bottom, pairing my Day 1 skirt with my Day 2 shirt:

In addition to the striped skirt (Vince Camuto via Nordstrom) and the navy tee (Gap, similar), I also wore my Rieker shoes (thrifted, exact), my braided belt (thrifted, similar) and studded cuffs (Nordstrom).  And I added a large scarf (LOFT, similar) for a little extra warmth on the morning bike ride.

 

And for Day 6, I wore stripes on the top, wearing my Day 1 tee for my jeans' first outing:

I know, I know, this is nothing groundbreaking, but it was just a weekend outfit for running errands and going to the movies.  In addition to the tee (Old Navy, similar) and jeans (Old Navy Mid-Rise Rock Star Skinnies), I added my Rieker shoes (thrifted, exact) and studded cuffs (Nordstrom).

Happy Monday, All!

Gracey

 

Day 4: Yesterday’s Dress

For Day 4 of the Perfect 10 Remix Challenge, I’m re-wearing yesterday’s dress.  As a skirt:

I layered the dress (Bar III via Macys) under a sleeveless chambray shirt (Caslon via Nordstrom).  I added my Rieker shoes (thrifted, exact), some studded cuffs (Nordstrom) and finished the look with some delightfully shiny earrings (Robert Rose via Nordstrom).

Robert Rose "Fan-Glam" Earrings

I feel like the chambray shirt, the shoes and the cuffs have a dressed down, sort of tough vibe and that the rhinestone earrings are a fun juxtaposition. 

Happy Friday, Everyone!

Gracey

Day 2: Black & Blue & Neon Too

For Day One of the Perfect 10 Remix Challenge, I wore stripes.  For Day Two, I wore solids:

And for Day Three, I’m planning on mixing stripes and a solid.  Just kidding, I have no plans for Day Three.  I prefer to go where the morning takes me.

And, on Day Two, the morning took me to this look:

This look being a navy blue sleeveless tee (Gap, similar) paired with a black, pleated skirt (thrifted, similar).  Yep, that’s right, black and blue.  But, with neon too, in the form of my neon yellow necklace (Target) and some neon blue studs that you can’t see because of my hair.  I finished the look with a multicolored belt (Target), some studded cuffs (Nordstrom) and my trusty Rieker shoes (thrifted, exact).

I have to say that I actually picked the rather staid, non-psychedelic items I chose for this challenge on purpose.  I like color.  A lot.  All over my body.  All the time.  Oddly enough, not everyone feels the same way, and, as a result, there is a school of thought that says you can have a small, neutral capsule wardrobe with maybe a couple of accent pieces but that otherwise depends on accessories to add color and interest.  I, of course, think this is a bunch of hooey.  

But, still, it’s an interesting concept, isn’t it?  So, I figured I’d use this 10 x 10 challenge to try a toned down palette, like black and white and navy, but with strong accent pieces, like neon.  So far, it hasn’t been terrible, but, it’s only Day Two.  By this weekend I may be sleeping in my printed dresses because I miss them so much.

Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey