living in the outskirts, part un

At times you might catch me in a meditative state, trying to sneak little moment of Zen into my day. The rest of the nutty time, however, I'm one fidgety nerd. Part of it is that I like to move, I like to work with my hands. Another part of it is that I don't just see how things are; I see how they could be. And when I see how things could be, and could be better, I take the action needed to make that change. While I try to apply this philosophy to the rest of my life, I also employ this in what I wear. Some days I'll go into work sporting one outfit and walk out donning a completely different look -- without ever having added or subtracted a single item of garb. Instead, I'll have fussed with buttons and strings, turning things inside out and upside down. (My serendipitious sweater-halter, a.k.a the impromptu spaghetti bib, comes to mind....)

The final item from my much-much-much-overly-blabbed-about NYC thrift trip was a skirt that I described as malleable. I saved it for a separate post, not only for its versatility, but because I wanted to include it in a mini-series on skirts. What I realized is that skirts in general are quite moldable. In all, I have three skirts, each a different style, that can be worn in more than one way. As usual, I've already taken all the pics...just give me time to crop and resize and write!

But enough with the introduction. First up is this short, flouncy indigo denim skirt. I found it at Urban Outfitters awhile back for only 5 USD. In the above pic, I'm wearing it as intended (i.e., as a skirt). Truth be told, though, I don't wear it very much for fear of breezes and staircase climbing. As such, Poor Ms. Flouncy sleeps the long sleep, relegated to the bottom of the clothing heap.

Then the Fall 2007 Lanvin show sashayed along on its endless legs. Its purple cape-dress provided much inspiration for many a DIY-er. I, too, was inspired, but before reaching for the needle and thread, a fluorescent light bulb popped on in my head. (Indeed, the fluorescent light bulb was installed for conserving precious brainpower. The way I see it, the more energy I save by not DIY-ing, the more energy I can put towards outfit- and brownie-making.)

Eureka! exulted my brain. You can wear the skirt as a mini-cape! Why, yes, my dear noodle, that's not a bad idea at all. So on went the skirt over my noggin, settling down on my shoulders. I immediately loved the effect, but it took me several weeks before I could connect all the dots. "Slim" seemed the glaringly obvious choice for the rest of the outfit, but how to implment that? My usual default of skinny jeans was the quick and painless answer, but I pushed onward in hopes of one-upping myself. The use of several different colored separates seemed amature and incoherent. Eventually, I realized that I was loving the Batgirl vibrations I was getting from it, so I decided to make for the dark side (which, by the way, is not an uncommon place for dreamecho to dwell). Everything soon fell into black place, with small details like lace socks over fishnets and a black big studded bracelet over the shirt cuff. I may be a smidgen late for the Halloween gala, but to that, I say pah. Come midsummer, I'll still be the impish bat, perched on the steps of the Boston Public Library engrossed in her copy of Notes from Underground.

1) H&M animal print bow blouse, Rebecca Taylor taupe wool blazer, UO/Lux flouncy denim skirt, Enzo Angiolini white square-toe flats, Nine West white leather belt. (2) Express black/tan striped oxford, UO/Lux flouncy denim skirt, UO/Lux black shorts, Givenchy black fishnets, F21 black lace socks, Dolce Vita black leather jazz shoes, Banana Republic black skinny belt looped through skirt belt loops, F21 black stud bracelet.