taking cue from an imaginary dinosaur

It's been jeansjeansjeans around the clock since winter traipsed in, but these lilac tights, a gift from We Love Colors (thanks, Heather!), were worth getting gussied up for. Ever since I got into snazzy legwear, WLC's microfiber tights have been my go-to for opaque, rainbow-saturated, sturdy tights. I ain't kidding here—I think I have them in 15 different colors?

In other personal disclosures, allow me to 'fess up to the inspiration for this outfit: Barney the Dinosaur. I loathe the show, but the excruciatingly saccharine T. Rex did get it right in combining purple and green.

Outfit: H&M ruffle jacket, UO silk top, Label sheer dress, vintage velvet minidress, We Love Colors tights, vintage Papagallo oxfords, F21 necklace.

playing ketchup

Playing outfit catch up, per usual. Conserving words as well. But for what it's worth, a story about the tweed jacket: It's by Trovata, and I found it at the Barneys outlet store a year ago in Hawaii. 'Twas a bizarre unearthing to say the least; certainly, they do sell a modicum of cold weather gear in the islands, but it's no oasis of wool and down. The people there, uh, generally aren't in the market for such things. In any case, the jacket was something like 70% off and a no-brainer for this Beantown-based lass.

Outfit: Deborah Sweeney bow blouse, Trovata tweed jacket, faux fur collar from Gap parka, BDG jeans, We Love Colors socks, Pierre Hardy x Gap sandals, Gap belt, Piel backpack, glasses necklace.

extracurricular activities

In an attempt to a) share some of my non-fashion activities with all y'all and b) indulge in my list-making tendencies, I've decided to start a brand spanking new, quasi-regular series called Extracurricular Activities. It's kind of like nogoodforme's "Snapshot: Listening, Watching, Reading, Wearing, Wanting," except that it won't have Listening (because my musical life is fairly static in progression), Wearing and Wanting (because, this being first and foremost a fashion blog, I usually make separate posts out of the latter two). However, given that I spend hours each week slouching on the seats of the MBTA's various subways and buses, in conjunction with being a devout BOOKWORM FOR LIFE, you can count on the Reading category to be perpetually in flux. The Watching category should also stay active, if the three DVDs per week binge that I've been on for the past few months is any indication. Also, I may or may not toss in a third, wild card category each week; first time around we'll start with Eating.

Sit back, relax and scroll down for a break from my sporadic sartorial updates.

Reading

Finished The Razor's Edge by W. Somerset Maugham, and so glad to be done with it! Appreciated the point of the book, but can't say I'm much into Maugham's style of story-telling over story-showing. Towards the end of Razor, started side flings with not one but two YAs: The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart and The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin.

Watching

It's been one big orgy of DVD watching these days: The Unbelievable Truth, The Lost Boys, WALL-E, Out of Africa, Synecdoche, New York. Also rented Gilmore Girls Season 7 because I had lost TV reception right before the series finale. Finally, closure after 2 1/2 years! I love that series to pieces—the intro song alone sends me into sobs! Wrapped up a spree of Carnivale (topmost image), which must be one of the most epic and extravagant TV series ever. Like Twin Peaks and Lost in its languidly unraveling mystery, but so beyond in costume and setting.

Eating
Gnawing on ever-evolving attempts at homemade mac and cheese with aged cheddar and steamed broccoli. Also enjoying Trader Joe's Steamer Clams in garlic butter sauce with linguine, as recommended on Luxirare.

i like a strong brow

For literally two years, I'd been on the prowl for some sturdy browline glasses, à la Malcolm X. My first pair, a cheapie costume iteration off of eBay, rocked but were only for show. I needed some spectacles that were well-made enough to handle prescription lenses. Vintage eyewear shops seemed the logical solution but yielded nada. Moscot's Yukiel, meanwhile, appeared promising but was contingent upon a visit to NYC to give them a spin. My paws were about thrown up in surrender when, lo and behold, Meggy from Fashion for Writers premiered her ivory frames from SEE. After she confirmed my inquiries of other colorways, I decided it was time to pay the retailer a visit. Long story of multiple visits (to ensure that this was the frame) short, I got myself some snazzy new specs. These are first pair I've ever had that actually possess enough pizazz to step out of the house in, and dang if it wasn't worth the two year wait.

P.S. Tall thanks are in order for Fumika and Katie at SEE's Harvard Square branch! Two of the sassiest and most charismatic people I've met, they adeptly answered my questions and listened patiently to my diatribes about not being able to find stylish frames for low nose bridge persons like myself. Two thumbs way up!