Regarding shopping schizophrenia and birthdays

A lot of girls will say that their shopping weakness is shoes or purses or maybe something completely different- like model trains. And while I do love shoes and purses and (to a lesser extent) scale models, my real shopping weakness is events. 98% of my purchases happen when I've got a fancy party or a trip or show coming up. I get an image in my head of how I want to look and then scour the internet and local vintage shops in an effort to force that mental image into outfit reality. 

 The process goes a little something like this....

Self: Oooh, I'm going to a work holiday party with The New Boy this month. Dang, what am I going to wear?

Frugal Self: Don't go buying a new dress- you have a million hanging in the closet. Wear one of those.

Self: Alright, I do love The Wedding Dress and I've only worn it twice....

Indulgent Self: But what about shoes? It's the holidays and nothing says the holidays like red shoes. 

Frugal Self: We have red shoes.

Indulgent Self: They're falling apart.

Self: That's true, ok I'll buy some new shoes and I'll make sure they're fairly inexpensive.

Indulgent Self: And a giant statement bracelet...

Frugal Self: No way! Totally unnecessary.

Self: Hmmmm...

Indulgent Self: And new underwear!

Frugal Self: What are we, made of money or something???

Self: Ummm...

Indulgent Self: AND YOU HAVE TO GET A NEW PURSE!

Frugal Self: THIS IS WHY WE STILL LIVE WITH OUR MOTHER!! BECAUSE YOU CAN'T BUDGET YOUR MONEY!!

Self: Both of you just shut up! You're not even real- you're just Freudian manifestations of my own internal dialogue.

End scene.

Ok, so here's what I ended up buying.

 Bangle set I picked up from Taneesi Jewelry on Etsy.

 

New Red Shoes from modcloth

And a whole bunch of pretty underthings from Dollhouse Bettie.

I showed all kinds of restraint and did not buy a new purse since I own a perfectly lovely red evening bag that was a gift from ML. Also, it's my birthday so that mean I have to share this which has been my birthday song for something like 8 years now. I don't think I've ever posted Jonah here but He is another of my favorite people and I will forever love his music. so here ya go. 


Jonah Matranga Live at WAH part three // 14-41 from We Are Home. on Vimeo.

Things I love about November

The cold is finally starting.

So, the last week of October is was dry and hot and then boom!

November hits with rain, then downpour and now cloudy cold.

Which makes it perfect weather for staying in my pajamas and drinking coffee all day.

I get to resurrect my winter clothes.

Which means digging out the Great White Coat and all my fun long socks.

The holidays and parties and general fun times with the G.T.G's. 

One more great thing about Nov is that our trip to Idyllwild is only a month away. Eka is coming back to visit for the Christmas break and a group of us are heading up to the mountains for a couple days in the snow. I'm so excited: seeing my dear friend again, spending time with great friends and revisiting one of my absolute favorite places. I can't wait!

A Long Weekend of Vintage Clothes

Outfits from the past three days

Saturday- Secretary Chic

Sunday- What Great Depression?

Monday-Really, who needs friends when you have an amazing dress?

Two Days- One Post

Sunday: Threw on "Who needs friends when you have an awesome dress?" and spent the afternoon with CJ in Balboa Park. Saw some ferns, took some photos, ate lunch in the grass and played cards. Very very.

Today: Decided it was too pretty a day to go home after work. Stopped at Bluestocking Books and picked up Geek Love and my favorite play Marisol. Went to check out the new shop that took over Wear It Again Sam's space. Amazingly disappointing. It's tauted as a vintage clothing store but all I found was the same nondescript  Hillcrest gunk. Recovered from disappointment with blood orange iced tea at Krakatoa.

Oy- time for photos!

 

 

  

I know that I promised fun and interesting posts this weekend. But my camera has been acting up and eating batteries, so it's been grounded. Thus, I have no photos to share.

Plus, the fun events I had planned all fell through so I don't even have any stories to share.

Well, we did go out to the bar last night to celebrate the birth of the incomparable DS. I caught up with a friend whom I hadn't seen in about three years. That was nice.

I ended up wearing both of my new Trashy Diva dresses yesterday. They are really fantastic and well made, especially the Country Club dress which I named "Who needs friends when you've got an amazing dress?"

A bit wordy, yes but so true.

Speaking of purchases, I am on day 11 of my self-imposed shopping lent. I've been very good and haven't spent any money on any clothes so far. But just for fun, here's a little taste of what I would be buying.

(yeah, I'm a bit of a shopping masochist)

This adorable set from Mary Green

 A little pretty from What Katie Did

 

Long-line corset in teal raw silk? yes please

These smashing 30's style heels from Sofft

Oh, green!

Another TD dress. Ugh, they're like crack to me. Pretty, pretty rayon crack.

Ok, I feel a little better now.

Whaddaya know- it worked!

Oh, yes. Friday took a turn for the much much better when dear friend CJ announced that we would be hitting the town that night.

It was a bit of a mad dash as I found out 30 minutes before we were going to leave. So, the hair was not so very very, make-up was a little sloppy. But I wore my Stop Staring plaid dress, which hasn't seen the outside of my closet for quite some time. It used to fit too loose to really look good but with my gradual weight gain over the past year, it now fits decidedly ka-pow.

Drank three glasses of champagne, saw my oh so yum bartender, found a possible contact to get the banned and much missed Djarum Vanillas. Does it get any better?

I have a thing for pretty mirrors in bathrooms.

Doing shots with MM - another yum bartender.

I feel so "RockaBetty" in this dress.

End night music- SS Come on, Feel the Illinoise!

When you're at the end of a rather rough week,

sometimes it's best to put on some pretty music, your best cheery dress and insist upon a better mood.

Which is just what I've decided to do today. Fridays are usually my favorite, what with the work week over and fun things to come.

But this week has had too many occasions where I'm left feeling silly and sad. 

And my Friday has been resultantly blue so far.

I find that unacceptable so I am going to will myself into happiness. I plan to hunt up a friend or two, get some coffee and make a better weekend then the week that spawned it.

My feel better supplies: Sufjan Stevens Illinois and my "Pollyanna" dress.

Because how can you feel down when you look like a milkmaid?

And sometimes, vanilla bean sugar cupcakes help too.

Oy- long weekend indeed!

So much crammed into so few days. I love weekends that seem as though they were weeks long- you wonder "Did I really do all that in just three days?"

Friday night was the boy's show at the Birch theater in North park. Perfectly lovely venue and a sold-out show to boot! I wore my new Stop Staring dress, which I've named Prince. Because it's the purple one.

Get it???


Ok, bad dress pun. Moving on.

Did the coffee thing with CJ the next morning,saw the slobberiest bulldog I've ever seen in my life and spent the rest of Saturday doing nothing and loving it.

Sunday was dedicated to the search for a headboard for my future new bedroom. I have this grand idea of making a wood framed tufted headboard and have had no kind of luck finding anything to work for it.

I made the rounds at my favorite thrift furniture shop (nada) and a place called Consignment Classic (even less) They did have some fun pieces that I would have considered had I not been on a specific mission.

A little dusty but also a little awesome.

I already have a vanity. But I want this one too! (This dress is ORV, the original revamp)

This is nothing but a shameless shoe shot.

And now let's all take a moment to mourn the multitude of poor cows who died so someone could make this ugly furniture. Really, who needs this much bovine?

Luckily, I had late night bocci to cheer me up after a day of fruitless searching. We tried out the courts in little Italy and really had a nice little time. I'm thinking I'd like to get people together more often for late night activities. Wholesome late night activities, I mean. Not like late night group orgies or anything. Wow...

Well, so as to not end this post with mention of orgies, I did end up finding a headboard which should work just fine for my plans. Thank you craiglist!

Sometimes you can surprise yourself

And sometimes others can surprise you even more.

As aforementioned, I met up with The Ex for coffee last night. And I was surprised to find myself getting really nervous as the clock got closer to 9:30. What would we talk about? Will I start bawling out of nowhere? What should I wear?

We had only very recently started talking again after a six month self-imposed embargo of sorts. I found it so odd that the idea of seeing him again made me so scared. I mean, this man held my heart for three years. Not long ago, he was the most familiar and most comfortable person in my life. And now, I'm worried about what impression I'll make?

Funny what time and distance and a few select words can do.

I was able to smack myself out of that mindset. I realize that we ended as amiably as possible and that while I may not be over him, I am over the hurt. No reason in the world to stress. It's just him.

Buuuttttt..... He did dump me, so I figured I was entitled to a slight bit of  woman-scorned revenge in fashion form. They say the best revenge is living well.
Well, I say the best revenge is looking good. So, I went sophistikill on him.

Now, sophistikill is less of an outfit and more of an overall vibe. Tight pencil skirts, monochromatic with color pops, stockings and a wrist-watch are vital. It says " I am unflappable." It also says "Don't fuck with your secretary."

Surprise! The night went so nicely. We caught up on each other's work, families and general well-being. We briefly touched on our relationship and were able to make some easements and amends without dredging up the whole past. I realize how silly it was for me to be nervous over him. We always were very easy with each other. When we talked, we could talk about anything. Turns out as much as I miss him romantically, I miss him platonically even more. The Ex said something during our breakup that I'm finally coming to realize is true now.

Much as it kills me, we really are better at being friends.