Fashion for Writers

A Miu Miu purse is probably a bit, uh, out of reach for handbag-lovers reading this blog, but if you haven’t signed up on the online sample-sale website ideeli yet, click on this link (here), become a member, and get a chance to win all sorts of lovely giveaways, including the above bag. They only send you emails to let you know about the time to check out debut sales and/or to put your name in the hat for a giveaway; each email comes with an unsubscribe link, if you get sick of them (I have a low threshold for that kind of thing, and I still find their emails interesting). 

This Chloe tote is another handbag that they’re giving away soon. Plus, ideeli is just a great place overall for a good deal; I just received a blue Hype purse for a third of the retail price. (Full disclosure: I get credit if you join via my invite. So, if you do, I really appreciate it!)

Vintage dress from The Getup, vintage heels from Effie

Today I stopped in at The Getup again on my way to the English department, and I’m so glad that I did! Kelly, the owner, was steaming and unloading two huge boxes of dresses, and told me to go ahead and sift through them. Not only that, but the store was having a “20% off the total purchase” sale, so I went a little nuts and bought two new, well-fitting dresses, including the one above, and a pair of ostentatious gold-and-pearl earrings (I’m a fan of ostentatious jewelry in general these days). And because of the sales, plus the fact that everything there is well-priced in general, my little shopping binge didn’t kill my wallet; the above dress was $20, and also soft as well as perfect for lounging in style.

steve madden heels, american apparel fleece skirt, skirt nabbed from mom’s closet on a trip home

I don’t tend to shop at American Apparel (I’m not the biggest fan of their materials, for some reason), but I really wanted a “lounging skirt” and couldn’t think of anywhere else to go for one. I love the pockets. While I was browsing I eavesdropped a little on two teenaged girls who were being caught shoplifting by a policewoman. They didn’t get arrested; the policewoman had called their mothers, and they were waiting to be picked up (and probably scolded). 

This fantastic dress from Violetville Vintage blows my everlovin’ mind. The peter pan collar — the white, Prada-esque lace, the chiffon (I’ve been having a love affair with chiffon and silk ever since purchasing my wedding dresses), the classic lady-tux design! I nearly faint every time I open the page to witness this frock in all its glory, and I’d be willing to pay a pretty penny to purchase it.

The problem, O readers, is that I am not in possession of a 24″ waist, and I know that I will never, ever be in possession of a 24″ waist even if I went on the Diet to End All Diets, because of my natural-born ribcage. But if you are bitsome, perhaps you might be interested. And then you can tell me all about your adventures frolicking about in my dream dress.

PS: “i can’t have it, maybe you can” is going to be a new recurring feature on FFW, because I web-browse a lot and often encounter things that don’t fit me or that I can’t afford.

I’d completely forgotten how insane it is to try on vintage clothing until today. See, I’d put a moratorium on fashion for a while — but for the past few nights/days I’ve been going nuts staring at things at La Garconne and Net-A-Porter, coveting their WINTER SALE products (which are still too expensive — but to see LaCroix on sale is quite the entertainment), and today I was like, “Enough of this! I am not going to buy that hooked-mohair purple dress that I wrote about a couple of posts ago, even though it’s now 20% off the original sale price! I’m going to go to the local vintage shop!”

The local vintage shop — The Getup — is well-curated. They have a lot of good, old, stuff, and their prices are reasonable. But BY GOLLY, I’d forgotten how difficult it is to find something that won’t take a billion alterations to fit right, or how lucky one feels to find something that does fit well. Today I’m wearing (okay, so it’s 20 degrees F, but it was -29 F a few days ago) that well-fitting striped dress Effie sold to me over the summer. Thank God! Otherwise the hour that I spent trying on dress after dress would have made me feel quite sad about my body type. I don’t have a miniature waist; I’m not complaining about my waist, but my ribs did get in the way of a lot of pretty frocks today. Or a dress will fit in the waist, but be a smidge too big in the bust area (I’m kind of busty, but not in a va-va-va-voom way). In the end I bought a necklace (statement piece to be photographed soon) and a black leather skirt that is super tight and makes me feel kind of silly, but hell, I need to put a little sexy in my life, and silly is the only way I can do it.

Some sad news. My DSLR died and my tripod broke into pieces. (?) So now I’m contorting myself into weird poses, trying to get some maximum outfit-coverage. 

In this picture I’m wearing more yellow gold at once than I ever have before. Gold leggings (I got them for Christmas), crystal-and-gold dangly earrings (see below), and a yellow belt with gold elephants on it. 

When I woke up this morning, it was 2 degrees Fahrenheit. I think Thursday is when I’ll have to stop wearing dresses, though, if not before — it’s supposed to be way below zero then.