that 70s craft

the ocular proof

i have not been knitting very much in 2012.  i completed 12 adult sized sweaters in 2011 plus several other complex projects, so i was a bit burned out on the yarn and needles.

perfect time to find different yarn and needles, right?  right.

my cousin had been needlepointing--a craft i had never tried--and for christmas i wanted to buy for her some new needlepoint kits.  that is how i found the lovely 70s pillow kit you see to the left.

on one hand, i love it.  it is very easy and i can just kick back and work on something while i am listening to the radio or watching a movie.  much of this pillow has been stitched while watching the second season of Downton Abbey.  on the other hand, this, like all needlework type crafting seems slow to me.  i am spoiled by knitting and crochet (and especially sewing) when it comes to amount of gratification for amount of time sent.


i am on to the border areas now, which means more strawberries.  i will post another picture when i have more progress, but i have also picked up a sweater i put aside last year.

two librarian looks

hello, wall.  you are in my way.

my students will sometimes suggest alternative careers for me to pursue when i become tired of being their professor. the two most popular choices are librarian and kindergarten teacher. (what does the later say about the maturity level of college students today?) they say librarian because i am a huge nerd and apparently i dress like i should be sitting at the reference desk.

so today i present two of my librarian looks.

this first one goes back to monday the 13th.  i snapped the picture on my way out the door and as you can see, the wall and i had a disagreement about who got to stand where.  ha.

blouse: odille for anthropologie via ebay.

sweater vest: handknit by me in Cascade Eco+ from a pattern published in knitscene magazine. 

skirt: maeve for anthropologie

tights: ralph lauren

shoes: ASOS

necklace: value village thrift store.

grey on a sunny day

this look has a lot of textures going on that you can't fully appreciate in the photo.  the tights are brown herringbone with sparkle gold shot through.  the skirt is brown corduroy with a wooly center plaid panel, and the blouse is printed swiss dot.  (printed with landmarks of europe!)

the second librarian look was what i threw together this past wednesday.  we had awesome weather in the 60s this week, and i could break out one of my lighter dresses.  

most days it seems like i am obsessed with anthropologie.  this outfit was very modcloth heavy.

dress: about the artist dress (recently returned to modcloth)

belt: modcloth

hair flower: forever 21

necklace: hotcakes design purchased at trohv.

tights: mystery lace tights from college???

shoes: poetic license via modcloth.

you will notice an important accessory has returned!!! 

right there on my right wrist is my RoadID. after weeks and weeks of being super ill, i am now back on the road running!  i made it out to run 5 times since sunday.  today i didn't set my nano to a time or distance target, i just listened to radiolab and ran until i felt myself getting tired and my form getting sloppy.  i ran for 48 minutes and made it just over 4 miles.  huzzah!

i rock a lot of polka dots

quack

this outfit is dedicated to Zooey Deschanel, despite the fact that she is ruining my life.  (apparently that is my i am sad that New Girl is making quirky chic but i do love me some polka dots face.)

every man on the planet is in love with Zooey, and now if one likes to wear every color, appreciate polka dots, needs nerdy glasses to actually see, possess useful domestic skills, and has a sunny disposition in life, you are a hot commodity for pick up line coming from every shmoe taking public transit.  we big weirdies just need to weather the storm until uptight guys stop fancying free spirits.

or maybe Zooey is doing for quirkiness what J-Lo did for posteriors--acceptance.  if so, then i will raise a glass. (hey J-Lo, we never talk, but i think i never thanked you for making an ample posterior less of a crime.  thanks, gal. you did me a solid, and i appreciate it!)

the specs....

sweater: urban outfits
skirt: odille for anthropologie circa 2004.  via ebay!   heck, yeah!
necklaces: thrift store
belt: mood shadow, vintage 70s
tights: target
destroyed boots: DSW, and walking the city

vanity sizing is stupid.

nice socks, hot stuff.

i have been eyeing the Bike Lane Dress at anthro since it hit the rack about a month ago.  on sunday i finally tried it on with no intention of buying it. off-white is not a great color for me, but if it surprised me and looked good, come sale time it may have been game on!!

as adorable as the bicycle print is, i couldn't wear this is i wanted to.  in the picture i am wearing the size 2.  notice the broken contortionist arm?  yeah, that is me holding in 3-4" of dress.  it fell off if i let go.

from the reviews on the anthro site, it appears even the 0 would be too big for we under-endowed ladies.

and to this i say--get real anthro!!!  this vanity sizing thing is getting to be absurd.  i am not the smallest person i know by any stretch f the imagination, and somehow you made this dress too big for me?  i know vanity sizing is part of your overall pricing strategy.  we will pay more to feel good about the number on the tag, but this is getting obnoxious.

you are getting to be as bad as old navy with the silly XXS, XXXS and 00 or 000!!

i wear jeans too.

i can't believe i have been siting on this one for a week.  wait, yes i can.  i am a lazy blogger.

thursdays are some of the most relaxed days in the week for me.  i don't need to be on campus on tuesdays and thursdays this quarter.  tuesdays i clean and run errands.  thursdays are mental health days or the day i go into DC to take care of stuff and things.  thursdays are jean days.

what is better than pink jeans?  (excuse me, sulphur plum, according to adriano goldschmied.)  i can tell you....  kelly green jeans and safety cone orange corduroys in the same cut.  AG has stolen my heart.  they are pretty, comfortable, and made in the USA.

end of love letter!!!

absurdity as artform

diva sunglasses make my day

wednesday i was in a goofy mood.  i was starting to not feel very well  (i know now that i was coming down with a sinus infection.) so i needed a happy outfit.

the centerpiece is the skirt, which i made.  if you look closely at the print they are 1970s meets Art Deco ladies.  it is an Alexander Henry print i bought at Exquisite Fabrics, which is currently in the process of closing...  much to my dismay.

blouse is from antho...  odille brand.  but i bough it for a whistle and a song on ebay.  ebay is a great way to score anthropologie at a reasonable price.  or to get the "rare" pieces that are gobbled up before you can find your debit card.

i realize now that this outfit is also an homage to great vintage accessories.  the gold bracelet covering my RoadID is a 70s snake bracelet. (Polly Sue's Takoma Park, MD)  the necklaces are also great find.  the long coper chain and pendent is a thunderbird, also from the 70s (Moonshadow Takoma Park, MD) and the beaded guy is one of my prized thrift store finds.

it is baltic amber in four or five colors (including butterscotch amber, which kills me) and the good people at Value Village had no idea what they were selling. i stole it at $4.99 then sunk an investment of $5 in new clasp and extender chain on a piece that would retail between $150- 200.

i wish i could high-five myself.

to truly improve a bad day one must have victory rolls, diva sunglasses, and favorite cowboy boots.  heck, yeah.

monday: neutrals

shirtdress-a-go-go

i love to wear every color on the plant at the same time, but sometimes i go with another favourite option: every pattern possible!  this works a bit better if you keep it neutral in the colors or at least limit the palette.

i felt very virtuous last week after i moved around my studio/livingroom situation and then employed the studio space to repair this dress.  i had a seam split.  in honor of the repair, i had to break her out for a wear!

i am too lazy to go look up the specs on everything i wore, but most of this outfit was from anthropologie.  on sale, of course.

i know the shirt dress is by maeve and it is a printed pin-wale corduroy.  yum.

the belt and boots are two pieces i love because they are black and brown at the same time!  yes.  no more breaking "rules" about coordinating leather colors. (first world problems, indeed.)

a touch of 70s.

i kept the accessories simple.  the necklace is a layered crystal and lucite ball 1960s vintage number from Moonshadow in Takoma Park, MD.  tights are circa 2000 steve maddens i had in a drawer forever and a day (their tights suck now, save your money). and i finished it off with my tooled leather name cuff at the wrist.

i took a second picture when i caught myself in the mirror on my way out.  the outwear actually really worked with this one!

jacket is a 1970s Wilson's leather cutie with a button and a tie belt.  the back is really pretty with a pleat!  scarf is my mustard + owl baby from urban outfitters.  i love the color mustard and i love owls.  i tink i actually broke a rule and paid full price.  my friends had to come home with me.  no risk taking here.

colorblocks and stripes

Painted Love Heel by Lola Ramona

color is everywhere for spring, and i am thrilled.  

all of the store windows are showing color blocking, polkadots, and stripes.  i was talking with one of my best girls last weekend and we both confessed to be stocking up on the goodies we love while they are in style.  (she is mad for polka dots!)

i put this outfit together last friday specifically to wear those shoes.  yes, those shoes right there.  i know they are crazy, but they stole my heart away.

i purchased them during modcloth's big sale in december and it took me a month to figure out how to wear them.  i consulted my polka-dot-loving pal on that matter.

me: what do i wear these with????

nm: you have to wear these shoes with everything!  because these shoes just don't give a f*ck!

so this was my first attempt.  you must forgive the poor photo.  i am in another anthro dressing room, after all.  the belt and flower are both pink.  the blouse is a billowy silk thing in navy blue with kelly green bias trim edging the flutter sleeves.

top: Odille for anthropologie.

pants: Pilcro for anthropologie

shoes: Lola Ramona for modcloth.com

belt: target

necklace: vintage find from value village thrift store

flower: forever21

oh, and that black band on my wrist is my RoadID, not a part of the outfit.  ha!  i leave it on even when i am not out running so i won't forget to wear it.

if you run, cycle, swim, play a sport, or participate in any other activity that involves you and your ID being apart and any level of personal risk of injury, you should have a RoadID.

layers!!!

Bailey 44 knit dress

i was deeply skeptical of this dress when an associate at anthropologie suggested i try it last week.  it has so many potential problems for me.

1. knits.  i don't wear many tight knit things.
2. horizontal-ish stripes.  not a curvy girl's best friend.
3. tea length. the enemy of the slight of height.

but as this awkward dressing room photo shows, it wasn't half bad!  in fact, the dress was really pretty when walking (not posing and trying to snap a pic) and it is just about the most comfortable thing i have ever put on my body.

too bad it is $178!!
there are many variations on this style that they are selling right now, and if i get lucky, maybe one will go on sale and can be mine.  i have so many shoes that want to be best friends with this dress.

fingers crossed!