Casual Friday - An Ode to Lady D

I stopped downtown on the way home from work last night and had a wee shop. It's so hard not to browse through the racks of clothes, or go into the shoe stores (and they all have huge sales on right now!). Instead of torturing myself, I head straight for the accessories sections.

Today, I felt very Lady D, from Africana's Wardrobe Diary. If you haven't visited her blog, get to it! She is the mistress of the casual pose (should totally be modelling) and the chic boho look. I love seeing how she combines new and vintage/thrift stuff.

Anyway, I didn't set out to emulate one of her outfits, but the long cardi, the sky-high boots and the piled-on necklaces reminded me of her:
The top is new, picked up last weekend on consignment. It still had the tags on it! Never worn! And it was under $13. Sweet. The long necklace I got last night - $68 at Jacob, marked down to $19.99.

A close-up of the boobular region and the two necklaces I layered (thank you, Sal, for the useful video!):

I played with the necklaces all day!

The other stuff:

My killer Bronx boots. God, they hurt my feet, but damn, I do love them. The earrings are also new and go with the necklace that I wore last week (with the green shirt) - swap from Caro, as are the jeans.

Today is my dear friend Cat's birthday, so the Winesday gals (and hubbies) are going out for dinner. I will have another fab outfit, and (if I can talk her into it) a guest for the Special Occasion post.

Cardigan (no label, consignment), top (Jacob, consignment), jeans (Seven7, swap, Caro), boots (Bronx), long necklace (Jacob), short necklace (Nine West, gift from Cindy), earrings (swap from Caro).

Blue, Beads and Birks

Well. I'm feeling rather relieved that today's outfit - also not tried on the night before, like most of my ensembles - worked!
I love this blue dress. It's layered with my grey cami (sequins at the neckline), and my black tie-front cardigan (I also have a slip on underneath for extra warmth, as it freakin' snowed last night! Arg! Stop with the winter already!).

The feature item is the beaded belt. This is hand-beaded (glass beads) on a silk backing and has black, blue, red, white and grey in it, so I just pulled colours out for the outfit.

The stuff:
The red Fluevogs, the red and silver earrings, the black beaded cuff, all against the backdrop of the blue dress.

Oddly, the belt is labeled "Henry Birks" with the Birks crest, but Birks is a huge jeweller in Canada; they don't do clothing items. I'm guessing that perhaps back in the 80s (?) they did some beaded bags and belts.

Weird. I bought it on the weekend for $20 in a consignment shop.

Dress (Mac and Jac), cami (RW & Co.), cardigan (Vero Moda), belt (Henry Birks), shoes (Fluevogs), earrings (made by Alicia, gift), bracelet (Le Chateau).

Just For a Laugh

Honestly, after today's catastrophic Bad Outfit, I need several.

If you have never been to Go Fug Yourself, you must. It is hilarious. This is one of my very favourites: you will never be able to look at Karl Lagerfeld (or Salma Hayek) again without cracking up.

And since I've found this site, I have been visiting daily. Need a laugh? Browse the entire archives of Cake Wrecks, or just check out the fan favourites.

Enjoy, lovelies! Juice the truth!

When an Outfit Goes Terribly Wrong

I was going to call this outfit "When a Good Outfit Goes Wrong" until I realized that this isn't a good outfit. This seemed fine when I put everything together last night.

Chicks, this is why you should always try outfits on the night before, before you pack them in your knapsack to take them to work:
I look like a demented superhero. This jacket is my kryptonite. I want to love it (I love the colour, I love the cut) but it's just Not Right For Me. It's going in the swap/consign pile, along with a couple of other cropped/swing jackets that I love but are Not Right For Me.

To be fair, most of the pieces on their own are fine. The tights are actually teal, not Superman Blue. The Stinky Boots are funktastic (the kryptonite effect of the jacket is that they are making my legs look stumpy and large in the calf!) in any other outfit. The dress is adorable. The jewelry is cool. The belt is All Kinds of Wrong with this (another kryptonical side-effect of the jacket).

*sigh*

And I had to wear this all day. Every time I came back from the washroom, I saw myself reflected in the glass door to our department. Every time I went, "Ack! This is so bad!"

The stuff:
Great Abercrombie & Fitch leather belt, cloisonne necklace and bracelet. Pretty teal bangles. BAD JACKET. Bad!

To Whatever Powers That Be, let tomorrow's outfit be better.

Jacket (Vero Moda), dress (Expressions), tights (Hue), boots (some cheapass brand), belt (Abercrombie & Fitch, consignment), necklace (gift from mother-in-law), bangle (gift from Mom), teal bangles (vacation purchase).

Yellow Helps Everything

Thanks so much, everyone, for your good thoughts after yesterday's "Brown" post. I really appreciate it.

I'm feeling a bit better - just taking it one day at a time. I deliberately chose clothes that would make me feel sunnier. Right down to the flower.
New-to-me tweed skirt (I once again reveal my 80s tendency to love coloured skirts) that I picked up on the weekend, yellow blouse, brown velvet jacket and loads of neckaces, earrings and the fabric flower to keep it all interesting.

A shot of the chestal region for Cat, since it's often hard to see how this all works. Oops, the long necklace has coralled my boob. Eep.

Ahem, let's move on. The stuff:

Isn't that a nice tweed? It has little bits of other colours in it, but I'll probably stick to the autumnal palette for mixing and matching. My good ol' Aerosoles, from my trip to NYC with Mom two years ago.

Better days lay ahead.

Blazer (RW & Co.), blouse (Do & Be), cami (InWear), skirt (no label, consignment), shoes (Aerosoles), necklaces and earrings (Plum), brooch (handmade, not by me!).

Feeling Brown...

Some people feel blue...I am feeling brown. It's Monday, I hate Mondays, and things just didn't go well for me today. Couldn't walk due to rain at noon. People frustrated me. I feel frumpy.
I bought these cool leopard trouser socks, so I built the outfit around them (sorry it's dark...light is not good in this room in the winter), just black with brown and copper accents. It felt very Audrey in the morning, but as the day went on, it felt....un-Audrey. You know?

The legwear:

The full set of Grandma J's copper jewelry. The cuff is Renoir, and the necklace and earrings are unmarked. I love this set. It's likely from the 50s.

Shout out to the lovely Mervat who has bestowed a Major Award on me. I wish I'd worn something different to the ceremony! If you wish to participate and pass this Major Award along, by all means, please do.

So. I've been feeling fat-tastic lately.

As you may or may not know, I lost 60 pounds a couple of years ago. I've been maintaining it for nearly 2 years, but I gained a few pounds over Christmas and I just can't seem to shake them. I've been giving in to way too many temptations. Stress, listening to that little "you'll be fat again one day" voice in the back of my head and fear that yes, I will be fat again one day...those all compel me to overeat. And overdrink - let's not fool ourselves, here: wine is also a culprit, not to mention that whole "lowers your resistance" thing.

I probably have PMS, but this week, I gained 2 pounds. Now, I'm still 2 pounds under my goal weight (I still go to my WW meetings every week), but I've been maintaining at 8-10 pounds under, and I'm so scared that it's going to just keep creeping up and up and up. That feeling of inevitability.

I know I need to just calm the heck down and take it one day at a time. Stay on track, write down what I eat, eat unprocessed foods, drink lots of water and keep on exercising. And it will come off. I know it will.

It will.

But I just wanted to say...just because I don't talk about it doesn't mean that fear isn't with me every day. It isn't easy and weight loss is never "done".

Hope your Monday was more fab than mine!

Sweater (no label, consignment), suit pants (Focus 2000), hose (eh, I never remember the labels), shoes (Wild Diva), cuff (Renoir, Grandma J), necklace & clip-on earrings (no marks, Grandma J).

Casual Friday - Ruth to the Rescue!

My darling husband took the camera to work this morning so I couldn't take my picture. Fortunately, Ruth had picture-taking capability on her Blackberry. Thanks, Ruth!
Unfortunately, Blackberries don't take very good pictures. There I am outside my office at work, in my denim blazer, long sueded skirt, patterned silk top and red boots.

Speaking of boots, while my coworkers and I were waiting for a table at a Thai place for lunch (yum!), Ruth and I were scoping out the footwear of the female patrons. Because our company is in its own building and not downtown, we see some pretty heinous fashion in the workplace. Thank god for these women at the restaurant, and their fabulous boots! It gives me hope that this city is NOT as bad as I thought fashionwise. When they left, the ladies spotted our boots and we all had a mutual boot admiration moment. Hee.

The red boots, much beloved:
Also much worn out. I need to replace these with some better quality ones. These are from my heavier weight, so they took a bit of a beating. The lining is coming apart and the exterior fabric is stained.

That's a better shot of the blouse fabric as well. Oh, and that's my new yellow purse, which I picked up for $20 consignment when I was shopping with my mom in early January. Check out how it opens:

Six hinges! Isn't that neat? I'm using my wallet to prop it open. The shape of it is triangular, like a Toblerone bar. Glorious colour, too.

Have a great weekend!

Jacket (Bisou Bisou), blouse (I.N.C.), skirt (Marc D'Alcy), boots (Pino Ferri), gold disc earrings, yellow bag (consignment).

Green and Houndstooth

Still working my way through the new and new-to-me stuff in my closet (I'm down to one pair of earrings and a scarf!). The new-to-me is the necklace, which I got in the swap with my dear friend, Caro. You can't really see much of it in the photo, but it's there. Edited for Cat - here's a picture of it on. I hauled this blouse out of the wash for you and am posting my wrinkly neck! Yes, that's a bear head in the background.

This is my favourite kind of outfit: comfy (really, it is!), chic and flattering. And you can't go wrong with a houndstooth plaid.

I don't know if it's really "out there" - is it? I did get a few looks, ha!

The killer shoes:
I love the necklace - it's so pretty - but it's a really tricky one to pull off. It doesn't quite work as a dressy necklace (like, with a dress or a very formal outfit or an open neckline), but it's a little fussy worn as a layering piece. I compromised by just having it peeking out at the neckline.

Vest (Esprit), blouse (Esprit), skirt (Nygard Collection, consignment), hose (Hue), shoes (JLo), necklace (gift from Caro), crystal stud earrings

Green and Grey Swingy - and I am Awarded a Certificate of Merit

I got my Level 1 Beginners certificate at aikido tonight - it was cool practising with the "big kids" (shout out to the awesome ladies at the dojo!). This is what I wear - tres fashionable.
Yeah, maybe not so much. Both of those clothing items were hauled out of the giveaway bag because a) the top is faded and b) the pants are too big.

Thank goodness I balanced my fashion karma with this much nicer shade of green:

I felt very girly in this. Swingy skirt, the fab shoes, the bit of a sparkle with the sequined cami. I love the sleeves on this sweater.

The stuff (forgot the belt but it's a grey faux python):Man, I love those shoes.

Guess who was hiding in the corner of the top picture?

Inigo!

Sweater (Studio Max), skirt (Tobias), belt (Bianca Nygard), shoes (Fluevog), hose (Hue), bracelet (silent auction), earrings (Plum).

Complementary Colours - Yellow and Purple

It's no secret that I like colour - lots of it! But I've realized through doing this blog, that the best colour combinations are with complementary colours, which are when you have a shade of a primary colour (red, yellow, blue) and you mix it with a shade of a secondary colour (green, orange, purple) that is opposite it on the colour wheel.

Red's complementary colour is green.
Blue's complementary colour is orange.
Yellow's complimentary colour is purple.

So, put a shade of red (like burgundy or a tomato-y red) with a shade of green (like aqua or forest or apple) and you get a real pop. Mix a shade of blue (like my favourite turquoise) with its complementary orange, and wow! Today, it's a shade of yellow (sort of a chartreuse-y shade) with purple and kaching! Money!
The trick to pulling off complimentary colour mixing is to use neutrals. Here, I've done brown as my neutral (the skirt, the belt and the shoes), then added another neutral (white) to keep the yellow from looking too muddy.

The inspiration for this outfit is the necklace, which has purple and yellow beads, along with black and a smoky green. The accessories:

The skinny leather belt is new (on sale for $10!) - I was looking for a belt to go with the Heather Skirt, since it has teeny thin belt loops at the high waist.

The white blouse is also new-to-me - it's French Connection, and it has beautiful seaming and details (the covered buttons, the sheer background with the pattern of lotuses, finished seams inside).

I felt great in this outfit all day. Yee haw!

Sweater (Jacob), blouse (French Connection, consignment), skirt (Suzy Shier, gift from Heather), hose (Hue), shoes (Le Chateau), earrings (can't remember), necklace (ilovebracelets.com).

Mad for Plaid - and Dad

I was good last night and planned five outfits for this week. This is not my favourite, but it incorporates some of the new stuff I got on my wee shopping trip to my favourite consignment store (shout out to Annie! Leche's rules!).

I think it's the shoes that make this not...quite...there. The rounded toes throw it off visually and make my legs look thicker. I think my thighs have gotten bigger since I started aikido: my weight's about the same, but all my pants are fitting tighter in the thigh. Huh. Not sure I like that!

The new-to-me items are the blouse (which replaces my worn-out H&M black blouse - almost the identical style) and the red leather belt. I do love a bigass belt.

The stuff:

Those are such cool shoes...but maybe not with this outfit. I should've worn red shoes.

Today is my Dad's birthday. He would have been 67 years old. Here's Mom and Dad on a cruise to Alaska, about 3 months before he died.

He had a heart attack just after doing 3 hours' training for the marathon. He was in a coma for a week before we took him off life support - the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my life. He never woke up. He died a couple of days later. He was 55 when he died.

I get my long bony hands from my dad, as well as my baby-fine hair and my sticky-outie ears. Although most people say I look a lot like my mom, I do have a lot of inherited characteristics from my dad's side of the family.

Happy Birthday, Dad. I miss you.

Blouse (Club Monaco, consignment), bustier (Le Chateau, consignment), belt (consignment), pants (Vero Moda), shoes (Jeffrey Campbell), jewelry (Plum).

Special Occasion: Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope everyone had a love-filled V-Day! L and I always go out for dinner, but this year he suggested the opera as well. Sure! Why not!

This is what I wore:
And that's my little gift from L: "Pretty in Pink" (the "Everything's Duckie" edition). Love that movie.

I love this dress too, but I haven't worn it in nearly 2 years. I just kind of forgot about it, I guess. It's lovely, though - the classic "What Not to Wear" dress! Stacy and Clinton would be so proud. I bought it when I was in NYC with Mom a couple of years ago - it's from Filene's Basement.

The stuff:

The brooch and clip-on earrings are vintage, from Grandma J's collection. They aren't marked, but they are well-worn, so I know they were loved. The bracelet was Mom's - also not marked, but likely from the early 60s as well, I think.

Anyway, dinner was fabulous: a shared antipasto plate (cheeses and pickles and olives and prosciutto), lobster Thermidore, and creme brulee for dessert. And a champagne cocktail and wine, of course! Good thing we walked there and back! I had shoes in my bag and just changed whenever we arrived somewhere.

The opera was awful. It was Handel's "Semele" - it sounded interesting from the reviews, but ugh. Nothing happened! Just a lot of singing and the costumes were dull. L and I were both nodding off, our seats were cramped and by the time we hit intermission, we just looked at each other and said, "Let's blow." It felt so liberating.

Dress (Eliza J, New York), shoes (Jessica Simpson), brooch & earrings (Grandma J), bracelet (Mom's).

Special Occasion - Theatre with Mom

Mom and I did dinner and theatre last night - we saw Tom Stoppard's "The Real Thing". I really liked it. I love doing a special evening out with Mom. And she agreed to be a Special Guest Star:
Doesn't she look great?

I'm wearing my birthday dress from last October, with my black shrug, same fishnets as I wore during the day, and the Stinky Boots. The accessories:

I wore the pin to hold the shrug to the dress. I adore that bag; it's so beautiful. That's Mom's vintage Coro bracelet (she tells me she thinks it was a gift from one of her students in 1964-65).

My V-Day card from Mom:

Heh, notice how the shoes and boots are my "loved ones". She knows me so well. Kudos to Lovely Nieces Zoe and Hanna who provided help on what Mom should put on the card. Awesome.

Hope you are all having a wonderful Valentine's Day! Remember, if you don't have someone to love, love yourself.

Dress (Maggie London), shrug (gah, can't remember), boots (some cheap brand), hose (Hue), pin (Plum), bracelet (Coro, Mom's), ring (Melanie Lynne), bag (Spencer & Rutherford, gift from L). On Mom: blouse (Bianca Nygard), pants (Chloe or Ricki's, I think), shoes (Aerosoles).

I Love Myself Today! Week - Casual Friday - Rocker Chic

Woo! What a heckuva week - I am so glad it's over.

It's no secret that I have an affinity for the rocker chick look. But I'm a little old to do it full-on, so I do my own version:
A funky t-shirt (with sparklies, naturally), my black pencil skirt and a cropped, tailored jean jacket.

The accessories help: fishnets, motorcycle boots, spider ring and bug necklace:

The spider ring is from high school - I think I got if for Christmas in about 1983 or 1984. I got the bug necklace a few weeks ago. It's a real beetle! And it glows in the dark. How cool is that?

Jean jacket (Ann Taylor Loft), t-shirt (Libertalia), skirt (Kenzie), tights (Hue), boots (Cougar), ring (gift), necklace, and white gold hoop earrings.

I Love Myself Today! Week - Lovin' Leopard

Since I did my speech today, I wanted to keep all the interest in my outfit on the bottom, since my audience would only see me from the waist up.
Hi-yah! But the bottom is kick-ass: my favourite brown lace skirt and my classic leopard pumps. How I love these.

A close-up:

The speech went well, thanks for asking. I made one of the women cry - and I did not cry myself! A victory!

In case you are interested, this is my speech (I have removed identifying details, but otherwise, this is a true story):

Found on the Ferry

For the past 14 years, my husband’s been saying that eventually I’ll run into someone I know on the ferry. My reaction? “Yeah, right. What are the chances?” But this Christmas, it finally happened...and it was far more than I ever expected.

The crossing was rough. As I was walking down the aisle, a man bumped into me. I excused myself, but he held my arm. “Sheila?” He looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him. “It’s Blaine,” he said.

Oh, my god. Blaine.

Flashback. It’s 1973 and I’m in Grade 2. There’s a new kid this year – and he’s really cute, like Davy Jones of the Monkees. He’s a soccer player and instantly becomes one of the “cool kids”.

Blaine.

I haven’t seen him in nearly 25 years, since we graduated from high school. We spend a few minutes catching up: “What a small world, meeting on the ferry! Gosh, how long has it been? Hey, did you hear about so-and-so?” He sits down with his co-workers, and I return to my seat, but I just can’t get back into my book.

Blaine...The memories flood into my head, overwhelming me.

We’re choosing up sides for softball in PE, and again, I’m chosen last. No one wants the skinny little girl with the thick glasses on their team. I’m put in left field where I miss everything that comes my way. I can’t catch or throw very well, and when it’s my turn at bat, I strike out. Sometimes I cry, which makes them jeer even more.

A couple years later. Recess. Some kids are playing squareball with one of those red rubber balls. I sit nearby with my nose buried in a book, hoping they’ll invite me to play. Finally, I hear my name. But they don’t want me to join the game. The ball’s gone down into the stairwell where the custodian goes to fix the boiler. The kids call it the Spit Pit. “Hey, Sheila, you can play with us if you go get the ball!” I know what’s going to happen, but I do it anyway. I just try to scramble up the stairs before too many of them can spit on me. I pretend it doesn’t bother me, but I can’t look at anyone when I hang up my coat in the cloakroom. They whisper. They point. They giggle.

Grade Seven. I sit alone at my desk, I walk by myself at lunch, and I pretend nothing the kids say can penetrate my invisible shield. One day, the bathroom stalls are painted...and on impulse, I write the initials of the two girls I hate the most plus the two most popular guys. One of them is Blaine. I get caught, and everyone knows it was me. Blaine comes up to me after school and softly asks, “Why did you do it?” This seems like the stupidest question ever – how could he not know what I went through? I can’t answer; I don’t know how to express all the years of hurt.

That was the last time I spoke to Blaine.

Sitting on the ferry, trying to read my book, my eyes swim with tears. I realize I need to say one more thing to him.

When the announcement comes to return to our cars, I tell my husband I’ll be right back. I touch Blaine’s arm and I take a deep breath. “I don’t know if you ever knew how hellish elementary school was for me, but I just wanted to say...you were always nice to me. Thank you.” He looks shocked, then he gives me a hug.

I’m crying in the car as we drive off the ferry, but they’re good tears. In saying those words to Blaine, I’ve found something I didn’t know I needed. I’ve forgiven those kids for picking on me. I’ve forgiven the kids who didn’t know or who looked away. And I’ve forgiven that lonely little girl for not standing up and defending herself.

So it’s true: eventually, I did run into someone I knew on the ferry. But I got a lot more than I bargained for. I found a piece of my past, like a sliver of glass that had been buried in my soul. And finally, after 30 years, I found that I could let go of that weight. I found forgiveness.

Sweater (Tobias), skirt (Planet), fishnet hose (Hue), shoes (Steve Madden), necklace (Plum), crystal stud earrings.

I Love Myself Today! Week - My Favourite Dress

I hope everyone has been bopping along to Bif all week: "Uh huh, I love myself today! Not like yesterday - I'm cool, I'm calm, I'm going to be okay!"

I feel like a million bucks in this dress:
And not only because it kind of looks like a super-duper close-up of money. It's like wearing pyjamas to work. It's stretchy, it has a great neckline and it's cut perfectly. More goofy poseage!

The stuff:

I like geometric shapes, especially spirals, snakey shapes (um, would that be because my initial is "S"?), circles, and most of my jewelry that I wear on a regular basis has that shape.

I'm getting the mind control stare from both of the cats:

"Feed us, you crazy woman!"

Holy moly, I'm so nervous about my speech tomorrow. I'm in Toastmasters and this will be my 5th speech...and I chose to do it on something very personal. I am hoping that I don't cry. There's no crying in Toastmasters!

I'll post the speech tomorrow if it goes well.

"I'm cool, I'm calm, I'm going to be okay!"

Dress (I.N.C.), tights (Hue), boots (Expressions), necklace (unknown), earrings (don't remember).

I Love Myself Today! Week - Best Colour Combo Ever

Of course, it is red, brown and turquoise! Really, these colours just look great together. So, here are some of my favourite pieces of red, brown and turquoise, anchored with a nice simple black skirt.
I am getting tired of the same ol' pose. Here I am being goofy, which is how I usually am. Eeeh hee hee.

The stuff:

The basis for the whole outfit is the shirt. I just pulled all the colours out and whacked them together. I actually forgot to pick an outfit last night (so tired I fell asleep immediately), so it's a good thing this all looked okay when I got to work!

Jacket (Gap, consignment), blouse (Mexx), skirt (Armour Jeans, consignment), belt (Plum), tights (Hue), boots (Roberto Vianni), earrings (Plum), bracelet (Plum).

I Love Myself Today! Week - Schoolgirl Minx

In honour of V-Day (Valentine's Day), this week's theme is "I Love Myself Today". If you're not familiar with the Bif Naked song "I Love Myself Today", you need a shot of this stat! Crank it up and sing along!

Today's outfit is an ode to one of my favourite looks, schoolgirl.
So maybe I'm a little old to be doing schoolgirl, but let's pretend, okay? I'm not showing skin a la Britney or wearing the obvious white shirt, and I'm not trying to look younger than I am. I'm just playing with the look because I think it's sexy.

I've got my pinstriped grey dress (complete with little pleats at the bottom) and my burgundy shoes. Kept the top simple with the burgundy ribbed turtleneck.

The stuff:
That bracelet has been broken for about 6 years - I mended it last week. The elastic that strings all those huge rocks together blew about a month after I got it. You'd think I could replace elastic faster, but no.

Love yourself this week! Wear what makes you feel like a million bucks - you deserve it!

Dress (Mac & Jac), sweater (Plum), hose (Hue), shoes (Bleka), bracelet (Fairweather), earrings (Plum).

Ack! I've Become Allergic to Cabbage!

Well, no, not really. I like cabbage. But I did get tagged by the lovely Hillary. I'm going to play along for once. Pasted from Hillary's blog:

So here are the official rules: Show Us Your Blog Spot!
1. Once you are tagged, post a picture of where you blog. This might mean a picture of your cozy bed, or your office at work (you naughty employee, you!) Feel free to be creative, but be honest--if your desk is usually covered in Ritz crackers and love letters to Brad Pitt, then show us!
2. Feel free to tell us a little about your space, or explain certain items in more detail. Or not.
3. Link back to this post. (I want to see how far this goes!)
4. Tag five other bloggers to show their blog spots.
5. If you are tagged and do not participate, you will become allergic to cabbage.

I'm going to do items 1-3, but I'm not tagging other bloggers - I'm lazy, so sue me, plus I just don't really groove on these things. If you want to show your space, do it!

Henceforth, cabbage, you are my sworn enemy! Or not.

The computer's in the den (the same room I take all my photos in). Okay, this is the view to my immediate left:

Inaccurate clock, some mixed burned CDs, a flashlight, the case for my camera, the USB hookup for the camera, tons of papers, phone numbers and tax receipts on the corkboard, an invite to a pirate party, L's old watch, a boxed GWB bobblehead doll, Godzilla, Mecha-Ghidira, the Silver Surfer, a wooden box full of dice, my bus schedule for aikido, pens, pencil, sticky notes.

Uh, yeah, I'm not a very neat person and neither is L.

Straight ahead view:

Computer specs stuck to the monitor, football coaster, my new PC game "Scratches" (I love these walkthrough search 'n' solve games), L's "Icewind Dale" game, ratty old headphones.

View to my right:

Dark because of the light coming in at the window. Dragon candleholder, painting equipment, invite to some ball that we didn't go to, chapsticks, odds and ends of sticky notes.

Pretty messy, eh? Aren't you glad you asked, Hillary?

Casual Friday - Swapped Stuff from Caro

So last Saturday, my gals and I had our Winesday. The Winesday Women get together and indulge in wine, food and other good stuff and just hang out and be ourselves. We're all professionals, some with kids, some not, just a core group of about 6 women who feel the need to our collective hair down and get tipsy. Wee! I love Winesday!

Anyway, my dear, dear friend Caro brought over a huge bag of clothes for giveaway! And I got this top and these jeans:
Of course, I have my "one in, one out" rule, so I dug out my green cords which I haven't worn in forever, and a top that I have had enough of, and gave away some of the other stuff I'd weeded out from previous consignment/thrift purchases.

I absolutely love these jeans, though! I took a "butt shot" but my butt looked flat (and I know it's not) so it's not getting posted, ha! The jeans are Seven7 (NOT 7 For All Mankind), which I believe is a European brand - I did some research in my highly-unproductive day at work, heh heh. Anyway, I think they look great.

The top is nice and casual - it's a blend of cotton and cashmere, so I was snuggly warm all day. I researched this brand (Majestic) and these long-sleeved tees sell for up to $150! Whoa!

The shoes:
Hee, I'm so bad. I am actually wearing SOCKS with them. They totally kill my feet (and yes, I have my Dr. Scholl's inserts in them) and it was so cold out this morning that I couldn't bear to go bare, and I didn't have any solid knee highs...so the Dependable Black Dress Sock saved the day! So even a self-proclaimed fashionista like me cheats a little sometimes.

You still won't ever catch me in leggings.
Edited to add this picture with my outerwear and a little more 'tude...and because I look exceedingly hungover in the first picture. Have a wonderful weekend!

Top (Majestic, swap from Caro), jeans (Seven7, swap from Caro), shoes (BCBGirls), belt (gift from Ruth), white gold hoop earrings (gift from L). Outerwear: leather jacket (charity auction), scarf (gift from Mom from Italy).