Out of the Habit

It amazing how habits carry us through so much of our lives.  Our habits help define who we are.  Sometimes that is a good thing, sometimes it's a bad thing.  Lately it has been more bad than good for me.  I need to shake things up, evaluate and prioritize what I am doing and why.  I have loose ends to tie up and new paths to figure out.  That's my May challenge.  More details to come.

Now, onto the clothes.  As I mentioned over the weekend, my mom and I found a pile of clothes at a church rummage sale on Saturday.  We hemmed and altered most of what needed it yesterday, so now I have a bunch of new (to me) clothes to play with this week.  I'll be wearing my weekend thrift finds as a mini-challenge this week.

 

Today's dress reminds me so very much of a nun's habit.  It gives me a real twisted thrill to be dressed (sort of) like a nun.

Dress, Old Navy, thrifted; shoes, Montego Bay Club, Payless Shoes; earrings, Claire's; necklace, thrifted; bracelet, gifted (thanks Mom!).

 

My poor toes are looking 80% less horrid this week thanks to Jill Ashley at Michelle James Salon.  They would be looking even better, but the dogs stepped on one toe and tore it up, and I accidentally kicked my mom's tennis shoe and broke a nail.  My mom doesn't even have big shoes.  How did I break a nail?

Be sure to check back throughout the week to see the other lovely finds from thrifting/ rummaging with my mom.  It will be fun to thrift all week.

Also, today is Visible Monday at Patti's Not Dead Yet Style blog.  Be sure to check out the other visible ladies today!

Puppies We Love

Presented without comment: Dixie, Gadget and Wonton.

Rummage Sale Ninja

I had a lot of fun on the agenda today:  mega garage sales and the farmer's market.  My outfit goal today was super comfortable but presentable as the day continues.

 

Dress, thrifted; leggings, Walmart; necklace, gifted (thanks Jason!); earrings, handmade by me last night!

A better pic of the earrings.  

We struck gold at the first rummage sale we tried.  It was a huge church affair.  I found a combination coffee/cappuccino machine to replace the cappuccino machine I brought from Iowa and promptly broke.  You can guarantee that I will be drinking cappuccino tomorrow morning.  Mmmmm.  My mom found a coffee pot too.  It will help her as she is making repairs to her new house before her possessions arrive.  She is fueled by coffee.

We also got a pile of clothes between the two of us.  Tomorrow is going to be a big clothing alteration day.  I'm very excited for that.

Tonight is reserved for margaritas and Game of Thrones.  My mom has read the books, but hasn't seen the first season of the tv show.  Yippee!

Rock & Wrap

Here are my final two jewelry projects of the evening.  You may notice that none of the pieces below contain coral or turquoise.

I'm enjoying experimenting with asymmetrical earrings, like the ones on the right.  The two pairs of earrings below are my first experiment with wire wrapping.  I think they turned out pretty well.

Be sure to check out today's earlier endeavors here and here.

The chunks of amethyst are close to the size of
golf balls.  It kind of has a Flintstone vibe.

 

When Does a Theme Become a Rut?

Right... Now... but I still like it.

The up side/ down side is that I am pretty much out of both coral and turquoise beads. On to something else.

Now I have to decide whether I need four coral and turquoise jewelry sets or whether I should call the downtown market and sell some jewelry.

Variations on a Theme

From left: The necklace and earrings from my March bead day in Iowa, and the two sets I made today.  

I think it's pretty clear which color scheme I'm into these days: turquoise and coral.  I'm feeling quite inspired to bead some more in the next few days.  It's lovely to have my mom here to be crafty with me. When she finishes her piece I'll post a photo of it too.

Roll Up Your Sleeves

Yay! My mom made it to Georgia safely and ahead of schedule!  She arrived around midnight last night, after driving straight through from Iowa (about 18 hours of drive time).  That means that today is my last day of work for this week.  I am taking a couple days off to spend time with her and unwind after the crazy, nonstop work I've been doing for the past month or so.

 

This is what I'm wearing for one last crazy day of work before the long weekend.  I have so much that needs to be done before I go.  I've been pretty casual so far this week, so I'm continuing along that vein.

Dog hair: the perfect accessory to any outfit.

Shirt, Liz Claiborne, thrifted; tank, Maurices; slacks, Star City, Younkers; shoes, American Eagle, Payless Shoes; earrings and necklace, handmade by me.

I still love the necklace and earrings.  They are definitely some of my favorite handmade pieces in a while.

On my to do list with my mom this week/weekend:

• Goodwill
• Garage sales
• Farmer's market
• Crafting
• Maybe a bit of theater

Cotton Candy

This is probably the last time I'll get away with wearing a sweater until autumn, and the only reason I think this one will work today is that it is cotton.  It has been chilly the past couple days, with lows in the 40s and highs only in the low 70s.  This outfit isn't breaking any new ground, but it is comfortable and casual.  I'll take it.

 

I couldn't decide on this belt.  I think I'll skip it and keep the outfit simple and casual.

Never mind, this belt looks weird.

That's better.  Still have an expression similar to the
Joker from Batman though.  Oh well.  Try again tomorrow.

 Sweater, GAP, thrifted; skirt, Coldwater Creek, thrifted; sandals, Clarks, Younkers; earrings, purchased in Cozumel; necklace, purchased at a Christmas bazaar; bracelet, Claires.

 

News & Narcissism

Special (adorable) visitors.

This is already my 200th post.  I must be very self-involved to have posted 200 times in about 150 days.  Ha ha.  Funny because it's true.

I've learned more than I expected by posting about my life and style every day.  Probably the most important thing I've learned is that it doesn't really matter what I wear or look like on any given day.  I always have the next day to try again when things don't go according to plan.  I suppose that translates to more than just fashion.  I can try again tomorrow with just about anything.

The exciting news that I alluded to last week is officially barreling down the highway towards me.  My mom is moving to Georgia.  She will be living just a few minutes away.  That is wonderful since she was living an 18 hour drive/ expensive flight away.  Mom, Gypsy the cat and Dixie the dog (the latter two pictured above) will be staying at our house for at least the next few days and possibly a few weeks until their house is ready to move into.  It's nice that we are so close, so she can do any work she wants to on the house before she has to move in.  She will be here tomorrow.  Yippee!

Welcome to Georgia, Mom!

Everything's Coming Up Roses

This dress is a perfect example of why I unashamedly shop at Goodwill.  I like a lot of what it has going on including the colors, pattern and flow.  I'm not crazy about the length, so you can anticipate some hemming in the future.

Dress, vintage, thrifted; belt, thrifted; shoes, Dexter, Payless Shoes; earrings, So & So, etsy; necklace, handmade by me.

 

The dress is greener than it looks in the photos.  It is closer to the color of the belt.  

Today is Visible Monday, so check out all the loveliness at Not Dead Yet Style.

Weekend Recap: Wait, What Weekend?

 Well, it's Monday again and it seems like the weekend never happened.  Saturday I was up at 5, at work by 6, and worked until almost 4.  Sunday I didn't go to work but I was so run down from the week that it was all I could do to prep a little bit for the week to come.

 
Friday I wore jeans and a t-shirt to work.  I had a lot of running around to do, so I wanted to be practical and comfortable.  Hopefully I added enough polish to look semi-professional.  Can you see the abject exhaustion on my face in these photos?

 

New earrings.

Saturday I didn't bother photographing what I wore to work.  It was bland beyond bland.  The one highlight of my Saturday?  The earrings I ordered from So & So were ready.  I love that cobalt blue.






The highlight of Sunday was dinner.  I love falafel way more than anyone should, and I've been meaning to make some at home.  The America's Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2011 cookbook had a recipe for Chickpea Cakes that sounded like falafel by any other name to me.  They were delicious.  Even Stephen liked them.

America's Test Kitchen version.

My version.

Now I'm starting another week.  I suppose.  If I have to.

Bruised but Not Broken

It wasn't until I saw these photos that I realized I'm dressed as a giant bruise.  I am purple, black and blue from head to toe.  It's actually rather fitting with the week I've had.  Oh well, on to the clothes.

 

Dress, vintage, thrifted; camisole, Rue 21; belt, vintage, thrifted; shoes, American Eagle, Payless Shoes; earrings, handmade and gifted (thanks Mary Ann!); necklace, handmade by me; bracelets, thrifted.

Only pic I got that shows the necklace and earrings.  

These bangles are made of glass.

 I adore this dress.  It is very light and flowy, and I imagine it will be perfect all Georgia summer long.  I may take some inspiration from Gracy at Fashion for Giants and shorten it just a tad, but even if I don't I think it's wonderful.  Also, it has pockets.  Not nearly enough new dresses (or women's clothes in general) have pockets.

My camera battery died after these four photos, but next time I wear this dress I will definitely get more detailed pics of its charming features.

Oh, in spite of my slightly dour mood this morning, I do have some lovely news to share in the next few days.  Happy Thursday, and remember Thursdays are for Thrifters!

Liger

What do you get when you combine a tiger shirt with a lion belt?  A liger outfit, of course!  I tend to be especially excited about silly conceptual outfits, and this one falls firmly into that category.  Why else would I be thrilled with an otherwise bland black and brown outfit?

 

Shirt, Express, thrifted; slacks, thrifted; belt, thrifted and embellished by me; shoes, Clarks, Younkers; bracelet, Claire's; earrings, handmade and gifted (thank you Chenille!); necklace, etsy.

 

Chenille gave me these earrings before she was a famous jewelry designer with a fancy etsy site.  It is so good to have talented friends.  I got quite a few compliments on them today.  I like the combination of the buttons, beads and copper findings.  I think I am going to order/commission a pair of earrings like this but in a bright color.

The Turtle and the Harebrain

This morning as I was packing my lunch I heard a shriek followed by frantic barking coming from the back yard.  I ran out to find Gadget fixated on something in the grass.  As I came closer, he darted between me and it, as if trying to protect me.  Then I saw what it was... a small box turtle.  I'm glad Gadget was afraid of it instead of thinking it was a half a ball with legs.

I'm quite certain the turtle is now deaf after Gadget's show of alarm.

The whole thing added some excitement to my morning, but didn't have any negative impact other than the fact that when it was all said and done I had a shoe box full of turtle pee.

 

I put her in a shoebox and dropped her off in the woods near my house.

Leopard Lite

If you've ever read this blog before, you probably know that I love leopard print.  It is probably my favorite color.  (Yes, I think leopard print is a color.)  My first instinct was to go all-out today with a leopard print dress, but then I remembered that I have a donor event tonight.  I decided to keep it leopard lite.  (Yes, for me three leopard prints is leopard lite.)

Gadget is a master photo bomber.

 

Dress, George, Walmart; belt, Walmart; shoes, Mossimo, Target; bracelet, Claire's; earrings, gifted (thanks Mary Ann!); pendant, gifted (thanks Stephen!)

Pendant

Earrings

The pendant is made from a butterfly wing.  They are collected at a butterfly garden when the butterflies pass away.  When Stephen got this pendant, they asked what colors I wear so they could choose one that would go with those colors.  He told them I wear a lot of leopard print.  He knows me so well.  And he has eyes.  

 

This bracelet is another accessory that came my way for $1.  When I told my dad I got it for a dollar he said I had overpaid.  

Close-up of the pendant.

Last night I tried a new recipe for dinner.  It was a spaghetti pie from the America's Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2011 cookbook.  The America's Test Kitchen has never steered me wrong.  I started with The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, and now I buy pretty much ever special edition they have.  My mom bought me a subscription to Cook's Illustrated Magazine for my birthday, and those recipes have been fool proof too.

The ATC version.

My version

If you love cooking delicious food, try some America's Test Kitchen recipes.  Yum!