Goodbye Norma Jean

Over the weekend I made a major decision: it was time to do away with my Monroe piercing (although apparently mine was technically a Madonna piercing, but whatever). The reason is that I'd started to notice a wrinkle that the piercing was causing; the tug of the post when I talked and smiled was creating a vertical line from the piercing to the upper margin of my lip, which doesn't follow the natural creases that talking and smiling produce on their own. I knew that in another year or so the crease would start to look odd and unnatural among my other lines, so I figured if I took the piercing out now I could stop, and maybe even reverse, the damage. I'd had the piercing for almost 6 years.

Getting your face pierced is an odd thing, because unlike the ears or nose, there's a lot of active tissue there that has to reconcile itself with a foreign object being placed in its midst. As it turns out, the face doesn't really appreciate having a metal rod rammed through it. It reacts initially with fairly exaggerated swelling, so much so that an extra long post has to be put in at first to accommodate the bulging tissue. When things finally settle down, the real healing can begin.

A pierced face heals begrudgingly, slowly admitting defeat and shrinking back to its normal dimensions, though it remains ready at the attack for several months, always prepared to spring forth into violent rebellion at the slightest disruption. Finally after about 6 months it seems to become resigned to its fate, and almost never protests after that. The back of the piercing settles into the soft tissue in the back of the lip, and it's nearly a part of you. Nearly.

Once the offending object is removed however, the face seems to regain its confidence, as well as a renewed sense of diplomacy. It nary makes a fuss, preferring to write the whole thing off as a minor misunderstanding. It's as if it's saying, "Well, thank heavens you've come to your senses. Let's put that little episode behind us." Not 24 hours after I removed the metal post, I could no longer squirt water out of the hole it left behind (a talent I'm somewhat sad to lose); 2 days in I could barely feel the depression that the back of the post left on the inside of my lip; after 4 days even the hole on the outside is starting to close in on itself. Soon it will resemble what it was meant to mimic in the first place: a beauty mark, albeit a very small one.

I loved the look of the piercing but I knew from the start that its time was limited. I have a few more outfit photos to post from before I took it out, but you may have a tough time discerning the first photos where it's gone. Unless you see me up close, it has always been a fairly subtle accessory.

There's one person I know will celebrate the departure of my Monroe piercing: my mom. Moms never seem to love any modification of their offspring's physical being, I find. I suppose they feel that when they made their sons and daughters, they were already perfect.

Top: Asos
Belt: Oscar de la Renta
Bangles: Amrita Singh
Skirt: Anthropologie
Tights: Hue
Shoes: BCBGirls

Going to the Vet

This was my "taking Georgie to the vet" outfit; it needed to be comfortable and not easily wrinkled as I loaded Georgie in and out of the car and knelt down to hold her for the vet to examine (she's fine, by the way -- she had a back spasm that was causing her some pain when she jumped up).

I tucked the jeans into the short boots by tucking them first into a long, thick pair of gray socks. This kept the hem of the jeans firmly in place even when bending or sitting down. For a little sparkle I added this pretty hammered gold necklace I bought awhile back (I liked it so much I got one for my mom for Christmas too). I love the organic shapes of the circles and the way the necklace fills out the entire neckline.

Vest: Forever 21
Tunic: All Saints
Necklace: from Ambiance in SF
Jeans: Joe's
Boots: Bastien

Total Comfort

With this outfit I went for total comfort. It was the last workday in the old place, and I didn't want to come home with aching feet or a squeezed midsection or anything else that might slow me down for the weekend. We finished all our packing that Friday night and Saturday, had the movers move everything on Sunday (and actually we moved a lot of stuff ourselves too), and I took Monday through Wednesday off to start getting settled in.

Everything I wore that day was loose and flowy. I even resisted my natural urge to belt the cardigan and just let the long ends hang down, which I thought gave the outfit a nice modern shape. My low-heeled boots are comfortable enough to walk all day in, and I liked how the small metal studs mimicked the polka dots on the skirt.

For a splash of color I added this big chunky necklace from Dana LeBlanc Designs. This is really an impact necklace and I don't tend to wear it very often; it usually requires an outfit that is simpler than most of the stuff I put together. But with the clean black and white and the simplicity of the unstructured layers, I thought it worked really well.

Coming up tomorrow, my first attempt at an outfit shot in the new house! I'm still figuring out where my preferred location will be, but it's a start.

Cardigan: a gift from Mom
Top: Max Studio
Skirt: thrifted
Necklace: Dana LeBlanc on Etsy
Boots: All Black

Winter All Over

Oh, San Francisco weather. Just when you think spring has arrived, the temperature drops, a storm moves in, and it's winter all over again. To signal my dissatisfaction with the climate, I wore my Wendy Brandes swear rings. Since then, nature has decided to straighten up and fly right, bringing the sunny skies back just in time for our move. I'm certain it was the rings.

I did use the crummy weather to my advantage, taking the opportunity to wear my new boots again. On a related note, I was thrilled to see Angie discuss the merits of wearing boots in the summer; in San Francisco I would say it rarely gets too cold for boots, even in the warmest months. This was another pair I recently found deeply discounted on Amazon (this is a great time of year to buy boots!). They are a rich, slate gray color and have just enough hardware detailing without being too much. The detail shot of the boots is from a different outfit, but I thought you might want to see them up close while I'm on the subject.

The sweater is one I found on Gilt. I have searched high and low for an interesting cashmere cardigan, but until now everything I've found has been plain and boring. I just loved the randomly-placed cutout holes in this one, and the color is really different from anything else in my wardrobe. The buttons, however, were ugly as sin, so I cut those suckers off straight away, knowing that I would need to belt this sweater anyway. I think it's far better without them.

Sweater: Cynthia Rowley, via Gilt
Dress: not sure of the brand
Rings: Wendy Brandes
Belt: Urban Outfitters
Skirt: F21
Tights: Foot Traffic, via Sock Dreams
Boots: Bronx

Give a Gift, Get a Gift

Now how cool is this: I host a giveaway contest, and I end up getting a gift myself, from the winner? Well, that's exactly what happened; Michi, who won my hat giveaway and who also has an Etsy shop, asked if she could make me some jewelry as a thank you for the hat, and who was I to say no? Imagine my delight when I opened up the package to find this adorable little handmade bird necklace and feather earrings, in just the perfect colors to compliment my new burgundy and orange Skunkfunk skirt. I immediately put together an outfit around the necklace, reworking the one I wore a week or so ago.

I only wore the necklace this time around because with the sequined cardigan I felt I needed to go light on the accessories. I just love the way the necklace looked with the soft cream shirt and burgundy cardigan. I'm excited to try out the earrings; I don't own any pairs that are so shoulder-skimmingly long, so I'll be pushing my boundaries a bit with them, which is always a great thing.

The skirt I have layered under the Skunkfunk one is the second of the two items I bought while in Mexico; this is the first time I've worn it. The skirt has a natural linen layer in a rougher weave, topped with a sheer white layer in a more delicate weave. It was a great way to add length to the hemline and to echo the cream-colored top.


Top: a gift from my mom
Cardigan: American Eagle
Jewelry: Mychu Motif
Belt: Lazaro
Skirt: Skunkfunk
White skirt: from a local shop in Tulum
Tights: Biella
Boots: Bata

8 Curses

Here's my All Saints "7 Curses" dress, with its intricate pattern of skulls, snakes, and other voodoo symbols. I just couldn't resist adding my Wendy Brandes swear rings and making it 8 Curses.


























During a meeting at work that day, I looked up from taking notes and noticed someone looking at my rings. An appreciative, laughing smile and knowing looks were exchanged; turns out there are some cool people in this place after all, at least cool enough to admire fantastic, cheeky jewelry.

This dress is great for layering because its soft, sheer texture allows it to drape really well over a skirt. With this outfit I added a long-sleeved t-shirt for warmth, and the cape-jacket for shaping and to balance out the fullness of the skirt. The blend of subtle blue shades and neutrals is great for winter, but I'm also looking forward to how I can style this dress with brighter colors when the weather is warmer.

Jacket: F21
Shirt: H&M
Belt: Red Dress Shoppe
Dress: All Saints
Skirt: Noa Noa
Boots: All Black
Rings: Wendy Brandes

Flashy

With this outfit I wanted to put together something that had sort of a 50's vibe. I thought the cuffed jeans were a good place to start, and the cropped cardigan, beret, and scarf were the perfect finishing touches. Not too overt, but it had the feel I was going for. My outerwear was my navy pickstitch coat from Tulle. As you may remember from way back in my Buyer's Remorse series, this coat was on my 'specific rules' list for quite some time: I was only allowed to buy another coat if it was a navy one. I found this one on a crazy sale for something like 12 bucks, and it's a great basic coat for mild winter days.

What's that on my hand, you ask? Oh, of course it's my Wendy Brandes for Frances swear rings! This outfit needed lots of flashy silver to give it some punch, and the rings fit the bill perfectly. Stay tuned for tomorrow's post, which spotlights the rings again and is the first installment in a brand new series I'm kicking off this year!


Cardigan: Old Navy
Striped hoodie: ??
Scarf: Banana Republic
Rings: Wendy Brandes
Jeans: Acne
Shoes: Tsubo
Coat: Tulle

Here I Am! [rocking you not so much like a hurricane, but perhaps rather a refreshingly crisp, light mist]

Thanks to Audi for her badgering encouragement (hee!) to finally contribute to the blog properly (my first solo post!), and to all of you - for your lovely welcomes! It's exciting (and a little bit scary) to put myself "out there", but I know you'll be gentle. Right?!?

As Audi mentioned, I do indeed work in finance, and am frequently "out in the field" as it were. This means both lots of airplane travel and also fairly-to-very conservative work environments. Trust me, this can make packing a grueling ordeal for an accomplished procrastinator. However, being aligned with the IT department, perhaps I'm given (or maybe take?) a little bit of leeway - or at least try to push the envelope a bit, as the matchy-matchy suit situation doesn't appeal to me for daily wear. It's a challenge to put together outfits that balance "Business-y" but are still "me" (decidedly NOT business-y). Sure, it can be easy to just throw on pants/jacket combo with a button-down underneath, and I have been known to rock the pinstriped 3-piece on occasion. But you know, sometimes I just don't wanna wear something so stifling.

It was cold this morning, and I was tired, cranky, under-caffeinated, and late(!), so a bit of comfort was called for - quickly. This charcoal grey skirt is a staple of mine during chillier months; I'm pretty excited that I get to wear it again with tights and sweaters! This little vest satisfies my need for layers without being bulky (the nerdygirl in me LOVES an argyle v-neck!), and paired with a mauve checkered button-down, makes a potentially monochromatic ensemble a bit more interesting - but still appropriate for a day full of meetings in the suit-and-tie world.  Two-tone mary janes make for a good contrast, while adding a bit of quirkiness.

Chasing away the grey clouds with a little bit of sparkle, I added these gorgeous gems scored in Buenos Aires @ Manu Lizarralde - the amethysts are some of the biggest I've seen on an earring, and the quality is amazing.

The ring is an eye-catching pearl set in silver that never came off once tried on. I still can't believe we went to that shop -3- times. [Also, I'll never be a hand model.]

I'll admit that fashion-wise, I'm still learning what works - being a curvy girl at times has its frustrations, as does the potentially stuffy corporate world, but I look forward to sharing more outfits and adventures!

Skirt: Banana Republic

Vest: H&M

Shoes: groove