Still not sure how Mother Nature got VA mixed up with the Siberian tundra this winter, but L and I tried to make the best of it this weekend, braving the blizzard for wine, mussels, fries and some live music on Friday. We had fun taking photos in the snow, even if our outfits aren’t exactly decipherable due to the approx. 23 layers we’re both wearing!
We tried to keep it as chic as possible (ACAP), with lots of black, faux fur, stripes and sparkles. Mother Nature went for the simple all white look, which is classic year-round.
Kybecca, a local wine bar, was offering all-you-can-eat-moules-and-frites, so…
….we obviously had to partake. I got the Thai curry and L opted for the garlic. I’m gonna go ahead and be honest, though, and say I really only wanted buckets full of those f’in french fries with the cilantro mayo for dipping (I’m a sucker for frites, whatcanIsay). mmm, hungry.
As frustratingly immobilizing as the storm has been, it has been fun trekking around a snow-covered Fredericksburg with friends on Friday, grilled cheese and gossip girl Saturday afternoon followed by spiked hot chocolate/bad movies in the evening…. and now gearing up to hike up the hill for brunch and meet up with L to take more photos later.
What did the rest of you east-coasters do? Snowmen? Igloos?
We hope everyone stayed warm, safe and chic this weekend!
vest - topshop/shirt and ring - f21/pants - j.crew/shoes - frye/bag - chloe
loving this crazy wooly vest from topshop! NOT loving the “near-blizzard conditions” that are headed our way, “making travel very hazardous or nearly impossible” (according to the weather channel). snow that threatens to come up to my hips is not cool, although if it got me one or two days off of work that wouldn’t be so bad. luckily, i happen to be a very good homebody, so i foresee lots of cooking, reading, netflix watching, and maybe some kind of a diy project–knitting, sewing, jewelry making? we shall see…
So, my East Coast/Southern ladies, on a scale from 1 to over it, how are we feeling about the constant snow predictions? It’s a good thing I love my boots! and faux fur! Man, how I love me some faux fur. And sequins too. I hope when I’m 75 I still love those things.
Laura and I were having a strangely serious gchat conversation today (as serious as a convo can be on gchat, I suppose) - talking about owning homes, businesses - being married, having children (children in the future-tense, most assuredly) - and it made me think about the blogging community (as a lot of things seem to do!). It is pretty damn cool to belong to such a vibrant, supportive community of like-minded women who are all in v. different places in their lives (we’re single, married, living with a significant other, we go to college, are teachers and counselors, have kids or sometimes dogs - and everything in between!) yet come together in a unique, sometimes surreal sort of way, and I love, love it!
On that note, L and I really wanted to get to the Chictopia conference this month to meet all of you guys who have decided to go (we’re looking at you, Christina @ Second Skin, Coco from Our Paper Moon and Tieka from Selective Potential!) - but unfortunately procrastination, jobs and other crazy life things have gotten in the way. Sigh. Maybe September?!
a while back, i was taken with this picture from the sartorialist, and determined to find a coat just like this one:
after searching high and low (i didn’t think it would be such a challenge!), i came across this one recently while browsing through etsy vintage. et voila! not exactly the same, but close enough for me:
f21 shirt and earrings, nordstrom rack blazer, gap jeans, target socks, vera wang for kohl's scarf, circa joan and david sandals
ohh and I almost forgot - my lovetaza headband!
sooo….threw this outfit together on the quick to hustle out to meet L for a marathon of catching up over dinner and wine at Kybecca. It’s funny that when we go 5 days without seeing each other, it feels like an eternity….I’ve been living in these jeans and ya know, some form of a top (you’re welcome, public) - quick and easy (that’s what she said). I always feel a little weird? I guess, wearing socks and sandals (I mean…even the phrase “socks and sandals…grandpa city, no?) but it’s kinda fun and a good way to get away from tights in the winter time. It’s how j.crew do, so it can’t be all bad, right? I’m tipsy and rambling, lemme stop.
Ohh and this is the first time this bag has been on the blog, I think. My momma got it for me for Christmas and it is looovveee. A chain link handled, black suede bucket bag with tassles, yay!
hat - corky's downtown fredericksburg/trench - via spiga/shoes - dolce vita/bag - balenciaga
felt kind of like a spy in this outfit– when it’s rainy and gross you might as well make the best of it. it was definitely a trench kind of week. funny how you can go through phases with your clothes, wearing something on repeat for days and days just cause it continues to fit the mood. this is pretty typical with me and new items (i’m a sucker for novelty) but the best is when you rediscover something that has been lying dormant in your closet and suddenly it feels new again. does this ever happen to you guys?
Over the past few years, I’ve become increasingly interested in vintage fashion - when I first started buying, I relied on others (mostly online vintage shops) to do the searching. I only had to wait for a shop update and choose what I wanted from an already-curated selection.
Lately though, for a number of different reasons, I’ve been doing a lot of my own “picking”. Spending Saturday afternoons hopping from one Goodwill to another has become an afternoon I so look forward to. Since this new interest in the search, I’ve learned a few things that help separate the quality from the quantity.
I wanted to share one of the most helpful things I’ve learned on how to date vintage with ya’ll - I know many fashion bloggers out there have been thrifting for vintage for a lot longer than I have but hopefully this will help some of you!
The International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU) was founded in 1900 and remained active until 1995. Beginning around 1940, ILGWU tags became common on any piece of clothing that was made by a union company. The tags took on different forms, colors and acronyms between 1940 and 1995, thus making these tags invaluable when you’re trying to 1) decide if something is even vintage and 2) dating it to a specific period.
ILGWU tag 1955-1963
ILGWU 1963-1974
ILGWU 1974-1995
Obviously, not every vintage garment was union made; you’re sure to find lots of gems that won’t be able to be dated so simply, however, what a thrill it is to see this stamped on a tag of a pretty dress while you’re standing in the middle of a thrift store!
I’ve got a whole list of other tips and tricks I am happy to share if ya’ll want more - just let me know! Hope this helped!
Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s almost time for some coconut cake and BIG LOVE.
p.s. How many of you are also lovvvinngg the new Big Love intro? I could watch that on repeat for an hour and be happy.
sources: vintage fashion guild, The Little Guide to Vintage Shopping by Melody Fortier
hat - urban outfitters/trench - via spiga/top - ann taylor loft/jeans - old navy/shoes - frye/bag - gucci
this is an outfit from a few days ago, before the weather got cold and icy. i figured i’d go for a little daytime sparkle to dress up the trench and jeans.
I watched this video 1,000 times the other day - I love getting behind the scenes sneak peeks into all the things I love….esp street style photographs since the whole idea seems so mysterious to me. I live in a small town so I’ve not been able to experience seeing it happen in person.
And, yay! We have a new header! The super talented Laura is to thank for the super awesome drawing and our super awesome webmaster totallymeat is to thank for putting our new header together. So, thanks again guys!
Also, sorry I haven’t posted in awhile - my camera is really giving me issues…I feel like such a dunce but I seemingly cannot take a non-grainy, non-blurry photo to save my life! I’m trying again today, so there may be another post by yours truly this afternoon.
what i wore to run errands and stroll around town saturday. the weather was not as freezing as it had been lately, so i temporarily abandoned my warm wooly pieces for spring-weight layers. i have been missing this scarf, so it was nice to give it some attention. hope you all had a wonderful weekend!
xoxoxoxo
