Girl In The Moon

IMG_2718.JPG

I put this outfit on for a date with my husband.

It had been spinning in my mind ever since I scored this awesome moon Top from Anthropologie on a popback sale price of less than $20.

I was over the moon about my new score.

IMG_2705.JPG

I put it all on and paraded into the living room to show my husband.

“What do you think of this outfit?” I excitedly squealed.

He studied it for a moment.

“Meh,” he said as he shrugged his shoulders.

IMG_2706.JPG

I was kind of crushed as I made my way back to our bedroom to search for something else to wear. I ended up picking this.

IMG_2710.JPG

The next day my daughter casually said to me, “Mom, remember that outfit you put on yesterday with the moons and the moon and star necklaces. I can’t stop thinking about it. It was the best outfit I have ever seen. If I could ever have an outfit like that one day, I would be so happy.”

“Really?!” I grinned from ear to ear.

I am sure at some point when she moves away for college, this outfit will disappear, but until then I was so happy to hear that maybe I wasn’t so wrong with my choices.

IMG_2712.JPG

Later in the week I ended up wearing the outfit.

IMG_2719.JPG

Blue is my favorite color. I adore all of the different shades going on here. I had purchased this skirt from Modcloth many moons ago. My favorite way to wear it is over my Colima Maxi Skirt. I love layering hi-low skirts. It makes me happy.

I think that this works as well.

IMG_2708.JPG

My small moon necklace is from on Etsy. The white star necklace was a Christmas present from “my husband” in 2013.

IMG_2715.JPG

My Astrological sign is Cancer. Its planet symbol is the moon (I know). I love when I can find pieces with the moon shape that are not over the… top. Do you get a rise out of sale items? Do you collect any astronomy items? I once took an astronomy course in college. Oh, vey. I think I confused astrology for astronomy. Do you know how much math is involved in astronomy? It’s lunacy. I totally spaced out. Went to the dark side. Thankfully it was just a phase.

In A Gorgurd

IMG_2846.JPG

I have been wanting to take some pictures in this little gully for quite some time. In a moment of serendipity, we happened to be over near it when I was wearing something we could trek down into the small green valley in.

Once we got down into it, we began to notice signs of life.

IMG_2870.JPG

I was keeping my eyes peeled for snakes. I wasn’t too worried about myself. I had huge leather boots on, but my husband was in loafers. I wasn’t so sure he would fare as well against a snake bite.

IMG_2855.JPG

We didn’t find any snakes, that I know of. But we did find a giant vine with small little gourds trailing on it. There were bright ripe ones and crushed grey dusty ones. I could not help but think of my favorite books growing up, The Xanth Series by Piers Anthony. If you have not read the fantasy series, it is a world full of puns. Gourds take you into another world when you stare into them. To be specific, it is where bad dreams are created. It is ruled by Night Mare. You guessed it. A horse… Gosh! I love puns!

I was very careful not to peer inside of any gourds. You neve’ know.

IMG_2842.JPG

I told my husband, “Honey, it’s like we are in Ireland!”

To which he replied, “You always say that any time it is green. If you actually went to Ireland, it wouldn’t look like this. Oregon doesn’t even look like this went it is green.”

Hmmmph. Next he’ll tell me it is perfectly fine to stare into gourds, too.

IMG_2845.JPG

I was so excited to wear my Salt Creek Vest on this day (sold out, but when I wrote this there was a medium left and there might be some still available in stores). I am not a fur girl, even the fake kind. I loved everything about this vest when I saw it online except for the fur collar. I even saw a lone vest at my store in my size that someone returned a few months ago but did not try it on because I did not want to get attached.

She It has the most amazing back.

IMG_2871.JPG

I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to score one for 70% off.

I could even handle the collar.

IMG_2872.JPG

In fact, just between us, I think I like it.

A lot.

What the heck is happening to me? Did I fall into a gourd land where Jenni likes fur collars?

Or pays full price?

I just could not wait for this black shirt to hit sale. It wasn’t too expensive. It was the perfect length. Material. Shape. I have been wearing it twice a week. It was a wonderful splurge. I needed a basic long sleeved black tee that did not have a pocket and was not tight. The Mother Cruiser jeans were a sale score a few years ago (similar here).

IMG_2847.JPG

That is surprisingly hard to find.

Like a perfect valley.

IMG_2857.JPG

I thought we had wandered into a dream. We found an old toy. I assume it was an old dog’s toy. Which made me a little nervous. I kept looking around for its owner. Sure a rabid beast would be hulking around the hill. But all we witnessed was a lone man pull up in his car at the top of the valley with his camera to take pictures of… His car.

Lots and lots of pictures of his car.

IMG_2851.JPG

What an odd thing to do.

I mean, who does that?

It is almost as weird as taking pictures of yourself in outfits.

Almost.

IMG_2869.JPG

Do you have rolling green hills near you? Have you been to Ireland? Is my husband right? Is this green valley a sad little sight compared to there?

IMG_2856.JPG

The journey was almost perfect. But towards the end of the shoot, my husband gave a tremendous roar. Then he began shaking out his pants. Red ants had climbed up his legs and bit him. He literally had ants in his pants. Piers Anthony would have been so proud.

So much for a perfect green valley.

I am quite sure this never would have happened in Ireland…

Or Xanth.

Tasseled and Tousled

IMG_2915.JPG

Sometimes an outfit will come together in my mind and then it is quickly forgotten as something else comes up. But I could not get this one out of my head.

IMG_2922.JPG

So I put it on. And I was happy.

IMG_2911-0.JPG

I received these booties for Christmas (however did he know?). The booties are sold out at Anthropologie, but the brand is Fortress of Inca and they have similar booties available. They are more than what I paid, but I have seen their site do promotions, so I would watch for that if you want the booties. I wore mine for about ten hours on this day. And they were very comfortable.

IMG_2916.JPG

The dress was an awesome sale popback score. I was really worried that this dress would accentuate my hips in a negative way, but it surprisingly does not. It is a very forgiving dress. The only thing I would change would be the v-shaped pretty plaid pattern in the middle. If you stand a certain way, it looks like odd legs. But I can live with that.

IMG_2919.JPG

Heather from The Peacock Fairy previously wore her dress here. Can you believe she just had a baby? She looks fantastic! I didn’t get dressed for three months after each baby. She is very inspiring. Bonnie from Small Town Fashionista also rocked the dress early on. In fact, it was after seeing it on her that I added it to my wishlist.

It is a great dress for all body types. You might be able to find The Tasseled Maxi Dress on eBay or as a popback (it is all sold out, but Golden Tote has almost the exact same dress for $35 without the middle panel. I have never shopped there before, so I cannot comment on the site).

IMG_2908.JPG

Whew! Mundane details out of the way. Oh! I forgot about the necklace! And I forgot its name! It is from 2013. It has a gold stripe on the other side. I always wear it backwards because I like the pure dark fabric by itself better. The ring was the best deal last month. I had wanted it when it first came out, but never got it. My local store had it for $7.50. I wear it all of the time!

IMG_2923.JPG

Okay. Now the mundane details are hopefully out of the way. Who likes mundane details? Not me. And isn’t January full of them as we try to get our lives organized for the new year?

IMG_2921.JPG

Such as, I have been purging my closet. I made a pile that I will be donating and the next night at dinner, my daughter came to the table wearing the kimono I had put on top of the donation pile. It is a good thing that I am always slow and behind or she would have missed out!

IMG_2924.JPG

It was windy when we took these pictures. Somehow I ended up in positions that resembled ballerina poses as I tried to block the sun and keep my hair in place.

IMG_2912.JPG

I find this hilarious as I am the most klutzy person I know. My mother was a beautiful ballerina. I never had the knack. Or the grace. Or the fortitude. I took it for, gosh, seven years. I kept hearing about the blood involved with pointe shoes and that was it for me. It makes me dizzy just thinking about it. And nobody wants a dizzy ballerina. Besides I believe I would be a ditzy dizzy ballerina and that would be a double blow to the craft.

IMG_2913.JPG

Did you take a dance class as a child? Do you take it now? Is anyone else still reeling from the talk about the pointe shoes? I can feel the room spinning. I must put my head between my legs.

Don’t worry. If anyone asks I’ll just tell them it is a new dance move.

And they’ll totally not believe me.

P.S. I shared this on The Pleated Poppy and Reasons To Dress and Fashion Should Be Fun.

Craving: Ceramics Teacher

*This post was supposed to go up at midnight on Wednesday, but I just realized that Urban Outfitter’s promo ends today. I wanted to make sure you knew about it before it ended. So, this is Wednesday’s post a bit early.

IMG_2969.JPG

Sometimes, I just want to be someone else. My heart will always be bohemian, but there is a part of me that yearns for that modern clean look with a bit of an edge. Think the blog Bleubird. I once took a ceramics class. Quite honestly, I have absolutely no idea what we ever did in that class besides gossip. The whole year, I managed to complete exactly one project. It was a very small bowl shaped in a circle with my face. Odd. True. My mom loved it… Although not as much as she should have… For a piece that took me a year to make. Do you know how much gossiping I put aside to make that bowl? At least two hour’s worth. My life might have turned out much differently if I ever did learn who Jeremy was seen in the locker room with.

Just kidding.

I never knew a Jeremy.

Or did I?

Hmmmm. My head is filled with clay.

Anyhoo, the ceramics teacher would come to school every day dressed in the most amazing clothes. All natural neutral fibers. Layered. Nubby linens. Smooth cottons. Overalls. Fun jewelry (the necklace featured is from Miss Ribby on etsy. I have not purchased from her before today when I purchased one for myself and one to giveaway soon). She always had dried clay on her hands. Her hair was shoulder length and curly. She had the most beautiful laugh lines. And always the coolest cotton shoes on her feet. Honestly, I guess the style is not that much different than traditional bohemian. I mean, does it get much more bohemian than a ceramics teacher? It is just more streamlined.

IMG_2966.JPG

So, my February clothing wants are a bit different than normal. My love for embroidery and princess dresses shall never wane, but it is nice to have a different option. I am looking for loose breathable pieces for the warmer months ahead. There are so many great companies with such pieces. However, with natural linens usually comes a higher price tag. I typically cannot afford the stores that specialize in those clothes. I am fickle and only want to dabble in this style. Therefore I needed pieces that were inexpensive and interchangeable with my regular look. I turned to Urban Outfiiters and was happy with the shapes and prices that I discovered there.

With spring coming, I want cozy easy cotton feet. Urban Outfitters has $15 off $75 that ends tonight. Their cotton Mary Janes are 2 for $20. I ordered some for myself and my daughter. They run true to size and are surprisingly comfortable. I am not sure about their longevity but with the promotion, they are around $8 each, so I am not too worried. I will say the colors online are definitely not true to life. Mine are a much more muddied version, except for the teal with is a pretty bright color. They come in T-straps and cute plain ones. I ordered both. I have only received the T-straps so I cannot comment on the other ones yet.

IMG_2960.JPG

With easy cotton shoes, comes easy pieces. I also purchased this Denim Shirt Dress (with the discount). I hope it is long enough. It has not arrived yet so I am unsure as to what it will actually look like. I know for this look, I can pair it with cotton shoes or I could easily switch it up with fun boots and gladiator sandals and layered jewelry, if I wanted to go more classic bohemian.

IMG_2961.JPG

And this jumpsuit was $17 after their promotion. Oh. This could go terribly, terribly, terribly wrong. Urban Outfitters’ clothing runs small. I purchased a size L. I am kind of scared to receive this. I preferred it in black but it was not on sale. I plan on pairing it with my new favorite basic essential, Anthropologie’s Long Form V-Neck Tee. If you never see this romper on the blog, it is because I returned it… after I locked myself in the bathroom and cried while staring at my eighties style romper and my lumps that have sneakily accumulated in the decades since this style became popular. Jeremy never would have let this happen.

IMG_2959.JPG

If I had an unlimited budget, I also would have picked up The Linen Midi Dress (it states it is linen in its title but rayon in its description). I would get it in beige, cut more of the unfinished hem off and go make a different face bowl. I would like to say it would not have changed at all since the one I made twenty years ago. Hey! This is my clothing fantasy, I shall just pretend it is so. Who will ever know?

IMG_2958.JPG

And The Ecote Cocoon Dress in grey. It reminds me of the modern dance scene in “White Christmas.” I just imagine bright fun shoes with it and one of those painted ball necklaces.

Do you ever change your style up? Do you ever crave simplicity? I want all of the easy dresses. I just saw this striped dress and my Want Meter shot through the roof. That cannot be good for my meter or the roof.

Did you take an art or ceramics class? Did you make a face bowl? Do you know who Jeremy was with in the locker room? Again, did I even know a Jeremy? The name is sounding very familiar. Hmmmm. Maybe it was me. Nah. I was in ceramics class. Making a head bowl. Dreaming about the teacher’s clothes.