Leahi Shrug + Eyeleted Corset + City Safari

I am wondering lately if I have been falling behind in the times keeping with my retro, feminine look.  Seems to me that our current trends have decidedly moved away from the lovely retro look I adore.  I really want to keep current.  I don't want to be one of those middle aged women who gets stuck in a decade of fashion and can't move forward.  So todays outfit is me trying to do a more current look.  I think I'm doing it well though I suppose my shirt should be ill-fitted and asymmetrical to truly be on trend.  My best asset is my thin waist and petite upper half so I really am not enjoying all the skinny jeans with big tops; it is pointing out my least favorite body parts.  

 I have felt a need to overhaul my wardrobe.  I finally finished unpacking my closets.  I went from taking up most of the closets in my old house to having two walk-in closets in my new house.  Poor hubby was relegated to two small closets in two different bedrooms.  Sorry hun, but I really needed a cool-weather closet and a warm weather closet.   Anyhoo, back to my point.  In unpacking and organizing (down to the color) I realized I have mentally outgrown most of what I put away.  This spring I had already unloaded a good size closet worth of clothing but I still have a ton of warm weather clothing I will need to sell next spring and even more cold weather clothing I will need to start measuring and photographing for resell.  It is a daunting task but it is time.  Plus, once I sell off my clothes I get shopping money. :)

Outfit Details - All Anthropologie:
Sweater: Leahi Shrug
Top: Eyeleted Corset Top
Belt: City Safari Belt
Jeans: J Brand Crops
Shoes: Chie Mihara

Retro Beauty. What I'm Lusting Over.

I have posted before about Shabby Apple.  I love the fit of the dresses I tried and kept.  They have a very fitted, feminine look with a retro vibe that I adore.  Materials aren't always the best quality (synthetics) but they make up for it in the attention to detail and fit.

I got an email today for their new fall collection, Zoology, and I am smitten with this wool-blend dress. I am out of shopping money for the time being but I would love to get this dress with a code and some cash when I save some.

Let me assure you Shabby Apple doesn't pay or send me free anything for blogging about them.  I write about what I like. :)

Some Heavy Thoughts and Another Skirt OOTD

I am seriously trying to curb my spending these days as the recession has caught up with my family in full force this year.  We have been so blessed for so long that I cannot even complain; our savings will tide us over for awhile.  So, I haven't been browsing the Anthropologie sight too much and have avoided the store altogether.  I would love to get some reviews though so I will try to venture in-store soon.  

As many of you are doing, I am trying to embrace the beauty of my clothing collection and wear all the pretty things I already own.  I would never do an all-out shopping ban though; I am fond of eBaying my clothing so that keeps a bit of flow to my clothes fund.  However, I really need to make sure I don't reach into pocket to pay for anything.  

I gotta say I am really, truly sick of this economy and how it has affected so many people I know.  Living in a suburb of NYC our neighbors are heavily dependent on the financial market and we all know how greatly that has suffered over the years.  A lot of people think that people who work in the financial district are fat-cats getting rich off the backs of ordinary people.  Let me assure you that is not true at all; with the exception of certain executives in certain corporations, the men and women who work in the financial district are ordinary people who get paid fair living wages; they live in the same neighborhoods as teachers and postal workers and tradesmen.  The bonuses you hear about them receiving every year are their pay; that is built into their salary and without it they cannot pay their bills. It really bothers me that people don't understand the reality of the Wall Street workers; they are like you and me making a normal middle class living and right now there is a lot of financial pain in my neck of the woods.  So many people out of work and nowhere to find it.  

My husband and I own our own company and our biggest stress is our workers; we don't have enough work for them to pay their bills and feed their families.  My husband is so incredibly stressed that if we can't get them work they will starve, yet we are doing the best we can trying to hussle and bring in the work.  You can only do so much and it greatly saddens me that it isn't enough.  

So, there you have it, the reason I've been depressed lately.  There is so much joy in my children and gathering with friends and family, but reality is hard to turn away from when it is hurting everyone around you.  

After all that I feel almost silly posting an outfit picture but since this is a fashion blog, that's what's it's really about!

Outfit details:
Top: Loosened Shelby Blouse
Skirt: Weave the Ring
Belt: Banana Republic
Shoes: Chie Mihara

A Hummingbird and Giraffes (OOTDs)

 I go through periods where I only want the same thing.  I once ate veggie pot pies for dinner six months straight.  I recently went through a dress fixation and am currently into wearing only skirts.  Here are a couple of recent outfits.

I am wearing the Miroslav skirt in the first picture.  I first saw this skirt on Roxy here.  I-of course-had to have it since it is all sorts of whimsical and luckily didn't have to wait too long before it popped up on eBay and I won it.  I wore it not too long ago with another eBay find here.  I think next time I would go with a more saturated top as I'm not sure my Puckered Scoopneck is popping as much as I would have wanted.  I will use the excuse that I am STILL unpacking my closets and nothing is organized right now so I don't have full views of all my tops for outfit considerations.  Sometimes you just have to grab whatever you find, ya know?

 Outfit Details:
Top: Anthropologie Puckered Scoopneck
Skirt: Miroslav (size down if you pick this up second hand)
Shoes: Chie Mihara Key Lime sandals
Belt: Anthropologie Leaps and Bounds Belt
Hair Accessory: Anthropologie

Next up I'm wearing my Giraffe skirt.  This is another eBay find.  It took me a couple of years to acquire this skirt and I am happy to have yet another whimsical, animal-oriented piece of clothing in my collection.  I am pretty much smitten with fun animal prints and am grateful to have Anthropologie to feed my obsession.  I also wore this skirt earlier this summer in this post.  I am not afraid to go all out saccharine in my outfits so pairing pink and lavender is perfectly ok in my book. Plus, my belt pulls it all together since it is all sorts of pastel colors mixed in with tan stripes.

Outfit Details:
Top: Anthropologie Gathering Top
Skirt: Giraffe skirt by Odille (size down if you pick this up second hand)
Belt: Anthropologie Rainbow Connector Belt
Shoes: Cheap and Chic by Moschino

Boho Style

I feel most comfortable in boho-hippy styled clothing so this outfit was super easy for me to wear.  I wore this to work on Friday last week for my uber casual look and then changed into shorts and flip flops for a beach outing later that day.  This top (Stitchery Peasant Blouse) was purchased last summer and I think it has the coolest, authentic looking Mexican style I've ever seen.  So vintage looking and it is incredibly well made.  I paired it with my summer weight wide legs, an old scarf from Abercrombie, my trusty Frye wedges, and a bunch of bracelets from Target.  

Summer Brights OOTD

In a better mood today.  I'm showing you my cheesy grin to prove my mood improvement.  Quick OOTD post... I love summer dressing because I can bust out all my super bright colors and have fun wearing them all together.  I love that tropical look and really could wear summer stuff year round without ever tiring of it, but-sigh-fall is on the way in just a couple of months.  So I will just have to make extra sure my wardrobe is as bright as can be for the next month.

Outfit Details:
Top: Anthropologie Pierced Mint Blouse (sized down)
Pants: Anthropologie Summer Sounds Wide Legs
Necklace: Anthropologie Garden Party Necklace
Bracelet: Target
Shoes: Old from Anthropologie

Catching Up On What I've Been Wearing Lately

I have been going through a whole lotta personal sh*t right now so I'm feeling less than inspired in the fashion department.  The fact that I'm not wearing pajamas and bare feet out of the house is a bit of a surprise to me.  Dresses are pretty mindless though so that's what I've been throwing on until I pull my head out of my butt and try to find my happy place again.  In an effort not to completely throw my creative outlet out the window I am posting these recent outfits.  Sorry but I don't have the motivation to post outfit details.  If you are curious you can ask me in the comments.  Thanks for reading my pissy post today, ladies.  Hopefully, I'll be back to blowing sunshine and sparkles out of my arse next post.