Monthly Archives: September 2013

NEW WAYS TO WEAR JEANS!! Style exclusive!!

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Fall = jeans season. An American wardrobe staple, the industry couldn’t be more ready for the cooler-weather-meets-back-to-school explosion. The fashion industry can’t seem to break away from these two-legged garments, and so has no choice but to capitalize on their wardrobe staying-power with BS articles like “New Ways to Wear Jeans”…

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These magazines are wrong.

The Skinny, the Boyfriend, the High-waist, the Crop, etc. are different ways of wearing the same damn pants. Just because someone’s jeans are particularly baggy or dangerously muffin-toppy doesn’t mean it is different or new! It just means it is more expensive for once uncool people to wear their jeans!

LIES, I TELL YOU! LIES!

Fortunately for you, darling readers, I have been working with my elite style team [of one] to put together what are, in fact, new ways to wear your jeans.

The J’Scarf: Perfect for the autumn chill

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The Urban Un-turban: For a quick disguise…

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The “PSYCH!” : Because who doesn’t want to look like they are running mid-air in the opposite direction

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The No Quarters? No Problem: All your shirts are in the wash? Well that is what jeans are for.

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InStyle or IN DENIAL??

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*facepalm* I know, I know. 

😉

Nothing wrong with a little silliness on a Tuesday night, right? Thank you to InStyle for showing up at my door every month, I promise I actually love you. Apologies to Olivia Wilde for writing on her face with white-out, I know it wasn’t comfortable. Now go out there and be stylish, you!

Now that I’ve repurposed all my jeans, what to do about pants…..?

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xo

Dorky Chick Diaries: Somebody ate skittles and threw up on my iCal.

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*Exhale*

I’ve just popped yet another dark chocolate covered mint from TJ’s and am staring at spinach that needs to be put in the refrigerator. It is about 9 p.m. on a Wednesday and I’ve recently returned from some mid-week grocery replenishing. I’ve opted out of music as background noise partially because I’ve been overdosing on Top 40 lately, and partially because it sort of sounds like Fall outside. It smells like Fall. I can tell. A sullen moisture is collecting around old buildings again and the cooler evening temperature isn’t cooking the earth enough to expel the familiar fragrances of warm weather anymore. My laundry is whispering to me from the basement, but my fingers are tingling on this keyboard as I unzip my chest and begin to let words splatter onto my e-diary.

September has ignited me. If you’ve followed any of my past blogs you may have noticed that over the past few months I have grown from being eager, to steady, to scattered, and, at times, defeated. I guess that is what being a 20 something is supposed to be though. Just as things started to get foggy, though, I was reminded of this promise to myself to stay motivated. This silly little blog was the reminder for that promise. So I’ve made some moves, and suddenly my iCal looks like it went on the Color Run or somebody spewed Skittles on September. I have 2 intern positions, both fashion related (more on that in a later post), 3 sources of income (my beloved restaurant, tuppins for my PSU fashion articles, and now extra support from a little daytime receptionist gig), and in 3 weeks I will again be a full time student (a light, yet still full credit load at PSU this term and also a light load at Portland Sewing).

Sounds farking crazy, I know. 

I may risk speaking too soon, but now there is a stomach-butterfly inducing feeling I get when I breath deeply. I’ve piled so much on my plate, yet, I feel like I’ve never felt so privileged to have such little free time. I love everything I’m filling my days with. It feels balanced. It is all work, but with the right state of mind, it is all play. 

I’m playing grown-up, and my Subaru is much more fun to drive than that Playskool thing. 

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To report on my fashion pursuits, here are the headlines!

Miss OR and Miss RI 2011 take NYC by Storm, Stop at Mood Designer Fabrics Before Breaking Hearts 

😉

 

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Portland Fashion Week: Gen. Admission Doesn’t Include Champagne, Still Buys a Good Time

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Croquis Improve for McGowan, Hope Exists

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Croquis Come to Life, as Designer McGowan Takes it to the Next Level

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^^obviously we’re not quite done 🙂

Serger Changes Life: Thanks, Gram

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If you sew, you understand this to be the most exciting of all of the above things.  Thank you to my Gram for my years-late follow up on a high school graduation gift 🙂

 

I wish I could tell you everything, but I know I’m lucky if you made it this far. The bad news, is that my sheets are still in the dryer and it is past my bedtime. The good news is, being busy means things are happening, and I really want to thank you for reading this blog. Every time you click to read, it’s sort of like passing a stranger who smiles instead of looks dead faced. It’s encouraging in the best way. 

 

The bedtime police are going to arrest me, so toodeloo my friends!

If you were wondering, the spinach did get put away a while ago, because I’m grown-up like that 😉

xo

 

 

Time to get TRRRENNNNDAAYYYYYYY 9.6 + exciting news!!

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With the onset of autumn, I’m feeling the winds of change turn from tropical breeze to hairdryer-in-face. There is no more excuse to procrastinate the next steps, and I’m going to have to start acting like a big girl. I’m great at playing grown-up, don’t get me wrong. I’ve put on my share of business suits and I pay my bills, but rising to the occasion isn’t enough! It is time to embrace adulthood while I’m still wrinkle-free.

Cue this fantastic Facebook quote my friend Steph shared yesterday:

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YES!

Forget half-assery! It is time for full-on assery!

Both cheeks.

With equally distributed badness.

So I woke up early on this drizzly morning, did my TIU workout, made my veggie egg scramble and coffee, and got dressed for a seminar on campus. It was such a grey day, I had to pull out the fall duds, and actually, I got as excited as a solar-powered chick can get about the cozy seasons to come.

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^ rain boots = closest thing to amphibian-like superpowers

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^ the coffee cup BEFORE the coffee traveler… If you are what you eat, I will soon be a hot black woman.

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For anyone who doesn’t read backwards, that says:

“why yes, I am overqualified”

Teehee 🙂 Those are sticky notes, and I actually bought myself some a few years ago, used them up, and found more a while back that I just HAD to nab. I don’t know if implied narcissism is what motivates me or if I’m just threatened by the Cleaver-esque woman staring me down with that coy “my-floors-are-cleaner-than-yours” look.

Either way, it’s working. I solidified my class schedule this week, landed a PT office gig for my days between classes (which will be a styling endeavor- stay tuned!), and I also- WAIT FOR IT—

got a little position—-

WAIT FOR IT!!!!….

…at FashioNXT’s Portland Fashion Week in October!

Yep! That’s right! I’ve confirmed with the FashionNXT folks that I will be an extra set of hands behind-the-scenes as a VIP host. That means making sure the distinguished guests get a first-rate experience. My not-so-inner hostess is thinking this is right up my ally. I’m pretty ecstatic about this opportunity to meet some fashion-minded people, get some hands-on knowledge, and mostly just that I will get to be a contributor to something I am so excited about!

No, I can’t get you tickets, nor do I have any other “mad hook-ups”, but I’m really pumped to announce this stepping stone in my fashion journey. 6 months ago when I started this blog, it was with the promise of future unknown milestones, and if this doesn’t count, I don’t know what does.

Mark your calendars Oct. 9-12, Portlanders, because it is going to be amaaaaze!

🙂

So cheers, guys! To the turning of many new leaves- the metaphorical ones and the literal fall leaves that are pending descenscion onto our rubber galoshes.

xo