spring cleaning

post-birthday brunch with friends at Cafe Lift 

Oh my, March was a rough month (even if it was filled with some pretty good brunch). It's not over yet, but at least the worst of a very emotionally taxing personal ordeal is over, leaving me now to do what I know how to do best: clean out my closet. I have some things listed on LOGE ending this week, and I'll be listing more things there and on ebay later on.

1. Joie boots // 2. Marc by MJ jacket // 3. Cambridge Satchel Company bag // 4. J. Crew icon trench // 5. Bass Weejuns loafers

In more exciting news, I'm headed to PARIS for the summer!! I'll be working at the UNESCO headquarters, which probably means I should start censoring/removing all incriminating personal details from this blog immediately, lest they discover my not-so-secret love of David Lynch and breton shirts. But real talk now to the career-oriented bloggers out there: what's your take on blogger vs. work life? How much should you leave out to keep yourself "professionally safe"? 

the obligatory wardrobe planning post for 2013

(gaws.fr)

I love goal setting. As much as I may want to be spontaneous and unpredictable, I've learned that in just about every aspect of my life I like to set goals. I like to plan and make lists. Sometimes I get so caught up in the planning process, however, that it becomes a source of stress in itself. To that effect, I need goals with specificity in the form of numbers and dates.

My goal to buy less than 12 things last year was an utter failure. I'll spare you the excessive details because it's just kind of embarrassing. 

Am I still suffering from decision fatigue? Financial constraints in the forms of 1) I am a graduate student with few paid working hours, 2) hair upkeep, and 3) future prospects of being unemployed are seriously preventing me from going trigger-happy with purchases.

With Lunar New Year having (sort of) just passed, I feel like I'm not too late on the goals/lists/planning post for 2013.

P U R C H A S E S
We are almost through February and I have purchased 3 things, but only one of which was absolutely necessary and appropriately seasonal.

Steven Alan Crawford silk dress - an ebay purchase that I'm happy with because I finally have a dress reminiscent of the floor of the Red Room from Twin Peaks. It's super light and the midi-length can be hiked up and I imagine that I'll be getting a lot of wear out of it in hot summer months. See below.

Gatsby-style flapper dress from UO - an impulse purchase during a 50% off sale items day when I was in the UO store returning something. I'm excited to wear it for garden parties and cocktail parties and all other parties that aren't 20s themed at all.

Woolrich arctic parka - this is kind of the best thing ever. I almost wish snowpocalypse would happen in Philly just so I could give it a proper break in. It makes being out in the cold 123120398x more bearable and I'm not exaggerating even a little bit. I can't believe I made it through 23.9 years of my life without owning a coat like this. See below.

W I S H L I S T
LL Bean wicked good slippers - like the Woolrich parka, this is a purchasing decision 99% based on function. My feet get so cold during the winter but I hate wearing socks.

New Balance special edition "year of the snake" 574s - I've been wanting a pair of NBs (in burgundy) for so long now but these are incredibly sleek (imo) in black AND it's my Chinese zodiac year AND I've been playing basketball and need an appropriate pair of sneaks, so there.

A day-to-evening appropriate small purse - the Céline trio has really been screaming my name lately. I've been looking at more reasonably priced alternatives like the Steven Alan Lilly mini bag or some sort of Marc by MJ crossbody without too much hardware but haven't committed yet. Burgundy or black would be great for transitioning through all occasions.

and lastly, a round up of:

W H A T   I ' V E   B E E N   W E A R I N G   

(burgundy columbiaknit beanie, makr farm rucksack, woolrich arctic parka, north face e-tip gloves, black cashmere turtleneck, cheap monday second skin jeans, OTK boots, The Corrections)

W H A T   I   W I S H   I   C O U L D   B E   W E A R I N G   

(wesc contrast sleeve bomber jacket, retrosuperfuture basic sunnies, steven alan crawford dress, celine trio, black ankle boots, NO TIGHTS)

who needs color?

The aftermath of NYFW more or less makes me just want to dress monochromatically all day everyday.

But then there's this...

(all from jak & jil) 

changes

I took a page out of Soo Joo Park and Daul Kim's book and went blonde a couple of weeks ago. I'm loving it so far even if it left my hair 10 inches shorter and kind of damaged. It already feels normal to see it in the mirror and I can't imagine going back to black anytime soon. I also have gotten into the habit of keeping my nails impractically long, such that I make a zillion typos while texting but autocorrect always provides great comic relief and damn, I just like sparkles.

While my hair and nails may suggest high-maintenance sartorial leanings, the clothes I've been gravitating towards lately are more borrowed from the boys than disco divas. I made a couple of purchases in the last month of 2012 that I'm still over the moon about--a Makr Carry Goods farm rucksack via Amanda of Assembled Hazardly, and, finally, a pair of Church's Burwood Brogues. Added to a rotation of black skinny jeans, oxford button-downs, and a Barbour jacket (I have the zip-in lining to keep me warm) means more time reading and drinking coffee in the morning than time spent getting dressed. The weather was bizarrely warm earlier this week but now that the temperatures have dropped, I'm so happy that I decided to try out some Uniqlo Heatteh shirts/tights. I was skeptical at first but they really do keep you warm and static free!

garçon dressing for 2013 by damnfinecoffee featuring wool hats

For comparison, this was my proposed/ideal uniform for 2012. Still pretty laid back, but not that practical for a grad student.

how i want to dress in 2012 by damnfinecoffee featuring leather handbags

I also wanted to take the time to thank everyone who has been reading the blog, whether you came to it because of Twin Peaks or via other lovely bloggers. One of these days I'll get my DVD box set back and start on those episode recaps again, but in the meantime, I hope this suffices!

p.s. a giveaway in the next post

thoughts and feelings on 2012, 2013

vintage Coach bucket bag // random dress from China // Wesc bomber jacket // APC ankle boots // Baggu shopper

(in front of my dream car; Fabric Row in Queen Village, Philadelphia)

The past two months have been rough. I was happier than I had been in a long time, before it all came rubberband-ing back into general misanthropy and malaise. I suppose Dickens had it right all along, but considering that he wasn't talking about the personal life of a 20-something year old, I'd still like to put this out there.

I look happy as a clam after a successful haul of leather for crafting projects (photos/updates to come soon), but in reality I looked and felt like the following for much of the past two weeks. This, by the way, was my Halloween costume, and the fact that I haven't updated about it til now means that this blog has really been on the backburner for far too long. 

I thought I had it in me to do a grand overview of 2012, but the truth is that I'm just a little bit too weary and ready to move on to 2013. It's the year of the snake, my 2-year college reunion, and my first visit to Shakespeare & Co. (if my summer plans work out). 2013 will be the year I finish all the books I have on my reading list, the year I finally learn how to bake bread, the year that I start keeping a journal again, and the year that I pare down my possessions so that I can move without breaking a sweat. I say these things every year, and my follow-through rate isn't great, but that doesn't mean I should give up, right? 

I also made an appointment for a MAJOR hair change next weekend...stay tuned.