Spring Outerwear: Pink Coat

19 Mar 2011

I may have brought out this coat a little too early… I don’t think it’s spring trench weather quite yet (especially because it rained ice on my head twice today) although clearly last weekend I thought it was.  I’m just very happy to be able to have a little more variety with everything I wear.

I hope your first week of spring is… well, springy.  I know I could probably do without pelting by ice chunks.

Black and White Week!  If your skies are looking a little grey why not post in monochrome?

Coach scarf and coat, Anthropologie shirt (under there somewhere), LOFT skirt, Commando tights, Deena & Ozzy/Urban Outfitters shoes.

It’s Beginning To Be Spring

This necklace was an amazing piece to borrow.  It’s rose gold, which I’ve never had the opportunity to wear before.  I’ve decided I like it better than yellow gold.

So.  One last color set before Black and White Week starts on Monday.  Visit my partner in crime at Chic on the Cheap to see Lydia’s black and white photos too!

Grab the banner and join us!

You may have noticed my absence yesterday on a day that I normally always post.  I participated in For Japan With Love, a bloggers day of silence to raise money and awareness for the situation in Japan.

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I think I’ve probably shared this already, but I studied abroad in Japan for spring semester 2008 during college.  Japan is also one of my top international destinations: I’ve been three times.  None of my friends live farther north than Tokyo so I’m relieved that they’re well out of the disaster area.

I wasn’t blogging yet during study abroad and none of my photos got viewed by anyone other than probably my sorority sisters and neighbors.  I’m finally sharing my adventures now, these photos were all taken with my old Sony and I so wish I had the Canon then, can’t even imagine the amazing photos I would have gotten!

In rough chronological order from January to May 2008, click through if you want to see them larger on flickr.

Fushimi Inari, the shrine of the god of rice.

Looking out over Kyoto, taken somewhere near the top of Fushimi Inari.

Kobe, near the harbor.

In Chiran they don’t decorate the sidewalks with something as common as grass… no, they have koi ponds between the sidewalk and the street.  Of course they do.

Standing at the bottom of an active volcano looking back towards Kagoshima, a southern regional capitol.

Sakurajima (an active volcano) in the background.  Sakura were just beginning to bloom in the south.

Shops in Gion (a district in Kyoto, also the setting of Memoirs of a Geisha) during the sakura viewing festival.

Sakura and a traditional gate in Gion near Yasaka Shrine.

View from up top in Roppongi Hills (Tokyo).

And because this is a fashion blog I’ll point out three fashiony photos from Tokyo: (1) Takeshita Street is one of the main streets in Harajuku.

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(2) Yohji Yamamoto storefront in Omotesando.  It’s very austere inside.

(3) Tsumori Chisato’s super cool window display in Omotesando.  I really regret not getting photos of the inside of the Comme des Garçons store, it looked like the MOMA.

The always bright Dotombori district in Osaka.  Tsutaya is like the Japanese Barnes and Noble, there are even Starbucks in most of them.

Sunrise over the rooftops on my last day in Japan.

Here Comes The Flood Again

10 March 2011

So yeah, you can see in the background that everything was basically underwater when it rained last week.  My hair got a bit damp and started to curl so I think it looks sort of vintage in these photos.  They got a hold of me while I was in Sephora and I ended up testing the Temptu and having my eye makeup redone.  It always looks so much better when someone does it for me… wish I could stop into Sephora and have that done every day!  I liked the Temptu but I feel like I look a little too made up in these photos, what do you think?  Can you tell the difference?

P.S.  I swear a lot of time actually passed from the last photos and when I wore this shirt again.  I’ve been mildly obsessed with it lately.

Edit:  Also Happy St. Patrick’s Day!  I’m wearing green!

And this is for real what I looked like all day.  Totally hiding under the umbrella as much as possible because the rain was blowing sideways.  There was really no escaping it.

J.Crew shirt and sash, Anthropologie skirt, Assets by Sara Blakely (Target) tights, Frye shoes, vintage umbrella, ring borrowed from internship.

I Think It’s The Shoes

20 Feb 2011

So I don’t totally love this outfit…  I think it’s the shoes.  I expected them to blend in with the navy tights (worn with the help of Spanx) a little bit more, but… they didn’t.  I should have probably dug up some brown sandals or something, no matter if they would have been slightly ridiculous with snow still on the ground.

I wore this to go do some general running around.  And then I just suddenly happened to be in the Coach store.  I did receive a really good discount from them in the mail ($100 off $300 or more) so I just wanted to look around and see the spring collection.  They pressure you a lot to buy things though, and that really makes me not want to go to the store.  I was also so surprised that no one in the store could recognize a vintage Coach bag.  I guess Coach has changed a lot since I was younger and they’ve done a lot of rebranding.  I think they’re losing touch with their classic look… which makes me sad.

Change in seasons has been wreaking havoc with my sinuses so I have such dark undereye circles now, I didn’t walk into a wall or something.  But I’m enjoying the clear sidewalks for the first time in a long time and I hope you are too!

J.Crew cardigan, shirt, and skirt; Anthropologie belt, Merona Premium Collection/Target tights, Frye shoes, vintage Coach bag.

Winter Outerwear: Black and White

17 Feb 2011

Warmth!  It was very welcome after all the snow, rain, and freezing rain lately.  I even have proof that I wasn’t the only crazy out without a jacket, the guy in the background is totally carrying his.  Sorry for no post yesterday, so much to do lately!  And sorry I’ve been a really bad blog reader/commenter too, I’m hoping to become up to date with everyone later in the week.

This coat isn’t actually winter outerwear because it’s so light, but I was able to wear it one day at the beginning of the thaw.  The snow is melting and I hope there won’t be any more.  I love snow but it was a seriously snowy winter.  Some of my other winter outwear posts are Vintage, Snow Falling, Three Old Favorites, and Snowstorm of the Week.

I really like this ring!  But I had to give it back.

Forever 21 coat, Francesca’s Collections shirt, BDG/Urban Outfitters skirt, Assets by Sara Blakely tights, Cole Haan shoes, b-side by ken and dana jewelry.

Biiiig Scarf

10 Feb 2011

Fellow personal style blogger and stylish person Lydia was nice enough to send me an amazing email when I was searching for some inspiration, and it included this photo:

I’m not sure where this is from, maybe The Sartorialist or Stockholm Street Style?

Sort of?  No?  I feel like my scarf isn’t long enough to be that cool!

Like most of my clothing, this scarf has a memory.  New Year’s Eve, New York, frozen feet (ballet flats), not an available cab in sight.  I had to duck into Juicy Couture (I was twenty one at the time) and this scarf was on sale.  I loved the cream version I saw earlier in the fall but in person the grey just spoke to me, and the rest is history.

Wishing you good clothing memories and nice weather!

Love,

Alex

Juicy Couture scarf, J.Crew coat, Chinese Laundry/Marshalls gloves, Anthropologie sweater and skirt, Commando tights, Cole Haan shoes.

Friends in the Snow, dated 29 Jan

One of the very first photos of the day, before I had a chance to stomp some of the snow down a bit.  If I’m not careful the snow will go down the top of my boots.

Saturday 29 Jan 2011

It was really snowing when these photos were taken.  My friend came over so I could play personal shopper.  We had an impromptu photo shoot because I was only half dressed when she got there and I still had to take photos.  Yeah, she thought I was pretty crazy for going out for photos in the snow.

This is Jen.  I’ve known her from the pre-school (age three).  I gave her a crash course in DSLR photography and she took that first photo of me in black and white.  We both prefer ourselves in black and white, and once I even toyed with the idea of making this a black and white only blog.

Later we went shopping (to the partially outdoor mall) and of course I forgot the umbrella.

Love,

Alex

American Apparel shirt, LOFT belt, Anthropologie skirt, Assets tights, Target boots.

Not a Snow Day

Thursday 3 Feb 2011

I’m not really wearing yellow, but I am carrying yellow.  I hardly use this bag any more so I decided to bring it out for yellow week.  I used to carry it all the time in school, but it’s really big so now I mostly use it when I’m traveling.  I also decided that I needed to wear grey and brown today.  I’m not sure if it works, I definitely would have preferred different shoes.

I usually take photos around sunset, but these I took in the morning.  I’m so much paler-looking earlier in the day.  That’s my actual skin tone right now in the dead of winter.  I think I prefer the light in the afternoon because I look a little less vampire at that time of the day.  And what’s up with my lipstick?  Yikes, I guess I need some with warmer tones.  Either that or my lips are actually blue under there from the cold!

Love,

Alex

Old Navy shirt, Anthropologie belt, LOFT skirt, HUE tights, Target boots, Antik Batik, Longchamp bag.

P.S. I Don’t Like This Outfit

Tuesday 25 Jan 2011

Okay: first, two questions.

  1. Is my page loading annoyingly slow?
  2. Is my favicon working for you?

I think my theme is too fussy as well, I’m going to try to streamline so again, beware the possible CSS throwing up all over the page.

Also, Lyddie from Chic on the Cheap has declared it yellow week.  (But I’m wearing red on Friday to raise awareness for heart disease for a style blogger Go Red For Women, organized by Andie.)  I’m totally wearing yellow tomorrow, I would have today except I never actually got dressed.  Ice storms and all, you know.  If we get enough ice tonight I might really skate on the street tomorrow, I haven’t done that in years.

So I really really don’t like this outfit, I almost didn’t post it.  I just… don’t like it.  I don’t know if the proportions are off, or I don’t really like the colors… it’s just… eh.  Okay, not great, not even really styled, just…  I don’t even know why I don’t like it, just that I really really really don’t.  They liked it at the endodontist though, told me I should go into fashion.  I wish I was still living in Japan, dental work is so much more affordable there.    I kind of want to fly back to get a crown, it would only be marginally more expensive and I would get a trip out of it.  If I didn’t go shopping I would just about break even, maybe $100 more.  Or I could just forego the crown and never use my left teeth again?

If you haven’t noticed I’ve been in a bit of a style slump lately (at least I feel like it) for practically all of January.  Inspire me?  What has been inspiring you lately?

I wish you more inspiration than I have as you finish out the week!

Love,

Alex

Moth (Anthropologie) open cardigan, Free People dress (super cheapie from Rue La La, the FP sales are amazing when the good stuff isn’t already sold out), HUE tights, Jeffrey Campbell boots.

With the last of the sun…

13 Jan 2011

So guys, I tried really hard to get some cool lens flare…

Yeah, fail.  They’re almost all like that, and the ones that aren’t have the worst chromatic aberration ever.  So none of that, then.  I’ll just have to keep trying!

I haven’t worn these liquid leggings in forever so I thought it was about time I got them out again.  I was going for something a bit tougher looking I guess, with the leggings and the motocycle boots.  However I think I totally ruined it with that Anthropologie sweater.

Ehh… oh well.  I’ve always been more of a gothic romantic type of dresser when liquid leggings and lace and black are involved.   I know I’ve mentioned it before but I had a serious goth streak in high school :)  One of my friends recently posted this about idolizing Morticia Addams as a child.  I was totally Morticia Addams for Halloween once when I was younger.  My great aunt made the dress and it was sparkly and spectacular, and one of these days I’ll dig up the photos.

Here’s to hoping this week’s outfits are a bit more sparkly and spectacular!  I almost didn’t post this set and I think everything I wore last week was spectacularly unspectacular.  I’m not posting some of others but those actually didn’t come out, I swear.  Photos after 5 pm on cloudy snowy days = definitely not advisable!

Love, Alex

Anthropologie sweater, Mink Pink dress, Romeo + Juliet Couture leggings, Target boots.