Sunday Best and All the Rest

    In one of my first blog posts (here) , I discussed my essential clothing items and what makes them so dynamic to my wardrobe. Today, I would like to expound upon my neutral colored dress. When my inspiration is running dry, this is the dress that I turn to. With little effort, it can fit many moods, occasions, and climates. Below, I have modeled five outfits to show you how to make a basic dress look fabulous.      First, is my "spring" look. I spruced up the dress by adding one of my favorite elements, which is my red leather belt. The dress has short sleeves, so throwing a cardigan on over it gives it warmth and adds dimension. With my elegant flats and green clutch, I could be ready to head out the door for a birthday party or dinner at a friend's house.         In the summer, I can wear my button-up dress with sneakers and tooled leather belt for a more casual look. The outfit is comfortable enough for some outdoor activity, but still has a classy e

   How can a girl spend a November afternoon in a fun and rewarding way? Go thrift shopping! Today, my mom, grandma and I paid several of our home town's thrift stores a visit. Not only was it a lovely way to spend a girls' day out, but it also produced some cute purchases.   Technically, not all of our shopping was at thrift shops. We also visited consignment stores. The difference has confused me for a while, so here are definitions from thefreedictionary.com and Bing dictionary to help you and I out: * Thrift Shop - A shop that sells used articles, especially clothing, as to benefit a charitable organization. * Consignment Store - special retail outlet: a retail outlet that stocks and sells goods on a sale-or-return basis, or as an agent selling on behalf of others and receiving a percentage So, at a consignment store, the person who gave the items to be sold gets a profit. Typically, consignment stores stick with items that are in good shape, but that means they can b

  So much for getting two posts out this week! I have been terribly busy with other projects, such as getting things ready to send to the lady I illustrate for, and preparing b-day gifts for three of my friends. I'm here now though! :)   Today's outfit is centered around a new item of clothing. The friends who are always finding fun stuff for me and my mom are responsible for my now having this beautiful teal cashmere turtleneck! Not only is it in my favorite color family, but it is also one of the softest things I've felt. If anyone reading this thinks that they can't find "nice" things second-hand, they should think again.      I decided to style my sweater in a 60's mod style. Back in the day, there were people that made up a subculture called "modernists" because they listened to modern jazz (see Wikipedia). The mod lifestyle isn't something I would ever want to emulate, but the word "mod" also came to define a certain st

  Today was one of those fall days in which the sun displays its golden rays, brightening the crisp air. My outfit matched the weather with mainly autumnal colors and a pop of warm yellow. I wore this to a baby shower, and was warm enough to keep from being chilly when I went outside to play hide-and-seek with a friend and two little girls.     The sweater and skirt are both thrift store finds from friends. My tights and boots were bought new. The denim jacket was from either a thrift or consignment store - I don't quite remember! Because of my sometimes odd imagination, the colors of this look made me think of a pencil. :)   I hope that you all have been enjoying your weekend thus far and that you will have a blessed Sunday tomorrow!   "As the hart panteth for the brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God." ~Psalm 42:1

<a href=" http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11186665/?claim=5ctswc7w43d">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>   Okay, that's rather boring. I just connected to Bloglovin, and it wishes me to paste this code into a post in order to claim my blog. However, what is a post on a fashion blog without something style related in it!?   I have decided to make this an "official" post with some actual meat to it. So far, I haven't had any outfit photo shoots this week, so there's nothing to share as far as that goes. I do have something else fun to show you, though!   In one of the folders on my computer, I have accumulated a small gallery of  pictures of retro ladies with spiffy style. A few of them have been used for projects or reference, and some are simply saved for inspiration. Most of the time, they just collect dust (metaphorically, of course). Why shouldn't I wipe off the proverbial dust and share them here to spice up this dull post? Without

  Though clothing is normally our first choice in how we present ourselves every day, hair is also an important factor of our daily routine. Each day's hair style (or non-style) shows others how much time, energy, and thought we put into our grooming that morning. It can communicate femininity, a care-free attitude, or no-nonsense approach. Our hair complements our clothes, and helps us when we are going for a specific look.   That being said, hair is not always the easiest thing to manage. Many girls (myself included) have trouble taming our locks. We get stuck in styles that we know how to do quickly. While having the ability to spend short amounts of time at the mirror can be a good thing, sometimes we get tired of looking the same way!   I usually wear my hair down, but for the past year or so I have been experimenting with putting it up more often. I am most definitely not an expert yet. There seem to be many lady bloggers who are far better at doing hair than I am! At the s