Tea Time With SFE

 In the past I have used mugs to obfuscate my face for outfit shots.  Today, I'm drinking tea out of necessity because after a few nice days it's back down to 41(5)  degrees outside and I'm now an outdoor only kinda girl and you can't really photograph your outfit with a coat on.  It is making me jealous of all of the shots that Jentine, Kendi, Jen, Emily, Lisa, and Katy are posting from the Texas Style Conference in Austin which looks like it has lovely March weather.  Not like the upper Midwest.

 dress - Moth/Anthro (eBayed & remixed)

sweater - GAP (thrifted)

owl necklace - etsy (gifted & remixed)

amber earrings - Corocoran Gallery, DC (remixed)

tights - Anthro/Eloise (remixed)

scarf - H&M (remixed)

boots - Plenty by Tracy Reese via Piperlime

I'm also debuting my new black boots which replace the ones that died at the beginning of the month.  I tried on countless pairs, but finally settled on these when they went on super sale.  They're perfect for the weather and I'd probably be in my wellies again if I didn't have them. (And thank you all again for your recommendations!)

 

Today the weather is really crummy, but I'm amazed at how good the color comes out when there's a cloud covering.  I photographed in the middle of the day but even if it doesn't have the effect of morning or Golden Hour, there's still there's no streaky light across my photos.  I wonder if I can always use rainy days to my advantage?

A friend of mine asked me about my motivation for style blogging last night and I couldn't really give him a straight answer about why I started (other than Ray asking me to), but I know that right now my main motivations are a sense of community with other style bloggers and an increasing interest in auto-photography, which always makes me think of Cindy Sherman.  I've thought about the blogs I like to read and about how important both prose and layout is.  Looking back on my initial outfit shots starting in September, it occurs to me how horrible those were for readers! Seriously, it makes me cringe to see this post. Sure, I was camera shy and I hadn't figured out how to access the newest form of blogger that allows posting in XL, but to really give an account of sartorial choices you actually need to be able to see them.

Booted!

Why is SFE wearing those stupid wellies again? you might be asking.  What sort of horrible place does she live in that requires her to continue to forgo wearing normal shoes?

 black sweater dress - Viola/Anthro (remixed)

Bow & Angle belt - Anthro (eBayed)

amber earrings - Corcoran Gallery, DC (remixed)

tights - Accessorize (ages ago and remixed)

scarf - London street vendor (remixed)

wellies - Capelli via Marshalls (remixed)

Monday started out great.  I tried out my first belt (see above and below), loved how much it improved an outfit I've already tried before, and was really excited to take a photo to show all of you! I worked at my favorite coffee shop and continued the overhaul of an essay that's due today and then, as I was walking to an appointment on campus I slipped on a patch of ice and did this:

 

Low/Mid-Calf Black LOFT boots, Oct 2010 - Feb 2011

There is no fixing it.  And I'm now down to four pairs of shoes for this time of year:  vintage-y black Clarks maryjanes, brown New York & Co. maryjane pumps, green Faryl Robin pumps, and my comfy cranberry J-41 walking shoes. By far, these boots were the most versatile and weather-appropriate footwear I owned and they will surely be missed.

 Before the black boots broke I was already down a pair of boots.  In October I had to throw out a pair of brown half-calf dress Dibas that I wore into the ground over a six year period.  Since then I had been searching for gray boots to replace them, and last week I settled on Miz Mooz Skye ankle boots, but I had to send them back because the way they were cut rubbed the ankle bone in a bad, bad way. And then last night, between editing, I took a quick inventory of Piperlime's black half-calf boots and had these Tracy Reese's in my shopping bag but by the time I tried to check out they were sold out of my size! Why did I hesitate?!?

 So, I am hoping for some help from you dear readers and here are a few things that make this difficult:  I need half-calf boots in black and half-calf or ankle in a neutral/color.  That already takes out a good chunk of available boots which tend to be "knee-high" (a description that like the "flesh" colored crayon  only applies to what is considered a normative population).  They need to have a thicker heel that is preferably between 3 and 3.5 inches. And they have to be comfortable.  I live in an urban area and I suffer from the memory of wearing tall and painful shoes across cities and campuses.  I can't even pass a Bakers or a sale at Aldo without cringing because between the ages of 16 and 21 I made a regular habit of buying $20-$50 high heels and walking miles in them.  And although $150+ is really out of my price range, I'd love to hear any and all of your recommendations in case I run into a great pair on sale or on eBay. Also, those Dibas I had did not look that well structured but they proved to be sturdy and took me over cobblestones and icy streets for years.  What's your favorite pair of boots that surprised you?

Accidental "Regency"

Let's just say that I'm the one on the left.
And here I am in a dress I didn't think would do what it did to the degree that it did plus my favorite teal top and ubiquitous boots. I really love the color combo and people stopped to compliment me on my outfit, so a friend took a shot of it--and what it revealed is that this dress is sometimes just too revealing! It wasn't until I saw the photo that I realized the full extent of its AUH-displaying powers. I don't think it was like this all day, though.

What do you do in situations when you find that you're revealing a little more than you would like?

Top Photo: *The* Pride and Prejudice
Bottom Photo:
Boots: Frye (remixed)
Dress: Target (remixed)
Cropped Cardigan: Target (remixed)

Friend Friday 1/14: Polyvalent Perspectives

Both SFE and I (LHdM) are participating in Modly Chic's Friend Friday today.  To see a full list of participants and learn more about Friend Friday pop over to Katy's fabulous blog.


How do you determine what you will wear that day?


LHdM: A number of factors determine how I'm dressing on any given day. I tend to dress more conservatively during the first couple of weeks of a semester, when I'm still setting the tone in my classrooms. I tend to up the professional factor when I have a department meeting (unless it's at 8am on Friday when I can expect half of my department will be in jeans and sweatshirts) or a meeting with an administrator. My mood, the weather, and the fact that I don't like to repeat items from the day before too often also play roles in my sartorial choices.  Case in point, yesterday I wore a blazer when I probably usually would have worn a cardigan.

 (Shirt - Zoe D. (remixed), Blazer - George (thrifted months ago and only wearing now for the first time), Skirt - Anthro (remixed), Boots - John Fluevog Bondgirl (remixed)

SFE: 3 factors influence this decision: For whom will I be performing (self, students, faculty, committee, visiting scholar)? Weather (will it start out 40 and drop to 0)? Mode of transport (bike, bus, train, car)? After that it's whatever I feel like because if I don't like what I've chosen for the day I will go batty! And if I regret the ensemble I wore for teaching I'm ridiculously self conscious and off my game. This is why I developed the mantra, "when in doubt listen to the advice of the Devil wearing Anthro," because most of the dresses and skirts I own from Anthro are forgiving, flattering, and fun to wear. I might be bored with it, but I won't be uncomfortable.

The Devil's in the Details: SFE copycats LHdM's palette from Monday
Dress - Moth/Anthro - (ebayed & remixed)
long-sleeve tee - LOFT cardi - Banana Republic (remixed)
leggings - LOFT (remixed)
scarf - H & M (remixed)
wellies- Capelli via Marshalls (remixed)
Owl Necklace - Etsy/gifted

Do you plan outfits out in advance for a whole week, month, weekend?


LHdM: With rare exceptions, I almost never plan outfits in advance. Occasionally, I'll try to figure out an outfit the night before (see 8am dept. meetings above), and I'll plan outfits when I'm traveling or for job interviews, conferences, and other professional activities of that nature. However, even when I do plan my outfits, I often end up wearing something else, as I did for my dissertation defense.

SFE: Rarely--it really has to be AN EVENT. Even when traveling I really don't plan outfits, rather I pack things so I have choices. I do find it important to plan outfits for higher stakes situations, such as giving public presentations or defending my doctoral exams. In fact, I waited until after I took my exams to take a Friday to get my hair cut, go to Anthro, and have lunch with myself. I planned my outfit around the purple sweatercoat I purchased and paired it with the Most Versatile Dress I've Ever Owned. Sometimes, thinking about self-fashioning takes the pressure off. Oddly, weddings work that way, too.

Do you have any specific way of tracking outfits and items already worn so you don't repeat?

LHdM: Aside from the blog, no not really.

SFE: Same here. Sometimes SME will say, "You're wearing black, again?"

How do you discover new combinations of items in your closet? (Trial try-ons? Hanging items together?)

LHdM: I draw tons of inspiration from magazines, tv, and other bloggers. I'll see things on blogs or in magazines that I love and then I'll try to think if there's a way to put an LHdM spin on them with what I have in my own closet. I do occasionally try hanging items together, and every now and then I'll try on a bunch of different outfits -- usually for a special occasion or to procrastinate from some heinous task, such as grading lots of papers for a survey class.

SFE: Usually by trial and error. If I buy a new piece, especially a skirt or a cardi, I'll come home and see how it coordinates with everything else in my closet. Outfits can also be built around tights, scarves, and earrings. I also tend to draw inspiration from the same places as LHdM (blogs, paintings, BBC miniseries, and Vogue). But because of my height and shape I tend to copycat texture combination and palette rather than specific pieces. For example, if I wear a fitted blazer with skinny jeans tucked into riding boots (paired with one of my colorful scarves) I will look like a flamboyant jockey who stopped training, but if I see such an outfit on, say, Academichic I might think, "Huh. Teal on the top really brings together neutrals + black."

Trying out a new accessory: The Owl Necklace was a gift from a member of SFE's cohort to mark the occasion of the entire cohort advancing to candidacy. It was decided, over a pint, that SFE is the owl in the middle--the little one.

To streamline the process for 2011 what is one new thing you can do to cut down your dressing time?

LHdM: Holy shit, if I would just put laundry away in a timely manner my dressing habits would be revolutionized! I often do a load of laundry and then let it sit in the basket for a week. Then I will want to wear something, but realize it's crumpled up in the basket and have to figure out something else. I don't roll with the ironing.

SFE: SME and I need to put shit away (part of cutting down on anxiety, too). There are at least 3 times a week when I cannot find black tights, black slip, or black camisole because it's lost in a basket or drawer of black lycra.

So we're curious: how did you determine what you're wearing today? And what are your plans for this weekend?

GAADfly

Although I'm somewhat extremely terrified by it, I will be joining the likes of Style Underdog, Cynthia, and Rad and going on The Great American Apparel Diet (GAAD) as of January 1.  I've given it a lot of thought, and I'd like to spend this next year focusing my financial resources on some things other than clothing.  I'd like to make a dent in my student loan debt and to donate more to some charities.  I'd also like to do some traveling and run some more races.  So I will not be buying any new clothing during 2011.

I will allow myself emergency job market related purchases if the need arises, and I'll allow myself a couple of new footwear purchases.  (I'll need to replace my running shoes in June if I run the number of miles I intend to by then, and I'll allow myself a pair of Fryes or Fluevogs when I get a couple of publications off of my desk.)  At the end of every three months without shopping, I'll allow myself $50 for thrifting and accessories.

But in the meantime, I have so many clothes that I haven't even worn yet, more still that I've never worn on the blog, and even more that I've only worn a couple of times and should definitely get more use out of.  I offer you Exhibit A:

 Dress - ModCloth (remixed), Cardigan - Anthropologie (Xmas gift from M.), Boots - Coconuts Rosetta (DSW), Tights - We Love Colors

I received this cardi from M. for Christmas.  I purchased the boots in San Antonio when I was shopping with my sister, but I hadn't worn them until today because of 30x30 and traveling, and I've worn this ModCloth dress maybe 5 times since I bought it last fall....

I have some other sartorial resolutions and some thoughts on where I'd like to see my blogging here on FA go in 2011 that I'll be posting sometime soon.  For now, I'd love to hear your thoughts on GAAD or on shopping bans and budgets.  Would you consider joining GAAD?  And I'd love to hear what's working well for those who are GAADflies!

Epic Blogger Meetups

Yesterday M. and I went to meet up with my amazing and stylish Canadian colleague from In Professorial Fashion, A-Dubs.  As I suspected, she is a delightful, brilliant, and charming woman with a gorgeous sense of style and our meetup was just as epic as the sign indicates.*  We met for an afternoon drink and chat at the lounge of the a posh downtown Toronto hotel, the Royal York.  I decided to trot out some new tights and to wear my favorite Fluevog boots for the occasion.¹  A-Dubs was also wearing some fantastic boots!²  Many thanks to M. for the photos!

I'm completely absorbed by whatever A-Dubs is saying in this one.

Admiring our bootage.

We had a great time talking about all sorts of things, including our blogs, bloggers, academia, academic style blogs, family, boots, and furry roommates, among other things.  It truly was epic, and I hope we can meet again sometime soon!

Today I met up with the lovely Kristin of K.Line.  I've been reading her blog for over a year, so I was very excited to meet her in person.  We met for lunch at the Windsor Arms and conversation.  Kristin is just as talented, smart, chic, and funny as I expected she would be.  We also did some shopping, and let me tell you: this woman is my freakin' muse! I was thrilled to have a shopping partner in crime, and I scored some excellent loot at Club Monaco and Cole Haan.   We didn't take any photos, but I had a wonderful time!  (No doubt I'll be showing off my purchases at some point soon here on the blog.)

It's always fun to meet bloggers and to see how similar their personalities seem to be to the personas they have crafted online.  I could easily see myself being good friends with both of these ladies IRL.  Have you ever met up with other bloggers?  Did you obsess about what you would wear?  What you would talk about?

1. Top - H&M (remixed), Cardi - Target, Skirt - Zara, Tights - HUE, Mallory Boots - John Fluevog (remixed), Necklace - Etsy (remixed)
2. Dress - Max Azria, Leggings - Groggy, Cardigan - Smart Set, Boots - Browns

*A-Dubs agreed to face obfuscation rather than head cropping so that we could advertise the epic nature of this meeting.

These Boots are Gonna Diplomatically Persuade You

Yes! My Frye boots have finally come out from under the table and I'm only *now* pairing them with my more summery looks. However, I can't think of a better outfit right now for a casual coffee with all of my committee members. My project is interdisciplinary and they want to have a conversation about how to handle conflicting feedback, etc. in a way that won't have me tearing my freshly grown out hair out. It's not a defense or exam, so I don't feel any blazer-pressure or the need to wear nice slacks, but I will still need to weigh in, so enormous boots feel appropriate.
Forgive the outfit/day change, but I also wanted to show off my Nov. 2 canvassing outfit. I normally go with canary yellow heels and blue dress when I combine these two colors, but was inspired by our own SFE's scarf stylings (see yesterday's post) to move scarf-ward. Of course, this is the hallway outside my office, not actual canvassing territory. The above picture is me hoping that one of my committee members doesn't emerge from his office across from mine during the photo shoot.
And my favorite accessory: the "I voted" sticker. Also, note how my top matches the recycling bins. Wonder whether I'm subtly reminding people to recycle whenever I wear it.....

Outfit One:
Top: Target (remixed)
Skirt: Benetton (remixed)
Boots: Frye (remixed)

Outfit Two:
Top: Target (remixed)
Slacks: Urban Outfitters (remixed)
Shoes: Bass (remixed)

When You Encounter Other Fashionable Academics

1. Dress - Ann Taylor Loft
Cardi - Gap
Boots- Ann Taylor Loft (remixed)
Scarf - Gap

I'm one of those grad students who regularly frequents departments/disciplines other than my own because my methodological issues and historical period overlap with those other departments. I took classes in those other departments and even TA-ed for them. As interdisciplinary as I work, it was still surprising when yet ANOTHER program asked me to give a public response to a lecture from a visiting scholar. And that program consists of many faculty and grad students who come from elsewhere in the world and their styles reflect that.


Giving a paper or a response always seems so high stakes even if its within your department or university.  And actually, giving a response is always scarier for me--what if I misconstrued something in the work I am responding to?  I usually wear a gray cardi and pearls with this dress but I didn't want to feel so formal.  Sometimes sartorial formality betrays an inward nervousness. 

3. Close-up of floral flourishing on dress

So, what about you? Do you, my fellow Fashionable Academics, find yourself being more style-conscience when encountering one type of department/classroom/conference over the ones you normally frequent? Or, is the bar already high in your home department?

Fall is Our Favorite

This past week has been bit of a blur for me.  I was ill and took a sick day which caused me to get behind on everything right when I had finally just caught up after the grading and hurty brain syndrome.  (Damn you, Murphy!  And your stupid Law!)  I also ran a half-marathon on Saturday and have been preparing a research talk that I'm giving this week at my university.  Yet, in spite of all the busyness, I have still been in a great mood.  Fall is my favorite season.  And in terms of its fallish qualities October is the best of the autumn months.  I've been drawing inspiration from nature's color palettes with its soft browns and olive greens, splashes of orange, red, and yellow, and sunny blue skies.  Bailey approves of my current sartorial methodology.  Hopefully, the audience at my talk will be equally approving of my research methodologies.

(Top - H&M (hand-me-down from my sister-in-law and remixed), Skirt - Anthro (thrifted and remixed) Cardi - New York & Co. (remixed), Tights - We Love Colors, Boots - Steve Madden (2003 and remixed), Bracelets and Earrings - Target (remixed))

Where have you been drawing style inspiration from lately?

When Narcissism* Improves Pedgagogy

The course I'm teaching is a proper seminar: reading, discussion, and individual projects. And on the discussion end my students are seriously bringing it to the classroom! We have our desks in a circle--something they requested--and when definitive ideas are generated I do tend to write them on the chalkboard in categories. Great! The problem is that there is another class immediately after mine so I never have enough time to take down notes on what we've discussed and defined.

1. Pewter Trench - Ann Taylor Loft
Dress - Moth/Anthro (Ebayed)
Boots - Ann Taylor Loft
Scarf - World Market
Bag - Accessorize (remixed)

And then, as a good Thinker, I had a eureka moment: Because I didn't think I would have time in the morning to take outfit photos I had brought my camera to campus with me--I could, therefore, photograph the chalkboard instead of scribbling down three illegible sentences:
(Yes, we were talking about Taming of the Shrew. No, I am not teaching Shakespeare.) I've decided that I will continue to carry my camera with me on teaching days and, perhaps, you'll get to see a different background than my living/dining room area.
And now, a word about body type and fit: I love this sweater dress (and I might even wear it to a wedding in a barn on Sunday), it looks great against my skin and I can wear a lot of gold eyeshadow with it, but I should have bought in a small instead of a medium. I am very much a medium, except in sweater dresses and tights because of my height. I've thought about getting the dress wet to shrink it a bit, but the last time I did that I killed a beautiful sweater. It shrinks a tiny bit every time I get it dry-cleaned which is motivational to get things dry-cleaned at a more adult rate than I would prefer (which would be 1 time a year). Also, my boots: the shaft is a little shorter than mid-calf, but if you have short legs they will be mid-calf on you. For a full boot, I look for a regular mid-calf on the longer side, because a full boot is out of the question. But the current object of my covetousness are these very SFE-appropriate mid-calf Simone Cuff Fryes:
I need to replace a pair of brown boots and was thinking of going gray/pewter instead. What do you think of the interchangeability of neutrals? Also, I've talked a bit about certain pieces (sweater dresses and boots) and sizing on my body type--what items do you find that you have to size up/down or avoid altogether? And, finally, those who already own Fryes--are they worth the price?

*Post-script on Narcissism*: A good friend of mine who has been present for half of my self-photo shoots says that observing the process of taking all of the photos (posing, deleting, posing, deleting) makes me look like a strange narcissist.

Revising Policies

Last month I discussed how I have adopted LHdM's carrot (not-the-stick) approach to meeting professional goals: I vowed not to wear the Twinkle Twinkle Dress until I completed Chapter One. I broke that vow Thursday night, but I also realized that that particular policy was completely unrealistic.

1. Dress - Anthro
Cardi - Ann Taylor Loft
Rain Boots - Capelli via Marshalls
*The dress is a size 8; Jess, if you're interested in it, you might need to size down to a 6*

The occasion of wearing the dress was my husband's birthday, but before we went to dinner I did some major work in the library. In a way, it was my academic Wonder Woman dress (sadly, my WW pose came out horribly blurry). Instead of barring myself from wearing it I will instead wear it on the occasion of hitting major goals--including completing Chapter One. I also realized that Chapter One is just going to have to wait for a few weeks and that I have legitimate reasons for holding off: getting my Fall term course off to a good start, a separate teaching project, and a lengthy and important paper due for a professional organization. All of these things have to be done before I can get back to Chapter One. I think my new policy makes more sense.

Back to my outfit: It was rainy and cooler, so I donned new rain boots and stuffed my favorite brown mary janes into my bag. In the end, I wore the boots to the restaurant because I liked how they looked with the dress. Here's a closer shot of the boots:

I feel more comfortable with the slight wedge on these boots. They won't do in the snow, but I have an embarrassingly awesome pair of bright orange Land's End boots for that sort of weather.

Also, when I took these pictures both Shakespeare's Masculine Ending and a friend of mine were present and they laughed the entire time. Even though they know about my blogging, they thought that I looked insane while posing. After watching me pose multiple times for the timed camera, SME demanded that I let him take the shot of my boots so we could change and have cake and champagne.* I know a fair amount of us use a timer and a tripod for our photos--how do your partners, friends, and roommates react to your posing?

*Ann Underfunded Humanity: We saved the Rosa Regale you gave me for passing my exams until we had a proper pairing. On SME's birthday we finally popped it open alongside a flour-less chocolate cake. It was lovely!

Bad Ass Boots Conference

If you think summer isn't for boots, well, then, think again, my friends!  A few weeks ago, we issued a CFP for your best summer boots looks, and we got some absolutely fantastic submissions.

Here are the bad ass boots conference participants (in no particular order):

Keira of A Pretty Penny suffers through the heat for the sake of style in a fantastic summer boot look:

Tess of Quintessentially Quirky rocks her cowgirl boots in the summer months:

Chalkdust and Boots wore her lovely blue Veronica slouch boots (Frye) while in Hamburg:

She's also remixed her lovely summer boots for a wear in Boston.


Sally McGraw of Already Pretty rocked a summer boot look built on her grey Diesel Go-Gos:

I spotted her remixing these awesome boots again a few days ago.


Rad in Brooklyn of The Cohabitating Closet recently styled her bad ass lace-up Borns with neutrals:

Style Underdog exudes cool in her summer boots look:

Lydia of Chic on the Cheap looks great in her summer ankle boots and hat:

A-Dubs of In Professorial Fashion wears her "Bondgirls for the Beach":

Outfit info:  Boots: Fluevog Bondgirls, Bikini: Ellesport, Cover-up: Chapter One (via Winners)


D-Meds of In Professorial Fashion wears bad ass Fiorentini + Baker boots to write bad ass prose and to do bad ass yoga poses:

Charmalade of Toast with Charmalade jumps in her bad ass, thrifted boots:

La Historiadora de Moda wears her Fluevog Cowgirls in the summer sun:

La Historiadora de Moda pairs her Fluevog Katrin's with her Anthro Two Wheeler dress for an Edwardian-inspired summer boot look:

  

Thanks so much to all those who participated and shared their fantastic summer boot ensembles!  You have proven that boots with some slouch, cowgirl boots, and Fluevogs don't need to be shelved just because it's June or July.  I know that several other readers wanted to participate, but especially crazy heat waves made it difficult to submit to this conference.   Have you worn boots this summer?  Have you wanted to but been prevented from doing so by the heat?

We hope you'll consider submitting to our Back to School conference (see the side bar for details)!  We'll be taking submissions though the months of August and September.

Walk with me!

shopping boots at Mitt lille hjem, Grunerløkka, Markveien 56.....
Et lite skattekammer av en butikk i Markveien. Vandret hjem med ny boots....

Home Styling

Todays tip: Style your home with a vintage bag you love, an old pair of shoes and a fashion magazine......
La stilen din inspirere interiøret hjemme, heng opp en vintage veske du elsker, sett frem et par gamle boots, og et magasincover du liker- og vips.....

boot straps...

my new boot straps from ebay.......

Happy monday!

For the first time I have been wearing what I was planning to wear. Normally I waste a lot of time just trying on lots of different clothes, and then end up with just another black outfit. Its all about the mood... Know the feeling? But this morning was different...
Who says you cant bee comfy & cool? Have been out and about picking out stylingpieces for wednesdays fashion shoot - and what is better than a pair of leggings and flat shoes? Leopard leggings from H&M, a keeper in my closet, bought a few years ago, boots from din sko, beanie from Cheap Jacks + oversized tee/dress from American Apparel.... happy monday!