piercing quotations

quotation mark earrings? yes, please!

{via postgradhaircut}

stun-glasses

these sunglasses from oliver peoples are fabulous. too bad they are mad expensive. i own one decent pair of sunglasses & i'm always scared i'll forget the case or smash them. (& by decent i mean like $30 & they currently need an eyeglass screw). i can't even imagine the wreck i'd be with a pair that cost as much as my wedding dress. still, those curves are sweet! (i think i'll just head down to the camden markets for a £5 pair that i can toss in my bag and not worry about).

rough & tumble

i don't know about you, but i'm really hard on handbags. i want to have lovely ones that stay glossed & sweet & make me feel like a slick lady of the forties. but in reality, i mostly use canvas totes or well-studded leather purses which are meant to be kicked around a bit. so i'm usually on the look-out for a bag which will hold up to my rough & tumble tendencies (& fit my mac in safely). this one from heritage is the perfect artist/carpenter/crafter/forget being shy, i'm a tough-lady bag. the kind of bag that would never ask to be kept clean & neat. that refuses to be properly slung over the arm of a suit. yeah. this is a hard working bad-ass of a bag. & i'd be proud to tote it around.

{via something'shidinginhere}

feathered pins

as i've said before, i have a serious bobbypin problem. & with my new kicking haircut's mix of short/long bardot-ian layers, some sleek pins would be a huge help when i don't want the dramatic poof. these gold feathers from nestprettythings' shop are perfection. for some reason though, i always talk myself out of buying pretty much all small accessories--even my favorite pieces of jewelry were gifts from my friends J & J & my sister. maybe it's just because i tend to lose said small things too easily?!

{via nestprettythings & poppytalk}

ringing in spring, dream jobs

some of the best parts about spring: the return of ballet flats, light-weight jackets, & less layers (there's nothing better than throwing on a dress & being all set to go). the ever-rocktastic 13 bees is at it again, with some killer new spring-ing pieces just-added to her shop (& the extra delight of now offering international shipping). this criss-crossed dress makes me want to hop on a ferry to france & have mid-afternoon cocktails on the beach. sigh. someday i'd love to combine my obsession with books & vintage dresses, and open a well-curated shop with in-store tailoring. what could be better than writing poems surrounded by language & beautiful pieces of history--leather spines, metal zippers, & buttons oh my! just imagining racks of dresses next to color-blocked books makes me swoon.

twist & stripe

a rocking & simple twist on the ever-popular black/blue/white striped shirts which are cropping up everywhere. i've always felt i could never pull off red--but recently, for some reason, i am finding myself more & more attracted to the brightness. (my computer seems to make these stripes look orange, but it's listed as red & cream. so i'll go with the description).

Z left for a two day work trip & already i'm eating leftover pistachio macarons for breakfast. yikes!

spring jackets

dear built by wendy, in your spring preview you have a woman wearing the most fantastic green coat. with a zillion pockets. pockets which call for usual things like chapstick & glasses & tiny books; but also for more interesting (& sometimes heavier) things like smooth skipping stones & folded-up poems & boxes of matches & maybe even a small goldfish being taken home as a prize. this spring-fevering coat promises to hold many small cherishable things tucked neatly inside its dark, snapped pockets. it makes me want to walk nowhere for hours. hike around a forest with a map of the city. see the bronte sister's moors. climb up & down the greenery & gorges of ithaca. ride a bicycle through my childhood. but alas, i don't see it anywhere for the actual oggling/buying. & though i realize it is without-a-doubt way outside of my non-existent price range--a girl still likes to daydream & also to know for certain. what's the deal?! thanks, c.

saltwater : oceansky

Z & i have been talking about traveling out of london-lands for a brief getaway. so i'm dreaming of oceanscapes & saltwater-skies again. being an east-coaster from cities which tend to spend more time snowglobed than green, i don't really own a bathing suit (& definitely don't have one here). so, i'm keeping my eyes peeled. i'd love something retro & playful like these beauties from anthro (or something of the tank & bottoms sort, i'm a little shy). but i also need something that is a bit less of an investment--because let's face it, next year we'll likely be back in the chill & freeze. anyone know good places in london for affordable swimwear?!

linked together

this chain-linked ring from elizabeth street is the perfect mix of hardcore & delicate. it would make a great everyday, unexpected wedding, or simple engagement ring. because not everyone wants to rock a rock.

{via castor & pollux}

wedding dress alternatives, vintage modern

this blue dress with its cowl, secret gold & cream back, & tulle underlayers would make a fantastic & unexpected wedding dress. i love lorick for its kickback to fifties style with a modern twist (& a little more breathing room). because really, a wedding should be a fabulous party, not a formal inconvenience. & who doesn't need an excuse to browse the lorick site?!

{via stylecaster & lorick}

hand-painted spring

today is a balmy 40 degrees. & i'm planning on taking a stroll down regent's canal to clear my head. slightly warmer temperatures, coupled with our flat being filled up with sunday's market flowers, leaves me hayfevering, wishing wholeheartedly for spring. this hand-painted blouse by modaspia is dreamy in an updated fifties-print sort of way & is perfect for the warm weather that is sure to come.

{via readymade}

do what you leica

as a sort of mini-valentine-ing, Z surprised me with a camera case he found for a steal on ebay. while i love having my camera on me at all times in london, i tend to be super bad & just chuck it in my pocket (the case we have is a leftover from an old camera of my dad's & is super bulky). now, i have a safe & easy way to snap and & go even if i don't want to bring a handbag. plus, as suggested in a recent lucky mag, there's also the option of carrying the leica case sans camera as a chic mini-purse. rock on!

(p.s. i have been so good about not opening my swapletted valentine since it arrived, trying to wait until sunday, but it's killing me. so, i think i will have to just dig in a day or two early!)

absolute vintage in the city

just before paris, i finally bit the weather-bullet & realized i had to find a pair of boots to wear with skinny jeans (i had taken to just wearing dresses once it was too cold for sneakers or my brogues). on the way to bricklane to scout out a few stores (such as rockit, where i got my fabulous high-wasited men's pants for the 30s party) we happened to walk by absolute vintage. shizam. it's a must go if you are in london: floor to ceiling vintage--incredible bags & shoes & beautiful dresses galore. it's listed as one of the top 100 must-visit stores in the world. and, apparently, some pretty fancy celebrities shop there (we didn't see any, but we did catch some ridiculous paparazzi shots around the corner). the sheer selection makes the close-quarters & mirror-hogging ladies worth it. i left with the perfect pair of inexpensive heeled black leather boots. i admit, it's oh so dangerous for me to live in a city where you can just happen upon vintage stores.

beside the seaside

i seem to remember that a large number of classic books that i read as a kid involved the idea that when you are feeling sick you should head to the seaside--the salty air being just what the body needed. so today, having come down with another little cold, i'm thinking i'd like to be beside the seaside. and this bag, well i think i'd like it to be beside me.

{via postgradhaircut}

unexpected dresses

as many of you know, i opted out of the white wedding dress. for me, it wasn't even something i really considered. no woman in my family has worn a white dress (my grandmother wore a pantsuit, my mother a green & orange flowered dress, my sister a brown satin 1940s cocktail-style dress) and being part of that tradition of women truly mattered to me. (though my family would have totally supported me had i chose to go against this & i support wearing whatever color you are excited to get married in!). but finding that non-white dress came with a lot more struggle than i anticipated--there aren't specified stores filled with wracks of lush, bridal-worthy, non-white dresses (especially in a small town). and what to do when you realize that even though you were emphatic about a short-style dress, you try on a long tattered dress at a vintage store to see, and realize that you might actually want something more 30s glamour?! where to go?! so, i'm thinking of having a little on-going series here about some unexpected dresses.

for this first post, i thought i'd shop at one of my favorite etsy vintage stores, 13bees:

this little number--with its subtle & iced blues, its patterned chrysanthemums--would make a kick-ass/beautifully flirty wedding dress.


and oh. oh. oh. this dress is 20s perfection. i think someone could rock this one out with a sort of bright silk under-layer (maybe even white!). definitely something i would have died to find while i was dress-hunting.

what do you think?! good series or no? and to those of you rockstars who stopped by via veilsandvows, a big welcome!

taste of spring (ii)

difficult deadline = met. momentary relaxation ensues. meaning, less thinking about serious things, and more indulging in warm weather thinking. above, cute new looks from the spring dace collection. that second pair of pants are the exact thing i have been looking for. and the shoes? perfection. what do you all suggest to cheer up a busy & cold londoner?

taste of spring (i)

today the freeze & darks of london are making me feel static & over-contained (even the swans on the canal next to our flat are floating like slushed grocery bags on the filmy iced-over water). i miss the smell of dirt and grass and the air just before something (winter for me smells like a just-lit-match, like the air just after something). with a deadline looming tomorrow, i'm procrastinating by eve-dreaming of spring. this tiled dress & these bright 50s shoes are just the thing a gal needs for a proper warm weather reverie.

{images via anthropologie & deargoldenvintage}

daydreaming: one dangerous night

i'm not a fur person at all, but the detail on this dress is the perfect amount of unexpected & dangerous. in a daydreamy mad men-esque version of our paris trip--i would wear this to a restaurant and let my husband (who everyone thinks is a stranger) pick me up with some sort of sweetly masculine line & then whisk me off for a boat ride. smoking.
{image via 13bees}

1930s fete

the birthday shindig of a fabulous london lady is tonight. and it's themed! though most of my stateside buddies hate themed parties, i'm all for them--not in the least because i love fashion history. tonight's details: 30s attire, bathtub gin in teacups. while i love the era's glam--my wedding dress was modern early 30s & the wedding took place in one of the first silent film studios in the US--for this occassion i've decided on something a bit more comfortable. the plan: channel one of the above looks (katharine hepburn is at the top!). so far, i haven't been able to find any pants quite as high or wasp-wasited, but if all else fails i have a pair that might do (a recovering gal should keep her goals in check, i guess. even if it is a dress-up party). so for now, let's just hope i feel well enough to go!

flying by the seat of your

yes natalie, your tights are sensational. i'd like one of each bird pair, please.

{via stylebubble}