Working for the weekend

I am so freaking tired lately. I get up before 6am most mornings, and this time of the year the sun isn't even up then to help me out. It seems like Brian is having an even harder time, and I've started gradually turning on the lights for him when I get up to help him wake up easier.
My weekends aren't usually super exciting, but it's so nice to be able to take my time with things. I sleep in a little bit. I get up and make myself a breakfast that's not just fruit and yogurt. I take a long shower, and I do my makeup with a little more care than I can take on a normal morning. I usually walk down to the coffee shop and drink coffee and read for a couple of hours. I'll catch up on a little TV (Supernatural and Twin Peaks were the programs of choice this weekend), do some cleaning and some laundry, maybe work out a little bit so I don't feel quite to bad about all of the couch sitting. There might be a nap, because all that relaxing makes me sleepy.
With the days already getting so short, it's kind of tough to get good photos for here. I sort of like the dim, moody lighting of dusk on an overcast day, but it's not great for picking up details. This weekend was lovely, crisp and sunny, so it was nice spending some time out in the yard getting some good shots.

This may have been a very roundabout way to say that I took a lot of pictures this weekend. Check me out, y'all.

This sweater is Brian's, and I may have to steal it from him. Oh, and I bought a beret. Does that invalidate my rant about not wanting to dress like a French girl?

I haven't worn an outfit like this in a while, but I used to dress like this pretty much all of the time. Over-sized top, leg-baring mini, tights, boots - that was pretty much my fall uniform. It's kind of nice to fall back into old habits once in a while, but I don't think that'll ever really be me full time again.

I was taking makeup pictures by the door when I realized that there was a much better backdrop right next to me.

The leaves on the tree are this brilliant shade of chartreuse. I know people say that taking photos all the time distracts us from really experiencing the moment, but I think taking pictures actually helps make you aware of things you might not have otherwise noticed.

So this hat is probably my favorite of all the ones that I own right now. I saw it at Vintage Underground, passed it over, and then spent a month thinking about it. There's just something so flamboyant about the broad brim, the bright green color, the gold braid that practically drips from it.

It's different from anything else that I own, which is probably why I love it so much. It does have the unfortunate tendency to go flying off my head at any stray gust of wind, but there's a strap to keep it in place. A little dorky, but no dorkier than chasing your rogue hat down.

It makes me feel like a bullfighter, or at least the hostess at an Argentinean steakhouse. (I should note that I don't really know what bullfighters do, other than swirl their capes dramatically. This might have already been obvious.)

Some details. 

Brian's parents did take us on a tour for part of Open House Chicago, which is a pretty interesting event. Different buildings and companies open up for free tours, and the one that we went on was of a concrete factory, which was surprisingly interesting. I'll be putting some photos of that up on Instagram, if you want to check them out. 

And Halloween is just 11 days away! I'm definitely going to have some costume ideas popping up on here before the big day.

Leopard is a neutral

You know what's weird? I felt like I had so many hats until I started wearing them every day, and now I feel like I need more of them. Just a fun, colorful one. And maybe a cute cloche. And a gray one. And maybe a leopard one...
Obviously, at a certain point, I reach maximum hat density, but it could take a while.
I'm starting to feel like hats both are and aren't accessories. It's sort of like shoes - sometimes you just grab your black flats that go with everything, and sometimes you have to build an outfit around a particularly interesting pair. I'd say most of the hats that I bought so far fall into the interesting category, so I've found myself reaching for sleeker, more modern, more subdued items in my wardrobe to let the hat stand out.

Well, sort of. I don't know if two tone shoes, bright blue, and leopard really count as subdued for most people, but hey, I'm wearing plain black pants! That never happens!

Something about this outfit made me feel like Michael Jackson. Maybe the shoes. I just felt like I had to try and dance around and get up to antics.


 I don't really have a good enough camera or sense of timing to capture said antics, but you get the drift.

I'm bending over backwards (well, sideways) to get good pictures!
This is actually the hat that Brian bought me that sparked my interest in vintage hats. I don't wear it very often, just because it is such a HAT, but I found it really fun with an outfit like this.
I love the combination of yellow and gray, and I think these photos turned out pretty well, but I would probably not wear this outfit this way again.

I don't know what it is, but I'm just not totally happy with it. This hat, I believe, is from the 30s, but there's a slightly Edwardian feel to it that I don't think meshed as well as it could have with the rest of the outfit.


For someone who usually is like "fuck rules, fashion should be fun!", I'm actually kind of weird about matching my tights to my boots. These tights are just slightly bluer than these boots, and it drives me crazy. I actually own a few pairs of gray tights because last winter I kept buying them, trying to find a perfect match. Seriously, how hard is it to find mushroom gray tights?

I'm still going to be in hat wearing mode this weekend, so hopefully I have something fun to show you guys on Monday. It might be a new hat. You don't know my life.

Some of my favorite hat wearing, vintage loving bloggers

I love looking to other bloggers for style inspiration, and accessorizing is one place where I need a lot of it. Although I'm sure I'd still own some hats if I didn't see them in the blogosphere, the aplomb with which these ladies wear their varied and stylish chapeaux has definitely inspired me to step up my game.
Oh, and I don't own any of these photos, they are the sole property of their creators. Just FYI.
Solanah, Vixen Vintage
Come on, what list would be complete without her? She's gorgeous, she's got a killer hat collection (or at least, she did; I know she's moved away from vintage blogging a little bit), and her outfits are so varied and expressive of her personal style that she can't be imitated. Vixen Vintage is one of the first vintage blogs I ever read, and she pretty much tops my inspirational style list.




Tanith, Tanith Rowan
This Aussie milliner's blog is amazing. She not only creates amazing modern and vintage style hats, she's a great educational resource, and has done a whole series of posts on hat trends of the past. I really like to go back and reference them when I pick up a kind of random new hat that I'm not sure how to wear, since the vintage photos are a great reference for accompanying hairstyles and accessories as well. She's also hugely, adorably pregnant, so help put her baby through college and go buy one of her hats.




Jessica, Chronically Vintage
You guys all know Jessica, so I'm sure it comes as no surprise that she's a mad hatter after my own heart. And she's got an awesome name, so there's that. One of the things that I admire most about her style is her knack for accessorizing, and her amazing Etsy shop is beautifully curated and reasonably priced. I seriously want half the stuff in there.




Laura, Paper Mothball Vintage
Laura's got a little bit of a leg up in the "wearing things and making them look awesome" race, since she's actually a professional model. However, she's also an excellent writer, an even better photographer, and a seriously talented designer, so you'd be mistaken if you thought she was just another pretty face.




Just Another Wardrobe Experience
I think what I love most about this German blogger is how naturally she wears everything. She can be dressed head to toe in 40s gear, but she never looks like she's wearing a costume. The casual elegance with which she incorporates her hats into her wardrobe definitely inspire me to pop one on myself.




This, obviously, is not a complete list of all of the vintage bloggers who wear hats, or all of the vintage bloggers who wear hats that I like. It's really just a few of the ladies out there who consistently make me stop and say wow every time I check out their blogs. If you know of any other hat-crazy bloggers out there that I didn't mention, please give them a shout out in the comments. I could be that I haven't heard of them, and it would be awesome to find a new favorite.

Bad Hattitude

I mentioned yesterday that I'm trying to justify the slightly ridiculous number of hats that I own by actually, you know, wearing them. I fall in love with them when I see them at the store, but when it comes to incorporating them into my every day life, I either forget that I have them, or put them on, decide they're too outlandish, and take them right back off. Hence, this project where I make myself choose a hat to wear every damn day for the next week. I'm actually considering extending it for two weeks, just because I realized I have that many languishing in a big pile o' hats, sad and unworn.
Of course, human beings have a long and storied history of wearing crazy shit on their heads.

This one is actually pretty simple, by the standards of medieval noblewomen.

And this caricature of Marie Antoinette is certainly a little exaggerated, but only a little.

Hats didn't really get any saner when we hit the start of the 20th century either.

You guys know I love Carmen Miranda, but the woman was not a minimalist.

Shoes on heads and vagina flowers in the background. Tres chic.

Beautiful, and comparatively simple, but this would require some serious hat pins (and possibly some super glue) to stay in place.

This hat may be the least complicated thing that she's wearing, actually.

Compared to all these other fabulous ladies, I'm feeling a little plain Jane. (By the way, I'm not saying I took this picture while sitting in my bathtub, but I'm not saying I didn't take it there either.) It's good to get a little perspective about what really constitutes an outlandish hat.

Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?

I used to watch this show obsessively when I was a kid, and I hated the fact that they could never catch her. "Why are you stupid kids so stupid?!?! You suck!" I was not the most patient or understanding of children.
Anyway, I know I'm missing the signature red trench, but as of this weekend, I now have not one, but two lipstick red hats. It's funny - I never used to like red very much, but as of this winter I just want to live in it. I'm also really into a slightly Dior-ish silhouette. I love the volume that this trench has, especially when paired with more fitted bottoms.

From Saturday, with my new hat. I realized recently that none of the hats that I own actually have brims, so I'm trying to rectify that.

Partly because if a hat has a brim, you can do that mysterious thing where you pull your hat down over your eyes. 

I feel like this outfit, from Friday, is a little more artsy. Must be the flat shoes.

Trying to do the old fashioned model poses. Note to self - girl, you are not Dovima.

I had a pretty solid weekend. Saturday included some shopping (more on that tomorrow), meeting up with Brian for a tasty lunch, then grabbing Polish food for dinner and playing Katamari with a friend. Sunday was a little more low key - about all I did was get groceries and nap, so I'm calling that one a success. 

What did you guys get up to this weekend? Anything fun? There was a huge music festival in the city this weekend, and while I didn't attend, I could still hear it from my porch. Given that there's about 2 miles between us, that's pretty impressive.

Outfit 1

Hat: Vintage Underground

Trench: Forever21

Pants: Topshop

Shoes: Asos

Outfit 2

Hat, Skirt: Vintage Underground

Trench: Forever21

Shoes: Asos

Meet Roy G. Biv

I mentioned last week that I'm trying to shift my focus away from buying clothes, which I have a lot of, to using accessories to add more punch and polish to my outfits. It's an exercise that I'm really enjoying so far, and I think my challenge to myself to add at least one standout accessory to every outfit has been pretty successful.

I went shopping at Vintage Underground, my favorite store in Chicago, on Saturday. I was so close to buying this hat, but ultimately decided it's just too expensive. That said, if it's there after my next pay day, I think it's coming home with me.

Instead I got this one, which is covered in seashells and has a felt mermaid on the front. Cuz I'm cool like that.

This is my Funny Face pose. Not that I look anything like Audrey Hepburn.

I absolutely love the print on this dress, and I was so delighted on Saturday to find the blue scarf I'm wearing for only $3, also at Vintage Underground. This dress could have used a belt, although I skipped it because it was pretty hot out.
Is it tooting my own horn too hard to say that I felt like my makeup was super on point?
One thing that I've noticed about this challenge that it's making me think about my clothes in a different way. Rather than just putting on a nice dress and calling it a day, I'm paying more attention to the details. If it's a print, what is the least dominant color? It might be a good one to pick up in the accessories. What's the neckline like? Is it best set off by a necklace, a brooch, maybe a scarf? Am I wearing a hat, or do I want to do something fancy with my hair? Admittedly, it's become a bit of a process, but it's a fun one, hindered only by the fact that I don't really have much in the way of colorful accessories.
So, of course, that means that I'm on the hunt for a rainbow of accessories.
Red

Topshop Red Patent Heels
I love the chunky heel and patent finish on this pair shoes. There's something a bit schoolgirl about them, and I would love to pair them with mustard yellow tights once we're in the cooler months.

London Rebel Red Suede Court
For something a little more grownup and ladylike, these sleek suede pumps would look great for day or evening.

Soco Designs Wide Elastic Belt in Red
This Etsy shop sells these wide elastic belts in a wide assortment of colors. This style of belt is a classic way to cinch your waist and show off your curves.

1950s Wooden Box Bag
This would be way too small for my day to day life, but this beautiful wooden purse from Where the Wind Vintage is a real stunner.
Orange


Seychelles Late Night Suede Wedges
These wedges from Seychelles also come in teal, black, and a gold or black glitter style, and several of the colors are on a pretty steep discount right now. The style is very 40s (or maybe 40s meets 70s, if we're talking about the glitter version), and paired with chunky knit socks or tights, you could wear them well into fall.

Tangerine Nylon Scarf from That Retro Shop
I do love these sheer nylon scarves, which can be used in several different ways. This soft orange color seems so unusual to me, and at $8 it's also a bit of a steal.

Vintage Pumpkin Orange Beaded Hat
Another steal at only $18, this vivid orange beaded hat from Tess Ronae Vintage, which is probably 30s or 40s, would be perfect for setting off an autumn ensemble.
Yellow

Mustard Yellow Faux Alligator Frame Bag
I have to have a book on me at all times, so I don't usually do vintage purses, which are often to small to accommodate them. However, I might make an exception for this lovely frame bag. I love the vibrant but soft shade of mustard yellow, and the faux alligator texture really makes it sing.

Asos Sunkissed Wooden Heels
If, like me, you're either too poor or too broke to spring for Swedish Hasbeens, these Norwegian Wannabes might be a good option.

Yellow Elastic Belt with Ornate Buckle
The kind of fancy buckle on this elastic belt gives it some extra interest, and would be great with a solid color dress. It's also $6, with free shipping, so there's that.
Green

Kelly Green Patent Leather Purse
There's a woman who works in my building who has a patent leather, kelly green purse, and from the second I saw it I knew that I wanted one for myself. If someone else doesn't do it, I might have to snap this little guy up. Only $25 from Red Jacket Vintage.

1960s Bow Hat
I love this 60s topper, which is kind of a cross between a cocktail hat and an overly ambitious headband. On sale at The Vintage Hat Shop.
Blue (and Indigo, because let's be honest, indigo is really just blue)

Dynamic Debut Heels in Navy
These gorgeous t-strap heels, very 20s or 30s, make me want to practice my ballroom dancing with my boyfriend.

Vintage Inspired Square Sunglasses
Forever21 actually has some weirdly great, vintage inspired sunglasses in stock right now. I really like the bold shape and soft pastel shade of this pair.

Faux Ostrich Waist Belt
I have this belt in white, but I'm really tempted by the vibrant blue version as well.

Midnight Blue Pillbox Hat with Veil
Looking to add a little mystery to your life? This gorgeous, deep navy pillbox hat from Kanari Kouture would be amazing with a slinky cocktail dress.
Violet

Purple Leather Driving Gloves
Wouldn't these gloves be a fabulous flash of color with a black or gray winter coat?

50s or 60s Feathered Hat
Not only is is purple, it's purple feathers. What more could you ask for?

Of course there is an entire universe of color to pick from (I didn't even get to talk about pink! I fucking love pink!), but I'm definitely in a mood to bust out of my neutral accessories rut. I mean, really, how many black and brown shoes does one girl need? Ok, probably at least a few, but throwing some color into the mix never hurt anything.