Monday, March 17, 2008

Pinch Me, I'm Polish

Pinstriped vest, H&M. Green satin blouse, Express. Gray bubble skirt, Moda International. Gray peeptoe pumps, Bitten ($8.98!) Faux pearl necklace with medallion, Newport News. Black boy’s belt. Gold watch, Raymond Weil.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Despite appearances, I am not a bit Irish. I’m English, German, and Polish. My red hair is courtesy of L’Oreal, not O'Sullivan. I can do an Irish accent for you, but a native would probably find it laughable.

For a while this past fall, I was putting items from my wardrobe on trial to get my readers’ opinions on whether I should keep it, alter it, swap it, or give it to charity. One commenter one had the gall to suggest I put this necklace on trial. Never! I adore it. I’ve found it to be the finishing touch to many outfits, despite Mike’s description of it as “grandma.”

And finally, a word on today’s belt. (No, it isn’t another belt week.) Over the course of the day, I found myself vacillating between liking and not liking the belt. Liked: visually raised waist, highlighted the slimmest part of my midsection, tidied up of the open vest (otherwise it flapped around), and added interest. Didn’t like: fussy look, two waistlines (belt and skirt waist), the way it creaked when I took a deep breath. I don’t regret the choice, I just don’t know if I’d repeat it in exactly this manner.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

The soft tones that you use in your outfit are appealing to women from all cultures. You look sufficiently professional, chic enough to make your femal friends jealous and flirty enough to keep heads turning all day. You look so adorable that it brings a tear to my eye!

bwhite said...

I think it would have been better without the belt - the multiple waistlines and the button peeking out between them takes away from the outfit.

Sheila said...

I love that necklace! Keep it or send it to me. :)

Anonymous said...

I have started to put together outfits from my growing "collection" of items, but I often find that my outfits are high maintenance once I leave the mirror. Do you experience the same thing? When I put a belt on top of a shirt that wasn't "meant" for belts, the gathering has to be just so or else I will add fat to my body that isn't there. This can be hard to do with no mirror so I feel uneasy and always wanting to look in a mirror for checking. Just wondering if you have the same struggle.

Kasmira said...

Anon - I have found that if the belt isn't at my natural waist, it does require adjustment. This may be TMI, but I drink a lot of water and visit the ladies' room about once an hour. I adjust the belt there, in the full length mirror. Because I sit all day, it doesn't really move around much anyway.

Anonymous said...

green! is st patrick's day big in the US? in Australia, i wore green to uni and not s single person wore green. i'm asian by the way. hahaha..

IrieDiva said...

i really like the idea of the belt as well but the two waist thing bothers me also...

and i too like ur necklace :)

Anonymous said...

way to get into the spirit of the holiday! i love your blog, but why the slow updates lately? my girlfriends and i love to dish about and dissect your outfits. very fashionably inspiring!

Kasmira said...

Anon - I'm shifting "picture time" to the evenings so that I can get outdoor shots. So posts are usually a day late. :(

Later in the year, I can do outdoor shots in the morning.

Meg said...

LOL, sure we aren't related? We seem to have similar heritage. Maybe that light Polish skin of ours is what makes red hair work for us (I never even thought that yours might not be natural).

Mine's back to the natural brunette right now, but I love going red. My dad's side does have natural red hair, though, because they're... well, some Scottish, some Welsh, and even some Irish I think. But my coloring actually seems to favor my mom's side more.

I love that green blouse, by the way. If only I could find more things in that color.

Chocoholic said...

Hehe, my mom is German and has red hair so hey, it works for you if you're part German.

Speaking of hair color, what shade do you use on yours? I use L'oreal on my hair to get it red. I've been using the Preference Intense Copper Red. I've been using that shade for awile but I'm not sure if it stays as bright as yours looks in the pictures.

Kasmira said...

Choco - I just grab whatever "auburn" shade the store has on coloring day! I do use a color depositing shampoo, starting about 2 weeks after I color, applying it every 4 days. I also avoid the sun, chlorine, and harsh shampoos (no sodium laurel sulphate!) to make my color last longer.