On Going from Blond to Red

It’s been four months since I returned to red (from platinum blond). Changes like that are hard on your hair! My ends are still a little crispy and refuse to hold the red dye. Ah well. I think of the stiff, pale tips as “textured” and “highlighted.”

On to the outfit:


Cardigan, The Limited. Tank, George. Skirt, Talbot’s. Shoes, Pulse. Earrings, Target. Bag, Franco Sarto.

Cheap Cheap

I love shopping, but I hate to spend money. This outfit was cheap, cheap, cheap. The shoes and bag were less than $20 each. The scarf is from a swap and the dress was thrifted. The cuff, a souvenir from Canada at Epcot, might have put me over the $50 mark for this outfit.


Scarf, swap. Dress, Max Studio (thrifted). Bag, Payless. Shoes, Wild Diva. Cuff, Epcot Canada.

Lytle

Have you noticed the repetition of this backdrop? This is Lytle Park. Beefy takes these shots from his car. On the way to my office, he detours to this park, pulls to the curb, rolls down the window, and photographs me goofing around on the sidewalk.

Blazer, Forever 21 (swap). Dress, Moth. Shoes, Miss Me. Headband, Forever 21. Brooches (from top to bottom), my grandma, Beaded Garden, and Burlington Coat Factory.

This area is by no means deserted. The road is busy with cars and the park is a thoroughfare for foot and bicycle commuters. I can also usually count on a bum or utility workers joining my audience. It’s mortifying, but this time of day is sometimes the only opportunity I have for daylight pictures.


Past WhatIWore2Day photos from Lytle Park:


(Beefy left the car and we walked into the park for the Epaulets photo.)
I’m alternately laughing at my audacity and dying of embarrassment when we shoot here. Thus, there are a lot of downcast eyes and uncomfortable smiles in the photos. (Oh, and I’m also trying not to trip in my crazy shoes.)

Photos by Beefy Muchacho

Scotch Blues

I’m digging the combination of ruffled tartan blouse and pale blue skirt. It’s frenzied above and calm below.


Blouse, Romeo + Juliet Couture. Skirt, G. J. Forbes (thrifted and shortened). Belt, Target. Studded bracelet, Hot Topic. Fringe bracelet, self-made. Shoes, Nine West. Bag, Massini.


Photos by Beefy Muchacho

Sunflowers

Cool things in Wisconsin: cheese curds, sunflowers, and The House on the Rock. I took one picture of the cheese curds (they DO squeak when you chew them) and 67 of the house. Here are six pictures in the sunflowers:


Vest, McGregor (thrifted). Dress, Jams World (thrifted). Jeggings, Mossimo. Boots, Dan Post. Earrings, vintage.



Photos by Beefy Muchacho

More Than Manure

I’m afraid my first impression of Wisconsin was rather smelly. But I suppose that’s to be expected when posing next to a bunch of manure.


Dress, Isaac Mizrahi for Target. Belt, Buckle. Shoes, Steve Madden. Bag, Express. Earrings, Claire’s.

Thankfully, the wind whipped away most of the smell (along with my curls).


Pictures done, Beefy and I headed to Madison. On the way, I reviewed the photos and joked that I might title this post: “Wisconsin Smells Like Poo.”

I regretted my hasty words when we reached magestic Lake Mendota.



Wisconsin, you are totally awesome and (mostly) don’t smell bad at all.


Photos by Beefy Muchacho

I Heart Jeggings

I like eating and I like jumping. And I love that I comfortably do both these things in jeggings. First, I ate the Duane Purvis All American burger at the Triple XXX.



It has peanut butter on it. Yummy, but messy.
Then, I jumped around at the Tippecanoe battlefield.


Cardigan, NY & Co. Top, Mushka by Sienna Rose, Inc. Jeggins, Mossimo. Shoes, thrifted. Owl necklace, vintage.



Photos by Beefy Muchacho

The Oddest Thing I Ever Wore to Work

I talked this outfit up to Beefy. I told him it would be the weirdest thing I ever wore to work. He did not think it was so odd.


Vest, Forever 21 (embellished by me). Tank, Express. Skirt, Herman Geist (thrifted and shortened). Shoes, Sigerson Morrison for Target. Bracelets, The Bead Factory.

I thought epaulets, a velvet skirt, pattern mixing, and bright blue booties would be the most eccentric mix ever. It was perhaps not the most flattering, but definitely strange. I think Beefy has been desensitized by my far-out weekend wear.

Dye, Dye Again

Not all of my dye adventures come out as expected. I took an off-white denim vest from the U•turn Swap with the intention of dyeing it a darker color. I treated it with RIT Dark Green dye and got….


70’s denim blue.

I can think of two possible explanations for the unexpected color:

1. I didn’t leave the garment in the dye bath long enough (I made a timing error and the washer started draining after 15 minutes instead of the recommended 30), so the blue dye penetrated but the yellow dye didn’t.

2. Magic.

I’m leaning towards explanation #2.


Vest, Old Navy (swapped and dyed). Dress, London Times (hand-me-down). Scarf, Gap (I think). Shoes, Colin Stuart. Bag, Franco Sarto. Earrings, Jana’s Designs.



I may try to dye it dark green, again, and defeat the gremlins.

Photos by Beefy Muchacho

August Purchases

Second Sunday on Main
1. Leather earrings, $25


These were made by artist Monica D. She primarily makes purses, but also creates earrings from the scraps and found objects.

DSW
2. Steve Madden shoes, $38.30

I bought these to add a bit of an edge to my sweeter outfits. I didn’t realize that they were so edgy that they’d cause me to fall down stairs.

H&M
3. Olive, puff-sleeved t-shirt, $9.95
4. Striped cardigan with ruffled shoulders, $29.95


The tee is nice, but I CANNOT WAIT to wear the cardigan. It has the most over-the-top shoulder embellishments.

Buckle
5. Belt, $16.50

I bought this to replace my other gray/silver stretchy belt and to wear to a wedding in September.

New York and Company
6. Olive, tiger-striped cardigan, $39.95
7. Camisole, $9.95

I was just barely over budget for August when I walked into the NY & Co at Rookwood. Most of the store bored me, but I couldn’t resist this cardigan – both for its color and pattern. And I can always use another of NY & Co's fab (if boring) camis.

Total: $169.60

Y’all talked me out of ordering the tooled leather backpack I had planned to buy in August. I need to see and touch one in person before I make my final decision.

For September, I plan to blow my budget on an expensive, red, pencil skirt. Both White House, Black Market and Talbot’s are carrying a version of this skirt for Fall.