say goodbye to the old, and hello to the new

[alexander wang freja | originally $695 | purchased $80 at barney's new york outlet]

I spent new years' cleaning out my closet.  Even though it's still kind of a big organized mess, I did get rid of a considerable amount of stuff.  I have a really hard time of letting go - sometimes because the item has sentimental value, sometimes because i convince myself it can be worn a certain way, and sometimes because i tell myself i spent too much on it to give it up.  So for the pack rat like me, these are the steps I took to clean out my closet:

1) Is this an eyesore?  Eyesore is defined as not my style, has ruching, looks like it's from the Forever 21 clearance, has a black elastic band for a waist, etc.

• If yes, throw into a pile to sell or donate.  If the item is still in good condition and is objectively stylish, sell.  If the item has stains, rips, or is plain ugly, donate.
• If no, ask the following questions.

2) Do you have too many of these? or Do you need to wear it a couple more times before tossing it to justify buying it? or Is this decently worn but is still well-loved?

• If yes, set the item aside.  For the "too many of these" question, I took the least loved one or two of the item.  I then put these items in a separate closet, reminding myself to wear these before the next donation/reselling cycle.
• If no, the item has successfully passed the test and is staying until next cycle.

I had about a couple of shoes, oversized bags (totally a little bag girl), and some dresses that fell into the first category.  Made a good $58.25 from Plato's Closet for about $150 worth of items.  For anyone that has ever considered reselling things to Plato's, I honestly almost shied out of going down that path.  I read a lot of online reviews that complained about the chump change they were getting for their items, and a lot of things they will pass on.  Out of the three bags I took, they took everything but a pair of sneakers and a dress because of minor stains.  I consider that a pretty successful exchange.  As long as your items are in good condition and are still objectively in style for the teen - mid-20s market, they will most likely offer you a decent trade for it.  I prefer this to ebay, since I don't like dealing with postage and checking on listings and what not. 

And as for the hundreds of things still lying around in my closet this year, I made several resolutions:

• Wear things before you don't love them anymore.  I can't count the number of things I gave away that were only worn once or twice because they were too "of the moment" purchases.
• Buy only 1-2 quality items per month.  For January, this was the Kate Spade Essex Small Scout in spring red and those Alexander Wang Frejas above.  I have enough cheap shit.
• Do clothing evaluations every 1-2 months.  Part of the reason I have so much stuff is because I hoard and keep and never delete.  While I'll probably never have a curated closet, I definitely need to be a bit more ruthless with what stays and what goes.  Choosing what to wear in the morning is a lot easier when you don't have the entire Goodwill store staring you in the face.  
• Learn how to walk in the Constance's I bought last month.  I have never had this much of an issue standing in a shoe, let alone walk in it.  The angle of the shoe is crafted in a way that the entire weight of your body is 95% on the balls of your feet and 5% on your heels.  Yeah...not very good.  But I love them a bit too much to return/resell them.  So practice it is.

And there we go.  Cheers to a more stylish 2012.

confessions of a shopaholic

[alexander wang dakota | orig. $650 | purchased $190]

[alexander wang constance | orig. $675 | purchased $86]

[united nude block ankle strap | orig. $315 | purchased $95]

All purchased within the past 30 days.  I think it's about time I admitted that my working income has gone a bit to my head and I've been indulging in too many goodies lately.  Worst of all is I haven't gotten around to wearing many of my new purchases, as I've been throwing on the first couple of things that look wearable and office appropriate every morning because I've gotten too lazy and pressed for time in the mornings to actually craft an outfit.  But enough excuses.

Most people would do the logical thing and stop shopping, at least until they've worn all their purchases.  Some especially clever people would trade their old pieces for bandwidth for new ones.  Me?  I've carefully evaluated both options.  But the truth is, I haven't and will never lead a minimalist lifestyle.  Sure, it's fun to dress like one some days.  But that's the thing with me.  I dress like a minimalist one day, pose like a Japanese schoolgirl the next day, transform into an elegant office lady the day after that, and throw on some kick ass heels and some dark makeup like i could take on Lisbeth Sander the next one after that.  I wouldn't say it's because I haven't an idea of what my personal style is, but that my style itself is constantly evolving and iterating.  So can I throw away all those a-line mini skirts? Nope, need those for the schoolgirl days.  How about those blazers and blouses and sleek trousers? No way, I need something to satisfy my lofty professional look.  And those chiffon dresses?  Certainly can't take the girly from the girly girl.

So a large and growing closet it is.  While it'll take a while to make my way to certain items in my closet, at least I won't ever regret giving away a tutu skirt when I decide to be a ballerina for Halloween.  As for the reckless shopping?  Money spending will have to be put on hold for at least a month.  Going back to my old ways of ooh and ahh-ing at bloggers and their outfits and getting inspiration for my own.  Time to be more creative with what already exists - because there's a shit ton of it.

P.S.  Parents are coming this weekend to visit for the first time since they helped me move in.  This means taking mom to the Botanical Garden at Zilker Park.  This also means mom will insist on taking pictures of me in cute outfits posing next to a bonsai tree.

minimalism, makeup, and movember

on me: [vest | people's liberation | $6] [skirt | rainbow | $5] [shoes | gunmetal | $10]

on boyfriend: [shirt | no excess] [vest | 21men] [jeans | american rag] [shoes | 1901]

So I've updated twice this month, which is the most I've done since moving to Austin.  Black Friday just passed, but much to my dismay - the sales really weren't that great.  I got a skirt and lace shirt at F21 for a total of $11...and that was the extent of my shopping spree.  I did check out some boutiques today.  Mint had a sale for Small Business Saturday.  I got a four finger ring that I can't really move in, but is freakin' awesome and actually fit my fat digits, as well as a necklace with a gun on it with a very thick chain.  I don't know if it's supposed to be "gangsterish" or not...because it kind of resembles those necklaces you'd see on rappers and what not.  It will definitely be a fun piece to incorporate into my wardrobe in the future.  I'll feel slightly more badass (or like a poser) when I wear it.

Included a picture of the boyfriend.  I always thought it was really cute how fashion bloggers got their boyfriends to take pictures of them, and insisted that mine do the same.  But with how picky I am about photographs and how fat I look in each one of them, he sure puts up with a lot.  I'm incredibly grateful for how he shamelessly takes pictures of me in all sorts of areas (though I'm sure both of our neighbors think we're strange), encourages me to pursue fashion, photography, and blogging, and gifted me with this DSLR that takes photos the way I want them to look.  In the meantime, I've also gotten him to dress up a bit more and participate in my lunatic photoshoots.  I secretly think he enjoys them.  Oh, ignore the mustache in the pictures.  As much as I support Movember as a great cause, definitely not a fan of one on Hai.  It's prickly, to say the least.  4 more days.

Oh one last thing.  The shoes I have on by gunmetal?  Used to be $140.  Got them at Nordstrom Rack for $10. :D

chilly days and cozy sweaters

[sweater | cotton on | $9] [maxi skirt (turned into dress) | speechless | $14] [clock necklace | ebay | $3] [bird necklace | gift from eva] [boots | steve madden | $70]

Probably my favorite combination since peanut butter & jelly. This season, I've been really drawn to oversized cropped sweaters that have a tendency to make me look a lot bigger than I am (usually very undesirable) - but gives me excuses to hide the extra weight I've gained since moving to Austin. This city is not doing my body very well. Too much good food, and well - very little motivation to exercise. I need to get on that - considering I spent almost $200 on quality exercise wear/shoes. These pictures were taken two weekends ago, when the last cold front hit. I really wanted to give my new Steve Maddens a wear.  My first pair of real suede boots.  Officially convinced to stray away from cheap shoes forever.  Also, this kate spade bag from the boyfriend is marvelous.  I can't count the number of compliments received since I've put it to use.  I'm going to be sad when it gets worn.  I doubt I can find a similar replacement.  But who knows?  Maybe something else will catch my fancy then. :)

happy birthday to me

This past weekend was a pretty hectic, but in a really good way.  It was my long awaited 21st birthday, and I had a blast with great friends.  Several highlights included carboloading before drinking at a nice Italian restaurant, partying with coworkers and the boyfriend, and then heading to Dirty Sixth to get really wasted, and puking on the peddiecab to the car, and then into my toilet.  Just what a 21st birthday should be.  Some selective photos of the night may be posted at a later date.

The next day, my boyfriend took me and my amazing girl friend/party planner out to the San Marcos outlets - where I was instructed to go wild at Kate Spade (only my new favorite store).  Before that, we snapped some outfit shots of my birthday suit (no, not that kind) with the new DSLR he gifted me.

I am loving the quality on these photos.  I can't wait to take it for a ride to Europe or something.  Although that will probably be a while.  In the meantime, I've yet to uncover lots of photoshoot-worthy places in Austin.

This was my first time wearing my Kate Spade purse out, as well as one of my favorite screen tees.  I used to not be a huge fan of screen tees, especially if it said something stupid like "Live Laugh Love" or "Holla At Me!" (second one being a given), but they definitely add an extra touch to a boring outfit.

[shirt | zara | $8] [skirt | charlotte russe | $5] [bag | kate spade | $103] [watch bangle | ebay | $3] [orange bangle | f21 | $3] [gold cuff | duo boutique | $18]

This is my classic "But which one?!?" face.  Eventually ended up deciding on the black one for my mommy's birthday.  Giving it to her this upcoming weekend.  Hope she loves it!

I've also decided to start a Kate Spade idiom bangles collection.  The purple one has "Lay in Lavendar" engraved on the inside, whereas the black/white one says "Have Courage".  So cute.  I die.  I love how a bunch of these piled together looks.

Lastly, I took this whimsical trompe l'oeil burlap clutch from Kate Spade home.  I've been carrying it to work everyday since.  It's the perfect size to carry all my things without dragging a bowling ball bag around. :)

lazy sundays and 10 years

After a pretty exhausting week of work, this weekend has really been what I needed: lots of sleep, lots of shopping, some working out, and lots of good food. :)  I paid a long-awaited trip to San Marcos on Saturday and went wild.  One of the things I got was this gorgeous Kate Spade purse, which I couldn't wait to wear.  It's my first over $100 bag (okay, it was $103 including tax), and boy, does it feel great.  There is something about quality items that make you want to wear and wear them again.

So besides lazying around today, I keep getting humbly reminded that it's the 10th anniversary (if we can call it that) of 9/11.  It's kind of crazy thinking that it was 10 years ago.  I actually remember the day really well.  I was in 6th grade Tech Ed. class at the time, when the PA announcement came on informing us of what had happened.  We all thought it was a joke at first, and even when we got that it actually happened, we were too young to understand the gravity of the matter.  I'm not going to pretend I know the first thing about politics or keep up with current events, but it's always humbling when you're reminded of people that you knew that have been affected or could have been affected by the event.

So I'll be honest:  I probably saw a total of 3 minutes on the news covering 9/11.  The rest of the day so far?  Being treated to brunch, going window-shopping in Soco...and waiting to go to the pool as it's currently way too hot for that right now.  In the meantime,  I had these shot outside my apartment in the morning.

I always wanted one of these candid "walking away" pictures.  Only I'm not 5'11", 120 pounds, and poised enough to look like I belong on the Sartorialist. :(  And this is only...somewhat candid, haha.

[shirt | h&m | $10] [skirt | zara trf | $10] [shoes | payless | $15] [watch bangle | ebay | $5] [porcelain bangles | vintage | from mom] [bag | kate spade | $103]

I love this bag.  Did I say that already?  So I'm thinking, I'll probably do 1-2 outfit posts every week at best, but I'll try to post more thoughts on fashion-related things/news/etc. in the meantime to keep this blog running. Slightly embarassing linking this to Facebook in retrospect, especially when your coworkers are experts at the product. Oh well, it's been too long since I've paid super-attention to fashion anyways.  Bringing the girl that could name the designer, the season, and everything about a piece of clothing back.

New City, Old Heat

So these past two months have been insane.  I moved to Austin from Houston, got a new apartment, started a new job, among many other new things.  One thing that has been particularly exciting is being able to wear the things in my closet I've been longing to wear.  I'm also fortunate enough to have "no dress code" at work - granted, I'm not sure how my coworkers would take black lipstick, lacy stockings, and all that other jazz.  Probably not very well.

The heat has been the worst it has been - ever.  Over 73 consecutive over-100 degrees days.  Yeah...not much we can do with fashion.  In spirit of my first fashion shoot at Austin, I put on my favorite dress, my favorite bag and braved the heat.

The flowers are from a lovely boy.  I decided to take my favorite one out of the bouquet and use it as a prop. Ridiculously cheesy.

These gorgeous shoes are from Deanne.  They go so well with everything and I've been wearing them a whole lot.  Deanne, if you're reading this, thanks a bunch. :D

New bag from Zara.  I've been wanting a small crossbody for the longest time, and I immediately fell in love with this one.  It's too small to hold everything I usually carry, but I said screw it, I'm buying this sucker.

[dress | mint | $30] [belt | from mom] [bag | zara | $50] [shoes | bcbgirls | from deanne]