MissAmy |

The story of THE shoes:

A month or more ago… I went into Ross.  God knows why – I rarely set foot in there anymore.  (I prefer to haunt TJMaxx & Marshalls. with my limited time & money I have to choosy.)  I tried on some shoes.  One pair was a Nine West metallic bronze snakeskin pair of what I call Barbie shoes – high heel, single strap across the foot.  They fit OK – a little long since they were 8 1/2 (I’m an 8).  They were fairly comfortable.  They were $16.99.  Well, I talked myself out of them.  I didn’t know what I would wear the color with, they were the tiniest bit big, I didn’t need to spend the money, and so on and so on.

A couple days later I start thinking about them.  I’m going on a cruise with some friends in September and have 2 dresses picked – one for the “formal” night & one more casual one for another night for dinner.  The first is a dress by Casting that I wore on my 30th birthday and on 2 other occasions.  The other is a grey leopard print Tahari that I’ve only worn once.  These are the dresses:

It finally occurs to me that a simple but dressy shoe in metallic bronze would work with both these dresses.  As a total bonus, I have a metallic bronze Lodis clutch that would work with metallic bronze heels.  So I go back to Ross.  No shoes.  I check all sizes.  I even check under the shoe racks, butt in the air & everything. Shoes get shoved down underneath, never to be heard of again!  It’s true – I saw lots of lost shoes, just not the ones I was looking for. 

Now, I figure I can find them on ebay – no dice.  OK, I’ll look for a similar shoe, somewhere, anywhere! Nothing.  This turned into an unstoppable shopping binge. I went to every possible TJMaxx & Marshalls in my area in the course of a week - we only have one Ross in town.  I even went to a Goodwill or two.  Nothing. Even. Close.  Life continues to happen - I forget about the shoes.

I went up to the Gulfcoast Town Center’s Lane Bryant yesterday (about 30 minutes north of the city I live in) to try on bathing suits  - totally need a new one built like a tank to hold the girls up.  Or architecture for the breasts(TM) as I like to say.  They shipped all but 2 styles out just the other day.  Two sad one-piece styles on a tiny rack was all that was left.  On top of that, they had none of the bra I wanted in my size.  (I did buy an awesome jacket on the sale rack but that’s another post.)

To console myself at the lack of bathing suits I go to Ross on the way to Marshalls.  Well, fucking A – the shoes.  Are there!  It might be the same friggin’ pair even.  Same size, everything.  AND they’re marked down to $10.99!!!!  The clouds parted. Angels sang.  The cruise is saved.  It was a little over the top.

Here. Are. THE Shoes:

The clutch has rainbow sparkles which I think is an extra-special complement to the shoes so they’re not too matchy-match.   Don’t know how they got in there – magic?

Next: must. find. plunging. bra.  Wish me luck!

That I seriously, seriously covet this finger ring by Cornelia Webb.

I’m thinking DIY but other than plastering my finger in gold leaf, anyone got any ideas?

Loves, loves, loves!!!! (via Design Milk)

Ways to style a handkerchief from the latest Bazaar:

Make it a bib necklace by adding oodles of shiny objects!

Wear a beaded fringe necklace over one to add more color, texture, pop!

My only history with handkerchiefs: When I was in 8th grade, Seventeen did a spread featuring them.  Of course, to be super chic, I wore one to school wrapped around my thigh over my jeans.  Yep, people thought I was nuts.  You betcha.

I guess they are the next logical step since we’ve been into bib necklaces & scarves for so long.

What is your opinion of ‘kerchiefs?

I scored this beautiful Italian bag by Ripani for $25 on clearance at TJMaxx.  The tag said “as is” & I couldn’t find the problem.  When I checked out the cashier pointed out that there is a slash on the backside of the bag.  You can see it in the second photo & the last photo is a closeup.  I bought it anyway because they are good quality bags, the slash is on the backside & I hadn’t even seen it when I looked over the bag.

I am thinking about running glue inside it to try to hold the edges down.  I wanted to see if anyone had an opinion on whether I should do it now, as a preventative measure OR wait till it actually starts looking more obvious.  I’m only afraid that the glue could make it worse so maybe I’ll save it for a patch job later.

Any opinions out there?

I staged a little photo shoot inspired by the Avon ring below.  It was the mystery ring from my first order & it is way too cool.  I got it on demo so it’s not actually out for a couple weeks.  (If you leave a comment & say you’re interested, I will update with the link once it’s online for purchase.)

Anyway, it made me realize just how many gold & black accessories I have & how good they all look together.  It’s such a rich look, even if the pieces aren’t actually expensive.

Avon ring, $14 (available soon!)

Black necklace, Target; gold necklace: thrifted

Ring: Avon; bracelet: Subversive for Target, thrifted

 Bag: Pulicatti w/ thrifted brooch as closure; seashell belt & leopard print purse: thrifted

My first Avon order came in.  It’s just my stuff this first time, but hopefully that will change

I got Moisture Therapy hand cream, Vanilla Frosting bubble bath and a mystery ring that you will see in a later post.  FYI: It’s fab!

Unless you’ve been living under a very unfashionable rock you will know that “tough” has been a sartorial touchstone for a while now.  Anything with studs, grommets, leather, chains, even zippers are at the core of the look.  I personally love the tough look – give me a pair of ripped jeans, harness boots & a leather jacket & I feel perfectly chic.  Scarily that’s almost all my inspiration board consists of right now.

On my stop at Kohl’s the other day I found two necklaces that embody this look & I had to scoop them up.  They were on clearance which made them all the sweeter!  I put together a mini photo shoot with those & some other finds I’ve grabbed over the past couple years that equal the tough, chained look that is so right now.  It will also extend into this fall & I can’t help but wonder if it will become a “don’t” a year from now.  Personally, I think motorcycle jackets & a sturdy boots are already modern classics but I never thought ripped jeans would make a comeback.  Who knew?

 Purses: silver strap: Echo, $36 (clearance TJMaxx); gold strap: thrifted, $8

Necklaces, from top: Target pearl/chain ($7, clearance); Kohl’s chains with gem drops, $1.80 (90% off clearance); Kohl’s knotted chains, $3.80 (80% off clearance)

I’ve been on a headband embellishing kick.  There will be two more headband tutorials rolled out over the next couple weeks.  Anyway, instructions for this red feathered one below:

Gather supplies: headband, feather, glue gun & sticks.  The headband came in a pack of several at Walmart & the other bits can be found at Joanns or Michael’s.

I glued the first feather down with the quill pointing up.  I trimmed off the really pointy, stiff part.

Continue overlapping the feathers, cutting the stiff parts, etc…, until the headband is covered.  It can be pretty messy so go slow & be careful.

And that’s it!

This is the jacket I went back to Goodwill for.  It’s from Target & I already have it in the burnt red color.  I’ve seen it a couple times at my local Goodwill & have resisted.  Contrary to what a lot of people do, I try not to own multiples.  I get bored of the shape & then they all have to go.  Sigh.  Anyway, I’ve seen other bloggers in this color (Tina, I’m looking at you.  I really am – check out my weird face LOL) & have been coveting. 

So, I went back to the store since I couldn’t get it out of my head.  I’m glad I got it.  I’m very into the Chanel style jackets right now.  I think they can look so rock ‘n roll with dark jeans & killer heals.  I played up the Chanel vibe with my DIY’d chain bracelet & kept it mostly ladylike this time around.  I do see that the belt makes my girls look like they’re too low on my body, so no more belting this bad boy.  See, this is how we learn.

 BCBG wedges (TJMaxx, $15), The Limited skirt (TJMaxx, $3), Target jacket (thrifted, $3.99), Gap belt (thrifted), DIY’d bracelet, Target headband ($1)