Thanks but no thanks, Wisconsin

Thanksgiving was... fine... going back to a small town in Wisconsin is always a bit of a strange culture shock... not that it's so different from Minneapolis - it is just weird to be back in a place that is so the same, but also so different than when I grew up there. Sleeping in a twin bed in my old bedroom (which is now an office - with a bed), running into old boyfriends who never left town, hanging out with my little brother and his giant dog... it was fun but four days is enough. It's strange, but Minneapolis is now "home" more than my home is home... you know?

This color scheme is in no way an endorsement of the Green Bay Packers:

 Shirt - Target ($6! yay for super-clearance!)

Cardigan - Daisy Fuentes

Skirt - vintage - www.stephaniegeisler.etsy.com

Tights - ??? The dawn of time itself?

Shoes - www.modcloth.com (free thanks to Daddy Likey costume contest last year!!)

My favorite hat... a thrifted vintage fox fur busby that allows me to run around in skirts all winter - as long as my head is warm, I won't freeze!

My second favorite hat... a newly thrifted French vintage wool and mohair hat (worn with earmuffs to keep my ears from freezing off!) I love this hat because it doesn't smoosh my hair puff and looks rather awesome with earmuffs, I think.

How was your Thanksgiving/Thursday?

still copying Kate Spade

I found this dress at a thrift store and it is so awesomely '90s but it also reminded me a bit of the big polka dots from Kate Spade, so I took it in that direction. 

 Cardigan - TJ Maxx?

T-shirt - Target

Dress - thrifted

Tights - Target

Shoes - Tracy Reese

With awesome thrifted coat:

Dear Tracy Reese, these shoes are crazy good (and not terribly uncomfortable for their height.) Keep up the good work.

This will probably be my last post for a few days... I will be updating the etsy tomorrow and running errands all day. I'm going back to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving for the first time in five years. I'm excited but also sad... my aunt/godmother has had cancer for about eight years and the chemo is no longer working, so she is stopping it and going on hospice. She is the most graceful and brave woman I know. Have a wonderful and thankful Thanksgiving everyone!

hello and goodbyes

Hello all! Had a lovely weekend - went to bed early on Friday after a rather late night on Thursday (watched season finale of Project Runway and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia with the boys). I gotta say, that I, like everyone else was none to impressed with this season of Project Runway. I'm excited that there is a new season starting in January and it's back in NY. Hopefully that means more Michael Kors!

Saturday was my last day waitressing! I've been waitressing and bartending at a golf club for EIGHT YEARS and Saturday was my last day. They are closing the restaurant. It was super sad to say goodbye to everyone, especially my boss who has been like my second mother. Oh well, time to move on. I'll have a lot more free time on weekends, just less money to blow on silly things (like shoes! and concerts!) I think it will be fun to find a new summer job for this year too.

Shrug - Target

T-shirt - Target

Skirt - Marc by Marc Jacobs

Shoes - thrifted Sasha Too

deadly dust bunnies

You know how people are always like "I can't wear white, I always spill on it"... well, me too, duh, but I also can't wear black... seriously, how do people do it? I feel like I'm dusting all day at work, somehow I just pick up fuzzy stuff, dust and hairs all day!

Let's do the detail shot first today because, come on, look at all those insane ruffles (not to mention the awesome pearl collar, worn as a necklace):

Black t-shirt - thrifted

Ruffled shirt - Romeo and Juliet Couture

Pearl collar - ebay

Cropped pants - Target

Shoes - MIA

Ha! Just realized my title is double funny because I am allergic to both dust and bunnies (well, rabbits). No mohair for this girl...

Kate

Was feeling a bit inspired by Kate Spade this morning... I thrifted this dress about two months ago and figured by the time it was full on fall weather I'd figure out how to wear it... I loved all the buttons and the plaid, it's just short sleeved, v-necked, and had HUGE shoulder pads (in short sleeves?!?! really?!?!) So I had to figure out a way to make it less "early '90s" and I think this finally worked! I stole the red tights and mustard color combo from Kate Spade and ran with it...

 Cardigan - from a friend's "to the Goodwill" pile years ago

Dress - thrifted

Tights - Target

Shoes - Michael Kors

Ahh, but Kate does it best...

Reality Bites

 I flew in from my Caribbean cruise Thursday night around 11pm... while I didn't feel ill on the ship, I'm having a problem getting my land legs back... I'm dizzy and swaying and keep crashing into things... it's called "stillness illness" which sounds awesome but is not... oh well! Friday:

Hair ribbon - came on a pair of pants

Scarf - thrifted GAP

Cardigan - thrifted

T-shirt - Target

Big ol' leaf pin - from a bag of costume jewelry my gma gave me

Pants - Target

Shoes - Juicy Couture

Monday: I was dizzy all weekend and woke up feeling even worse, as the rest of the cruise attendees are feeling better... perhaps a girl like me, who has had FIVE ear surgeries, should remember to bring earplugs when she snorkles? Inner-ear infection much? Stay home, crash into more things, feel least dizzy when sitting up so try to sleep that way and fail. Lesson learned.

Tuesday:

 Glasses - thrifted American Optical

Dress - Target

Tights - Target

Boots - Bumper

I got this dress on clearance at the end of the season last year but haven't worn it yet. I'm thinking it could be a good Thanksgiving dress - it's just weird to wear because the material is thick but it's sleeveless but winter colored... Alright, I'm off to go sit still all day long. It's gonna be a long, dizzy day (which means a boring day - dizziness = no running or working out, no reading, no cooking, um, pretty much just sitting and feeling ill. Awesome!)

pardon me while I go work on my tan

I couldn't resist wearing the new clearance Anna Sui for Target dress today:

Glasses - Prada

Dress - Anna Sui for Target

Tights - Target

Boots - Diba

The sleeves are unlined so I wore a tight black t-shirt under the dress, it being Minneapolis in November and all... This will be my last post for a week kids! John and Megan are FINALLY getting married (after 7 years of dating!) My flight leaves at 6:30 am - blargh, but hopefully that means I will sleep on the plane. I'm a nervous flyer (although my sister's husband is an airline pilot and he is super responsible and very much a double check things kinda guy and that makes me feel better. I just imagine that Luke is flying the plane and it calms me down. Also, my friend Hilary is flying with me and she said she'd have a mimosa with me while we wait for the flight, so if I'm a little drunk, that will help too!)

So I'm going on my first cruise, which will hopefully end better than that of lonely tourist Charlotte Charles! I'll be swimming and snorkeling and getting frecklier till next Friday! Bye!!!

Farmhouse/God Save the Sui

Today I am dressed like... I teach agricultural classes? like I'm going on a fox hunt?

 Blazer - thrifted

Oxford - Target

Tie - thrifted

Brooch - thrifted

Jeans - Earnest Sewn

Boots - thrifted Colin Stuart

Um, wearing these boots makes me feel so badass (even though I am wearing a skinny tie?)

So, on my lunchbreak I often go for a walk in the downtown skyways (for those of you not from Minneapolis, the skyways are enclosed hallways (usually on the second floor) that connect buildings across streets so you don't have to walk outside in the winter! Ummm, like dis:

Genius! They are lined with Starbucks and nail salons and sandwich shops - some are really evil and do things like make you walk through Macy's!) Anyway, I walked over to the Target (right next to the Target Headquarters - whaa!) to buy the last of my tiny little lotions and potions for my cruise next week (I HATE those things! They are so tiny and so expensive and I need so many - saline, sunblock, conditioner, etc!) I see that their "boyfriend" t-shirts (stupid name) are on sale and grab a new white one when I see it -- there on the clearance rack. I never let myself visit the Anna Sui collection in person, only look at it online, because really? I'm not gonna pay $70 for Target Sui that everyone else has. I'm just not. But there it was...

It's the only one there. It's my size. $30. How could I resist? I am weeeeeeeeak.

Grease is the word

This skirt and glasses combo makes me feel like Patty Simcox in a bad theatrical production of Grease, so I threw on the tall stripper-ish shoes and chunky necklaces to save it.

 Glasses - thrifted original American Optical horn rimmed glasses!

Necklaces - thrifted

T-shirt - Target

Skirt - Thrifted

Tights - Target

Miss Me - DSW super clearance

As I mentioned on Monday, I've been out sick for two days. I barely noticed I was gone, it feels like Monday because I slept like 14 hours a day! Feeling muuuuuuch better now, which is good - have so much stuff to do before I leave for the cruise on Saturday (at 6am!)

Trying REALLY hard not to go to the Mall of America after work today to see if they have this Stella McCartney for Gap Kids band jacket (on the left, duh!) in a boys 10-12... MUST. RESIST.

le sick ( you know, like regular sick but more glamorous?)

I stayed home sick today because I have a fever, and slept until 2pm!! Whoa! I am feeling better so I think I'll finally get out of bed and do a few little things around the house (it is a disaster from sewing two costumes this week). But on to the fun things - Halloween!

Here's my handiwork - I made both of these costumes! Me as Maude Lebowski, JRod as Max from Where the Wild Things are:

I started dancing...

And by the end of the night (4:30 am), it was all just one big dance party anyway:

I have a million more photos, but don't want to be posting photos of random people I don't know that well all over the internet, but rest assured there were 5 Lady Gagas, several Simpsons characters, guys in drag, two Dolly Partons, Wednesday Addams, a Decepticon, many animals.... the list goes on and on. So much fun, probably too much!