My Style: Some great outfits from the Gallery Exhibition...

So, this Saturday was the opening for the new exhibition at the art gallery where I work. Here are some highlights from my friends' wonderful outfits:

[caption id="attachment_133" align="aligncenter" width="385" caption="Berkeley, in a great fitting purple buttoned dress."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_132" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Kathleen, in a longer dress which she got for free."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_134" align="aligncenter" width="446" caption="Sara, in a pretty teal tulip dress with a zebra print cardigan."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_135" align="aligncenter" width="512" caption="Kelly, wearing a gorgeous black dress with lace trim."][/caption]

Please, leave me comments!

My new boots!

I got these boots at Burlington Coat Factory, as I have been having zero luck in finding "riding boot" style boots in thrift stores or on etsy. Every time I would see a pair I liked, they were the wrong size or were super expensive. These boots were $3o, which is more than I would have liked to pay, but they are super-cute and I love them, so what the heck. They're Roca Wear.

"My Style" throwbacks...

Some pictures I never got around to posting and some from before I started this blog.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="305" caption="Queen of Hearts Costume"][/caption]

I am wearing:

- Yard sale earrings (little running bunnies) - $0.10

- Halter dress (Salvation Army, can't remember the price but probably less than $4)

- Black and red polka dotted vintage skirt (Thrift Store, $2ish)

- Red vintage apron, vintage (antique store, $3, which I thought was kind of pricey)

- Claire's and Kohl's bracelets

-Red wedges (Payless, can't remember the price)

I wore that outfit for an Alice in Wonderland dance. I was proud of myself for putting together a pretty cute ensemble.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="359" caption="Sailor skirt (flea market) and moon boots (Payless, $6)."][/caption]

Got the skirt at a flea market and the belt is a plastic fish scale belt. It's vintage. And amazing. I think the skirt was $2. The person I bought it off of had sewn it herself. So, it's one of a kind. I sound pretentious. I apologize. I love this outfit.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="364" caption="All black outfit, but crappy picture."][/caption]

I wore this to a formal dinner at my university. I have had those ridiculous platform mary janes since high school. I got them at Hot Topic on super clearance for $4!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="452" caption="Zombie Axl Rose costume."][/caption]

Axl Rose is a huge influence on my style. I guess he's kind of a douche and is really gross looking now, but in the 80s and early 90s he was a mega-babe and had badass style. I love the way he combined aviators with rolled up bandanas. I am wearing a vintage leather vest I purchased off of eBay after looking at too many Kat Von D photos. Basically this is a combinations of Kat Von D and Axl rose. I would love to see their lovechild.

Sidenote: eBay is a great place to find used clothing. It's cheaper than most etsy stores (because etsy sellers are aware that they can charge a pretty penny for old clothing) and has more selection.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="453" caption="My Lizzie Borden costume..."][/caption]

Nothing about this really screams Lizzie Borden, but it was a last minute Halloween costume. I used some bloodied gauze (a decoration, not real) as a hip scarf and wore a groundhog skull I found along some railroad tracks as a choker. I have a puff-sleeved button up with a waist cincher corset over it, and a black peasant skirt.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="453" caption="Another shot..."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="604" caption="I'm the one in the polkadot skirt."][/caption]

I like this picture because it shows how much my style has changed. (This is from about three years ago, give or take.) I still like my outfit in this picture, but since I am 21 years old now, I've had to grow up a little. Still, I kinda wish I could dress like this. I have to get a job, though.

Well, that's it for now. I am posting entries in spurts because I am stalling on doing my homework.

Some jewelry I've made...

Here are some things I've made, some recent, some old.

[caption id="attachment_119" align="aligncenter" width="535" caption="Leopard pendant choker."][/caption]

I made this about a year ago. I am in love with it. I like chunky and dramatic jewelry, and I couldn't really find things I liked in stores, so I started making my own. A necklace like this takes less than ten minutes to make and it relatively inexpensive. You can purchase neat beads on etsy or at stores like Michael's.

[caption id="attachment_120" align="aligncenter" width="528" caption="Vintage pendant."][/caption]

My friend Kathleen gave me this vintage pendant for my birthday. Because it's already a "dramatic" piece, I decided to just string it on a piece of blue cord. This takes no time at all, but still looks pretty rad.

[caption id="attachment_121" align="aligncenter" width="464" caption="Game Piece Earrings."][/caption]

These were so easy and they look really chunky and cute. I made them in about five minutes using game piece beads I picked up at Michaels (a string of six was $1.99), and some seed beads.

[caption id="attachment_122" align="aligncenter" width="399" caption="Buddha chain dangle earrings."][/caption]

I made these Buddha earrings fairly quickly as well. I used leftover chain from an old broken necklace to add some interest, as the Buddha beads alone might have been kind of boring. I love making new jewelry out of old jewelry. I suggest picking up old jewelry at yard sales and reusing the components for new projects, as yard sales usually have the cheapest jewelry, and since they're so cheap, you won't feel so bad about tearing them apart.

If you want to make jewelry like this, you need jewelry making pliers. You can get a cheap set at Michael's or Wal-Mart. I have a miniature set, which I would not recommend as they are very frustrating to work with.  Websites like Threadbanger.com offer tons of great DIY tutorials. I can spend hours on that website, and I have made a lot of their projects. Threadbanger doesn't have an enormous amount of jewelry tutorials, but it's a good place to start off and get inspiration for your own projects. Craft stores sell magazines and books on jewelry making that offer patterns and tutorials that will have you get started.

Street Style Round Up: Leopard, Headphones, Striped Tights, Leather Pants

From The Style Scout and so on.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="480" caption="Beautiful woman with great style."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="410" caption="Great jacket, great shoes..."][/caption]

Fashion Icon: Cyndi Lauper

Cyndi Lauper recently released a line of makeup with Lady Gaga for MAC (which I want), but she's been stylish since the 80s. Her wild hair is her signature, but there's more about her fashion sense that I love.



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="320" caption="More layering!"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="499" caption="Lots of jewelry and lots of colors."][/caption]



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="486" caption="Diagram of Cyndi Lauper-esque outfit from the 80s!"][/caption]

Cyndi is one of my favorite pop singers. She has fun music and fun style. What's not to like?

Thrift Store Find from a friend...

My friend Charity found these great blue boots at a thrift store for only $5!!!





Very cute, and definitely a great find.

Hope everyone has been having good luck, too!

Salvation Army + Gabriel's finds!

Today, my grandmother and I made a trip to a store called Gabriel Brothers. It's like TJ Maxx or Ross, except that they buy stock in all conditions --  good or bad -- even if there are huge tears in the stuff. The upside is, everything is really cheap, even before clearance (some clothes are just $1!!), so you just have to have a good eye to find things in good shape. It's a treasure trove for those who love the thrill of the hunt...

Here's what I got from that store:

"I'M ILL / NOT SICK" Local Celebrity tee, $2.99

Price tag!!!

This shirt was only $2.99! It's super soft and has that thin vintage tee feel to it, even though it's new. I looked on the Local Celebrity website, and this shirt is $28.00 if you buy it from them directly. I saved $25.00!

"GANSTA RAP MADE ME DO IT" Local Celebrity tee, $2.99

Price tag!

Another shirt of the same brand. When I saw this one, I had to have it, and for $2.99 it's worth it. This one isn't on their website, so I guess it's out of print, but I'd assume it was a similar price.

T.U.K. Creeper Sneakers, $2.99

Price tag!

I couldn't even beleive the price on these shoes when I saw them. At first I thought they were maybe fake, but they have a Hot Topic store price tag on them. Originally they were $30, and I got them for only $2.99.  I saved $27! They are not as ornate or cool as T.U.K.'s other creeper sneakers (I have a pair of green leopard print ones) but they were so cheap that it doesn't matter.

After finding some sweet deals in Gabriel's, we quickly perused the Salvation Army that was next door. I like the Salvation Army more than Goodwill because their prices are more reasonable, they are usually much bigger, and they have rotating sales every week. Every week, different colored tagged items will be 50% off. As I said, we  just looked around pretty quickly because we were really hungry, but if I had more time I probably would have found more.

Here's what I got:

Polka-dot Full Skirt, $0.99

Price tag!

This is a cute prairie skirt that was only $0.99.  The hem is finished with a scalloped embroidered detail. I would wear this higher up on my waist over a halter top to create a rockabilly or 50s look.

Tapestry bag, $1.99

Modeling.

Price tag!

They had a lot of neat bags that I would have liked to buy but we were in a rush. This bag really caught my eye. I've seen a lot of woven bags like this -- I guess they are travel souvenirs -- but this one is really soft like a rug and the colors are very vibrant.

All in all, it was a pretty good day. I'm going to be doing a feature on boots, so stay tuned for a lot of boot-y goodness.

Street Fashion Round-up: Mickey Mouse, Gaga, Fascinator Hair Pieces, Mustard Skirt

Here are some of my favorites from Lookbook this week...



The belt really helps set that dress off. The scarf, the big bag, and the hair accessory (looks like feathers) are all nice as well. She has made great use of accessories. That dress might have looked boring without them.



This girl is sporting those Mickey Mouse-like sunglasses that Lady Gaga wore in her "Paparazzi" video.



Just a great blazer.



I love this whole outfit. The mustard colored leather skirt looks amazing paired with that bat wing top.