Photo by Matt Bowen (taken with his Droid) of the cinema-themed mural at The Avalon Theater.
Last night I saw the incredibly charming and inspiring documentary, Bill Cunningham New York. Bill Cunningham is a photographer for the New York Times, who is suspected of having created the concept of “Street Style” in the 1960’s. There are a number of really striking things about him…
- He seems like a genuinely happy guy (did I mention this is in New York?)
- He is incredibly dedicated to what he does—photographing ordinary people and fashion shows by day and socialites and celebrities at charity events by night, all by bicycle.
- Even though he has such a passion for clothes and is friends with some of the most powerful and wealthy people in New York, he lives an austere life in a small apartment full of filing cabinets of his work and almost nothing else.
- He treats all his subjects with equal enthusiasm and respect, whether they are royalty or a drag queen or a bunch of teenagers. All that matters to him is unique clothing and the daring and creativity of whoever is wearing it.
I think I smiled through this entire film. One of my new Life Ambitions is to take a photo of Bill Cunningham taking a photo of someone. It would be a really heart-warming thing.
Another item on my become-a-better-shopper checklist is to keep an eye on designer collaborations with major retail chains. I wish there were a site out there that was just a feed of the facts: the store, the designer, the launch date, size of collection, duration and some thumbnails from the lookbook. Dear internet, please make this happen. In the meantime, though, I found The Shophound blog as a news source, and also some useful shopping tips courtesy of College Fashion on how to make sure I get a hold of hot items (for example, a city dweller like me should sneak off to a store in the suburbs). That’s smart.
FACT: Switching between purses is a pain. I feel like I am always forgetting to transfer my work badge or my metro card or some small but really important thing because it is tucked into a little pocket I forgot to check. I think that this has contributed to my being a one-bag-at-a-time kind of girl. A few months ago I was reflecting on what a bore that is and then I remembered seeing a purse organizer at The Container Store and thought, “How easy would it be to keep everything in one of those so I can transfer everything at once?” FACT: It’s really easy.
I have been using this one (Purseket, $20) for a while now, and I love it. Not only can I switch between bags like lightening, but everything is always in the same place—not lost in an obscure pocket or tangled up in the dark abyss at the bottom of the bag. You know what I’m talking about. Also, (and I am starting to feel like a commercial here) the Pursket can roll and unroll to fit different sized bags. I’ll probably need to buy some more bags, though, just to test it more thoroughly…
Photo by Matt Bowen. Also see his really gorgeous macro photos of cherry blossoms here!
So here I am, looking almost too appropriate for visiting the cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin on Monday. I came up with this outfit in a sketch I did a while ago, and I count it a success because even though I already owned everything I’m wearing, I definitely wouldn’t have thought to put it together without sitting down to draw. Like I said, it would have been fleece and sneakers time for the old me. It was also interesting doing our first outdoor photo shoot: hunting for good light, trying to make sure nothing silly is going on in the background, seizing the moments when my hair wasn’t being blown in my face… My respect for daily outfit bloggers continues to grow.
I made a useful little thing for right-brained people like myself who are not inclined to do math in their heads: a Sale Price Calculator (click image to download PDF):
I know, it is tiny. If you print it out and fold it in half horizontally, it is the size of a business card, so it will fit nicely in your wallet!
Photo by Matt Bowen
I had been hoping to find a white dress for spring, but I didn’t dare to hope I would find one that was lacy, had a scalloped edge, AND was Fifties inspired. I’m sort of giddy about it. It is by Chetta B from Filene’s Basement and cost $50. Not to brag (commencing bragging) but a girl jumped out of line behind me as I was purchasing this to go grab one. The ballet flats are Steve Madden from DSW for $40. These were on my shopping list for work outfit pieces, but I have a feeling they are going to wear them for EVERYTHING.
I’ve been doing a little brainstorming to figure out what my personal criteria are for investment pieces so I can keep it in mind while I’m shopping. Doing that inspired me to make a list of things to be wary of in potential investment pieces based on some past, ah, misfortunes.
GO FOR IT….
- If it is striking and one-of-a-kind
- If it is timeless and well made
- If it is extremely versatile
- If it acquires character the more you wear it
- If it needs to function (think sunglasses that protect your eyes, shoes you’ll wear sight-seeing…)
WAIT A SEC…
- If it is a light color
- If I need to use it so often there is no chance of it staying new-looking for long
- If it is very fragile or likely to never look the same again after it has been washed/cleaned
- If its attractiveness depends on staying the EXACT same size I am now
I’d love for someone to argue with me about these points :) I’m sure there are a lot of factors I haven’t thought of, so don’t leave me misguided. That would be mean!
I’m thinking of wearing this for cherry blossom viewing this year. Yes, that’s the jacket I learned to sew buttons on! I like how the brown buttons tie it in with my boots and sunglasses now.
I would usually be wearing something like chucks and a fleece, so I’ve really classed it up here :) I own all this stuff, but I’m not sure what to do about a bag. I was thinking of a brown tote of some sort (that can fit my camera and some water). What do you think?
I like shopping online, but when it comes to jewelry and accessories, I sometimes get surprised by how large or small things turn out to be in person. Even when I take out a ruler and measure, it is hard to picture that little stretch of ruler as the diameter of an earring or pendant. Here I’ve made some neat charts to help me visualize that. These are typical jewelry sizes in millimeters and inches (Click the images to download the PDFs):
I’ve also got a nice ring size chart, where you can cut out the rings and try them on to determine your size (Click the image to download the PDF):
I’m sure I’ll still need to return things now and then, but misjudging sizes won’t be the reason!
These are two sites I’ve been looking forward to taking advantage of…
Cheap Chic Daily
Posts deals on specific trends every day. I am continually surprised at how classy and well made their picks look for the price. I like things pretty simple and classic, and in my experience, the lower you go in price, the more strange and unnecessary embellishments get heaped on. They seem to be really good at finding the gems among all the crazy bling. Clicking on an item you like will send you straight to the item’s page on it’s brand’s online store. How simple and elegant is that?
Wardrobe Diaries
Highly pertinent to me right now, this sister site of Frugal Fashionista (that I mentioned a while ago) features work ensembles instead of celebrity outfits. And they do come up with really fun and fresh work outfits made of very reasonably priced pieces. If you like an item in the collage, you click the photo of it in the box beneath the collage to go to it’s brands’ online store.
