June Inspiration

last month i told you about my habit of dragging & dropping any inspirational photos into a monthly folder on my desktop. I know it's a a few days still until June actually ends but i'm way too excited about all the inspiration that's been buzzing around lately. I'm itching to spend a few quality hours with my sewing machine, or maybe a good day of thrifting, but instead i spend most of my time drooling over my favorite photos in my June folder:

location, location, location

Over the years, and my limited travels, i've noticed that location has a drastic effect on my wardrobe - and i'm pretty sure i'm not the only one. Even though the individual items don't change, the way i wear my clothes, the way i accessorize, and my general "look" changes from city to city. I grew up in Orange County, and still spend a lot of time there with my family. I've attended school in San Francisco for a few years now, and even though it's only 400 miles away from my home, the differences between how people dress is in each city very distinct. This summer, i've been spending a few weeks living in Phoenix, Arizona and once again, i've noticed how much the effect of location, and everything from weather to economic status, really has on how people dress -- so i've put together a few examples of how i feel like each different city changes the way i put clothes together.

ORANGE COUNTY

when i'm in Southern California, my style is pretty relaxed, casual and natural. the sun is almost always shining, so bare legs and bare shoulders are basically expected. I rarely leave the house with even as much as a sweater, and definitely never have to worry about coats or layering. Dressing in Southern California is extremely casual - lots of denim, colorful clothing, lots of natural fibers and comfortable fabrics. Silhouettes are loose and easy-going, body conscious but not highly structured. Wearing heels, tights, or too much black immediately makes you look formal. hemlines are short, the beach is nearby and whether you're into the beach scene or not, the proximity of the ocean has a subconscious effect on us all.













SAN FRANCISCO

there are 2 major social groups in San Francisco : the artists/hippies and the businessmen. This strange combination is part of what makes the city so amazing, but it also makes for a very unique fashion environment. Even though it is still in California, San Francisco's weather is distinctly different from Orange County. There is fog, sky-scrapers are constantly casting shadows, and there is always always wind. In this city, it would be inappropriate to walk around with bare legs unless you were aiming to be the object of cat-calls all day long. Because of the unpredictable weather, you cannot leave the house without at least a sweater, and layers are crucial. there is also more pressure to "dress up" a bit more, or look a little more "professional" in general for me, this means more pencils skirts, darker colors & neutrals, more heavy fabrics, and more structured silhouettes. it also means tights almost every single day and incorporating them into the outfit, since wearing a skirt with bare legs in that wind is basically unthinkable.











PHOENIX

i've only been here a short while, but i can tell you this: HEAT is the number one decision-maker when it comes to wardrobe. regardless of how cute an outfit or an item may be, if it has sleeves, if the fabric is too heavy, if it is too close to your skin - FORGET it. it's 120 degrees outside, the goal is to have as little fabric touching your body as possible (what would be considered completely innappropriate in San Francisco is daily routine in Phoenix). This also means black is basically out of the question except for in very small quantities. hair is always up and out of the face, make-up is minimal because it will melt off anyway. My own wardrobe has become much more simple, i rarely accessorize, and my daily wardrobe consists almost entirely tiny sundresses, tank tops and mini-skirts. American Apparel is my best friend, i avoid anything with sleeves and pants are entirely out of the question. i've also found this city to be more colorful, wardrobe-speaking, than anywhere else i've lived; my own outfits are much more full of bright colors and patterns than they ever have been before.





i think these changes can happen outside of location, as well: often we change our wardrobes depending on which friends we are seeing, what's going on in our lives, or whether we're going to school or out for lunch. does anyone else notice how their life & location effect their wardrobe?

hair peace

to quickly catch you up: i have lived my entire life in California, bouncing between Orange County and San Francisco (where i go 

to school for Fashion Design). But for the past 3 or 4 weeks, i've been "living" in Phoenix, Arizona. let me tell you something about Phoenix: it is hot. very hot. like 120 degrees every day hot.  it does weird things to your skin and hair. Despite the countless deep conditioners, leave-in treatments and an effort to protect my hair from t

he elements, it still constantly feels like a dry bale of hay, and looks about as good. Needless to say, i'm excited to get back to the California coast where my hair actually behaves itself. I've been lucky enough to have the chance to swim in a pool (luxury!) the past few days which was lovely, but the chlorine managed to strip almost all of the blue right out of my hair. so it's already back to platinum (or, really, at the moment, a very very strange shade of blonde and blue) and i am back to a clean slate! please observe the effects of arizona on my poor hair:

i recently picked up these two shades of temporary hair dye from Sally's, and i can't decide which to do next! 

 

i think i am leaning toward the pink, it's just so dreamy and romantic a la some of my favorite fashion icons: gwen stefani circa 1999, and marie antoinette:

this photo of rachel mcadams reminds me of 80's Barbie, so so good.

but i also really, really love the lisa-frank wonderfulness of this girls bangs, and it would utilize BOTH colors, hmm...

opinions?

ps: soon to come, a post on the effect of LOCATION on a peron's wardrobe. i have noticed i dress in distinctly different ways depending on whether i am in San Francisco, Orange County or, now, Phoenix, and i believe it has to do with more than just the weather. have any of you found this to be true?

live fast and dye your hair

maybe it's something about not having a "real" job, maybe it's the fact that it's summer, or maybe it's just the fact that it had been over 6 months since i last changed my hair. but for the past few months i've been considering trying some marie-antoinette, cotton-candy inspired pastel hair colors. additionally, i've recently been a little obsessed with Ghost-World, Luella-spring -08 inspired fashion, and i've been craving some 90's punk influence mixed into my typical wardrobe.


since my hair was already pretty white, i just picked up some temporary hair dye from Sally's Beauty Supply last week and dove in head first. i mean hey, it's summer, what better time than to potentially mess up your hair? fortunately, it turned out really pretty much exactly how i'd hoped. a few examples of how it's looked the past few days:

it's always been my secret wish and life goal to have mermaid hair, and i feel like this may be the closest i'll ever get. this color should wash out in the next week or two, and next i'm thinking of trying more pastels, especially pink and purple. i'm loving these two shades from Manic Panic.

what do you think?!

punk rock changed our lives

so for the past half hour i've been browsing my new obsession: VinVan77's amazing screenprinted t-shirts and tote bags on e-bay. if you know me, you know punk and grunge aren't a part of my daily wardrobe but that's not to say i don't love me some doc marten's and a good, worn-in t-shirt every once in a while. and with this selection of perfect tee's and canvas totes basically as tall as me (eco-friendly grocery shopping, anyone?), i'm practically salivating. ah, i miss the days when i had money to spend on clothes (aka, pre-college, oh my).







check out these & TONS MORE on their EBAY STORE

gatsby

just wanted to post a quick note that my etsy store is currently stocked with a fresh batch of Black and Brown Peacock Headbands as well as lots of vintage goodies, and there is more on the way in the next few days! be sure to check back often, i'm excited about all the new items!

thanks babies & happy shopping! ♥

the lost girls

hello dear world wide web, i finally have an internet connection here after nearly 2 full of weeks of no internet connection at all, and as sad as it may be i have to admit i started to feel a bit like i was drowning. but i am finally back and it feels so good, and i have so much to tell you about! first, maybe most excitingly (although so many exciting things are happening), is the news i read recently about the new GREY GARDENS film, based on the original documentary, that is currently in filming. i may be a bit on the slow end of receiving this news but oh my goodness! if you love any of the following - fashion, eccentric humans, beautiful women, crumbling old houses, show-tunes, vintage anything - YOU MUST SEE THIS FILM.



most of you will have heard of Grey Gardens by now, so i will only give a short summary: a documentary in 1975 was released, starring Edie Bouvier Beale ("Big Edie") and her daughter "Little Edie" (not so little, being somewhere around 65 in the film), distant cousins of Jackie O. The women live in a large, once grand, estate that is now literally crumbling to pieces under their feet. They rarely leave the house or the grounds, and instead choose to live in a strange, romantic, eerie sort of solitary existence. They sing and dance classic show-tunes all day, and reminisce over days gone by. The film was particularly noticed when it was re-released in the past few years by the fashion world, and many designers have admitted to being hugely inspired by Big & Little Edie's eccentric, dramatic, rag-tag style. Only a few years ago, shortly after the Criterion Collection release of Grey Gardens, the Criterion Collection also released The Beales of Grey Gardens, a whole second film made up of extra documentary footage which was just as fascinating as the first.





and NOW there is a feature film movie in production, based on the lives of the Beale women, set for release in November of 2008. The film Grey Gardens will be starring DREW BARRYMORE as "Little Edie" and Jessica Lange as "Big Edie", and i could not be more excited about these choices.





IMDB summarizes the goal of the movie best: Based on the life stories of the eccentric aunt and first cousin of Jackie Kennedy (both named Edith Bouvier Beale aka "Big and Little Edie") raised as Park Avenue débutantes but who withdrew from New York society, taking shelter at their Long Island summer home, "Grey Gardens." As their wealth and contact with the outside world dwindled, so did their grasp on reality. They were reintroduced to the world when international tabloids learned of a health department raid on their home, and Jackie swooped in to save her relatives.

with this & the Chanel biopic on their way, this year is looking to be pretty exciting for fashion on the big screen.

(and of course, my Little Edie inspired polyvore:)