Channelling your inner 50's housewife...

Yesterday, while wondering what to do with myself, I decided it was the perfect day to sew a skirt. I can never find skirts I like. Ever. So, I decided to pull out my mom's old sewing machine and look up a pattern on etsy.

I hadn't touched a sewing machine since last summer, when I inopportunely decided to make a dress on the eve of flying to Rome. So, there was some relearning to do (like, how to wind a bobbin). The most difficult part, however, was that the pattern wasn't really a pattern, but a template from which you draft a pattern yourself. So, I ended up spending a significant amount of time on the floor with newspaper. There were also no directions, so you had to channel your inner 50's housewife and magically know how all the pieces fit together, how to make a waistband, where to put the zipper, etc. 

The end result was definitely worth it (it sits at the natural waist and has pockets!). The technique for drafting the pattern allowed me to make it precisely to my measurements and it helped me learn a little bit about pattern drafting. (Next, I hope to make a pattern from well-loved clothes that need to be retired.)

 I also made matching Hardly Alice-inspired gloves with some random lace and ribbon I had in the closet. 

The Lady's Guide to Valentine's Day: What to Wear

Valentine's Day is coming around again. So, here's a quick guide of what to wear: 

1. Blush is the best and most subtle way to enhance a tired complexion. Buy it here. 

2. This lovely fifties brocade fit and flare dress is romantic, but still sweet. Buy it here and explore the rest of Miss Farfalla's lovely curated vintage shop.

3. This gorgeous victorian ring is the perfect accent to any ensemble. Buy it here.

4. A dramatic take on the LBD is the perfect alternative to wearing red. Buy it here.

If you have any other ideas, share them in the comments section! 

And, we're back... with Rachael!

School has resumed. And even though all break we were longing to be reunited with one another and to be restored to the salvific influence of a schedule, the lumbering monster of the semester is taking a while to launch into action.

It probably didn't help that Winter skipped town for the weekend, and we had a lovely two days of seventy-degree weather. That's when I saw Rachael on the Mall. She was the picture of summertime with her floral jumpsuit and round shades. I thought for a moment I was transported to the 1960's. 

Dress well, test well: Zach Santonil

I apologize for not posting more recently. University life has a tendency to explode during the months of November and December.

Today, I ran into Zach, triumphant from his first exam. He still had his Spanish textbooks in hand and looked the part of a victorious Charles Ryder, having emerged from weeks with his books to rejoin his dear friends.

Now to find Sebastian Flyte on campus.

(t)urbanism

So the other night, I decided it would be a good idea to remove my scarf from my neck and put it on my head.  This, I subsequently realized, was an excellent decision. I also baked a pumpkin pie and drank pumpkin beer, both of which were also good decisions (don't worry, I wasn't drinking alone).

Emma S. goes Emma Peel with her neon cheetah-print dress and bright pink turban.

Wrapping one's head (I hesitate to say, 'wearing a turban,' because I might be accused of 'cultural appropriation,' even though wearing some sort of scarf around one's head is a fairly universal custom that has been practiced by both men and women all over the globe. I could keep going about this... but whatever) needs to make a comeback.

It's freakishly comfortable and just weird enough to turn heads.

Bob Dylan: musical fashion icon

Earlier I wrote a post about William Faulkner as a fashion icon for UD men. Well, this post is a continuation in that theme. 

 There is another and notable brand of man at this school. This kind does not model himself off of pipe-smoking Southern gentlemen. Rather, he takes as his icon Bob Dylan.

Disheveled shirts, old blue jeans, a cigarette, and expressive eyebrows, these are his accoutrements of choice.

Chances are, he will also adorn himself with a guitar, or maybe a mandolin. He is known to skip class on occasion, generally for the purposes of playing music. He may be mistaken for a hobo.

I'm sure you can think of some names.

The Mall near Braniff

He looks so picturesque there with hat and book.

Joan Didion

I haven't read any of her work, so I'm not endorsing her as a writer (if you feel strongly about her as a writer, let me know!), but, damn! she's got a great vibe going on her. Thanks, iBond, for the picture. 

So cool.