Last-Minute Halloween Costumes

I always come up with my Halloween costumes at the last minute. Sometimes they are really great, like that year I was a Munchkin, or the year I was a French chef, or even my Ninja costume last year, and sometimes they are beyond horrible, like my year as a fortune teller. If you've left off your Halloween costume to the last minute, here are a few ideas to keep your costumes unique and fantastic:

♥ braids + flowers + drawn-on unibrow = Frida Kahlo

♥ Striped shirt + matching hat + skinny jeans = Where's Waldo?

♥ Stripey socks + hearts drawn on cheeks + cute colored dress = Fafinette (Such a good idea, nitrolicious!)

♥ Black boots + black tux (or some sort of black pants/jacket combo) + powdered hair + fingerless gloves + black sunnies = Karl Lagerfeld

I had a bunch of good costume ideas, but now I'm blanking. I'll add to the list if I think of more. I'm going as a futuristic fairy, I think, if that gives you an idea. (silver leggings + floaty dress + wings = futuristic fairy)

Attention:

The deadline for the Blogging Society Challenge deadline has been extended to November 10th. Please, please, please email me your entries!

*Badge courtesy of the Grey of Six O'Clock Style

Teen Vogue's Fashion University

Hello, darlings! I'm baaack!

I've had a busy, fabulous, whirlwind weekend in the city, and now I've finally arrived home to rest and get back to my normal life. I just uploaded my many pictures to the computer, so get ready for a picture-heavy post! Click on the pictures for a bigger version, kay?

Day 1:



The first night, I went to the Erin Fetherston for Target fashion show. I was thrilled to be there, because I absolutely adore Erin Fetherston. The show kicked off with a short film called "Dollhouse," and then the models came prancing down the runway. The clothes were great, and somehow way less "cutesy" than they appeared to be in the promo pictures. Erin Fetherston came out at the end (the girl is gorgeous), but I didn't have time to take a picture of her. All in all, it was a great show. It was my first fashion show, and I hope it won't be my last.


Oh, and this is what I wore. The rain murdered my hair, but I am in love with the new dress I wore. It has unicorns and castles at the bottom - hooray!

Day 2:

This is what I wore on day 2. I officially love over-the-knee socks. They are the best.


My first seminar was Teen Vogue 101 with the editors. They were great - so friendly and informative. I learned a whole lot and wrote everything down like the fashion nerd that I am. I want to be a fashion journalist or editor, so this was really helpful.


Next I saw Doo.Ri. A woman who worked at Teen Vogue interviewed her, and then the crowd got a chance to ask her questions. This wasn't my favorite seminar, but it was great to hear what Doo.Ri had to say, since I love her clothes. She is so ambitious and driven, and very sincere. I can see why she won the CFDA Vogue fund.


After Doo.Ri, I got to hear the girls of Vena Cava speak. They were so sweet, and seemed totally dedicated to educating us about how to start our own clothing line. I learned so, so much from them, but unfortunately forgot to take notes. Still, they were great. I love their insane creativity and the fact that they aren't afraid to have fun with their jobs. Plus, I love their line!

My next (and probably favorite) seminar was a tour of the Teen Vogue offices:


The entrance to Teen Vogue! I saw the features editor leaving through these doors and raced after him to give him my business card. Eee!


We got to see lots of things, like the casting room where polaroids of all the models are posted up.


The best part was the fashion closet. I officially want to live here. The shoes alone induced massive drooling.


My new home, aka the fashion closet.


The last event I went to that day was Tim Gunn's talk. He was amazing! I had no idea that he was going to be such a good speaker, and I was immensely impressed. At this point I finally remembered that I promised you all the juicy details, so here are some of Tim's best quotes:
♥ On Marc Jacobs' most recent collection, "Let's just put it this way - I'm not ready for it."
♥ "Diane von Furstenberg is one sexy hot mama." (he was answering a question regarding whether sex sells in fashion and trying to let us know that you can be sexy in a classy way.)
♥ "Fashion is not wearable art - it's meant for the real world." (he was explaining the importance of wearability in clothing.)
♥ "The world doesn't need fashion; it needs clothes."

Day 3:
Day 3 was less exciting than the first two days. The only event was shopping at Bloomingdales. Oh well. This is what I wore:



Anyway, that was my weekend! I had a FANTASTIC time, and I hope that I can go again next year. All the other girls (and about 3 very uncomfortable-looking boys) had on killer outfits and were very friendly, and my classes were fun/informative. Plus, the freebies weren't bad!

I am exhausted and must go to bed. Keep the Blogging Society Challenge entries coming!

Oh, and by the way, does anyone know if Marc Jacobs was in the fashion district last night? I think I saw him, but I was too shy to say anything...

Enough P.S.'s for You?

This is my last post before I leave for Teen Vogue's Fashion U! I'm leaving tomorrow at 11:00, and I'm so, so, SO excited!!! I will hopefully be able to blog from NYC, and if I'm lucky, I'll be able to sneak away with the family laptop so I can upload photos of the event and post them here. Otherwise the pics will have to wait til I get home, so keep your fingers crossed!

Okay, I'm out. Wish me luck!

P.S. I bought some new clothing items for the weekend that you haven't seen yet. Stay tuned.

P.P.S. My business cards arrived today! I think they're adorable.

P.P.P.S. Teen Vogue emailed me a few days ago and said that a NY Times reporter was interested in following me through the event and writing an article about it, but the Times pulled the article. Damnit.

P.P.P.P.S. I spent all week treating my face with olive oil so it would be all smooth and clear and glowy for the weekend, and then I had to go and (accidentally) scrape the skin off my nose, effectively ruining my lovely clear skin with a huge red nose splotch. That is so like me.

P.P.P.P.P.S. You know what would be an amazing welcome home gift? An inbox full of Blogging Society Challenge entries. You go, girls!

Blogging Society Challenge - Entry Post #1

Are you ready to be blown away? Here are the first of the entries for the Blogging Society Challenge! Doesn't everyone look fabulous?! I love how all the outfits are so different!

H of Candid Cool

"It's originally a men's military shirt it's made of nylon so it's got an interesting sheen-y kind of texture. I had it tailored to fit me."

Christy

"Here, I took an XL men's shirt, put it on upside down (so the collar is in the small of my back and the hem is creating a collar around my neck), rolled the giant sleeves way up, and buttoned it asymmetrically across the front, then I belted it with the cummerbund. I love the way this looks but it's not the best outfit in terms of arm freedom. My range of movement there is a bit limited, so this outfit may be only for events that don't involve much reaching and gesturing. "

Daiane

"I finally managed to put up my outfit for the Challenge. Well, I actually did 2 outfits, you'll see them in the pics...

"The one with the bag is more casual, and appropriate for daily wear, out and about (I'm sending 2 pics, because in one of the you can't see the shoes). The other outfit which includes a LBD is a little more formal because of the embroidery on the dress, I hope you can see it. The photo is not that great, but I did my best :D I tied the shirt up in a little country style, and added the yellow shoes. "

Those are the only pictures I've received so far, so make sure you keep sending them in! A bunch of people signed up for this Challenge, so I'm expecting many more photos. I also, of course, have to post my own entry. I'm working on it!

Thanks to the lovely ladies featured in this post for their participation! ♥!

Panic! (but not at the disco)

As you all know if you've been regularly reading this blog, I have Teen Vogue's Fashion U this weekend. And I am freaking out over the event-related things that are happening to me, both good and bad.

The good: It's very up in the air right now, but there may be something in the works including me, TVFU, and the New York Times (!)

The bad: My sister is sick with a fever, and I have spent the whole day so far convinced I'm going to get sick and miss out on this weekend. Pray for me, seriously. My nose is stuffed, and I'm panicking!

If you want to cheer me up, please get in those entries for the Blogging Society Challenge! I still have only recieved one, and I would love to post some of them up before the weekend.

DIY: Fabulous Gloves

Did anyone else fall in love with the Armani Prive gloves featured in the Fall 2007 couture collection? I certaintly did. I'm a sucker for anything that mixes tough and girly, and badass fingerless gloves embelished with sparkling gemstones surely fits the bill. With this image swimming around in my head, as well as some other images (such as some gorgeous Betsey Johnson gloves adorned with bows on the backs), I resolved to make my own pair of embelished gloves. My project was decidedly a success.


Since I was attempting to complete my project using only things found around the house, I found some black knit gloves and cut off the fingers. I then riffled through my drawers, searching for jewels, cheap abandoned jewelry, and other sparkly things. I revved up the glue gun (okay, If you must know, I quietly plugged it in) and pasted everything on as I saw fit. The result? These beauties:









Okay, so maybe they're a bit rough around the edges, but I feel fantastic wearing them.

For the curious, the objects I used were:
♥ 1 pair of gloves
♥ 9 pink gemstones
♥ the leaf charm and chain from a Twelve by Twelve tag
♥ 2 gold buttons with an anchor design
♥ 1 broken earring
♥ 1 heart pendant
♥ 1 sequined bow patch

And the tools:
♥ scissors (to cut the gloves)
♥ wire-cutters (to cut the chain)
♥ glue gun (for the obvious)

The gloves only took me about 15 minutes to make, and I think the look fabulous. There are so many things you can embelish gloves with, like jewelry, jewels, chains, buttons, feathers, beads, patches, ribbons, lace, fabrics, etc., so it's easy to give them a personal touch. This is an excellent DIY project for anyone who lacks sewing skills (I'm working on it!) and has a lot of stuff lying around (guilty!). So go forth and embelish!

A Challenge Reminder

THIS IS A REMINDER FOR ALL PARTICIPANTS IN THE BLOGGING SOCIETY CHALLENGE. YOU HAVE UNTIL THE END OF OCTOBER TO CREATE YOUR OUTFITS AND SEND ME PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE. PLEASE DO SO AND GAIN MY ETERNAL LOVE.

Now here is some inspiration from a recent post on Hel Looks:



If that doesn't convince you that you can create a fabulous look from a men's button-down shirt, I don't know what will.

NOW HURRY UP, LADIES!!!! I HAVE RECIEVED ONE CHALLENGE ENTRY, AND IT IS LONELY!

Dress (H&M), Sweatshirt/coat (Old Navy), Bag (Lulu's Fashion Lounge), socks (Target), Shoes (Converse), Laces (Hot Topic)

I went shopping yesterday, as I mentioned. I wore the outfit on the left. It was just supposed to be comfy and fun, especially since I overslept my nap and ended up throwing the outfit together in two seconds. My only purchase (besides some California Maki...yum!) was the purse on the right. I needed a black bag that was big enough to fit all my crap for NYC this coming weekend, and I was lucky enough to find this one for $20 at Icing of all places.

Published!

Hello, grasshoppers. You are reading the words of a newly published author! I was surprised to receive a copy of the fall issue of Teen Ink in the mail today, and even more surprised to find that my poem was featured in it! I have a vague memory of submitting a poem a few months ago, but I never expected it to actually be picked! Excitement!

Here is the poem:

The Author by Kori Perten (me!)

The shadow of your voice is
ringing through the first gliding motion,
pen over paper,
drops bleeding memories on frosted panes.

Look out-
my reaching hands
hunger for your coiled words
and cut diamond melodies.

Give me your soul.

That clean path
of smooth seeping ink
glistens a tattoo across the
soft skin of your inner wrist

and drips sepia tears down your cheeks,
brings story to your lips .
Liquid smile.
Eyes that pull.

Your fingers radiate a
time-splattered story,
colors blending like
traffic lights through beaded rain.

Can you tell I'm thrilled? Even if Teen Ink failed to format my poem correctly. Get your own free copy of the publication here to see the work of many teenage poets and photographers, including yours truly.

I shall update you on my most recent shopping trip when my giddiness wears off.

Le Business Card: Part Deux

I just thought you might want to see the final draft (so to speak) of my business card. It will, of course, be less blurry, but this is basically it. It's been shipped, and I should get it the day before I leave for Fashion U. Cutting it close, I know. But I'm still totally psyched. I mean, people my age don't tend to have business cards. It makes me feel slightly grown up and slightly foolish.

Actually, I think that the business card illustrates something I've been thinking about for a while. Blogging has really been so educational and valuable to me. I've written for an audience that reacts and responds to my work, marketed myself, learned how to gain traffic, and gradually honed my writing into something slightly more polished than it used to be. In the past, my writing has only been read by teachers, parents, and the occasional peer (as well as the lovely people at writing.com who comment on my fiction and poetry), so it's wonderful to have a different kind of audience to target my writing at. I don't take myself very seriously, but I still spend a huge amount of time working to make this blog the best it can be. It's so great to be able to interact with others who share the same interest in fashion and dedication to their blogs. I think this is an invaluable experience for an almost-eighteen-year-old, and one that will benefit me my entire life.

The reason the business card relates to this is that creating a business card and using it to market oneself is something that most people don't get to do at my age.

Just something I've been thinking about.

Well, I'm off to take a quick nap, and then I'm going shopping! Hopefully I'll buy some nice things to blog about later.

Love Target?

If Marilyn Monroe was a crazed Target fan, she would have worn this dress.

That is all.

Sera dress, $49.99 Go Jane

Fashion Trivia

You've just put on a cute dress, but your outfit needs something else. It need something fun, something that will bring it to the next level while keeping your legs toasty warm. What do you grab?

a) Black tights - they're classic and always in style
b) Fishnets - you're feeling shmexy
c) The above leggings from cutesy girl

Answer: C! Duuhhh. Black tights are very nice, but they lack the added punch of these leggings. They may be tacky, but they are delightfully so. The black ones on the left are my special lovers.

A Fashionable Business Card

Right now I'm a bit giddy over something slightly foolish.

I'm ordering a free set of business cards from Vista Print so that I can slip them to Teen Vogue editors and the like at Teen Vogue's Fashion U.

Sure, they may find me annoying, or they might not even accept the card, but there's a chance that they might take the card. And possibly something might come out of that. It can't hurt, right?



That's the card I'm thinking of (only the print won't be all distorted). I'm having trouble creating a slogan, though. Do you like "musings on a fashionable life"? Or can you think of a better one? This is my first attempt at any sort of slogan, as well as my first business card, and I'd really like it to be as good as possible. I want my slogan to (hopefully) grab some editor's attention!

Other possibilities:

♥ "Musings of a teenage fashion addict"
♥ "An unhealthy obsession with fashion"
♥"Fashion that won't break your wallet"
♥ "An ode to a quickly growing wardrobe"
♥ "The not-so-average style of an average girl"
♥ "Where the catwalk hits the street" (okay, ick)
♥ "An empty wallet, a full closet, and an open mind" (double ick, I think)
♥ "Styling tips for the weak of wallet" (did I hear this somewhere, or did I actually make it up?)
♥ "Fashionable musings for a stylish life"
♥ "A fashionable journey through the aisles of Target"

Okay, so I wasn't really serious about the last one. But I cracked up when I thought of it, so I decided to share. If you're thinking that most of those slogans suck, I sincerely agree. They get worse and worse. But I'm just brainstorming here.

Did you like any of my slogans? Do you have any better ideas? I need your help, O eternally stylish ones!

Update: After realizing how little time there is before TVFU, I decided I had to make my order right away to avoid not getting the cards in time for my trip. So I picked "Musings of a teenage fashion addict" as my slogan, since I figured that my age is one of the things that really sets me apart from most bloggers, and I made my order. Thanks to those who voiced their opinions, though! Kisses!

Get the Look: Karl Lagerfeld

I was admiring a tuxedo-inspired jacket at Mod Cloth when I felt a sudden urge to dress like Karl Lagerfeld. As I bounded excitedly over to my closet to pull together a Lagerfeld-esque look, I suddenly realized that my wardrobe lacked anything Karl would ever consider wearing. So I trudged wearily back to my computer and set about finding a more femme Lagerfeld-inspired look to post here. It's not quite as fun as actually rocking the look myself, but it's the next best thing. So here it is:


1. Tough Tux Jacket, $159.99 Mod Cloth (no one ever said the look had to be affordable)
2. Ruffle front blouse, $38 Love Tease
3. Leather fingerless gloves, $33.23 ASOS
4. Risky business sunglasses, $9 Fred Flare
5. Joydon ankle boot, $98.95 Nordstrom

Powdered hair optional.

I omitted Lagerfeld's signature black tie in favor of a ruffly shirt because a) I am clearly a born rebel (hear me roar!), and b) Whenever girls wear ties it makes me think of Avril Lavigne, causing me to spend a few nauseating days with "Complicated" stuck in my head. And it hurts, truly.

Please pair these items with a pair of skinny black pants (or jeans) if you plan to rock the look. I omitted those because I was feeling lazy, not because I was feeling rebellious. Seriously, the whole no-pants look is only for messes like Britney Spears.

Oh no. I have just made two references to bad pop stars. I am ashamed.

Winter Coats Don't Have to Be Black

I recieved an email that said:

"I'm looking for a winter coat. I'd love some color, which is proving difficult since apparently all winter coats must be black. I luuuuuuurve this one - http://www.fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=2763&cat=344, but it's made of terry cloth, so it's not exactly warm enough.

So here's my question: Have you seen any sites or stores with really fun, colorful winter coats that will actually be warm? Do you have any suggestions for places I could look?"

Why yes, I do have some suggestions! I don't know of any store that's chock-full of colorful coats (although Topshop has a nice selection if you're willing to spend more), but here are some individual coats that might appeal to you (click on the picture to go to the website):














I hope that helps! Even though they're all from different stores, the coats are all reasonably priced and colorful enough to make you the brightest thing on the street.

Walk This Way

I am excited.

My good old hometown of Boston (well, okay, I technically live in the Boston area) is finally stepping up to the plate fashion-wise!

After spending years wishing that some sort of fabulous fashion event would take place somewhere nearby, the Boston MFA is hosting an exhibit on shoes!

"While shoes serve a practical function by protecting our soles from the elements and hazards underfoot, they have also become highly ornamented objects of obsession. Whatever the materials or the cost, however, shoes always reflect the time and place in which they were made and worn and the culture that produced them. "Walk This Way," unlike any footwear exhibition in the past, places shoes—from ancient Egyptian and Nubian sandals to new acquisitions representing the best in contemporary design—throughout the MFA's galleries to illustrate their relationship to other works of art. These provocative juxtapositions provide insights into the history, ornamentation, and cultural importance of footwear. In this treasure hunt of an exhibition, visitors might find a pair of Venetian chopines next to a painting of the city by Canaletto, a woman's shoe from the late 1790s embroidered with neoclassical scrolling grape vines exhibited with an ancient statue of the Greek god Dionysus, or a pair of contemporary wedges with rococo carved heels from MIU MIU's most recent collection alongside eighteenth-century carved and gilt furniture."

I am so there!

More information can be found here. I have been feeling a bit more healthy lately (well enough to finally make it to school and the mall!), so I've been thinking that I need to take a trip into the city as sort of a test run for Teen Vogue's Fashion U. Perhaps this is a good excuse! I think the concept of the exhibit is quite brilliant.

Let the Challenge Begin!

Okay, the moment we've all been waiting for has finally arrived.

Let the Blogging Society Challenge begin!!!

The Challenge starts now. You have until the end of October to come up with an outfit involving your men's button-down shirt, take a picture of yourself modeling the look, and send it in. If you want to write anything about your experience or describe how you made your look, it would be great if you could include that in your email. Please send your entries to me (fashionyblog@yahoo.com) as soon as you have the photograph(s) ready - I would love to recieve them before the deadline so I can post them up ASAP! Please note that I will be away at Teen Vogue's Fashion University (Eeee!) the 26th - the 28th, so I will be posting about the event on those dates instead of posting Challenge pictures.

I will be sending an email with this information to Challenge Participants to make sure that everyone knows what's going on, and I plan to change the original Challenge post to include the dates so that you can find all the information all in one place. If you don't recieve an email in the next hour even though you are a Challenge participant, you are probably one of the many people who didn't provide your email address. Shame on you!

I am excited to see what people come up with, and I will hopefully be posting pictures very soon. Please send them in as soon as you can! Thanks to all the participants, and especially to Daiana of Sweet Fancy Treat for all her help!

New Purchases and Things

Outfit: Pink suede motorcycle jacket (Luella for Target via Ebay), white top (Urban Outfitters), Leopard print mini skirt (swap), black tights, studded headband (I popped it on right in the store after I bought it...Delia*s), purse (vintage), scarf (vintage)

I made a second pilgrimage to the mall with a friend on Friday. I wore the above outfit, and I have to say I felt really good in it. It had a lot of potential to be tacky (leopard print, turquoise zebra print, pink suede, 80's purse...you get the idea), but I think it turned out okay. It expressed my exuberance very nicely, I think. I also wore my motorcycle boots with it. I've been living in the things lately. What a good buy those turned out to be!

Speaking of buys, my purchases on the said shopping trip were: the top shown above (on sale for $10) and the studded headbands shown above ($3), some assorted skincare products, and some cute underwear/bras from Victoria's Secret (I have never before purchased anything from that store, but my friend was obsessively trying things on and I'm not one to sit around while my shopping partner shops). I didn't get a whole lot, but I had fun.

If you recall, I mentioned a few days ago that I ordered some things from Twelve by Twelve. Well, they arrived right before I left for the mall on Friday. I had ordered a pair of leggings and a sweater dress, and let me just say that the size chart on the Twelve by Twelve website is extremely misleading. It appears to be the same as the Forever 21 size chart, but everything is bigger. The leggings were huge, and the dress was pretty large as well. I'm sending back the leggings, but I decided to put the dress in the dryer even though the washing instructions didn't recommend it and it shrunk to fit me. Here it is:



I do like it a lot, because it's really comfortable and has a nice shape. It appears to be better quality than things I've ordered at Forever 21. As in I'm not worried all the buttons will pop off and the seams will unravel. I was totally impressed with the tags - they are actually the prettiest tags I have ever seen. That was a nice surprise. You can't see them very well in the picture, but rest assured that they are quite gorgeous.

All in all, I'm happy with my new purchases. I've already worn the studded headbands twice!

Alert! Alert!

Just a reminder that tomorrow (Sunday) is the last day you can sign up for the Blogging Society Challenge! If you want to participate, get your (extremely toned and beautiful, I'm sure) butts in gear and email me!



Let's go, people! I am pumped and ready in an annoying cheerleader kind of way! I'll be the one with the impeccably stylish uniform and the megaphone.

Oh dear, am I taking the metaphor too far? It's late. I'm tired. Forgive me. (Or better yet, email me...)

How to Accept Your Body and Move On

Here's a dirty secret- Nobody cares about your appearance as much as you do. Seriously, it's true. Think of it this way: How much time do you spend in front of the mirror inspecting some body part, say your skin? I know I can easily spend 10 minutes at a time doing just that. And judging from the huge skincare market, I'm not the only one. Now, when is the last time you spent 10 minutes inspecting someone else's skin? What about 5 minutes? Hell, what about 2 minutes? Chances are, you've probably spent less than 30 seconds inspecting someone else's skin. Why? Well for one thing, it would be socially unacceptable, but also, why should you care enough to bother?! I don't! I'd rather listen to what someone has to say than stare at the size of their pores. It's just a fact. As humans, we are way more critical of ourselves than we are of others. This isn't because we're self-absorbed - though many people are - it's just because it's human nature to be self-critical.

Once you accept this fact, it becomes a lot easier to accept things that you don't like about your body. Sure, you don't like your big hips, but they look great on Beyonce, right? It's easier to like the same attributes that you hate on yourself when they are on other people. Take this knowledge and use it. Find someone beautiful who shares your physical "flaw" and write down why you think it looks good on them. These are the same reasons it looks good on you. Learn to love it! Big eyebrows? Look at Ali Michael. Long chin? It looks good on Sarah Jessica Parker, right? Big lips? See Angelina Jolie. Curves? America Ferrera. These so-called flaws are what makes the appearances of these celebrities unique and recognizable. Remember that.

This technique worked for me. I have a rather large nose that I have always been embarrassed about. Then I saw a big-nosed model in a Taryn Rose ad...



...and I thought she was beautiful. I thought her nose added to her beauty, because it gave her a regal appearance, made her face more interesting, and made her stand out from all the other models with tiny noses.

Well, you know what? My nose does the same thing for me. And I like it a lot better now that I've thought it through.

Learn to love your "flaws." The end.

P.S. Gala Darling always has inspiring "love yourself" articles if you want to read more of this sort of thing.
--------------------------------------
This has been an inspirational post instigated by the endless complaining of a gorgeous friend.

I Bow to the Shopping Gods

Today was an important day for me.

It was my first time every entering the following stores: Nordstrom (you gasp, but it's true), Anthropologie, and Zara. The new, highly luxe addition to my local mall is a thing of beauty, boasting not only the fore-mentioned stores, but also a Betsey Johnson, BCBG Max Azria, Stil, Marciano, and many other fabulous money-sucking places. I am seriously in love with Zara, because it's actually affordable, and Anthropologie, because it has so many pretty clothes and home items. But the real winners for the day were the shoe section of Nordstrom and Betsey Johnson. In Nordstrom, I bonded with all the shoe sales assistants (who were all men, by the way. Am I the only one who finds that odd?) as we oohed and aahed over pairs of Manolo Blahniks, gazed reverently at those Prada shoes that have been everywhere, and debated the merits of those studded Burberry heels. In Betsey Johnson, after soaking in the beauty of all the fabulous party dresses, I fell in love. With a pair of fingerless leather gloves. They were black and soft and smooth, with ladylike bows on the backs, and they were so gorgeous and comfortable and supple and lovely I could barely bring myself to take them off. They were $60, and they are now added on to my Hannukah wish list. Le sigh...

It may seem like a regular shopping trip to all you fashionistas, but for me, it was a religious experience of sorts. Not to mention my first mall trip in over a year (since I got sick.) I know many people hate malls, but not me. If they have the right stores, I find them to be some sort of fun alternate shopping universe, and an instant mood lifter. So head over to the Natick Mall if you live anywhere in the Boston area. The new part is wonderful!

Badges, Inspiration, 'n Things

Now that I'm getting so many takers for the Blogging Society Challenge, I think it's time to put out the badges I made that you can use to promote the Challenge on your webpage. Here are the badges:

<a href="http://modernmagik.blogspot.com/2007/10/blogging-society-challenge-lets-do-it.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y40/diditrocious/bloggingsocietychallengebadge-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Participate!" /></a>

<a href="http://modernmagik.blogspot.com/2007/10/blogging-society-challenge-lets-do-it.html" target="_blank"></a><img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y40/diditrocious/bloggingsocietychallengebadgee.jpg" border="0" alt="Participate!" />

They won't have the pink border around them (that's just on my blog), and you can copy and paste the codes anywhere that takes HTML. I would really appreciate it if you would use the badges - people can sign up until Sunday, so anything you can do to get more participants would be great. Plus, they're snazzy and signify how proud you are to be a Blogging Society Challenge participant.

Speaking of snazzy, check out this men's shirt that Kaisa's mom altered:

There's some inspiration for you!

If you haven't signed up yet, go for it!

I've got plenty of amazing participants, but I can always use more!

I will be posting dates next week.

Fancy Schmancy Cranium Warmers

As the cold weather comes closer and closer, I've been excitedly planning my winter/fall outerwear. Right now, I'm all about anything that will keep my head cozy and warm, while looking totally unique and stylish. Etsy, my friends, is the place to be. Check out what these shops have to offer our cranial areas (I actually listened in bio, har har):

Girl with a Hook:




I've actually been eyeing these sculptural lovelies for months. They are so gorgeous!

Pancho:


Loud and warm is how I like'em. This would look great with a t-shirt and/or bomber jacket.

April 51:


Ladylike with a vintage flair? Yes, please!
And yes, the doll creeps me out too.

Go forth and warm your heads in the name of the Etsy Goddess!