Not Quite Menswear Inspired

Sweater: Ease by Alicia Plummer; madelinetosh dk twist in duchess; my very few notes and modifications on In The Red
Skirt: J. Crew; similar styles by Joie, Brooks Brothers, and a different version from J. Crew
Shoes: Marc by Marc Jacobs; same boot with a smaller heel and other options from Leon Max and Proenza Schouler
Lips: Yves Saint Laurent Volupte tint-in-oil in Cherry My Cherie

Why yes, it is time for another haircut. That will be happening next Friday. In the meantime, it is taking all of my self-control not to absolutely destroy my shoe collection by wearing it in this winter. I've been relying on my casual boots for far too long, which is why despite a forecast that may briefly catch me out in these boots, I had to wear something prettier today. This is also the first day in quite a long time that I felt like doing my hair, so obviously that required memorializing.

There is a little bit of thought that goes into photo days. Do I have enough brain power to coordinate an outfit? I mean I am invariably running behind in the morning and throwing a dress over my head is the easy way out. Does this sweater match these shoes? This is an important one. It was enough of a mental hurdle to pair navy tights with the black and oxblood booties, but ad I worn the original sweater I had wanted, my West End Girl, it would have definitely been a bridge to far. And while my Carrie would have been perfect and perfectly uncomplicated with the rest of this outfit, I did just wear it. I might actually be boring in real life, but on the internet I can totally pretend I'm interesting. Thanks for enabling that.

So what I like about this outfit: I adore pinstripes. I wish I had a closet full of pinstriped things. I like pinstripes so much that I once bought palazzo pants in pinstripe. Ask me how many times I wore those? The answer is once. Remember Madonna's Jean Paul Gautier menswear moment? I kind of want that all the time in my closet (and just for the day, some straighter hips so that pants look amazing on me). So when I saw this pinstriped skirt on sale for about 30 bucks, I jumped on it. Since navy is a total neutral it looks great with all my sweaters, even the aforementioned hot pink one. As for booties, I feel as though the 2014-2015 winter has been all about booties for me. I never gave them much thought before, but I aquired two pair this year and have trotted out my old dark brown pair far more often than in previous years; I am on the lookout for a gently used pair of Celine booties from two seasons ago to round out the category.

And you know how I said I was cutting my hair? I still am, but for reasons passing understanding my hair has looked pretty good all day long. Which is a rarity. I have this one really good pic of my hair shorter from a couple of years ago and I am definitely bringing it to my hairdresser,

but I'm also strangely happy with its current length (the bangs obviously need trimming and by someone who isn't me - though in fairness they turned out way less terribly than I had feared). The only issue is the massive dry, gross split ends that make me think I should just shave my head and start from scratch #woecake.

Pumpkin Smuggler

Sweater: Greenwood by Ann-Marie Jackson; Aran Tweed by Donegal in blood red; my notes and modifications on The Dolman Experiment
Skirt: J. Crew felted wool mini; I'm kind of obsessed with this Joa skirt but bought the dress instead, and if I think this MSGM skirt is pretty boss as well
Boots: Manolo Blahnik; so this is the time of year to buy your expensive black boots because everything is on sale. My argument for buying a pair is below, along with my list of pics
Lips: Clinique A Different Grape

If you're looking to make an investment in a pair of shoes that, treated right, will last a very very long time (the boots in this photo were bought in January, 2001), January is THE month to do it. Below are just a sampling of really nice boots that are really much cheaper than they're worth. If you have the funds and you have the desire, buy yourself a pair of black boots. If this isn't the year when it's in the cards for you, please remember that the latter half of January is when you'll find the best deals of the year. For those of us who do not need another pair of black boots, enjoy the eye candy:

Edgy - Emmanuel Ungaro
Classic chunky-heeled Jimmy Choo
Equestrian-style Tod's
Stretch suede with a relatively modest stiletto from Giuseppe Zanotti
Excellent value from Loeffler Randall
Square-toe from Acne

Now for sweater talk: I feel that this sweater requires a certain amount of confidence to wear because it is anything but figure flattering. In fact, it's figure obliterating. So if you're not feeling pretty excellent on the inside, do not put this sweater on. I chose to wear it today because it's frickin' freezing outside and because I feel decently enough excellent. Also the mini skirt is a good counter balance to remind people I am not smuggling prize pumpkins in my sweater. Having said all that, I really like this sweater. I loved knitting it side to side because you don't often do that; I love the yarn; I love the finished shape on me as a counterpoint to so many of my other sweaters. I named it "The Dolman Experiment" because I had no idea if I ought to get within a mile of this type of sweater, but I now wonder if I might now eventually make a lighter-weight one for warmer weather. It's very easy, breezy, and it's definitely style-defining.

Take Your Breton To Work Day

Sweater: Better Breton by me; wollmeise dk in natur and admiral
Skirt: J. Crew; similar styles at ASOSs, H&M, and bcbg
Shoes: Tabitha Simmons Lou leather pumps and there are a couple sizes left in this amazing sale; similar styles by Kate Spade and Sam Edelman
Lips: Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel in Showstopper

In light of my full-on sadface vis a vis the Grandpa Cardigan, I wanted to use a counter example to show why my sweaters need to perform double duty. Monday through Firday I work in an office. It's not overly formal, in fact I think I am dressed far more formally than many of my coworkers, but chalk it up to a conservative upbringing when it comes to comportment (on all other things, I am pretty sure my upbringing was pretty standard commie, pinko, UES, ACLU, NYT, ADL); Saturday and Sunday I am either not leaving my house except for groceries, or out seeing friends, maybe going out to dinner. And if I'm sitting in my house with no one but my husband to see me, I don't really need a wardrobe for that. Which is why my wardrobe is predominantly business casual. I have recently been adding to my jeans collection (thank you, sales), but when I think about knitting a sweater, I always think about how it will look at work and on line at the Whole Foods - because I am very vain and need to make sure the other insufferable yuppies aren't judging me on my clothing choices while I judge them on their carts full of frozen organic meals.

But where does a Breton-style sweater fit into that? It is a decidedly casual piece and is evocative of people not at work: people at cafes in France on vacation, drinking strong coffee and smoking strong cigarettes, and definitely unconcerned with formal dress. Yet it's also a navy and white sweater and navy and white are perfectly lovely, boring work colors. Ask me how I know.

I originally paired the sweater with a highly patriotic red skirt and while I wasn't turned off by the Happy 4th of July-ness of it all, the skirt is too big by a fair bit and looks sloppy when it hangs on my hips instead of on my waist, and it also made it a bit too long on my legs. So out comes the old faithful J Crew chartreuse mini, the navy tights, and the brand spanking new navy pumps. This last choice was probably a poor one as the amount of salt dumped in my office parking lot is dangerous to all but the most LL Bean-ish of footwear. I almost went with a navy blazer as well, but I thought that might be a) overkill and b) ill-fitting - this sweater is a bit too ease-y to happily live beneath a tailored blazer.

Red lips were an easy choice.

West End Girl

Sweater: West End Girl by some designer named Yelena Dasher; Black Trillium Fibres Pebble Worsted in Bright Rose
Skirt 1: J. Crew felted wool skirt; similar styles at Ann Taylor, Madewell, and T by Alexander Wang
Skirt 1: J Crew fluted mini skirt; several similar styles at ASOS including in chartreuse, purple, and hot pink, as well as a more versatile winter white at Nordstrom
Boots: Manolo Blahnik; I'm going to be honest - there is nothing out there right now like these boots which I bought from an online consignment store, however if you'd like to dream big with me, these Gucci low boots are amazing!
Lip 1: Bobbi Brown high shimmer lip gloss in Hot
Lip 2: Make Up Forever Rouge Artist natural in N31, Soft Fushia (sic)

Can you tell I had fun shooting these photos?

I saw a really cute, slightly cropped sweater by Acne last year that worked a lattice across the front and had really deep ribbing. Like a lot of capital-F fashion, it wasn't super accessible to people who aren't fashion bloggers, but I dug the lattice, and I dug the wild electric mint green it was worked in. Fast forward to seeing some of the Black Trillium Fibres bright rose shade and an idea was born. This process was not without hiccups, however, as it was my first time charting a pattern at all, and definitely my first time trying to apply a motif across multiple sizes in a way that would preserve the feel while making the sweater available to a range of people.

But I had some truly amazing and intrepid test knitters and the yarn, which I know I gush about a lot, is just ridiculously awesome (I know I'm not supposed to buy more yarn, but I am heartily tempted to get myself another SQ of this). I'm really proud of the sweater and I think it has looked wonderful on the testers which also makes me happy - the idea that people would volunteer their time and yarn and not end up with a sweater they love keeps me up at night.

Ok, so let's talk fun styling. It's a hot pink sweater. It's so outrageous, it's almost a neutral. Yes, it's fine with the grey wool skirt, but it totally works with the chartreuse one, and I also have a traffic cone orange skirt I think I'll wear it with. As for the metallic grey knee-high boots, they were a ridiculous deal (albeit used), and they fit perfectly, and I simply couldn't leave them on the site for someone else to grab. Will I wear them as often as I wear my knee-high black boots? No. Am I absolutely ecstatic that they have joined the family? Yes. Hair and makeup were also a blast for these photos. Whether I went with mod or pop, the sweater just encouraged theatricality, so I hope you find the results as amusing as I do.

And I really do think this would make a great Christmukah present to yourself - grab a SQ, take some of your time off to curl up with a sweater WIP, and show me your FO sometime next year!

Looking Ahead, Part 2 - Works in (sort of) Progress

Is it strange to be looking ahead when I have two sweaters in the super-active queue already?

The hot pink sweater came off the needles and went straight to the blocking boards Tuesday night which meant that a navy sweater got cast-on Wednesday evening.

I have vowed to get some WIPs taken care of in the new year. I start way too many sweater and then just abandon them. There's really no rhyme or reason to how this happens: both fingering and aran sweaters, both cardigans and pullovers, both plain and advanced, there's no rhyme or reason as to why one sweater gets started and finished almost without break and others spend years in the WIP pile.

My Fisher Queen WIP is in the lovely madelinetosh erin (which I hoard as a rule) in thoreau

and it is going to look excellent with my J. Crew cream colored wool mini skirt

and it's early to the waist of the body AND on super big needles! I have no excuse not to power through it.

Or how about the ubiquitous (in my social knitting circle) Grace? It's in one of my favorite colors, madelinetosh's brothers grimm (whose discontinuation god himself can't explain), will perfectly match one of my fave summer dresses from Anthropologie

and be amazing with nearly everything else I own (ok so I own several dresses from Anthro that will go well with a cardigan)

AND I solved my problem with the cardigan which is that I didn't like the plain shoulders next to the lace rest of it so mine has lace all over the yoke. It is also finished to around my waist.

There is no reason, I repeat no reason, why I don't have a finished Cocktail(Dress). I am making it in the phenomenally amazing Duck Duck Wool Singleton in metalware and this photograph DOES NOT DO THE YARN JUSTICE

because the yarn legit glows. To prevent attention from being drawn away from this awesomeness, I've used madelinetosh merino light in onyx and dirty panther, aka black and as dark as grey can be without being black, as the contrast colors. It's so friggin' cool. To say nothing of the fact that this is a wheelhouse dress like no other - I own at least 1 million pairs of shoes that would go with this (1 million might be a slight exaggeration, but I do own quite a number of shoes I can wear with this dress). Including, should they go on super duper extra holycrap sale, these eminently covetable (and seriously unaffordable) Gucci booties which, I assure you, look ridonkulous on.


On another tangent, do you ever find that while you love a designer, you haven't actually managed to knit any of her (or his) patterns? This is my monumental problem with Julia Trice (aka mindofwinter). I have stashed for her patterns, swatched for her patterns, and the closest I've come to knitting any of her patterns is the 3/4 of the yoke of Yukiya Pullover that sits in a pile with the other accusatory WIPs. And again, I couldn't be more fond of my yarn choices: I'm using various Buggas in grey, black, and red - so again, just my kinda thing. I think I'll don a cheapo black tank dress from H&M or Forever 21

(this is among the best 7-13 bucks you can spend - I own gobs of these cheap, disposable dresses which are totally camouflaged by a blazer and completely wonderful on the kinds of vacations I take - size up, this stuff is made for tweens - in fact, I took a break from writing this to purchase 5 more), and wear booties or knee-high boots.

I wasn't going to admit to all the WIPs I want to get through in 2015, but I think it will keep me honest, so here goes. I've had Cromarty on the needles since 2012 and despite the fact that I'm making it in a decidedly purple yarn,

no longer have the black pants it would go with (they were from Uniqlo and died a sad, though not wholly unexpected, death-by-hole), and really don't know when I will ever wear it, I feel compelled to finish it. This, realistically, might not get done in 2015.

The same cannot be said for Birchbark which I would happily have worn today with my flippy bcbgeneration skirt

and my riding boots

and which is going to make me so happy in this wonderful Polo & Co. neutral,

so why is it not already mine?!? I would also wear it with the jeans I need to buy from Old Navy

now that I know the secret to Old Navy jeans is to bring 10 pair of the same size into the dressing room and buy the one that actually fits because their quality control is shite.

And finally, 2015 will be a WIP success if Northdale becomes reality. I have a couple of inches knit and it's so much fun, but also tedious, time consuming, and not something I can do mindlessly. I also don't know what I'll wear it with, though guessing a navy skirt isn't the most ridiculous guess one could have.

I'd also like to say that there won't be a Part 3 of this series, but there will be, because we haven't tackled things I want for 2015 that I have managed not to cast on and abandon - and believe me, I have a list for that too.

If You Have To Dry The Dishes...

Sweater: Nora Sweater by Linda Marveng; Polo & Co Masgot Fine in gres; my notes and modifications on "Distaff"
Skirt: J. Crew; similar styles by Line and Dot, Joseph, and if you're one of the sizes left, on supersale at ASOS
Shoes: Manolo Blahnik Carolyne; similar styles by bcbgmaxazria and Brooks Brothers
Lips: Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel in Showstopper

"If you have to dry the dishes
(Such an awful boring chore)
If you have to dry the dishes
('Stead of going to the store)
If you have to dry the dishes
And you drop one on the floor
Maybe they won't let you
Dry the dishes anymore"

This is what happens when it's 8:10 in the morning and I ask my husband to shoot a couple of photos. Now some would say that it's love: the man adores me even when I give him the double finger and stick my tongue out, but in reviewing the 20 or so completely unusable shots, I think it's more a case of dropping dishes on the floor.

Over on the Yarniacs board on ravelry, there has recently been some discussion of how many sweaters people have knit and if there is a limit to how many one can reasonably keep track of in one's wardrobe. I have a frightening number of sweaters, but every so often I reevaluate their utility in my wardrobe. Maybe my taste has changed, maybe something that didn't bother me at first, now bothers me, maybe I've decided I can't really wear a certain color, or maybe I just look at a sweater, realize it doesn't get enough wear as it ought to, and consign it to the outgoing pile. This morning I was all set to wear a different sweater. I tried it on, it went well with the skirt, but something about the neck wasn't right and I knew it was going to bother me. My helpful husband said it looked like I was wearing it backwards (I wasn't) but I tried it on backwards just to see. Nope, something about me and the sweater no longer clicked. I generally throw them up on ravelry for sale for the cost of the yarn, because clearing out my closets in that way assuages potential guilt over new yarn purchases. It also allows me to look at sweaters like the one I ended up wearing and identifying what it is I like about them.

I like this sweater because it is both really busy and yet really refined. The combination of the light fingering yarn and the neutral color make the complex design work in my wardrobe. If I had knit this in red, a color I adore, it wouldn't have been the same. For a piece like this to end up in my rotation, it had to be a neutral, and I really love it. As you can see, I did very little other styling - everything else is simple so that the sweater can steal the show. I wore a similar outfit yesterday with a navy skirt, nude shoes, and a pink cabled sweater with a peplum - I'll wear it again before sweater season is over and get a photo for you.

The eagle-eyed among you will notice something unusual about the outfit in the footwear department: these shoes seem rather sedate for me. You're not wrong. This style, the Carolyne, has been around for years and I would never have considered buying a pair (I thought them a little dowdy); however, when one finds a pair on ebay for 1/10 the retail price and in one's size, well, it seems somehow wrong not to at least give them a try. And you know what? They're ok. They're not my favorites, but they are such a staple and as soon as the shoemaker fixes the tension on the slingback (when you have a foot as large as mine, shoe manufacturers also seem to believe you have barrels for ankles and make the straps WAY WAY WAY too big), they will get tons more wear. And one day, I might want to rock the dowdy look...

You Keep Saying You Got Something For Me

Sweater: Taqrian by Thayer Preece Parker; wollmeise dk in sternschnuppe; my notes and modifications on Happy
Skirt: J. Crew; similar color (and an incredibly amazing style) by Marni, really cute style at Kate Spade Saturday, and in my new favorite fabric neoprene at Piperlime
Boots: Manolo Blahnik, winter '00-01; this year's far less streamlined version, and the one I would buy were I in the market is from Christian Louboutin, but to be perfectly honest, I would probably wait and see what comes next - I prefer my existing boots (which still have many more years in them) to anything currently on sale
Jacket: Reiss midnight leather moto jacket; similar styles by Veda and on sale Marc New York
Lips: Dolce and Gabbana passion duo gloss fusion lipstick in Sensual
Nails: OPI for Sephora in Break A Legwarmer

I have decided that my eccentric fashion thing, that thing I'm known for (ok, maybe the second thing I'm known for since I think I might already be known for shoes, but that doesn't seem like a "thing" - lots of women like shoes, frankly it's a hahafunny thing that pisses me off, "oh you ladies, always out shoe shopping...") is going to be leather jackets. I'm going to try to score one on sale every year and have a collection of them because I really, really like them (provided I do not pay a lot of money for them). I never owned a real leather jacket until 2012 (I had a two terribly hideous thrift store finds in my HS/College years that were terrifying - and they were 1970s men's jackets because I was too fat for ladies' vintage). I honestly didn't want to buy something of value for a body I didn't value. It's why, by the way, I own all those shoes. When I was unhappy with my shape, I didn't want to spend money to dress it. My feet, on the other hand, weren't going to fluctuate with my weight, so they could have beautiful things. I used to swan about pretty much every day in $20 dollar clothing and $500 shoes. So I bought my first leather jacket from a Canadian company, Danier, which I can highly recommend for great bargains and great quality. I started with a center zip, fitted, burgundy jacket. AND LOVED IT! Oh my, it just makes a girl look so cool to toss on a leather jacket. So this past winter, I started looking at other styles, and I fixated on the classic moto. All the cool celebrities have one (I think Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent are the faves), and it makes a good girl appear tough. Soon the hunt I went. I knew what I wanted: the good old fashioned classic black moto with the chrome features. I wanted these things right until the moment I tried this one on at Bloomingdale's while I was shopping for something entirely different. It fit really well. And more than that, the style fit me really well. I'm not butch, no matter how much I might think I can play at it. My tough is a different kind of tough - I'd dare to call it steely, but it's definitely not an out there, let's take this outside, kind of tough. I kept thinking of Katie Segal in Sons of anarchy and how frickin' awesome she is and how I simply do not have that same look. The midnight blue, flat matte detailed, motorcycle jacket was just...me. The non-showy kind of tough. It went on sale, I hit buy, the rest is beautiful history. I love this jacket and I love it more than I would have loved its traditional cousin. It goes great with a dress and with jeans and is trying just hard enough without trying too hard. We're a good fit.

This sweater, on the other hand, is begging for you to pay attention to it. The color is amazing. I called the project Happy because knitting this sweater with this color yarn made me happy - and I knit it at a time when I was anything but happy. This was therapy knitting and it worked wonders. I really did derive some happy from sitting down to knit this. When I originally saw the pattern, I felt certain I would make it in a neutral, but then I discovered this color, which is a pretty perfect yellow and has a bonus, slightly difficult-to-pronounce German name, and realized that I could make the sweater in a decidedly non-neutral. Before I started knitting, I would never have considered wearing yellow; now I have a surprising number of yellow sweaters and an even more surprising number of yellow yarns yet to be bought. And I'm discovering that yellow is more neutral than I thought. There are few colors that won't go with yellow, and most of them (I'm looking at you, pink) aren't colors I would own a lot of bottoms in any way. I also thought it looked pretty good under my midnight moto, which is why they went together this morning.

A note on my hair: it needs to be cut. A lot. It's kind of a disaster. However, I discovered that my slightly Mod look benefited from the old "no these bangs aren't too long, I intentionally bobby pinned them back like this because STYLE" hairdo.

Video Killed The Radio Star

Sweater: Obsidian by Lisa Mutch; Cephalopod Yarns (very very sadly going out of business) Skinny Bugga in Montauk Monster; my notes and modifications on "The Shadow Knows"
Skirt: J. Crew - my god there are still some left. I bought three. Seriously this skirt is way cheap. I even bought this color in the wrong size because I liked it so much - I figure I can just wear it lower on my hips.
Shoes: Gucci, circa 2001. Miraculously, if you wanna be you wanna be you wanna be like Mike, and you wear a size 8, another size 8, size 7, or size 11, you can own these 13 year old shoes in white (I do!). These are not the original shoes I bought (for full price - the only pair ever) in 2001 at Neiman Marcus in San Francisco, but a replacement pair I bought on ebay two summers ago. I may have treated the first pair slightly roughly (ok, I accidentally hiked in them once), and was overjoyed that I found another pair on ebay so many years later. My mom bought a pair of these shoes, and while hers are smaller than mine, I convince myself I can almost squeeze my gargantuan foot into her pair should the need arise. Conclusion: I love these shoes. A lot.
Nails: Essie in Starter Wife which, because I have a sick sense of humor, is the shade I wore for my wedding.
Toes: Essie in Watermelon, in truth I prefer the orange I've been wearing nearly all summer, but I decided to change it up for 2 weeks.
Lips: Make Up Forever Rouge Artist natural in N31, Soft Fushia (sic)
Bracelet: Ever Together (no longer in business) magnetic bracelet. I looked for other magnetic jewelry, but none had the simplicity of this one. The artist, Terrence Kellerman, had better luck with his wallet business, Dynomighty, which has gone from a tiny studio in Tribeca (where I bought this bracelet also a gazillion years ago) to a worldwide success. I'm now really glad I have a bracelet and necklace. If you wanted to recreate something like this, I'd just buy the magnets from a supply store and get creative!
Bag: Longchamp, another replacement (thanks to very generous parents who combined multiple gift giving opportunities into one super awesome gift) for a bag I got in - god, was that 2001 too?

It's my husband's fault, really. He got The Ramones' I Wanna Be Sedated caught in my head in the shower this morning. Really good and stuck in there. I figured the only way to exorcise that particular earworm was the same way history did: with neon! I don't know how often you've attempted to match things to pale chartreuse, but it is not the most versatile color out there. I had an alternate outfit that involved a knitted tank top with corset styling, but even with a sedate navy blazer, it just didn't feel all that suitable for work. Enter Obsidian. Easy, breezy, goes with everything Obsidian. The why-even-though-I-have-the-yarn-have-I-not-made-a-second Obsidian. I can wear it off the shoulder with jeans and tall black pumps for a night out, with the cowl up as a hood for all the goth dress-up events I attend, or just like this with all manner of skirts for the rest of the time. I simply cannot recommend this sweater, and in a great neutral, enough.

I frequently worry about over-icing the cake. If you have ever eaten a cake I made, you might notice that I go easy on the icing and why I complain at length about the various cupcakeries and their ridiculous mound of sickly sweet frosting. so when you have a giant cowl neck sweater and a neon skirt, what more can you add? The slingbacks are black, so neutral, but with the pink heel for fun. Since my toenails were also that shade of pink, it made even more sense (and kept the color palette to three shades: green, black/grey, and pink), at which point I had to break out the pink lipstick that my husband hates and that I adore because I'm pretty sure it makes me look like Susanna Hoffs (and if you do not know who that is, obviously you are no longer my eternal flame). I am not a neon person, generally speaking, but as I've expanded the list of colors I'd be caught dead wearing, I find that a bit of retro brightness can be both fun and appropriate when styled responsibly (so I would not wear leg warmers with this outfit unless I was going to a costume party). For anyone who has tired of the 80s references peppered within this post, I say you're just not having enough fun with your Tuesday morning!

I'm on vacation starting Thursday so I won't be posting, especially since my outfits are going to consist of sarong, wetsuit, t-shirt with the neck cut out, espadrilles. I might, however, finish my striped sweater and grab some on location shots of it (crosses fingers). See you in a week and a half!

New Skirt | Borrowed Friend

Sweater: Raina by Marnie MacLean; The Sanguine Gryphon Bugga in Bomber Worm (similar but currently out of stock); my notes and modifications on "Kashmir"
Skirt: J. Crew on super duper sale right now!!!!
Shoes: Sperry Top-Sider Hayden loafers, similar at GH Bass (also on sale - July is a terrific month)
Fingers: Essie Topless and Barefoot
Lips: Clinique A Different Grape

I own flats! I'll bet you didn't see that coming. I happen to own these shoes in two colors and they are great for activities such as taking my buddy, Chief for a walk. Also good for that activity? A lightweight sweater and a flippy skirt. And the skirt has been on the radar for months. You see, I am a nut for pinterest because I use it to keep tabs on things I might want to own or cook and it allows me to check and see when those former things go on sale. This skirt from J. Crew was originally $98, a price I would never have paid (because it's J. Crew and its quality has gone way down in my lifetime while its prices continue to rise). The skirt is nothing particularly special, nor does it fill a hole in my wardrobe. I own a navy skirt, I own a flippy skirt. However, at $22.50, it is a completely necessary object; I bought two. In truth, I wanted the pale citrus because I certainly don't have a skirt that color, but my size sold out and I contented myself with the peacock green.

I also really love this sweater. It was my first bugga. I love how flattering the shaping is and how deeply scooped the neck is; I love how, at this point in my knitting, I was comfortable enough to change it up a bit to suit my tastes - the original had henley styling. I remember being so nervous when I started to modify patterns that I'd do something wrong and the sweater would look terrible and I'd be miserable. But that never really happened. I'm not saying I don't make mistakes while knitting, but the mistakes are rarely attributable to modifications qua modifications and often the result of my not paying attention. I would urge the more timid knitters to try it out - customizing a sweater, whether in fit or style, to more closely align with your aesthetic opens up so many more knitting doors and frequently creates a unique piece you truly adore.