95; Hotel Yorba

Dress c/o SheInside ☯ Flannel + Velvet boots: Arizona Jean Co. via JCPenny ☯ Trucker Cap: Billabong via PacSun ☯ Azaria Diamond Necklace c/o Vanessa Mooney ♥ ☯ Crescent necklace: Waloosi's Emporium ☯ Hamsa bottle + Hindu prayer ring: The Magic Parlor, Salem MA ☯ Coffin nail earrings: Black Water Siren ☯ Coin belt: thrifted back in Arizona

This outfit is so bizarre, but so fun. I imagine this is the outfit of a girl who wears her boyfriend's (or manlier girlfriend's? Hey she could be a lesbian too) stuff. Similar yet different compared to the last time I wore this dress, huh? I mentioned in that post how it's difficult (in the sense that it's a healthy challenge) to try to wear a maxi dress...because I am one to take multiple crazy pieces and put them togther into something semi-coherent, but having one whole entity feels too boring for me. I actually came up with a whole second outfit that carries a whole different vibe by just ditching the hat and changing the over shirt! (Same shoes, too, though only mainly for the colour...my JC Stevies or my cowboy booties would work just as well.) Suddenly I'm finding alternatives very easily and it feels very rewarding to be able to reuse pieces as such -- mainly because I can't afford to revamp my wardrobe every year with the rushing swarms of trends. I am bone broke, people!

So it means so much to me when I get the occasional email from a company offering to send me an item or two. I pour a lot of energy, money, and time into this little spot on the Information Superhighway and without income except peer responses. Company collaborations are the only "income" I ever see!

Thus I want to talk about how freaking amazing the people at Vanessa Mooney were to send me their jewelry. I typically pass up jewelry for clothes when shopping because that's how my brain is wired, and since their stuff arrived, I have been constantly wearing their jewels. (I am wearing the Poison Earrings as I type this, legit!) This is one of my faaavourite necklaces of theirs. I keep seeing beautiful teasers of their upcoming collection on Instagram and I just throw my phone down every time and whine like a banshee, because the wait is PAINFUL. (Dudes, I keep seeing a coffin ring with a pentagram. I am going to agonise if it's not part of their next collection. Because it is literally perfect.)

I leave you with a wonderful song.

89; Does anyone love the way they are?

Dress: c/o SheInside.com • Flannel: Don't even remember • Vest: DIY • Beanie: convenience store • Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell Stevie • Necklaces: Ganesha (borrowed) and crescent moon (new age shop)

Kathryn harassed me that I should put the last two photos on here. Fine. There. Happy now, Kathryn?

My choice of necklaces was symbolic, reflecting one of the few stories in Hinduism explaining why Ganesha only has one tusk. (Source) It's a story of how he overindulged himself on food given to him by devotees, and on his ride home his steed (the rat he is typically drawn being with) stumbles over a snake, and when Ganesha falls, his belly splits open and all of the sweets fall out. Watching this, the Moon (who according to legend always shone every night) laughs at him, and he takes his tusk and throws it at her, and curses her to never shine again. She disappears from the sky and the balance is disrupted, leaving the sun to always shine. The gods come to Ganesha to have him resolve the issue, and he brings the Moon back, but on the condition that she wax and wane, and can not shine during certain points each month. (New moon.) I just love the silliness of it, and the incorporation of trying to explain why the moon waxes, wanes, becomes full, and disappears from the sky.

I am really ridiculous.

I got this dress courtesy of She Inside. I'm a little late to hopping on the 'maxi dress bandwagon' but whatever. It's fun to use as a canvas for grunging up. I haven't worn one in like, almost a year? They're sort of a challenge for me, in terms of styling them. I can do A LOT when I can mix up the top and bottom to an outfit, but if it's all one entity, I have to get a little more creative -- and if you guys know me (and you probably do) then you'll know how lazy I am.

Still, black's a great colour in terms of clothing, and this just jumped out at me! I immediately knew I had to wear this with a denim vest and beanie, and either flannel or a hoodie. Since I'm lacking in hoodies that aren't incredibly oversized on me (comically so), I went for flannel.

I consulted Formspring as to whether or not to wear Stevies or Creepers with this. The general concensus was Creepers, but I was just loving how the Stevies looked, and I just felt that it was almost too predictable to wear Creepers with this outfit. I like the idea that the 'character' of this outfit is a total babe who loves grunge, but she only has girlyass clothes in her arsenal like dresses and platform heels.

Salia Ren put it beautifully in response to my Formspring question:

"Even though I'm not usually a fan of the Stevie/Lita shape, I'd still go with the Stevies! :-) Gives a different, pretty rad vibe to the outfit. With the creepers, the outfit kind of slurs, "Hey man. 'ts up man. Rock on." *rock hand formation* in a way that I would probably expect. With the Stevies, the outfit turns into some ensemble for a grunge rock diva, and instead of slurring, it might say (in a slightly high-pitched but raspy voice), "'ts up man?! ROCK ON BABY!" *rock hand formation showcasing totally posh long nails but with black chipped nail polish on them* Irresistible."

YOU UNDERSTAND ME.


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