'Star Crossed?'

It was a bit funny reading Susie Bubble's love letter to grey jersey. You see, last week I was shopping for sheets and the only pair that I liked were grey jersey sheets. Then, this is what I wore to work today (note the grey jersey cardigan and skirt).

All that, plus reading about how AA tri-blend leggings "just sort of melt into your skin", it feels like grey jersey is making a star-crossed appearance in my life.

Jeez. Hearing about legwear that comfortable makes me want to buy a pair - and maybe a t-shirt while I'm at it?

Girl Anachronism

It's amazing how this Face Hunter girl manages to encompass just about every single trend that I adore into one outfit. Really, she's got it down to a science! I can only imagine the complex mathematical calculations she has to go through every morning in order to include the exact amount of red lipstick, bows, headband, sequins, tulle and brown into her outfit before it becomes tacky. It's like she stepped right out of the 1920s and into my ultimate fashion dreamcloud. Sigh.

Why did I even write this?

I have been silently wishing, hoping and praying that summer will soon give way to some crisp fall weather. You see, in summer I tend to adopt a uniform of a white shirts and jean shorts - not exactly exciting blog-worthy material. Once I can wear tights, socks and tights with socks the 'fashion' in my life is bound to pick up.

When I saw this Autumn-ready photo on Moderniteter, I just thought "YES!" I love how cozy and warm the ratty old grey sweater is, and how perfect it looks with the tights, brown shoes and a pinch of florals.

Dude, I am having such a 'brown shoe' moment right now. I used to HATE brown shoes with a passion but they seem so rustic and charming to me now. (Oh God, why did I choose rustic as an adjective???)

Front Lines of the Reporter Search

This FASHION Magazine contest is starting to drive me crazy. It's messing with my head, you know? One day I'll be winning and the next day my competitor will be beating me by 5%! There is two weeks left of the competition, plenty of time left to swing the votes my way permanently but it can't be done without the help of you lovely readers. Please vote for me every day!

And while you're at it, you should check out the other entries too. There are some real gems to be read. My absolute favourite entry is from Amanda Bulman from 'Eastern Canada 2' who writes about finding a Marc Jacob's dress for $2! Plus her writing style is charming and witty. Now that is my kinda woman...

My other favourite happens to be Connie from the Toronto category. She writes about modernizing a pair of '90s skater pants. This would not normally catch my interest OR my approval, but Connies does it in such good taste that I just can't help but love her entry. Oh, and her fashion motto happens to be "it's so ugly, it works". And it really does, just look at what she did with a pair of plaid boxers!

The Dark Knight: Movie Review

The Dark Knight: This is my first ever movie review, so don't expect it to be enlightening. Also, may contain spoilers.

So overall it was a decent movie, probably a 7/10? Maybe 8/10 if I'm feeling really nice. But there were a few niggling details that really got to me. #1 being Batman's voice. Every time Christian Bale turned into Batman, he put on this husky affectation that made him sound more like a chain-smoking Louis Armstrong than a tough guy. Then there was the Batmobile, which could be more accurately renamed 'SUV-Mobile'. If Batman was so socially conscious, then why couldn't he have downsized that gas-guzzler into something a little more earth-friendly? Though I must admit, it was awesome when the Batmobile turned into a motorcycle. Someone else might not have even noticed these things that really irked me, but I did so they knock 2-3 points off the movie's overall score.

Predictably, the Joker was awesome in his custom-made purple suit. Heath was so convincing, that even when the Joker's makeup he was still completely in character. All criminals should dress up like the Insane Clown Posse, all the time. Oh yeah, and Aaron Eckhart and Maggie Gyllenhaal were hot. I loved when Harvey Dent had that whole 'Phantom of the Opera' thing going on and turned into a bad guy. That was great.

"Some men just want to watch the world burn" was probably the most memorable quote, coming from Alfred the Butler. Even thought the Dark Knight was pretty cool, I am still partial to the bumbling Adam West in the 1960s tv series/movie. Which reminds me, where the hell was Robin???

You do have rights!

An infinite thanks to those who keep voting for me. They are working, as I am back in the lead. I appreciate every single vote cast for me SO MUCH! Keep voting every day until the deadline, August 11th.

In Toronto, I ended up buying a motley mix of old and new clothing. At H&M these lumberjack skinny pants were too bizarre for me to resist, plus some basic tanks and a peter pan collar shirt that isn't interesting enough to warrant a picture.

At Kensignton market there was so much vintage to choose from that I ended up being really picky. I bought this "Holy 1980s, Batman!" t-shirt and this cute 1970s skirt that should NEVER be worn together as I am demonstrating below. I am having major buyers remorse about the skirt, though. When the hell am I going to wear it? Those strawberries and daisies are a little too cheerful for me. On the other hand, the shirt... I was going to wear it to see the Dark Knight tonight but it was SOLD OUT so here I am angrily typing up a blog post. Grrrrr, must see that movie!

That's it, I'm booking tickets online.

Resist Psychic Death

Ahhh,Ryan and I took the train up to Toronto on the weekend for a much needed escape to the city. It was hot and muggy but we had a beautiful time drinking fruit smoothies and people-watching in Kensington Market. I should have taken a picture for the non-Canadians reading, because the market is basically a strip of colourful and non-gentrified vintage shops. Somewhere between strolling and being in love, I found the time to make a few purchases which I will share at a later date. Most likely tonight. I would like to remind everyone reading that you can vote for me every day in the fashion contest. I'm rather down in the polls so I would be grateful if you could give me a mention to your friend/relatives or blog if you have one, telling people to vote for Isabel.

Old Unseen Photographs

My friend just posted some really cute photos of us our April NYC trip on Facebook. (And yes I feel lame for mentioning Facebook but we all use it, so why even try to pretend you dont? Plus, its a great mobilizing tool in getting people to vote for me once every day. You can even join my Facebook group!)

That yellow sweater is pretty much the best thing about my wardrobe.

Katrina is wearing the best jacket on the planet! Its this sweet vintage lace blazer with puffy sleeves. She is the most fashionable person in the world.

Cindy is wearing these awesome pointy metallic loafers. Generally the words "pointy metallic loafer" don't conjure up pleasant mental images but their existence is actually quite lovely.

Yes, I was a goofy noob and wore Birkenstocks the whole time... Shut up, I like them!

Ahhh, so much fun was had.

New York City was the best trip I've ever been on. Hands down. The sooner my return is, the better.

The overuse of 'brilliant'.

First off, I would like to thank Disney Roller Girl for giving me a Premio "Brilliante" Award! Though I'm not really sure what that is, I will accept it graciously and tag 7 other bloggers to receive the award!

Vintage Vinyl - Because we have a mutual friend and she looks BRILLIANT in American Apparel.
Liebemarlene Vintage - Because she writes the most inspirational blog around. Her Ebay store and constantly beautiful vintage finds are brilliant.
Style Rookie - Because she is the cutest blogger ever! Brilliant!
Fashion Robot - Because she is a brilliantly badass dresser.
Cheetos Are Orange - Because she has brilliant red hair ever, and the moxie to wear corsets over top of her clothing.
Geometric Sleep - Because I just discovered this blog yesterday and she is brilliant in Brooklyn.
Wendy Brandes - Because she is brilliantly hilarious. Honestly. Her posts put me in stitches, rolling around on the floor. And she introduced me to the joys of LOLCATZ.

I would tag Maki-Maki Vintage if I thought she was reading, but I doubt anyone that fabulous would be interested in me. The clothes from her perfectly-styled Ebay store sell for upwards of $100, not to mention she is GORGEOUS. Her clothes are the best. I cannot think of anything I want more in the world right now than that tuxedo dress she is rocking.


Speaking of rocking, "rock the vote!"

"Subversive Jewelry"

I have always wanted a long gold necklace with a crapload of charms dangling chaotically from it. The thing is, I don't have any necklaces that are quite long enough or any pretty charms to speak of. But I dug deep through my jewelery box and came out with a number of different necklaces that I was willing to destroy to create an new Justin Giunta-style necklace. I can't pretend that I'm handy with pliers, but I did manage to turn a bunch of different necklaces into just the one drape-heavy necklace I was looking for. Behold!

Because that photobooth shot gives a rather inadequate detail view of the charms, here is a better one. There's a heart, some skulls, a key, a buddha and is that a...?

P.S.: What is P.Diddy's favourite battle cry? Vote or die!

The schnozzberries taste like schnozzberries!

You know whats hot? Yellow pants. And I'm not talking about those yellow pants of victory I bought a few months ago. I ruined them while working on my friend's boat, but was secretly kind of happy about it because the yellow just wasn't vibrant enough. No, only this pair of American Apparel high-waisted skinnies can satiate my desire for lemon legs.

Come to think of it, grape legs are pretty cool too. I've thought the purple mineral wash were hot every since I saw this really fashionable girl wearing them with a plain black shirt and she looked simple and great. Purple pants are such a statement piece that I wouldn't really want to jazz them up too much.

But woe is me, I can only afford to buy one pair so I think that lemon legs will prevail!

Today is another day, so don't forget to vote kiddies!

I'm Reminded Of...

So apparently, the famed French street style muse 'Louise' has a blog. And I am loving every minute of it! These pictures are incredibly inspiring to me, because she is pairing this badass Sonic Youth t-shirt with Heidi-esque braids and a feminine skirt. This girl sure can mix-and-match! Unfortunately, I only own a few band tees and none are as pretty as this one (though admittedly, I don't like Sonic Youth enough to actually buy a shirt promoting them).

Oh yeah, and VOTE! Until August 11th, I will tediously be pushing this. I mean, come one - the other girl is beating me right now! Don't stand for that shit!
http://www.fashionmagazine.com/reportersearch/vote/blog/20

Me for President

I am the luckiest girl in the world! I have made it to the Top 20 of FASHION magazine's reporter search! Vote for me, and looks at all the other neat entries as well. If i receive the most votes, I win a trip to NYC. If I win, I will visit all the New Yorkers who vote for me - pinky swear!

Perfection in Brown Leather

So I bought the latest issue of Lucky because Rhiannon was featured in it. I can't say I'm much a fan of "shopping" magazines over fashion magazines, but I did find one thing to like about the issue. These shoes!!!

This Aldo shoe is the perfect heel height and chunkiness for me, and I want to buy a pair and never take them off. But strangely, I could not find a picture on their website. I'm not sure if that is just bad sleuthing skills or the shoes won't be available for a while (or worse, are already unavailable) but I can't get these shoes off my mind. I would wear them with cute minidresses like the one below or some hot short shorts that reveal my legs.

This was taken one year ago by my BFF and I seriously look like a doll!

Weird War is boss!

It seems like I have not talked about the cool folks on StyleMob in a coon's age!* For some reason, "post outfit pictures of yourself"-type websites are springing up everywhere! Compared to Chictopia and Modepass, StyleMob is an old hat. But one user has been inspiring me lately, the simply gorgeous Harlow. All her outfits look fantastic, especially the suspenders. And I've always had a soft spot for cardigan-dresses and plaid...



In other news, I got a MacBook for school. The sales guy did quite a number on my parents, and they really fell hard for it. Not that I'm complaining..

Oh! And if you are in Halifax this week, say hi to a boy on a bike! Because that would be Ryan!

Edit*: An astute commenter alerted me that this statement is a racial slur. I would never intentionally do this! I always thought it was one of those rarely used age-old expressions. Now I know why. Hindsight is 20/20. Apologies!

Slowly but surely like a python.

Having a full-time summer job keeps you busy and it pretty lucrative while you're at it. But dressing for an office can be creatively stifling for someone whose sequin cape is just begging to be worn. I documented what I wore to work this week, just so I could make the effort to look decent while maintaining that professional lacquer.

Monday: H&M top -$25, American Apparel skirt-$40, Salvatore Ferragamo flats-$6, thrifted croc bag-$3.
The "light ruffle shirt with dark skirt" is always a good formula to fall back on. Also, I carried this bag around the whole week.

Wednesday (Tues. was a holiday): Zara dress-$30, thrifted ruffle top-$6, thrifted tapestry shoes-$3. Here I am following the formula. I was planning on wearing just the dress but figured it was a little too "revealing" for work, so I covered up the cleave with some ruffles. (Holy crap I look tired!)

Thursday: Thrifted button-down-St. Vincent's $3 bag sale, Guess jeans-gift from friend, Urban Outfitters shoes-$35. I think this might be my favourite outfit of the week. Nice, simple and these are the best fitting pants on the planet.

Friday: thrifted H&M blouse-$6, thrifted Ralph Lauren slacks-$7, thrifted leather oxfords-$2. Crap, I forgot it was "casual friday"! Oh well, at least I looked half decent in this crisp kinda outfit.

Happy Belated Canada Day.

What do do on a statuatory holiday when there's no work, no school or other significant chores to be accomplished? Why, go to the beach of course!

Though I respect the glamour and simplicity of an all-black bathing suit, I choose to go all out in my rainbow one-piece. The story of how I got this bathing suit is a little muddling, so I'll just keep it to myself but its cute anyways. The heart-shapes Lolita glasses are from the dollar-store and kept falling off my face the whole time but were quite necessary to hide my unmake-upped face from the world.

Whether you like crazy-colourful bathing suits or plain ones, my only advice is to to stay away from Hawaiian-flower prints. They are OVERPLAYED (especially on men) and will only bring you ill.