the thing i like about friday night television is that it usually involves some kind of fashion related reality television. which is why i am not really a regular at friday night drinks. but tonight i miss timed it because the blimmin bus was late and i only got to see the end of the fashion police show. i tried to make up for it by watching bridezilla but after thirty seconds it was already unbearable i retreated to my room with yoghurt and blueberries and guidebooks for vietnam.

and my camera. which reminds me: it is your favourite time of the week

fashion challenge - part iii

week three: black beads

history of the necklace: when i first started working after university i had one work outfit: a shirt and a skirt. which i basically wore every day with a cardi when i wanted to look especially professional. (or a suit which was three sizes too big. but i don't count it.) anyway, to disguise the lack of variety in my wardrobe i bought three sets of beads for $10 from kleins. these are the only set of the three beads to survive.

day one: shine on, you crazy diamond.

due to the long weekend, day one was a tuesday. which threw my game some. but like a professional, i gathered my wits and created this ensemble. cardi: the jacqui e cardi i now realise i wear EVERY WEEK, a skirt from the internets and a charcoal slip from carly harris. total cost: $200.

here i am, super fly and rocking the outfit.

even though it officially means i have worn underwear as outterwear at work, this was my favourite outfit of the week. the beads were shining. and so was my slip.

day two: dress to impress

i have already blogged about it, but wednesday was important. i wanted to dress sharp. but i couldn't find a single outfit that went with the beads. i was about to abandon the challenge and offer the beads up to the first person who showed any interest when i decided on this outfit. white victoriana top: from farmers two years ago, black/grey (or is it blue) waistcoat: from century 21 in NYC, black skirt (not pictured) the bargain of the century skirt that, again, i appear to wear every week. all up we're looking at around $100 worth of clothes. bargain city.

and here i am. doing my best miss tyra: being fierce. you will see how i could be so bold as to blame my eye makeup for ripping an eyelash out from its roots and into my eye. talk about overdoing the eyes and underdoing the lips. but actually, the eye makeup is the redeeming feature of this outfit. i shall not be wearing it again. plus i think i will give away the waistcoat. so one more free hanger in my wardrobe. hurrah.

day three: reow! what a tiger.

animal prints. for me it is a bit love/hate. sometimes they are so wrong. but sometimes, like in this banana republic top, they are so very right. i paired the top with my favourite world dress (which, incidentally doesn't come across as slammin in this photo as it is in real life). and kaPOW, an outfit that is a 30% tiger and 70% girly girl with bows. ie 100% me. this is the most expensive outfit of the week, at $400.


and here i am in the outfit. and i just realised that it looks like an actual tiger has bitten off my legs and i am about to passout from the pain. i do not usually look like this. but anyway, great outfit. just not as kaPOW as i was hoping for.

so at the end of week three, i have no fewer necklaces than when i began. next week i plan to pick something deliberately impssible to match. i need some space for all the goodies i will pick up in vietnam.

*****

as an aside: do you love how i'm just casually dropping in to the blog how i'm going to vietnam? cos it is true. i am in the final stages of booking tickets to vietnam. and i'm being very practical about it and everything. take today for example, i bought a tog bag for my togs when i'm in vietnam...


sooooooo at the top of my MUST HAVE list. ride 'em cowboy....

fashion challenge!!!!!!

when i cleaned up my act and got organised i discovered i had about a million necklaces and half a million rings and a further 75,000 badges, brooches or buttons. and i couldn't part with a single one. so this week i turned my accessories cull into sport.

the rules: each sunday i pick a piece of jewellery and i have to wear it at least three days that week with outfits that match sufficiently well. the outfits must be different each day.

the prize: if i successfully find three outfits that match the jewellery AND that i'm prepared to wear in public i get to keep the piece of jewellery. if i can't do it, the jewellery gets given away or thrown out or sold (in the case of anything that actually might be worth something).

week one: the peapod necklace.

the history of the necklace: bought from etsy for $9 (although it is currently selling for $10US and interesting the seller is not shipping to NZ any more). i am not sure what made me buy this other than from mid-last year anything green caught my eye. plus i love peas. which not everyone can say. i think i MAYBE wore it twice in six months... until the fashion challenge that is.

day one: end of the holidays

although it wasn't my first day back at work this year, monday was for most people in my office. and i gave them such a treat with this ensemble.

dress: $85 from brooklyn industries (???) last year in (what do you know) brooklyn, ny. cardigan $unknown, bought about three years ago from jacqui e.

here i am in the outfit. have to say overall i thought the outfit successful although noone commented on the necklace.

Day two: the colour purple

in the early 90s i thought no colour combination held a candle to purple and green. which is why i owned purple tracksuit pants. but anyway, that was a lifetime ago. today i paid homage to that colour combo with this outfit.


cardigan $95 from veronika maine (on sale!) top $75 from world (on sale!) and skirt (not pictured) $20 (reduced from $120). so basically this is my bargain of the century outfit.


and as you can see, i work this outfit. comments abound for the necklace with people SURPRISED at its price. as in they probably thought it was a priceless collectors piece. again, i count this outfit a success.

day three: crunch time

anyway tomorrow is d-day. i spent 45 minutes scouring my wardrobe for another outfit to match the necklace. and i have to say... it was nearly impossible. in the end i decided on this...

tee: $15 from cotton on! adelaide (august 2006), singlet $? from glassons about three years ago, skirt $100 from gregory at least two winters ago.

i haven't put them all on together yet so not sure that it will work. but i'm fairly confident i'll at least make it out of the door tomorrow morning in the outfit, therefore meeting my "wear it in public" criterion. and i obviously think they go together sufficiently otherwise i wouldn't wear in public. therefore: week one is a success and the peapod necklace stays with me. hurrah.

** prices are included where possible because i'm totally obsessed with my fashion budget. it is the unintended consequence of trying to be more fiscally responsible.