There's one rose sweeter than any that grows.

For mood music to go with the valentine theme, here's a beautiful cover of my favorite sappy love song.

This shirt is my DIY pride and joy. It took me forever to sew the roses on and get them positioned just right. I almost chickened out at didn't wear it today, but I'm so glad I did. I felt really glamorous and it fits perfectly with my valentine-y inspiration as of late. I've been browsing Stylelikeu and it's inspired me to be really creative and expressive with my outfits and not worry about the occasional stare or rude comment. It's funny because my style is pretty tame compared to most of the internet fashion scene, but it can be a little outrageous compared to other people in St. Paul. Sometimes I wish i lived in New York or LA where no one would look twice at me, because I'm pretty shy and don't like to attract too much attention. I'm learning to love standing out though, and I look forward to wearing fake flowers on my bosom for years to come!

I've been having a really fantastic summer so far. I've been trying to fill my days with fun and productive things besides just tumblr, and I've been relatively successful! I'm devouring books and movies (I just rewatched Marie Antoinette for the decadent pastel vibes) and going out to do interesting things in the twin cities. I plan to go to lots of concerts and festivals and spend lots of time outside.

Speaking of, I spent last weekend at the gay pride festival and it was the best! I mostly ate fried food and people-watched. There were so many cute, stylish, outrageous, and/or scantily clad people! For whatever reason there were also a ton of cute dogs. The atmosphere there was so joyful and it felt like anyone would be welcomed and celebrated. Minnesota is facing a potential amendment to our state constitution that would ban same-sex marriage, so the event had a somewhat more political slant than usual. It's really important that we shut this amendment down by voting against it in November, or the rights of queer Minnesotans will be in severe danger. It doesn't mean that if it passes we'll never be able to legalize gay marriage, but it'll make the fight a whole lot harder. Let's crush this stupid-ass law under our fabulous heels and spread love and tolerance instead. Fellow Minnesotans, vote NO!

P.S. brownie points for anyone who recognized the Bye Bye Birdie reference in the title.

Be My Valentine

Meadham Kirchhoff spring 2012

As odd as it may be to draw inspiration from Valentine's day in the middle of summer, it's been central to my aesthetic preferences these days. Things like candy colors, roses, hearts, and lace are inexplicably appealing to me. I've been wearing red and pastel pink and lusting after the kitschy beauty of Meadham Kirchhoff spring 2012.


Photos taken from the sourceless clusterfuck that is tumblr, except the last one which is from my polyvore. Shout out in the comments if you know sources I should be citing!

Velvet Lapelles

Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles merch t-shirt, thrifted DIY skirt, DIY bag, thrifted polo, target tights, thrifted sunglasses

I wore this outfit to go see Moonrise Kingdom, which is the best movie I've seen in a while. Since the movie is centered around two children, it seems fitting that my outfit looks like it could be worn by a small child. I've noticed that my wardrobe lately has been trending towards little-girl territory with lots of high collars, knee socks, and my ever-present saddle shoes. Interesting.

The skirt I'm wearing is one I've had for a while, but I got sick of it the other day and decided to shorten it. It was at kind of an awkward place between midi and maxi, and now it's decisively midi. I got the shirt at the Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles concert that I went to last year. It's probably my favorite t-shirt. It's really soft, fits me perfectly, has a cute graphic, and, most importantly, has a great memory attached to it (the band was fantastic). This, for me, is that one garment that I wear usually once a week.

P.S. How fierce are my sunglasses?

I've got my eye on you.

Thrifted top with DIY collar, American Apparel skirt, DIY rosary, Glow Worm Shop eyeball ring, drugstore knee-highs, my same old saddle shoes

I bought this skirt around Christmastime and haven't gotten around to posting it yet. It's finally warm enough to wear it regularly! It's the only thing I've ever gotten from American Apparel. I'm kind of bummed because I later saw a similar skirt on Miracle Eye for way cheaper. I would have preferred to support the teen genius behind Miracle Eye than American Apparel, too. Oh well. For future reference, if you need a velvet skirt, get it from here! I'm also really happy with my new eyeball ring and drugstore socks! It's hard to tell in these pictures, but they're actually sheer. I'll be wearing both of these things practically every day this summer.

I was at my favorite thrift store the other day and I had the good fortune to stumble across this black polo shirt and a bunch of vintage lace trim for $2.99 each! I also found some massively fierce leopard hotpants and two bunny figurines that I couldn't bear to leave behind, among other things. I'd say it was a successful shopping trip.

 My creepy bunny friends. Their eyes are haunting, yet strangely adorable.

 My lace trim in its pretty vintage packaging! There were also a few stray pieces of white and pink lace stuffed in a bag with these two rolls.

 The tortoiseshell shades were thrifted along with all the other finds here, and the mint green frames I got free at Q-Quest, a super fun LGBTQ youth conference. Unfortunately they look ridiculous when I wear them (even by my standards), so they just sit on my dresser and look pretty.

I hope everyone's enjoying summer! I look forward to a few months of short skirts, ice cream, and frolicking in sunny fields, not to mention the Rookie meetup! Sadly they're not coming to the Twin Cities, but I'm determined to road-trip out to Chicago to meet them at the end of the month. How could I miss the chance to spend time with a giant group of Rookies and maybe even see Tavi irl? It's going to be great. Obviously I'm obsessed.

Ode to a Skirt Part III

DIY top, Tunnel Vision vintage skirt, homemade girl power brooch a la Rookie

This is the third outfit I put together with my precious skirt, and it's probably my favorite for summer. I like that it uses two of my diy-ed pieces. I guess I was going for a teen witch/girl power look with this outfit. I'm really happy with how the pictures turned out. All the colors get me excited for summer dressing! I really have to borrow my sister's black lipstick more often.