In a land far far away!

I am here in University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana and…….. love the campus!
All the brown brick buildings and that gold dome and chic students has me in cultural shock! Can you believe it; the girls here dress up for school! How cool are they!
On the way over I got a glimpse of downtown Chicago and like a country bumpkin got over excited! I so wanted to live in a big city again… oooh those churches and town houses and… my excitement got a little down wind when we ended up taking a wrong exit and came out in a rundown neighborhood with scary dudes standing at the cross roads but hey, the rest of the way was pretty enough!
I managed to bring everything except my jacket but it hadn’t done me any good!
I am cold and I feel very sloppy!

Airport, airport and driving:

What I’m wearing today:

Running around!

Running around, doing errands in this hot weather, it is really hard to keep ones cool!

One thing is for sure: I’m happy to be away and in a much cooler weather for a week!

Packing chronicles, Part 2

Did you know you can’t pack all I listed in a carry on?! I didn’t! My funky sporty carry on got puffy and bloated and calculations showed it won’t fit in the overhead compartment… So I had to (had to!) edit my list ruthlessly! Bye bye three tops, one pair of shoes, flatiron, one sweater and 2 sets of underwear (still have one set per day! Haa haa!). Might be forced to leave behind a pair of skinny jeans and my jacket too.
Then I gave up and bought one of those mega large extra roomy work totes that my laptop actually fits in it! This monstrosity measures 18.5” by 11.5” by 5.0” and the handles have a 10.0” drop and is in burgundy/red faux crocodile skin. Very eye catching! On a positive note, it is so roomy! I’m going to stuff it with my cosmetics and food and books (and laptop!).

An important question is: which will you take with you, ballet flats or oxford heels if it is supposed to be rainy and you’re already taking a pair of sneakers?

Packing chronicles, Part 1

I have to spend the whole next week in a rural town in Indiana in a chemistry lab. I’m thinking really hard on putting a week worth of outfits together to finally hide them under a lab coat! As the temperature is supposed to fluctuate between upper 40’s to mid 60’s and be rainy, cloudy, sunny, cloudy and rainy (in that order!), my work is cut for me! Plus chemistry labs are often cold and you have to wear jeans and completely closed shoes in case you spill something on your feet, which means I have to pack jeans, jeans and jeans!
Here is my rough plan:
- one medium thickness jacket
- three pair of jeans
- one brown twill pants
- two gray cardigans (one long, one short), two cream cardigans (one long, one short), one thin black cardigan
- a couple of scarves
- tees and tops (as much as I can!)
- yoga pants and sweater
- pj’s
- enough underwear for a week
- enough socks for a week (close shoes, remember?!!)
- towels
- cosmetic, hair care and skin cares
- at least three pair of shoes and one pair of slippers for the hotel room
- my laptop, books, notes and mp3 player
- one tote bag and one purse
- teabags, energy bars and cookies
- an umbrella
- my lab coat (sheesh!)
- my flatiron (maybe?)
And a bunch of other things that for sure weights a ton and takes lots of space, all of these in a carry on case!
Well, good luck to me!
I let you know how it goes!

DMV maybe!

Well this one might look OK in the photo!

A confused outfit

I was supposed to go to DMV and have my photo taken for my new driver license; instead I ended up at school, in the lab packing chemicals!
Is this the outfit for spilling chemicals on?! No, I think not!

Sky is blue so is my mood!

Am still feeling blue and have been wearing lots of blue too:

In a blue mood!

If someone had told me I wear a lot of blues I wouldn't have believed her. But look here, it is all here in black and white (and color blue, of course!):

My Student look

Sometimes you just have to go to school ,no matter how tiered, bored or sick you are.
For these occasions simplicity is the key but make it pulled together not sloppy!

Personal style

I think it has been enough time to put together (or at least, start) an inspiration board/notebook/weblog. It will remind us what colors, patterns, styles and shapes we like and it is a work in progress anyway.
The next step in finding our personal style is knowing the most common styles. These include:
- Business or classic: simple lines, somber or neutral colors, clean cuts and tailored silhouette.
The most recognizable classic pieces are trench coats, pencil and a-line skirts, white button down shirts, black pants, wrap dresses.
- Alluring/ bombshell/ sex-kitten: body conscious outfits, lots of cleavage, short hemlines and bare arms. This look was the specialty of Marilyn Monroe and today Scarlett Johansson dresses in this style. If you want to try it, beware, there is a fine line between sexy and trashy!
- Sporty/ natural: this is dressing in simple uncomplicated pieces, t-shirt and jean combos are the trade mark of this look. Throw on a blazer and you have perfected it. Eye catching cardigans and scarves will give the look individuality and oomph. Just be careful, this look can easily be confused with sloppy. The trick is to wear neat clean cut pieces (no oversize t-shirt, please!) and pick the style of your jeans flattering to your body (no mom-jeans!).
- Chic/European/ Italian: this look also uses classic pieces and the silhouette is tailored. The color schemes are monochrome and tone-on-tone and usually low contrast. The difference (with Business style) is in the materials and fabrics. In Chic look the fabrics are luxurious and extravagance, leather, fur, velvet, silk, cashmere, etc. you can not “do” this look on the cheap; the definition of this style is high quality, expensive and understated pieces. It is the material and combination of pieces that defines this style, not colors or sex appeal although done right it is very sexy (in a powerful kind of way!).
- Geek chic/ preppy/ Gamine: Imagine Audrey Hepburn or private-school Gossip Girl Blaire! Simple pieces, a little girly, a dose of sexy, a dash of sporty; now mix them all together and don’t forget your headband! Monochrome, red white and blue, pastels, plaids, stripes.
- Bohemian: this look is for people who like nature and art. Simplicity and creativity defines this look. A combination of flowy tiered skirts, loose tops, ethnic prints and jewelry, handmade bags and leather boots or thong sandals! You can take one or two bohemian pieces and incorporate them in you outfit or go all out (like Nicole Richie) and wear head to toe bohemian (even the headband!).
- Vintage lover: these people are extreme individualists. They look for one of a kind pieces in thrift stores that no one else has. They know their favorite era and hunt down every item of their collections with obsession! I admire them for their personal flare and courage. They can dress head to toe in vintage or for a milder version mix their vintage pieces with more modern items.
- Eclectic: many people are in this category and mix and match pieces from different styles to suite them. The trick is to know which styles are your favorites and then having fun!

So…which one are you? Go back to your inspiration book and check! Good luck and enjoy!

What to wear to a Baby Shower

The first thing we should know about is if it is a "mix party" or "Ladies Only"?

If it is a mix, treat it like any other party of the same time, examples:

Mix company Baby-shower dinner: treat it like a regular dinner party, wear cocktail dresses, sparkly outfit and yes, black is OK!

Mix company baby-shower tea party (2:00 -7:00 PM): dress in a silky sleek outfit, a little form fitting, a little formal. In the summer your formal sundresses will work.

But if the party is Ladies only, you want to dress for girls and look feminine and pretty. In that case:

Baby-shower lunch: exactly as how you’re dressing for lunch or brunch with your girlfriends, cute, floral, and colorful or whatever looks good on you! Dress and a cardigan, a flowy dress or a feminine top and skirt combo.

Baby-shower tea party: your floral print dresses get a day out! Also cute tops and skirts. Ooh, and wear your prettiest lipstick! Fact is women notice the lipstick and nail-polishes more.
So what am I going to wear? I can’t decide between these two outfits:
My first option is similar to this skirt and tunic combo. My tunic is green and yellow with purple flowers. So my accessories will be green or purple (not red!). This combo is feminine and colorful and a little arty.

My second outfit is this one which has a chic and modern look:

Cool for summer

I wish I could wear this outfit to school! Aah, well, never mind; I keep it for afternoon outings!







p.s.: I was putting this look together when I remembered I have a black maxi dress too! Yay! One more dress to play dress up!

Boring summer day

What do you think about this outfit:






Very bland? Too tone on tone? Monochrome?

That's how I feel today anyway!

Matchy-Matchy!

Another combination with my aqua canvas skirt:

My Keds are black so orange and blue stripes look more dominant.
This is very casual and colorful and I like it for the weekend.

Handbags, Then and Now

I found this article reprinted from a New York Times 1945 issue. There is comparison of handbag contents from 40’s and now is at the end of the link too. Hope you enjoy it:


The original copy of this article is from the NFAA archives. Printed January 21, 1945, The New York Times, by Anita Danielcirca 1945
Inside Story of a Handbag
Chapters of the mysterious science of bagology which is said to throw new light on the ways of womankind.A woman without her handbag feels as lost as a wanderer in the desert. And she wants it large. If she cannot get it in leather-now growing scarce-she will take it in fabric, fur, or even plastic. The handbag is the movable base of her supplies-the depot of her expected needs. These eventual needs may reach out to a degree far beyond any man's power of imagination. A woman's handbag is a mysterious dungeon. It's the key to her real self; the prosaic answer to many poetic conceptions.
A magician does not want to explain his tricks. There is an aura of taboo about a closed handbag. Every woman has an uneasy look if somebody glances into its sacred privacy. A decent man should always tactfully stare at the ceiling whenever his companion opens her bag. He will, of course, have to concentrate on that ceiling pretty often. The typical handbag of a typical woman contains a certain number of fundamental things-plus her own individual touch. It is that individual touch that fills the bag. Some item is pretty sure to roll out the moment the bag is opened.
Every woman's handbag is a lost and found department in itself. It is strange, but things actually disappear there, as by magic. They finally reappear on the surface after three or four investigations and complete pell-mell of the contents. Every bus driver is fatalistically resigned to having a lady barring the passage while searching for a nickel in the depths of her handbag. And every man knows about the two-minute drama ever repeated: "Heavens, I must have lost my watch...(or my twenty-dollar bill, my keys, that important letter, etc.,etc.)!" It usually has a happy ending. Nothing gives a man more self-satisfaction than such an experience. The whole myth of the superiority of men is built on the fact that a man never carries a handbag. Men keep women in eternal dependence by buying them beautiful handbags. What female heart would not melt at the sight of a luscious alligator bag, or soft suede or brocade?
A man carriers everything in his numerous comfortably deep pockets. It is estimated that a man wearing a suit with a vest and an overcoat has twenty pockets. No wonder he can never lose anything!
Women have also adapted pockets to their suits and coats. But the most genuine are just fit to put hands into. The others are good enough for a chiffon handkerchief to peep out of or they are faked. No woman's suit pocket is meant to hold her belongings. Every bulge would endanger the slim line and the smart effect. So women continue to carry handbags. As long as women do not wear men's suits with pockets, they will remain women. And men will continue to feel superior. The first thing Adam purchased for Eve was a handbag. It was his sweet revenge for the apple.
A young man I knew-the sensitive type-once told me that he was about to propose to a girl, when, accidentally, he had a glance into her handbag. It shocked him to such a degree that he spontaneously canceled his proposal. His whole image of the pretty girl had changed after he had seen the untidiness of her powder-dusted, lipstick-spotted handbag. Worst of all, a fruit drop had stuck to the lining.
Money is the thing you will miss most frequently in a woman's handbag. Nowadays it is hardly worth while for pickpockets to steal it, except for the fact that an astonishing number of women carry their precious belonging in handbags. They do it for fear they may be stolen from closets or drawers. That is why we read so often of handbags lost in taxicabs, containing jewels worth thousands of dollars. It is a strange time when women wear junk jewelry around their necks and carry their precious jewelry in the zippered department of their handbags.
Some psychologists think the way a woman carries her bag is characteristic. "Bagology" is quite a science. There is the strap type, the shoulder-strap type and the woman who tucks her bag under her arm. There are a great number of women who hold their bags both by the straps and pressed under the arm.
Seen from the psychologist's angle, the way a woman carriers her purse demonstrates the entire scale of characteristics, from light-mindedness and generosity to caution and greediness. One analyst warns men against women who keep their bag rolled around the wrist and the hand firmly clasped around the lock.
In the good old times, when the definition of a "lady" covered very definite limitations, it was ladylike to carry as little as possible. In sentimental English novels of the last century, whenever a lady opened her bag it was to give money to the poor. Or to take out a small prayerbook, an embroidered handkerchief or a tiny bottle of smelting salts, as it was considered very ladylike to faint once in a while. Today's ladies have a far more varied program.
The first time I saw Mrs. Roosevelt I was deeply impressed by the sight of her bag. There stood the First Lady, very tall, very straight, very distinguished in her gray tailored suit. In one hand she carried roses that had been presented to her; in the other, her bag. What a bag! It was of dark leather and of tremendous dimension, practically bursting with invisible contents. It clearly spoke of the activities of the First Lady. One glance and you knew the President's wife had a full-time job.