You are getting cold, colder,…

Having a couple of cool breezy days was reason enough to test drive my fall wardrobe. I tried to put a new spin on Olive, matching it with blush.

What I loved this week:

Wearing maxi dresses. With temperature warm enough to wear dresses day and night, I was able to give my neglected maxi dresses a workout. I have two, one black; one patterned in red and yellow flowers. Adding a few more (may be couple of solids) to my collection sounds like a good idea:

Wearing two pendant necklaces. Delicate gold chains and pendants in complementary shapes look good together.

Colorful ballet flats. I am so looking for the perfect pair! I really need: One pair in red, a pair in snake skin pattern, a pair in black with a bow, and something with a little embellishment. Ooh, and a pair in leopard print!

Hotness is not always good!

Dang! It’s hot. For the past two weeks the temp. has been between 85-95. Even at night is it in upper 70s. So what a girl’s got to do? One word: Dresses, dresses, dresses; Lose, breezy and uncomplicated. My gypsy maxi dress is getting a lot of workout. The metallic sandals go great with the metallic trim on my Cole Haan hobo. Aside from that, it is too hot for froufrou!

P.S.: In the interest of getting a little cooler, I also cut my hair. After two years of having shoulder-length hair, now I’m gone jaw-length! Cool!

The cat’s meow

…or maybe a leopard’s gentle roar!

For years and years and with all my love for all kind of feline, I used to treat leopard print with wary eyes, never to get close, never to buy the print. It always reminded me of loud style of 80’s and big curls and loud music and (sorry!) fat ladies! Up until last year my only leopard printed possession was a hair barrette. Then two years ago, I become brave enough and added a dress in stylized leopard print to my wardrobe right after seeing the print for six months straight. The dress went unworn for months and has been worn just once since!

Then I bought a gray leopard print scarf last winter which (surprise surprise!) I wore it most of the winter and well into spring even on my spring vacation.

Now with leopard being the dominant pattern everywhere, I’ve become obsessed. Still knowing myself, I’m focusing on accessories. I pushed my style boundaries and bought a pair of leopard print pumps last week and am looking for a thin scarf or a faux fur muffler, or maybe a pair of gloves or a belt. Ooh, rest assure, I’m not going to wear all these together. Small doses of this print is apparently all I can take!

What I loved this week:

My eyeliner: Revlon ColorStay Liquid Eye Pen in Blackened Brown. It has made my eye make up so much easier and so much faster. The winged (or cat-eye) lining on the eyes has become very easy. Just draw a little line and put (my favorite) smoky Shadow blast on and viola, done! no more messing with eye pencils!

Cotton A-line easy dresses. Ahh, the weather finally has gone above 80 and nothing is better than a breezy light dress.

Green Tea smoothies. Yeah, I know; fruit smoothies taste better but the sweetness isn’t too appealing in the scalding hotness of the afternoon. So it is either a green tea one or a lemonade. Let me tell you, green tea is very refreshing!

Fall fashion and trends

For the last two days I’ve been seeing women in the Fall most dominant trend. Well these ladies sure seem impatient for the Fall. For the rest of us with Back-to-school sales and every store carrying Fall merchandise there is still time to shop.

Key Words for this Fall are: Minimalist, mid-century (50’s and 60’s), Leopard print, equestrian, Lady-like accessories.

Colors: Camel and gray are most dominant. There is still room for Army green and olive.

Fabrics: Wool and tweed, khaki, Chunky knits, Bright velvets, Black Lace, Leather, fur, Shearling. Jeans still have time to shine, long chiffon dresses.

Dominant looks: Bohemian, Minimalist, 50’s lady, Baroque rock princess, sharp menswear.

Key pieces: A fur vest, anything in leopard print, army green jacket, straight and skinny pants or high-waisted wide leg and long, feminine blouses (like bow- ties in silk).

Accessories: snake and alligator skin, leopard print, cat-eye sunglasses.

Shoes: Nude shoes, riding boots, bright colored suede’s, Black strappy platform, pointy toed kitten heeled pumps.

Bags: envelope style and lady like purses in mix media, draw string bucket bags, large Satchels in croc or snake skins, large and refined hobos.

Wear: your camels with jeans or army green. Your grays with more grays and gold. Your leopard prints with everything!

Pictures from: www.Whowhatwear.com

Navy, my love!

I have become addicted to navy. My new inspiration was matching navy with blush. Now that’s a color combination I don’t get tired of.

Mixed feelings

I wanted to try the trend of mixing prints but had no confidence in the idea. So I went ultra-conservative with this outfit, adding the jacket and neutral touches to pull everything together. Still I felt self conscious the whole afternoon.

Not a mix I want to repeat. I think I’m happier with my tried and true mixing of solids and just one pattern. Sigh!

Hot weather and a bandaged knee

I was facing this dilemma two weeks ago right after I injured my knee. The temperature was between 80 and 90 degree and I had a bandaged purplish knee and couldn’t wear any of my skirts or dresses. So much for waiting for the warm weather!

My solution was wearing that slouchy linen pants I told you about a few weeks ago. The legs were wide enough to hide the bandage and didn't rub against my skin. Cool and comfortable, paired either with strappy flats or tan wedges.

The only problem was that the pants needed ironing before each wear!

Imagine it’s the week of July 12-16, right after I scraped my knee:

Tuesday night, dinner and going to the coffee-shop:

Wednesday, an afternoon in the library, pretending to be a serious researcher:

I have owned this top for more than 10 years and in all this time have worn it less than 10 times. But I can’t bring myself to throw it away. I have a weak spot for those burlap patchworks!

Thursday, lunch and shopping with my friend:

Friday, a walk on the beach with dear hubby:

Excuses, excuses!

You know me, too lazy to post regularly! Now give me the excuse of a hot week, then a week of dealing with a summer head cold and another one for transferring files to a new laptop and you get three weeks of my going MIA! There are still some pictures to be downloaded too.

Now, this is my new baby in all her Onyx Blue beauty:

Isn’t she cute? She is only 10”×7”, weights a measly 2 pounds and fits inside most of my tote bags. So very convenient.

Aside from that, with my knee still a little raw looking I’ve been wearing mostly wide leg jeans and striped tops, a thin slouchy jersey cardigan from H&M proving a little warmth in air-conditioned places. Am still sticking to my navy and turquoise or the classic blue stripes and red combination.