does it spark joy?

It’s a simple concept: only surround yourself with things you love.

Club Monaco silk top // J.Crew cardigan // J.Crew necklace // J.Crew fluted skirt // Wolford tights // Tory Burch Reva flats

For instance, I love this outfit.

One of the major principles of the KonMari Method is to go through everything you own and ask “Does it spark joy?” and if it doesn’t, get rid of it. Go with your gut and don’t rationalize. It really did make going through my clothes easy; I didn’t have to ask if I could make three outfits with an item or if I’d worn it within the past six months, I could ignore the rationalization that sometimes goes on in my head (people at work really like this skirt!), and just ask it I love it or not now. Not if I loved it before. So a few dresses I haven’t worn in ages stay. Anything I wore just because I felt I should or pieces I used to love but don’t anymore went.

But it’s much harder with other areas of the house. In the kitchen, do these oven mitts spark joy? Well, not really, but I need to have oven mitts. I don’t think it means I should throw them out and buy oven mitts I love (or should I?). In the bathroom, do I love this bottle of glasses lens cleaner? Does this nail file spark joy? Do I have strong feelings for this Revlon Pedi-Expert? (Actually I do, it’s essentially a cheese grater for your heels and it’s the best thing I’ve tried to deal with my terrible feet.)

So there’s stuff I love, and stuff I need. I don’t know if it’s possible to have 100% stuff I love. But 85-90% is probably ok, right?

Books, books, books

I’ve spent the whole month escaping in books. First it was on vacation when I had lots of time to read and to escape the boredom of Parksville, and since I’ve been back it’s just a good way to de-stress from work.

I’d set myself a New Year’s Resolution of reading one book a month because I felt I was spending too much time watching TV and being on my iPad, and it’s been one I’ve kept. Also, I read six months’ worth in this one month, so I don’t have to read anything for the rest of the year. Just kidding, I’m not going to stop. Also, I’m a little obsessed with library eBooks. The fun of reading, at no cost!

1. Blue Plate Special – Kate Christensen.
   Since I’m obsessed with food, I loved how the story of her life (and an interesting one, too) was linked together with food.
2. Jim Henson: The Biography – Brian Jay Jones.
   Very detailed, very comprehensive, really fascinating, and a must-read for anyone who grew up on the Muppets like me. So much talent and creativity in one person, it’s amazing.
3. Bossypants – Tina Fey.
   Hilarious. I’m a Tina Fey fan, so wouldn’t expect anything less. I’m listening to the audiobook right now because it’s interesting to hear it in her voice, but I really hate audiobooks. I find they’re like listening to a long monologue. I make the exception for her, though.
4. A Long Way Down – Nick Hornby.
   The only novel on this list, which is interesting to me. (I thought I only read fiction.) I don’t know if I’m a fan of Nick Hornby. I didn’t want to stop reading, but I don’t think it’s one I’d ever return to.
5. The Bling Ring – Nancy Jo Sales.
   I really liked Nancy Jo Sales’s Vanity Fair article, and I just finished watching the movie so I thought I’d read her book. It was a quick read, and insanely fascinating, but I’m not sure that a full book was necessary. At any rate, I kinda understood their motivations. You see something, you want it. I’ve done the same things with blogs I read. I have never stolen anything, however.
6. Toast – Nigel Slater.
   Another life story told through food. This one I liked just for all the British foods I’ve never heard of but had to Google because I needed to know what they are: Heinz Sponge Pudding, Jammie Dodgers, bourbon biscuits, Walnut Whip, Sherbet Fountains. Some of these sound truly disgusting (sponge cake in a can is so bleahhhh), but I suppose that’s what happens when you grow up in England in the 1960s.

If anyone has any good book recommendations, I’d love to hear them!

Always look on the bright side of life

I may have started 2014 off on the wrong foot, with my pessimistic rant about the new year last week (I think that was just PMS combined with the lingering effects of a bad cough and a bad case of I-don’t-want-to-be-back-at-work), but I’m determined to pull it back.

I was going to post my New Year’s resolutions even though I’m late and it’s already getting towards late January, but then I realized that my list is pretty much the same as last year.

But I’m not going to be pessimistic about that, I will not see that as having accomplished nothing last year,  it’s just a continuation. I’m going to continue eating healthy as much as possible, being financially responsible, not procrastinating, and definitely staying optimistic. (Glass half-full! Half-full!)

I’m also going to add these more easily-measurable goals:

• Move every day. I will never be a gym person, and that’s fine. When the weather is good, I walk two hours every weekday. Even if I don’t do that, I need to move. Even just 10 minutes a day. It’s beneficial and I can commit to that anywhere (but likely at home).
• Read at least one book per month. I always have my iPad or iPhone in my hand. I read blogs, online articles, etc. all the time, and that’s fine, but I want to get back to reading actual books. My goal is to read at least one book per month (re-reads count, I was going through my shelves the other day and realizing I own a lot of books that I want to read again). I’m already ahead, I’ve read two new ones this month already.

(A Short History of England packed a lot of history into not very many pages, so much so that I felt like I learned a lot and also nothing at all. I think everyone is reading Where’d You Go, Bernadette, and like most people I found it really funny and entertaining. Never mind that it took me two hours fighting with my Kobo and Adobe Digital Editions to download the library ebook, in the end it was worth it.)

• Wear everything in my closet. I heard somewhere that we tend to wear 20% of our clothes 80% of the time (or it could just be Barney Stinson making stuff up). I think I fall into that habit, especially with something new. So I’ve done the trick of turning all my clothes hangers around and then turning them back the right way when I wear something. It’s awesome to keep track of what I’ve worn recently and what I haven’t worn in a while.
• Make an effort with photos. Last year I used my iPhone camera pretty much exclusively. I’m not going to stop using my iPhone; my goal has never been to have a huge blogger following and entice people with gorgeous photographs that get pinned all the time. In the end, my blog is for future me, and future me only wants to remember what I wore and what I did, but future me might also appreciate a few better photos every now and then.

January is the cruellest month

I heard a coworker say that January is just so DULL, and I totally agree. The holidays are over. The first full week back at work was painful. The weather has been bad. I had to layer to commute to work, and I felt like a stuffed, constricted, angry sausage. Outside of the layers, I’m still feeling constricted (thank you holiday weight gain).

J.Crew Merino v-neck sweater // knockoff J.Crew necklace // J.Crew No.2 Pencil Skirt // Wolford tights // Michael Kors heels

It’s barely mid-January and I feel like I’ve started the year off on the wrong foot. I’m already failing at the ever-popular “eating healthier/being healthier” resolution, despite (or maybe because of) all the Weight Watchers/Jenny Craig/Curves/Herbal Magic/Slimband/Special K/yogurt commercials on TV. I don’t have retail therapy to fall back on because I’ve pledged not to do that either.

I think what’s also bumming me out is that I expect to much of a new year. It’s a clean slate and a fresh start, and somehow I expect that I’ll be able to change what I don’t like easily. I expect that when the calendar clicks over to January I’ll want to do things right away instead of procrastinating, I’ll be compelled to exercise every day, and I’ll suddenly reach for the steamed broccoli instead of the milk chocolate English toffee (ain’t gonna happen).

(Seriously what would you choose?)

Of course, I know I’m setting myself up for failure this way. The calendar clicks over and I’m not suddenly embracing all my resolutions easily and freely, so the whole year is shot and why even bother trying. That will be my resolution of the year, don’t give up, keep going.

And stop procrastinating. That’s the worst one. I’ll do that one later. ;)

Mixing the fun and the basic

Last week during the deep freeze (which was really nothing in Toronto compared to Ottawa where it was –40 with the windchill and the dog was waking my mom up at 3 a.m. to go outside) when I was hibernating, I spent some time going through my closet, putting some old no-longer-worn items aside for donating and contemplating the general state of affairs.

I realized that I may have built my closet backwards, in my obsession with wearing clothes that are “different.” I got all the fun stuff first, and neglected the basics, because I thought the basics were boring. (I still think they are on their own, but there’s still a reason why I should own more of them.)

It’s partly the fault of that damn bubble necklace which I wear all the time now; can’t wear too much with it, or I just end up looking loopy.

Club Monaco T-shirt // knockoff J.Crew bubble necklace // Anthro Acting Out Skirt (Cartonnier)

Plain, unadorned t-shirts are my new best friends. I can have the fun stuff if I balance it out with something more simple. Simplicity and balance, my new mottos.

My next quest: the perfect LBD…

Past the point of no return

A couple of posts on EA have me thinking about my shopping habits. I have to admit, I make a lot of returns. I make mistakes, I change my mind, I decide that I already have too many of whatever I just bought, I decide it’s too expensive, I realize the piece doesn’t work as well in my closet as I thought, etc. So I certainly appreciate a liberal return policy, and I take advantage of one when it exists.

But sometimes I wonder if I would be better off if I bought things I knew I wouldn’t be able to return. It would result in a lot less impulsive and careless spending (although I cut way back on that last year) if I had to think very carefully before I bought.

Since it’s the new year, here’s another resolution to follow: commit to purchases, and no returns.

Er, starting now.

I ended up returning this Club Monaco striped top and this Anthro necklace. No, I didn’t wear the top out, I took it off after the picture made me realize the stripes were too skinny and making me dizzy to look at. I did wear the necklace for half a day, but I took it off midday because I found it too heavy (literally, it gave me a sore neck). No questions asked on either return, and I feel that it was fine to return the necklace even after I’d worn it because it is still in perfectly sellable condition. But maybe someone wouldn’t want to buy a necklace knowing that someone had worn it for a while. I don’t know. At any rate, I should really remember to put things on hold and think about them for at least a day. When I do that and still go back, I likely won’t return.

(And since I’m reliving my days as a musical theatre junkie thanks to the Les Miserables movie, here’s a sort-of relevant video from that other 80s super-musical, Phantom of the Opera.)

New year, new me

So a new year is always about resolutions and pledging to do better than last year, right? And it often doesn’t pan out? I was just musing on why that was, when I had a bit of a lightbulb moment over Carol’s post from earlier this week.

The story I tell about myself, mostly to myself but sometimes to other people, isn’t great. I’m messy and disorganized. I’m lazy and I procrastinate all the time. I have no willpower and I can’t stick to a healthy eating plan, even when eating badly means I don’t feel well all the time. I’m irresponsible and impulsive and I’m terrible with money. It’s partly self-deprecating, partly a result of what I’ve heard from my parents, but the truth is the more I say these things to myself, the more they become a self-fulfilling prophecy. And then things don’t change.

So what if I were neat and organized, didn’t procrastinate, took care of myself, and financially responsible? Strange. That doesn’t sound like me. Sounds kinda boring and virtuous too. But maybe it’d be better all around if that person were me.

I’ve started already, small things like keeping the condo tidier and doing things right away instead of saying “I’ll just do it tomorrow.” I’m serious about this change!

And see, look how serious I am:

Club Monaco t-shirt // J.Crew Jenna’s cardigan // Hilary Druxman necklace // Anthro Sumukhwa Skirt (Maeve) // Wolford tights // Michael Kors heels

Just kidding, I can’t stay that serious for very long.

It may be a little early in the year, but I’m saying it anyway…this year is gonna to be different.

Bring it on, 2013

2013 already, and 5 days in at that? Bring it on!

But first, help me through my holiday withdrawal. It's back to austerity measures, no more indulging, and time to look ahead. I'm struggling a little to be optimistic right now (I hope 2013 is a great year, but what if it isn't?), but I don't want to fall into the trap of pessimism because that's one deep, dark hole.

In 2013, this is what I want to accomplish:

• Stick to my healthy eating plan. I really wish I could eat whatever I want without any health consequences, but unfortunately I can't. So I have to accept that and move on.
• Continue to be financially responsible (it's an ongoing resolution).
• Stop procrastinating (it's my worst habit).
• Stay optimistic!

On the more frivolous side, here are my style resolutions:

• Wear neutrals, wear black and grey, wear colour. In other words, wear anything I want.
• Wear only what I love. And buy only what I love.
• Wear trendy pieces if I love them, leave them if I don't.
• Keep things simple.

 
Anthro Tartlet Burst Top (Deletta) // Anthro Alluring Sway Skirt (Cartonnier) // Wolford Satin Opaque tights in Admiral // Nine West heels

All or nothing

So one of my goals this year was to learn to be a better shopper, i.e. learn how to shop in moderation. I set myself a limit of one item per month, which I stuck to one month and didn’t for a few others. Including August, when again, I didn’t buy anything. So really, I can’t do shopping in moderation, and I can’t even do moderation in moderation…I can’t do moderation at all. Apparently I’m an all or nothing kind of gal.

But I haven’t been shopping because there hasn’t been anything I’ve wanted enough to buy, plain and simple. There’s really nothing wrong with that, my overall goal is to stop shopping just for the sake of shopping, and I think I am accomplishing that.

Anthro Torsade Tee (C.Keer) | turquoise necklace made by me |  Anthro Circle The Globe Skirt (Edme & Esyllte) | Cole Haan flats

I may not be shopping, but it doesn’t mean I’m not bored with what I have in my closet. I’m not inspired, and I feel like I need something new to spark my interest, but just adding more to my closet without thinking about it isn’t the answer either.

Spurred on by Roxy’s fantastic Building Your Wardrobe series and the impending end of summer (I don’t want to think about it, but fall’s coming whether I want it to or not), I’ve started to go through my closet and take stock of what I have. I started counting, and before I got freaked out by the sheer consumerism of it all and stopped, I found I have 15 dresses (5 solid, 10 print), 35 tops (6 print, 29 solid), 13 skirts (9 pencil, 2 full, mostly solid neutral colours but 2 prints), 2 pairs of jeans (blue and black), 20 cardigans (11 ¾-sleeve, 2 short-sleeve, 7 long-sleeve). 35 effing tops. I don’t need all that, do I? Does anyone really need all that? I’m terrible at math, but I’m pretty sure that if I wore each skirt with each top I’d have over 300 outfits. Some of them might be pretty awful combinations, but that’s beside the point. No wonder I can’t get dressed in the morning sometimes.

Starting the month with teal

Banana Republic twist-front top | Matsu necklace | Anthro Liquid Acres skirt (Maeve) | Wolford Velvet Opaque Tights in Ivy | Miz Mooz Felicity Pump

Teal makes me happy, so I think I’m starting the month on the right foot. January was kinda sucktastic, so I’m hoping that the rest of my year goes better than that.

Ok, January wasn’t that bad. The work situation messed with my head a lot, and I did a fair bit of binge/comfort eating, because of it, but I didn’t break all my New Year’s resolutions after the first two weeks.  I did well with shopping, and I put down my iPad and read two books (Lunch in Paris, which I admit I read only because I saw it Anthropologie, and The Help). The exercise and eating didn’t go so well, but I’m a work in progress. Also, I think I should have resolved to not be so hard on myself when I don’t stick to my goals exactly. It doesn’t make me a failure. So, I’ll resolve to do that now.

2012: pretty good year?

I don’t think 2012 has gotten off to the best start for me. New Year’s Eve was a bust; after dinner I broke out into hives (nothing too serious, but still) followed by stomach cramps and a headache, and when I lay down I fell asleep and slept through midnight, then woke up the next morning with back, shoulder, and neck pain. I think I’m okay now, two days later (though I am suffering from post-holiday, back-to-work blues), but it wasn’t an auspicious start to my year! I’m hoping that it can only get better from here.

That’s my motto for 2012. Not that I’m expecting a personal equivalent of WWII, knock on wood.

I am one of those people who make New Year’s Resolutions every year and then promptly forget about them by January 21. But I still make them every year. And I don’t know, things feel different this year (let’s see, I’m not sick, depressed, or feeling hopeless in my job, for a start), I feel positive about my chances for lasting change in my life. I’m up for a challenge!

In 2012, I will:

1. Be financially responsible. I am terrible with money, I am not a natural saver and budgets are a mystery to me. A year without shopping is unrealistic for me, so my plan is to put away the plastic (cash only) and limit myself to one item a month (much like Dea). This is a tough one for a spender like me, but I’m pretty excited about it. I think I’ve come to a point of closet saturation and I don’t really need anything else, so that one item will have to be something I love. I really hope that when I look back again on December 31, 2012, I’ve kept this resolution, even if it’s the only one.
2. Exercise at least once a week. It doesn’t have to be in the gym. Walking 5km (just over 3 miles) home from work counts.
3. Be tidier and eliminate clutter. I think shopping less will definitely help with that.
4. Cook/eat at home at least four times a week. Leftovers count. I actually think this one will be the toughest, because as much as I love to eat, I don’t actually like to cook.
5. Put the iPad down and read more. I always say my M.A. in English Literature killed my love of reading, but I graduated almost 10 years ago (June 2002). That’s not an excuse anymore. It’s terrible that it took me 6 months to finish one book (actually, I was only halfway through after 6 months when I decided I had to finish it before the end of the year, and read the second half in two days). I’m hoping for at least one book a month. Rereads count. It’s only January 3 and I’m 3/4 of the way through my first book of the year, so I have high hopes for this one!

And the less tangible stuff that I aspire to…

via

via

I’m really looking forward to this year.

2011 – what will I do?

Photo courtesy of Cute Overload

• Stop procrastinating! (I will…eventually…)
• Shop smart.
• Buy only what I need or what I love.
• Take care of my health.
• Eat healthy.
• Eat out less.
• Cook more.
• Remember what’s important to me (family, friends, health) and focus on that.
• Put less energy into things that don’t matter.
• Remember that I can’t control what other people do, I can only control what I do.
• Breathe deeply.
• Ignore my mom when she tells me I need to lose weight.
• Ignore my mom full stop.
• Spend more time with my nephew.
• Become a grown-up.
• Pay off debt.
• Stop using my credit card.
• Buy a condo.
• Be tidier.
• Obsess about clothes less.
• Read more.
• Find a new job.

Or I’ll just live by this quote:

"Go for long walks, indulge in hot baths, question your assumptions, be kind to yourself, live for the moment, loosen up, scream, curse the world, count your blessings, just let go, just be." - Carol Shields

Crisitunity.

It’s been a brutal two weeks for me.  But as I always like to say, just because I feel like crap doesn’t mean I have to look like crap.

• Jacob top (circa 2006)
• Edme & Esyllte Circle the Globe skirt, at anthropologie
• Rockport wedges (2007)
• Anthropologie Oolite necklace

Teal and chocolate brown, one of my favourite colour combinations.  Normally just the thing to cheer me up, but maybe not this time. 

Over the past two weeks I’ve had to deal with family drama (which didn’t directly involve me, but my mother and my sister insisted on pulling me into it), a huge fight with the boyfriend on my birthday, a crappy birthday (the fight was just part of it), overwhelming job stress (is it too much to want a job that I don’t dread to go to every day?), and then a severe asthma attack that had me in the hospital emergency room twice over the weekend.  Now I have bruises all over my arms from the IV needles, I’m on heavy medication that’s making me feel weird, and I’m still not feeling 100% yet.

I have a couple of choices here, I could go crazy or insanely bitter at the world, or I could see this as crisitunity.  You know, as a time to evaluate my life and see how I can make it better.  The universe is trying to tell me something!

But for now, I’ll just be feeling a little sorry for myself.

one week down, three to go

The first week was hard. 

I already knew that I’m an emotional shopper, but that knowledge was reinforced this week.  Bored? Bad day? Let’s go buy something to make me feel better.  But damnit, I’m going to accomplish this goal and prove to myself that not all my promises are like pie crust. 

At first I just replaced one bad habit with another.  When I wanted to go shopping, I ate junk food.  I tried to eat “better” junk food (my current weakness is Green & Black’s organic white chocolate), but sugar is sugar and I’m dairy intolerant, so it’s not a good choice.

 

Tastes good though…

When I wasn’t eating junk food, I was reading articles on shopping less and 365 Fashion Rehab for inspiration.  I read about The Great American Apparel Diet and the women from all over the world who are participating.  But while Alison and Perdy haven’t cheated, some of the Great American Apparel Dieters have.  I could do a year’s worth of “dieting” if I knew I could cheat every now and then.

So the first week was hard, this week’s not nearly as hard.  Is this one particular shopaholic being reformed?

The shopping equivalent of The Last Supper.

Inspired by Alison and Perdy over at 365 Fashion Rehab, I’ve decided to embark on my own month-long fashion rehab. For the month of February, I will not shop. No clothes, no shoes, no accessories, no makeup. Gulp. I need this, but I have no idea how it’s going to go because I think the longest I’ve gone without shopping is 4 days. So I’m starting with one month, and it just happens to be the shortest month of the year. A coincidence, but I’m definitely not complaining. If I can channel some of Alison and Perdy’s willpower (I think they’re nuts, but also amazing) into these 28 days, I’ll be really, really, really proud of myself.

I hope that within these 28 days I’ll be able to spend some time unravelling all the underlying issues beneath my shopaholicism. Why do I shop so much? What do I feel I’m missing? What am I trying to make up for?

Yesterday, with my February looming, I went to anthropologie, which has been my opiate store of choice lately. I wasn’t shopping for anything in particular, but I saw this dress and wanted to try it on:

Reed shirtdress by Moulinette Soeurs, CAD$148

Really cute on the model. Not so cute on me:

I don’t look happy because I’m not. I’m not a plaid person (not in the nineties, not now either), I felt like it was time for me to square-dance at a hoe-down in a barn.

In a solid colour, much happier:

Unfortunately blurry, but so much cuter, right? Love the v-neck, defined waist, and full flowy skirt.

So that was my Last Supper yesterday. Today could have been my last chance to go out and shop. Instead I’m in my pyjamas and a lululemon hoodie to keep warm because I can’t be bothered to leave my apartment. It’s like rehab has started already.

New Year’s Resolution #4: enough with the resolutions

I looked at the calendar this morning and saw it was January 23 and immediately thought WTF?  Where did January go? 

Since it’s almost the end of January, I thought that it was time to do away with resolutions.  They’ve all been pretty frivolous anyway.  What do I really want to do with 2010 anyway?

1. Be as healthy as possible.
2. Get out of debt.
3. Find a new job.
4. Be happy with what I have instead of always wanting something else.
5. Spend as much time as possible with the people I love.
6. Find out who I am.

And yes, of course, I’m going to accomplish #6 in one year.  Hell, I’ll be lucky if I find that out in my lifetime, because it’s been 31 years and I have no idea.  But on the style/fashion front (and this blog has mostly been about that), it’ll help me figure out what my style is and what I should be wearing.

#3 and #4 are pretty contradictory, but who knows about #3 in this economy and job market, so in the event that #3 doesn’t pan out, I want to focus on #4. 

As for #1 and #2…they’re the most important to me, which is exactly why I’ve been shopping up a storm and eating a ton of sugar and wheat (two things that I know make me feel unwell).  In all honesty, I won’t get completely out of debt in one year, but I have to start rather than just ignoring it/making it worse. 

But before I completely freak out about the magnitude of what I want to do (except #5, that’s easy), I have to remember to stop, relax, and breathe…and everything else will fall into place.

New Year’s Resolution #3: find a jacket

It’s Friday night, and I’m spending it as I usually do—at home, in my pyjamas, watching What Not To Wear.  The fun never stops on my Friday nights!

Since I’m watching What Not To Wear, I thought I’d reflect a little on jackets and the fact that I don’t wear them.  And this goes against every “essential pieces” list I’ve ever seen, from Tim Gunn to Stacey and Clinton to A. over at The Glamourous Grad Student.  It’s not that I don’t love jackets, but I’ve never found one that fits great and makes me feel good.  I find them bulky, constricting around the shoulders (and I absolutely must be comfortable), ill-fitting across my chest (although not enormous, it’s still a D-cup), etc.  But I’d love to find one that nips in at the waist and makes me look cute and chic, not like a linebacker.  So instead I stick to cardigans (I think I have close to 10?), which pretty much serve the same purpose as a cardigan but don’t quite provide the same structured look as a great fitted jacket. 

It might be my holy grail, but I know there’s one out there for me.

New Year’s Resolution #2: the important stuff (Happy New Year)

I’m spending New Year’s Eve at home in comfy clothes (long-sleeved cotton T-shirt from J. Crew, American Apparel leggings, knee socks) and it’s not likely that I’ll be awake past 10 p.m.  Part of me wishes I could get all dressed up and go out, but I don’t enjoy going out anyway, and the dress I would wear hasn’t come in the mail yet.

All joking aside, New Year’s Eve is a time when I usually reflect on what I’ve done in the past year and what I want to accomplish by this time next year.  One thing I know for sure is I want to spend the next year putting less energy into the things that are not important (namely, things) and more energy into the things that do count.  Beyond my family, boyfriend, and friends, I haven’t quite figured out what those things are.  Once I do, I’ll be good.

New Year’s Resolution #1: dress like Zooey Deschanel

While I was in bed yesterday with my lingering Christmas stomach bug, I watched (500) Days of Summer on my iPhone.

I love this movie. It’s quirky, its different, it’s not all wrapped up nicely in a neat little package like most romantic comedies. I especially love Zooey Deschanel’s wardrobe.

I don’t especially look like Zooey (for starters, there’s that whole Asian thing, and I’m about 3 inches shorter, 15 pounds heavier, bigger-chested, and much smaller-footed—but we’re both allergic to eggs, dairy, and wheat gluten), but this is a style I can really get behind. The first time I saw this movie, I immediately thought Anthropologie, but according to this article, her wardrobe was a mix of affordable pieces from Old Navy, Gap, BCBG, and a ton of vintage. I think I need to get smarter about shopping.

It would be a little single white female of me to want to be Zooey, but how could I not? She’s just so adorable.