Leave me out with the waste, this is not what I do

This dress reminds me of Damien Rice's song "9 Crimes".

Anthro Cirque A-Line Dress (Porridge) | Club Monaco cardigan | Hilary Druxman necklace | Miss Sixty Tracy shoes

It should really remind of of the song “Elephant”, which is on the album 9 along with “9 Crimes”. But no, my brain and its associations are completely ridiculous sometimes.

(If you look really really hard, you can kinda see the CN Tower in the distance behind me. It’s that blurry spike right next to the bow.)

I had a mini-crisis earlier this summer partly sparked by this dress. I loved it, I loved the fun elephant print, but I had a panic attack that I was too old for a dress with elephants all over it. Then I snapped out of it, smacked myself in the face (metaphorically speaking), and bought the damn dress when I was in NYC last month.

And then it sat in my closet unworn because I wasn’t sure if it were everyday-appropriate, or if it needed some kind of party or event. Again, I snapped out of it, smacked myself in the face (literally this time), and wore it to work today. And I’d wear it again.

This was actually the same day. At the last minute before I left for work, after I took these photos, I decided to swap out the summery cardigan for a long-sleeved one and flats. It’s not summer out there anymore.

Ok, now is it the end of the summer?

I’m a big fan of consistency. So this time of year drives me a little crazy, mostly because I don’t know how to dress. Is it hot? Is it cold? Is it summer? Is it time for fall? I’m like this in the spring too. Clearly I need to work on the transition time of year when it comes to dressing myself.

I thought summer was over last week, but it’s hot and humid again until tomorrow, so I’ll take advantage of it.

Anthro Oak Apple Dress (Moulinette Soeurs) | Anthro Anadyomene Cardi (Rosie Neira) | Hilary Druxman necklace | Miss Sixty Tracy shoes

This is actually a dress I wear throughout the year, despite its thin fabric. So maybe I’m not as bad at transitioning as I thought I was.

10 years

I was just about to post a typical, light-hearted entry with an outfit or reviews from my recent trips to Anthropologie, and then I turned on the TV and remembered what day it is today.

Like most people, I remember where I was 10 years ago when I heard about the attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. I was 23 years old and I was starting grad school, still living at home with my parents outside of Ottawa. I was on the computer that morning chatting online with a friend from Toronto, who was working downtown that day. All of a sudden she typed, turn on the TV, a plane just hit the World Trade Centre. I did and I watched for a while, but it was confusion at that point and no one knew exactly what had happened. I turned off the TV and went about my morning business, getting ready for school and so on. I turned the TV on again a few hours later and learned that the other tower had been struck and both of them had come down by this point. I called my parents over and we watched the TV in shock for a while. I’d been to New York City for the first time in 1997 and I’d fallen in love with the city, and my heart was broken.

The week before, I’d been hospitalized because of a severe asthma attack, so later that day, I had to go back to the hospital for some follow-up breathing tests. The TVs were on in the waiting room and scenes of the planes hitting the towers and the towers collapsing kept replaying. The respiratory tech administering my tests told me to breathe as though it were any normal day…but of course, not like that day.

I visited NYC less than a year later, in June 2002. My mom and I stayed downtown, not far from the WTC site. I happened to be the only one on a boat cruise around Lower Manhattan (everyone else got on the one stopping at Ellis Island), so I had my own private tour and sat chatting with the tour guide for the entire time, listening to his recollections of that day. I also stood and looked at the WTC site, and found it incredibly eerie. It was difficult to be there.

10 years later, I’m 33 now and I think I just accept the changes that have happened in the world because of 9/11.

Last month, I went to NYC and stayed in a hotel right at the WTC. We had a view of the construction going on at the site.

So as I was watching the memorial on TV this morning, I decided it’s not the time for me to be posting about fashion or shopping. I’ll be back to my light-hearted, mostly frivolous self tomorrow, but today is a day to pause and remember.

Anthropologie catalogue: Fall Dressing 2006

Every week I take a look back at past Anthropologie catalogues and what I loved from then. (Thanks to Natalie for posting all the links.) I used to think that it’s impossible to find these pieces again, but thanks to Roxy’s trade market and eBay, anything is possible.

Fall Dressing 2006 – 5 years ago, but still pieces I would totally wear

leaf sheath, etched pumps - I'm not a fan of knee socks and heels, but this dress is beautiful

newroom jumper, etched pumps – I’m also not really a fan of dresses over leggings and flats, but this is a cute dress

skybox dress, printed ink sweetheart

passementerie dress – fancy

concrete jungle dress, masthead belt, brixton bangle – this is kinda awesome

sugarhouse overcoat, take-a-hike a-line, roundabout booties – love the hot pink print

oliver street overcoat, high-watt belt, pearly white duffel, nickel loafers

skylight dress – pretty

skyline platforms – the toy cars are a nice touch

skyline platforms – even better!

awkward & awesome Thursday: my legs only go up to here

It’s been a hectic week. I’m way behind on all things blog-related: reading, commenting, and posting my own. Hoping to catch up this weekend. Oh wait, is that something that’s awkward? It was only meant to be something of a preamble.

Awkward:

• I’ve spent the past two days in a work environment with a girl who is absolutely gorgeous. She’s one of those girls who is always perfectly put together, she’s blonde and blue-eyed, she’s tall and fit and she has legs that go on forever, and if that weren’t enough, she has a lovely plummy English accent to top it all off. She’s a trainer, and she’s certainly kept the attention of all the men in the room. It’s made me feel just a tad insecure and inadequate, and I may have eaten most of a tub of ice cream the other day.
• I started to put away some of my summer clothes. That always signals the end of summer to me.
• I think I wore one of my favourite summer dresses for the last time this year (over the long weekend, before it got cold):

Anthropologie Height of Summer Dress (Maeve) | Club Monaco cardigan | turquoise necklace made by me | Rockport wedges

Awesome:

• I may not be a tall, blue-eyed, leggy blonde – in fact, as a short, slightly dumpy Asian, I’m practically the complete opposite – but damnit, there’s nothing wrong with me.
• I made the Labour Day weekend an extra-long weekend by taking last Friday off. It was my first paid vacation day in four years (I’d been on contract before finally going permanent full-time in May). It was awesome and weird…I kept thinking, you mean I’m not working, and I’m getting paid?? I didn’t do much that day though. I got my hair cut, cleaned my condo, and ate pizza.
• I spent an hour at Anthropologie after work trying on new clothes. How could that not be awesome?

fancy feet (making it work)

Anthro Pezza Dress (Deletta) | Club Monaco cardigan | turquoise necklace made by me | BRKR-X by M by Michael Kors sandals

I bought these silver sandals on a whim, because I’m a magpie and I’m drawn to anything shiny. Then I got them home and realized that they’re a little on the “clubby” side. I never go out to clubs, so I vowed to make them daytime- and work-appropriate by wearing them with flowy knit dresses. If I’d left them in my closet as party shoes only, I would have never worn them, and that would be a shame.

These are the shiniest shoes I own, and they’re also the noisiest. There are zippers up the back, and the zipper tabs jingle when I walk. You can hear me coming a mile away, so they’re not shoes to wear when I want to sneak up on someone.

Anthropologie catalogue: September 2011

An Anthro-obsessed coworker of mine emailed me this week the minute the September catalogue was online to tell me how much she hated it. I don’t know if I’d go so far to say that I hate it, but it’s certainly not one of my favourites. Everything looks a little drab and unappealing to me; it’s certainly not a catalogue that has me rushing out to buy anything.

crewel paisley tee, stone maze bracelet, pilcro serif cords – this is a pretty top

cobalt flash fedora, cabled cocoon poncho, ruled boatneck, blazing stones cuff, high IQ corduroys, buckled triad booties; frozen city vest, dusk peony blouse, gem line ring, houndstooth collage pencil skirt, pointelle sweater tights, bowed lacerta mary-janes – I definitely like the embellishment on the horses, but the clothes really aren’t standing out in this shot.

stamped check cloche, frilled echelons peacoat, houndstooth collage pencil skirt – I love the colour of this coat, but double-breasted jackets are problematic for me.

retezat poncho, pilcro stet slim, outspread wings peep-toes – are ponchos back? These shoes are not my style, but I love the bright pop of teal.

limestone tablet side tables, blazon gleam pendants, plumen lightbulbs, margot armchair, abstract ikat pillow –I love the pop of blue

party animal wallpaper, italian campaign canopy bed, georgina duvet cover, exclamation point lamp, film reel end table, ikat shag rug, howell wingback – this is definitely bedding for a single girl. My guy would certainly never let me get away with bedding this girly.

Making a statement

I love jewellery. I mean, LOVE it. But when I was going through my jewellery box for today’s prompt, I realized I don’t have a lot of really bold statement pieces. An oversight on my part, clearly. However, since discovering Anthropologie in all its detailed, embellished glory, I’ve been drawn to more simple jewellery because I don’t want my jewellery and clothes to compete. Also, I want to consider proportion – I’m short in stature, so I don’t want my jewellery to overwhelm me.

My favourite piece of jewellery is this Hilary Druxman necklace which I wear all the time (here, here, here, here, here, and here, for a start). It’s simple enough to wear with everything, but special enough for my tastes. It was quite pricey (all handmade, in sterling silver), but I’m sure my CPW (cost per wear) is practically nil by now. But I seem to be wearing it so much to the neglect of all others though.

So here’s an outfit with a bold necklace from Anthro.

Jacob sleeveless top (2006) | Club Monaco skirt (2009) | Anthro necklace | Miss Sixty Tracy shoes

Closeup:

And another.

My hair was also a big deal today (the closeups help because you can’t really see in the full-length shots above); inspired by Monday’s hair challenge, I bought a curling iron (actually a styling wand) and resolved to learn how to curl/wave my hair. This was my first attempt in 20 minutes this morning. Not too bad, if I do say so myself. I love how the 21 Day Challenge is just inspiring me all over the place.