retro

Do you Believe in Magic?

Greetings from Harry Potter World! In anticipation of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, I’ve incorporated a bit of a 1920’s flare. The costumes in the trailer are perfection, don’t you think?

This picture isn’t mine.

After a few roller coasters, I took the Hogwarts Express from Hogsmeade over to Diagon Alley for lunch. Shortly following was a delicious steak pie and too much butterbeer! For those cream soda lovers out there- butterbeer is heaven.

Pro-tip: If you know you are going to spend a certain amount of money in the park, you can go to the Gringott’s Money Exchange for real Gringott’s bank notes (or a money voucher you can use anytime in the park). If you use the note for less than it’s value, you get muggle change. But you have to watch out for this guy:

Outfit Details:
Shirt: Marni
Skirt: New Look
Kimono: Boutique Find
Shoes: Primark
Bag: Kate Spade
Glasses: Isaac Mizrahi

Roaring Prohibitions

Today in bar prep, I have been “furiously” reviewing Criminal Procedure. All the terminology stirs the imagination towards gangster movies. “Terry” frisks? Search and Seizures? Warrant based off an anonymous tip? You gotta be kiddin me… I got my rights!

You know the Hollywood schmaltz.

In the fervor of the period, here’s today’s selection from my very own rotating crap game. Don’t ask questions. After all, you know the score, kid.

Now scram (if you know what’s good for ya).

School Day Blues

School has been overwhelming lately, and it’s made me a bit nostalgic to write about something other than law. I’ve had this post on queue for a while — Jack and I actually shot it last year during our first Breakfast at Tiffany’s attempt (failed but fun nonetheless — here was the better result). And he’s been such a dear helping me learn LaTeX, I thought I’d come out of my nest to post it as a sort of thank you for all the work he’s done (and a reminder it shouldn’t go to waste). For the vibe, think sort of Carey Mulligan in An Education…

P.S. I don’t encourage smoking, and — Isn’t he just the cutest?

Une Pomme de ma Tête

Isn’t it funny the things that we become attached to? When I look through my room, I have so many things: books, hats, clothes—the list goes on and on. And yet, when you ask me to point out the things that I would take with me if I had to leave it all behind, it’s the funny, nearly valueless things that mean so much to me. Now I’m not saying I would leave me rings and jewelry PUH-lease. It’s just some of my favorite things are quite unexpected. Take for instance this picture:

I randomally picked it up one day in a cute shop in Oxford called Arcadia (really a haven for vintage papers of all kinds). I think I probably got it because it was the only old magazine reproduction that was under 10 pounds, and yet, it has brought me so many smiles. One of my friends even referred to it as the “naked girl” picture. But that little French adventurer is more than a sometimes naked girl to me. She’s sort of my spirit animal. Well, the other day I looked at it and found myself caught looking at the white outfit. I couldn’t think if I had any hat that would be anything like hers and more or less gave the idea up. Literally, less than 5 days later, I was browsing an antique warehouse and came upon the on I’m wearing in pictures for 5 dollars. It was fate! I hope you like my interpretation.

Outfit Details: Hat: Thrifted | Shirt: French Connection | Capris: J.M. Collection | Heels: Loft

Ode to Katharine

I have never gone golfing. I feel like it is something I really need to do. One of my best friends golfed in college (and I’m waiting for her to take me out on the green *hint hint*) , but I have never been invited or had a chance to go golfing. Now I could say it was for the learning experience or my future networking endeavors, but I would be lying. The beginning and end of why I want to go golfing has everything to do with Katharine Hepburn and almost nothing to do with my physical prowess. No one does casual athletic elegance like Katharine Hepburn.

Honestly, I see myself jaunting around in a pair of breezy pants, oxfords, and leather kid gloves, making very witty comments with a knowing grin. Basically, I would probably be terribly obnoxious and think I was a lot smarter than I actually sound. But it would be all so terribly marvelous, and who knows… I could meet the next Howard Hughes.

The Tide Is In

Hello Again! Summer for me has officially begun, and with it comes my return to the Sunshine State and the sea (*ahem* ocean). I’ve traded in flat anonymity for vitamin D, but forgot what running in this weather is like: salty suffocation. Hot yoga is retreating further down my “to do” list until I go back to a place air conditioning is optional. In the meantime, I’ve filled my time reading E.L. Doctorow’s Ragtime, and at the moment, I’m a bit enamored with everything Edwardian (or whatever Americans call the period from 1901-1915- is it the progressive era? Or did that really center around Wilson? Please feel free to comment). Now that my hair is long(er), expect white frocks and Gibson Girl simpers and fervor for the World’s Fair. This outfit doesn’t really encompass that look, but it is a good mix of of midwestern conservatism (reminiscent of Rodgers and Hammerstein) and vintage sea-going attire.

Thanks you to all of you who have stuck by me in my exam-induced absence. Don’t forget June 1st marks the next eccentric glamour link-up. I hope you’ll stop by and share your style!

Other things in the works include a (very unqualified) make-up discussion, subscription box review, discussion of my new favorite TV series (from Australia, no less!), and lots more. Let me know if you’re interested in anything in particular. I am officially back on the grid.

Lombard Street

Given the nature of the street, this post is going to make a few winding digressions that reflected my morning walk through the area towards Lombard Street and eventually Fisherman’s Wharf:

1. The chocolate motherland. This was both so exciting and totally jarring. Downtown Disney has a matching structure, which I did not realize paid homage to this megalith. Thus, it was like going home getting a sea salt caramel hot chocolate 1,000 miles away, but realizing that Disney and Ghiradelli’s love child was no more than just that, a child, of Ghirardelli Square was a big surprise.

2. With the on-going housing crisis in San Francisco, now is probably not the time to get choosy, but when I saw this place, shadowed by a noble birch (haha I have no idea what kind of tree it is), a modern cousin (and I would argue first cousin) of the tree house tucked at the top of hill. In it I could not help but see my future castle, a dominion unmatched! Too bad I have student loans and an unpaid internship…

3. An outfit reflection: beret in, socks out. Berets have been on the Vogue radar for a bit (trumping beanies). What aren’t on the radar are orthopedic shoes, so I would seriously suggest not wearing off-white socks with off-white platform shoes (what was I thinking). Also, I have never really done a scarf with strapless before, but when tied like a girl scout kerchief, it kind of looks like straps and it can make for a cool silhouette.

My April Eccentric Glamour link-up is open through the 4th here, please drop by and add your link!

Eccentric Glamour: Live From San Francisco!

Welcome to the Eccentric Glamour link-up, a forum specially designed to get together and showcase forgotten, yet fabulous articles in our closets! I’m excited to bring you these vintage-inspired shots from Sutro Baths (and the surrounding park in San Francisco). The views from the hike are pretty stunning, so I’ll let them speak for themself… kind of like my outfit. 😉

Outfit Details: Hat: Vintage | Dress: Dear Creatures | Gloves: Vintage | Shoes: Zara Trafaluc

Sutro Baths (pictured in the background below) have an interesting, if slightly tragic history (after the collapse of a specialized railroad line-now hiking trail), which you can read more about here. But trust me, they were all the rage in the late 19th century. I was kind of obsessed with the fairy tale splendor of the surrounding trees…

Don’t Forget!

If you’d like to regularly contribute, please take a moment to follow my blog (links can be found on the sidebar).
Please confine posts to those which showcase some spectacular article of clothing. It doesn’t have to be crazy, but just a bit in line with our theme of “Eccentric Glamour” (although choosing one half or the other of that mantra will also suffice). However, if you choose to post, please provide a link back to the Eccentric Glamour link-up somewhere in your post.
Try to check out a few other bloggers posts to build inspiration and community!

Shared to Style Crone’s Hat Attack Link-up!

If you can bounce high, bounce for her too…

It seems that all the best Fitzgerald interpretations come by way of Australia. Is it the gold mines? The sprawling coasts? Whatever inspires the psyche to produce such effortless decadence, obviously blessed Katie Louise Ford and Tim Nichols, the scandalously brilliant duo who last year launched The Gold Hatted Lovers. Both a vintage apparel marketplace and an independent label, the Golden Hatted Lovers is the go-to site for the picnic apparel you hithero couldn’t source (*ahem* that cape–see below!). Even better, all GHL items are ethically produced and handmade. And if you would prefer *actual* vintage, to *inspired,* they have you covered. Alongside their Spring/ Summer 2014 line, GHL continuously curates a hand-picked list of vintage clothing.

With all this South Bend snow, I can’t help but dream of rolling green grass, picnics a-plenty, and the perfect one-piece suit to take a flying leap into a secluded lake. Maybe laying out on a wooden dock in tinted sunglasses and an oversize hat, reciting “Ulalame”?

So here’s the answer, and there’s really only one downside to the collection, which is none other than Australian shipping prices. After long thought on this matter, I have decided that the best remedy is to buy in bulk, thus lowering your shipping costs overall.

C–hat–auqua

If you’ve been following me with any semblance of regularity, you’ve probably figured out by now that I have quite the penchant for hats. Specifically vintage hats. Last count put me at somewhere over one hundred, and seeing how that’s more than I can probably manage myself, I thought it only fair that I start sharing them with you (as learn to work my tripod and the time set on my camera). It seems the season to inaugurate series, and this one is no different.

After reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, I was enthralled by the idea of a “chautauqua.” At first, I mistakenly thought this was the name of the talks which Native Americans had around the campfire. That was ludicrous hogwash (what hogwash isn’t ludicrous, after all). The name actually comes from a city in New York where the origins of this well-meaning adult education movement began. You can read all about its glories here (complete with both Elvis and William Jennings Bryan (at different times)).

As for the hat itself, I regret to say I am unclear as to its actual date of conception. The style and tuille lead me to believe it was probably a 1950s number, but if anyone has a better idea please comment below. I always love learning more about hats, and really any millinery wisdom you’d like to share. Also, if you have any ideas on a name for this hat, they’d be most welcome. Right now I’m inclined to call it “Autumn Blues,” but that does seem so obvious, don’t you think?Accessories: Dress: Burberry London | Earrings: vintage

The Clothesline

Style for people blowing in the wind