The Clothesline

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).

Summer of Discovery

After about a year hiatus, I’ve come back! Some of the pictures that I will be sharing are old, but I think these in particular capture how I feel about this summer. Three weeks ago, I graduated from law school. With that accomplished, I feel like the world is mine again. Even with everyday bar prep, I cannot summon the anxiety or stress to feel worried. The sun is radiant right now in South Bend, and I feel like everyday is a new opportunity to explore what’s out there. For instance, the Lightner Museum.

Charles Lighter acquired the front half of the Alcazar Hotel (described with other St. Augustine history here) as a showroom for his personal collection in the 1940s. Reading between the lines, it looks like Lightener was rich during the Depression and bought up the old money possessions of hapless Northerners before carpetbagging down to St. Augustine and buying the closed Alcazar. He also managed to amass a beautiful group of Tiffany glass windows (Louis Tiffany actually started his company with the help of Flagler in order to outfit the windows of the Ponce de Leon, now Flagler University). Even though fashion blogs usually fixate around showing clothes, I couldn’t help but choose darkness of the light seeping through the panes over a clear shot of the fabric of my jeans. There’s a “light at the end of the tunnel,” and sometimes it’s just breathtaking.

Outfit: Hat: Ralph Lauren | Scarf in hair (questionable decision in hindsight): Liberty London | Tunic: Elizabeth and James | Jacket: Rag & Bone | Purse: Rebecca Minkoff (laptop case)

The Collection

Here are a few bits of the actual collection that I thought were worth note: This is the most extensive toaster collection

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

Spice Up Your Life

After the repeated navys, khakis, and whites of nautical week (and it’s spill over), I thought I’d switch it up with something a bit more bold. Like yesterday’s romper outfit. This ensemble requires little work for the resulting polish. A strapless dress, espadrilles, and a big hat seem old hollywood in a way that will make you look like Grace Kelly even when you’ve just rolled out of bed. I’ll be doing a similar look later this week on the blog, so for now, I’ll just leave it at that. Make sure to turn in tomorrow (ok really almost today… later) for this Wednesday’s woman!

Outfit Details: Hat: vintage | Dress: Anthropologie | Sunglasses: Urban Outfitters | Shoes: Coach | Wallet: Fossil

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.

Carnivore

Last week, I saw Paddington (truly a delight!) and was pleasantly amused by the ominous wardrobe choices chosen to portray Nicole Kidman’s villainy as the maniacal taxidermist. In every scene, she’s shown wearing some kind of animal print (with the implication that she made them herself from her defenseless prey) or colonial inspired safari attire. To introduce to you what I could only consider a chicken-wire netted hat (made with two joined mink tails), I thought I would draw on her sinister aesthetic.

While I remain conflicted on the subject of fur, I have only bought vintage pieces. Perhaps my rationale that “I am ensuring that the animal did not die in vain” does not carry appropriate weight, but it does give me some validation most of my pieces have not been commissioned since about the ’60s.

Outfit Details: Fascinator: Union Made | Jacket: Vintage Oscar De La Renta

Spanish Influence

Isn’t it funny how some of the most accidental discoveries can end up being your favorite things? That’s the way I feel about this cape, and this lovely old town. As for the forner, my friend Elizabeth and I both enjoy a thrift store joke about as much as a thrift store gem. This being the case, she texted me a picture of the “ridiculous cape” she saw while out one day. My only response besides replacing my gaping jaw, was “It’s perfect.” And the economical birthday present was “in the bag.” Subsequently, this (maybe Aztec-inspired) article has become one of my favorite accessories. Paired with what I would consider, “conquistador” boots, I was ready to traipse through (and match the peacocks in) America’s first Spanish colony, St. Augustine.

I really love this city. It’s definitely had its ups and downs (something I will discuss more tomorrow), but it has retained a local flair and eccentric warmth, so that I can’t help but want to be a part of. It’s large enough to be interesting, but small enough to be walkable, and I spent this morning going to a few of the more historic sites for pictures. Hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I enjoyed making them!

Photos by: Madeline Arnall

Shared to Visible Monday

Eccentric Glamour Link-up #2: Southern Aristocrat

Welcome to the second link-up of Eccentric Glamour, a forum specially designed to get together and showcase forgotten, yet fabulous articles in our closets! This month’s post strikes me as a curious cross between Desperate Housewives of Atlanta and Blanche Dubois. While both of those comparisons make for dubious company, it was fun to dig out my fur (generally so superfluous in Georgia) and try to tweak it to represent a Southern staple. And what could be more Southern than getting all dolled up to sip almost-lemonade on the front porch? I hope you had just as much fun making your posts as I did in mine!

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!

Lampshade

For the second installment of the C-hat-auqua series, it’s getting a little funky with the lampshade-turned-hat. It really is… something. I have no idea what the correct period for this piece is (anyone want to weigh in?), but it seems appropriate for the excluded flapper. That girl who wasn’t exactly a wallflower, but certainly didn’t have that joie de vivre radiating from her daily existential struggle. I just want yell, “Girl, the reason you don’t fit in is because you have a lampshade on your head. Get a cloche.”

“All the time the flapper is laughing and dancing, there’s a feeling of tragedy underneath. She’s unhappy and disillusioned, and that’s what people sense.”
– Clara Bow

Shared to Hat Attack