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daily outfit
My current obsessions: Karen Walker, jazz classics, delving deeper into the internet than ever before, the Jade Goody story (sad any way you look at it), wholemeal bagels with avocado, eureka moments and creating interesting outfits from the contents of a single suitcase. Empty rooms.
+ Karen Walker Wide Spiderweb shirt in faded black.
+ Dark Gray skinny jeans from Uniqlo
+ Wooden bracelet
+ Suede round toe mid-wedge from Witchery
The perfect tee? Puff printed witty graphics and a cute crochet detail on the back. Tis very well cut too.
The beautiful empty room belongs to Willy & Ali, who have been kindly letting me stay for the last few weeks. I’m realising I don’t actually need so much “stuff” in my life to make it feel full. Feeling mellow and reflective. It’s good.
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Late spring. Standing in the dappled light of my front porch. Or, of my verandah as we say around here. The differences in language use between various English-speaking nations really become apparent when you start putting things out on the Internet for consumption, as opposed to just observing.
It’s a wonderful thing though, especially as a writer, you get to tap into a vocabulary well deeper than you ever imagined. A few examples of the variations I love are:
Candy – sweets – lollies. Bodega – convenience store – dairy. Popsicle – ice lolly – iceblock. Comforter – doona – duvet.
But most of all… I love fringe – bangs – iron curtain of hair! This is what started all my musing – isn’t it funny how the two words are completely unrelated? From what I understand fringe was the original term, then bangs developed colloquially, from a use of the adverb bang – meaning abruptly. It obviously stuck. Anyway, here is my new fringe in action:
+ Tempt blue dress
+ Levi black jeans
+ Silver canvas plimsolls (shock, from the Warehouse)
There seems to be about 20 different shade of pink & purple in my hair. If I was to step into full sunlight you’d see a halo of magenta around my crown. Anyway, bangs are fun – it’s amazing how different they can make you look.
Rather a lot of thinking and commentary for an outfit that ended up being very pared back. I guess I’m just fascinated by language and culture. How about yourself - are you a fringe or bangs kind of cat?
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Spring has sprung, or rather, erupted in blossoms. I can now safely venture outside in the mornings without a sweater, which is very, very heartening.
- T-Shirt printed with Holga photograph of Japanese bicycles
- Chunky wooden bracelet
- Navy bangle + ivory look bangle
- Black jeans
- Pink chucks
I think this outfit could be improved if the shirt was more fitted. Since then I have refined my general appearance by layering a long charcoal cardigan over the tee – bringing it all in a bit more. Really, refinement is the point of daily outfit photos – if not on the day, make it the next time you reach for the same look). Remix and experiment – give yourself the opportunity to learn from your errors or capitalise on moments of genius.
That said, I love this new shirt and sometimes I just wear things because they look good to my eye, rather than look good on me. The print is very impressive in person – at 45 by 45 centimetres it is hard to ignore!
The print on my T-shirt - photo by Sam Montgomery.
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I’m moving house tomorrow… so the next few days might be very quiet as we figure out where all the little cables went and hmmm just what happened to my favourite shirt? Actually, this is one of my favourite shirts – a basic flannel men’s shirt from The Warehouse, which is New Zealand’s mega-discount chain. $8, oh yeah. It coordinates very nicely with my packing box.
I’m going to miss my sunny yellow bedroom and our funny old creaky villa!
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As promised in the CFS Guide to Looking Good on a Bike, my own bike style. A Sunday afternoon called for blowing out the cobwebs and simply riding around the car-park across the road from my house. Not too adventurous but it was rather blustery – making it challenging to see past my flapping hair!
T-shirt: Huffer.
Canvas slip-ons: Kmart, $8 baby!
Leggings: Generic black life-savers. Because of the ferocious wind, I was super thankful for making the decision to wear tights! Modesty prevailed!
Black dress: Valley Girl. It’s an el cheapo brand, but this cotton dress has lasted an amazingly long time… 3 years and counting!
Waistcoat: Dotti. A plain vest that’s easy to throw over any outfit that needs a bit more structure.
Bonus resources! Urban Cycle Chic, which has a great section on velocoture. That led me to Riding Pretty – California bike fashion – shots straight from the beach. They both seem to be updated regularly, so go check ‘em out.
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T-shirt: Country Road, my very favourite brand for basic tees.
Jeans: Jeanswest. I’m only just embracing blue jean. Usually I look like a bit of a Westie with black jeans and shirts.
Belt: Stolen from my father (along with my socks)!
Safari boots: Vintage… these don’t seem to leave my feet.
Scarf: Equip, very cheap, very versatile!
Working, working… so very utilitarian/comfy. Tomorrow I’m hoping to put a long overdue update on Catch & Covet – lots of new vintage goodies. This meant a long day of photography, measuring and climbing out the window on to the roof to hang out in the sun, hehe. I wore my new magenta scarf, which matches my new hair! It doesn’t quite look like this in real life – it’s a little more brighter/obvious. I love it and can’t wait for warmer weather when I can simply wear a singlet and use my tattoos/hair as a splash of colour.
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It’s nearly spring in the Southern Hemisphere, one more day or so! And for once, it actually feels like the season it’s meant to be. In celebration I’m flinging off my grey felted coat, neatly stacking my muddy boots to one side and breathing a little colour into my design agency uniform. Today it’s a aubergine purple that took my fancy, the shade of my new shoes.
T-shirt: Crystal Castles, available from their myspace page.
Cardigan: Generic noir black cardy
Leggings: Supre
Skirt: The brand is Theatre – I bought this skirt in Bangkok in 2005 and I still adore it!
Shoes: Suede round toe mid-wedge from Witchery. They are lovely ❤
This outfit is perfect for: a) The girl scribbling lyrics out for a psychedelic folk rock band or b) the girl planning a day of antique hunting in small country towns surrounded by pastures or c) the girl prancing around the backyard kicking petals? Answer: All of the above!
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Apologies for the lack of updates over the last few days – I’ve been sick and there’s been a storm blowing! However the weather hasn’t stopped me shopping – last week I managed to pick up the most glorious 50mm lens for my camera and aptly, a rain jacket.
I picked up this gorgeous Source Jacket from the moochi store, at a bargain 1/3rd of the original price! Hurrah for sales. moochi is a new zealand label that makes understated, comfortable (for mooching yeah?) clothes that are awesome for layering. I find their colour palette father muted and classic, making their pieces are rather timeless.
Appropriately, I wore it to my recent house party – a night of music and friends entitled ‘Winter in Vermont’. It was a magnificent way to beat the storm and stay dry!
What I love the most about this anorak is the hidden drawstrings. You can cinch it in at both the waist and bottom hem for a more structured hourglass shape, or leave it super baggy floating all over your body. The glittery nylon also makes me sigh with delight. Yes, with my jacket on, I am definitely looking forward to the next bout of showers.
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skellybones, originally uploaded by Amber P*
My daily outfit: I love my Huffer skeleton gloves and they definitely get a lot of comments when I’m out and about! This outfit is an odd combination of a few of my favourite pieces. The dress is by Skylark and was originally bought to wear to my 21st birthday party. The leather jacket (not real cow though!) is a brand new addition to my wardrobe but has been around for a while – circa 1970′s. I bought it in a wee town called Te Aroha in the Waikato, at a really fabulous retro store. Definitely worth a look there if you are ever passing through!
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pink attack!, originally uploaded by Amber P*.
My daily outfit: I feel so co-ordinated today! I’m wearing my new Crystal Castles T-shirt, bought from their myspace. Check out their self titled album, it’s fun to thrash to. Accompanying the shirt is some faux pearls (chosen for the correlating shapes) & a snug black cardigan. It’s cold out!
And obivously the geeky part of my outfit – my matching chucks and Macbook! I was lucky enough to come to work one day and find the perspex cover on my desk, in one of my favourite colours. Oh yes!
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