tempus fugit

since it's the last day of 2009 i thought it would be fun to put together a slideshow of some of my favorite outfits from the past year. these were favorites of mine in 2009 and are sure to be worn many times again in 2010!





i did really well in the post-holiday sales this year (rick... ann d... les chiffoniers...) there'll be lots to post in the coming year so stay tuned!


thank you so much for visiting my blog and have a very happy new year!!!

urban warrior

here's what i wore last sunday, the day after the blizzard. i had to get out of my apartment after being holed in all night, plus i had a few more stocking stuffers to buy. it's certainly not a typical errand-running outfit, but it was warm and i had not worn the skirt in a while. it's at least 4 years old now!


American Apparel lightweight turtleneck; Costume National furry vest (very old, from eBay); Alexander McQueen wool skirt with zippers (very old, from eBay); Bally boots ("borrowed indefinitely" from mom's closet); DKNY wool leggings; Cecile et Jeanne gold hammered cuff (from Cecile et Jeanne boutique on Madison Ave./NYC)


come to think of it, this combination works for my rick owens leather skirt as well...


same as above, except with Rick Owens leather skirt (from Barneys NY sale); Chloe boots (old, from DSW Shoes/NYC)

default

this is my current default "night out" outfit. it's one of those outfits that i don't have to think about, i pretty much know it'll work. best of all, the hosiery, belt, and shoes are easily interchangeable.


Joie silk minidress (discounted from Bergdorf Goodman/NYC because the belt was missing); D&G lace leggings (old, from Century21/NYC); Balenciaga belt (from eBay); Biba over-the-knee boots (from eBay)


and this is my current default traveling outfit. with the exception of this past weekend when i got snowed in, i've gone home to nyc for holiday parties and other engagements so i've been on trains frequently this month.


T by Alexander Wang classic l/s tee worn under T by Alexander Wang striped linen blend tee (both from Barneys Co-op/Philly); American Apparel "winter" leggings; Miu Miu motorcycle boots (old, from mytheresa.com); extra-long cashmere scarf (two Portolano scarves from Filene's Basement sewn together)

the american apparel leggings were actually an emergency buy. i wore my leather pants on the train ride from philly to nyc and found them a little uncomfortable, plus they made a funny noise on the vinyl seats. so before heading back to philly i popped into american apparel and bought these winter leggings. if this stripe tee was a little more affordable i would have bought two, it's perfect for travel - comfortable but a little more interesting than the plain oversized tees i usually wear.


i'll be heading home to new york this thursday, but i did schedule some posts via draft.blogger.com so the blog won't be completely inactive while i'm away. enjoy the holidays everyone!!

snow day!!!

first real snow day of the season! it looks like we'll be getting at least 3 inches today. i certainly hope businesses are open, i've got a ton of errands to run.



i love this wool onesie! i've been wanting one but didn't want to spend a lot of money on it because it's such a specific look. i found this one on sale at intermixonline.com, and you can take an extra 40% off the sale price with code "sale40" (note that it is final sale.) it's a fine merino wool, not at all itchy or cheap-looking, and it is so comfortable. i can't wait to play around with it (i'll be checking out alexander wang's fall looks for some ideas), but for now here's how i'm wearing it - nothing like piling on a bunch of cosy layers when it's snowing out!



ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Prada mohair vest (old, from eBay)
Portolano extra-long cashmere scarf (old, from Filene's Basement/NYC)
Brighton wool onesie (from intermixonline.com sale)
Balenciaga belt (from eBay)
Missoni ombre cardigan (from Filene's Basement/NYC)
Soixante Neuf tusk necklace (very old, from small boutique in NYC)
Hunter "Huntress" wellies (from zappos.com)

shiny shiny

when i first moved to philly in october i mentioned on the blog that my pvc pants might be too fashion forward for this city. a couple of philly locals told me to wear them regardless, so on sunday that's what i did. i definitely got a few curious stares, but i had my ipod on quite high so if there were any rude comments i didn't hear them :-)



this drkshdw furry hoodie is currently my favorite piece of outerwear (despite the fact that my sister thinks i look like the grim reaper.) it's so warm that i can get away with wearing just a t-shirt underneath. it was the only coat i brought home with me to new york this past thanksgiving weekend - it doubled as a blanket on the train ride home.



ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Les Chiffoniers PVC pants with hip zippers (old, from Intermix sample sale/NYC)
DRKSHDW furry hoodie (from Century21/NYC)
Ter et Bantine t-shirt (from Century21/NYC)
Ann Demeulemeester scarf (v. old, from aloharag.com)
Chanel motorcycle boots (old, from Barneys clearance)
Bliss Lau body chain (from blisslau.com)
hammered silver ring (from the Met Museum gift shop/NYC)

favorite thing

today i finally got the chance to debut the only item i purchased on the saturday-after-black-friday (i never go shopping on black friday, it's too exhausting!) although i only came away with one item the whole weekend, i made sure it was a good one - a rick owens drawstring leather miniskirt, marked down 40% at barneys. i fell in love with it at the beginning of the season but had given up on it, assuming it would never go on sale. but lo and behold, there it was on a very empty rick owens rack on the 5th floor of barneys. it's a size too big but that's what drawstrings are for! seriously, who but rick owens would put a drawstring waist on a leather miniskirt? and did i mention it had pockets?! i am officially in love.



at first i was hesitant to do the full leather suit, but i liked how it turned out.



be prepared to see these chloe boots a lot this winter; i've been looking for another pair of black ankle boots but have yet to find ones that i really like.

ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
vintage leather jacket (old, from eBay)
Nation Ltd. gray top (from Intermix/NYC)
Rick Owens drawstring leather mini (**new** from Barneys sale/NYC)
Isabel Marant braided scarf (old, from eBay)
extra long Portolano cashmere scarf (from Filene's Basement/NYC)
lace fingerless gloves (from Intermix sample sale/NYC)
rings with Latin sayings (from Marc Jacobs accessories store on Bleecker St./NYC)
Elizabeth & James knuckle ring (from Intermix/NYC) and hammered silver ring (from Met Museum gift shop)
DKNY wool leggings
Chloe pull-on boots (from DSW Shoes/NYC)



i finished my christmas shopping this morning. i got back to my apartment just as the first snowflakes of the season started to fall. snow in the city is much prettier when you're warm and cosy indoors, watching the snowfall through your window...

OTK boots

i did not pack my camera when i went home for thanksgiving, so no pictures from new york. i did have this outfit to post though, from two saturdays ago:


Pringle 1815 sweater dress (old, from net-a-porter.com); Biba over-the-knee boots (from eBay); H&M tights

so more on over-the-knee boots...



those of you who followed me on stylediary know that i already own a few pairs of over-the-knee boots and have worn them frequently over the years, even before this year's trend. i still love the boots pictured above, but i felt that i needed a better black pair. the one i had was cheap, and you could kind of tell. it fell apart after a few wears. with over-the-knee boots increasing in popularity, this year was the right time to search for the perfect pair.

enter these fabulous boots by Biba...



these are pretty darn near perfect. the heel is thick as opposed to stiletto, making these boots more "kate moss," less "julia roberts in pretty woman." the heel is also perfect walking height, so they are pretty much an everyday shoe for me. and when a new yorker says shoes are comfortable, you know they definitely are! unlike ahem - a lot of west coast bloggers who claim 4-inch heels are comfortable, probably because they are hopping in and out of cars most of the time - i can actually walk all day with them, up and down subway steps, from the bronx to soho. they are snug around my leg (unfortunately they do not stretch out much, so i would not recommend them for anyone with large calves; i have healthy calves from running and struggle to get the zipper up.) i actually first saw these boots on yoox and had them in my dreambox for the longest time. i held out from purchasing because they were quite pricey. then one day they vanished from my dreambox, and i had to resort to eBay. i thought i would have to wait several months, but lo and behold, after a couple of days of searching, they appeared in my size, for half the price on yoox! it was definitely meant to be!!


a reader asked how i take care of my boots. for suede boots, i spray them with Garde Rain & Stain Repellent. i do not spray my leather boots, because i kind of like it when they are a little beat up. i keep them in boot shapers from Bed Bath & Beyond, and always keep the dust bags (but throw away those big boxes) for storage in the winter. when they are stored away, i still keep the boot shapers in, i just lay them flat and pile them up behind my closet.

***the links for the stain repellent and boot shapers above are the exact ones that i use, and i believe they are the exact same merchants i purchased from as well. i hope that answers your question!***

4-day weekend

in just a few hours...

home sweet home!!!





i will not be taking my laptop, so i'll be back to posting next week...

have a great holiday everyone, even if you don't celebrate thanksgiving i hope you at least have the day off!!!

sunday, november 22nd '09

had a very nice sunday - woke up to giada de laurentiis and alex guarnaschelli on the food network followed by gordon ramsay's kitchen nightmares and mary portas's "mary queen of shops" on bbc america; forgot it was the philadelphia marathon but managed to run my full route anyway, with a few detours; found a patisserie that was actually open on sundays and went later in the day when all pastries were half price!; started my christmas shopping and found some great things for my friend and my sister; went food shopping and cooked myself a fatty (i.e., authentic) carbonara; loaded my iPod with a few new songs; did some research for work. if only i was this efficient every sunday!



my outfit looked completely different by the time i walked out the door, after all the layers i piled on...



ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Nation Ltd. top (from Intermix/NYC)
weathered vintage tee (from Unis/NYC)
Tt black skinny pants (from Tokio7 consignment/NYC)
Chloe pull-on boots (old, from DSW/NYC)
Berkeley cashmere cardigan (v. old, from Filene's Basement/NYC)
Furla modal scarf (old, from yoox.com)
Ann Demeulemeester scarf (old, from aloharag.com)
lace armwarmers (from Intermix sample sale/NYC)
random street vendor necklace
Elizabeth & James knuckle ring (old, from Intermix/NYC)

sunday, november 15th '09

i can't believe i wore a miniskirt, sans tights, in the middle of november! i actually could have gone without the jacket but felt too naked without it.



i re-discovered this ysl tee when i was packing for my move. that's the danger of owning so much black in your wardrobe - i had completely forgotten about it because it was hidden among a bunch of black tops!


ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Alexander McQueen lightweight trench (old, from yoox.com)
cotton miniskirt by Velvet
Yves Saint Laurent silk/lace top (from Tokio7/NYC)
Christian Louboutin cut-out flats (old, from net-a-porter.com)
silver rings
faux diamond earrings (old, from New York Look/NYC)

method

i usually take 3 or 4 pictures in succession then pick the best one to post on the blog. my camera has a remote control which is quite handy. it's good to have choices - lighting varies from picture to picture and since i am no professional model, i often end up with a few extremely unflattering poses!



this was last saturday's outfit.


ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Karoo cashmere "boyfriend" sweater (old, from shopbop.com)
Balenciaga belt (from eBay)
Balenciaga boyfriend blazer (from eBay)
Yves Saint Laurent metal tipped flat boots (old, from eBay)
LNA zipper leggings (from shopbop.com)
Zara vest
Soixante Neuf tusk necklace (super old, from Montmartre/NYC)

casual

i try to put effort into all my outfits, but sometimes (usually on sundays), i just want to be comfortable. i take a break from heels and tight jeans and break out the boyfriend jeans, jersey pants, and oversize tees and sweaters.


Autumn Cashmere sweater; Prada mohair vest; Balenciaga leather pants; Elizabeth Gillett fringe scarf; classic Lanvin flats


Pringle 1815 chunky sweater; Rick Owens Lilies tank and jersey pants; Nikes


Nation LTD oversize tee; AG boyfriend jeans; Elizabeth Gillett fringe scarf; Chanel t-strap flats

wednesday, november 4th '09

the outfit i wore on my last day of freedom, a.k.a. the day before my first day of work. i really wanted to wear my new drkshdw skirt, which was one of my last purchases in nyc before i moved.



ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
Autumn Cashmere v-neck sweater (from revolveclothing.com)
Rick Owens Drkshdw skirt (from Century21/NYC)
Balenciaga belt (from eBay)
Chanel moto boots (old, from Barneys clearance - the metal tips fell off!! grr...)
Balenciaga blazer (old, from eBay)
Ann Demeulemeester scarf (old, from aloharag.com)

sweater coats

for some reason the weather in philadelphia feels a bit milder than in new york. perhaps because the buildings aren't as tall there aren't as many wind tunnels? call me crazy, but the cold has a little less "bite" here in philly. perfect weather for sweater coats! with temperatures hovering in the 50s and 60s, i have yet to break out a coat. with just a few layers of silk jersey or cashmere (both lightweight fabrics that keep you warm), i can get away with wearing a chunky sweater as my outermost layer. i also throw in a scarf for added warmth, but often find myself unwinding it and sticking it in my bag, especially when the sun is out...


Helmut Lang (by Helmut Lang) pants (from Tokio7/NYC); Rick Owens Lilies zip-up (from Century21/NYC); Rick Owens combo open cardigan (old, from net-a-porter.com sale); Alaia studded boots (from Bergdorf Goodman clearance); Ann Demeulemeester scarf (from aloharag.com); Elizabeth & James knuckle ring (from Intermix/NYC)





Missoni cardigan (from Filene's Basement/NYC); Autumn Cashmere shirttail hem sweater (from revolveclothing.com); Kier+J cashmere leggings; Chloe pull-on boots (from DSW Shoes/NYC); extra-long scarf made from two Portolano cashmere scarves from Filene's Basement; Ann Demeulemeester scarf (from aloharag.com); Elizabeth & James knuckle ring (from Intermix/NYC)


now that this blog has been up and running for a couple of seasons, you may have noticed that i use the same items over and over again. i don't like to amass tons of clothing and would rather have a few key pieces than a closet bursting at the seams, so i apologize for the repetition! sometimes it's difficult but i try to resist the temptation of buying clothes for the sake of showing something new on the blog. i will continue to add new pieces here and there, but until then be prepared to see a lot of familiar items!

i got the idea to layer two scarves from Siena Fleming on stylelikeu, it's quite ingenious and something that i'll be doing quite often from now on. i want more scarves! maybe that ought to be my shopping focus this winter...

gossip girl

1920s themed black-tie ball in a ballroom on the top floor of a landmark building on fifth ave, followed by a house party in a swank fifth ave apartment overlooking the Met a few blocks away.

i wore a Stella McCartney silk strapless bustier jumpsuit (third from top).

xoxo

saturday, october 10th '09

faux diamond earrings (from New York Look); Rugby Ralph Lauren cashmere sweater (from outlet store in Woodbury Commons); Michael Kors sequin pants (extremely lucky find from yoox.com clearance section); Lanvin flats (from Anbar shoes, now sadly out of business)


well, folks, this might be one of the last pictures i'll be taking in this apartment...

i'm moving to philly!

crazy, i know, it all happened so quickly. i wasn't even looking for a job, but i was contacted by a company i had interned for while i was an undergrad in engineering school in philly a few years ago (any college students out there, take heed - work hard at those internships!), wanting to know if i was interested in re-joining them. a few trips back and forth from nyc to philly and voila! suddenly i'm a junior engineer at the company. a pretty big deal, i can't really say much about it but i'm basically going to be like a real-life bond girl! (minus james bond...)

so here i am, moving out of my home turf. i'm not that sad about it, actually. new york now is a lot different from the new york i grew up in, what i like to call the "pre-bloomberg" era. a lot more out-of-towners here, it's soooo much more crowded and big-business-y. (new world coffee, anyone?) in fact, i dug up an old picture of the neighborhood (i can even spot the exact building) i grew up in...



most of you probably won't even recognize columbus circle without the fountains and without the time warner center. before there was time warner there was the new york coliseum, an ugly, scary place. my sister and i weren't allowed to walk around the coliseum alone or at night, there were always a lot of bums and junkies hanging out there. and forget about going into central park! not exactly the safe playground it is now.

philly kind of reminds me of the old new york - a little grimier, a little seedier, studio apartments in the heart of town for under $1K. i'll be back in nyc a lot, my family is still here and many of my friends are here as well. it's only two hours away - kind of like a really long subway ride from the heart of manhattan to the far reaches of queens - they don't call it the "sixth borough" for nothing! plus i went to college in philly so it's not entirely unfamiliar.

i'll be moving in with the parents for a little bit before heading down to my new apartment (with a WALK-IN CLOSET - yes, CAPS are necessary, this is the first time in my life i'll have a walk in closet. in fact, it might be the biggest closet i've ever had!) in november.

it's hard to leave your hometown when your hometown happens to be new york, but when you're on your own and landing a rich husband isn't exactly your path to a comfortable retirement, you have to do what's best for your career. it's scary having to make grown-up decisions. it's also exciting, i know this is only the beginning of several grown-up decisions i will have to make. so wish me luck, the blog will go on, there just might be a few lapses here and there while i get settled...

sunday, september 27th '09

last sunday as i was getting dressed watching the downpour through my window i thought up a haiku:

rain rain go away
so the Yankees play and win
clinch the A. L. East

haha, dorky i know. (they did end up winning though.)

back to what i was wearing...



some of you might remember the scarf i "made" (ok, not really, i just sewed two together to make a really long one) from last winter. took quite a bit of digging but i did find it. in the end i had to take it off, it was warmer than expected. it was also the debut of these cool $3.00 rings with latin sayings on them, which i purchased at the "marc jacobs store of random cheap accessories" on bleecker & perry in the village.

ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture)
extra long scarf made from two Portolano cashmere scarves (from Filene's Basement)
vintage tee (from unis in nolita)
Les Chiffoniers ankle-length pants (from last winter's Intermix warehouse sale)
Miu Miu motorcycle boots (old, from mytheresa.com)
vintage leather jacket (from eBay)
Marc Jacobs Latin rings (from Marc Jacobs accessories store in the Village)
Bliss Lau body harness (from blisslau.com)



i went shopping for an ivory shrug for an upcoming black-tie event but didn't find exactly what i was looking for. i did pick up a couple of missoni pieces from filene's basement though. here i am in the dressing room, trying on a fabulous sweater that i ended up buying:



the missoni skirt so carelessly thrown on the floor also came home with me. (don't worry, i'm not one of those brats who leave messy rooms behind!)

diy #1

so i was at intermix in soho one day and spotted a really cool t-shirt. it was a white, crew-neck cotton tee dotted with swarovski crystals. the price tag? $1400. why? because it had the letters B-A-L-M-A-I-N on the tag.

i'm not a big diy-er, mostly because i run out of patience easily. i'm ashamed to say i would rather fork over a couple of benjamins for a racquel allegra tee or martin margiela ripped leggings than shred things myself. for some unknown reason, perhaps it was the long labor day weekend where i stayed in the city, i got bit by the diy bug and decided to give it a try. also i think i was a little pissed off that someone out there was charging $1400 for a friggin t-shirt. it's not like there are 24k gold threads sewn into it or anything...

so here goes - i went over to my parents house to work on it because they've got a nice big dining room table. i also ended up leaving my bedazzler there, i was afraid i'd start bedazzling everything in sight if i brought it home with me.

first i had to pick a t-shirt. i knew that i didn't want it too tight and stretchy, especially around the bust, because the grid of sequins would no longer be orderly if it was all stretched out. i ended up buying a 100% cotton tee by organic by john patrick from barneys co-op. it has a great oversized fit and is very comfortable.



i knew the easiest way to apply the crystals was to first draw a grid then just drop the crystals at every intersection. however, i was too lazy to draw all those grid lines, didn't have a ruler long enough to cover the length of the oversized t-shirt, and was impatient to start bedazzling. so i only made a few lines forming a cross in the middle of the t-shirt.



using a quilting ruler, i spaced the crystals as evenly as i could 2-inches apart, using the few lines that i drew as a starting point then using that row as a marker for consecutive rows of crystals. i used three different colors of hot-fix crystals - black diamond, clear crystal, and silver shade, and the way the light plays off each is so nice, especially at night.



here is the final product, the picture doesn't do it justice because you can't really see it sparkle:



i was too lazy to do the back. the tee is so big it took me a lot longer to finish than i had originally estimated. do you think it's absolutely necessary to bedazzle the back as well? i'm kind of hoping the consensus is "no."



here's how i wore it today, i paired it with my LNA leggings that have zippers going down the entire length of the leg (love!), Alaia boots, and a Balenciaga boyfriend blazer:

it's off to work i go

some recent work outfits...



i do get tired of wearing the same seven? eight? pairs of pants, but the weather is still too warm to add my wool pants to the rotation. i should really update my work wardrobe, but that's no fun, especially when there are boots! and cashmere sweaters! and jackets! to buy for fall...

lazy sunday

had a much-needed quiet sunday. went to m&j trim to pick up supplies for upcoming diy projects (details to come)... walked over to b&h cameras to try and find a lomography camera (it was closed due to the Jewish holiday, my bad)... lunch on 9th ave... back home to watch the yankees (they lost)...



ITEMS (rollover mouse to view detailed picture):
Marni cotton tee (old, from Barneys clearance)
Rick Owens Lilies drawstring pants (old, from Century21)
Rick Owens Lilies "bandage" jacket (from Century21)
Furla modal scarf (old, from yoox)
Chanel studded T-strap flats (old, from Barneys clearance)
assorted silver-tone bracelets





i hope everyone has a great week!