Tag Archives: dress

March 21, 2016 · 9:02 pm

A Change of Shoes

Sometimes I change the look of my outfit with lots of accessories, styling, and add-ons. Other times, like today, one item changes everything.

Dress: Gifted
Necklace: Fair Trade Winds
Tights: Roots Canada
Boots: DSW

I styled my geometric wrap dress with gray tights and knee-high boots. My mom bought this dress for me when we were in Fremont last year. In exchange, I handed over my vintage DVF two-piece. But don’t worry—the dress will stay in the family. It belonged to my Oma so it’s great that my mom can wear it for a while.

Later, I completely changed the look with a pair of short boots. These are Sinclairs by Nicora. I love Nicora shoes and have several pair. They’re handmade in Los Angeles by skilled artisans and are vegan and environmentally friendly. I’m a Nicora brand ambassador now so it you’re looking for a long-lasting, stylish pair of shoes or boots, contact me and I’ll send you a code for 10% off your purchase.

Earrings: Suite 6 Boutique
Boots: Nicora

I’ll show you the other Nicora Shoes I wear and love in future posts. You might remember that I’ve worn my Sinclairs with a maxi skirt before and my Sallys with paisley pants.

How do you change the look of your outfits?

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Filed under Dress Up Dress Down, Ethical, Fashion

Tagged as boots, dress, fashion, Nicora, style

November 24, 2015 · 12:03 pm

Punked out Plaid

I buy clothing only if I can wear it with pieces I already own. I also want to make sure I can make it look different with my choice of accessories. This plaid dress is an example of how I like to change things up.

Dress: Kara NY
Boots: Hot Topic
Necklace: DIY
Cuff: Boutique in NY

I wore it with bare legs and big boots for a punky look. These are my dancing boots. They’re very comfortable and if anyone steps on my toes (literally), I’m protected. I made the mistake of wearing sandals to a club once and had someone careless fool’s stiletto heel dig into my foot. Ouch!

I made my necklace from a simple chain, jump loop, and fabric store tassel.

Then I switched things up by adding weather-appropriate tights and a jacket. Totally different vibe! I’m also sporting my Nicora boots. I love Nicora! They’re all vegan, made in LA, and are doing their part to keep the US manufacturing industry alive. We spend billions on footwear in the USA every year but 98% of our shoes are imported. Nicora enables local craftsmen and women to practice their trade. Love that!

Jacket: Swapped
Tights: Target
Boots: Nicora

I got this jacket at a clothing exchange years ago and I still wear it.

Stay warm everyone and have a great Thanksgiving to my US readers! I’ll be sharing a delicious vegan feast with friends and giving thanks that places like Pasado’s rescue turkeys like these two:

3 Comments

Filed under Dress Up Dress Down, Ethical, Fashion

Tagged as boots, dress, fashion, Nicora, plaid, style, vegan

September 17, 2015 · 10:12 pm

Striped Dress

I discovered a new brand while shopping my way through Germany. Armed Angels is an fair-trade, organic, eco fashion line that proves ethical fashion is stylish.

Dress: Armed Angels
Coat: Thrifted
Peace necklace: Brooklyn Flea Market
Cuff: Express
Pleather boots: Bucco

I love the quality and details. See how the stripes from the front and back panels line up perfectly? That’s the kind of thing I love. I’ve found great patterned items before and the stripes or whatnot didn’t line up. It drove me crazy and I didn’t buy the pieces.

This dress came from Veganista, a vegan eco boutique I visited in Munich. The shop was fantastic! A cute little place with loads of treasures. Owner Rahel Goldner was so nice and took the time to answer all my questions and show me pieces that I found interesting. It was so exciting to meet other veganistas!

I bought a shirt, a pair of jeans, and a couple of t-shirts from Armed Angels, so expect to see a few more posts down the road.

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Filed under Ethical, Fashion

Tagged as Armed Angels, boots, dress, ethical, ethical fashion, fashion, organic cotton, stripes, style, vegan

June 10, 2015 · 11:21 pm

Geometric Patterned Dress

I had a clothing exchange a while ago and this dress was one of the gems I acquired. It was more than luck though. My friend Kristin bypassed the stacks of clothing and hand-delivered the dress to me. She knew I’d love it.

Dress: Gifted/swapped
Pleather boots: DSW
Vegan suede purse: Matt & Nat
Jacket (below): Swapped

I like the earth tones, geometric pattern, and faux-wrap style. I’ve worn it with tights before and it works great with bare legs too. This time, I wore boots, but it’s going to be great with sandals too. It’s a true all-season dress.

Because indoor (AC) and evenings are cool around Seattle, this green jacket came in handy. It’s another swapped find from a clothing exchange I went to a few years ago.

4 Comments

Filed under Fashion, Thrifty

Tagged as boots, dress, fashion, style, thrifty fashion

May 14, 2015 · 10:58 pm

Striped Dress with Bell Sleeves

I picked up this dress when I was in Portland a couple of months ago. It has a neat, retro vibe. I got it at a used clothing store, so maybe it is vintage. Who knows?

Dress: Crossroads Trading Co.
Earrings: DIY
Shoes: Arden Wohl x Cri de Coeur

This will make a great go-to summer dress, although tights will make it a year-round item. In the heat of August, I’ll probably wear sandals. But for spring, a variety of shoe styles will work.

I immediately thought of my Arden Wohl x Cri de Coeur vegan suede shoes. The red shoes highlight the bold red stripes.

When clothes are made hastily and patterns don’t line up, it drives me crazy! I’ve walked away from purchased because of sloppy sewing. This dress, however is deliberately mismatched. In fact, there’s no seam down the center. It’s printed that way! This I can live with.

I wore this out to dinner with hubby and a couple we know. We went to a delicious vegan restaurant, Sutra. The menu is local, seasonal, and organic, and changes every two weeks! All the more reason to go back.

Oh, I’ve joined High Latitude Style, Penniless Socialite, Rachel the Hat, and Happiness at Midlife for linkups. See what all the others are wearing!

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Filed under Ethical, Fashion, Thrifty

Tagged as Cri de Coeur, dress, fashion, style, thrifty, thrifty fashion

April 24, 2015 · 10:58 am

Fashion Revolution: Who Made My Clothes?

Today is Fashion Revolution Day. This day marks the second anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh, which killed over eleven hundred people and injured thousands more.

I’m joining others as we ask, “Who made my clothes?” Check out Instagram hashtags for #fashrev, #whomademyclothes, #fashionrevolutionday, and #whomadeyourclothes for lots of inspiring photos. You might see photos of people wearing their clothes inside out to show the labels–transparency in fashion!

I know who made my clothes!

Lois Eastlund made my dress. It looks fantastic (even inside out) because it’s handmade and she paid a lot of attention to detail. She’s a NY-based fashion designer and one of the founders of La Fashionista Compassionista–an awesome (and free) online magazine that you should get your hands on!

Moses made my boots. They’re handmade in a factory in LA. The company, Nicora Johns, is helping to keep the US shoemaking industry alive. When I bought my boots, I got a photo of Moses in the shop where he made these. They’re also vegan–no animals or humans harmed!

Crystalyn Kae made my purse. It’s glazed fabric. Another great leather alternative. I met Crystalyn when she was located in Seattle. She’s based in NYC now, but you can find her amazing bags in stores nationwide and on her website.

Roque from Get Hell Bent made my cuff. It’s made from recycled bicycle tires. I have three of her cuffs. They’re so edgy and tough!

I made my earrings! It’s fun to create. My simple drop-chain earrings were easy to make and have become my go-to pair. They match everything!

I don’t know who made my tights. So it’s not a perfect outfit. But thinking about where my clothing comes from has opened my eyes. I heard 1 in 6 people is employed in fashion. But who are they? What are their working conditions like? How environmentally friendly is the factory? Animal skins require so many chemicals to turn them into leather and not decompose.

Fashion isn’t perfect, but I love knowing where my clothes came from and who made them. My goal is to buy exclusively from sustainable ethical companies. Sometimes that means things cost more. But do I really need thirty $8 tank tops? What if I had eight $30 tanks? They’d last longer, and I’d be putting my dollars where my values are.

Let’s start a revolution!

12 Comments

Filed under Ethical, Fashion

Tagged as boots, Crystalyn Kae, dress, fashion, Lois Eastlund, nicora johns, style

April 8, 2015 · 9:26 pm

Do You Wear a Uniform?

I recently read an article about an art director who ditched her creative wardrobe in lieu of a “uniform.” Not a uniform like a flight attendant or bus driver, but a go-to outfit. This woman worked in a creative field and was allowed to wear whatever she liked, but the time hit of finding the perfect thing to wear every day was too much. She simplified.

Her look: black trousers and a white blouse. She bought 15 white blouses and a few pair of pants and that was that.

There’s something appealing about skipping the morning panic of “what do I wear?” and changing seven times before heading out the door. But such a simple look would get boring. I have a better idea.

I would pick a few pair of pants in neutrals: black, gray, tan, denim. I’d gets tops in a few different colors, and add to them a couple of blazers and a cardigan. I’d still be able to get dressed quickly (in the dark even) because all the tops and bottoms would go together. I’d have endless combinations and never get bored.

Or, I would gather up 20 work-appropriate dresses–one for each workday in a month. Dresses are simple, one-piece, and polished. I’d wear them with tights in winter and bare-legged in summer. They’d work with boots and flats and sandals or whatever my mood dictated.

There are a lot of options, depending on the work climate and dress codes, that are more interesting than plain black and white. Still, the article gave me food for thought.

Do you have a uniform or go-to outfit. Could you (or would you) wear the same thing to work all the time?

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Filed under Fashion

Tagged as blazer, dress, uniform

February 2, 2015 · 12:05 am

Retro Blue Shoes with My Merled Dress

My gray merled dress is ba-aaack! The cost-per-wear must be so low by now–I’ve worn this a lot! But I still like it. I can style it with bright tights, fun scarves, or, as I did on this occasion, fancy blue shoes.

Dress: TJ Maxx
Tights: Fred Meyer’s
Shoes: Crown Vintage via DSW
Earrings: Swapped

I couldn’t resist these shoes. They’re faux leather, affordable, a great color, and have a fun retro vibe. The shoes may be 40s-inspired, but the rest of my outfit is current. The yellow belt was a fun touch–and it’s a complementary color to the shoes.

I think I’ll be able to wear these with lots of things–from pants to skirts, and on all sorts of occasions. Probably not for sweeping the lawn, but the broom did make a nice prop!

Are you drawn to colorful shoes or do you stick with neutrals?

I’m joining Visible Monday at Not Dead Yet. Check out what everyone else is wearing!

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Filed under Fashion, Thrifty

Tagged as blue shoes, dress, fashion, shoes, style, thrifty fashion, tights

January 11, 2015 · 9:10 pm

Another Lois Eastlund Dress

I can’t get enough of Lois Eastlund’s designs. Imagine the stroke of luck I had a year and a half ago when my mom and I met her at her pop-up shop in the Chelsea Market in NYC. I bought two of her dresses that day, ordered another online later that year, and bought another dress when I saw her at The Seed last summer.

That would be this color-blocked number:

I love these mod, cotton dresses, and I appreciate that they are made in the US. Supporting a vegan-designer is the icing on the vegan cake!

Dress: Lois Eastlund
Tights: Fred Meyer
Faux suede booties: Old Navy

I liked this dress because it has long sleeves (my others by her are sleeveless). It’s perfect for winter in Seattle.

If you like Lois’ designs, you might want to check out the new online fashion magazine she launched recently: La Fashionista Compassionista. It’s a fantastic look at the latest from the world of cruelty-free fashion and beauty. And it’s free–so get your subscription today!

I’m joining Visible Monday at Not Dead Yet and Fun Fashion Friday at Fashion Should be Fun. Check out what everyone else is wearing!

11 Comments

Filed under Ethical, Fashion

Tagged as dress, fashion, Lois Eastlund, style, tights, vegan

January 4, 2015 · 11:07 pm

Mini Dress for Winter

I wore this mini dress in the summer with bare legs and sandals. Well, the grass is green in Seattle but it’s much too cold for bare legs now. So I added tights and booties and swapped out the turquoise belt for a neutral gunmetal.

summer dress with tights

Dress: Purdy Girl
Tights: Roots Canada
Shoes: Old Navy
Belt: Marshall’s
Earrings: Gifted

The dress is a light color and fabric so I worried about the sweater tights and faux suede booties being too heavy, but because of the bits of black and navy in the pattern, it works.

It’s not in these pictures, but after I threw on a fabric moto jacket, the balance was even better.

I like getting lots of use out of the pieces I buy, and I’m glad this dress works for all seasons. Next time I wear it, I’ll play with color more. Maybe hot pink tights! Until then, I’ll have fun with things just the way they are.