BeDazzled!

When I was little I remember watching the infomercial for a device (essentially a stapler) called the BeDazzler. These infomercials showed the magic unfold as tennis sneakers, T-shirts, denim, your bedspread and whatever else you could think of became instantly transformed into a thing of rhinestone glory. The sweater I am wearing today has been BeDazzled by Kate Spade. The Kate Spade Tippy sweater comes in numerous colors. It was hard to choose amongst these colors, but I picked "vivid yellow" for a pop of color. I thought the yellow went well with the rich blue from my Anthropologie Gilded Estate skirt, hence the outfit combination you see before you today.

These types of sweaters and shirts with attached rhinestones are everywhere lately. I feel like this trend is a great way for lazy people such as myself to do the statement necklace trend in one step. It is a shirt/sweater with a necklace already attached, what could be easier? Plus you don't have to go out and buy your own BeDazzler, which, by the way, they still sell.

The Early Bird Gets the Worm

I'm sure we've all heard the old adage, "the early bird gets the worm." Normally I'm not much of a morning person, but when a great skirt or deal is involved then I tend to be a bit more bright eyed and bushy tailed. The skirt I am wearing today was purchased by me on New Year's Day at 6:51 am on EBay. Why anyone would decide to end an auction on New Year's morning is beyond me. Luckily I was a.) not hungover and b.) up early due to the cable guy coming over. ( I really felt bad for the cable guy too.) Anyway, I lost the auction for a similar skirt over the summer due to the fact that it sold for a lot more than I had anticipated. When the skirt came up again, the bidding was fierce, but then no one bothered to bid in the morning and it went for a fraction of the price of the one over the summer. I think I screamed out something to the effect of "I won, suckers!" because this type of thing plays into my competitive nature.  (No offense to anyone who was bidding on this skirt if you're reading my blog which you are probably not.)

Anyway, this particular skirt is the Kate Spade Striped Radcliffe and I adore it. The wool fabric is so thick and full, it makes me wish that all skirts could be constructed with as much care. Today when I put it on in the morning and thought back to my first purchase of the New Year, I realized that sometimes it pays to get up early.  Although today I was pretty beat and exhausted, at least the skirt put a smile on my face.

A Monet For Your Skirt

I have a confession. One of my favorite new shows this season is the Carrie Diaries. I am just going to put that out there, judge away! It was only after the end of the HBO Sex in the City series that I fell in love with that particular show and its characters, sadly because of my husband who may be one of the only men on earth to watch it. I thought the idea of the Carrie Diaries would be lame and juvenile (which it kind of is), but it is actually pretty funny and clever with some cute fashion. (They have a fair amount of J. Crew.) Plus, it sort of reminds me of my experience of living in New York for the first time and falling in love with the city.

On last night's episode, Carrie suggests the title for an article in Interview magazine featuring her signature bag. The bag, created by Carrie, features her name splattered in paint. Given this aesthetic she suggests the title " A Pollock for your Purse", alluding to the painter Jackson Pollock known for his "drip" painting technique. How clever and oh the foreshadowing!

Well, my skirt reminds me of a Monet. To be more specific Monet's series of paintings featuring water lilies. The J. Crew Gardenshade floral certainly has a similar impressionistic effect and color scheme to it making it a tiny work of art that I can hang in my closet!

(These J. Crew Everly Pumps were super cheap. I think I paid about $35 for them. I like to save the Monet (Puns!) Here are some actual Monet paintings below.

Hopping Around Downtown

Sunday was a beautiful day to get out, take a walk and explore Downtown Los Angeles. This is what a Flaneur does after all. You may ask, "what is a Flaneur?" Well, a Flaneur is simply someone who strolls or to be more eloquent, saunters. I myself personally sashay. The term Flaneur first came into existence in 19th century France and refers more specifically to a person who takes in the city through casually, nonchalantly walking around and exploring his (or her) urban environment.

To my knowledge a Flaneur is somewhat similar to the label of being a "Dandy" in so far as it also brings to mind someone of good taste with refined mannerisms and exquisite style, someone who also has the time to enjoy leisurely hobbies and the pursuit of intellectual interests.  (Think Oscar Wilde, he was the biggest Dandy of them all I think.)

Well, yesterday I was a Flaneur in spirit, not so much in style. A girl has to be comfortable after all. I wore this bunny sweater/sweatshirt from Urban Outfitters, some ballet flats and my J. Crew little Edie for just the essentials.  Here I am on Main Street next to a graffitied depiction of a pair of wings. Can Flaneurs fly too? My husband spent about 5 minutes telling me to move to the left or to the right so I'd be centered.

LA is a gorgeous city if you look up and spend some time gazing at the buildings which surround you. For just a second you might be transported back in time. This entry is partially inspired by Moby's Architectural blog. You can visit his blog, as it is listed on my "blog roll" to the right. He likes to photograph buildings around LA and Hollywood, primarily in black and white, while sharing random musings on his findings. I contemplated doing the black and white route with these photos (it's more academic and more pretentious) but decided against it due to my immense love of colors. Here is one such picture which would have lost some of its charm if done in black and white. It is of the Hotel Rosslyn on the corner of 5th and Main Street.

Most of our jaunt downtown was spent on Broadway. We actually went on a tour through LAVA an association which promises and delivers with their quest to bring one "compelling experiences" with the city of LA. Many of their tours and events are free, so if you are in LA you should check them out, as their passion and love for the preservation of this city are truly inspiring.

On this tour our very knowledgeable guide went through some of the history of buildings situated on Broadway, most notably the theaters which represent a small glimpse into the once thriving, colorful and perhaps enigmatic past of downtown LA. Below you will see some of my photography of the buildings of Broadway. I decided to focus on the marquis of various theaters, for the most part now vacant, including the Los Angeles, Palace, Cameo, and Roxie. The diversity of these structures is pretty cool (and reminiscent of Tod Hackett's discovery of the mishmash of architectural forms in Hollywood from The Day of the Locust).  From Art Deco to Beaux Art, to Renaissance revival, it's all on Broadway. Wouldn't it be nice if we fixed up these once opulent theaters to their former glory?  

I took many, many photos of Broadway. I am including just a few more which I find to be interesting, even though they are all pretty interesting. Below you see the details of the Palace theater, an art deco styled building which was a former department store, and a building whose name alludes me at the time.

Floral Fruit Salad

I just threw this outfit together today or shall I say "tossed" it together and I suppose it turned out all right. I was in sort of a experimental mood and therefore mixing it up a bit with color and pattern made sense. While out and about, a woman told me I looked like I was a mannequin in a store because I was very put together and colorful, so I guess that is a good thing right?

Today the sun was out and the first signs of spring were in the air, although here in LA more days than not are like spring. The Anthropologie Banter Tee in this floral print seemed like a good fit for the bright weather we are having. I paired the tee with some old corduroys which haven't seen the light of day for a few years (shopping my closet), the J. Crew Valentina pumps in leopard and the J. Crew Factory Vero clutch in Citrus.

With all of the bright colors and patterns thrown together today, I can't help but feeling a little like a tossed fruit salad. Hopefully the combination was not only fresh, but also delicious!

Pastel Polka Peter Pan Petals

It's alliterative! Again, another word collage in the title of this entry which may seem surreal at first blush, but upon closer inspection comes into clarity. Let me explain. The cardigan is a pastel. The blouse is comprised of teal polka dots against a navy background. The collar of the blouse is in the classic peter-pan style hearkening back to the 50s and 60s. Last, but not least, the necklace is dubbed the "Pearls and Petals" necklace by J. Crew.

Stepping out the door I wasn't so sure about the color combination and neither was my husband. Although after a while I felt that I made a good choice in the pairing of these pieces. I like to look back through the J. Crew catalogs (I mean "style guides") for inspiration. I stumbled upon this combination of mustard and a sort of robin's egg pastel blue. While it wasn't a combination I would instinctively gravitate to, it seemed to make sense.  Sometimes the unexpected can be jarring although equally beautiful in its own right.

Outfit: Sweater: H&M, Blouse: Forever 21 here, Skirt: J. Crew no. 2 Pencil in double serge wool, Shoes: J. Crew CeCe Ballet Flat, Necklace: J. Crew Petals and Pearls

101 Dalmatians

I love dogs, so imagine my delight to find this Dalmatian print skirt at Target last weekend. Plus the skirt is purple, my favorite color, which makes it extra special. The fact that it was only $19.99 doesn't hurt either. Target has some great finds on a budget, and it's cool to go to a store where you can get household items, toothpaste, groceries and TV dinners for the week plus an amazing skirt. Target is truly one stop shopping at its finest.

I featured a cute Dalmatian (with fire red nails) earlier in the month for my Chapman University / Huell Howser Adventure post. I am including some pictures below of that dog, who looks a lot like the ones pawing their way across my skirt.  I am not sure if there are 101 Dalmatians on this skirt (I didn't bother to count) but there sure are a lot, and that should bring a smile to anyone's face!

Charming

Sunday is such a charming day, why not add to the charm with a charm bracelet? Yesterday, we went out to lunch and I wore my Fossil charm bracelet for the first time.  For the last few years I have wanted to assemble a charm bracelet of my own, but I was unsure about how to go about it. I have numerous charms from Tiffany's (which I wear as necklaces) and I contemplated purchasing one of their bracelets to put them on, however the fear of having thousands of dollars of charms scratched and dented (as I have heard happens) was not a good option in my opinion.

The Fossil charms (many of which are "inspired" by Tiffany's) offered an affordable alternative, which wouldn't leave me fretting about bumping and jangling the charms on a regular basis. Each charm retails between $18-$38. While there are other charms on the market, I was drawn to the colorful enamel and fun vintage flair of the Fossil charms.

 

We went to an equally charming restaurant for lunch. The North Woods is a blast from the past. Los Angeles is a great place for kitchy themed restaurants, relics from the fads of the the 50's and 60's. Sadly, many of these places will soon go out of business or be demolished, as is sadly the case with the beloved Tiki bar, the Bahooka Lounge, which will close its doors in March. 

The North Woods, comprised of four locations throughout LA, looks like a snow kissed tavern. Inside the inn you will be transported to a quaint log cabin which serves up some great grub, most notably its fat laden cheese bread which is so good I had five pieces!

Much like the setting of the beginning of T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock", the

North Woods has floors covered in sawdust, "Let us go, though certain half-deserted streets, / The muttering retreats / Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels / And sawdust restaurants with oyster - shells." In fact you can throw the peanut shells they give you on the floors. There is even a sign encouraging it!

They also have some fun games to play including the ones featured below. These games will tell you your fortune or assess your personality. In the waiting room they have a game which is nostalgic of my childhood, Pacman. My husband recalls playing the game here when he was a child.

 

Last, but not least is a lone taxidermied grizzly bear. Although I will say he looks a bit small for a grizzly. He greets all who walk into the North Woods and is posed contemplating a delicious trout for his next meal.

Outfit: Jacket: J. Crew Linen School Boy Blazer, Blouse: Target here, Jeans: Levi's, Boots: Chloe, Charm Bracelet: Fossil here