Faking the Books

I call this outfit my "faux"-vorite. Ok, bad pun. But lest anyone think that a) I support animal suffering or b) I have a ton of money, please keep in mind that the fur jacket, leather pants, and suede wedges are all man-made. They also are all my favorite new additions to my closet.

I would have never pegged myself as a leather pants kind of gal, but after seeing so much inspiration on my daily blog list, I finally gave in and ordered a pair from Forever 21. They're surprisingly comfortable, even if I do get bizarre looks from my landlord. I've also been on this unstoppable search for a decent fur long-fur jacket and fate was on my side when I spotted this beauty at Urban Outfitters. Even better, it marked down $100! If there's anything I love more than obnoxious clothes, it's a good deal. Despite the 3/4 length sleeves, this coat is actually pretty warm. That's good news, since temperatures are hovering around freezing and we even got our first bit of legitimate snow this week. Here's to hoping for a white Christmas! (says the Jewish girl with the Catholic boyfriend)

Shirt: Top Shop

Jacket: Kimchi Blue via Urban Outfitters

Pants: Forever 21

Shoes: Dollhouse

Sunglasses: street vendor 

Shake, Rattle, Bang Your Head

I don't have any sisters, but I did attend overnight camp for eight years, so I understand the joy of a virtually-unlimited wardrobe by means of borrowing clothes with the people you live with. Each year, that month-long vacation meant access to a dozen girls' clothes and make up (I went to a Quaker camp, so we weren't supposed to wear any, but try telling that to a bunch of pre-teen girls). These days, it's just Ray and I, which means I'm on my own. Unless of course, your best friend who lives out of town accidentally leaves a hat behind when she's crashing on your couch.

I don't know what made me put it on. It's not really my style. I don't even wear hats! Call it curiosity, call it boredom. I don't know. I was getting dressed, the hat was sitting there on the table, and on it went. Sorry, Lee! I think I may have to add some hats to my own collection, because this thing is awesome. Probably great for a bad hair day too, except I'm having a phenomenal hair day and couldn't resist some sans-hat pictures.

I've had this baby doll dress for something like four or five years. It doesn't get much wear, other than interviews, and I'm not sure why. What's more versatile than a casual LBD? Belt it, throw on a cardigan, mix it up with crazy shoes or colored tights...it's so adaptable! I've got to remember though that if I'm going to wear something that hasn't been worn in months (if not years), I must steam and lint-brush it! Does it show that I've got 4 cats and zero-motivation to put away clothes after they've been washed?

Jacket: H&M

Dress: H&M

Belt: Heritage 1981

Shoes: Forever 21

Tight: Forever 21

Hat: borrowed from best friend

Sunglasses: street vendor

Cold Light

Amazing winter-y things that happened in the past 24 hours: It snowed for more than 30 seconds (but not exceeding 10 minutes). Ray and I bought our Christmas tree. I indulged in two kinds of latkes at various family Channukah dinners. Take notice that I did not include "learned how to dress appropriately for below-freezing temperatures". I don't know what I was thinking when I got dressed this morning, but it clearly had nothing to do with the weather outside. Please excuse the awful quality of these indoor shots, but there was no way I was going to stand outside any longer than I had to.

I've been on the lookout for a decent maxi skirt for a while now, and go figure, I found a perfect one at Village Thrift for $7. In the past, I always was wary of long skirts because I felt like they made me look even shorter, but they actually have a slimming, elongating effect. It's all about cinching it high on the waist and using the extra length to rock some high heels or platforms.

Tank Top: Forever 21

Belt: Heritage 1981

Skirt: thrifted (Village Thrift- Pennsauken, NJ)

Shoes: Forever 21

Sunglasses: street vendor

The Easy Mark and the Old Maid

I'm settling into the routine of cold. Layers, layers, layers, plus an oversized cardigan to conceal the bulkiness. I went on a bit of a cardigan spree this weekend at Forever 21. Now normally I wouldn't call buying 2 items a spree, except that the cashier so kindly decided to ring me up double, so being charged for the same sweater twice most definitely constitutes a spree. (grumble, grumble, grumble...)

It was totally worth it though. Oversized sweaters are my new best friend because it's one of the few socially acceptable ways to basically wear a blanket as clothes. Unless you count Snuggies as socially acceptable. I'm pretty sure I don't, so I stick with cardigans. The cool thing about my purchases? My "headband" is actually the belt from the other sweater; as you can see, my hair's a bit of a mess today, so some innovation led to this wrap. Pretty good for 7:00am!

(P.S. Don't you love that everything of mine is covered in cat fur?)

Jacket: H&M

Sweater: Forever 21

Shirt: Heritage 1981

Jeans: Forever 21

Boots: Nature Breeze

Sunglasses: street vendor

With the Transit Coat On

Like it or not, Philadelphia has settled into winter. After a few weeks of yo-yoing temperatures, teasing me with the promises of eternal mid-60s temperatures, today's gloomy outcast is a high of 42 and a low of 29. Thankfully we haven't had any snow yet, other than a handful of sprinkles on Thanksgiving morning. I've got to be honest, I do not like snow. Even as a kid, I knew the secret: A "snow day" was only a cleverly disguised "shovel the walk" day. As an adult, I've got the added pleasure of digging out my car and trying to drive to work in an icy mess (or even worse, trying to ride my bike). This year, our new apartment has free heat and internet, so I think it's safe to say my winter will consist of never leaving my apartment and instead enjoying my newly purchased Netflix subscription.

The one thing I love about winter (other than enjoying the snowy view from my cozy apartment) is the outerwear. Sure, it gets a bit monotonous, but I'm still in the honeymoon period of breaking in favorite coats and jackets. I picked up this pea coat from H&M a few years ago for $80. It was a warm coat, pretty durable, and stylish so I shelled out the extra bucks. Of course, last fall I saw the same exact coat (in additional colors) for $30. Go figure. It's still one of my favorites and adds an instant polish to any outfit.

Winter is also the time to steal your boyfriend's sweaters. I've been known to "borrow" Ray's clothes in the past, but I find this look is much more advantageous in the winter, when bulky layers can easily be hidden under an oversized sweater. It also allows me to incorporate newstyle into my wardrobe; we're more or less on the same frequency as far as taste goes, but he also picks things I would never give a second glance to but later realize are genius. Unfortunately for him, he can't get away with wearing my cardigans or t-shirts.

Pea Coat: H&M

Sweater: thrifted (Village Thrift- Pennsauken, NJ)

Scarf: American Apparel

Shorts: thrifted (Closet Exchange- Abington, PA)

Shoes: Forever 21

Tights: L'eggs

Sunglasses: street vendor

Sometimes Our Dreams Float Like Anchors

Today's look is my best attempt at a "casual Friday" outfit. When considering the office I work at, this is incredibly ironic as my outfit is guaranteed to be dressier than our usual status quo during the week. Still, I've owned this blazer for about six months now, unable to create a look that didn't scream real estate agent. I started day dreaming about this outfit in class yesterday, and thankfully this was one idea that translated quite nicely from my concept to reality.

Speaking of class, I can't believe the semester is almost done! It seems like so recently I was starting classes, not knowing what to expect and praying I wouldn't be the oldest one in my courses (I'm not, by the way). And now I'm three weeks away from finals. It's been an interesting transition, getting back into the college life. I'm definitely appreciating it more my second time around. After high school, I enrolled at a very small, women's art school. It was absolutely the wrong environment for me; everyone was catty and competitive. 90% of my courses were studio-related, which perpetuated the competitiveness, and the majority of my academic classes were not challenging enough. I only really enjoyed my art history classes, but ultimately I decided that if I wasn't interested in a teaching career, it was a pretty useless major.

This time around, I picked a much more appropriate community college. While I was worried about a lack of academic challenge, it's been just the right pace to ease me back into a learning environment. Nobody's got delusions about where they are so there's no snobby attitude. The majority of my classmates are also working, so the class schedules have a lot of flexibility. Not to mention, my teachers are incredible. I'm in a very small program, so I can expect to have the same professors throughout my studies. I've already registered for spring courses and I can't wait!

Shirt: Heritage 1981

Jacket: Express Design Studio

Jeans: H&M

Shoes: Anne Michelle

Sunglasses: street vendor