What I Read This Month

The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, 1930

Great detective drama. A mysterious beautiful woman engages the services of private detective Sam Spade and his parnter Archer to trail Thursby, resulting in the almost immediate shooting deaths of Archer and Thursby. What secrets is this femme fatale hiding?



Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, 1847

A dark coming-of-age tale of a girl in 19th-century rural England. Orphaned as a baby, raised with constant reminders of her "charity-case" status by her maternal uncle's widow, sent off to a harsh boarding school at age 10, young Jane Eyre adapts to her surroundings and eventually begins to thrive as a teacher and then a private governess. She falls in love, but the revelation of a tragic secret prevents her from being married. The second half of the novel is a series of bizarre occurrences, and the ending? Is it a happy one or not? I could argue either way.



The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson, 2009

The Sequel to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. In my opinion, a much better novel the the first. An expose on the sex trade, murdered journalists, Lisbeth on the run as the prime suspect. A year after the events in the first novel, Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist are reunited to solve another mystery, this one more personal than the first.

Inspired by: Kendi Everyday

As I mentioned recently, I feel like I've been in a bit of a slump with my clothes, not feeling as inspired to work with my closet lately. To combat that, I've been making an effort to save outfit photos to the inspiration folder I keep on my desktop, and I've been consulting that for ideas. Today's inspiration was Kendi Everyday. Kendi's version was not quite as Technicolor as my spin on it, but what can I say? I love color!

Other "Inspired by" posts on clothes, inter alia:
Orchid Grey
The Girl from hk, ldn & sf

When:
Thursday, December 9, 2010

Where:
work, cast party

What:
Grey Sweater: American Eagle Outfitters
Striped Shirt: Moda Int'l
Skirt: H&M
Tights: ??
Boots: (thrifted)
Necklace: Target

Inspired By: The Girl from hk, ldn, & sf

Last week, I posted an outfit that was inspired by Orchid Grey. This time, my tan jacket, white button down, scarf and black skirt combo was inspired by The Girl from ldn, hk & sf. Everything is thrifted or vintage.

When:
Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Where:
work, cast party

What:
Wool Jacket: vintage from my mother
White Blouse: Banana Republic (thrifted)
Orange Silk Scarf: (thrifted)
Belt: vintage from my grandmother
Skirt: Ann Taylor LOFT (thrifted)
Boots: Franco Sarto (thrifted)

Blue Legs

When:
Friday, December 3, 2010

Where:
work

What:
Sweater: Mossimo (thrifted)
Dress: from Filene's Basement
Blue Tights: H&M
Belt: (thrifted)
Cameo Necklace: Lia Sophia (thrifted)
Boots: Nine West

Long Layers

An experiment in layering. Everything is entirely thrifted.

When:
Thursday, December 2, 2010

Where:
work

What:
Dress: Express (thrifted)
Blouse: Worthington (thrifted)
Vest: Forever XXI (thrifted)
Boots: (thrifted)
Necklace: (thrifted)

Suit Up

I love watching Neil Patrick Harris on How I Met Your Mother. He's the best thing about that show. I also love that he's rarely out of a suit. I've always been fond of suits, though my preference for them waned a bit at my first attorney job when I had to wear one everyday, but now that I "suit up" only occasionally, I'm enjoying them again.

When:
Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Where:
work

What:
Suit Jacket & Skirt: New York & Co. (thrifted)
Blouse: Wet Seal
Black Tights: H&M
Shoes: Ann Taylor LOFT (thrifted)
Necklace: Target
Earrings: gift from my mother

What I Was Wearing Last December

Some of my favorites from this time last year...

Dance Rehearsal

Usually when I'm in a theater production, the rehearsal schedule is 8-10 weeks. Rehearsals are 3-4 days per week at the beginning, then a week before the show opens, we have maybe 8 straight days of theatre, starting with long tech rehearsal and ending with opening weekend.

For The Bar Show, however, we do one month of once-a-week 1-hour chorus rehearsals to learn the music of the chorus production numbers. Maybe 1 or 2 dance rehearsals for some of the dancers for a few select dance numbers. Other than that, the entire show takes place over the course of 15 days. Starting on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we rehearsal during the day Saturday and Sunday, every evening during the week Monday thru Friday, then again during the day on the following Saturday and Sunday. The second Monday is our final dress rehearsal and Tuesday is opening night. The show runs 5 nights, closing on the third Saturday. Fifteen days, beginning to end.

I find it quite impressive that a show can be put together in such a short period of time, especially given that the entire cast and most of the production team consists of lawyers with full-time day jobs. It's a lot of fun, but also an intense period filled with rushing around and getting too little sleep.

I wore this outfit for rehearsal the first 3 days of rehearsal. I washed it after the second day, but in a total lack of inspiration, I grabbed it again for day 3. I might have continued to wash and re-wear daily b/c it was comfortable and easy, but there's really no way to advertise that I'm wearing clean clothes even if they are the same ones I wore for the last several days. So I took a break, changed it up, and came back to this outfit again later in the week.

When:
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010

Where:
rehearsal

What:
I love NY tee: (thrifted)
Black Yoga Pants: ??
Red Cami: (thrifted)
Grey Hoodie: Old Navy
Shoes: Sketchers

Purple Stripes

When:
Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Where:
work

What:
Blouse: Moda Int'l
Vest: H&M
Scarf: handmade by my grandmother
Pants: H&M (thrifted, altered)
Boots: Nine West
Gold Hoop Earrings: ??

Inspired by: Orchid Grey

Lately, I'd been feeling a bit frustrated with my style and clothes, party due to the challenges of dressing for temperature extremes, from a 20 degree commute to a 90 degree office to who knows what temperature in other inside spaces. Part of it is also due to dealing with a limited wardrobe due to weight fluctuations. I cleared out most of the items that didn't fit and packed them away in suitcases in the basement, but every once in a while I come across an item that still fits, but not the same as before and just isn't as flattering or comfortable.

I keep an "outfit inspiration" folder on my computer's desktop, and when I looked through there a few weeks ago, I realized that all the pictures in the folder were at least 6 months old. So, while working my way through my 1000+ unread posts in google reader during the past few weeks, I've been very deliberate about saving images of outfits I like with clothing items similar to what I already own, so that I have a current collection of photos to inspire me. First up: this grey and blush look inspired by Orchid Grey.

When:
Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Where:
work

What:
Sweater: American Eagle Outfitters
Cami: Wet Seal
Skirt: Ann Taylor LOFT (thrifted)
Cable Sweater Tights: ??
Boots: Nine West (altered)
Beads: Macy's
Key Necklace: gift from my parents

2nd Annual Chicago Blogger Holiday Brunch

Last year Clare (Between Laundry Days), Sabrina (Defying My Closet) and I met up for a blogger brunch before Christmas. This year, Sabrina has planned a second brunch continuing the annual tradition, and the anticipated turnout is more than twice as big. If you're in the Chicago area and want to attend, click here for more details and to rsvp to Sabrina.

Closing Night

The last performance of The Bar Show is tonight! I'm exhausted from the last 2 weeks of rehearsal and performances, yet it feels like it just flew by.

Here are some photos of me and some fellow castmates in costume:

Thanks to my castmates for the photos!

Double-Breasted Jacket with Pink Sweater

When:
Thursday, November 18, 2010

Where:
workshop, work

What:
Suit Jacket: ?? (mine from the 1990's)
Sweater: ?? (Christmas gift from my parents last year)
Pants: ?? (thrifted)
Boots: Franco Sarto (thrifted)
Locket: thrifted
Earrings: World Market

Black Silk and Army Green

When:
Friday, November 19, 2010

Where:
work, gallery opening, Target

What:
Black Silk Blouse: Theory (thrifted)
Black Lace-trimmed Camisole: Express
Suit Pants: H&M
Belt: ?? (came with a pair of jeans)
Red Boots: Franco Sarto (thrifted)
Bag: from a street vendor
Necklace: vintage from my mother
Earrings: ??

The Bar Show - Opening Tuesday

I'm in The Bar Show again this year. The 87th year of zany musical comedy numbers performed entirely by lawyers who sing, dance, joke and roller-blade their way across stage.

Relaxed

I had dance rehearsal after work, and no appointments during the day, so I decided to wear my yoga pants all day. That way, I only had to change my top and shoes for rehearsal. Plus, yoga pants are super comfortable.

When:
Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Where:
work, rehearsal

What:
Suit Jacket: Young Kings by Steve Harvey
Yoga Pants: ??
Yellow Sweater: New York & Co.
White Cami: Wet Seal
Gold Locket: vintage from my grandmother
Snake Earrings: from a boutique in Lincoln Park
Shoes: Etienne Aigner (thrifted)

Recent Favorite

This outfit is an almost identical repeat of something I wore a few weeks ago. I only made a slight change in jewelry, dropping the bead bracelet and adding a silver cuff and 2-finger ring.

When:
Monday, November 15, 2010

Where:
rehearsal, meeting

What:
Dress: from Filene's Basement
Sweater: Ann Taylor LOFT
Brown Ribbed Sweater Tights: from Filene's Basement
Scarf: Forever XXI
Boots: (thrifted)
Gold Locket: vintage from my grandmother
Gold and Pearl Earrings: vintage from someone in my family
Silver Cuff: from MoJo Jewelry
Silver and Turquoise 2-finger Ring: Forever XXI

Gold Bead Embellishment

The Bar Show is right around the corner. Rehearsals are in full swing. A few weeks ago I went to see 2 Bar Show castmates in a production of Oliver.

When:
Sunday, November 14, 2010

Where:
theater

What:
Jacket with gold beaded embellishment: ?? (thrifted)
Green Tee: from Target
Skirt: Express
Black Cable Sweater Tights: from Filene's basement
Earrings: mine from the 1990's
Panda Coin Ring: gift from my parents
Gold Heavy-Chain Necklace: vintage from my mother
Scarf: knitted by my mother
Boots: Nine West