smart birds

"...feminist girls may get pleasure from looking at the bodies of their favorite female models while simultaneously rejecting the ways in which women's bodies are textually constructed to be looked at; they might think critically about their own bodies, at the same time holding to the notion that women ought to accept--even celebrate--their own natural body shapes. Such contradictions are characteristic of girls' and women's everyday experience. Girls and women constantly take up contradictory subject positions, taking simultaneously different meanings from/of images, texts and themselves."

~A. Jones (1993)~

Becoming a Girl: Post-structuralist Suggestions for Educational Research 

thanks to t.

walking in to seminar yesterday i see my collegue t. and am literally immediately ecstatic about her new look. it was so fresh and pretty and bold that i had to try it the next day. what was it, you birds ask? it was a mixture of fushia and green makeup that rocked my world.

how tos:

the trick is to do a deep fuschia lip that is MATTE-no shine here-the color speaks for itself without blinding shine or shimmer. then use a blush that is a paler version of the lip but that still pops. don't be shy about putting it on and do it only on the apples of cheeks-this is a very "doll" looking face but it is just fantastic on. last add a swipe of green shadow right near the lash line. yes, green. i know what you are thinking bc i thought that too but i loved it on t. and i tried it on myself (who shys away from green shadow like a mo-fo) and it is awesome. keep the rest of your look simple- a swipe of defining mascara and a muted color palettte on your outfit and this looks fantastic. i felt charming all day long even though it was raining and my hair had frizzed to twice its size. i credit it all to the dynamic insight of t.

my recs:



Covergirl Lipstain in Scarlet Pucker




Ei Solutions Eyshadow in Olive Green



Lancome Color Fever Lipstick in Daring Rose with...




L"Oreal Paris Hip Duos in Gunmetal




Nars Velvet Lip Pencil in Damned with...




Sephora's Picnic in the Park Eyeshadow

 All makeup $7-$28 found on drugstore.com or sephora.com

period pieces.

probably bc i am still coming off my time without jhubbs at home (during which i indulge in period dramas SHAMELESSLY several hours per week) i am feeling period piece jewelry more than ever. it is something about the complexity of bustled, taffeta, multi-print dresses and the simplicity of having one bauble to decorate yourself with and ending it there. in this way outfits had a tendency to highlight two statement pieces and one statment woman(/bird). the more modern versions are intricate and pretty, though none come off as silly and overly-frivolous. i am feeling particularly lusty about the looking glass earrings by kate spade and the majorica three pearl ring; i just can't imagine a holiday outfit that they would not compliment perfectly... and yes, i think about the holidays this early in the year...no judgements, please.




Looking Glass Earrings, neimanmarcus.com, $95



Majorica Three Pearl Ring, nordstroms.com, $134




 

Rose Pearl Ring, couturecandy.com, $35

Juicy Rose Cluster Ring, Bloomingdales. com $88

Kate Spade, neimanmarcus.com

Pearl and Chain Ring, Topshop, $8

Pearl Dome Ring, topshop.com, $8

Maybe minimalist

The other day I gave two of my fanciest (they were inexpensive, come on, I'm not a Rockefeller) necklaces to Cole, because she can wear dramatic jewelry sensationally and I can't. I don't know how to make it work. I look at pictures of layered necklaces, of chunky stones, of long pearl strands, of glimmering rhinestones, and I drool, and then I try them on and look like a clown. So they are having a much better time up in Washington Heights with her than they were in my jewelry box gathering dust.

I think maybe I might be a simple jewelry kinda gal. Most days I only wear my wedding and engagement rings. I have three necklaces that I occasionally rotate: a simple gold sunflower charm from Etsy, a birthday gift from my sis; a pearl-and-peridot drop necklace, my first jewelry gift from Chris (it's our birthstones); and a teeny vintage seed pearl on a gold chain that I bought in St. Michael's with my mom for $5. They are simple, and seem to work better on me than anything ornate.

Now I'm looking at the bracelets on Miranda Kerr in this picture, and starting to feel like I'm finding my jewelry style.

Via the beautiful blog Aubrey Road.

Silky fall flowing

I know I'm trying not to buy fast fashion, but Forever21 has some really pretty stuff right now. I want this dress and this skirt.

Update: gahh! And this scarf!! I must have it!

very bunny

would it weird you out if i had these on? maybe. 

would they make me laugh? mostly. 

worth the $16 investment? definitely. 

urbanoutfitters.com

chocolate lilac...it's almost like chocolate rain

as fall inches its way into manhattan i cannot help but feel heady...intellectual but beautiful and for some reason the colors that are doing that for me lately are chocolatey suede and a lilac grey. it doesn't really matter where they are on my person: lilac chiffon blouse and brown suede jacket, lilac tweed flats and chocolate cashmere sweater-it all works for me. however, the easiest and quickest way for me to incorporate it is with nail polish. it gives a flash of those colors unexpectedly and the lilac grey on the nails is particularly nice as a nudey neutral that is significantly less boring than tan. paint away, birds!

PradaMen's Cashmere Sweater in Chocolate
$442, bluefly.com

LC by Lauren Conrad Chiffon Blouse
$29, kohls.com

Lilac Tweed Embellished Flats
$128, bananarepublic.com

Splash of Grenadine
$8, essie.com

Little Brown Dress
$8, essie.com

Velvet Voyeur
$8, essie.com

Mink Muffs
$8, essie.com

Dove - Evolution Commercial

I am reading Natalie Angier's Women: An Intimate Geography so maybe I am feeling super sharply some the inconsistencies of women's lives and the lived depravity many women feel at not having lived up to something. The thing that concerns me however is: what is it that we haven't lived up to? And it is something that we want? And if not why then do so many woman still feel to twitch, the itch, the nag of something still to do done to themselves? Just food for thought pretty birds. Make sure you are still smart birds as well. Love love love. 

Portrait of a Lady

" Style is a very simple way

of saying complicated things. " 

~Jean Cocteau~

Le secret professional

Subway staring

I haven't done one of these in a while. This morning on the subway I couldn't stop looking at the girl across from me. She had on the simplest, most elegant work outfit:

hair pulled back into a clip
dangling gold circle earrings--kind of new agey and simple
ornate diamond wedding ring, thick and old-fashioned
ivory crocheted sleeveless top
charcoal gray work pants
smooth bronze peep-toe low wedges--almost more like a flat
burgundy toenail polish

She looked polished, feminine, professional, put together, easy. It was inspiring. So often I'm drawn toward fussy clothing, and I really need to restrain myself going forward.

Tastes differ, but here's what not to wear

Apparently, it is fall fashion week here on pretty bird, or at least, it's fall fashion week in my head. So by now you've picked up on the trends I'm loving--rich, chunky knits; whiskey-colored riding boots; delicate prints--and to that list I can add--military accents, rich camel colored items, Mad Men-esque ladylike dressing, cropped pants, high waisted wide-leg/flare denim, and lush textures like tweed, cordoroy (a word I can never spell), silk, wool, cashmere, and soft knits.

Here are the Fall '10 trends I (so far) cannot get behind:

Skinny cargo pants. Yep, regular cargo pants are not flattering, but NEITHER ARE THE SKINNY ONES. How 'bout you invest in an olive green jacket and get your military groove on that way. Any pants with a bulky pocket on that part of your thigh just aren't meant to make you look good.

Fur. For about two seconds last fall I thought to myself, maybe I'll find a vintage fur or faux fur hat and pretend I'm Lara from Dr. Zhivago...but you know what, even if it's not a recent kill, I just can't embrace wearing fur, even faux fur because it seems to send the same message. I realize I'm a hypocrite because I wear leather and eat meat. I don't know--is there an excellent alternative to leather? Because fake leather feels disgusting and PVC is made with bad chemicals. Whereas with fur, you can wear wool or a puffy coat and get the same warmth. So that means that wearing fur is a purely decorative thing. And that doesn't quite sit right with me, no matter how luxe it looks in a J. Crew catalog.

That being said, I'm even more of a hypocrite because I do want a leopard print belt. Maybe that doesn't count because it's inspired by beauty in nature, and not actually taken from a leopard? Also, just want to clarify that I'm not criticizing anybody else. I think it's a personal decision.

Wearing camel/beige/tan from head to toe.

Chunky sweaters over a chunky full skirt. I don't know, even if you're feeling bloated it seems to me that you don't want to make yourself look quite that WIDE.

I'm sure there are more, but feel free to add to this list :) Cole, I already know how you feel about j***ings.

Drool

These literally stopped me in my tracks in a store window on my way into work this morning.

I have been adamant that I didn't want to invest in over-the-knee boots (I worry that they're too trendy and will look dated) when in six years I haven't even found a pair of riding boots that suits me. But these ... are definitely worth trying on. And, potentially, saving up for.

Yes, I know my recent posts have been very acquisitive-minded. I'm only this greedy around fall fashion, I swear.