One-Dollar Wonders

Wearing three new favorite swap meet scores today: orange linen sweater, Kasil jeans, and the rescued Ted Baker leather and calf hair bag. Hubs is showing his preppy roots, because he is ON BOARD with all my preppy ensembles lately - first the boat shoes and now this! Nice change from the suspicious confusion over my more warlike looks. :)

As I continue DIY July, last night I officially started my crazy leather cat bag project. It doesn't look like much now, but I hope it turns out well in the end, because I'd love to do more projects like this.

J. Crew linen sweater - swap meet
Citron shirt - swap meet
Kasil jeans - swap meet
Black belt - swap meet
Ted Baker bag - swap meet
Report Marks booties - Piperlime clearance
Saturno necklace charm - honeymoon in Florence

... especially when it's Ted Baker!

Our local swap meet is open on the 4th, so of course Hubs and I took a look-see - and I came across this bag, looking a bit worse for wear:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/te.....ag/3141380

In the spirit of DIY July, I scooped it up for $10 (still has the $395 tag inside!) and stitched up the huge gash on the side. I used my thinnest thread and my smallest needle, because the soft leather was so delicate. If you ever have to try this yourself, be very gentle, and don't pull the thread too tight, or it will tear the leather further.

For the outfit, I went with sort of a young-republic horse messenger idea - crossbody bag, steampunk boots, rifle strap as belt, and my big ol' horse ring.

NY&C tunic - swap meet
Express skirt - swap meet
Ted Baker Buckle Pocket bag - swap meet
Timberland Marge Wood boots - ebay
Horse ring - swap meet

Running out the door, but here's what I plan to wear for 4th festivities at our place today!

These are my first white shorts, chosen for the heavier denim and orange stitching.

Also, these are not the bronze python boat shoes I originally ordered (way too shiny!), but I found these pewter ones at the swap meet - I was afraid to show DH, but he looooooves them! Woohoo!

Happy Independence Day, fellow Americans!

In light of Angie's post today, I thought it would be fun to share pictures of our favorite patterns!

I've been enamoured with the Miu Miu cat print since it came out way back when. Something about the cat's stance and expression is much more charming than any cat print that's come after. I'm also digging riots of color and placed florals.

How about you? I'd love to see what you've been ogling!

Black with brown isn't everyone's favorite look, but I file it under the same category as wearing black with navy or white with cream. It looks a little softer and more natural to me, especially with brights. I shouldn't have worn my bag on my shoulder for this picture; the slouch is reading kind of sloppy... but I don't *think* it looks that bad in real life.

DIY July continues with Day 2's handmade item: the flip-up cat watch. I found the face alone at a swap meet and picked it up for a buck or so. Then I cobbled together a leather strap from a broken belt and some rivets. Portable photo album!

Nexx blouse via Nordstrom
Perlina bag via Goodwill
Talbots skirt via swap meet
Boutique 9 Mystery Boots via swap meet
Cat Watch DIY by me

I found the below trench at the swap meet for a cool $2 - the catch was that it has some black sharpie marks on the back, sleeves, and hem. Not a ton, but I thought I would take the opportunity to make my own printed trench.

I was just ogling the Desigual trench in pic #2, but it seems like it would be a DIY better suited to a black trench. Have you seen any cool prints out there that might work on my SSB confection? I'd most likely be using Jacquard Textile Colors (paints without bleeding for crisp lines) or Dynaflow (works more like a watercolor), both of which leave the fabric soft.

I have loved seeing Natalie's turquoise and yellow outfits so, now that Manspiration Month is over, I'm going girly in a dress, flowered bag, and happy colors.

I'm thinking July will be my DIY month, since I'm still enjoying having a daily challenge to keep me on my toes and keep me from mindless internet browsing (oh, I'm still browsing, but in a more calculated way). I'll either have to wear or work on a DIY project every day.

Today's DIY is a necklace and bracelet set I made from little ten-cent charms I picked up on vacation in New York. Travel cannot keep us away from swap meets, so it was natural to go looking for some cheap thrills. All I did for this project was take apart an old bracelet that was too delicate and simple for me (and also covered in bells). A few tigers later, and I wear the bracelet much more!

Michael Michael Kors agate-print dress - via 6pm.com
H&M Blazer - via swap meet
Frye Julia boots - via Dillard's clearance
Lions & Tigers jewelry set - DIY via NYC swap meet

June's over and, with it, so is my self-imposed manspiration challenge! It's been a fun-filled, somewhat goofy ride - sometimes I wanted to rebel against the manly looks and, by the end, I started to worry that I didn't have enough heroes to fill the month. Still, it was a great exercise and a fun way to explore a wide range of menswear influences.

The challenge also helped me learn a few things about my relationship with clothes and my personal style. First, I love a challenge! Who knew, right? Although I often feel bored getting dressed in the mornings, I didn't feel bored at all this month. Forcing myself to dress to inspiration photos really made me see my closet in a new light. Second, menswear is totally me. I'd been adamant before that I loved the tomboy look but hated menswear - well, it's still true, but only about a certain kind of menswear. Rugged, swashbuckling, bomb-making, spaceship-piloting, jailbreaking, hulk-smashing men's outfits are actually quite close to my heart. Third... like... woah, do I have a type or what? Apparently, I should have either been a rock star, crime fighter, or robot, because that pretty much sums up the bulk of my hero worship.

For anyone who may have missed the original outfit posts - or anyone who might want to review the manspirations after the fact - I've added all the side-by-side shots below. In order of appearance, the manspirations are:

Captain America
Colonel Saul Tigh (Battlestar Galactica)
Kurt Cobain (Nirvana)
MacGyver
Captain Malcolm Reynolds (Firefly, Serenity)
Billy Mack (Love, Actually)
Bryan Mills (Taken)
Lord Eddard Stark (Game of Thrones)
Frank "Punisher" Castle (Punisher)
Tom Petty
Tom Waits
Rick Deckard (Bladerunner)
Special Agent Dale Cooper (Twin Peaks)
Rorschach (Watchmen)
Tristan Thorne (Stardust)
Remy "Gambit" LeBeau (X-Men)
Papa Rae (*Father's Day post*)
Erik "Magneto" Lehnsherr (X-Men)
Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails)
Andy Dufresne (The Shawshank Redemption)
Oscar Wilde
Inigo Montoya (The Princess Bride)
Wolverine (X-Men)
Data (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Jason "JD" Dean (Heathers)
Dr. Henry "Indiana" Walton Jones, Jr. (Indiana Jones)
Luke Skywalker (Star Wars)
Bruce "The Incredible Hulk" Banner

Huge thanks to everyone who followed along with me this month and guessed the inspirations despite my cryptic riddles. You all made this much more fun than I had ever anticipated!

*Note: I did not create any manspiration outfits on the 24th or 25th, as I was preparing for a meeting - this is why there are only 28 pictures for a 30-day month.