Monthly Archives: June 2011

{ Building the Outfit Architecture } Go Big, or Go Home — Big Heels, Bigger Hair

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Building an outfit architecture is all about the details. For me, the highlight of this outfit is the “bigness” of it. Not necessarily gargantuan elements within the outfit itself, but in the ways it’s styled.

The exaggerated contrasting plaid print, big bib necklace, big waffle cuff, humongous wire ring, towering heels…




and stupendously immense hair.




I never taught you how to do the double chignon… so I plan on doing a video of this big top knot and the double chignon. Both are ridiculously easy, you’ll shit your pants when you see.

Full Architecture tomorrow.

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Food Porn: Vegan Eggplant Broccoli Whole Wheat Lasagna Recipe

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A spin on a very traditional (ie. old style) lasagna recipe by turning it vegan (by using Daiya “cheese”)! Up the health or nutritional factor by loading the recipe with vegetables like broccoli, eggplant, using whole wheat lasagna noodles for higher fiber, using lower sugar and lower sodium marinara. Note: This is a MEAT version, but vegan and vegetarian modifications are listed next to each option.

Whole Wheat Eggplant & Broccoli Lasagna

This recipe takes a long time, so if this is your first time trying it out, make sure you have a few hours to prep, cook and bake before eating. [We ended up eating this at like 11PM on a Thursday night, because I had no idea how long this all took.]

Ingredients

Sauce

  • 3-4 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
  • 1 medium yellow or sweet onion, chopped in large pieces
  • 1 medium carrot, chopped
  • 2 chopped celery stalks
  • 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp seas salt
  • 1/2 lb ground beef (Vegan or Vegetarian option: Boca and Morningstar offer good “Beef style” crumbles that contain no egg or animal by-products in them–I used Boca, 1 bag. I got it in the Whole Foods frozen foods section)
  • 1/4 c white wine (I use Pinot Grigio for cooking)
  • 3-4 c marinara sauce (alternatively, you can use 28 oz peeled tomatoes, but this just adds more time to the recipe)
  • 1 c milk (Vegan/Vegetarian option: use Almond Milk instead of regular milk–stay away from soy milk if you want less stomach gas)

Bechamel sauce

  • 7 tbsp butter (Vegan option: Earth Balance Buttery Spread)
  • 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 7 tbsp whole wheat flour
  • 3 1/2 c heated milk (Vegan/Vegetarian option: Almond Milk)
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

Additional Healthy ingredients

  • 1/2 eggplant, cut into 2″ strips 1/8″ thick
  • Broccoli florets, slightly chopped, so they create the smallest “flowers”
  • Any other chunky vegetable you want
  • Mozarella cheese and Parmesan cheese (Vegan Option: Daiya Mozzarella style cheese substitute–can be purchased from Whole Foods or other health food grocery stores–you may need 1.5 bags of this, FYI)
  • Whole Wheat lasagna noodles (I used bionaturœ, sold at Whole Foods, but most stores should have a whole wheat variety of lasagna)

Create!

Sauce
Sauté garlic, onion, carrot and celery in EVOO over medium heat. Add the beef (or crumbles) and salt until browned. If cooking real beef, break meat into bits.

Lower heat, add wine and let reduce, stirring beef occasionally.

Add marinara and simmer. Add milk and continue cooking for 10 or so minutes, then set aside. Sauce should be reasonably thick.

Bechamel
Melt the butter in a small sauce pan, slowly sift in flour, whisking over low heat for 2 minutes. Once flour is absorbed and you have a doughy roux, slowly stir in milk, whisking regularly while adjusting heat to allow sauce to bubble a bit. Add nutmeg and salt to taste.

Make sure to stir regularly… Bechamel should be thickened but still have a “saucy” consistency. Remove from heat and set aside, remembering to stir every once in awhile so it doesn’t thicken completely. (If this does happen, put in a few tbsp of water and whisk it again.)

Veggies
Sauté the eggplant and broccoli florets together in EVOO over medium heat. Don’t let them sauté all the way through, you want the veggies to be slightly crispy when you put them into the lasagna. Set aside.

Lasagna
Preheat your oven to 375F/190.5C.

Cook 4 noodle sheets at a time (this is probably the most difficult part) in a LARGE POT of salted boiling water and a bit of EVOO. Only cook al denté, otherwise the noodles can break apart when you remove them from the water. (If anyone has a neat trick for removing them from the water without pieces of them breaking off, please share!)

Line the bottom of a 9″x13″ (or larger) baking dish with 3tbsp of the meat sauce. Just enough to coat the bottom of the dish so the noodles don’t stick.

Layer 4 sheets of pasta, then spread 1/3 of the Bechamel over the noodles. Cover with 1/4 of the meat sauce and a layer of eggplant and broccoli. Add 1/4 c of mozzarella and parmesan cheese (or Vegan Daiya).

Repeat for another 3 layers.

Cover the top layer with the remaining meat sauce and a generous dusting of mozzarella/parmesan mix (or Vegan Daiya).

Bake at 375F/190.5C for 40 minutes. Top cheese should be crispy and browned.

Let cool for 10 minutes (otherwise you will get a severely burned tongue and then you won’t be able to enjoy your delicious concoction for DAYS, boo hoo!) before eating.

This will serve 6-8 people.
(OR, in my case: 1 very hungry Vegan and 1 slightly hungry Vegetarian for 2 days. Wa hahaha!)

Total time: 2.5 hours (prep, cook & bake)
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE TIME FOR THIS RECIPE. There definitely are faster recipes out there for lasagna, but most of them will call for loads of parmesan, ricotta and more and more cheese, which significantly decreases the health factor. But if you’re all for cutting cooking time, saturated fat and cholesterol, by all means go for those recipes.

I will tell you, Daiya is a suitable cheese replacement for pasta dishes calling for loads of cheese and it’s a LOT healthier. I didn’t like it at first, but after trying it in my lasagna, I’m definitely a convert. This is coming from a staunch cheese fan. Cheese is the reason I cannot go Vegan completely.

*IF you try this recipe, please give me a shout! You can holler at me on Twitter (see sidebar), or you can plug this post!*

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{ Week in Pictures } June 5 – June 12, 2011 // “Whole Lotta History” — Edsel Ford Mansion Tour, Cuban Food, Fashion Styling, Gratuitous Bear Photos & Lots of Drinking

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{Slide Show Post}

During the week of June 5 through June 12, 2011, I was a busy, busy girl.

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{ What I did }

  • Toured the historic Detroit landmark, Edsel and Eleanor Ford mansion in Grosse Pointe Shores. The historic manor is perfectly preserved and maintained by a staff of caring, knowledgeable docents.
  • Following our rambling tour of the Ford house and grounds, mama-in-law, our mutual friend C and I went downtown to eat Cuban food at Vicente’s in Downtown Detroit.
  • We all got shitfaced on a pitcher-full of deliciously powerful Sangria, which means we got loud–best way to drink, in my opinion.
  • Celebrated my birthday a month late with tres leche cake.
  • E-cycling e-waste at Best Buy
  • Gave Bear a bath and stuck an inflatable doughnut around his neck for kicks. He did not appreciate it.
  • Got a facial at Tantra Spa in Ferndale, MI. More on this later.
  • Hula Hoop ninja sessions with my besties Gingermandy and SillyGrrl in Marine City
  • Dreaming about Hawaii over breakfast and Korean Dramas
  • Late night date night over more Cuban food at Café Habana
  • Playing the Fashion Stylist for my cousin Ri who is embarking into a real career!
  • Dinner by the lake with my friend E.
  • Softly filtered rainbows from lazy sunsets.
  • Video editing of my “Cruelty-Free Beauty Review” of Rimmel Sexy Curves Mascara (ie. it is NOT cruelty-free.) for my YouTube channel

Busy week, right?

What do you do during your weeks? You know, other than… WORK!

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See the rest of my Week in Pictures posts.

{ Sundays are For } #6 Cute Dogs Who Make You Laugh ‘Til You Snort

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Happy Sunday, y’all!

We were hanging out and drinking and talking on our lana’i (Hawaiian for “Balcony” or “Deck”) last night, and Max was hovering near us the whole time. I drew the organza sheers closed to keep bugs from coming in the house, but Max wanted to be near us so bad he kept doing Bridal Bear by coming up under the half eaten hem (he ate it one afternoon when he got bored), making himself look like a Bridal Bear or a newly Christened Bear Cub. We were dying.


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{ Architecture of Beauty / FOTD } Summer Coral & Pinks

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Click the photos for larger views.

Coral and Pinks for summer are wearable, even for yellow/medium toned Asian girls like me. The trick is to keep it simple, light, with a more coppery coral than a red, ruddy, pinky coral. If you go for super pinky coral, or ruddy reds, your eye lids could end up looking like the weird color of sickness, without the swelling.

Keep it natural, light and simple. A little bit of shimmer, but not too much.

  1. Blend the shadow with a fluffy brush into the socket line (or crease).[L'Oreal Desert Sunrise Eye Quad]
  2. Line your eyes with a dark brown, black or navy blue liner and wing out the ends, aiming the end of the cat eye toward the ends of your eyebrows. [NYX Felt Liquid Liner Pen in jet black]
  3. Line your water line with a flesh colored pencil. [Pixie Eye Bright Inner Rim Liner]
  4. Curl, curl, curl those lashes to further open up your eyes. [Tarte Cosmetics Picture Perfect Eyelash Curler]
  5. Use a coat of a lengthening mascara, and get it to the roots of your lashes, and wiggle it up, zig-zagging it back and forth to the tips of your lashes. [NYX Cosmetics Doll Eye Mascara]
  6. Follow it up with a second coat of a volumizing formula mascara to enhance and fan the lashes out. [Urban Decay Skyscraper Multi-benefit Mascara in Jet Black]
  7. Apply Bronzer on the high points of your face: cheekbones, above the temples, a little on your forehead and down the chin. Also apply on your neck… since your face might be darker than your neck. [Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder in Golden Light]
  8. Fill in your brows very naturally–make sure there are no visible lines.[NYX Cosmetics Eyebrow Cake Powder in Brunette]
  9. Apply a creamy but matte bright pink to your lips (not hot pink). [NYX Cosmetics Soft Matte Lip lipstick in Milan]

Pretty, right? And so !@#$-in’ easy!

If you try this look, be sure to comment back and let me know!

See the rest of my FOTD beauty posts.

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{ Architecture of an Outfit } Pale Yellow….Forever hollow, that’s worse than yellow // Piss is the color of tears

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{Lyrics from “Pale Yellow” by The Ditty Bops}

The lyrics kind of match my mood with the stupid weather, because I rather hate wet, hot sticky summers here in the Great Lakes Land. Yesterday was GREY. Grey and HOT. A rather abominable, loathsome way to spend an afternoon… even if only traversing from the car back to the house and vice versa, let me tell you.

Like I said yesterday, I dress around a singular element sometimes and build an outfit that way. Yesterday, it was the shoes because JELLY SHOES rock in the rain. Plus, they are yellow, which is a perfect way to combat the summer gloom. Um, and the bows. Yeah, bows.

I always feel like a total idiot in front of the camera, and I never know how to pose. So, while I’ve done the traditional Oh-So-Serious posing, and the absolutely bat-crazy Mae posing, I don’t think I’ve done super cute. So here we go. If you stop reading me, I think I might actually understand.



I wore grey because, naturally, I have about 3 other colors than yellow in my wardrobe, and everything else is grey. It’s kind of a go to, since the underlying color in the lace boho blouse is a dove grey. The pop of yellow was enough to bring in color to the ensemble, and the underlying palette is neutral.


{ What do you wear to combat June Gloom? }

{ Outfit Architecture }
Peasant boho lace top (wearing size L), Squash Blossom Boutique, Decatur, GA
Grey tank, H&M
Grey man trousers, Victoria’s Secret
Yellow Jelly bow heels, Vivienne Westwood Anglomania x Melissa Shoes
Braided vinyl leather belt, Target
Brass circles necklace, UO
Gold fringe bracelet, Banana Republic [GIFTED by ML of Twenty York Street. Thanks, Blogger BFF!]
Gold repurposed metal eco bracelets, Alex & Ani
Gold-tone boyfriend watch, Target

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{ Building the Outfit Architecture } Summer Yellows

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When building an outfit architecture, I often construct the architecture around a singular element.

Today, with the gusty winds and torrential downpour, I decided that Vivienne Westwood Anglomania x Melissa jelly shoes’ combo of yellow and plastic would be perfect for the wet pavements drearily reflecting the dull grey expanses of sky [recently seen HERE, HERE, and HERE]. Such a saturated hue of shoe calls for similarly eye-catching hues in the same color family elsewhere in the outfit.



Instinctively, I reached for the yellow and grey lace top and then everything else kind of just fell into place. Gold/brass-ish buttons? Gold & brassy eco-friendly bracelets and boyfriend watch. Capiz shell earrings I found for $1 at H&M. Brass buckled “leather” belt. Grey lace? Grey pants. Bad hair? Big, big, messy Princess Bunhead top knot.

Different elements come together to combine for a sweet summer Outfit Architecture which just the right amount of girly and bright to combat the fatigue-inducing ugliness we call Great Lakes Weather [i.e., it not always "great"].

Full Architecture tomorrow.

{ What’s your Outfit Building style? }

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{ Day in the Life } Twenty Nine Things to Do Before You Die

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I’ve grown somewhat tamer over the tail end of my Twenties, but when I was a young early Twenty-Something, I was quite ambitious and full of ideas of what many adventures and mis-adventures lay ahead of me in my long life.

Considering the adventures I’ve had and the big-ass undertaking that is yet to come (in the form of moving to paradise), I’ve only now just I’ve lived quite a rich life thus far.

The List

  1. Sky Dive
  2. Visit Japan, Korea and China
  3. Visit Tibet
  4. Get published (novel or story collections)—[ML commentary: does blogging count? j/k]
  5. Learn a foreign language well [ML: I was pretty decent with Japanese for a year or two, but that withered with the lack of actual people to practice this with.]
  6. Get Married
  7. Find the perfect Ein (Welsh Corgi) [ML: Husby is deathly allergic to shedding dogs, so alas, this will never come to fruition.]
  8. Rescue/Own a non-Ein [ML: read: Bear[dog].]
  9. Buy a house [ML: No thank you. I'd like to rent the rest of my life. Different economic times.]
  10. Be able to run 5 miles without dying [ML: I ran a 10k (6.2 miles) and a half marathon (13.1 miles/21.1km) and was training for a full marathon (26.2 mi/42.2km) before I was sidelined with a back injury in 2010.]
  11. Visit Prague
  12. Hike the Cotswalds
  13. Sleep in a Castle [ML: I got married in one, does that count?]
  14. Visit a monastery
  15. Slow dance along the Seine
  16. Take a boat ride down the Danube
  17. Visit Sweden, Denmark and Iceland [ML: September-October 2010, Honeymoon in Iceland!]
  18. Hot air balloon ride in the European countryside somewhere. (Preferably Southern Germany.)
  19. Drive the Autobahn before unlimited speeds go away. [ML: First trip outside North America to Europe, October 2006]
  20. Great Wall of China
  21. Drive a race car
  22. Learn to ride a motorcycle
  23. Drop my son off at school on a motorcycle.
  24. Ice skate on a frozen lake [ML: despite living in Detroit for 6.5 years, I still haven't done this. What the heck?]
  25. Snowboard in the Alps
  26. Live in Canada for a few years
  27. Visit Prince Edward Island
  28. Beat Final Fantasy III… [ML: despite being one of my gateway games into the world of Gaming, I still have never beaten my favorite Final Fantasy game, EVER.]
  29. …with one of my kids.

Having attained the ripe, old age of 29 (what I thought of as old at the time I wrote the list at age 23), I’m grateful to have been able to scratch some of these things off this list. Perhaps I could add quite a few things to it, but the bittersweetness leaves me at a loss for now.

There is so much beauty in this life, in my life, that I can’t believe I let any negative hold any thrall over me.

What items are on your bucket list?

You only live once. And if you’re really lucky or determined, you actually get to live that life. Make it good.
Mae x

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Belle fin de semaine pour vous, mes amours.

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Love, smiles, and all around fun to you this weekend, Mes Amours, from the House of Lu (Max the Bear[Dog], Husby/The Huz, Mae).





Do something that brings you cheer.

Xx,
Mae

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{ Week in Pictures } May 30 ~ June 5, 2011 :: House Guests + Homemade Pizza + Drinks + Movie Nights = A+ Week!

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[Slide show post]

I still maintain that my life is pretty dull, just a regular little life, in a regular little suburb in a economically depressed city (pretty typical of an average to large city in these uncertain and extreme economic times), with a regular little family, with an average to moderate amount of happiness and social calendar. I’m not immensely exciting, going on fantastic adventures day in and day out, but neither am I intensely boring, lounging about the house with my hair askew and stains on my sweatpants. I stay home and I go out neither in excess, but not lacking things to do.

If I had to define my life on a daily basis, I’d call it “Stable Contentment” [for the most part]. Sure, I have my Drama Queen moments–that’s what happens when you were encouraged to be as dramatic as possible in childhood–and I have them a fair amount, but overall, my happy, sweet little life is a pretty lucky one. I just realized how incredibly lucky I’ve been as of last night, and I could never express my gratitude to the Universe adequately, so hopefully my acknowledgment of this is enough.

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Week’s highlights:

  • Gorgeous sunsets over large, fluffy purple grey storm clouds
  • The Bulk Aisle in our local health food market.
  • Homemade vegetarian & Vegan pizzas
  • Frozen Yogurt with Oreo crunch
  • Leopard maxi skirts worn with stripe tanks
  • Popsicle & movie nights
  • House guests + Cuban food + Mojitos = A+
  • Wine & Kalimari with familia (my dad would have a cow I ate squid)
  • Tulip skirts that hide a wealth of muffin top
  • A begging Bear[dog]
  • Bear[dog] in Shrimp Mode — so cute
  • Local Art institute culinary department cafe lunch runs
  • Strappy shoes
  • Urban Decay’s Naked Palette

Don’t forget to enter my $300 GUCCI/NYX COSMETICS/THE BODY SHOP/BLUE LAGOON SKINCARE/ORIGINS/CLINIQUE/DR. HAUSCHKA/CHANEL GIVEAWAY BONANZA! [ends July 1]

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Cruelty Free Beauty? Rimmel London Sexy Curves Mascara Review

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My review of Rimmel London Mascaras: Sexy Curves Waterproof, Glam’Eyes Day to Night & Lash Accelerator.

In my endless mission for Cruelty-Free Beauty, I stumbled on what I thought was a cruelty free brand, because I didn’t see Rimmel London’s name listed on the numerous Beauty Without Cruelty lists, beauty journals and miscellaneous beauty sites. So, with minimal research, I jumped at the chance to try Rimmel’s Sexy Curves waterproof mascara, because I heard it was a Western “dupe” of the coveted Japanese brand Fairy Drops (buy @ YesStyle.com), with the trio of bristle “bulbs” mean to fan out and curl the lashes with ease. With this reported similarity, I was more than excited to give the mascara a test drive. I was disappointed to find out that Rimmel is NOT cruelty free by a long shot.

Watch the video for my grade and reactions.

Final grade: D-.

Note: Rimmel London is owned by Coty International, Inc, which is NOT a cruelty-free beauty brand.

It is important to note that most drugstore brands are not cruelty free. From skin care to makeup to beauty tools, drugstore brands test most of their products–or product components–and chemicals for reactions on animals in a laboratory. A far higher number of department store brands are owned by companies who do not test on animals, either the final product or all components, materials and chemicals. I am not personally preaching for you to start endorsing only companies that are Cruelty Free, but if you are someone that wants to be conscious of her purchases, this is a lot of food for thought. If companies deem chemicals unsafe for human testing, why would we want to put those chemicals on our face? Beauty may be cheap, but it does come at a high price for precious non-human lives. [Note, to my knowledge, Revlon is one of the few drugstore brands that does not test on animals.]

For a comprehensive list of American companies that are cruelty-free and those which DO test on animals, visit PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and their informative page.

Disclaimer: I was not sponsored, encouraged or compensated to create this video. Obviously, everything said in this video are my views and mine alone.

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{ Sundays are For… } #5: Styling and Rainbows

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Sundays are for Style!

Went to the mall with Rialeilani, who asked me to assist in styling her makeover for a new career. Ria, very much a jeans, flip flops and hoodies kind of girl, had a bit of an idea what to wear, but felt very overwhelmed by all the options before her at the different stores in the mall. (The mall is whelming, period!) So I stepped in to help her make the crucial first steps into rebuilding her professional wardrobe, assisting her with my expertise so that she bought tasteful an stylish pieces that accentuated her shape, hid her not-so-favorite parts, and showcased her colorful personality.

It was so much fun.

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I will have to post a before/after transformation as well as details of what I helped Ria buy. We’ve yet to schedule a shoe shopping session and a beauty session, and also go back to her house to style a whole range of outfits. But I’m so excited for Ri’s transformation, and new business venture! Our late 20s and early 30s are such an exciting time of change and metamorphosis, and I’m so grateful she allowed me to come along with her as witness & Stylist!

I later went to the lake, where my friend E cooked me dinner, then we sat outside, saw a gorgeous sunset over the rippling, crystalline waters and a brief rainbow as the light reflected off the soft, wispy clouds fading away in the distance.

All in all, a good day!

What was your Sunday For?

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{ Week in Pictures } May 22, 2011 ~ May 29, 2011

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I’m pretty boring, but I still think my weeks are pretty awesome.

The week of May 22 was pretty alright, except where I had to venture into Wal-Mart to return something I mistakenly purchased online through Google Checkout. (Wal-Mart is the Land of Misery. Wal-Mart makes me understand why country music is so effective at evoking absolute pain and tears that well up from the bottomless pit of depression: It sucks. I will never shop there willingly, if the situation could be helped.)

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{Week’s highlights}

  • Skyping with BFF Lily (Bleed for Fashion).
  • Vegan dinners with N with homemade gluten steaks made by Husby.
  • Hulu evenings. Namely Glee.
  • Beauty Videos.
  • Clashing fashion.
  • Stalker Bear[dog].
  • Vegan Breakfast scrambles on the veranda.

More to come tomorrow!

Don’t forget to enter my $300 GUCCI/NYX COSMETICS/THE BODY SHOP/BLUE LAGOON SKINCARE/ORIGINS/CLINIQUE/DR. HAUSCHKA/CHANEL GIVEAWAY BONANZA! [ends July 1] So far, only, like 20 people have entered, and it’s making me sad!

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{ Architecture of an Outfit } Color Blocking, can we try that again? With a Butt Illusion Trick?

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I’m not very good at color blocking, because my entire wardrobe consists of neutrals like beige/taupe/tan, grey, cream, navy and black, black and yet more black, or black with stripes. So when I used a $100 gift certificate I won from Rebecca @ The Clothes Horse to Shop Ruche, and I spotted this chartreuse pencil skirt with the weird “fin-like” and folded detail pockets, I snatched it up immediately. Being a petite (5’2″ & size xs/2 or s/3), I thought the skirt would be a perfect fit. Instead, it is probably one of the most skimpy skirts I own, simply based on the fact that the fit is unforgivingly snug. If you look closely in some of these photos, I have un-disguisable Muffin Top, only further “enhanced” [shall we say?] by the horizontal wide stripes of my H&M tissue tee. Not really sure if this counts as color blocking, but I’m trying!

But the color, oh god, the color! It reminds me of a washed out Lomo photograph of an early spring morning. Saturated and ready for hot weather.

And the stitching of the lines… The scallop shape of the fin pockets and the central panel give an illusion of curvature to my spindly legs. A direly needed deception I welcome wholeheartedly. The added benefit is that the lines and snugness give me the appearance of having an ass as well. For someone who has suffered the life-long syndrome of Ironing Board Backside, this is another welcome misapprehension. I would wear this skirt to death, if I didn’t actually need to eat whole meals two to three times a day.

I wore this with a newly acquired (shopping ban was lifted for the month of my birth, but it’s back on now, I’ll have you know) H&M tissue boxy tee. The sheerness and the nautical stripes make it perfect for the disgustingly sweltering, sticky summers here in Michigan. And the boxy cut of the shirt not only makes for good draping, but also provides the perfect curtain to cloak a full belly bloat after lunches. That is, unless you wear it this way as I did here, half tucked.

I did this because otherwise the fin pockets would have been concealed, and also, I would have lost a bit of my shape. So I tucked in more than I usually would to give more definition to my waist, and to lengthen my center line. With the nude heels, I look taller and more poised. In addition, the solid skirt gives more counterbalance to the white stripe contrast up top.

What are pieces that give you things you wish you had (ie., an ASS)?

Don’t forget to enter my $300 GUCCI/NYX COSMETICS/THE BODY SHOP/BLUE LAGOON SKINCARE/ORIGINS/CLINIQUE/DR. HAUSCHKA/CHANEL GIVEAWAY BONANZA! [ends July 1] So far, only, like 14 people have entered, and it’s making me sad!

{Outfit Architecture}
H&M Shirt & yellow tank (layering)
Shop Ruche fin pocket pencil skirt
Jeffrey Campbell ruffle T-strap platform nude heels
Marc by Marc Jacobs heart locket watch
Kenneth Cole waffle gold cuff
Madewell mixed metal fringe bib necklace
Alex & Ani recycled / repurposed gold and silver spike bangles

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{Sundays are For… #4} Mother in Laws, Drinks and Detroit

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Cannot talk about how awesome today is…

Belated Birthday celebration in my Adopted City [Detroit] with my Mama-in-Law and our girl C.

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I guess, all can say is, “awesome A+ Brill.”