All The Dresses I Own (Dress Mission, Part 1)

I know it's about to be August, but I'm just now realizing that I am woefully lacking in summer dresses. I've always associated summer dresses with those horrible smocked coverups that Jessica Simpson and Britney always wear, or with Roxy-esque Hawaiian-print boring strappy things. Definitely not my style, and nothing I'd see as a must-have. But recently I've been stumped when staring into my closet, reviewing the lineup of jeans I've already worn that week, and gazing wistfully at the rack of dresses that I love but that just aren't...normal enough. I tend to snap up super-retro vintage frocks, dark wintry dresses, and, um, more dark wintry dresses. My fashionable coworkers, on the other hand, always seem to show up in adorable, chic dresses that are the perfect mix of summer casual and style-conscious chic. I clearly have some sort of massive issue with summer dresses, and before I asked for your help, I wanted to really lay it all out there--literally--to prove to y'all what a sad case I am right now. I dug through my closet and photographed every dress it contained. See for yourselves:

New(ish) Dresses: 2 scores from my personal shopper experience (which i adore, but which aren't quite summer-casual); a gold thing that i got recently on a whim and that has actually gotten a lot of wear so far (albeit over skinny pants; still not really a throw-it-on summer dress).
Dresses That Are Under 1 Year Old: ultra-subdued flapper dress from opening ceremony; avant-garde helmut lang from super spring sale at satine (yes, i got a dark wool dress in spring. yeeeah.); navy puffy skirt dress i got as payment for a modeling gig.

Darrrk Dresses: black trenchcoat dress from when my mother visited and we ransacked loehmann's; Little Black Dress my dad got me ages ago when he realized i didn't have one; grey sweaterdress i've worn a bajillion times (i think that was my first-day outfit at satine).

Shirtdresses (Also Darkish): another one I've worn to death, from the lovely target; american apparel shirtdress i got because pauline has a wholesale account; vintage oddity i never wear.

Vintage Dresses: polka-dot early-60s dress from Saks (wore to my college graduation parade with the class banner that I MADE, thankyouverymuch); amazing b&w 60s cocktail dress; my favey fave handmade 40s housewife dress with weird print and fabulous belt that i've worn about 7 million times.

I've Got A Lot Of Vintage Dresses: transparent white one that i wore to my college graduation with a slip underneat (fab. not the most versatile garment.); handmade twirly-skirt dress that i thought could supplement the other brown housewife dress, but just isn't as great; shiftdress from show pony that is VERY great and also not versatile at all. i wore it on my 22nd birthday, i believe. man, i walked by show pony today and realized what a moron i am for not going more often.

I Go To The Mall Now & Then Dresses: banana republic (so retro though! and bought in the very tasteless state of florida, no less.); j. crew (my lovely bridesmaid dress from the lovely bronwyn's wedding in may, which i am totally planning to wear again.); and ann taylor loft, because i figured everyone should have a wrap dress. or something. still more fall than summer. crap.

Floral Dresses: strapless sorta-toile-de-jouy dress, $5 at flounce vintage because it had a stain that i got out just by putting it in the wash (duh), which i like wearing with a long sweater belted over it; halter dress that i made myself in 2002 and which is now too big for me but which i can't bear to get rid of; vintage dress i made out of a huge gunnysack monstrosity (the fabric is horrid and unnatural, but i wear it anyway. i mean, those pockets!).

Summer-ish Dresses: sweet sundress from when i worked for the designer of mon petit oiseau; little french connection dress that needs pants under it, and is summer-length but not exactly summer-print; farmer's-daughter sundress handed down from generous bronwyn.

Are these last things really the most summery dresses I own? Pretty much, and they're definitely not the kind of work-appropriate, casual-chic things I'm wishing for. But I've been looking everywhere, and I can't find anything good. I KNOW they're out there, because I see people running around in pretty summer things that don't look like evening gowns OR beach cover-ups...but I'm so unused to shopping for them, I don't even know where to go. Do I really just suck at shopping right now? Could it BE?

Help me, dear readers. Point me to your favorite pretty dress sources. Please. Seriously, because this is just pathetic.

DRAT.

godDAMmit! I had a whole massive post with a bajillion photos of summer dresses to ask you kids' opinion on, and it's all lost. booo.

instead, I think I'll embark on a different version...I'm going to go have a little party in my closet and then get back to you.

this is how i feel after seeing my pretty dress post get lost.
[thanks LCL. apparently, this drawing is related to milquetoast.]

Things I Love Thursday

Things I Love Thursday, evening edition

[this photo, for one. sylvia sydney, hot diggity dog.]

• I'm watching "Project Runway." I am like, way into this season so far. And I don't hate anyone yet; the real wackadoos are all pretty entertaining (ridiculous rock-n-roll lady who only wants to use leather; guy named Suede who refers to himself in the third person, but made a gorgeous gorgeous dress).
• My new shoe racks. Oh man, having my closet organized makes me feel like Martha Stewart, or Gwyneth Paltrow, or someone else very mature and together. I have never felt as adult as I do now that I've purged my possessions, have all my jeans actually HUNG UP on HANGERS, and have installed the finishing touch of shoe racks. My dear friend is moving to Japan (lucky so-and-so!) and is attempting to apologize for her rude departure by loaning me her very classy, canvas-lined shoe thingies. No cheapy plastic deals for her. Believe me, it is SO worth it. Even if I'd paid for them, they'd be worth it. Home and Garden, here I come.
• Kingdom of Style. Funny! Cool! Check out how Queen Michelle creates her own totally awesome quilted necklace. Go read!
• Art Is Alive. Though, hold on, the URL is artisnotdead.blogspot.com. Very confusing. Anyway, it talks about contemporary art and whatnot and makes me feel temporarily high-minded and culturally savvy.
  

What have you kiddies found recently that you love? Let me know - my life's been a little lacking in frivolous glee lately. Okthx.

Clueless The Game! Not To Mention Elle vs. Vogue!

Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and my short sabbatical from the world of the internets has me brimming with love upon my return. Yeah, I've been working and playing real hard, and my Google Reader was like totally FREAKING OUT with all the bold-faced unread things when I finally started catching up today. And they were AWESOME things! A few gems, just from Perez Hilton alone:

OK, y'all know how precious "Clueless" is to me, and you also probably know that I am not a gamer. However, the latter statement might have been entirely untrue if only the "Clueless" video game had come out in 1997 instead of 2009. That's right, kids, "Clueless," as well as "Mean Girls" and "Pretty In Pink," is coming soon to a video game console near you. Hold on, this is making me think: is "Clueless" the '90s "Pretty In Pink?" And is "Mean Girls" the '00s "Clueless?" Discuss.

I've had various occasions to tell people how great Elle magazine is (slightly embarrassing, in hindsight), and how thoughtful and interesting the articles and reviews are - much more so than Vogue's. Well, gosh, turns out that America agrees! August is the 4th month in a row that Elle has beat Vogue in numbers of ad pages sold. Way to go, fashion-mag junkies! Usually, I count on the American public to throw its full support behind what I hate the most (see: Fall Out Boy, Cosmopolitan magazine, Applebee's). It's always heartening to see that the small fraction of people who prefer journalism (and lots of runway eye candy) to Cosmo share my recognition that Vogue, while totally major, is just not as hip and savvy as Elle. What doth the future hold, Queen Wintour? [I guess the war ain't won yet...does anyone even know what Elle's ed-in-chief's name is??]

In other news, Project Runway is back for its last season before defecting to Lifetime, and I predict fabulous things. The first episode showed a posse of designers with actual skill, and Bravo's definitely filling its ranks with characters this time around. YAYYYYY.

Style Snapshot: Me, Fourth of July

dress: pour
necklace: grandma's
shoes: old navy

I was thinking of how to write a post on "how to dress for patriotic occasions," as a total joke, but then I uploaded some photos and realized that I got patriotic on the 4th of July without even meaning to. Yet another instance of succumbing to cheesy holiday dress codes! I wanted to wear a dress (party --> party dress) but not a fancy one; hence this blue-&-white pinstripe dress I got a while ago at Opening Ceremony. The shoes are the same color scheme but a totally different print, which I like (I always admire people who fearlessly plaid-and-polka-dot it), and the vintage pink beads from my grandmother I threw on to make the whole thing a little more interesting. I didn't tie it in order to look retro; I think I was just fidgeting at some point and that was the result. Despite the lack of planning, all of the above basically combine to create a red, white and blue outfit. Hilarious.

backyard fireworks & a bull skull watching.

Things I Love Thursday

Things I Love Thursday, in pictures:These,*

and these,

and also THESE (which i am soon receiving in the mail! three cheers for impulsive late-night shopping! you guys, they started off at $298 but they were on sale for $68 because there was only one size left and it was MY SIZE! FATE!!).

Yes, I know it's not even Thursday anymore in some states, but I needed an excuse to post my footwear crushes. You understand.

*#1 = jeffrey campbell cutout wedge
#2 = burberry ruched cross strap pump [fall '08; pre-order for the low low price of $695]
#3 = candela nyc "loro" boot [i LOVE perforated leather. they're so dreamy!]

Style Snapshot: Gala, Fashion Blogger Extraordinaire

[gala darling in NYC.
coordinating one's ears with one's shoes is always chic.]

I am SUPER SUPER EXTRA EXCITED to be posting this week's Style Snapshot, since it's been graciously provided by the fabulous Gala Darling! Gala is grande dame of the thoughtful, intelligent and eye-candy-ful site iCing, and her fashion sense is always refreshing. She periodically posts snapshots of her delightful outfits (I actually started reading her blog because when you google "daily outfit photos," iCing comes up at the top of the list), but today, especially for A Material World, she goes a bit more in depth than usual. The Australia resident sported this very American (mouse ears, hel-LO!) ensemble soon after her recent arrival in NYC. Gala says:

I'm wearing...
* Silver sequinned mouse ears from Disneyworld
* Earrings from Sportsgirl (Australia)
* Grey American Apparel sweater
* Black & white skirt from Ricochet (NZ)
* Heels from Nine West
* Tarina Tarantino ring & diamante initial rings (they spell out 'GALA') from Girl Props

This is the outfit I wore to hang out with my friend Craig, who is a street fashion photographer operating under the name Altamira NYC. At the time we took this shot, we had spent the last 3 Saturdays together scouting the streets of Manhattan for well-dressed people. My style was in a state of evolution too, because firstly I was living out of a suitcase -- otherwise known as working with approximately one millionth my normal amount of clothing -- & secondly the weather was insanely hot -- which I had not at all packed for!

I got dressed in the morning, Craig showed up & we trawled my neighbourhood for some good photography spots. One of those pictures was taken on the rooftop of my building, the other a few streets over from where I'm living.

Secret admission: After these photos were taken, we came back to my apartment & I changed my shoes. We were about to scout for fashionable people on the street, & unfortunately while those shoes are very cool-looking, they absolutely *kill* if you wear them for too long!

Later on that day, after we had taken lots of photos & critiqued lots of outfits & gulped plenty of coffee, we saw Marc Jacobs at an intersection across the road from my house. I shook his hand & he told me he loved my hair! It was a pretty exciting moment for a girl from New Zealand! (He is beautiful in person, with the most sparkly eyes I've ever seen.)

I love how Gala's street-style pic was taken while scoping streets for others' street style! How very meta. (I get skewered for saying that too often. It really is an obnoxiously college-class-ish thing to say, but how else does one say "metaphysical" other than, well, "metaphysical"?) These photos seem SO New York to me, and you'd never guess that she was scraping the bottom of her suitcase for the outfit. Maybe it's just that shiny purple hair makes any girl look impossibly chic! (Guess Marc Jacobs agrees...Gala, you totally were ahead of MJ on the violet-hair front.)

NOTE: Even if you don't often find yourselves hanging out with professional photographers and running into Marc Jacobs, I'd love your style snapshots too! It's always fascinating to find out what was behind people's outfit choices. Just email me at amaterialworld[at]gmail.com if you'd like to give it a whirl!