Paper Trench: 2011

10 September 2011

100 years of style

Love this (especially the '20s! Where can I find a flapper dress?).

29 August 2011

make it work

Last week, I found an adorable little black dress. Chic and classic, with just the right amount of 1960s mod and Audrey Hepburn loveliness.

The label said 'Dry Clean Only,' but come on, I'm a college student -- and, frankly, dry cleaning is not so good for the environment. I'd never had any problems hand-washing my clothes before, so I scrubbed it in the bathroom sink and laid it flat to dry.

When I put it on three days later, it was tiny. Not just a little too short, but way, way too short. I actually had a nightmare last night where I was wearing it, and realized once I had already walked out in public that my underwear was peeking out from beneath the hem.

I called the store and explained what happened, throwing in that I can't afford to dry clean my clothes (not sure that was such a good idea...). I guess they can only take things back if the care instructions have been followed.

In the words of Tim Gunn, it was time to make it work.

I put on a pair of pants and sparkly shoes, and off I went!

24 August 2011

you live your life in it

I came home from work today to find the September J.Crew catalog sitting by the door. In a row across the front cover were the ballerinas you see above, standing in first position, adorned, unexpectedly, in cozy, chunky sweaters.

The arrival of this catalog never fails to bring me joy. It's not that I buy anything, or even dog-ear the pages just in case. It's that, for me, there is nothing that quite compares to leafing through 143 pages of nothing but clothes.

Some people (okay, a lot of people) do not understand this, or find it shallow. In truth, it's hard for me to explain what exactly draws me to fashion in such an immediate way. There are times when I look at a particularly beautiful photograph of a dress, a coat, a pair of shoes, and literally gasp. There are times when I can't fall asleep because I'm putting together outfits in my head. So I thought about it for a while today, and here's what I came up with:

I have always been drawn to all kinds of art, and find it perpetually fascinating and inspiring. I want to surround myself with it, to have it in my home, on my stereo, and, in the case of clothing, on my back. This is because truly great design is something that lasts forever, something that anyone, from anywhere, can appreciate. And unlike other products of art and design, clothes are something that you truly experience your life in. We can't go naked (not here, anyway), so we wake up every morning and adorn ourselves in pieces that, no matter how simple, started as nothing more than an idea. Fashion is the ultimate collision of form and function, fantasy and reality, body and mind.

So why not go out and buy a magazine, or at least page through The Sartorialist for a bit? You'll like it, I promise.

18 August 2011

everywhere you look

Tanzania (photo by Dan Westergren)

I was thrilled to find National Geographic's Global Fashion Photos this morning. I always love being reminded that fashion is more than runway shows and Anna Wintour. Getting dressed is an ancient, global ritual, and one that defines not just yourself, but your entire culture.

India (photo by Jeanie Lewis)

Sudan (photo by J. Carrier)

16 August 2011

return of the monochrome

What can I say? I love my blues and grays.

And you can't see them in the picture above, but I was wearing these earrings:

I bought them from Chantal deFelice at an art fair on our recent trip to LA. I was thrilled to find them; they're unlike anything I've ever seen before. It was also great to buy them directly from the artist -- she was so sweet and friendly (and was wearing an adorable dress!).

Check out her website and Etsy shop (and take a look at this print with the image from my earrings!)

11 August 2011

emma bobs her hair?

I saw this portrait by the Sartorialist today, and pretty much died. I mean, her haircut. I do love my short hair, but with fall fast approaching I'm starting to crave a change. There's just something about being able to run your fingers through your hair (or, even better, having someone else run their fingers through your hair).

See what I mean?

via American Vogue

Arizona Muse made the bob (and eyebrows!) sexy again.

via theglamourai.com

Kelly Framel of The Glamourai grew her hair out this year...and made it look so easy! I always get frustrated when I'm growing my hair out -- it moves at a glacial pace.

Even Carrie Bradshaw had a bob for a while! (And we all secretly want to be Carrie Bradshaw, do we not?)

What are your thoughts? Have you ever worn a bob?

10 August 2011

little pink dress

Here it is -- my dress from Shareen Vintage in LA. It was such an amazing find ($48, and it fits perfectly!). The women working at the store were just as excited as I was, which made the experience even better.

(worn with Steven Madden pumps and Gap shades)

(Quince ring, vintage bracelet & Essie Lilacism nail polish)

08 August 2011

joan.

via the LA Times

I started watching Mad Men a couple years ago and was, of course, obsessed with the clothes. When school started, I got behind and lost track of which episodes I'd seen...until I realized, two days ago, that it's on Netflix Instant. Uh hell yes.

I stumbled upon these gorgeous photos of Christina Hendricks while hunting down clothing pictures...Joan is, to me, the best dressed of all the characters. Here are a few of my favorite oufits:

P.S. This Etsy shop has some lovely pieces that will definitely make you look (and feel) like Joan...namely this and this.

04 August 2011

weekend road trip/hello, oxford!

This one's going to be a mix of a few different things I've been up to lately.

First off, I found it. The. Perfect. Oxford shirt. In the children's section. It's a boy's school uniform shirt. It may be the best thing I've ever bought.

(worn with Lark & Wolff shorts)

Now, some travel pictures! I took a trip to Winona this weekend and snapped a few photos along the way:

lasagna at the Harbor View Cafe in Pepin.

a dying butterfly in Stockholm.

driving home through the bluffs.

And to make this post even more of a mash-up, here are some links for you to look at...

Wanderlust.

Some amazing photos (the fifth one down left me a little, well, breathless).

Speaking of Oxford, is anyone else excited for this? Anyone?

01 August 2011

girl's best friend?

Audrey Hepburn in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'

Jennifer Connelly in 'Blood Diamond'

I happened upon the Huffington Post style section today, and ended up looking at this feature from the Daily Beast. I found the side-by-side of NY Times articles and Tiffany & Co. ads fascinating.

What are your thoughts on diamonds? In other words, which movie makes you cry more -- 'Breakfast at Tiffany's,' or 'Blood Diamond'?

(Sorry, that was a bit heavy. Also, I promise a longer post later this week...I have exciting Oxford Shirt news!)

29 July 2011

live in concert

You never forget your first concert.

Mine was Death Cab for Cutie in May 2007, just after the release of Narrow Stairs. I remember the moment they walked out on stage, and not quite being able to believe that it was really them. I also remember when the statuesque girl next to me turned and glared, beer in hand, when I held my tiny Motorola phone up to my ear just after the encore and yelled, "Mom?! Can you come pick us up?!"

Despite this humiliation, I proudly wore my unwashed concert t-shirt to school the next day (~~over a black bubble mini skirt and leggings~~ as part of a really cool outfit that was way beyond my fifteen years).

The next summer, I was visiting my aunt and uncle in Milwaukee and found a box of free clothes sitting out on the sidewalk. Some would say "nasty"; I said "jackpot."

I picked out a little gray dress (since lost in a frantic attempt to make my own high-waisted skirt) and a t-shirt with an image of a mysterious man on the front. After years of having people ask me about it and not being able to answer, my friend and I finally the words on the back of it and discovered it's origins: a Sigur Ros concert. We had never heard of the band before, and so thought having found this t-shirt was totally random -- until it turned out that everyone else was already a fan.

(Yikes, this is so wrinkly! I didn't realize how bad it was until I uploaded the photos! Cora and I were in a bit of a hurry yesterday.)

For my friend's 18th birthday the year before last, we saw Mason Jennings at First Ave. Despite the drunk woman next to us who yelled, "Take your shirt off!" throughout the entire show, we had a great time.

For my birthday last October, I saw Sufjan Stevens at the Orpheum with a friend of mine. We were way up in the balcony, but it was still amazing! This was another time when I couldn't quite believe who I was seeing.

Which concert t-shirts do you have (or wish you had)?

24 July 2011

city of the fallen angels

First off, I am so sorry for disappearing! We got back on Tuesday and I started right in on a week jam-packed with meetings, internship interviews, and work. I have pictures, though, as promised. Enjoy!

The day after Disneyland, we went to Huntington beach. Cora and I had never seen the ocean before, so we had all kinds of fun jumping around in the waves.

Cora looking SoCal.

On Sunday, we made a pilgrimage to Shareen Vintage, a little ways outside of downtown. I'd been wanting to go there since reading about it on one of my favorite blogs, and was not disappointed. The store is like a giant closet, and there are no dressing rooms so you can change wherever you want. The sweetest salesgirl of all time helped me zip up everything I tried on, including The Most Beautiful Pink Dress of All Time (pictures soon!).

There was an art fair just down the road, where I bought earrings and my mom bought a painting. The gate into the fair was decorated with sweet little crocheted flowers and ribbon hearts.

The artist we bought the earrings and painting from recommended a Vietnamese restaurant in Chinatown. I had a pork & shrimp crepe with mint and cucumbers.

Lanterns in Chinatown

Later, we visited some friends in Santa Monica and they took us to Venice Beach, where we walked around and looked at houses. Can you imagine living in such a beautiful place?

On our last day, we drove up in the hills to see the Hollywood sign. Can you see it back there?

Thanks to Cora for so many great pictures (and for always looking so fierce!)

15 July 2011

once upon a time

We just got back from 7 hours at Disneyland (my parents are zonked out, Cora is watching TV on her iPod.) If you've been there, I'm sure you'll agree that there's no way to describe it and really give it justice. I'm going to do my best, though, and tell you about it...

in clothes.