Autumn Anticipation: Fashion Edition.

It's mid-August and you know what that means.
If you don't, I will clue you in: FALL FASHION EXCITEMENT.
It's starting and it kind of got provoked by the sight of the latest issue of Bazaar hot out of the mail bag and on my counter and it claims to be the FALL FASHION ISSUE which means my excitement is completely legitimate.

So of course like any other fashion blogger, I flocked to the sights to muster up additional excitement. Of course, I rambled on about two of these collections in a previous post {see here}. Fall is the one time of year where fashion truly excites me. It's something in the air; the whirlwind of cold that allows the leaves to tumble down the pavement in a bewitching fashion. I anticipate heading out to Goodwill to scope out a few new winter sweaters and in order for this to be an acceptable practice, I will likely bring a number of items to Goodwill. I am extremely lucky when I make my trips there; always finding great items in a short amount of time and I find the clothes I thrift are the ones I wear the most, so donating a few shouldn't be hard in my ever-growing closet. My new Doc Martens will also be an essential part of my outfits this autumn and hopefully I'll be adding a few essential items to my fall wardrobe. Enough chat; more pictures!

Proenza Schouler Fall RTW 2011

 

 

This collection is Sante Fe inspired, so therefore, I felt the need to accompany this line with a little bit of music;

Beirut / 'Santa Fe' / Riptide / 2011

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Christopher Kane Fall RTW 2011

 

 

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Rodarte Fall RTW 2011

 I felt the need to show the enlarged version because I LOVE THIS OUTFIT.

I saw it plastered on the pages of the June/July issue of Bazaar and instantly loved it.

I don't recall seeing it the first time around either (February)

I absolutely love it and for some reason it reminded me heavily of childhood although I couldn't really link it to anything. Perhaps it was this plastic high heeled pair of "ruby" glittery slippers I had as a kid that reminds me of this outfit. Most similar to these;

You know those things you had as a kid that you find yourself saying "Damn! I wish I still had that!"

Well, that isn't necessarily the case with these suckers, but we all know that feeling of "give it away" remorse.

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Acne Fall RTW 2011

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Creatures of the Wind Fall RTW 2011

 

These chicks are seriously making me want this haircut....

 

 

Finding that the genius designers of Creatures of the Wind, Chris Peters & Shane Gabier live within Chicago's city limits makes the city all that more exciting. This is definitely my favourite autumn collection and it's most suitable to my current mood over the past months. Not to mention that a lot of these can be perfectly matched with my beloved boots. Nothing like dashing femininity on top only to seep down to pure steel-toed goodness. I love the bottom cocktail dress with the red adornment on the sleeve. I really wish there was some close-up detail to go along with this collection, but that's why I did the favour of posting the close up shots.I definitely get some Margot Tenenbaum vibes off these clothes as well. I'm anxious to see what this designer rolls out for Spring...I shall have a watchful eye.

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So I've talked about my dissatisfaction with outdoor festivals (unfamiliar? check here) however, the fashion that lingers there is always such a blast to see. I love seeing street style. For additional festival styles;

[HERE] & {HERE}

What music/designer/brands get you stirred up for fall?

730 day adventure!

A counterpart post. It seems necessary even though I'm not a huge advocate for plastering a relationship online. It's been a wonderful 730 days...or two years, and I feel really lucky. I've learned so much and we have grown so well together. It's always an adventure getting to know someone and getting to live with my counterpart has taught me so much about sharing space and about myself. Continually syncing with another person is such a delight. But most importantly, if you haven't learned to say "I'm sorry", "You're right", and "I was wrong" then you might as well not even be in a relationship. I mean, am I right? **

So enough said, here are a few of my favourite pictures over the course of the two years we've spent together;

In one of our favourite places-Portland, OR. Sporting his French Press from Public Domain.

I love this picture of him. Well...I guess I love all pictures of him.

In Milwaukee, Wisconsin seeing Spoon for New Years Eve. Ringing in 2010.

This was a crazy night, but the concert was a blast.

Picture got kind of messed up, but I adore it anyway.

Oh fabulous Hilton Head, one of our many awesome vacations taken in the summer of 2010.

Taken at Dolphin Head

At one of my best friend's houses for her birthday bash. I love this picture of us together hangin out in the city.

In Savannah in the summer of 2010 on our 18th story balcony to the hotel.

More from the Hilton Head trip. Eric came here continually throughout his life and it was important that we saw it and spent time here.

His birthday after dinner celebration that we had in Hilton Head.

We never mind taking time to break for pool.

I cannot forget to mention that he got me one fabulous gift! or two...

I knew that these were coming and I could not wait to open these bad boys this morning, let alone wear them out on our date this evening. Don't worry, I 'Daria'-ed them up with a mini skirt and flattering top. Needless to say, the reaction was very good. I'm very thankful! ::endless stream of smiley faces/exclamation points::

(that's much more convenient to read out...yeah?)

**So that string of sentences together with me ending it "am I right?" reminded me of an episode of 'The Simpson's' that Eric and I watched earlier. I thought it was funny because I only noticed it after I re-read it after it was posted and then remembered laughing about it earlier. TWO-FER! Here's the clip;

ENJOY!

Amy Winehouse: A Perspective

Yesterday I wrote an article for my local Patch about Amy Winehouse. When I informed my counterpart of this, his reaction went a little something like, "Really? Amy Winehouse?". I could sense the dissatisfaction. I assured him that it was only for Patch because I'm less limited when it comes to writing there versus here. I decided it was unlikely that any other staff writer would write about it, so I wrote a post. Unfortunately, it's taking forever to be approved, so I have a feeling I may have been wrong about that, but we will see. I thought about just leaving it on Patch, but I feel strongly about her passing so I feel that posting it here could really no harm.

The one thing I have to say about this whole thing, is that just because I am writing about Amy Winehouse, does NOT mean that I am not thinking about what happened this past Friday in Norway along with the three other shootings that took place across the country this weekend in Florida, Texas, & Seattle. It is hard to believe that you cannot mourn the death without getting flack for not being outwardly emotional with other events that take place. At the end of the day, tragedy took place in more than one location-some far worse than others, but still all worth the notice. The difference between said events and the loss of a musician is that there is that personal connection with it. A shooting crime doesn't nurse your emotions or give you new music to expand your horizon-a musician does. It's worthy to shine a light on all subjects here, but I choose to talk about Ms. Winehouse's death. Below is what I wrote for patch;

Today the word got around (as fast as ever, thanks to social networking) that we lost yet another talented musician at the young age of twenty seven. The news may have not been a shock to those who were well aware of her struggles with drugs and alcohol, but whenever we lose a great voice in the industry, we must take the time to reflect on the songs that will be in rotation long after their passing and appreciate what they've contributed. WXRT was able to console with words and songs of rememberance. I was glad I was tuned into the radio when the news broke, and not just the radio, but the best station ever.

Amy Winehouse was someone that had as much talent as she did struggles. I truly believe to be an exceptional artist, you have to be in touch with the "other" side. You have to have this ability to truly escape yourself and experience something outside of your own mind, body, and spirit-you have to almost be in this "scary" place. The more an artist is able to do that, the better their music will transcend. If an artist is unable to do that in a conscious, sober state of mind, they will find other means of escapism, i.e. drugs and alcohol-and copious amounts of them at that.

The list of artists that we've lost at twenty seven seems to get increasingly longer as we seem to find those exceptional talents sifted throughout different generations. If you've been sorting through those tweets or listening to the radio frequencies, I'm sure those names are being thrown in your face all over again. If you're unaware, you can find the entire list [here]. There is definitely an allure when it comes to young musicians dying. When performers die, it has such a remarkable impact because they did just that-they performed. They entertained you when your mind could not entertain itself. These performers kept you from thinking your own thoughts and gave you something else to bat around for awhile. These singers gave you lyrics to dwell on when you couldn't sort out what was going on inside of you. I can't help but feeling like these people that died seemed to be perfect candidates for their type of death. When people view you as being far greater than you could ever possibly view yourself, that can have some heavy downfalls. Kurt Cobain is truly the best example of this. If you want to read a bit more about Cobain and the parallels that are made with his life, check out 'Eating The Dinosaur' by Chuck Klosterman.

I cannot call myself a huge Amy Winehouse fan. I have her albums, but can't say that are were heavy rotation--until three days ago when I put them back on my iPod. I hear a couple songs from 'Back To Black'  on XRT during the week and thought, "I need to get her albums back on my pod." Cue to me singing along to Winehouse during this past week in my car, thinking about bringing the 'Beehive' back. I heard of Amy's downfall in the previous months via WXRT; her extensive stint in rehab only return to her first show of the tour completely trashed and incoherent; unable to perform her songs, like so many Winehouse fans come to expect, I'd assume. This is terribly sad to me. A phenomenal talent that was surely wasted when, well, she was getting wasted. What's the story here? A singer with a series of downfalls, finally lands herself in rehab after all the "no, no no's", attempts to rebuild her career, schedules a tour, and then...cancels it because of an inability to perform after weeks of being in "good health"? Hm.

There are a few reasons why I feel so saddened by this passing. First off, she was too young and too talented to simply just stop living. She had such an old soul, she was truly a unique being, and a wonderous vibe exuded when she did what she did best. Winehouse had so many different elements of music within her work and many people could find something they loved in her songs. I also can't help but feel hurt in the sense that so many people have immeasurable talent that will never be discovered or shared. So many others would love to hold the position that Amy Winehouse held; performing, recording, and collaborating, without the stints of heavy drug use. There's people who would have utilized the opportunity differently, but I cannot help but feel that they would not have been as great as she was. Who knows, maybe. Maybe it was one of those things where when she was great she was great and when she was bad, she was just bloody awful. 

[This] is another good article to take a peek at; the musicians reactions upon hearing of her death. I think Kelly Clarkson had some really good stuff to say about her and I'm glad that the musicians are calling out those who are bringing her down in a public sense, blasting twitter with "How are you guys not surprised? #AmyWinehouse". Really? Her death is hard-hitting and not only to the people who sit at home and play her records, but to the people who made and shared the music with her. While it may seem like it fits into the life of a musician who has a hankering for heroin and a thirst for tanqueray, but you cannot say that you are surprised. A twenty seven year old woman is dead. That is, and always will be, a surprise.

.    .    .

Since then, her mother has spoken out about how" it was only a matter of time."

It seems my adoration for her songs has only grown increasingly ever since her passing. I feel that will be the case with many.

Enjoy;

R.I.P.

Ms. Winehouse

& to those who lost their lives in [Norway] this past Friday