Summer 30-for-30: Day 13

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Once again, a surprisingly difficult pose for me to mimic. I think it has something to do with the whole chest-up-ladies-out-chin-down combination that I'm struggling with. I have no idea how Bettie makes it look so natural. One of my favorite things about seeing the variety of Bettie poses is you can really tell how athletic and muscular she was. Models of that era really strike me as having the dancer's physique. As opposed to now, where slim, slim, slim with little to no muscular definition is in. Bettie looks like she's going to step off this platform and go do a backflip.

cardigan - Gap, belt - Doubledutch Boutique, shirt/skirt - H&M, shoes - Steve Madden

Summer 30-for-30: Day 11

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Few images are as hot as Bettie's leopard print poses. Effortlessly going from lovely to vicious to Queen of the Sexy Jungle, these might be my favorite simply based on the reckless abandon with which she attacks each pose. Since I am not a formidable amazon of the rainforest, I chose one of her calmer, warming up poses to mimic. Jungle Queen Lite, that's me. Shirt - H&M, belt - Doubledutch Boutique, Jeans - Gap, sandals - Steve Madden, necklace - Express

 

Summer 30-for-30: Day 10

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(photo of Bettie taken from celebs101.com)

I considered wearing my hair down today for a hot minute ... and then realized it was a hot minute. I'm not a fan of summer, so my hair tends to remain as far away from my neck as possible during these humid, sticky icky months. But tube tops? Instant air conditioning for my skin.

Tube top - H&M, belt - Doubledutch Boutique, shorts - Target, heels - Bandolino

 

 

Summer 30-for-30: Day 9

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This was by far my hardest (and therefore most awkward looking) pose to attempt. No matter what way I tried it, I'd inevitably end up looking like I was handcuffed and being pulled away with a dumb expression on my face. But still -  I love this dress. Even though all day at work I fretted it was too short, and was paranoid everyone was staring at my legs. Most likely they were staring at the Traffic Cone Orange belt I chose to pair with this dress. Dress - H&M, belt - Gap, cuff - Fisticuffs Leather, shoes - Steve Madden

 

 

Summer 30-for-30: Day 7

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(Bettie photo from www.bettiepage.com) Sitting like a pin-up is starting to really hurt my back. I think because I'm trying to overcompensate in order to get the girls out front and center. It's no joke, trying to pose like Bettie! The chick had some moves. And some curves. Ow.

Shirt - H&M, necklace - Red Envelope, pants - Express, shoes - Steve Madden

 

Summer 30-for-30: Days 4-6

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Okay, so I admit it - I spent most of the weekend in pajamas, curtains drawn, avoiding the outside. So there was a bit of a lapse in my 30 outfits posting. BUT! I've re-enacted the few outfits I did manage to pull on: (Photo of Bettie taken from here)

Shirt - Mina's Gallery & Boutique, jeans - Gap, shoes - Guess

(Photo from thebettiepage.com)

Tube top & belt - Doubledutch Boutique, cuff - Fisticuffs Leather, shorts - Target

(Photo from bettiepage.com)

cardigan - Gap, shirt - H&M, belt - Doubledutch, skirt - Express, shoes - Kenneth Cole

So you may have noticed the nice big empty space behind me. Or, rather, the one clean space amid all the clutter with a curious square painted on the wall. That's because this weekend I began Stage 1 of my Project Big Calendar. Stage 1 involved turning an ordinary wall ...

... into a chalk board!

Stay tuned as I see how effective my paint job really was, and how writeable this puppy will be!

 

Summer 30-for-30: Day 3

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Look out, we're already on to the chair poses! This wasn't the most comfortable thing to do in a desk chair. Plus, it has wheels, which left me rolling away Dr. Evil-style every time the camera timer was about to go off. And look! A glimpse into another filthy corner of my office!

I'm probably going to use a lot of images I found from the Bettie Page Official site, www.bettiepage.com, so I may as well just link them every time.

Shirt - H&M, belt - Doubledutch Boutique, pants - Express, shoes - Kenneth Cole, necklace - Target, leather cuff - Fisticuffs Leather.

Summer 30-for-30: Day 2

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I am not the best poser. I'm already getting a little bored with the few poses I can muster that aren't completely cringeworthy, and I worry about how I'm going to make it through this 30-for-30 without boring everyone (myself included) to tears. So I'm thinking ... why not make it a little more interesting by turning to one of the most famous posers for inspiration every day? That's right, I'm talking about Bettie Page - Queen of the Pin-Up! So each day of my summer 30-for-30, not only will I be remixing outfits like crazy, but I'll attempt (and I do mean attempt) to mimic one of Bettie's famous poses for each day.

(Disclaimer: Please keep your expectations of my mimicry low, since I am not a raven-haired, busty bombshell)

Here we go - Day 2!

 

Oy, this is going to take me so much longer each day.

Shirt - H&M, belt - from my mom, skirt - H&M, shoes - Bandolino

Summer 30-for-30: Day 1

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Here we go again! Now, since today was the first reasonably cool day in a so far ultra sucky summer, I busted out the cardigan and pants. So really, my summer wardrobe doesn't appear to be any different from my winter one ...

(and yes, my office has gotten messier since you last saw it!)

Cardigan - Gap, Shirt - H&M, belt - Doubledutch Boutique, pants - Express, Sandals - Steve Madden

The Stacey to My Claudia - Time For Another 30-for-30!

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I have this great friend at work who's always convincing me to broaden my fashion horizons. To put it into Baby-Sitter's Club parlance, she is Stacey (fashionable, classy, cutting edge) where I am Claudia (wacky, artsy, easily bored with my wardrobe). She was the one who first suggested to me, a year ago, to try a 30-for-30 with her. It was August, we were hot and bored, and the only good things about that time of the year (according to me) were Mad Men and Shark Week. So we timidly stepped into the 30-for-30 arena for the first time, just doing it during the work week and still feeling restricted and self-conscious. Then, this February, we gave it another try (a real try, for 30 days, for reals - you can see my recap here), and it finally clicked and felt something more akin to fun than torture. And soooo, since this fashion blog I read announced it was starting up again, I thought .... 90+ degree weather? Boredom setting in? Summer blues hitting me before summer starts, without Mad Men and sharks to distract me?

I'm totally in.

Here we go peeps, the Summer Edition of 30-for-30! And no fun scarves and layering to experiment with this time, it's gonna be crrrazy!

Crazy Check

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When I was nine, I remember trying to get out of the house wearing a leotard, half-shirt, different colored socks, and who knows what else, and my mom stopping me and saying, "Uh-uh." I was so angry at the time, but now when I look back at it I accurately recognize the fact that she saved me a lot of embarrassment. Sure, she wasn't there to stop me in high school when I wore corduroy pants I got at the thrift shop that were four sizes too big, (tied on with a rope) but hey - at least she'd checked me for years before that. That's what I feel like I sometimes need now - a Crazy Check. Someone to look me up and down before I go out the door, and say - "No, you're wearing too many patterns." or "Good lord, where did you find that shirt??" or, simply: "Start over". This morning, luckily my boyfriend provided a Crazy Check. Because I was wearing this:

I mean, I liked this outfit ... but I just didn't know, you know? But surprisingly, he let me go!  All day I still couldn't help feeling like the polos-and-khakis crowd was eyeballing me at work .... Oh well - like it would kill them to throw in a little crazy or two, now and then.

The Secret Fashion Underground

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My friend and I hit up the Boutique Warehouse Sale Spring Preview Party last night in Timonium - a sneak peek at what local designers would be releasing for spring. We've only just started dabbling in the Baltimore/DC Fashion Scene, having made previous visits to a Preview Sale in DC (that was a mobhouse, but featured tons of good food and wine) and Baltimore Fashion Week's Runway show (which was painfully awkward and featured Miss Maryland scolding the crowd for not clapping enough). We were tipped off to this party by one of my favorite stores - Doubledutch Boutique, so I knew it was worth checking out. There was champagne at the door, and pizza and teeny cupcakes, and an assortment of racks from various stores in the area - clothes, bath supplies, jewelry, and shoes. I always tend to find these situations a bit overwhelming - not knowing where to look first or what to try on. There were some drool-worthy shoes wayyy out of my price range ($333) and a DKNY skirt I almost talked myself into buying, but didn't ($173). Then I tripped over the curtain that disguised the dressing room area, tearing it down and exposing several women mid-outfit change to all the shoppers ... and figured it was time to leave.

In the end, I bought these cute little shorts from Liza Byrd Boutique:

They'll be perfect for spring/summer (even though it's supposed to snow tomorrow).

Going to these sorts of shopping events just makes me hungry for more -- anyone know where to find the super secret shopping sales in Baltimore? Anyone know the handshake to get in??

30-for-30: Day 23!

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I should really avoid all end-of-the-day photos, since I end up looking droopy and like I spent all day fumbling around in a dryer. But I have to say, even though this outfit was definitely oddly put together, all day I loved it. Mainly because it gave me a chance to finally wear this amazing scarf my friend Matt bought for me at Crafty Bastards one year .... just look at what's hidden on the other side of it!

That definitely brightened my day. And, I think, the others who I let in on my secret.

Cardigan - Target, belt & skirt - Express, black shirt - H&M, knee highs - Sock Dreams, shoes - Franco Sarto

30-for-30: Day 22

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Confession time! Even though it's Feb. 23rd, I spent all yesterday in my PJ's and workout clothes. Whoops. So now ... I guess I will be getting to 30 days a day late? Or do I need to do two outfits in one day? 30 for 30-ers out there, help me out! I'm new to this, I don't know all the rules ...

So I took my saggy butt jeans to the tailor tonight, which I'm now horrified to realize means ... that I won't have jeans for a week. I will not be able to wear jeans for A WEEK. Ohhhh noooo ... but I guess it's a small price to pay to have some bangin', non-saggy butt jeans in time for my trip down to Austin next weekend for Staple!, a superfun indie comics show. If you're in the area, you'll have to stop by my table and say "OMG Monica those jeans have really ... improved". Okay? Deal?

Oxford - H&M, dress - Target, belt - American Apparel, pants & necklace - Express

30-for-30: Day 6

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Yes, I'm still wearing jeans. It's the weekend, okay?? I tried to shrink them, but I'm having the same problems. Oh well. I'll just limp along with this pair until the 30 days are up. It might be good for me - during the work week I go through jeans withdrawal and therefore oversaturate myself with jeans come the weekend (sometimes even delving into Canadian Tuxedo territory ... ack!)

Corduroy Blazer - H&M, jeans - French Connection, Nina Simone shirt - Etsy, shoes - Nicole, scarf - stolen from boyfriend.

Also, I got my copy of the new Urban Outfitters catalog in the mail. Lately the catalog seems to show clothes that would look good on absolutely no one (including the models featured), so I'm pretty quick to flip through. I did find this worth mentioning -- apparently the Grey Gardens look is in this spring ...

Finally I did come upon something that made me stop smirking - LOOK AT THESE TIGHTS!!

30-for-30: Day 5

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If I didn't have to go to the grocery store, I probably wouldn't have changed out of my PJ's all day. Or my glasses. I'm pretty much a 4-eyed marshmallow on the weekends, what? Is that weird?

Sweater & necklace - Target, tube top - H&M, belt - Doubledutch Boutique (I don't know who the manufacturer, but that's where I got it!), jeans - French Connection, boots - Hive & Honey