More funky pants

I love both of these pairs of pants/shoes from UO. While G works on her white pants, I'm looking for a new crazy pair that I can play with. The first pair are Levi's and are only $58, but I need to wait and see. The shoes are really cute, too! The second pair of pants I feel like I could maybe make if I knew how to sew. And if I were willing to fool around with a pair of old jeans. Which at this moment, I don't have time for since I'm supposed to be studying for my Japanese culture midterm right now...damn you, Fujiwara!

Outfitting Myself in an Urban Manner

So I totally forgot about online shopping. Yes, I browse things, but I've been spoiled lately, you know, living in civilization and all. Now that I'm in the boonies, it's all I've got (shipping is cheaper than the Dartmouth Coach).

Here's the story:

I am arranging my room for the term, when I lose my footing and trip on my school bag--CRRRRAcccK go my sunglasses. My beautiful, Persol knock-offs from Forever 21 that cost $5. Though they were the second iteration (my first got me through Toulouse til they snapped one day), they felt like the originals. I love bargains and beauty, so when the two are combined it is magnificent. I'm in love with circular frames, especially tortoise-shell ones.

"prepster" shades, UO

My replacements were discovered for $10 on the Urban Outfitters website (F21 doesn't sell them anymore). I love sunglasses way too much, by the way. But with good reason--they are easy to try on and wicked fun to play with.

I also needed a new watch (the one I bought at Galeries Lafayette in Toulouse is being worn out), so I found a nice one with a small face that suited my fancy. (Just discovered it's been back-ordered, which sucks).And then as a final fun purchase I bought a striped shirt that I think will be cute.

Happy holidays, me!

Romper revisited

Ages ago, I posted about my desire to buy a romper, if only just to be the proud owner of a romper. Over a month ago, I finally ordered one online (pictured above). After it arrived, I wondered why it looked so familiar....

... and it's because I had commented on this EXACT romper in the aforementioned post (A million little things, six degrees of separation), where in addition to writing about onesies, I also wrote about the play "Six Degrees of Separation" and fashion photography featuring Gisele. 

Over a year ago on Thursday, May 7, 2009, I wrote:

"This item below is fucking adorable... but not really class-appropriate now, is it. Perhaps with a little denim jacket thrown over it?"*

Ah. How prescient of me.  In person and on said person, the romper is obscenely short. Which is obvious from the photo below.... but I think I was swept away by the romantical lighting of the first photo and figured I would Make It Work.

 

But I was also right about something re: this very abbreviated piece of clothing -- it is adorable with my denim jacket. I've resolved to keep it, and wear it with bike shorts under the romper or real shorts over the romper with the peplum part showing over the shorts. Or for this season, maybe tights or leggings under the romper with a blazer on top. And in the summer, maybe I can wear it alone as a beach coverup with a colorful bikini ... and après beach, while casually biking back to the rental house on Fire Island with my friends. Or something like that. Either way, I eagerly await warmer weather.

On a related note, the Early Spring Catalog has been printed for Urban Outfitters, and there's nothing in it I'm dying to buy. Maybe they save those pieces for the Proper Spring Catalog.

I do like this shirt though. I'd like to buy some similar well-fitting button-down shirts going forward in both light and heavier cotton.

*I think as a general rule only tools and geniuses quote themselves... I won't make a judgment call if you don't.

NM falls as UO rises [from LVC ticker 11/18/09]

On the other hand, nearly everything from the Urban Outfitters 2009 Holiday Catalog is beautiful, wearable, modern, and not terribly out of price range. Over the past few years, I've grown to like their clothes more and more. I can't tell if it's because my taste has changed or if theirs has. I think it's a little of both - they've gotten a bit more luxe in their styling and I think the prices have come down a bit, too. That, or I've managed to find some great pieces from their sales rack (and online sales) a few times. 

I think their clothes are increasingly clever -- a sort of intelligence to it that you don't normally see with mass-market brands. It's that slightly different cut or strategically placed zipper. It all makes a difference, and it's the thought that's put into the making of a piece of clothing -- the R&D (research & development), to be nerdy about it -- that gives it value. Because at the end of the day, almost all clothes are made with the same materials, and aside from the R&D that goes into it, the only differenting factor is the craftsmanship (Is it made by hand or machine? How many hours did it take? Was it by a grizzled Italian man in the mountains of Naples [I just made that up, I don't even know if Naples has mountains], or by a 12-year old Indian boy plunging his hands in scalding hot water to retrieve silk cocoons?).

It's not always a hit at UO, and I'm rather picky about pieces of clothing if I'm buying them retail, but their stock is definitely rising in my mind.

Take a look for yourself:

How beautiful is this? Unfortunately I don't love the way the front looks [on the model, at least] and such is the problem that befalls a lot of their pieces, for me. That and the fact that I'll never truly know how they'd look on me because a lot of their models are uncommonly thin.

This doesn't even look like U.O., really. I think a lot of their pieces don't "look like U.O." to me anymore, and that's a good thing. I quite like this skirt. I'd want to see the material in person though, if it were heavier material it'd just be perfect.

They've got the right idea with this velour top. I want a velour top. Maybe not this exact one, but this is pretty directionally on point for me.

And the ubiquitous sparkly sequin skirt. It's still pretty.

 

I don't get it.

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?itemdescription=true&itemCount=60&startValue=1&selectedProductColor=&sortby=&id=15618507&parentid=W_APP_SLIPSANDSLEEPWEAR&sortProperties=+subCategoryPosition,+product.marketingPriority,-product.startDate&navCount=228&navAction=poppushpush&color=&pushId=W_APP_SLIPSANDSLEEPWEAR&popId=WOMENS_APPAREL&prepushId=

How does this body function? I do not understand its formatting. Yes, I said formatting, because it is clearly a digital torso.