Wardrobe Evaluation: Scarves

This is the last post of October Wardrobe Evaluation!  TL:DR – I spent a month analyzing my closet piece by piece and deciding what to keep and what to give away.

And this last bit is the hardest.  I love my scarves, yo.  Which is why I have, no lie, 3 dozen of them.  Which is really too many, all things considered.  I don’t have the space to even see them all!  So, much as it pains me, I must weed.

Here’s the thing; I didn’t buy all these scarves.  About half of them were presents, because everybody knows twistedchic loves scarves!  It’s an easy present.  And I love the thought!  But a lot of the scarves that were given to me are polyester, or scratchy or otherwise… not so great.  They may be beautiful, but polyester won’t keep you warm, and nothing scratchy is worth wearing, no matter how pretty.  So I’m donating about 6 gift scarves.  Also getting donated are a few near duplicate scarves, things that are very similar to ones I already have, but don’t like as well.  After donation, I’ll be about 10 scarves lighter.  Also, I’m going to find a better way to display the scarves I do have, hanging off the closet isn’t really ideal…

Yay, the Wardrobe Evaluation is done!  This was a huge project and I’m really proud of myself that I got it all done.  Next month: new aquisitions! ~

DIY Monday: Halloween Edition

DIY Monday is brought to you by the letter Z!

I decided to make my costume this year.  After much thought and deliberation (Hmmm, what do I like that is awesome and gruesome at the same time?_Oh, yeah.  Zombies!) I decided to go as a zombie apocalypse survivor.

Supplies: 1. used shirt from Goodwill.  1. Tube of white fabric paint. 1. Tube of red fabric paint. Total cost for this costume was about $6.

I put the shirt on, and marked where I wanted the lettering to be with a white watercolor pencil.  You could also use chalk or crayons or whatever else is handy.  I stretched the shirt onto a cardboard rectangle for stability, then covered the table with paper because this is a ~messy~ project!  I etched the letters in pencil, then traced with the white fabric paint.  This left me with a thin line of paint which I smeared with my fingers, artistically.  (Have some paper towels on hand to wipe your hands with.)

You’ll want this to be centered.

I then had fun spattering the shirt with the red paint!  Protip: the drips will look more real if you spatter from farther away.  I also smeared my hand with pant and put some paw prints on it.

Not gonna lie: this was superfun!

Here’s a helpful hint, maybe use gloves for this, because I spent half an hour in the bathroom later trying to wash this stuff off my hands!

Let the shirt dry overnight before you try it on, and let it dry for a couple of days before you wash it.

The finished product~

And here is my awesome zombie hunter halloween costume!  I’m wearing my rock star skinny jeans, my winter boots, and I’ve added my old welding gloves and a giant screwdriver~ perfect for zombie killin’!

 

 

Colorfree Friday: Dawn of the Grey!

I’ve been shopping for grey, black, and white items with which to flesh out my work wardrobe, and have picked up some great stuff!  Find #1; a grey v-neck Gap shirt (in x-small!), a black and white plaid Gap button front (more on that later~) and a pair of grey Loft trousers.  It’s all a bit basic, but I’m going to find ways to spice it up; boring is not a good look for me!

Here’s some inspiration I’ve been finding on the b/w/g front:

Pic from the Sartorialist

I love the shades of grey on the lapels, and the texture of this outfit.  I imagine with limited colors, texture is going to become even more important in my work-wear.  Perhaps I should get something really crazy, like a mink stole!

Or how about this  knit cardigan?

Warm ~and~fun!

And in the spirit of Halloween, here’s  a black and white zombie themed tee:

The model clearly loves it!

Because what the world really really needs RIGHT NOW is a zombie version of Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Wardrobe Overhaul: Shoes

Ooooh, shoes.  These are one of the biggest problems in my wardrobe, a real struggle for me.  Here’s what I have: 2 pair of workout shoes, one pair of punk boots, one pair of winter boots, one pair of riding boots that doesn’t fit, a pair of sandals, and some uncomfortable dock shoes.

It’s a real challenge, finding shoes that work for me, and are comfortable.  Which is why I end up wearing either the punk boots or the workout shoes all the time.  I know this is the area of my wardrobe which is lacking, so I’m going to do some actual shopping! (as opposed to fake shopping.  You know.  On the internet.)

First step: ditch the stuff that ~really~ doesn’t work.  The boots that don’t fit and the uncomfortable dockers.  That’s the easy part.  The hard part is step two: what do I really need?

I need a pair of boots that do fit: maybe some cowboy boots?

Also, a pair of dressy flats and a pair of casual walking shoes.  Minimum.  Time to start shoppin’: out with the old and in with the new.  And the best thing about living in Chicagoland is – there’s plenty of shopping.  Maybe I’ll take that trip to Fluevog’s I’ve been wanting to do!

Behold the awesome Fluevog!

Something Old, Something New…

The new being my brand spankin’ new glasses!

I’ve been waiting a month for these to come in!  (And I just love them.) My old ones were blue and a bit worn at the hinges, so I’ve been looking for a replacement for a couple of months.

Choosing new glasses is a huge decision.  They’re one of the first things people see about you, you wear them every day, and you can’t see without them! (I can’t anyway, I’ve been nearly blind since my teen years)  So here’s some advice for anyone shopping for eyewear.  DON’T CHEAP OUT!  I can’t stress this enough, get the absolute best pair that you can afford; it’s worth it for so many reasons. (Get the best lenses you can afford, too, cheap plastic crap looks like it.)  I saved for a whole year to afford these!

The second most important thing to consider is the shape of the glasses.  Make sure the shape looks good on your face, and everything else is just a cosmetic detail.  I had already decided that I wanted this shape before I even went looking for a pair.  I loved the pair that Vonnie Awning wears on Dresden Codak, so I wantede a similar shape:

Also, Vonnie is awesome and you should check this comic out!

Also? Get something sturdy, unless you can afford a new pair every year.  I expect to be enjoying my new Ralph Laurens for a very long time to come!

DIY Monday: Tartan Scarf

I love scarves.  I may have mentioned this once or twice.  Or ten times.  You can never have too many!  And since the cold weather is quickly coming our way up in Chicagoland, I decided it’s time for a warm new scarf.  And what could be warmer than a nice tartan flannel?  I found a lovely grey and black heavyweight fabric, just perfect for scarf-makin’!

The nice thing about tartan, or plaid, is that it’s very easy to cut the edges straight,  just cut right along the edge of the lines!  I bought a yard, and then cut it on all four sides to a length of 36 square inches.  When you are deciding on the size of your scarf, remember to leave a little extra at the edge for hemming or unraveling, depending on the look you want.

The weight of the cloth was really important for this project, because I chose to go with a fringe, or unraveled edge.  The heavier weights of cloth have stronger individual threads, which makes it easier to pull them out, one by one.  You’ll want to pull out at least half an inch at the edges.  Also, remember that when washing you may see more threads come out.

1/2 an inch or more

So there you have it, one perfect square, grey and black, cowboy-esque winter scarf.  I love mine!

Colorfree Friday: Assymetrical

Colorfree Friday: celebrating the achromatic!

Previously on twistedchic~ I was sadly distressed at our corporation’s decision to black and white-ize our dress code, but I am embracing the new, and here’s what’s inspiring me on the colorfree front!

I’m not sure where this image comes from. ModelsOffDuty?

Here is a woman who is clearly an expert at rocking the black and white look.  I would literally wear everything she has on!

And I found this fabulously chic shirt on etsy:

Grey with hints of awesome!

Love the assymetrical neckline.  Grey doesn’t mean boring!

And from our friends at zazzle, why not:

~snicker~

Black and white and crazy all over!

But I Liked My Crayons…

I’ll be honest, I don’t have a lot of black in my wardrobe.  I love colors!  However…

The big bosses at work have handed down a new dress code.  There’s a lot of new rules, but the biggie is that we’re supposed to wear black/white/grey.  I kind of feel like a kid who’s had most of her crayons taken away.  But moping is not a good look for me, so I’m just going to learn to work the color-free look.  I just need a little inspiration…  and a bunch more clothes!

To give myself a little help getting in the achromatic mood, I’m going to add a new thing to twistedchic: Colorfree Fridays.  And like DIY Mondays, it probably won’t be posted exclusively on Fridays.  There will be outfits, inspiration, possibly grousing, dancing weasels, a hat made of cheese, hipster glasses, and more~!  Stay tuned internetz!

Cute Thing of the Week

I need these because of reasons!

Victorian City Tights

What is this, I don’t even know…I would find some way to wear these!

October Overhaul: Tops

I ~do~ have a problem with tops.  I’m cold all the time, so anything warm is a must have for me.  Cardigans seem like an easy fix, so when I see one that’s reasonably priced, I just go ahead and pick it up.  And that is how I ended up with a dozen cardigans.  So I can see I need to trim there.  However, what I have learned from extensive cardigan experimentation (THIS IS SCIENCE, YO!): 1. cashmere and silk blends will keep you warm, 2. make sure you can layer things under the cardigan, too tight is no good! (even if it does have awesome pockets) 

SCIENCE~!

My other problem with tops is duplication.  I love green and teal, so I have bunches of similar stuff in those shades.  All solids, no prints.  Too much repetition, not enough diversity!  What this really means is I need to be more careful about what I buy.  I need to make a list of what I want and ~actually~ stick to it.  No more impulse buys!  But that’s a whole ‘nother post…

So tomorrow I’ll be donating 4 not quite right cardis and a couple of teal tees.  Also?  I’m more than halfway through the wardrobe overhaul.  Yaaaay!