Scouting Mission

One of my best friends is turning 40 soon. We're planning a celebration for her in a couple of weeks and Sunday we went out on a scouting mission to check out some bars with rooftop decks. Problem was, it was raining. So much for rooftops, but an excellent opportunity to take the new patent boots out for an airing. We wound up in the cozy comfort of the bar upstairs at the Stephen F. Austin hotel, one of my favorite bars in Austin and wonderfully quiet for a change on a rainy Sunday night.

cable knit sweater: Gap
rose-print pencil skirt: D&G
patent & elastic boots: Vaneli
croc-print belt: Cole Haan
leather cuff: Adrienne Vittadini

I've been wanting some knee-high patent boots for ages & ages. I would have preferred them patent all around, but I found these at Nordstrom Rack (I went back near closing time and the place was almost empty and I STILL had to wait in line to check out) and the price was right -- I'm just not into spending a commitment sum on shoes right now. Plus, I really, really loved the little wedge heel. It's a shame I'm not going to Paris until May, these would be perfect for traveling.

October 17

More playing with the vintage bustier. I've been interested in wearing it with jeans, but none of my jeans have a high enough waist to make this work -- I really don't like the idea of a gap between the bottom of the bustier and the top of the pants.

So I tried them with a pair of high-waisted slacks to see what would happen.

slacks: Catherine Malandrino
embellished t-shirt: D&G
belt: Target
black patent double-strap pumps: Miu Miu

These shoes are the original Miu Miu double-strap mary janes from S/S 2007 that launched a thousand imitations. I have them in black and in robin's egg blue and they are still some of my favorite shoes, almost two years later. A brilliant investment.

Since I'm still on my mixing-patterns kick, I pulled out the Jovovich -Hawk blazer.



And pronounced it good. Although maybe a little predictable.

So then I tossed on the bustier...



(Had to remove the belt, of course.) And I really kind of liked it. I like the stripes peeking through the lace of the bustier, and wearing it over something light-colored really sows off the detail of this thing. And once again, I just love the way it looks from the back



Although those trousers are not doing a thing for my backside, are they? Yoiks!


There's a whole lot going on here:




Too much? Tell me what you think!