The Dressed Aesthetic

Posts Tagged“handbags”

Free at Last!

Free at Last - The Dressed Aesthetic

Well, I can hardly believe it, but I survived my first semester as a fully fledged professor! I gave my last lecture on Wednesday, and feel as though I’m completely justified in racing around bellowing, “Free at last! Free at Last!” There are no words to describe the madness of moving across the world, learning a completely new city, starting a completely new job, and being thrust into two completely new courses. Let’s just say the word “new” is going to be a bit taboo around here for awhile (unless, of course, the word “new” is followed by “dress”, “shoes”,…

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Candy Coated Memory

Candy Coated Memory - The Dressed Aesthetic

Recently in my Neurobiology class I’ve been teaching the students about the neural mechanisms underlying learning and memory. The ways we can learn names, faces, and dates and evoke things long forgotten from our childhood. The ways that we form neocortical assemblies behind the things we remember, where a whisper of a perfume or a few notes of a song can trigger recall of the entire memory.

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Purposeful Repurposing

Purposeful Repurposing - The Dressed Aesthetic

I wear vintage for a lot of reasons. First and foremost, it makes me feel amazing. I never feel more powerful than when I’m wearing a waist cinched within an inch of her life, two crinolines, and a smirk. But then there’s the other reasons: the fact that it’s like wearing a piece of history, and I get to just be one part of her story. The fact that the care and attention to detail is something you so rarely find in clothing nowadays. The fact that I’m supporting independent, small business owners. And the one that often goes unnoticed:…

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It’s Organic

It's Organic - The Dressed Aesthetic

I have a bit of an affinity for anything organic. And I don’t mean the label on our produce that’s become trendy these days; but rather the way nature manifests itself in fashion. A floral print, a leaf embroidery, a fruit-speckled handbag. So when this adorable necklace appeared under my Christmas tree from my best friend in Aus – a wearable planter (!) – I immediately started brimming with styling possibilities.

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Peaches & Green

Peaches & Green - The Dressed Aesthetic

And just like that, we’re back to our regularly scheduled program of teaching and writing lectures and teaching again. Spring Break was a great opportunity to play a bit of catch up, but as usual, it went by way to quickly and Monday was upon me before I could even put on the brakes. But, I survived my first week back and somehow even survived the brief snowstorm we had that left all of us North Carolinians feeling as if we had just entered the Twilight Zone….

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Ice Queen

Ice Queen - The Dressed Aesthetic

This past weekend I boarded multiple planes for the first time since The Big Move. I sort of forgot what it was like to travel in a manner that only took a day and under 36 hours of flying. When I mentioned to my colleagues that I was Canada-Bound, the primary response I got was, “Wow – that’s far.” I’d smile and nod, but in my head I’d be thinking, “ohhhh honey, you don’t know from far.” With my Australia yardstick firmly intact, anything that doesn’t include a 17-hour leg is considered a short trip in my book…

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Next to Normal

Next to Normal - The Dressed Aesthetic

While January seemed to drag in a flurry of lecture-giving and lecture writing and trying to appear as if I know what I’m talking about (all the while wondering how I was going to keep up that pace for four whole months), suddenly I feel as if I’m nearing the halfway mark of the semester. And I’m proud to say I’ve hit my groove a bit. This is not to say that life has magically returned to normal – we are still living in a sea of unpacked boxes and most weekends I am camped out at the dining room table…

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