We all have features about ourselves that we try to hide. Try to cover up, deflecting the gaze of passersby to other things. Maybe this is a birthmark you find unsightly, an area of your body you wish you could tone. Whether it’s stature or shape or a tiny feature no one notices except you, in your heart they are your cross to bear. But the truth is, these beautiful ‘flaws’ mark a roadmap to who you truly are, and should never be hidden away.
A few weeks ago, one of my trusted vintage sellers, Modern Millie, contacted me about an exciting new adventure: They were launching their very own bonafide website! I’ve purchased a few swoonworthy vintage dresses from Modern Millie in the past (see one of my favorite acquisitions here) and even better, I’ve been lucky enough to visit their brick and mortar.
Brace yourself ladies, for you are about to meet one of the most amazing dresses ever to grace my closet. The kind of dress that makes the day a bit brighter, makes your heart beat a bit more quickly, and makes a Tuesday feel like the most perfect, endless Saturday. The pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The dress you never knew your life was incomplete without. The feeling of coming home.
About once a year, the unthinkable happens. I reach into the depths of my wardrobe and find pieces that should find their way to new homes. Whether they are garments that never quite fit properly, vintage pieces I rescued in the hopes of tailoring (but never did), or beautiful things that I find I simply don’t wear, I’m listing them here in the hopes that they find their next leading lady. have to admit, it’s not an easy process for me. I am the consummate hoarder – because you just never know if a particular garment will suit a particular occasion you have’t…
I’m sure I’m not the only one who wakes up on occasion and just wishes that, instead of work, I could go to the beach instead. Now, I know what you’re all thinking: “Ummm…aren’t you a marine biologist? Don’t you work at the beach?” I have a sad reality to confess (especially to any younguns out there who dream of becoming a marine biologist so they can spend their days sunbathing and swimming with dolphins): Although I hate to rain on the Awesome Job Fantasy Parade, most of the time we sad seafarers are in the lab looking down a microscope…
Sometimes, just thinking about the history of ideas can give me goosebumps. To imagine the things that were once societally accepted as fact, until someone’s crazy, outside-of-the-box idea challenged it. To be there on the day someone bravely raised their hand, amidst the sneers and rotten tomatoes lobbed there way, and said, “Err…come on guys.” There was a time when everyone accepted the world was flat. That the sick could be heeled by bleeding them. That smoking had no adverse health effects. That Donald Trump was an acceptable presidential candidate. Come on guys.
Though a bit of a departure from my normal fit and flare silhouette, sometimes a gal needs a skirt that hugs her curves. I’ve had this Bettie Page pencil skirt for years and it always seems to find its way off of the shelf and into my arms on days when I need to earn a few gold stars. I don’t know why, but there’s something about today’s outfit that just screams “Apple for Teacher.” If that won’t earn me gold stars, I don’t know what will.
The lovely, last sighing strains of my Christmas holiday have come to a close, and I’m gearing up for a very busy few months ahead. Sigh. The first day back at work after a blissfully long holiday is always the hardest. Particularly without the comfort of (what became my) daily afternoon nap to ease the blow. The stacks of emails in my inbox, the meeting requests, and publications that I planned to get to once I was back. Well, I’m officially back and they’re demanding attention. God, I miss my hammock already….
Do you ever have items in your wardrobe that you completely forget about? That you tuck in a drawer, all excited to wear, and then it gets pushed to the back of your mind, crowded by all of the lists and errands and work-related responsibilities? For whatever reason, that always happens to me and tights. I’ve done my best to organize my collection, imported them into Dressed for inspiration failure, and happily await a day with that telltale chill in the air. But, like water through my fingertips, the minute I close the lid to their secure spot in my wardrobe,…
The ocean is and will forever be in my blood. Ever since I was a kid, you simply couldn’t get me out of the waves. And I grew up in New England, where the sea is not known for being a friend to those of us who like to avoid hypothermia. Even still, I would swim until my fingers became pruney and I was nearly cooked like a lobster in the sun, simultaneously shivering from the cold. But, I loved it. And through to adulthood, whenever I was having a terrible day, I would find solace in the ocean and throw my…