Fashion Thoughts

Goodwill necklace, like$3.99?
Thrift store shoes I've had forever (which means I got them back in the day when I had even less $$)
Michael Kors flats I got half off (for about $12) at Buffalo Exchange
My boots mentioned below, Goodwill, $10 maybe?
Goodwill necklace (probably $3.99 or so)

Occasionally I get into these moods where I really want to get dressed up, wear heels, and do my make up all fancy. Unfortunately for me, these don't always hit at the right time (for example, Sunday afternoon), but I generally start playing with make up anyway. Today I attempted to master the smokey eye which I have never been able to get right, and succeeded! Now that I finally have makeup brushes (!), smudging is now doable so I'm pretty pleased. After playing with makeup I decided to do my nails. A while ago I came across a neat little website [http://style.la-mimi.com/beauty/spring-nail-polish-trends-2009/] and decided to check it out again. I went with navy blue nails since mine are a little short right now. They look pretty sweet.

From that site I found [http://thestylishwanderer.blogspot.com/] and [http://www.fashiontoast.com/], both of which I really enjoyed. These got me thinking, yes, here is my point, 1. why am I not frighteningly rich to buy all these awesome clothes and 2. you can totally get what you need to replicate these sweet clothes for quite a lot cheaper.
I really love clothes which is both awesome and dangerous. I happen to be very small so I won't grow out of any of my awesome finds and I have a nice assortment of clothes to wear depending on my mood. However, this also means that things aren't too small and I'm not forced to get rid of anything. Woops! Another dangerous element is that I am unemployed and even when I was, it was generally part time when I was in school. Therefore I had to get really great at sticking to a budget and figure out how to buy what i wanted without the painful price tag. Luckily for me, I learned the value of a great bargain at a young age (thanks Mom and Nana!) so I am all about thrift stores (the kind I'm talking about is not the super-chic-and-waaay-too-expensive-kind that sells all designer stuff at a slightly lower price, no thanks!) and Goodwills. The trick to making thrift stores and Goodwills work is to check the stores frequently and make sure you really want each item. These stores are dangerous because everything is so cheap you can be tempted to buy it because it's only $4.99! True, it certainly might be cheap, but how often will you wear it? I think I'm pretty good about not spending too much on unnecessary clothes (shoes are another story) and my best trick is to think of something else I could get for $5 and make sure that thing wouldn't be better. For example, I could buy the strangely-cool $5 t-shirt or get a cheeseburger, fries, and a PBR on tap at the 'Vern. Tough decision, really.

Probably my favorite thing about thrift stores (besides the obvious cheap factor) is that they often do not have duplicates so no one else will have what you're wearing (of course on the downside, you might not find what you want in your size). I try to pay attention to trends but I don't really follow them exactly--I prefer to pick and choose. For example I love boots, layering, knits, and dark nails, but I'm really not into boyfriend jeans and ripped tights. As you might guess, I like to be original and try to avoid looking like everyone else. I wear what I like. For example, last night I went to a house party and wore: black leggings, black knee-high motorcycle-y/riding boots, a longish charcoal top, a long pearl-and-purple-bead necklace. Here is the point. I got the boots AND the necklace, the two things I got complemented on, at the Goodwill. Score for me! Anyway, that's my point--you can totally do the thrift store thing and get unusual, awesome scores for very little money.

Ways To Not Fidget During An Interview

I would be a lot happier if this were called "How To Do Well In An Interview" but tragically I do not have a job yet, so I'm not sure that title would be qualified. I do, however, have a little practice with interviews. My biggest problem is that 1. I get nervous and then I sound nervous and then I get flustered. Not fun. I also (2.) tend to fidget when I get nervous. Here are my ways of stopping issue #2 and, by stopping, helping issue #1:

-->Wear rings on adjoining fingers. I find it really annoying when my rings touch, or at least unusual. Since I'm not used to metal on metal on my fingers, I am more aware of it and because I am aware of my rings, I am aware of my hands. I crack my knuckles (sorry mom, trying to stop) and play with my rings which I would imagine looks rather unprofessional. When I wear rings that touch, I try not to move my hands so they don't touch, and then, ta dah!, I am not fidgeting with my hands. Same goes for my hair--I don't touch it if I'm not moving my hands.

-->Put on makeup (or pay more attention/put more time into it than usual). You are then less likely to touch your face which is definitely something to avoid. I include lip gloss or lipstick into this category because then you won't lick your lips and be distracted by chapped lips, etc.

-->Wear a watch. This way you aren't looking at your cell phone (my usual watch) and you also can easily keep a eye on time to make sure you don't spend too much time rambling.

-->Bring a notepad and take notes. This gives you something non-fidgety to do with your hands and is likely to be useful.
*Personally I like to write down the position qualifications and what I've done to apply before the interview, as well as a few questions. I've always been one of those people who makes study guides because the act of writing stuff down helps me remember it better. Plus I'm horrible at coming up with questions on the fly.

-->Wear layers and look nice. Obviously you want to avoid sweating (and smelling) or shivering constantly, so layers come in handy. Additionally, I think most people feel more confident and happy when they know they look great (ahem, What Not To Wear...), and I am definately one of those people. I tend to dress according to my moods, but weaning something really nice can definately improve my mood. For example, last week I was feeling rather sick (I think I ate bad turkey the night before) but I had an interview to go to. I alllllmost didn't go, but then I sucked it up and got dressed. I wore a really cute navy blue skirt with a loose pale gold top tucked in and low-heeled shoes. It was a flattering outfit, and one that I could wear downtown wandering around or to an interview (not over-dressed, not under-dressed--always my goal) but it was also really comfortable. I tragically didn't get the job, but I definately felt the need to pull myself together and at least pretend I felt as good as those clothes looked. So, although I didn't get the interview, I also didn't vomit all over the table. Thus, I think it's a worthwhile trick.

Useful Decorations

As I learned from my mother, you can never have too much jewelry because it's easy to store. While this may be true that it's easy to store, it's often not easy to find and untangle without proper storage. I have this issue myself, and have finally figured out how to fix it while making use of my lack of real jewelry box. I love jewelry, clothes, shoes, and getting dressed up. Yes, you might even call me "girly." Maybe this is the reason that I love my new way to hang up my necklaces without getting them tangled and simultaneously find them easily: bulletin boards. Now the ones I have happen to be totally cute--they have these big gold frames--and don't look as boring as most do. However, if you are not as lucky as me, you can get one of those really basic silver-framed bulletin boards and hot-glue fake pearls to it. It looks fabulous, I made one for a friend for her birthday one time. Anyway, here is my necklace solution:
-get one (or two in my case) bulletin board
-decorate the frame to your liking
-find a bunch of clear tacks
-stick them in at different heights and hang your necklaces off them
*Naturally, since they are right there in the open, don't use this to display your ruby chokers and diamond pendants. Sadly for me, I am really lacking in the ruby choker and diamond pendant department, so no worries there.

Latest Plan

I happen to have a great appreciation for shoes. As a result of this, I have accumulated a large number of them. Some are up here in Oregon with me and some are back home, and all are fabulous. I like variety and am pleased with the assortment I currently have, but you can never have too many, right? Well lately I've been realizing that I wear some shoes more than others, which is only natural, but there are some that I barely wear at all. I came up with a lovely plan to wear a different pair of shoes each day. Now this is not quite as easy as it looks since Portland is a rather rainy city which is no good for suede, and potentially dangerous for high heels. Also, I have a lot of shoes to get through. I'm pleased to say I'm managing, however. I happen to be someone who enjoys clothing and fashion as well as shoes, and I prefer to leave the house looking somewhat coordinated, if not totally normal or 'trendy.' I'm adding some examples of the best ones.