Green Apples & Mint Juleps
It is so humid today, I feel like I’m melting.
Standing outside in my pajamas, holding my morning coffee, I could have sworn I’d woken up in Savannah, Georgia. The air was orange-tinted, and through my blurred vision, I could swear that I saw a shrimp boat trolling down Clark Street.
It’s a good day for a cotton dress, I thought. I want to feel like a lady. It’s sweltering, I’m a walking humidor, I want to feel like a mint julep.
Fortunately, a couple weeks ago, I received a package from Shabby Apple, a dangerous place full of amazing, unique dresses made for women of all lifestyles, shapes, ages… They’re just the dress shop, if you ask me.
They sent me this apple green dress with a lush army of layered ruffles across the front, and a perfectly simple pencil skirt feel. It’s made of the softest cotton ever, and was just perfect for such a day.
I also managed to swing these boots from Gilt Groupe for a measly $50. They’re Seychelles, and maybe the most beautifully detailed shoes I’ve had in a while. Also my first pair of brown shoes. They’re a little amazing.
If I look a little miserable, I assure it’s got nothing to do with my digs, and everything to do with the 90 degree, 500% humidity issue I’m currently facing. What’s a girl to do?
The dress is beautifully constructed. It’s fully lined, with a barely-noticeable zipper in the back. The elasticized waist is perfect for those of us who are short-waisted, and it’s very roomy.
Dress, Shabby Apple L’Amour, $88
Shoes, Seychelles via Gilt, $55
Nothing else, it’s too hot for anything else.
Shabby Apple also slipped me a code for you guys… 10% Off Anything. Yeah, anything. 10%. The dresses are already pretty reasonable, so 10% is a steal. The code is:
brokeandbeautiful10off
I suggest anything from the Ooh La La collection, or my personal favorite, the 1943 collection. I think my next purchase from Shabby Apple will be this little number…
G. Cooper Dress $94
And you?
Sneak Peek: Shoe Porn
This is some very literal shoe porn. My day is so much better since the UPS guy came.
Here’s a peek.
Hot.
One For Ten
Charlotte Russe has come through with a crazy good sale… again.
They’re doing a “Buy One, Get the Second for $10″ for all of their shoes. All.
Oh, on a semi-related note, I decided today that I hate mules. Not like the animal, like the shoe. I just hate them.
Anyway, here are some songs, and the shoes that the songs want to wear.
Knotted Strappy Wedge Sandals $35.50
Strappy Lace-Up Gladiator Sandals $26.50 $10
Total: $45.50
Yes, it’s Powerman 5000. Yes, I love this song. No, I am not ashamed. (Okay, maybe just a little.)
Satin Covered Bow Front Heels $25
Ribboned Patent Leather Flats $18.99 $10
Total: $35
One of the best songs ever, ever, ever. The horns around 3:00 kill me! So good, so good! The chick’s name is Keely Smith and she is amazing! I have a whole album of her & Louis Prima’s stuff. I highly suggest it!
Strappy Lizard Wedge Sandal $35
Pleated Satin Contrast Bow Peeptoe Pump $24.50 $10
Total: $45
Such a chill, awesome, sexy tune. The beat is so, so hot. I can’t get over it. This is my “I’m so hungover” song. Which is why I’ve listened to it about 9 times today.
Crinkled Strap Wedge Sandal $35.50 $10
Total: $50
Which would your favorite song wear?
Nope, I’m Not Over It
In fact, I’m way, way under it.
It being oxfords. Yeah. I know. Played out, seen, so hipster, so insert-subculture-here. Don’t care. Love them. I only have one pair, myself, and they’re not exactly… oxfords. I mean, they are… Well, look:
Don’t get me wrong – I’m way into these shoes, still. They’ve got little 3″ heels (little, ha) and their wingtip pointy toes make me shiver. But. I seek a more worldly oxford. A shoe that will match anything I tell it to match with rugged, refined skill and beauty.
I want buttery brown, bashed up toeboxes with fisherman’s laces. I want black, thick uppers with thick, grandma heels. And I may even want flat (don’t adjust your monitors)… flat oxfords with amazing details and the ability to class up the more whore-esque digs.
Not that I would wear whore-esque digs, but you know.
Not that there’s anything wrong with whore-esque digs. I’m just sayin’.
I’m just sayin’.
There is something a little anachronistic about oxfords. They’re a little trip back in time when people wore shoes that made any kind of sense at all. They’re a little masculine, but still ultra feminine by the time your eyes wander up to the ankle.
Call me creepy, but there’s something really sexy and sensual about the way a shoe curves around the lateral malleolus, that rounded protrusion that forms the perfect teardrop shape just at the ankle. The way it curves out and curves back in towards the foot – I’m no fetishist, but it’s sexy. Admit it.
Dirty Laundry Lulu Oxford $49.95
Nicole Open Up Heeled Oxford $99.95
FRYE Women’s Matilda Oxford
Steven Melin $49.98
Boutique 9 Brazen Man Tailored Oxford $121.46
Giveaway Winner Announced!
Regarding the Great Earring Giveaway of 2010, we have chosen a winner. And by “we” I mean, “Random.org and me.”
These lovely babes are going to the fabulous home of one….
KITTY!
Congratulations, Kitty! If you would be so kind as to email me at miss.elle@brokeandbeautiful.com, we will get all of this squared away, and make sure these get to you in a timely, orderly, chainly fashion.
Don’t fret, my pretty babies who are not Kitty. As promised, this giveaway went very well, so I will begin digging into my bag o’ crap good things to find more stuff to give away. I already have the next one picked out, and I promise you’re going to love it…
Stay tuned!
What to Wear to Fall in Love
I think “What to wear to:” (work, school, shows, festivals, etc., etc.) posts are a bit silly, in all honesty.
The entire point of attending these types of things, attire-wise, is to experiment and find out what works for you. That’s the entire point of “fashion”, right? Self expression? So when I see a “How to dress for… blah blah blah” post, I feel a little offended. Being that I’m of the belief that fashion does not come with a handbook and is, instead, a platform upon which to enhance yourself, I can’t bear to imagine a lost soul finding one of those posts and adopting whatever it is that the author is pushing. I’m sure I’m guilty of a few of these in the past, but what is a blog if not a documentation of progress?
So, my approach to this “What to Wear to…” post is fully inspired by my multiple personalities, which I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. There is the personality that wants that corner office in Manhattan… The one who wants to live in a tree house in Puerto Rico live off of grass and catfish… The one who wants to be forever smarmy and sass strangers in bars while scrawling random fragment sentences in a Moleskine… The one who wants to turn her crappy apartment into a gigantic closet with a stove and oven, and just sit around staring at things…There are so many.
I play out little movies in my head about each one of their lives (am I to be committed yet?), and sometimes -- particularly when I hear a specific song -- I envision them meeting their perfect match and spiraling into love. Each has a different song, and a different path, though… And that’s what I want to try to illustrate here.
So here we go. I suggest playing the song before looking at the spread. Think of it as an expression of what the song would wear -after all, every song you hear is a part of you for at least a second.
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros -- Home (from the album, Up From Below
MP Unlike Stripe OTK Socks from Sock Dreams $10
Industry Tube Dress w/ Button Placket $92
MIA Silverado Boots $53.36 (were $133.40)
Gap Lightweight Eyelet Scarf $19.50 (was $29.50)
Katz Round Aviator Sunglasses $10
I think that this is an appropriate outfit for carving names into trees, and making out in lots of tall grass. Correction: Lots of making out in tall grass.
Deer Tick -- These Old Shoes (from the album, War Elephant
Cheap Monday Tight Denim (All Over Cut) $78
Lexi Dolman Top $24.90
Report Lyndon Boots $91 (were $130)
Quiksilver Firefly Motorcycle Jacket $70.80 (was $118)
Striped Draped-Front Vest $22.50
Obey Two Feathers Antique Necklace $38
A little destructed, but still romantic. I think, anyway.
Martina Topley-Bird -- Anything (from the album Quixotic
Lamixx Shades of Grey Floral Dress $56
Ribbed Knit Tights $8.99
7 For All Mankind Alaines $95.55 (were $325)
This one doesn’t need much, just like the song says. So pretty.
What is the best “falling in love” song you’ve heard? What does it wear?
Jack White & Karen Elson in Vogue
I love Jack White.
I love The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, Them Crooked Vultures… One of my all-time favorite movies is Coffee & Cigarettes (more for Tom Waits, but I can’t deny my excitement upon seeing Jack White so close to a Tesla coil).
When I got the note that he was a) in Vogue this month with his b) wife c) Karen Elson -- I had a Chex Mix of emotions. Jealously, elation, shock, anticipation, back to jealousy, a little guilt, and more anticipation.
The shoot, photographed by the ever-talented Annie Leibovitz, is absolutely stunning and kind of makes me want to run off and Bonnie & Clyde it up in Nashville (where White & Elson live, also where the shoot was).
I also didn’t know that Karen Elson was an aspiring musician… This is what I get for not caring about celebrity gossip/news. She performed at SXSW this year, and has now (as of yesterday!) released her debut album, titled The Ghost Who Walks
The accompanying article, written by Jonathan Van Meter, is also excellent. He spoke to Elson regarding her album, the transition between modeling and becoming a musician, and of course Jack. There was one line that really stuck out to me:
Being a model had always felt like a fluke, a “lightning strike,” as she likes to say, something she did not choose, and so she began asking herself, “What do you really want to do with your life? Are you going to betray the things that are inside of you?”
Such a good point.
And now, some really, really big -- really, really, high quality pictures from the shoot. Leave a comment telling me how hard it was to pick which one would be your desktop. Click for full size.
And my absolute favorite…
HOW SO HOT, KAREN ELSON? HOW SO HOT?
All photos are from the June issue of Vogue, and shot by Annie Leibovitz. PICK IT UP. And read the article -- this ain’t Playboy.
Edited to add: This amazing video of a live performance by Karen Elson, singing the title track, A Ghost Who Walked.
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Giveaway: All Chained Up
I haven’t done a giveaway in… a really long time, so I figured I’d grab something out of my big box o’ stuff and give it to you.
Today: Chain Fringe Earrings courtesy of Avon. (Click all images to enlarge, for full glory.)
These are actually really beautiful — I was surprised that they were from Avon (no offense, Avon!). They sent me a necklace, too, in the same style but… I’m keeping that one, because it’s gorgeous. And I’m selfish. You’ll likely see it soon.
In addition to these gorgeous babes, you will receive a lovely, hand-written note from me – probably containing a poem about your name, or twitter handle or something.
Which brings me to my next point: this is how you enter.
Well, there are two ways.
1. Follow me on Twitter, and tweet at me saying “@MissElle Lindsay, gimme some earrings.” (Yes, exactly that.)
2. If you don’t have Twitter, comment on this post, including your email address in the info. Your real one. Otherwise it doesn’t work. You know?
All entries must be received by Tuesday, June 1st at 12:00pm CST.
If this goes well, I seriously have a box full of stuff that I could give away, so it’s really in your best interest to enter. Just sayin’.
Wanted: Uniform
Could I just wear this every day for the next three months, please? I swear I’ll be good, and I won’t get bored with it.
All Saints Escape Cardigan, £56.25; New York & Co Red Label Silk Shorts, $39; Volcom Request Line Handbag, $42; Lulu’s Sultry Stranger Sunglasses, $9; (Shoes, L-R) DV by Dolce Vita Tulua Wedges, $55.20 (were $92); Jessica Bennett Myrtle Wedges, $97.02 (were $138); Dolce Vita Halo Wedges, $117 (were $168).
I’m Wearing: 25 Years
Because no one was really in the… best condition to take photos on my actual birthday, I had to retake photos.
Yes, it was worth it because I got to wear fishnets.
Twice.
I was so comfortable, it was kind of ridiculous. Kushyfoot sent me a pair of fishnets with their massage-y thing on the sole, and I admit – while I was expecting “kushy”-er steps, I was still pretty comforted throughout the evening in 3″ heels with shenanigans abound.
Skirt, Cosa Nostra by Jeffrey Sebelia via Secret Style, gift
Shirt, Express, $15
Fishnets, Kushyfoot, gift
Shoes, Dollhouse via Marshalls, $15
This outfit brought me good luck. Happy 25th year to me! Hope it’s rad.
