Denim Slacker

Yeah, the lighting's better out on the balcony. Second try at styling black slacks!

Tank top: Diesel (Vegas outlet)

Black slacks: Theory (thrifted)

Denim dress-as-coat: Forever 21 (thrifted)

Boots: ex-wide Fitzwell Edeen (6pm.com)

To casual them down, I added a denim dress-as-trench, because nothing sinks an outfit to casualtown faster than that lead ballast of outerwear materials: denim!  I think I'm going to donate this thing, though. The last time I wore it, it did not go well. I like the length but it's just too bulky-looking or too much denim for me.

The photo did not capture it, but this tank top little silver speckles all over it, as if someone had shaken a paintbrush and left a very fine layer of paint droplets on it. It makes the tank top stick to itself a little, but it's worth it for the design and stitching. Plus it was at an outlet for $10. :D

I think I get that one styles slacks down with a casual tee or top now. They will probably go in my drawer as a denim alternative, when I'm dressing casually but not wearing a very attention-y outfit.

Also, lipstick. Because hooray for pushing at one's comfort boundaries. :D

Thank you guys for all of your supportive and nice comments last post! It feels good to be back to the person I could only theoretically remember being for a while. I'm proceeding with caution, but I went out to a thrift shop today and wandered about, and felt fine. (: 

Casual Goth Slacker

I'm back! Feeling the most normal I've been in weeks, so let's start the day off with a blog post.

Velour jacket: kimchi & blue (thrifted)

Cami: Express

Gloves: Ozzon Japan (Japan)

Choker: Foxy Originals Sage Bracelet

Black slacks: Banana Republic (thrifted)

Boots: ALDO

You guys see what I meant about looking like a sturdy ninja now, don't you.

This is my first try at styling my new-to-me black pants. This may be the first set of slacks I have ever found that required no alterations whatsoever. I was so amazed I promptly bought them without considering what I'd do with them, thus this challenge.

I love the little split at the bottom of the legs to show off boots. I was trying for Everyday Steampunk, what with the velour blazer, but I think I ended up Everyday Goth, instead.

In the top photo, you can see the chalk marks I made. This blog made me realize many of my jackets are visibly straining at the shoulders because I buy size small to fit my waist, so now I'm trying size m and taking in the waist or moving the buttons. It's hit or miss; sometimes the jacket looks totally distorted after, because the buttons have to go at an angle, or because I mess up princess seams and get frustrated. Go go inverted triangle body type! d=

Here's a side-by-side comparison:

I haven't decided if I want to keep it this way or try the more frustrating and complicated business of pinning and taking in several seams (the blazer is lined) to keep the ruffle look and points intact. What do you think?

Either way, size m feels amazing. I can lift my arms more than 45 degrees in a jacket now! I'm annoyed because this means I'll now have to alter all of the jackets I buy, in addition to altering all of the trousers (except for these! :D), but having experienced the ability to move my shoulders, I cannot give it up.

This is also a change in that I'm trying photos inside. I wanted to see if the lighting works better, and I won't have the balcony railing shadows that always make people think I have cool stripes on my pants. I haven't done it before because I don't wear shoes inside, but I'm moving in a few weeks, so I've loosened up. Any thoughts on which looks better?

Personal stuff after the break, so if you're uninterested, you can skip!

Slack Slacker Slacking

My new self-imposed style challenge over the next few posts is styling black slacks.

I have multiple pairs of these. They fit well, they're really comfortable, and I almost never wear them. They just look like office wear to me. I need to change that, because Pants That Fit (as opposed to Pants With Waist Gap in Which I Could Smuggle a Small Child) are a rare thing for my build (large bottom half relative to waist), and straight black slacks made of stretch fabric are one of the most common forms.

Speaking of, I wrote a song about Pants That Fit the other day. It goes like this:

Oh pants (clap clap) that fit (clap clap)
A wonder to behold!
But pants (clap clap) that fit (clap clap)
are never, ever sold (as is!)
And so (clap clap) from you (clap clap)
the tailor I will get
These pants (clap clap) that fit (clap clap)
Two fashionable sets.
  -- New tailored clothes song

I make up songs and sing them to myself when I'm driving alone. Does anybody else do this? I have a cardamom song with three verses if you'd like to trade.

I went on Pinterest and Google image search, but everyone there seemed to be wearing them a) as office wear, and/or b) with a voluminous oversized shirt, aggressively uncomfortable shoes, and a blazer.

Sometimes, Internet, you are no damn help at all. And what does everyone have against socks?

If these photos were to be believed, black slacks would make me an elongated person with dramatic angles and artfully hanging loose cloth, instead of what they actually do, which is make me look like a sturdy ninja. I like being a sturdy ninja, but it means these photos are useless to me.

So now you half know what to expect for my next few posts. The rest of it is a mystery! It's a mystery to me, too. I have no clue what I'm going to wear on my top half. You rest assured it will be something though, unlike the most disappointed people in the world, who visited my blog this week:

Do you have any suggestions? How do you wear black slacks, if you do?

Buddhaful Day

This post's photos are brought to you by guest photographer and my brother Jin! :D

Diana coat: Buddhaful (gift)

Petal sway necklace: Anthropologie

Ring: vintage (Grandmother's)

Skirt: Donna Karan (borrowed from Mom)

Shoes: also borrowed from Mom

Things look so different on a DSLR!

These were taken before I left Southern California. I still love my Buddhaful Diana coat and I've been getting very nice comments on it whenever I go out in public or to social events. I'm going to submit this to How I Wear My: Coat, run by Jill of Everything Just So and Adriene of The Rich Life on a Budget. I'm also going to link up to Patti's Visible Monday!

I'm feeling more and more self-conscious about the very mild winter we are having in the SF Bay Area. It usually is not like this, and it's happening while the rest of the nation is experiencing a cold spell. I hope you all are staying warm and not losing your minds to cabin fever. There's always blogging, whether reading or writing, yes? Yes?

Sending sunshine thoughts your way,

-Aya

Enforced brief hiatus and New Year goodies!

On a bit of an enforced break from blogging as I work on graduate school applications. I've been to seven campuses in thirteen years and one of the sites requires me to enter every single semester/quarter, its classes, and the marks in addition to special ordering transcripts from all seven places with special forms inserted. One of the Universities charged me over $35 for a single transcript. Have I mentioned none of this goes to the grad school for which this is required, and that I'll have to send more transcripts when the preliminary application is approved? This is for one school. I'm applying to five.

Today I shouted at my computer in frustration, clutched my face in my hands, and prayed for the power to call down meteors from the heavens. Starting the year off right.

Then I put the task up on TaskRabbit dot com and hired someone to enter this crap into the graduate school application site for me. (Note: hired for data entry, not for doing any personal statement or writing stuff.) It's far too stressful and emotionally charged for me. I am so, so lucky that I have the modest spare income to do this. I'll forsake thrift shopping for a month and the budget will all come out. Maybe I can make my shopping ban a series of posts. :D

In the meantime, here is a photo of the goodies I brought back from Southern California:

My mother has a term in Japanese she uses for this, which roughly translates to "treasure pillaged from war." Her parents used the term when she used to visit home during her college years and take a bunch of things back with her.

In the upper right is Boloniya bread, which, if you are in the New Jersey or Southern California area, you really must try. It is a braided loaf the buttery consistency of croissant. Then spiraling counterclockwise is vanilla sugar from my friend Matt, ume (pickled unripe apricot) flavored snack, Petal Sway necklace on sale from Anthrpologie, mulling spices and Christmas chutney both half off from Cost Plus World Market, extremely discounted eyeshadow palette from The Body Shop, a Wamiles cosmetics makeup palette, half a pound of biltong, and Lupicia tea magnets.

I was born in the Eastern zodiac year of the Rooster, but sometimes I think I should be a Dragon because if it was ergonomic, I'd gather all of my treasures into a pile and sleep on them for comfort, in my dark caveapartment that I don't like venturing out of, except to run for an hour at a time at my nearby gym, and to breathe fire at any pesky knights that are looking at me cockeyed.

It'll be over soon because many applications are due in two weeks, and it's a problem I'm lucky to have --many people don't get the chance to pursue higher higher education, and even if I don't get in, I'll have my bachelor's degree and a roof over my head. I just get wrapped up in panic and it's difficult to internalize that I am safe and have options.

What comforts you when you are frustrated or sad?