I want to be MADE

So, I'm back at school and so so busy preparing for recruitment, especially with practicing our skit which is very very loosely based on the wizard of oz and in which I am playing Dorothy. Fun stuff.

Today, we had to wake up before 7am (GAH) so we could practice and then get ready for our house to be filmed for an episode of MTV's made. WEIRD! Basically, this girl from a nearby high school wants to be made into a girly girl and is coming here for us to help her... lol. A select few are having brunch with her (not me) and then we have a surprise girl scout philanthropy event planned for early this afternoon (which I'm helping with... I think). They gave me this Dove "be yourself, be beautiful, be a _______" shirt to wear... cute. The blank is the name of my house but I'm pretty sure I can't share that until after the episode airs.... but I'll keep you posted... who knows, maybe I'll be in it? Doubtful, but that would be kind of cool.

Anyway, in case the cameras do catch me, this is what I decided to wear with my tee:

{Marc Jacobs cardigan, second hand skirt, second hand belt, sorority t-shirt,
white tights - ?, hand crocheted flowers pinned to ribbon as headband}


{black target flats}

Yes, that is a different red cardigan than the one I wore all of winter break. This one I got at a buffalo exchange in San Fransisco and it's one of my most prized thrifting/second hand finds... Marc Jacobs for only $35! Also, that belt is one of the few things I haven't yet shown you from the same thrifting expedition the blue skirt is from.

Oh, and btw, my internet here stinks, so I may not be able to do any picknik editing with my photos :( We'll see...

Finally, in response to a comment by The Clothes Horse saying people don't wear hats enough anymore... well, just thought I'd show off the make shift hat rack which I have on my wall. ;) Yay for command strips. And no, these are not all of my hats... only most of the ones that are the type that can hang up. hahaha.



Don't know when I'll be able to post again because of recrutiment, maybe not until a week or week and a half for now, but I will surely try and photograph all of my recruitment week outfits.

Regards,
Freddie

I'm burning your baby...

Not really in the mood for a long post but I wanted to leave you with something since I'm going back to school tomorrow and I don't know how much blog time I'll have when I'm there (though I hope some!) Also, I'm leaving by 1pm tomorrow... and it's 2am... and I haven't started packing. oops.

So today I had an interview-ish thing with this company, and saw this show which was a rather odd/not that great an adaptation/translation, but I loved loved loved her. Sadly, she escaped out of the other side of the theater so I didn't get to meet her or get an autograph :( And while my bestie got his Daniel Rad. And Richard Grif. autographs, I did not :( oh well. Tough luck.


{L'onneau dress from last summer's renegade craft fair, wool tights and white long sleeve tee - ?,
vintage red cardigan, H&M cloche hat and umbrella, cashmere scarf from TJs, target flats}

That black scarf might be my favorite item in my wardrobe. It's rather boring and I only got it because my grandmother took me to TJ Max and forced me to find something I wanted but I swear it is the softest thing you have ever felt in your life. (and also very warm)

And oh, want to see something really really cool? Today Mike and I walked by the back of the Hilton Theater where they were unloading Young Frankenstein (one of the 9 shows to close this past Sunday... so sad) and got to peak inside/backstage. So cool! (or at least, in my opinion it is)



Anyway... back to school (well not classes, but physically) for me tomorrow :( Not really looking forward to it, but maybe if I dread it, it will be better than I expect?

Regards,
Freddie

Confessions of a Shopaholic

So, remember this post where I was having a major shoe decision dilemma? Well, today I went to Orva to try on the hunter boots (and came home and bought them online for cheaper, haha) but you see, Steve Madden is on the way back from Orva and um... well... those other shoes I wanted were now 50% off! Only $35! How could I not? Oddly enough the 7 1/2 seemed to fit just perfectly with my tights on (shoe sizes are so bizarre... my hunter rain boots are a 6, and might have been a 5 if I wasn't getting the fleece liners) so I got them. I couldn't resist. But I figure if you go back to a store 3 times for something it means you really want them and should get them. Like those shoes, and this book for example. Both of which I now own. See, Orva is near Banres and Noble and so I went there (also for the 3rd time) looking for Gregory Maguire's A Lion Among Men and maybe I had missed it before because it wasn't with his other books, but there it was on the 50% off table! Two things for 50% off today... good things come to those who wait perhaps? ;) Or maybe I just got lucky.

Sorry no outfit pictures. Both today and yesterday I'm wearing almost exact repeats of recent outfits so I figured there was no reason to take more photos. Yesterday I wore the brown dress with my other pair of new j.crew tights (kind of a rusty color... I can't find a picture online)


And today I'm wearing this, and am going to change into my new shoes:


I'm trying to both look put together (I'm meeting some people about possible summer internships today and tomorrow) while conserving clothes for going back to school. A little bit after I get back we have rush (yes, I'm in a sorority, though I would not consider mine to be typical in any way, haha) which involves a week of needing to be dressed rather nicely while not having any time to do laundry. haha. We'll see how that goes ;)

Sorry this is probably the most boring post I've ever written... I was working on some inspiration collages from free German style magazines I picked up on the way back from Switzerland and wanted to post those today or tomorrow... but I got lazy. Plus my scanner is at school. But we'll see... maybe I'll finish one anyway.

Regards,
Freddie

At least I galloped - when did you?

Today was a long day... I didn't have to wake up quite so early because I almost forgot, and thankfully then remembered, that the box offices don't open until noon on Sundays, but was still out of the house by 10:30am. We got to times square a little after 11 and waited on line for about an hour to get our student rush tickets for Equus, which were all the way stage right, second row orchestra (though we did end up moving a few rows back and further center). I made another poor shoe choice and my feet almost froze off while we waited, but we went to the bank, Starbucks, and then Europa Café (one of our usual time square eateries) for lunch, which helped me warm up. We still had a lot of time to kill before the 3pm matinee, so after checking out the new TKTS, which Mike hadn't seen yet, we wandered around Virgin and Toys R Us for a while and then got a huge slice of carrot cake cheesecake to share (which we still did not finish!) from Juniors. Then we went off to the theater to see the show, and oh was it fantastic! Both Daniel Radcliff and Richard Griffiths gave absolutely stunning performances. The show was eerie, chilling, and just truly remarkable. It had me glued to and gripping to my seat. (And yes, yes... I did see Harry's magic wand :P boo puns boo)

After the show we did go to the stage door, but, not surprisingly, it was an absolute mad house of Harry fans. We got pushed to the other side of the street by angry cops who basically tied us in between two lamp posts with caution tape. Daniel signed the playbills of the people in the very front of the two main barricades (probably not more than 15-20 in the crazy mob of hundreds, though to his credit I think he may have been a bit sick, and understandably wanting to get home... though that certainly did not hinder his stunning performance) and popped right into his snazzy escalade with his body guard. haha. oh well. Mike really wants to go back Wednesday afternoon and try to wait for him after the matinee (ie: show up before the show lets out to be right in front) to get his autograph, and I suppose I'll go with him if he does, but I'm not generally keen on being such a crazy fan girl... (Though I would really like autographs of the whole cast, I generally try and do that for shows I see, especially with original casts or especially noteworthy productions). Then again, I am absolutely dying to meet Mary Louise-Parker after Hedda Gabler on Wednesday night, but that's really different, right? ;P


{H&M shirt dress, vintage vest, j.crew tights, target flats}

And oh, hi... meet my glasses. I have two pairs. But they are only for reading since I'm really an old lady apparently. I also beat my dad (pretty badly too!) at scrabble tonight which is an accomplishment I am quite proud of.

My break is quickly drawing to a close and I am oh so sad to see it go... I wish I had more time in my beloved city, but what can you do? I really shouldn't complain about Switzerland, or having to go back to school early (classes don't start until the 19th), even if I want to, because they are both things that were/should be at least somewhat fun... but I would just rather be here a wee bit longer...

Regards,
Freddie

If a bullet should go through my head let that bullet go through every closet door

So I'll keep it short and sweet today, but I did go to Connecticut to see my cousins (well one cousin and her two daughters, ages 9 and 11) and aunt, which was rather nice. The nine year old especially adores me and looks like she could be my little sis (which I wouldn't mind so much--she is adorable and a real live wire!) I even managed to get some unexpected sales shopping in to boot. I needed new pants courtesy of the bit of weight I have recently put on (thanks college slash having a house cook, haha) and snagged a really cheap pair of jeans from J. Crew (where we got an extra 15% off the sale prices with my student ID!) along with two pairs of tights and a pair of blue cords with cute pocket details from Rugby. I would have forgone the jeans had I seen the cords first, but alas, and at that price, one can't really complain.

When we got back into the city my mom and I went to 86th street where I showed her the aforementioned two pairs of shoes I was debating about and I tried on the Steve Madden flats. Sadly they just didn't seem to fit quite right... like my feet were the right length for the 7 1/2 but the right width for the 7, or something... alas. Well, it does mean I'll be getting Hunter Rain Boots (and I think I've decided I like green) for a belated Hannukah gift and those will be more practical too, so after some brief pouting, I'm satisfied... especially because we then went across to B&N where I finally picked up a copy of The Tales of Beedle The Bard (though it will take me all of 20 seconds to read it) for myself. yay :)




{hat knit by me, target dress and puff sleeved tee, long sleeve tee-?, calvin klein leggings, frye boots}

I also discovered today that Polaroid now exists for windows, which is kind of fun :) I don't think I'll use it all that much, but I do quite like how it flatters today's outfit photos, and I didn't even have to do any picnic editing.

Anyway, I also saw Milk this evening (pretty busy day in retrospect) and it was really excellent. The actors gave such amazing and believable portrayals of the real people and the whole story is just extremely inspiring, sad, and slightly infuriating. I have so much more I could say about it, especially in relation to recent events like Prop 8, though this post is already getting a bit long for short and sweet, huh? (Though I will say, if you haven't seen it, go see Prop 8 the musical- an important message with a Jack Black related smile, haha) Also I really should be off to take a shower now and then go to bed if I want to leave the house by 9am to try and get rush tickets for tomorrow's matinee of Equus. Wish me luck for seats with a decent view ;) (I mean of the show... not of daniel's... well, you know... oh damnit :P haha)

Regards,
Freddie

Why can't you say Jello?

Today was a really lovely day. I slept from like 11pm last night to 10 this morning (seriously a record for me- even on vacation I am usually more of a 2 or 3 to 10 or 11 sort of girl). I then spent the morning/early afternoon with a What Not to Wear marathon on TLC working on a couple of easy-ish DIY projects. I shortened a skirt, one of the things I purchased at goodwill the other day, which I then wore today, and turned an old pair of gaucho pants into sort of bloomer-type things by cutting a strip off the bottom of each leg and making bands to gather the rest of the leg fabric into... that probably doesn't really make sense but I will have a picture soon, I promise... I do have a picture of the skirt now though.


{skirt before shortening, and after}

It's a bit hard to tell how long the skirt was from the first picture, but I did take off quite a large chunk--still such a simple project that I am so happy with :) The skirt was $7.99 (really $7.89 because I found a dime in the pocket--haha!) at goodwill and the bag pictured above was also bought that same day (at the housing works sale) for only $2.50. I didn't actually use it today as it's too small for anything but going-out nights at school (which is what I bought it for) but thought this was a good chance to show it off... though come to think of it, my usual bag for days like today matched my outfit fairly well, haha.

Anyway, after I finished those projects, I went off to Laura's house again for our "winter break fiesta." It was amazing! We made tacos (though, as usual, I had extremly severe tearing reactions to all our onion chopping) with mango and corn salsa and tofu scramble and talked and laughed and played taboo and all those wonderful things you wish you did with old friends more often. A lot of people I hadn't seen in quite a while (and others I have seen more recently but it was, as always, wonderful spend time with them too) showed up and it was just a really excellent gathering.


{vintage red cardigan, second-hand bag, second-hand and self-shortened skirt,
american apparel tee, bitten necklace, white tights - ?, vintage boots}

Anyway, before I left I snaped these two very similar photos- I just love the contrast... and they were taken at the same time of day. Oh the wonders of flash or not (and a little editing, but really not much!)



I also stitched a little lace around my ankles as the pair of lacy socks I wanted to wear are of course, at school. I had a hat I would have liked to wear with this outfit too which is also at school... alas, don't you just hate that? Sadly, one of the lacy pieces got hooked on the other boot and came off during the evening, but I did enjoy them while they lasted.

Anyway, tomorrow I think I am going to Connecticut with my parents to visit my Aunt and baby cousins (well, I suppose they really aren't babies anymore, but they are my cousin's kids and quite a bit younger than me so I still call them that...) so hopefully I will still have time to post.

Regards,
Freddie

oh, p.s. - for you fellow bloggers, I have a question if anyone sees this. How do you respond to comments? Do you reply via e-mail, by commenting again on your own post, or by commenting on their blog (which I often do anyway, but not generally in reply)... or often not reply at all? I mean, I don't get many (my blog is really just a wee baby) but I do appreciate the ones I do get and am always wanting to answer, elaborate for, or thank those who leave me notes. Thanks so much :) - Freddie

With a certain amount of resolve

Boy am I pooped... safe to say I did not get a lot of sleep last night, but the party was very fun and I am pretty much cleaned up now with the exception of my still needing to vacuum. Anyway, I did use quite a bit of resolve on some carpet spills last night and am going to take a little bit longer to revel in the punnyness it makes with the New Year and the resolutions that so oft go with it.

The one truly sad thing of last night however, was that the former firework viewing spot that was my building's roof now has it's view entirely blocked by another, even taller building going up just a block or two away. So no fireworks for me last night... and never again from my roof for that matter -- très triste :(


{New Years '06 and Fourth of July '06}

So today, after I woke up (unintentionally early - boo!), cleaned, and rested/recouped a bit, I went over to my friend Laura's house for a nice New Years open house. Her mom made excellent vegetarian chili and there were many deserts, including my mom's famous snickerdoodles (which firefox would like to correct to be knickerbockers or nickelodeons, haha). When I got home, I had leftover risotto, which my mom made last night for New Year's dinner, for dinner again tonight. It was incredibly delicious!




{gap fair isle sweater, beaded skirt from a shop called coup de cour,
grey wool tights - ?, found maroon socks, vintage boots}

I really would have liked to wear black tights with this, but mine were all dirty, seeing as I wore the same skirt and boots with black tights the other day and black tights with my New Year's outfit as well. And yes, these are the "new" ($25, including shipping, from ebay) boots I wanted to show off... didn't take me long to work them into an outfit again. I love them so much, and they are comfy too! :)



The skirt is an old one of mine which I recently shortened by taking off about one tier at the top and sewing in a new elastic waistband. The craftsmanship is a bit shoddy (large, much lighter pink hand stitches as my machine refused to sew the super stretchy fabric) but I'm still very happy with the result.

The outfit as a whole might have looked better with the t-shirt I had on underneath the sweater, but it was cold and I still really wanted something with a somewhat stripey vibe.



Anyway... as I was speaking about "resolve" before... Mary wrote a really inspiring post of New Years resolutions and I decided to take up a few of my own. (Does anyone ever keep these things? Maybe not... but I'm trying to set at least a few realistic goals this time!)

1. Eat less--only when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full
2. Try out vegetarianism, or pesco-vegetarianism, for at least 2 weeks. I currently don't eat red meat but I'm curious to see how it would be to cut out poultry as well. (There are so many turkey substitutes--meatballs, burgers--that I love so it might be difficult)
3. Get exercise- starting with a measly and easy 10 push-ups a day!
4. Keep up with this blog! I'm really enjoying keeping this blog so far and I so want to keep up with it.
5. Set aside a little time for myself each day rather than continually procrastinating (especially on facebook and ebay) while I'm doing schoolwork.
6. More generally: procrastinate less... though I say this one every year and it never does work... so that I will have time for my other resolutions!
   
7. Read more for pleasure!
8. Finish knitting this. I started working on it in winter of '06-'07 and while progress has been very intermittent I would love to see it done by the end of 2009.
9. Keep in touch- with my parents, my grandparents, other family and especially old friends.
   
10. Be true to myself! There is no need to delve into a big explanation, and while I do think I am slowly becoming better at this, I want to continue working on being honest with myself, which will also help me in being more honest with others.

Maybe a little silly, but I have always been a list maker and I am really determined to make 2009, the last of my teen years and the last of the era of new years glasses, my best year yet!

Regards,
Freddie