A Mother's Journal » Fashion

Long Side Swept Bangs Up-Do and Perfect Denim Midi!

Lynn — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:29:27 +0000

Oh, dear readers, what have I gotten myself into??? You may all run away after you see this. But please don’t. I would be so lonesome! I want honest feedback!

Want to see more.
Never show one of these again.

John and Michaela were most intrigued by their mother sitting over here at the computer with the webcam making a video. I am approved, they say, as long as I don’t go too crazy and start singing and dancing.

Do I have a southern accent? I guess I say GIT instead of GET…?

Now, and I can assure you that I do say NOW a lot in real life. I am not sure how many times I said it in the video, but I said it. Yeah. I want to show you some things I have fallen in love with at LuLu’s!

See Thru Soul midi denim skirt

Do you not ADORE this entire look? This skirt is not so short that I wouldn’t wear it. The boots are gorgeous! And they have heels! Ahhh, be still my heart. The shirt is modest and bright.

As far as a handbag, I SOOOO want this bag.

Melie Bianco Joanna Handbag in Red

It is perfect! I might just have to treat myself when I get my tax money back! What do you think?

Enjoy this day!

Gray and Black Dress with Black Leggings

Lynn — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:04:53 +0000

Happy Winds-day, as beloved Pooh Bear would say! Oh… Little Pooh Bear is what I called my son Daniel for the first few years of his life. In fact, I bought him a little stuffed Pooh Bear not too awful long ago, and I still call him Pooh Bear from time to time. How the years do fly away! They come bearing gifts and they leave tossing out memories like rose petals on the wind.

Ahhhh the challenges of finding places to take pictures! I fear I am going to have to set up some sort of photo booth in Rose Cottage so that you don’t have to look at the same old background over and over! But at least I have some natural light on this picture, to show you the true colors in the dress.

To me, fashion is a number of things:

having fun but acting your age
not being afraid to follow the trends
but not being too trendy
knowing what to wear when
wearing what flatters you
staying away from things that absolutely don’t flatter you
buying only what you really love

As much as I miss the 90-year-old farm house and my long dresses and aprons and all that. It. Does. Not. Work. Here.

My lifestyle is walking Annie, it is parking and living in a huge apartment complex with lots of cement and landscaped “yards.” It is running around multiple times a day shuttling kids to and from school. It is buying groceries in spurts due to budget and convenience. It is leggings, fun heels and shorter dresses. And I love it!

My dress find is from yesterday.

dress: apt 9
gray shirt: dodi
legging: gap
shoes: unlisted

I really feel like Alice in Wonderland — I am so LARGE in front of this comparatively SMALL house.

My other dress find was a dress that Michaela and I can both wear, but believe me, I would have to do it with leggings and in the right circumstances. She is so teenager-y and cute, I think she could manage it just about anywhere. Even with knee socks. Which seems to be the fashion right now.

Sorry for the red eye. This was taken at night, and try as we might we could not get the photo editing program to cooperate. It kept turning her lips blue. We felt you’d understand red eyes better than blue lips!

Enjoy this day! I found a lovely lace shirt this week as well. Beautifully made! It’s right around the corner! And you will hopefully see Michaela more. And (one last thing) we are going to try to get you some better scenery for the pictures!

Enjoy this day!

A Beaded Bag Full of Treasures

Lynn — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:22:20 +0000

Happy Tuesday Morning!

Let’s get right down to business, shall we? Because I (once again) have a ton of work to do today! I admit, if I could get away with it, I’d sit here all day and have fun, but alas somebody’s gotta pay the bills!

You may have noticed lately that the face of my blog is changing a bit. I have changed the header, put more of my affiliate links in the sidebar and cleaned up some of the blog roll. Over the next few days to weeks, you may see even more changes as sections of links are moved to where they make more sense. I suppose I felt the need to tell you all this because I don’t want to seem like I suddenly feel like I am “all that” and that I don’t need to have the links of friends, blogs and resources in my sidebar! No. Not at all. It is just that my life has changed, and with that the focus of this blog has changed. In all honesty, I do not expect to live here in this apartment for the rest of my life, and who I become in the future (another Mrs?… an adoptive mother?… a new career?…) could change as well, so the focus of this blog could change yet again! I do hope one day to have loads of garden pictures and creature pictures here again.

In the meantime, I have fallen in love with fashion and thrifting again. It is like a treasure to me right now. Ahh friends, you know (I hope you do) that I know the difference between a want and a need, and a real treasure and just a fading treasure. Fashion is a fading treasure — like youth, like looks, like lots of things. But it is fun nonetheless! I have gained some new blog lurkers and readers lately (Welcome!! — and I treasure your comments, while we are on the subject of treasures!) and I want the blog to make sense to everyone who visits. Over time, the still active links will be put in a safe place (I do have other websites, you know) and sorted to make more sense.

Can you tell which treasures are mine and which are Annie’s?

Recently I found a pretty, black, beaded bag to sling around my shoulder when I walk Annie. It holds my apartment keys, my phone, and her treats. I guess looking on the outside a person could never guess what is on the inside. Pieces of dog food? Really? Sometimes I feel exposed over the fact that I will very soon be divorced. It goes against every grain of my makeup when it comes to marriage. After all, I used to write articles about the importance of a marriage staying together: Bittersweet Magnolia Memories

From the outside it might look like I gave up. Or changed. But if a person jumps off of a sinking ship into a life raft, did they give up? Actually they were getting away with whatever they could salvage and hoping to just stay alive. I fully intend to stand by my original decision to not air it all here, but as my life changes, I want all of my dear internet friends to know that my beliefs about vows and marriage never changed, even as I moved away from the home I had lived in for 23 years.

Once Annie realizes I am holding a treat and have my walking boots and beaded bag ready to go, she’ll get her lazy self up from her warm, snuggly spot in my bed and be at the door stretching! We do enjoy our walks.

black boots: X-Appeal thrifted
petticoat skirt: ginger thrifted
lacy dress: hazel thrifted
long-sleeve lacy shirt: Energie new from Rugged Wearhouse
black beaded bag: thrifted

I hope your day is full of JOY. Lots of typing and errand-running in my future, as in today!

Le Chapeau

Lynn — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 21:00:25 +0000

“Life is like a new hat. You don’t know if it suits you if you keep trying it on in front of your own mirror.” ~Shirley McLaine.

“I myself have 12 hats, and each one represents a different personality. Why just be yourself?“ ~~Margaret Atwood

“The right hat may also enliven our imagination of the past….an old-fashioned cloche, a picture hat, or a toque trimmed with a pouf of polka-dotted veiling is just enough to make us feel as if we were living in another, romantic age.”

Wearing a hat is like medicine for the soul.

“When you wear a hat, you become the dream that started when the hat was conceived. The original energy that was put into the hat doesn’t die; it only changes forms and owners. The dream doesn’t die; it is passed on, sometimes from generation to generation.”

Here’s to hats. And wearing them. Out. Whenever you feel like it.

Enjoy this day.

A Messy Long Hair Bun

Lynn — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:20:29 +0000

Dear Friends,

I missed you yesterday. And most of today. My internet has been down due to an “off-line” modem that led me through a maze of phone calls, troubleshooting by phone, an appointment, waiting…waiting…waiting… and finally INTERNET IS CONNECTED! I had planned yesterday to share a messy hair bun with you, but alas it did not happen.

Primping in the bright apartment… er uh, Rose Cottage window. I recently found the gray hooded T shirt for a few bucks at G.W. Boutique. It’s very soft but not too heavy. Perfect for these days we have this time of year in North Carolina when it’s not really cold but definitely not warm yet.

Also found a really cool book about the history of cats. It has some breathtaking pictures in it. (TERRY, it made me think of you!) Some scary pictures, some sweet pictures, and some unbelievable information. But I believe it.

Now about the messy hair. Sometime I just like a messy hair bun, but I do NOT mean just pulled back tight in a rubberband so that it is flat on top. No. I want style I guess, but not anything fancy.

I first comb the hair out. I use a big comb more than a brush to try and help care for my long hair. Brushes can really break hair. Oh, and hair that’s really clean makes the BEST messy bun. At least for me.

I comb up the hair at the crown and fluff it up a bit for some LIFT.

I pull back some hair on each side, not too tight and not too much, and it’s okay if some of the hair in the back falls partly over the combs.

Then I start twisting up the back. You can see how the hair is falling over the comb and giving a layered, messy look.

It’s okay if a few hairs stick out around the bun. I put at least TEN pins in loosely all around the bun.

Counting… EIGHT NINE TEN.

BUN is DONE.

MESSY MESSY but feels DRESSY.

I hope your FRIDAY has been wonderful and full of JOY. I am working this evening and trying to make up some time. Who knew I loved my internet so much! Not I.

UNTIL IT WENT OUT FOR 24 HOURS.

Enjoy this day!

A Skirt For Just About Everything

Lynn — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:38:55 +0000

My Dear Readers, have I ever told you how thankful I am for you? Well I am! You all make my day with your comments and the ideas that you share! I must say, I never knew that a blog — and other bloggers (and non-bloggers ) would open up such a lovely new world for me, but over the years it has certainly been true!

Now, my morning started with a good belly laugh. Are your teenagers (or even younger children) invincible at bedtime? My children are invincible every single night! I say, “It’s time to go to bed. You are gonna be tired in the morning.”

“I’m not tired!” That’s the answer I get. Followed by, “I won’t be tired in the morning.”

Okay.

But boy the next morning! I admit, I do the same thing, but I guess moms just know they have to get up no matter what and put on a happy face. Well, this morning when Princess of the Universe emerged from her little warm bedroom-cocoon I began singing Good Morning to her in a cheerful voice.

“Shhhhhhh!”

I had to laugh. She shushed me up right away, without being rude, but without a single bit of uncertainty that she did not want any cheerful voices.

That was the end of that conversation! But we can talk, can’t we? And I want to tell you about some recent finds. Oh my!

This skirt is all cotton A-line with panels with quiet stripes in a chevron pattern. I love it. It is the perfect length for doing lots of things — not so long that it gets in the way, but long enough to be modest for being out-and-about-busy.

Annie does not care what I wear when we are out, as long as she gets walked, but it is nice to be dressed for the day and feel like I am in something that suits the day and what I’ll be doing all day! As you can see, Annie is ready to move on!

Ahhh, layers! My friends! I love layering things. Long-sleeve white T with a flouncy-collared tank.

Annie has to smell EVERYTHING for EVERY SQUARE INCH, from the time we walk out the door until the time we go back in.

Note to self: anything that blooms like this in January needs to be in a future garden.

skirt: i.e. relaxed 4$
long sleeve white T: Express 3$
flouncy tank: Charlotte Russe 3$
tights: new but thrifted 1.39$
shoes: diba USA 5$

Enjoy this day! I am off to work and everything else I do every day!

What Kinda Pose Is That?

Lynn — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:48:03 +0000

It is just the kind of question a teenager asks when his mom is posing in front of a camera. You know, by herself, with the camera set up on a timer. And goodness me! if old mother should do anything other than just stand looking lost.

Well, I ain’t dead, even though when I was 17 I also thought my mother was old. Ya. But now I realize how very young 49 is! Yup. I am on the heels of 49 years old. Come March, with its blowin’ wind one day and lamb-like nature the next, I will be 49 years young.

So when I was modeling in front of my dreamy English cottage (I wish) and my 17-year-old son said with a big smile on his face, “What kinda pose is that?” I smiled right back at him.

It’s the kinda pose your mama does because she has a blog that about a dozen people like to read and you have to take pictures if you have a blog.”

He laughed and said, “Oh.”

Not to take a single thing away from my amazing son, who tells me multiple times every day that he loves me, but I get the drift. And that was the end of that. Anyway, would you just look at this delightful English cottage I have picked out? Can you hear the tea kettle whistling inside? Please come visit me there soon.

Actually, dears, the reason I had to strike such a pose was to show you the new lavender-flower-covered summer dress I found! With its perfectly fitted waist and its little cotton slip ready made into the dress. But it is truly made for summer, so into the closet it goes this last day of January, to wait a few more months.

In the meantime…

You are seeing the polka dotted skirt again, but mostly because I love it so much and because I especially liked it with this long very-dark-blue smock-style shirt with a perfect little black Peter Pan collar.

Set off with a brooch, the collar is in fact very striking. Hair’s a bit in the way, but this is sort of a hair post anyway, so I figured we’d work around that.

Thought I would share a picture of what the long hair looks like after a night of being braided. One of the challenges of having long hair is finding ways to style it. It’s a big plus to have long, unlayered hair when you are in the mood for a long-hair up-do. On the other hand, it’s a huge challenge to find a way to wear it up each day. I occasionally remind myself that I love having long hair by wearing it down from time to time.

I love the little heart-shaped, fabric covered buttons at the sleeves. It’s a good shirt.

Well, tons of stuff to do today! It’s bright and wonderful here today! I even have a window open! Little Annie sleeps close by on the purple chair. My to-do list has been dented severely this morning. It’s a good day!

Enjoy this day!

xoxoxo

Leopard Print Dress and Fur Boots

Lynn — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:51:02 +0000

So, yeah, I like leopard print. Remind me, didn’t we talk about leopard print recently? I think it was in the comment section. And I think part of the point was that we sometimes surprise people who know us by the fact that we even like and would wear leopard print clothing. I mean, it would seem at first that leopard print should only be worn by certain people. And I am not even going to get myself in trouble here by saying who exactly should be wearing leopard print, but I think a fair-skinned, dark-headed, freckled girl does not immediately come to mind. Am I right?

Now, dear friends, forgive the tired eyes, but I did practically just roll out of bed and into a comfy dress and boots (for walking Annie) before sitting down to enjoy The Alice Tree. I must admit, I am excited about seeing The Alice Tree turn into The Valentine Tree!

PINK and RED!! OH MY!!

Now, dear readers, in other Rose Cottage news, do you see what I put up with around here:

Ya. John (left) had a friend over recently, and look what they did. They wrestled. With a big stick. They arm wrestled. They even thumb wrestled. They put a cheese puff in the microwave “just to see what happens.” The last I heard was, “IT’S GETTING SHINY! IT’S BLACK! LET’S EAT IT! NO! YES! NO!” (They threw it away.)

I asked them most politely, several times, “Boys, now don’t destroy the apartment. Okay?”

Boys! Will be boys will be boys will be boys! (At least they ate up a lot of the food in the cabinets that I thought wouldn’t get eaten.)

Well, friends, it is a work day today! I found two totally utterly fabulous dresses at G.W. Boutique over the weekend! And a great lavender long-sleeved T shirt. Will try to have some pictures for you tomorrow!

Enjoy This Day!

Polka Dots and Some Blog Love

Lynn — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:56:53 +0000

My Dear Friends,

Happy Thursday morning to us all! I am thankful to be alive this morning. For health and strength, a warm apartment, birds singing outside, freedom, happy children, food, fabric, and all important and frivolous things that make life so wonderful!

I wanted to share with you a new polka dot skirt that I fell in love with on first glance. I felt simply RETRO the moment I clapped eyes on it. So home it went with me, a 4-dollar steal of a deal that was washed up, put on a hanger and worn the very next day. Forgive the grainy picture; it was taken with my phone!

I say, who is not happy in polka dots? Do not dots feel the most retro of all? Perhaps my own natural “dots” — my freckles — are what make me lean toward the retro, the old, the impulsive, the elusive. Then again, the dark hair and fair skin that hails from that old isle Ireland and its sister country Scotland do lend to a melancholy and dark disposition, so what a mix! By the Alice Tree. Me. And my polka-dots.

Stockings. Strappy leather shoes. Vintage garden chair. Bright floral fabric.

I finished up another millinery pin, and this one is, to me, perfection. I love the satiny fabric and the touch of golden-bronze around the edges. Currently testing for durability and compliments — it has already had a few — and then will have to get my polka-dotted self busy and get them in The Shop. My oh my. Orders are being prepared to go out. More things need to go in!

And now, without further ado, I want to express some great big blog love for a blog I came across a few days ago. It is called Esme and the Laneway and I think you’ll be busy there for awhile if you decide to visit.

Talk about a fashion darling! She is lovely and has the most amazing collection of vintage clothing ever! If only I looked so adorable in vintage dresses! The following photos are from Esme and the Laneway, taken with permission from her darling blog.

Enjoy this day! I am on to errands, a couple of thrift store walk-throughs, and a bit of letter writing.

xoxoxo

A Black Linen Dress

Lynn — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:34:11 +0000

Happy Tuesday, dear friends. Another photography challenge became real to me this morning when I tried to photograph a black linen dress! My!

Yesterday I had to run out for some errands on my lunch break. While out, you know my van headed right into the Goodwill parking lot! I still just cannot figure out how that happens! But I decided to just enjoy it (not that I had that much extra time) and make a quick walk-through and see what jumped out at me. I spied a linen shirt in there about a week ago but did not get it, and I had decided that if it was still there I would get it. I had already tried it on for size. Then, whoa!, I saw a lovely black linen dress hanging close by, actually out of place from where it should have been, and I snapped it up, knowing it would be perfect even without trying it on.

Again, not the best photos, but here you can see the ruffles and the slightly-disheveled-but-still-dressy look.

It immediately occurred to me that one of the millinery pins would be fabulous on this dress!

I apologize, dear readers, that the quality of these photos just does NOT do the dress justice! But here you can see the size of the dress. I will certainly wear a layer under it, as it is a bit short for my taste, but I have tried it on since getting it home and it will work great that way! And the size is PERFECT!

This last picture may be the best one of all! Natural light or flash, it did not seem to matter, the texture of the fabric combined with all that black just did not make for a good picture. There’s gotta be something I could have done differently. Will try to have it figured out before I get the dress ready to wear and model it for you!

Now, friends, I have been remiss in my photo-taking of THE ALICE TREE. I was sitting here having my coffee this morning when Annie announced to me that she was severely disappointed at not having had her picture made by THE ALICE TREE and put on the blog. Come to think of it, she has cozied up to the tree several times and looked longingly at my camera! I cannot believe I didn’t notice it!

So here she is. Isn’t she lovely? She’s a good girl, learning to behave better and better every day.

In closing, since we have had so many G.W. Boutique fashion posts of late, let’s have some quotations about FASHION and BEAUTY.

“Love is a great beautifier.” ~Louisa May Alcott

“So many women just don’t know how great they really are. They come to us all vogue outside and vague on the inside.” ~Mary Kay Ashe

“I think knowing what you can not do is more important than knowing what you can do. In fact, that’s good taste. ~Lucille Ball

“There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness.” ~Anonymous

ENJOY THIS DAY