Tuesday, March 29, 2011

#33, 34 & 35 - Catching Up

I haven't posted in a few days, but I've still been doing my shoe challenges. I've actually gotten through about a quarter of my shoes already, I think? So I probably should slow down or I'll be finished soon! (Or maybe I just need to buy a lot more shoes...)I have had skirt envy a couple of times this week. Skirts are probably my favourite clothing items, and I've seen girls wearing some really pretty ones this week. I'm sometimes tempted to ask where they got them from, but I can never bring myself to do it. Anyway, I got my blog name from this skirt I'm wearing here. It was the last one in the store when I bought it, and one of the girls working there said to me "You're the lucky cinderella," and I thought it was cute.
My shoes are from Diana Ferrari, which I think is an Australian brand. I have a theory that a lot of Australian shoe brands have Italian-sounding names to give people the impression that their shoes are good quality (because people tend to associate quality shoes with Italy)...
I absolutely love this skirt - I wish I could wear it all the time! It's longer than most of the skirts I own, which makes it a bit warmer and more suitable for Winter, and it has been getting cooler this week. I'm glad there's a trend for longer (midi, tea-length) skirts at the moment.
My shoes are from Prada, and their story is that I bought them when I was in Canada late last year, because I really wanted the Miu Miu shoes I wore earlier on in the shoe challenge, but I couldn't find them in a store (I ended up getting them online later). They're really lovely, but I broke a few of my shoe rules by buying them (ie don't spend over $500 on a pair of shoes, don't buy too many pairs of sandals because they're not practical, don't buy expensive sandals).
I felt very colourful wearing this today... Maybe too colourful, especially as it was a grey, rainy day. But that could also be seen as a reason to wear bright colours!
My shoes are from a local brand, Alan Pinkus. I like their shoes, but I do think they're overpriced, and these particular shoes are basically copies of the red Valentino shoes I wore earlier in the shoe challenge. Anyway, I usually make sure not to wear satin shoes on days when it's likely to rain, but unfortunately I couldn't predict the weather today, and these shoes got really wet. I just hope they'll dry and won't be permanently damaged, because I have surprisingly few pairs of blue shoes and I need all of the ones I can get!

Monday, March 28, 2011

#32 - Shoe Sale!

There's nothing I like better than a good shoe sale, and when I saw this diet coke poster the other day, I thought it was very applicable to me and my shoe-buying mentality:
I went to look at shoes on my lunch break today, not intending to buy any. But then I saw that they were having a shoe sale at Myer. I'd been looking at a pair of shoes there for a while, but they were $179 and I didn't like them that much. Today I saw that due to huge 50% sales they'd been having, they were reduced to $99, and then to 50% off the already reduced price. I couldn't pass them up. But when I went to buy them, I found that they were only $29! I was expecting to pay about $50. I feel like I got a great bargain today, and they're really cute shoes (unfortunately it was dark by the time I got around to taking a photo of them, so it didn't turn out well. I'm sure I'll end up wearing them soon though!)

Taking photos for the shoe challenge is making me realise how many clothes I have. I haven't worn the same thing since it started, and I still seem to have plenty of outfits to get through.
The story of the shoes I'm wearing today is that they were once chewed by my ex-boyfriend's brother's dog in Hong Kong, right before I had to wear them to a wedding. I was telling this to my friend at work today, and she was surprised that I was still wearing them, considering how many other shoes I own. The little terrier teeth marks aren't really visible when I'm wearing them, and I do want to keep these shoes, so in the spirit of the shoe challenge, I'm even wearing dog-chewed shoes.
Although I like shoes, I don't like feet. So taking photos of my feet in shoes freaks me out a little bit. Also, I'm pretty sure that this nail polish does nothing for my skin colour. I'm better off sticking to pinks rather than orange-type colours, I think.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

#30 & #31 - Lace & Lightning

I haven't posted as much over the past few days, as I'm getting through so many shoes and I probably need to slow down a bit, or I'll finish my shoe challenge in half a year! I was expecting to buy a lot more shoes this year, but I actually haven't been buying many lately. I've been getting a lot of clothes instead, and I've been planning my outfits based on dresses rather than shoes too, so I still haven't worn a lot of my best shoes. I bought this dress from a store I'd never been to before. When I see a new store, I am never too sure whether it's a place I want to shop at or not. It's easy enough to work out things like price and quality, but style can sometimes be more difficult. When I went to this store today, there were a lot of women older than me there, and it made me wonder whether it was more a store for older people. Anyway, I found some clothes I liked, and ended up buying 2 dresses. (I guess I have a more conservative style than a lot of people my age).These are more Melissa shoes - I really do love my Melissas, and I wear them all the time. These ones are plastic but have lace on the inside, so they're still waterproof on the outside. They're clear and you can see through them (to an extent), which makes them interesting, I think. On Friday, I went out with friends after work, and we had drinks & saw a French movie as part of a French film festival that's on here at the moment.

People always tell me how well my dress and shoes match, although I don't think these ones match perfectly at all! They are from Betsey Johnson, and they're really cute. They're not terribly uncomfortable, but I did a lot of walking in them on Friday night and so I'm trying to give my poor feet a couple of days to recover!
I've had a rather lazy weekend, but I'm going out to see the Foo Fighters tonight. I have no idea what people wear to outdoor concerts these days, but I'm hoping my sister can find something for me!

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

#28 & #29 - Businesslike

I felt like this was a rather boring outfit yesterday, but then I went to a meeting and all of the ladies there were wearing black shoes. I think black shoes are okay in moderation, but wearing plain black court shoes to work all the time must be so boring!These photos aren't too great, but my skirt and cardigan are actually navy, not black. These shoes are from Enzo Angiolini, and they're so pretty, but so uncomfortable! I hadn't worn them before, and I think they'll take some getting used to.
Today's outfit was a new dress and belt that I bought yesterday on impulse. I have to admit, I kind of had buyer's remorse afterwards. I bought the dress more because I wanted to buy something, rather than because I loved it, and I can't really afford to be doing that (not with there being so many clothes I do love out there in stores!). Although the style is a bit unusual, with the cowl neck, it's growing on me.My shoes are from Betsey Johnson. For a long time I had nothing to wear them with, but I seem to have acquired a few clothing items in maroon/burgundy now.

I bought two dresses today. I've definitely been shopping too much lately - I think I need an intervention. Dresses seem to be overtaking shoes in my closet...

Monday, March 21, 2011

#27 - Girly

I was having a discussion with my friends from work today about buying the appropriate clothes/shoes for where you live (well, it was more me talking to them rather than an actual 'discussion'), and it's something that has been bothering me lately. I have a lot of peep-toe shoes, because it's hot here where I live in Australia most of the time. I have a lot of satin/velvet/other fabric-covered shoes because it hardly ever rained here. (If I suddenly moved to the UK, I would have no appropriate shoes). But in the past year or so, it has started raining here, nearly every day. We had a drought for at least 7 years, and now we don't anymore. And if this weather doesn't clear up I'm going to have a hard time getting through my whole shoe collection this year! I wish I didn't always look like I was squinting and smirking in photos. That is not a good combination. Anyway, I absolutely love this dress, and I would probably wear it every day if I could. This photo doesn't do it justice at all, but it's a lovely pale, semi-shiny gold. I feel very dressed-up and girly wearing this, but I love it, so I don't care.
At least I have my (many pairs of) Melissa shoes for when it rains! If I haven't mentioned it before, this style from Melissa (Ultragirl) is the most comfortable type of shoe I've ever worn. I live in my Ultragirls on the weekends, which is why I have 6 pairs of them.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

#26 - High tea

High tea was so lovely today! We had a lot of fun, and I did end up wearing my blue dress - thanks to those who helped me out with choosing an outfit! We didn't have the best weather today, but I suppose that doesn't matter too much when you're in a fancy hotel enjoying desserts and champagne!I feel a bit like Alice in Wonderland wearing this dress... Anyway, today's shoes are some flats I bought from a random store in town a couple of weeks ago (well, the brand on them is 'Barney and New York'... I see what they did there!). The girls in the shop don't speak too much English, but that doesn't stop them from giving their opinions on what you should buy, so shopping there can be interesting!
There were some lovely things at the high tea today, like cotton candy cupcakes...But I think my favourite things were these little swans! So cute! (Almost too cute to eat).
It's been a good weekend, but I'm back to work tomorrow. I'll have to wear something pretty to make up for the dull weather.

Friday, March 18, 2011

#25 - A day at home, and a tea party dilemma

It was nice to have a day at home today, even if somebody woke me up early, thinking that I had to go to work as per usual. There are so many things that happen during the day in my neighbourhood that I'm not even aware of, being at work all day every day. I'm pretty sure I heard someone playing the ukelele this afternoon. And I got to go and talk to my neighbour's dog, who is a real sweetie. I usually spend a fair bit of money on clothes, but now more than ever, it's easy to find cheap clothes that are nice. The dress I wore today didn't cost much at all, but I just love the style. I'm afraid that 50s style dresses are going out of fashion in favour of awful 70s clothes, which will mean that it won't be so easy to buy dresses I like anymore. I'll still continue to wear the ones I have, though.

One thing I've been considering lately is buying vintage dresses. I've never done that before, but as much as I love modern dresses made in a 1950s style, I find that they're usually too short! I am not a fan of short dresses, especially for work. I think that authentic 50s dresses would be a better length.
It's not the best photo, as I'd just gotten up, and I didn't have any make-up on. Anyway, today's shoes are from Milana, which I think is a David Jones (department store) brand, and I've had them for a few years. They're not completely flat, and they do have a slight heel.
I suppose my style of dress could be described as 'tea party', so when I actually do have to go to high tea, it's difficult to decide what to wear because there are so many options! I'm going on Sunday with some friends, and I've narrowed it down to these three dresses which I haven't worn yet:
What do you think? I'm tending towards the blue one, but my sister likes the one on the right (it's actually a slightly shiny lilac jacquard, but you really can't tell from this photo). I'm thinking it'll be a good opportunity to wear a dress that I probably wouldn't wear casually or to work.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

#24 - More coral

Today was the last day of the working week for me, as I'm having the day off tomorrow! I haven't had a day off work in so long that I don't think I'll know what to do with myself. Maybe I should rearrange my closet, as it doesn't help having clothes all over the floor when I'm deciding what to wear in the mornings...
I wore this dress for the first time today, and I really love it. It's great when you find a dress that's in a nice style and fits well. I think one of the reasons why I never used to wear dresses is that the fit can so easily be wrong, and I found it hard to buy dresses that I really liked and that fit well. I don't seem to have that problem anymore, but maybe that's just because fifties style dresses are my favourites, and they're a lot more popular these days.

My shoes are from Basque, and they always seem to attract attention for being so brightly coloured. I noticed that there is a dark scuff mark on one of them, and I'm not too sure how to clean patent shoes, so if anyone has any ideas, please let me know!
Everything I do at the moment feels so trivial compared to what's going on in Japan. It's strange how life goes on everywhere else as if nothing has changed, yet there's not an hour that goes by when I don't think about the people of Japan, and hope that things don't get any worse for them. It's been such a difficult year for so many people around the world already. I only hope things will get better from now on.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

#23 - Coral & copying

I got an email from Nordstrom a couple of weeks ago about cardigans (most of the email I get is from clothes/shoe stores, which is a bit depressing!), and I really loved the outfit in this picture:
So I went to their website and tried to buy the whole outfit, however it didn't quite work out as planned. I couldn't get the belt in my size (and I'm not too sure about the whole wearing-belts-over-cardigans look anyway), I found the cardigan a bit plain for my liking, and the skirt also came in a pink/coral version (and if there's a choice between beige & pink, I'm going to choose pink every time!). So in the end, I bought the blouse and the coral version of the skirt, so this was my outfit today:
Both the skirt and top are slightly too big for me (that is the curse of being small! It's frustrating when people say "You're thin; you can wear anything," because it's not true!), but I quite like this outfit. It felt professional yet pretty, and coral is my favourite colour.
I wore my new Ted Baker shoes today, and aren't they the best things ever? I got a lot of comments on them, even from people who usually have no interest in shoes. I think they're going to be some of my new favourites!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

#22 - Puppy shoes

My day today was kind of 'blah', for lack of a better word. Nothing particularly bad happened, but nothing good did, either. I thought I was going to have to go to a seminar, so I made sure to dress conservatively, but I didn't end up going in the end. While I do believe in being yourself and not conforming for anyone else's sake, if I'm going to a work conference where everyone else is going to be wearing black suits, I don't feel too comfortable standing out, so I will dress a bit differently than usual - but it's for me, not for them!
Today's shoes are from Irregular Choice, and if they look too big, that's because they are! I just can't work out the sizing for this brand. I have another similar pair of Irregular Choice shoes that are only slightly too big, but these ones, in the same size, feel a whole size too big. I think they're made for people with very wide feet, as seems to happen with a lot of the shoes I get from the UK, which is strange! Anyway, they're cute, so I put insoles & heel grips in, and I'm determined to wear them anyway.
I think mismatching shoes like these are cute and quirky, but wearing two completely different shoes, Helena Bonham Carter style, is probably not such a good idea!
My outfits this week have felt quite dull, so I'm going to be wearing some COLOUR tomorrow!

Monday, March 14, 2011

#21 - Flora

Today's outfit was fairly simple, but I love to wear white - it always feels so Summery! As it was a Monday, and I was not too keen on going back to work, I decided some super fantastic shoes (as the Manolo would say) were needed today...
These Gucci shoes are probably some of the prettiest ones I own. The first time I wore them to work, my assistant took a photo of them so he could show his girlfriend. I see a lot of flowery shoes, and in fact when I am searching for shoes online, I usually look for multi-coloured ones. But these are more special than most. I only learned recently that the Gucci Flora print was actually designed for Princess Grace. It makes sense when you see it, as it really is lovely. My sister came back from the UK today, and she bought me these beautiful Ted Baker shoes that I'd been admiring on Asos for a while. For some reason (maybe just to spite me), Asos decided that they would send these shoes anywhere except Australia (and NZ), so I wasn't able to order them! But my lovely sister managed to go to an Office store and find them for me.
I can't wait to wear them! I just need to find the right outfit...

Sunday, March 13, 2011

#20 - Haircut

I got my hair cut today, and as always, there were good and bad things about this. I never like sitting around at the hairdresser's for hours on end, but I do like catching up on my celebrity gossip & music (reading magazines & watching music videos), and it's always a good feeling to have newly cut and coloured hair.
I own at least 8 grey dresses, which surprises me, as I don't even like grey (most of the dresses aren't as boring as they sound, though!).
These shoes are from Guess. I thought they might be good daily walking shoes (I wear heels most days, but I try to limit how much I wear them for walking, so I change into flats walking to & from work & the bus), but they're cracking and starting to fall apart already. I only bought them in October when I was in Canada, and I've hardly worn them! Nemo is always so photogenic. I wish he'd tell me his secret!

Friday, March 11, 2011

#19 - Satin shoes

I had to go to court today, and an older lady who's an administrator there commented on my pink satin shoes. She told me that when she was younger and used to go to dances, it was difficult to find coloured satin shoes, so she would buy white ones and dye them to match her dresses. I thought that was a really interesting idea, and I know you can still get dyeable satin shoes for weddings. It'd be a good thing to do for those outfits that you just can't find the right shoes to match.
Shoes from Debenhams, skirt from Herringbone, and sweater from Wheels and Dollbaby (I love it! It's so pretty and girly. Wheels and Dollbaby have some amazing clothes). It really wasn't sweater weather today, and I felt so hot wearing this, but at least it looked cute, I suppose.

Well, I did go shopping today, and I bought an adorable dress & 2 pairs of (inexpensive) shoes, which I'm sure you'll see here soon enough. I think it might be time to start going through some of my old shoes and getting rid of the ones I'm not going to wear, because I'm still feeling quite overwhelmed by the shoe challenge at this point.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

#18 - Cute!

I let the girls at Alannah Hill dress me up like this. I don't know if it's necessarily an outfit I would have picked for myself, but when I tried it on, it did look cute. (I wondered if there was maybe too much going on with this outfit, but at Alannah, nothing is ever too much!)

I am trying to experiment a bit more with my fashion choices lately. I never used to wear belts, but I've bought a few recently and I'm finding ways to incorporate them into my outfits. I think I'll try scarves next. Somehow I've never really worked out how to wear them properly; I guess they're not all that important here in the hot Australian weather. A friend of my workmate often comes to visit us at work, and she always wears all black with a coloured scarf. It's an interesting look, and I think I'll try it sometime (with some colourful shoes, perhaps).
Today's shoes are red velvet heels from Collection, which I think is a Myer (department store) brand. They were available in navy blue velvet too, and it probably would have been more practical to get the blue pair, but I just couldn't resist the red ones!
Here is my baby Nemo lying on the shoe box. (Only half on the box, mind you. Such is the way of the kitten).

#17 - Corporate

This is about as close as I get to wearing a suit these days. I quite like this jacket - if I have to wear a jacket, I want it to be pale pink and shiny! It reminds me a bit of the coloured suit jackets newsreaders wear. I always wonder where they get their suits from, because I hardly ever see any like that in stores.I don't have much to say about today's shoes and outfit. These shoes are from a shop called L&J, I believe. I only went there this one time and bought 2 pairs of shoes. The girl working in the store recognised that the shoes I was wearing were by Vivienne Westwood, which doesn't happen to me often.
The colours in these photos didn't turn out too accurately this time. Anyway, I'm hoping that by the end of the shoe challenge, I'm going to be taking much better photos, and not hating photos of myself quite so much. I think I have a long way to go before I get there, though...

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

#16 - Buying online

I don't like having to iron clothes, and I try to avoid it at all costs, but sometimes it just can't be avoided. After sitting down and having my breakfast this morning, my skirt was just as creased as before I ironed it, but at least I tried! Today's outfit was not particularly interesting, but I guess it felt more like a 'pastel' day today. I usually would have worn cream shoes with this, but I'm trying to be a bit more adventurous for the shoe challenge.
Today's shoes are from Nina. I bought them online, as I do with about 90% of my shoes these days, but it doesn't always work out as planned. I bought them because I was looking for some baby blue shoes, but they actually turned out to be duck-egg blue. It might not seem like a huge difference, but I bought them specifically to match a baby blue cardigan, which, of course, they don't match. So now I don't wear these shoes or my cardigan very often.
I'll probably be in court for the next few days, so there may not be any more pretty outfits this week, but I'll see what I can come up with!