One of the things I was thinking about yesterday was the conflation of fashion and frivolity.  Newsflash: as a whole, people don't take fashion seriously.  They call it being materialistic, or they say you could spend your time worrying about something more worthwhile.  In some ways, they certainly have a point: there are events and issues happening right now that really do deserve attention and solutions.  The thing is, why single out fashion?  What is it about clothing that gives it such a bad rap?

Fashion can go wrong in some ways, like any art, and I can't deny that there are issues unique to it, like the potential for obsession with appearance.  However, having an interest in clothing is no less worthy than anything else.

In starting a style blog, I have seen how much work it takes, and in so many areas.  In order to cultivate it, you first have to have good taste--unique taste.  If you're someone like me who doesn't have a hot photographer boyfriend, you also have to learn to take your own pictures.  You have to write about what you wear and why and where you wore it.  You have to make yourself present on social media. 

There is nothing frivolous about that.  It takes creativity, talent, and plenty of effort, and I hate the popular notion of the importance of style and of the people who care about it. 

That being said, this is what I've had on my person the last few days:

Even if I've said it already, let me reiterate: I love stripes.  Did you know that horizontal stripes make you look thinner, not vertical ones?  Not that it's important, but I find it interesting.  I learned it from a show called QI, which features the jolly wonderful Stephen Fry as a quizmaster for all kinds of bizarre and unusual facts. 

Another thing I learned (not from QI, as it happens) is that stripes and florals are a lovely pair. I got those happy oxfords from Forever 21 quite some time ago for just a few bucks, and it was a stellar investment.  You might not think patterned oxfords are a closet staple, but in my case, they go with so much stuff.  Maybe it's all the stripes I wear.

This is an outfit that emphasizes my legs, which I've doing a lot recently, but not intentionally.  The skirt is nicely round, and I cinched it with a thick black patent belt.  I don't have much of a waist, so any help I can give myself is greatly appreciated.

There's a new quilt on my bed, that cute thing with the birdcages on it.  I've never had a quilt before and didn't realize how thin they are, so I've been snuggling up very warm these past few weeks as the weather takes a turn for the cooler.

Also, that book I'm reading?  It's for an online class I'm taking through Yale.  Nothing fancy--it's one of those courses where they have all the material online, so you can watch lectures and read the texts at your own pace.  And it's for free!  I'm learning all about society in early modern England.

The next day, I came into work like this:

 

I used to call this my magic dress.  I would wear it whenever I went on lunch dates with cute guys from work because it just makes everything look good.  It gives me hips, which are normally largely invisible.  After a while, I started wearing it for myself, because I'm a strong independent woman who don't need no man.  

At work, it's very cold in the basement, so I had to cover up.  (Actually, covering up is a story for another day.)  Naturally, I picked this cardigan, which is the second one I've had in this color.  This one is on its last legs, too--all pilly under the arms, a little stretched out--but I love it because it's a nice, close fit and it's in the best color.  

Because mustard needs a partner, I put on the red Seychelles, which are the comfiest heels I have.  They're exactly what I need to dash out of the office, past all the construction, and into my car to let out the pup halfway through the day.

The dressing up continues during the weekend!

 

I volunteer most weekends, giving tours of an 1830s post office and telling people about old timey money.  One of the first questions people ask me about it is if I dress up.  In period clothes?  No way.  That shit's expensive.  I do, however, like to dress up in the pictured sense.  One of the volunteer coordinators even noticed and commented that he was impressed that I get dolled up all the time.  

As you can see, tight skirt again.  This was a rare thrift store find: a skirt that is a) cute and b) fits me the way it should.  I love the way it comes up so high.  It's actually cut lower in the waist in the back to make it more comfortable.  

I think I've worn that shirt with this skirt almost every single time.  There is something about cobalt and electric yellow that drives me wild.  They place so nicely with each other.

Seychelles shoes (of course) and a new necklace.  I was worried it wouldn't really go with anything, but that has turned out to be the beauty of it!  It's ever so slightly off that it keeps things interesting and arresting.  

One of the best things about this time of year is that everyone is excited about kicking off pumpkin spice season.  This has translated into impromptu baking sessions at my house.  For example, last night I came home to find two pumpkin pies and a plate of cheesy brats on the table.  This is unfortunate as my brother's wedding is next week and I still need to fit in my bridesmaid dress.

For now, though, I still fit into this stuff:

 

This skirt, man.  It makes me feel like a natural woman.  It gives me curves I never dreamed of attaining.  I pretty much exclusively wear it to work, so it, of course, makes me want to strut around the place like I'm Joan Holloway from Mad Men.  

That skirt is also really easy to style.  I just tucked in a striped shirt (one of way too many), slipped on my floral  smoking loafers, and took off.  

Yesterday was puppy class.  Moxie is in week two of training, and she just started to learn "stay" and "heel."  I felt like a proud mama when the trainer told me how smart my puppy is--apparently she learned these commands much faster than most pups.  I had to change into old clothes for the class--I risk getting dirt, spit, and pee on my outfit every time we go--but before that, I had on this little number:

I feel so cliche for saying so, but I felt terribly Hepburn in this.  Cropped black pants, a slouchy (but still slightly tailored!) sweater, and little red smoking loafers.  I'm crazy about smoking loafers, incidentally.  They feel so elegant, but in an extremely lazy way.  

As lazy goes, today I really didn't feel like getting out of bed, so this is what I had lying out for me:

That is the workhorse of my closet.  Whenever I don't know what to put on, that dress is saying, "Devinne, I will step up to the plate for you.  I can save you."  It suits every occasion; when I needed a dress for an outdoor lunch when I wasn't sure if it was going to rain or not and I was going to have a cheeseburger so I was afraid of spilling on myself, this dress shined like a beacon from among all the others.  The color works with my skin tone.  The length is just right with a low heel.  Everyone loves the pattern.  I can't do without it.

But I'm getting a little tired of it...77 more days.

Tonight, the pup and I are going to stay in, and I'm having my very first apple cider of the year.  Possibly with a little rum mixed in to get me ready for bed.

No, definitely with the rum.

Sundays are usually a night for me to unwind by myself.  My roommates go to our friend's place to watch The Strain, so I hunker down in front of the computer and drool into Buzzfeed work on this blog.

Friday saw the emergence of a very special dress:

 

A couple of Boxing Days ago, my mom and I were in line at H&M to get in on their big sale.  They were giving away scratch off raffle tickets for discounts, and, wouldn't you know it, my mom won $300, which she graciously split down the middle with me.  That's how I came across this gorgeous swing dress.  I love the pattern; it makes me think of the album My Life in the Bush of Ghosts by David Byrne and Brian Eno.  The necklace was part of my very last binge before the cop-freeze.  I'm glad I bought it because I have precious few statement necklaces in my repertoire, and this baby just seems to make everything ever-so-slightly more wonderful.

 On Saturday, a bunch of my friends and I went to the Field Museum.  Since I knew I was going to be doing a lot of walking, it all came down to this:

 

Yeah, leggings as pants again.  Still proud of the runner's butt.  And that knitted white top again.  I got that as part of a Stitch Fix ages ago and hated it when I first laid eyes upon its slouchy shape, but I've since grown to adore it.  I threw on the scarf my friend brought back for me from China and put in my awesome Triforce earrings.  

(I'm a giant, die-hard Zelda fan.  I want to live Ocarina of Time.)

Most significantly, however, are the boots.  I've had 'em for years--got them at a thrift store--and I can't do without them.  They're so wonderfully worn and the style is so cool that I have seriously considered buying another used pair when these finally wear out for good.  

Today I spent the afternoon with my friend Kelsey, our sole objective being to secure pastries from my favorite local bakery, Courageous Bakery.  It's in my hometown and makes the most magical cupcakes and sweets for miles around.  I'm not actually a cupcake person (weird, I know), but I would do anything to get my hands on their other baked goods.  I ended up with a gooey cinnamon bun and a cup of almond cookie tea; Kelsey went for the peanut butter cup divinity.  

Originally, I was going to wear this:

I got the dress as part of a Stitch Fix, and it was starting to make its way into my regular rotation.  It pairs so well with everything!  And that necklace (another statement gem from my last bout) knocked it out of the park!

Unfortunately, puppy.

She was out in the yard, doing her puppy thing, and I needed her to come in so I could get going.  She was morally opposed to the idea, so she responded by charging into me, full speed, and then tearing a hole in the skirt of that dress.  

So I had to change, of course.

The talented Kelsey D. snapped this picture when we later went to Graue Mill, which was an old 1850s grist mill and a stop on the Underground Railroad.  It's also where I brought Mox last week when I wore my unfortunate sports-themed outfit.

Right before this, we were at the Elmhurst Art Museum for a little while, where we stumbled upon an art auction in which people were bidding the equivalent of our salaries on all kinds of modern art. 

I think that's why I put the rum in my cider tonight. 

This no-shopping break has had some unforeseen benefits, one of which has been a boost in willpower in areas not directly related to clothes--namely, food.

Anyone who has made even the most tentative of acquaintances with me knows that I have an entire mouth full of sweet teeth.  In fact, candy is how I met one of my good friends at work.  I kept stealing some from a bag near his desk, and eventually it dawned on me that I should say hello to offset the unabashed rudeness of absconding with candy every few hours.  Somehow, miraculously, that turned into a friendship.  Thank you, Nestle.

However, candy and sugar is not always good--my waistbands have given me ample evidence.  What's worse, I know I'm addicted to sweets.  I absolutely cannot resist them when they're around.  It's like they release culinary pheremones when I come into their presence. 

BUT NOT ANYMORE.  Exercising self-denial in sartorial matters has apparently seeped into my sugar problem, which is quite surprising.  My roommate baked chocolate chip cookies this evening, and I didn't even care to eat one.  They're sitting in a box on the counter, and I haven't even sneaked a crumb yet. 

Instead, here are some of the choicest fruits of my labor:

 

In my closet, there is an inordinate amount of toile and stripes--especially the latter.  This glorious image is the marriage of these two worthy prints.  Everything about this combo seemed to work.  The patterns got along swimmingly, the skirt is nice and swingy and short, and that top is so sinfully skin-tight that it tucks without a problem.  I love that shirt.  I wore it when I met St. Vincent, which has imbued it with magical properties.  The day it gets a hole is the day I die a little inside.

Right here is the last time that dress shall ever be seen (at least around me).  I'm donating it.  I've had enough of it.  It's very pretty, makes my waist disappear, and is appropriately short, but it wrinkles like crazy and has this horridly scratchy tulle underskirt that makes my skin crawl while I'm sitting at my desk.  The top underneath, however, is staying forever.  It's part of a vintage skirt-and-blouse top I bought last year, and while I rarely wear the bottom half (it's a little...snug), I find all kinds of excuses to pair the three-quarter-sleeved button down with everything.  Look at that pattern!  They're little hats!  How can you NOT adore it?

 

That palette has me drooling.  The mint, the coral-y pink, the soft gray--they're all so perfect together.  It's like they're singing in some heavenly choir.  The cardigan is a recent find from the thrift store, and I couldn't be happier with that $4 investment. 

Only 83 days left!

A few days ago, it hit me that I absolutely need to stop shopping with reckless abandon.  Every single time I feel the slightest bit down, I use it as an opportunity to buy something, anything--a new dress, fancy Korean BB cream, another pair of Seychelles heels.  While the cost is certainly not an insignificant factor, what I'm really afraid of is feeding an addiction.  Shopping is fun, of course, but it's also a way for me to make myself feel better about the things in my life that aren't going the way I want them to.  I've been aware of that for a long time, but now I'm going to do something about it.

To see if I can exercise some self-control, I decided to take 90 days off of shopping.  Already, I've noticed a difference in my thinking.  Every weekend, I like to reward myself with either a couple hours of curating a Modcloth haul or a shopping trip, but since I wasn't allowed, I took my dog for a long walk at this gorgeous forest preserve near a historic grist mill.  I helped my roommate plan her wedding.  I ran errands! 

Even if it's only been three days, I love watching that number grow.  Here's a few pics with no original material.

Day 1

I wore this to visit my friend Jacque in Oak Park, which is a neighborhood I fell in love with and decided to make my home next year.  The weather is getting a little cooler, so I broke out one of my dolman-sleeved tops and layered it over a basic Gap tank.  Since the top's pretty loose, I paired it with a black mini to show off them toned, toned legs.  (I'm getting back into running.)  I had some walking to do, so on with the plimsolls, and to keep things a little interesting, I actually had on two necklaces--the longer one that's visible and a pretty branch necklace with little stone leaves.

Day 2

I'm a little bit obsessed with leather leggings, so I dug out this old pair.  I used to wear them to my Quidditch matches in college.  And since I'm very proud of my butt these days, FUCK YOU I'M WEARING LEGGINGS AS PANTS.  Besides, the top is a little on the longer side, so it's okay.  This is what I wore to take Mox on her forest preserve walk, and I couldn't figure out why some people were very friendly and others were cold.  It was the shirt.  I got it at the thrift store last year because it's cute and because I was born into an exclusively pro-Cubs family.  I'm not really a baseball fan. 

Day 3

My outfit today is extremely boring, so I had these flats on for a little while.  I adore the way they go with my minty green pedicure. 

Let me tell you a secret: in my closet, taped to the wall, there is a hand-written chart listing a number of different configurations for outfits.  That is how I select what to wear each day.  I just go right down the list.  Today is dress day.

 

 I rarely get a chance to wear this little number despite my love for it.  It's breezy, it's got a feminine (if not slightly unusual) pattern, and somehow, it doesn't wash out the pale complexion that has been handed down the Stevens line for probably thousands of years.   

The necklace comes from my first Stitch Fix, and those coral heels are my new pride and joy (that is, until I take home Macchiato!).  Seychelles, in my book, can do no wrong.  That pair is comfortable enough to walk in for a loooong time, and they have rubber soles so you can't slip!

Why it works for Breves:

A plunging neckline does wonders for one's abbreviated height.  It makes your neck look longer and more elegant, especially when it's accentuated by a simple necklace--this one is great, in particular, because it repeats that "pointing downward" motif.  Plus, having practically no bust means you can wear a neckline like this and not look too...in-your-face.

The waistline is a little higher than the natural waist, and combined with the length (slightly above the knee), it makes your legs look longer.  And I'm all for that.  Showing off your legs as much as possible is a great way to a) look sexy (which can be somewhat hard for a shorter, young-looking woman) and b) not look stumpy.  If you want to be really hot, go dig out a nice pair of heels.  I tend to stay away from ankle straps in many cases--it can cut off the line of the leg--but with higher hemline, this pair has a cute, retro touch.