Thursday, January 27, 2011

Glasses! Inspired by Criminal Minds

Penelope Garcia (above/below) is a truly wonderful character on the (truly wonderful) show, Criminal Minds. she has amazing style, is super cute, and aren't her glasses just perfect?! I guess you have to watch the show to truly appreciate. This post is inspired by her.

This is a weird picture, but yeah, okay.
Oh, how I adore Zooey Deschanel! This outfit is beyond cute! and I love the glasses!

These glasses are simple, yet cute. I like glasses with thick frames.
I want some glasses this color. They look really sweet with the matching shirt.
This is a great picture, too. And they both have gorgeous hair.
Amazing picture. Artistically, the lines make it aesthetically pleasing. And fashion-wise? Wonderful. You see so much crazy crap on the runway and this is ACTUALLY WEARABLE! Are y'all kidding me?!!! I love the round glasses with the little hat and messy hair. It really adds something to the outfit.

I wore my prescription glasses to college today. I've never worn them around. Like, walking around, I mean. I got them in 6th grade for reading and since then my eyes have gotten worse so now I can wear them around. Anyway, I hadn't been able to see myself in the mirror in them until recently, and now that I've seen them I've got to say: "I look pretty darn cute!" Well, I should go. Bones is on and I'm obsessed. Love,
Belle

Thursday, January 20, 2011

I shall interpret my February 2011 issue of Seventeen magazine for you...

sweater, page 105
boots, page 105

sweater, page 87
eyelet top, page 104
dress, page 103
another one for dress, page 103
dress, page 105
A little bit inspired by: skirt, page 84
boots, page 87
shoes, page 26
shoes, page 26
There is not actually anything like these in the magazine but there should be.
Page 28. Winter wardrobe, sweetheart dress, boho.
Page 29. winter wardrobe, tribal skirt, comfy.
tribal skirt, page 29
Alrighty then! I was just looking in my latest Seventeen (my school's library gets an extra issue and I get to keep it and treasure it forever!) and I found myself thinking: nice crap. (which I mean as a compliment) but I think I could take this crap (again, in a good way) and run with it! Into a wall at 95 miles per hour! (Oh, I'm just kidding... I can't run that fast.) But seriously, there are some really cute outfits in there! I wanted to offer some cheaper (or less costly- if you want me to use academic diction like my mythology instructor always says to) alternatives to those cute outfits and spins on some of the looks in there. I am NOT copying!!!! I am borrowing... Just because I love them and they inspired me.
Good night! Love,
Belle
P.S.: I haven't been able to post in a while because the high school and college class semesters overlapped, sooo... I've had two class loads to deal with. Good thing that's over. Now I'll have time to post again.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Campus Fashion: What To Wear To Class

University of Idaho is my future school (one of them) and here is a lovely t-shirt!
Great school, great school. Delias sweatshirt that will make you feel smart!
I have this cardigan! I love it! I think it may still be available at Delias clearance... but I'm not positive
Isn't this outfit adorable?
I love this Old Navy jacket, it's really cute and the hood is very functional and nice!
Great example of a smart campus outfit in the warmer months: cute and practical!
This outfit is really cute but the heels probably won't work for the winter months! They are adorable for Autumn, though.
Another good example! The scarf adds a certain something, don't you think?
I really love this outfit because it's smart while still being fashionable and unique! I'm a fan!

So today was my first day of college classes on campus (I had one hybrid class last semester but on campus classes are way better)and I learned one very important thing: On a college campus, jeans are your new best friend! Especially in winter. I didn't see one skirt, dress, or shorts/tights combo all day- and I was there 9 to 5... Yeah, I'm a professional student NOW, eh?! So, if you're going to beat the -9degree weather walking to and from class all day without developing a serious case of frostbite blues (literally, your lips get blue) you're just gonna have to save the skirts and dresses for the weekend and warmer days and nurture a deep and abiding love for jeans (or other pants, just not pajama pants, please! I mean really, that's just not near as cool as people seem to think). Knit hats were everywhere today! A lot of guys especially were wearing those winter hats with the fun little string things on the sides and tassels on the end of said fun little string things... yeah I don't remember what they're called! But yeah! Jackets are "all the rage" right now:) especially with sweatshirts underneath and boots. I wore Clark Kent glasses, a Henley shirt, olive-colored legging-pant things, a cream knit hat, my riding boots, a berry corduroy jacket, a violet scarf, dark violet hand warmers, and some crazy jewelry! It sounds weird but... no, it was weird! But adorable, too! Okay! Good night, sweets! Love,
Belle

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

The Nomad's Dream

This dress' pattern is inspired by traditional Gypsy clothes.
This outfit is supposed to fit in with the "rules and regulations" for Gypsy clothing but it's a modern, fashionable take.


This picture is from the blog: prettysmartgirlart.blogspot.com. The scarf is Russian and her outfit was inspired by a documentary of the Rom. I love this outfit!


Gypsy Woman from flickr.com
Gorgeous wrap skirt! Gypsy Inspired Skirt from etsy.com
Gypsy Boho Love from stylepantry.com
Definitely not even a remotely traditional Gypsy outfit, but the bangles, earrings, and earth tones are Gypsy-inspired. It's called: Esmerelda Tan Outfit
Isn't this shirt great? I think it's wonderful and I want it! Elle Gypsy Girl, I found it on thisnext.com
I'm not really sure if this could even be considered Gypsy-ish but it's really pretty and it's a brilliant, bright color.
Wonderful outfit! I love, love, love, love, love it!!!

Since I was little I've been completely fascinated by the culture, mystery, and fantasy of the Rom (Gypsies), and I've grown more and more captivated as I've grown older. I'm writing an essay on The History and Origins of Gypsies and I couldn't be more obsessed! Most Americans have a very limited understanding of the Rom because there aren't many here (compared to Europe and other places that I've never been!). But Most Americans are not Anthropology majors! I am, so when I'm interested in a culture I immerse myself in it as much as I possibly can. I've been reading a book that explores the mysterious origin of these nomadic people and I could hardly believe what I was reading! It was so remarkably written and extensively researched that I got lost in it and haven't been able to escape since. Anyway, I'm so captivated by this culture that it's affecting nearly every part of my life! I'm painting and drawing Gypsies, writing a research paper on them, reading up on current political issues involving them, and now I'm writing a post on my blog about their clothing. Let's get to that, shall we? Their style is wonderfully unique and conjures up feelings of magic and the weight of generations of constant movement and restlessness. Or at least to me, but I'm a freak so, hey, what can I say? So! I don't want to misrepresent an entire people or make any ill-fated assumptions or stereotype anyone (because I abhor stereotypes) but this is my modern interpretation of the traditional style of dress worn by many Gypsies around the world for centuries. From what I've read, Roma wear scarves, bright-BRIGHT- colors, tons of jewelry, ribbons, bells, billowy tops, long skirts, and shoes fit for travel! I know this is probably well known by most people. A modern interpretation means that you take certain aspects of the style- tweak it, mix it with other styles- and make it your own. I wear alot of long skirts and tons of jewelry- but with a tank top or t-shirt so I don't look like I'm wearing a costume. Peasant blouses have come to be associated with Gypsy style, too. I read that they wore basically peasant clothes but with their own individual flair (i.e. jewelry and bright colors), at least that's in certain parts of the world. I think Kalderash Romani wear a different style of clothes than English or Romanian Gypsies. I never know when to use the different terms: Rom, Roma, Romani, Romany. I've seen all of them and I find it quite confusing and would like to know when to use each for accuracy's sake. By the way, just a little known fact, when I was little I had sandals with little pictures of Esmerelda from the Hunchback of Notre Dame on the sides. I loved them dearly! Anyhoo, I guess I'll just have to show you some pictures. Once again, I've linked the site directly to the picture, so just point and click. Have fun! I hope I didn't accidentally offend anyone! Good night! Kushti Ratti! Love,
Bellamy
By the way, good colors to wear are natural earth-tone and berry shades as well as any shade of red but fire-engine red (it's considered unlucky because it's associated with blood).

Jekh dilo kerel but dile hai but dile keren dilimata (I love this saying, it means: One madman makes many madmen, and many madmen makes madness [according to http://webspace.webring.com/people/wt/tempestgypsy/romdict.html#PHRASES

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Street Style! From Finland, Russia, Romania, and Hungary


To be completely honest, only one is from Finland (the picture of the crazy chick sitting on a statue- which I think is the coolest picture ever!) and only one is from Hungary (the one with the sweet heart purse). There are a whole bunch of pics from Russia and Romania (alot of the Romanian ones are from Bucharest). I don't think girls from these places get near enough credit fashion-wise; all the focus in Europe is on Paris and London, and in the U.S. it's all on New York and L.A. These outfits are great (and all the girls are so pretty, don't you think?), I love that there's such diverse style in Europe because in my town everyone wears the same thing! Okay, so! I'm trying something a little different this time (always trying to make improvements!) and instead of the customary 'PROPS TO' section I usually put on the bottom of the page I've put links directly to the pics! So... if you want to see the source for a pic, just click on it. Except the Hungary street style pic and the gorgeous blue Russian dress, because I found those pictures a while ago and forgot to write down the source. Oops! Okay. I will talk to y'all tomorrow (and maybe I'll post some outfit pics tomorrow, too! I'm still experimenting with the whole 'taking pictures and posting them online thing'! I'm going to have to try to remember to take the pictures during the day because they turn out better that way:) I'm not sure why I'm telling you all this, I guess I just blog like I talk... rambling!!! Sweet dreams everyone! Love,
Belle