Cheerful "Goth"

This dress is an unusual choice for me; I usually never go for something so acidly bright, so yellow, so babydoll, so short.. It attracted me though, from the moment I saw it. A moment of hesitation, a doubtful frown plagued my first time view of it.. I even almost left it on the rack. But here I am wearing it, still a little doubtful, but loving the strange edge it lent me for the day. The biggest reason I bought it was because it reminded me of another tiny shockingly bright dress I had seen in a photo somewhere, off in the nets, worn by the songstress Lana Del Rey to a festival. It was so different and crazy and strange, and I of course fell kinda in love with it. It was that image stayed in the back of my mind somewhere, and pushed me over my moment's worth of hesitation. 

Dress I was inspired by.

As cheerful and youthful as the dress seems, the violent clash of the dark purples and teals colliding with that extremely shocking acidic yellow made me feel like the outfit had a darker, almost gothic vibe, which  I tried to play up with my velvet black choker and heavy lipstick. One can only go so much goth on a hot day though. I will have to try to figure out other ways to style this dress, maybe with some black tights and dark sweater? I did enjoy the simple daring of it, as much as I worried about it riding up TOO far up for comfort. Go bold or go home, amirite?

Oh ps, it's a good outfit for shocking people who think they know you :) 

Dress, bag - thrifted

Sandals - Old Navy

Earrings - World Market

<3 The Magpie

40 Years

I distinctly remember this day; it was a few days after I had gotten my hair lightened and I was still marveling at its boldness. The air was humid and the day was overcast, the sky heavy and still. On a whim, I brushed gold eyeshadow over my eyes and bridge of my nose, like a shimmering mask suspended holographically over my skin. I was so disappointed that it didn't show up well in my photos. I was wearing a simple dress with a simpler vest thrown over the top, but everything still felt too hot to the touch. I wanted to wear something easy to go to work, and this fit the criteria. 

The outfit is indelibly inscribed to a certain memory from that work shift; I work at a coffee shop and a man pulled up in his car, and the normal exchange of a cashier/customer was exchanged. And then, and then, and then! he asked me if my co-worker was "my daughter". My daughter! A girl only a few years younger than me, but apparently so mature I appeared, he legitimately thought she was capable of being my offspring. I had the strong suspicion he was fishing for information on whether or not I was old enough to hit on (sigh) or he lacked all reference to time. I'm more amused than offended by such a out-landish question, but idea that somebody's age radar can be so wildly askew is rather interesting. Do I WANT to look older? Do I want to look younger? How will I look as I age? I hope that wherever life takes me, that I will grow into a strong and beautiful character, that my view of myself will mature and grow as my body ages, changes, and decays. 

(p.s. I'm in my early twenties)

Dress, vest, necklace - thrifted

Earrings - World Market

Sandals - DSW

<3 The Magpie

Boyscout

These were taken in the heat of summer, when my face is perpetually flushed, my hair is eternally too long, and I can't quite wear hems short enough. I titled this post "Boyscout" because of my little yellow scarf, but "cub scout" would be more accurate. I was drawn to its graphic elements - the strong yellow versus the dark blue - and decided I didn't care that it was a cub scout bandana, even if my mom made fun of me for wearing something so campy. As for my hemlines, I veer between as short as I am comfortable wearing, or something decidedly matronly. I'm not sure why I can't find a style balance, perhaps I'm just a drama queen.

Boy scout turned out to be a great theme for me, as when I was taking these photos, a boy drove up (note: I'm all alone, purposefully far away from all the other cars) to ask me for directions, and then proceeded to do his best to hit on me. Poor child. He picked the wrong girl to test his smooth talk on. Aside from just generally being annoyed by the unwarranted attention, I can't help but laugh. I can be out in the middle of nowhere, and still, guys somehow find me. It's my latent power. :/

The sweet little dress I'm wearing is one of my long-time favs. I found it at Target ages ago and have worn it ever since. It's a tiiinnyyy bit on the short side, especially if I raise my arms, but it's perfect for the that eternal hot spell called summer, and super cute besides. I wore it with my shiny gold sandals and pretended I was 'effortless' and 'cool'.

Dress - Target

Scarf, bag - thrifted

Sandals - DSW

Earrings - self-made

<3 The Magpie

Safari

New Year, new life. This shoot is from a few months ago, where even in fall, it's eternally warm. I was trying on a dress I liked in the dressing room at a thrift, but didn't like it much after wearing it. It's not as fitted as I like, and it felt a bit baggy on me. It actually looks a lot better in these pictures than how it felt on my body though, and I paired it with turquoise liner on my bottom lids and a weird green and gold necklace I found at another thrift. I'm a sucker for tribal prints and good colors, so in the end, I liked how the outfit turned out.

As for the new year, I didn't do much of anything. Stayed up on my computer, and listened to the booms of our neighbors celebrating. I'm not really a New Years celebrator, but I do like to use it as a post mark for my goals in the upcoming year. Keeping track of time is not really my forte, so any time marker for me is progress. Really, I just have a list of things I need to get done and want to do, and although I don't have a resolutions list, I do hope to accomplish my goals and work closer to my dreams in the upcoming year. There is so much I want from life, and the only thing holding me back really, is me. So here's to a new year, and a renewed determination to push on.

Dress, necklace, bag - thrifted

Bracelet, earrings - Target

Shoes - DSW

<3 The Magpie

Brick and Teal

I started collecting these Milani lip creme things awhile back when they first came out, and I'm really glad I made myself get one of each color when I could find them, because they were a limited edition and are no longer sold. I'm wearing the darkest shade in these photos, and I definitely felt rather daring with such a bold color on my lips. It's like this rusty brown, but also a deep red shade that really, and I mean REALLY, stands out on your face. If you want to be noticed, this is the shade for you. I actually didn't expect it to look this dark, as it appears lighter in the tube, but it dries dark, especially if you layer it. I decided to pair it with the tropical looking shirt I'm wearing, because of the brick red background. So naturally I reached for teal next, because brick red = teal? but it all worked out in the end. I would say it's a fall-tropical look - like if Hawaii had an Autumn, this is what it would look like. Oh, I liked how my nails matched my purse as well.

I really love color pairings that are unusual, as in anything not often seen in most people's wardrobes, but are actually really beautiful together. I have found that the biggest hurdle to cross in color mixing is the block most people have set in their minds against anything different than what they are used to. It's difficult for me to understand, as I like to experiment and play with color, but if people have grown up with certain color palettes, and are suddenly exposed to something that they have never known, they are immediately opposed to the initial idea of it. I admit though, that I've personally been trying to overcome my own color biases, so maybe we can all learn together. If one of my outfits makes one person think about overcoming a certain color distaste, just for a little bit, that would be one of the greatest things ever. Nothing I wear is just to make myself look pretty, there is always a purpose and philosophy behind it. And if I end up looking good, well, no complaints here. ;)

Cardigan - Banana Republic

Sandals - DSW

Earrings, ear cuff - Claire's

Necklace, skirt - gift

Bag, shirt - thrifted 

I found the bracelet lying in a parking lot :)

<3 The Magpie