Oh, hello there. I've missed you.

 

Dress: Old Navy;

Shell necklace: from Philippines, gift;

Shoes: Zigi Soho;

Sandals: Miss Trish of Capri, Target.

How I've worn the dress before: here.

My Internet has been out for the last day and a half because of a storm outage, and I've just now been re-introduced to sweet, sweet technology and I have lots of catching up to do.

I have something to admit -- I did this photo shoot twice at different parts of the day yesterday. I went to the park by myself late in the afternoon to shoot photos, but was so frustrated with various aspects -- the lighting, and my tripod -- that I left and came back two hours later with Jeremiah, who willingly obliged to do a second shoot. Notice the lighting differences between the photos and also the footwear change -- I swapped my wedges for some sandals. I know that sounds obsessive to do it twice, but when I've got a day off, I want to make the most of my blog photo-taking.

Now that this secret is off my chest, let's get to the outfit. This is Dress #20 from The Dress Project. Though I bought it specifically as an easy summer dress, it's proven to be an all-season frock. As Georgia's colder seasons are generally pretty mild, the dress's lightweight material has worked really well for layering, and I've taken it through fall, winter and spring.To be honest, I like the newest variation of this outfit the best, because sandals and shells seem to be more cohesive with the dress's tropical vibe.

What are your favorite all-season pieces?

Of things to come

Dress: Ann Taylor Loft;
Sweater: Target;
Belt: Ann Taylor Loft;
Shoes: Target;
Bracelet: Finder's Keepers;
Bag & scarf: Timely Vintage, via Lulu Letty's giveaway.
How I've worn the dress before: here.

I just wanted to say how smitten I am with my new bag and scarf that I won from Annie from her new shop, Timely Vintage. I got it earlier this weekend and have been using the sweet little eelskin bag ever since. It came in a box so beautifully wrapped in vintage National Geographic magazine pages, I almost didn't want to open it... almost. Thank you to Maria for hosting the giveaway on her site and again to Annie for finding and parting with such beautiful pieces.

I'm trying to wear these Target heels more often, but at 4 1/4 inches, they are the tallest I own, so I've been getting used to the extra height. The dress, you might recall, is #13 from The Dress Project. Looking back at that entry, the gazebo photos seem like so long ago. I'm glad Jeremiah and I are branching out to different photo locations.

The park was so gorgeous Sunday. Hanging out around here during the late afternoons makes me want to experience farm life for real. It really does seem like such an anachronism in the little retail area that it resides in. I had a great day with Jeremiah --- lots of walking around, eating tacos and being silly. This weekend didn't provide enough of a catch-up period because I had to work Friday and Saturday, but I'll be getting a break later this week -- so yay!

Repeat after me

 

Dress: Tabloid, summer 2006;

Camisole: Aeropostale;

Shoes: Zigi Soho;

Jade bracelet: Finder's Keepers.

How I've worn the dress before: here.

Don't hate me, but I basically plagiarized myself and have worn this exact outfit once before. I can't help it -- I know there are many ways I could've layered this dress to make it look new, but Dress #6 from The Dress Project is basically one of the Queen Bees in my closet and just wants all the attention when she's worn (yep, this dress is a she). It's got this vibrant print that instantly makes me feel happier when I wear it because it reminds me of some faraway, tropical locale.

These photos were fun to take yesterday. In the first photo, I'm trying very hard not to indecently expose myself while also trying to balance on the wobbly fence. First I copy myself, and then I almost flash you all. I'm a jezebel, I must admit.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend, dear friends in bloggoland. I'll be catching up on my Google Reader the next couple days, so prepare to be bombarded with comments from yours truly.

Stealing picnic baskets

Top: Vintage, thrifted;

Skirt: Ralph Lauren, thrifted;

Red belt: Ann Taylor Loft;

Heels: Tayla platform sandals, Target;

Bag: Thrifted;

Jade and black bracelets: thrifted, Finder's Keepers;

Silver bangle: gift;

Hawaiian bangle: Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI.

How I've worn the top before: here.

How I've worn the skirt before: here.

How I've worn the heels before: here.

Today was an exercise in being alone. I didn't have Jeremiah, my trusty photographer husband, with me, so it gave me a chance to test out the new tripod. I was really hesitant in going to the park by myself --- even thought this particular park is idyllic, our area of town can be really sketchy sometimes. I went anyways and brought my cell phone and decided that if anything bad might occur, my tripod could double as a weapon for defense. Does anyone else think that when they take blog photos by themselves? Maybe I've watched too many CSI episodes, I don't know. The park ended up turning out okay (a few older couples walking around), so I felt comfortable enough to stay longer than I had originally intended. I really liked how the photos turned out, especially the still lifes.

About this outfit. I liked the color palette a lot and I thought I looked like a walking picnic basket, which reminded me of Yogi Bear, which kept me singing "The Yogi Bear song"  that I learned at summer camp all afternoon. I don't usually wear as many bracelets as today, but there was something so fun about hearing them jangle on my arm. Gotta love wearing things that make you feel silly in a good way.

Afternoons in Agora

Dress: vintage, In Roads,
Agora, Athens, Ga.;

Belt: Ann Taylor Loft;

Shoes: Aerosoles.

This would officially be Dress #46. Yep, that's right -- I bought another dress to add to The Dress Project collection. One of the great things about visiting Athens over the weekend is the vintage shopping. During my first couple of years of college, I didn't spend a whole lot of time visiting vintage stores -- I mostly did discount shopping at the mall, but after awhile I was pretty bored with it all, and wanted to add more quirky, fun finds to my repertoire. The only problem was that most of the boutiques around town were expensive, and the vintage stores that I had heard of were all in Atlanta, about two hours away.

 I finally found a vintage store called Agora during my junior year of college and promptly spent a couple hours perusing through all the aisles before I found my white dress for a banquet event. It's one of those places that you could seriously spend an afternoon and not see everything they offer --- they feature lots of vintage clothing, jewelry, designer pieces and home accessories. Airee, the manager of Agora, was kind enough to let J and I take pictures on Friday for Sidewalk Chalk:

 

My favorite items to look for are dresses and jewelry, and they always seem to have lots of items from the 1960s-1980s. I tried on quite a few spring dresses and rompers before settling on this black number. I really love the flower pattern and the bell sleeves, and I definitely think it's going to make a few rotations in my wardrobe this summer because it's so different from the others in my closet. I feel a bit hippie, a bit Laura Ingalls in this dress.

Well, my lovelies, what are your favorite vintage finds, if any? Do you prefer to shop local or online?