Inspiration Post (Image Heavy)

My favorite Audrey film

WANT.

This is definitely a painting of a feeling.

Dark Paradise

How ludicrously charming is this lil ensemble?  The dress with its little print and cute sleeve buttons...the Audrey kitten heels...the lace gloves...the back-seamed pantyhose...

I've worn this dress before, but this is the first time I had a crinoline to go under it.  I never even realized how incomplete this dress was without a crinoline!  Holy moley! 

The cuteness factor was raised by, like, a billion percent.

And I'm really feelin' it in these pics...Can you tell?  :)

Found a new place to take pictures: I can balance my phone on my nightstand and stand in front of my BLUE wall. 
Just a little bit blue, right?  haha Yeah, this crazy color is actually in my apartment.  For now, it's confined to just one wall of my bedroom, but I have a sneaking suspicion this happy color just might overflow onto the rest of my bedroom's walls soon...

Sweet Tooth Suicide

Be prepared for a lot of photos in this post, 'cuz it's basically two looks.  "Basically?" you ask. "What's that supposed to mean?"  Well, here, I'll show you:

 



Coat on.

Coat off.

Haha  :D 
It's amazing how a look can change when you put on outerwear.  It's amazing what properly accessorizing a winter coat can do for a dreary day!  And it's amazing what wearing fishnets can do to a girl's self-confidence level.  AND it's amazing that black is the new black again this year!  There is no substitute for black.  Black is amazing.

Anyway, now that all that amazing-ness is out of my system, let's take this one more time, ladies and gentlemen.  Ready?  Three...two...one...

Coat on.

Coat off.

I called this post "Sweet Tooth Suicide" (lyrics from a song by Shinedown), because I loved the juxtaposition of the ice-cream sweet outerwear look and the black ensemble that lay underneath (like a sweet-faced person trying to hide a dark soul...or something a little less cliche).

Never thought I'd wear baby pink and fishnets together. 
Never thought I'd wear fishnets to church, either. 
Well, I did both of those things on this illustrious day.

Mmmm my backseamed fishnets...I feel like the high neckline and knee-length hem of this dress kept the overtly sexy nature of the fishnets from really presenting itself, which is why I felt comfortable wearing them out of the house (to church, nonetheless).  They added a little edge, but--more importantly--some neccessary texture to the outfit. 

Lots of textures, here: fishnet, patent leather (belt), suede (shoes), fine knit (sweater), silk (dress).

I took inspiration for this outfit from Audrey's all-black ensemble in "How To Steal A Million."

Expect to see a lot more all-black ensembles from me in the near future.  All-black is trending right now, and I'm of the opinion that there is never a chicer color palette.  So be prepared for me to take advantage of this fashion fad while it's around!

Really quickly before I go, I need to shine a special light on these, my marvy-fab new shoes:

Found them on clearance at JCP for $12.00.  $12.00!  Who lets shoes as gorgeous as these Cosmopolitain for JCP heels hit final clearance?!  Well, luckily for me, all the other shoppers at JCP did.  :)
Also: my coat was thrifted from Goodwill for $4.00.  Shop Secondhand First!

Dress: thrifted (orig. GAP) || Sweater: ancient || Belt: White House | Black Market || Tights: old || Shoes: Cosmopolitain for JCP || Coat: thrifted || Scarf: old || Hat: thrifted || Bag: thrifted

Inspirations

Three generations of Fabulous: my grandmother, great-grandmother, and father

"the Kiss" --Klimt



Florence of Florence and the Machine

Mother Monster

Dita Von Teese

Lana Del Ray

Thought I'd share some of my inspirations.  Most of these have been constant mind-sparkers for my entire life...a few I've only recently learned about, but I suspect they'll stay with me for awhile.  ;)

I hope these few images pave the way for you to create today!  As some of my favorite lyrics from Florence and the Machine go...

(This image [of my eye haha] was featured on my Instagram recently.  Follow me!!  @Spritzy88)

In closing, my favorite SS 13 collection: Dolce & Gabbana.

New Year = New Layout

What do y'all think? 

This new layout seems much more congruent...the other one had sepia and black and white, teal and maroon...It was kinda hard on the eyes...just wasn't feeling it anymore.

While I'm at it, I'll probably start posting different kinds of things...like, I've been dabbling in decorating my home, and so far I'm pleased with the results. 
I think I'd like to share them with you...  :) 
Would you mind, dear readers?  Let me know in the comments!

But before I got off on any more tangents, here are the outfit photos I promised (in the midst of yesterday's 2012 mash-up):

This outfit is making me laugh while I'm putting it against my new layout...such completely different facets of my personality are all mushed together!  But, hey, the ability to design and love both a grey-pink-sweetly-elegant blog layout and a gold-red-plaid-in-your-face-prepster ensemble makes a girl more interesting, don't you think?
Looking at these pictures, my constant inspiration--Audrey Hepburn--came to mind.  The sweater/men's shirt/high-waters/loafers combo was a thing she would do...but I have a bit more drama in my outfit! plaid and metallics...  That means it gives a nod to Audrey without being too copycat-ish.

Shoes and Sweater: Rock & Republic for Kohl's || Pants: Wal*Mart || Shirt: American Eagle Outfitters || Bag: thrifted || Headband: Bangles and Bags || Necklace: old

le Chapeau Fabuleux

Remember my lovely little fascinator?  *sigh*  J'adore... 
My own family (one side) makes terrible fun of me and rolls their eyes, but strangers seem to love my hat as much as I do!  :)  Or maybe they just like the cajones it takes to wear feathers on one's head in the middle of the afternoon...either way.
I also love being able to wear fishnets in the middle of the day...these are backseamed, too.  Mmmm sexual...but not slutty! since they're layered over black tights.  (...right?)

Love love LOVE the texture of this stone brick wall...I need to remember this location: it's gorgeous and photographs ridiculously well!  (Even if I don't photograph as well...*sigh*)

Selfie...sorry...but it's the only photo where my layered tights/fishnets are discernable.

So I found this Vera Wang tunic at my local Goodwill (woo!) and layered it over a flirty, ruffly skirt to create a very 60s silhouette.  I looked in the mirror and was reminded the feather-trimmed LBD worn by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's.  Yay!
And my necklace and bag are certainly Chanel-inspired.  Love them!

Necklace: Charming Charlie || Tunic: thrifted (orig. Vera Wang) || Skirt: Charlotte Russe || Tights: old || Shoes: thrifted (orig. Charlotte Russe) || Bag: thrifted || Hat: Forever 21