It's not you, it's them

Sometimes, you'll be wearing an outfit and you'll be all, damn yo. I look good. You're going to be riding high on the wave of self-esteem and accomplishment. You feel good and your outfit reflects that. All of a sudden, you walk by someone and they give you The Look.

You know, The Look. Not I Have Romantic Intentions With You look. Or the You're in Big Trouble! look. Nor am I talking about Roxette's song The Look. The Look. The Look that decimates all the good mood you had until that point. It could either mean, oh just look at you in your silly outfit. Or, ugh, I hate you and your clothes. It can mean a bunch of things. Point is, you got The Look.

What does it mean, why did you get it? What did you do to deserve it? Did you accidentally step on any toes? Did dressing your best actually offend somebody? Did you forget to wear deodorant or brush your teeth? Speaking of teeth, is some of my lunch still on them? Those are just some of the questions that buzz through many of our minds when The Look happens. But worry not. Why? Because it's not about you; it's all about them.

Sometimes when we dress, feel, or just plain ol' act our best, we intimidate people. And it's not like we mean to. We might dress our best as a shield, but it's our shield. It's meant to make us feel better, not make others feel bad. So why do people react? Why do I say that it's all about them? Their looks usually reflect insecurities and frustrations. They may feel insecure about their outfit or the work they are doing, and when they see somebody looking or doing better than them, well. They can be hurt and confused on how to react. And sometimes, they don't react in the best way.

So what do you do when this happens? Well, keep your chin up. Ignore it. Smile. Maybe when you do that, the other party will see how silly they've been. If they continue to glare at you, you could consider asking them if everything is okay. Maybe that will jar them out of their haterrific stupor. Point is, don't let them get to you. They're being silly. If you let them affect you, you're hurting both yourselves. They're hating themselves because they're engaging in unhealthy emotional practices (judging themselves against you, expressing it immaturely) and you're hurting yourself because it may be a blow to your self-esteem, your day, your perceptions, among other things.

I think that, instead of being petty and acting out that way, those people should simply stop and reevaluate themselves. Why are they acting out this way? What makes them feel threatened? If it's just envy, well, what do they envy? Is that person dressing their best and you feel like you look bad? Is that person in good shape and you feel you've let yourself go? Ponder the why of your actions and instead of using those feelings to glare at the other person, employ them in empowering yourself. Promise yourself you'll work out. Make a commitment to planning your outfits and looking your best. Don't let it turn from a momentary lapse in good judgement into a Look!

How would you react? What would you or have you done in the face of The Look? Do you let it get you down? Or, have you given The Look? Why?

My dark fashion secret

Everyone has one. A dark fashion secret. Some sort of deep fashion shame that you can't admit to in public or perhaps even to yourself. But what is it? What's that one thing that makes you feel awkward, that you don't want to declare?

I have no problems with sweatpants. I only wear them at home when I work out or when I clean. Nowadays, they're being worn just to clean since I'm not working out at all. I fail, I know. Three-toed sloths have nothing on me, I tell you. I've only worn sweatpants outside of the house once, to class. It felt so uncomfortable that I never did it again.

However, I do have a dark fashion secret. I'm embarrassed to declare that I have grunge tendencies. By this I mean that I will become obsessed with an item and wear it over and over again until it develops of a life of its own and tries to murder me. Oh, wait, that's just a nightmare I had. But, really, I do wear things over and over again. I fixate. Sometimes for weeks. I have to pry said article or accessory off my body, otherwise, there it will remain. Attached to me. Forever.

Another bad habit is that once that article or accessory is cast off my body, I may not see it for a long time. Weeks, months, years. Yes, years. I found a dress that I wore once, felt awkward in, and chucked into the closet. Now I can't take it off and I've made a moratorium of wearing it once every two weeks. Sometimes I cave and wear it once a week. Oops. I am weak of will.

I'm also guilty of buying things that are too big. I purchase them with all the intention of fixing them up and wearing them immediately, but. Well. Poop happens. And so there's a pile of clothes in a corner that Damián points to, asking, Honey. When are you going to fix that? All this while I run away and hide in the fridge with the dog. Best hiding place, really.

So, tell me. What's your dark fashion secret?

Getting my outfit groove on (or fighting the good fight)

Glasses: You know! They're Old Navy, and you know!
Shirt: Old Navy via flea market
Camisole: Calvin Klein
Belt: Kress
Skirt: store in Spain
Tights: Gap or Old Navy
Shoes: Sears

This outfit made me happy. It still does. I originally bought the pink top for mom, but when she tried it on, it was too big for her. Well, heck, it's too big for me as well, but that's nothing that a belt can't fix!

I'm really feeling the pink. Particularly, hot, bright pink. In fact, I've noticed that, lately, I'm buying a lot of that sort of pink for my wardrobe. First, it started with pink tights...now a pink shirt. What's next? A pink dress? We'll see.

Ghosts of outfits past

So here are some outfits that I took pictures of before the great fashion slump (which I think I've overcome, but you can never be too sure with those...you never know when they'll strike!).

By the way? The dress in the last two pictures? Cost me .10 at a flea market. Yes. A whole ten cents. I'm so damn happy with it, I've already made up for the investment by wearing it too many times. Ten cents, kids! Flea markets rule!

It's all in the bag

Purses, bags, handbags. We all need them. We all use them to carry around our stuff. (Except, of course, when we're wearing a fancy dress to which we cannot match a clutch. Then we somehow manage to convince our dates and/or friends to carry our stuff in their pockets/purses.)

When you buy purses, what do you do? Do you go for a quick problem solver or do you make it an investment piece?

I have to say I have been "guilty" of both. Of course, there is nothing to be guilty of. It's your money and you should (carefully and wisely) do with it what you want. But, I digress. The subject is purses, not money management. I have dropped a decent amount of money on more expensive, higher quality purses. I have a weakness for Marc Jacobs and a tender soft spot for Coach. I've always wanted an Yves Saint Laurent Muse, but after being burned by a fake on eBay, my love for the Muse has petered out. But not for the band. I still love Muse, very much so.

That said, despite having what can be called "investment" purses, I love a good deal. I also love thrifting. So I have a lot of purses from Old Navy, Marshalls, and sundry other stores that I cannot recall, in addition to second-hand scores. And I give them just as much love as I do my other ones. After all, they were bought because they appealed to me. So higher price tag or not, they mean something to me and I take care of them, dollar or hundred dollar bag that it may be.

Of course, there are other factors when it comes to purse purchasing. Do you have a limited amount of space and therefore only make investment pieces? Or do you make investment pieces due to budget constraints and wear those forever?

I want to know: What goes on in your head when you make a purse purchase? Do you limit yourself or go crazy? Do you go for investment or a quick piece that will last a year or two? Let's talk!

New apartment, new start

Some of you may know that Damián and I are in the midst of a move. We're finally getting out of ye olde apartment, and moving into a town house. Yay! We've been busy with searching for furniture, cleaning, and moving things. And, everyone? We're still not done. Boo. We've been on this for nearly three weeks, and we're not close to being done. Double boo. However, all we need for the bare necessities to be covered is a sofa and the water, since I managed to get the power transfer done today. Now, getting the water and power transfer is another story for another day. And maybe that will include a drink or two, but I can't promise anything. The sofa business will, hopefully, be taken care of today, which means that all that's left is...

..paint!

That's right, folks. We have to get paint. Honestly, I don't know if you have the same problem where you rent, but over here? Every single apartment we've seen seems to have a bad romance with sickening shades of beige. Yech. So we will remedy this problem by giving the new place a pretty proper paint job that will make the place look larger and brighter with the use of saturated and lighter colors.


Calypso


Belize


Candid Blue


Swimming


Tantalizing Teal


Synergy


Aquatint

Of course, Damián is involved in the color selection, but every time I bring a name up, he's all, I trust you, dear. Hmmm. We'll see about that! I think it's quite funny that all the colors I'm liking are variations of blue and green, particularly light yet bright ones. I love green, but I've never been a big fan of blue. Damián would say that it's a sign of age, this changing of taste. Well, poop. Blame getting older on expanding one's horizons, why don't you?

Anyway, we're thinking of doing a semi-gloss, and for now, these are the colors on the short-list. Well, my short-list. Which is our short-list since the boy has shirred all paint responsibilities to me! Mwahahahaha! But, yes. Any favorite colors that you love using in your home? Any good or bad experiences with painting? I want to hear about it! :)

All color samples are property of Sherwin Williams. For more information on their products, please visit their website. I am in no way endorsing or affiliated with them. It just so happens to be that they have the colors I like!

Outfit backlog: the Knee (Brace) Diaries

So I was slogging through the files on my computer when I found these. And then I remembered that I had meant to post this quite a bit of time ago. Oops. Sorry. Better late than never, right?



These pictures are from when I busted up my knee earlier this year. To this day, I'm suffering the consequences of that. I can't wear certain types of heels and it's hard for me to walk or go up and down stairs at times. Which brings me to today's lesson: don't ever rush to work. You'll only end up hurting yourself. Just look at me. Trying to get early to work, hit myself hard on the knee and finished tearing up my meniscus into a dark oblivion.

But I digress. For the months following that, I had to wear a knee brace. And I couldn't wear heels at all. I wore heels to my thesis defense (of which I have no outfit picture of, d'oh), and, man. Was that fun. It was a party. Seriously. I should've gotten arrested, the stuff that went down in that knee. I'm fairly sure there were illegal substances there. And candy. But, again, I veer off course. How do you dress up when you have that black thing covering your leg? (I'm sorry, brace. It's not your fault, it's just that you're properly aesthetically designed. And you were one of the better looking ones.) I did my best. While I didn't document all of my outfits, I think I was dressing better then than now. Ouch. Double ouch, when I'm reminded of the knee business again.

On the bright side, the injury has made me much more mindful of the types of shoes I buy. I think I look for quality shoes more now, whereas before, if I liked it, I wouldn't give it much of a thought. It has to fit, and it has to fit well. They also cannot hurt. I can't go around injuring myself anymore. That's what working out is for!

Oh, and I'm not crediting the clothes because
a) you're going to see a lot of them around here
b) it would take forever and you'd get bored; then where would we be?

I don't know what's going on here.

Face: Photoshop
Dress: Converse for Target
Tights: Payless, I think.
Boots: Forever 21

I think that maybe this is an example of "when statement tights go wrong". In fact, that can be a show. When Statement Tights Go Wrong! Watch tonight as Stella makes a fool of herself in badly matched attire! Don't miss it! On Blogger TV

Okay, so probably maybe this wasn't that bad. I don't know. I asked Damián and he said I looked good. Or fine. I don't remember which. I do know that I liked the outfit when I had it on, when I walked out of our apartment, and when we went to dinner. I don't like it so much now when I see the pictures.

Where did I go wrong? Maybe I shouldn't have used that color boot. Maybe the dress buttons made the outfit too busy. I don't know, but there's something that's bothering me, nagging. Oh well. The important thing is that I wore it. That I tried. Which is what we should all do! After all, style is a process of trial and error.

Outfit of the day: fighting the fashion funk

Glasses: Old Navy
Necklace: Mayagüez Fleamarket
Shirt: Old Navy
Belt: The 80s via my mom
Skirt: Cabo Rojo fleamarket
Tights: No clue.
Shoes: La Defensa

So this is one of my first outfits after my fashion slump confession. I think it feels like I'm trying too hard. But! At least this means I'm trying, right? And that's what counts! No? Cookie?

Lately, most of my outfit have some floral infusion. Be it a shirt, skirt, tights, or accessories, I just want to be covered in flowers! I think it's quite funny since less than 2 years ago the only flowers I wanted had to be in vases. Now, I see a floral print and cannot help but gravitate towards it.

In retrospect, the shoes may have been too much. But the only other high heeled oxfords I have are black and I didn't want to wear black that day. :/