Webster Skirt #1: Yikes!

It took me a lot longer than it should have to decide what to style for all of you this week. I ultimately settled on this eyeleted skirt, an adorable little number from The Webster for Target collection.

The weather has turned cold and rainy again here, but I categorically refused to wear tights and/or boots. So, I just pretended that it was sunny, and wore the skirt bare-legged with flats.

Skirt: Webster/Target (here)

Cardigan: Halogen/Nordstrom (here)

Cami: Herberger's

Shoes: Aldo (here)

Head band: Nordstrom (here)

Necklace: La Vie Parisienne/Blue Ruby (jewelry boutique in Vancouver, B.C.)

Mr. CP and I will be moving half way across the country in exactly one month. Eek! In the throes of a massive panic attack, I packed up a large chunk of my closet a couple days ago, including all but a few of my sweaters, which makes this cold snap more unpleasant than it might otherwise be. Oh, well! If perception really does shape reality as some philosophers would have us believe, I'll just continue thinking warm thoughts. I mean, thinking it's warm is the same as it actually being warm, right? Right?!

The move really snuck up on us, and now we're faced with what seems to be an insurmountable heap of crap to pack up. I've been using this as an opportunity to get rid of a lot of things we don't use anymore, but it doesn't seem to be making much difference. Mr. CP and I have been taking turns reassuring each other that everything will get done. Thankfully, we've managed to avoid joint freak outs, and I'm hoping that pattern will continue until after we're moved. Fingers crossed!

We will be flying the remaining two cats to stay with Mama and Papa CP in about a week and a half. Once we get back, we'll have a whopping 9 days to get everything packed up before we get on the road. We're currently trying to think of ways to turn packing into a game, so if you have any suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments! 

Blue Dress #2: Spring Has Sprung

Dress: Dorothy Perkins (here)

Cardigan: Anthropologie/Hibai Cardigan

Cami: Herberger's (winner of the Department Store With the Most Hilarious Moniker Award)

Head band: Nordstrom

Shoes: Aldo (here)

Necklace and earrings: DIY

I naively assumed that the Swirling Vortex of Weirdness that has surrounded me for most of my adult life had finally, at long last, dissipated. In my idealism, I assumed that whatever deity I had managed to royally piss off had deigned, in his or her infinite wisdom, to forgive any and all transgressions I had committed. It turns out that The Vortex (yes, capital 'T,' capital 'V') didn't go away. Nope. It was just building up a back log of weirdness to gleefully hurl at me at a moment of its choosing. Apparently, it chose yesterday.

Where to begin... I suppose the best place is with the least bizarre incident. It is very rarely windy here in Seattle. It wasn't unusual, then, that it wasn't windy in the slightest when I stepped outside yesterday morning. It wasn't windy while I walked to the car, or when I got out to walk to the ATM. But, conveniently, there was a single very large burst of wind as I was walking down the sidewalk along a very busy street. And that particular burst of wind was strong enough that it lifted my skirt up around my head. Naturally, I shrieked, "The fuck!?" very shrilly. Which wouldn't have been a problem if I hadn't pulled my skirt back down to the wide-eyed stares of an entire preschool troop walking to who knows where with their teachers. 

As a balm for my humiliation, I decided to head to Anthropologie to check out the semi-annual tag sale that started today. There I was, browsing the racks of items, when a woman came up to me and asked me who did my boob job. Um, 'scuse me? I don't even... What?! I toyed around with the idea of shrieking, "They came this way! Lay off!" But instead, I did what I do best: laughed awkwardly, and made an inappropriate joke. My exact response: "Mother Nature is my plastic surgeon. Who's yours?" She rolled her eyes, and looked at me disbelievingly. I'm choosing to take her question as a compliment. If I interpret it the way my brain is fighting to -- as a creepy, inappropriate query -- I run the risk of becoming even more disillusioned with my fellow human beings than I already am. So... compliment it is!

I finally made my way home to two very hyper cats (kitty number three is currently vacationing with her grandparents until we get moved next month). Anyway, Gabe (aka Boy Cat) and Luna (aka Fish) were chasing each other around the house like cats are wont to do. Fish was very naughty, and hopped up on the toilet seat, and before I could make my way to the bathroom to shoo her off, Boy Cat pushed her in. The toilet, that is. Fish fell in the toilet. Thankfully, I had just cleaned it this morning... but still. It's a toilet. Blech. So, I got to give Fish a bath today. Without the full body armor that such a chore typically demands. It was... interesting.

Anyhoodle, I'm hoping I'm all paid up on weirdness for a while. Fingers crossed.

Blue Dress #1: Crayon-y Goodness

Things that have been making me feel like this:

* Cold, rainy days

* Thoughts of packing up our house for the big move next month

* Flying the kittens to Mama and Papa CP's place until we get to Colorado

* Grumpy gills people

* The fact that the ice cream truck has been avoiding me

Things that have been making me feel like this:

* Anything Kelly Green, or Cobalt Blue

* Thoughts of moving closer to all my beautiful BFFs in Colorado

* Red lipstick

* Sunshine!

* This dress. I don't care if I get stinky. I'm never taking this thing off.

* My superfantasticalawesomeful fiance (Whew! That was a close one. I almost forgot to include him on this list... JK! JK! He was at the top with a bullet, a star, AND an exclamation point until I moved him down a few notches on the list for comedic effect. That's how I roll.)

Outfit details

Dress: Dorothy Perkins (here)

Cardigan: Nordstrom/Halogen (here)

Shoes: Aldo (similar here)

Belt: Nordstrom Rack

Head band: J. Crew

I have absolutely no idea why I'm hunched over in both of these photos. Actually, in all the photos Mr. CP took, I was in various states of hunching. Apparently I felt like getting hunchy with it... nanananananana. Ahem... I apologize for the terrible Will Smith reference. I just couldn't help myself.

Okay, as promised, I'm going to do something a bit different for the rest of May... you know, all two weeks of it. heh I'm going to pick one item from my closet, and style it for you in 3 different ways. That means you'll be getting an OOTD post three days this week, AND three days next week. I've been slacking on posting outfits, so I'm hoping this will help me get back into the swing of things. First up: this dress. Because I love it. It makes my heart soar. And it feels like jammies. And it's blue. And it lends itself to primary-color-crayon hued outfits like this one.

My Adventure

Dress: A to Z Tees/Alhambra Outlet 

Denim Jacket: Gap Outlet

Scarf: Antique Mall

Flats: Aldo

Head band: Target

So, I wore this outfit to run errands downtown yesterday, which turned out to be quite an adventure. You see, it was May 1, so naturally there was a very large group of people protesting Capitalism (because, frankly, that's what just about every protest boils down to, but don't even get me started). The police were out in full force -- some mounted on horseback, a large number in full riot gear, some on bicycles. Anyway, there I was minding my own business when all of the sudden I heard glass windows shattering across the street. Apparently some of the protestors got reeeeally angry about The Man, and decided that the best way to get back at him was to break stuff. Naturally. 

For anyone who ever doubted that my survival instincts have been bred out of me: I present to you exhibit A. Most people around me started scattering, running into stores to avoid the rioters. I, stupidly, stood there ruminating on the psychology and sociology of rioting like a complete dumbass (and also like a giant nerd, dur). When common sense eventually set in, I had two thoughts. My first thought centered around this outfit. Everyone around me was wearing varying shades of black, so in a moment of absolute paranoia, I envisioned the rioters picking a victim from the crowd to defenestrate (great word, btw). Naturally, I concluded that they would pick me because of my vibrant green dress. My second thought was to stop being a jackass, and duck into a store like everyone else around me. Which I did. For anyone who ever doubted that my survival instincts have been bred out of me: I present to you exhibit A. At any rate, my foray into Nordstrom turned out to be a fruitful trip. I found a cardigan in the same shade as this dress. Thankfully, the police calmed the rioters -- or rather herded them in a different direction -- so I was able to scoot back to the house without too much trouble.

I fully intended to do the 30 for 30 challenge this month. But THEN I thought it might be better left for next month, when Mr. CP and I will be moving to Colorado. It will make more sense to just keep a few items out to wear while everything else gets packed up. Because I want to do something fun this month, though, I'll be doing something a little different starting next week. So, tune in to find out what I've got planned.

p.s. This dress has a hole in it. Waaaaaah! I dropped it off at the tailor and they're going to stitch it right back up, thank goodness!

Bright and Cheerful

Dress: Torchon Embossed Ponte Dress/Anthropologie - Gifted (here)

Cardigan: Anthropologie

Tights: Target

Head band: Nordstrom

Shoes: Aldo (similar here)

Sorry for the radio silence lately. The bleakness of winter and spring here in the Pacific Northwest tends to leave me feeling a bit apathetic and sleepy. As a result, I haven't really been wearing anything of note. I've pretty much been living in PJs, yoga pants, and shapeless t-shirts. I want to get better about posting regular OOTD's again, though, and this post is a step in that direction.

I wore this outfit to go shopping with Mr. CP over the weekend. It's easily the brightest item in my closet. Eye-searing tangerine isn't something I ever would have been drawn to in the past, in part because I live in a place where pretty much everybody wears variations of black and grey. You can imagine how much I stood out in this number! I felt a bit out of place for a while, until I looked down and realized how happy the color of this dress made me. And at the end of the day, at least in my mind, that's what fashion is about: wearing things that make you feel happy. I had random strangers stopping to compliment me on the dress, so it appears that it was a hit with other people, too. Even Mr. CP said this dress put him in a cheerful mood, so this is my new go to "happy dress."

Mr. CP has a conference in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA later this week, so we'll be flying down the coast to sunnier climes. One of my very best friends from high school and college is finishing up his PhD in the area, so I'm going to spend some quality time with him while Mr. CP conferences it up. Mr. CP presented at the same conference a few years ago, and we met some really wonderful people while we were there. Thankfully, they're all going to be in attendance again, so I'm sensing lots of group meals and laughs.

I'm planning on doing a series of posts featuring the outfits I wear while we're in Santa Barbara. I typically like to pack pretty light, so I'll probably be doing lots of mixing and matching. 

*Which brings me to a question for all of you! I really want to take my beautiful tangerine dress with me, but I'm having a hard time figuring out alternative ways to style it. How would you style the dress?*

OOTD: [Insert Witty Title Here]

I dunno.

Back detail! Love the wings!

Shirt: Target

Skirt: Thrifted

Shoes: Aldo

I wish I could tell you what was going on in these photos. Nearly 50 photographs, and these were the best options. Mr. CP thought it would be hilarious to make me giggle throughout the process of shooting these photos, and the pictures above (particularly the last photo) are the results of his efforts.