don't put me on hold, don't put me on hold, don't put me on...DAMMIT!

This is Yessica after:
-her flight home was cancelled
-the airline bureaucracy decided to fuck her over and keep her in NYC for two more days
-her flight home is STILL fucked up and she's on hold with the airlines and can't get on standby and bitch bitch bitch wah wah wah.

I fixed everything, of course, because I'm a very capable woman. However, I am not relishing the prospect of sitting around LaGuardia until 5:30 p.m. At least I'm dressed (relatively) well.

(scarf from street vendor in NY, hand-me-down turtleneck from aunt, Samsung phone)

lawyers, guns, and money

Happy thanksgiving/black friday, everyone! I'm off to do some shizopping at my friendly hometown thrift store (50% off all clothing--when clothing costs like $5 a pop, you know you're in good hands). Peace and love.

(thrifted dress and shirt)

when did I get a third follower??

I hate when Blogger doesn't upload photos, especially on those days when you blew your last wad of cash on some amazing shirts (7 tops for $7, y'all!) and increased the quantity of black crewneck shirts/sweaters/just tops in general, y'all know what I mean, and ALSO got some madly needed color into your regrettably New-Yorker-pretension-inspired-neutral-colored wardrobe. Or on those days when you bought the first piece of lingerie-inspired everydaywear that you would actually consider wearing every day. Or when you've been re-reading the archives of Trashforce Reaper just because you can--and screw financial aid meetings and homework and rehearsal and freaking out about your impossibly hot acting teacher who thinks you're a huge fuckup--and, as a result, writing like a crazed cynical demonic gerbil on crack and quaaludes and all those things that people worried about in teen paperbacks published in 1995.

Anyway, after two fervent and wholehearted attempts at uploading photos (and you have to understand, these are some of the most perfect basics I've bought since this one misguided attempt back in June), I'm just going to ramble, and you're going to LIKE IT, BITCHES, because I'll reward you with some very rewarding links that haven't yet been put up on my list to the immediate right. Come to think of it, I probably won't add these links to the list on the right until about a week from now, because that would make this post pretty much obsolete, amirite? But of course, these are merely things other people have raved the shit out of on their own blogs, so this post may as well be obsolete, but let's consider it more of "a Jungian dip into the collective unconscious of fashion blogging" rather than "plugging the same wonderfully amazing shit that errbody and their regrettably style-unconscious mothers knows about". (P.S. My mother is super style-conscious, and is the happy exception to this rule. Can't wait to come back and dress you, Mater!)

SO. LET THE LINKAGE BEGIN.

1. Cheap JAP.
Amazing woman. What the hell. Why did I not discover her until about a week ago? Her thrifty cunning is well-nigh unmatchable, although I like to think I've matched it with my constant visits to Monk's Dollar rack (OH WAIT, did I happen to mention 7 shirts for $7, y'all?! WHAT NOW)(and hmm, maybe I forgot to mention that I picked up a 3/4 sleeve Banana Republic jacket for ONE DOLLA MAKE U HOLLA)(and maybe the cowlnecked sweaterdress, and the H&M polo that fits like a glove, and the Free People duster, and and and and etc.). H'anyway. She's amazing. Her style's nostalgic without old-fashioned, sexy without slutty, and DIY without messy. Luv it.

2. Garance Dore.
Oh come on, people. I can't NOT post about one of the greatest streetstyle bloggers of all time, who also happens to be smokin' hot but French enough to stay classy and demure even while not wearing pants? What a woman. Also, she's dating The Sartorialist (no need for linking in-post, just look slightly to your right), who is rather a hot hunk of mankind himself. QUELLE FUCKING BADASS. Pardon my French.

3. Trashforce Reaper (look up for the link, you lazy ass).
Basically, the person who I'm trying to write like/stalking now. She's hovering around somewhere inside that smoky-drinky-poor as fucky-but totally irresistible social circle that includes such gems as Kirsty Lee of That's Just My Vibe (now moved to Howl), Sandy, and Sanna. Aka all the people whose blogs I secretly lurk on and never comment on or follow because one, I have no idea how to use blogroll, and two, I'd feel too much like a poser following them around trying to absorb some of their innate cool through my lame boring American pores. WANT. SO HARDCORE. Even more irresistible because I have no idea what she looks like (though I did find one picture of her on somebody's blog covering her face and so I know she's a redhead with big eyes) and because her name is Philipa. COME ON.

Yeah, it's a short list, but that last one actually included like three other people so that should satisfy y'all. I'm off to eat Pork Sung and listen to Death Cab for Cutie.

P.S. Pork Sung is like dried meat, but it's dried in such a way that it's fuzzy. Nobody I room with likes it except for me and the girl who brought the enormous fucking jar into the dorm in the first place. I need to pay her back, because I've probably eaten about half the damn thing. As well as all her dumplings. In fact, I've pretty much eaten all my roomies' food. Such is the life of having no spendin' munies, except for that $7 which I was saving for a special occasion and just ended up blowing on moar clothing. I'M SO COOL.

frescription

(thrifted dress, Target bra, grandmother's gifted wrist rosary, hair elastic, brother's--costume--glasses)

My broski (check out his blog, over there on the link list ==>) wore these glasses for the purpose of playing Bernard in Death of a Salesman. They are coming to NYC with me (college roolz) for the purpose of augmenting my expansive glasses collection, sun- or otherwise.

I am a pretentious douchey hipster and I dun care

All thrifted, except for the black hair elastics (Walgreens) and the purple sweater (mom).

Why I like these things:

-Rumi of Fashion Toast is selling this same wrap cuff bracelet for $35 bux, and I got it at an antique store for $3. Woot!

-The cloth cuffs (50 cents each) are actually DIY bracelets made out of ties. I'm considering trying it myself, but I don't know how to attach pearl snaps to things, so for now I'll stick to the ones I bought.

-I feel like a pretentious douchey hipster in this charcoal gray scarf (see above). I even looped it around my neck in the pretentious douchey hipster style. I saw Weezy do this at a concert. It made me question his street cred. Oh well. It's cute and surprisingly warm.

-Navy blue Fayfarers (fake Wayfarers, but you knew that)! Love them. So funky. Forget that I once made fun of a friend for being "super original" in his Ray-Bans. I can be a pretentious douchey hypocritical hipster if I want to.

-Oh, and the sweater's really comfy. It doesn't show in the pictures (damn webcam) but it's a lovely lavender with a nice V-neck. Also, it's a medium and is thus nice and slouchy on me. Just like the real fashion bloggers (I am a fake--I never update and I take shitty pictures.)

The Bella jacket (see below) is treating me rather well too, despite being slightly tight in the arms. Now I just need lots of colors to pair it with. Too bad I only dress in dark neutrals.

the utterly fabulous jacket of yesterpost

(BB Dakota Bella jacket, gapbody tank, thrifted rainbow miniskirt)

Thanks to the wonderful Sally of Already Pretty, I am the proud owner of the cutest jacket ever. It's industrial, sturdy, girly, edgy, versatile, warm, comfortable, cozy, fitted, flattering, stylish, punky, and downright amazing.

I love it. To itty bitty bits.

a winner is me!

See this totally BA jacket? Perhaps you've seen it in a little hit movie called TWILIGHT. What am I saying, of course you have. Everyone's seen TWILIGHT. Who doesn't love TWILIGHT?

Now this jacket is MINE. Mine, I tell you, muahahaha. I won it in the latest contest over at

Already Pretty, which is a blog I highly recommend you check out, not just for the awesome stuff you could win over there (which is a plus), but for the amazingness of its writing and its reassurance that we all, despite our non-model looks and thrift store clothes, are gorgeous and stylish people. GO FORTH AND READ.

p.s. expect the jacket to be shown on this blog. I don't know when (as I don't know when it's coming to me) but expect it.

a contact sport, let the neighbors talk

Still awake at 2:15 in the ack emma, feeling deeply dippy and strangely fine.
Wearing a thrifted H&M tank, a thrifted straw hat, and a Gilligan&O'Malley bra from Tar-jayy.

A quick peek at my coat (among other things) rack, containing a big chunky circular Western belt, several denim jackets (the blue thingys), a vintage Diane von Furstenberg (the pink thingy), some actual coats (the brown thingys), and several scarves (far right). And towels. So handy for dryness-retention.

One of my latest shoe purchases--thrifted square-toed red platform Tommy Hilfiger chunky-heeled loafers. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? And to a certain extent, yes, it is, but these shoes are SUPER TALL (taller than even my go-to Bobbi Blu platform wedges) and thus allow me to put off going to the tailor's to hem my pants for, oh, at least another month or fifty.

Thanks, Goodwill (aka the best-kept secret in the West Suburbs)!

it's up there with Star Wars and pumpkin pie

I have an intense craving for a ponytail.

Not that my hair was ever this sleek, but there were days when I could pull all of it back and look super sexy.  Seriously, you guys.  All the boys wanted to do me SO BAD.

THIS is pretty much why I love the ponytail.  Look at it!  It's elegant, it's flattering, it's slightly sporty, slightly edgy, and has that "I look great without trying too hard" quality which is so important in style.  For some reason, ponytails make anyone look five pounds thinner and eight years younger.  That's an exact calculation.  Thank you, math.

This is just ugly, but not ugly enough to dissuade me from wanting a ponytail.  I will conquer you yet, 80's references!

Also, I want a messy bun.  For some reason, my mind's self-image includes a messy bun, Batman t-shirt, and dark jeans.

All the sporty girls in my high school had this exact hairdo, like, every day.  Messy, slightly curly/greasy bun, minimal makeup, and an elastic headband.  I never owned an elastic headband (or could wear one without killing my scalp) but they seemed like the height of fashion to me because, well, all the cool girls wore them.  Silly high school girl.

Those of you who have ponytails (which is basically 78% of the female U.S. population, and about 13% of the male): YEA or NEIGH?

Also, stupid "pony"-related puns:  yea or nay?  (I swear to god, I almost typed 'yeigh' and 'neigh' and had to forcibly restrain myself.)

TThhee OOuuttffiitt

Necklace: Claire's
Shirt: thrifted Gap
Skirt: thrifted AA
Tights: whateva
Shoes: thrifted Converse

This skirt plus tights equals easy high waist/muffin top coverage. Thank you, tight elastic waistband!

This skirt minus tights, on the other hand, equals people seeing my underwear as soon as I even think about bending over.

So tights are a must.

(P.S. the Converse kind of look like clown shoes because they're a size too big on me. I will not succumb to the buy-it-and-leave-it urge. THESE WILL BECOME STAPLES OF MY WARDROBE, GODDAMNIT.)

I'm pretty sure I have never posted twice in one day

...except for that one time, I think back when I started. Which was a long time ago, and not at all proportional to how many posts this blog has. Which I think this makes 31. Whatever.

These are some things I found sitting in my unbearably messy room between the bed and the wall.

This is a vase. It was under my bed and I used it for a scene four months ago and had no need for it ever againsies. Now it lives under my bed. With the monsters.



My first and only Moleskine. The lack of spiral binding annoys me, because spiral binding makes drawing so much easier, but I have managed to fill this up with a considerable number of artworks, including this one on the folder in the back:

It IS good, goddamnit.

A B.A. black leather wallet from Claire's ($1! Incontheivable!) with studs and a buckle and stuff. Cow products are nummy.

This fan smells AMAZING. It is the only example of perfumed wood that I have ever actually encountered in the real live world. Did you ever read Memoirs of a Geisha? This fan is like that for me, but brought to life. If I had been Sayuri, I would have spent my entire career sniffing fans.

There are plenty more saved on my webcam, but the last thing the Internet needs is moar picturespamming. Maybe someday I'll reveal them to you. Muahahahaha.

A few of my favorite THINNNNNNGSSSSS

From the top!

Hair: staying in place, for once.

Marie Claire July 2009: featuring Cameron Diaz, who looks amazing in all-denim.
White cable-knit sweater: once belonged to my mother. Now fulfills all my needs for a hot-weather sweater, a piece of The One Hundred, and Rumi-style outfits.

Straw sunhat: Another piece of The One Hundred. Delightfully girly. Reminds me of The Stylish Wanderer.

Harley-Davidson harness boots: O EM GEE SO BADASS. Thrifted in perfect condition for a mere $10. Slightly One Hundred-y (kind of substitutes for Frye Harness Boots, right?)

Converse: Totally on Nina Garcia's list. Too big on me and totally beat up (shlumpy, doodled-0n, the whole shebang) but thrifted for 5 bucks. Completely worth it.

This list is totally subject to change at any time, btdubbs. Right now I have my eye on this pair of slightly flooding, slightly Western beige pants at the thrift store three blocks away. They look so cool with Converse, you guys. So hipster.

(p.s. I'm such a hipster, I've spent yesterday and today in baggy sweaters and leggings-as-pants. The one you can barely see in the picture is Tommy Hilfiger Jeans, in case you wanted to know.)

Vod

Things I wore, foods I ate, and faces I made today:

It looks like pig slop, but is actually two kinds of bread with garlicky butter on top. The darker one is banana. It was a bitch to toast. But delicious. P.S. I ate a plum too, but that was before I took this picture.

The dress is an old maxi from my grandmother, the belt is vintage and incredibly long. I'd shorten it but I'm afraid of ruining it. I love it though. So cowboy.

Twice in the past two months, someone has told me I look like Natalia Vodianova. Strange, right? The last one (my darling friend Vlada) sent me links to an old shoot of hers (Dec 03) starring Gaultier, Karl, Donatella, etc...

(ps forgive the chipmunk cheeks I was chewing breadstuffs)

You can find the rest HERE.

Perfectsummeroutfitsexclamationpoint

Gray tank with black stripes--thrifted H&M
Jean shorts--chopped up brother jeans
Jeans--stolen from brother's giveaway pile
Heeled sandals--thrifted Kenneth Cole Reaction

Apologies for the blurriness.

Most everything basic that I thrift is H&M, Kenneth Cole Reaction, or Divided (sub-brand of H&M). These brands seem to make the perfect (and perfectly unappreciated, judging by the level of wear on the stuff I end up buying) basics. I just thrifted six shirts the other day, all of which were H&M or Divided. Then I went back a day later to buy the sandals. Odd, right?

I was in doubt about this tank top, because I always look at it in the pile and am like "This doesn't suit me at all". And then I try it on and I'm like, "This is PERFECT!" I don't quite get it, either.

In re: the jeans: these are the most perfect man-pants I've ever worn. The other pair (eventually scrapped for shorts, see above) were too blocky and made me look not nearly as lithe and kickass as I am.

SO DAMN COLORFUL

(shirt, thrifted. rainbow cuffs, street vendor in NYC. star bracelet, claire's. peace bracelet, claire's. peace sign ring, claire's. long beaded necklace, claire's. chunky beaded necklace, strawberry. short beaded necklace, claire's. tiny choker that you can barely see because it's hiding, gift from the family.)

My outfits since I returned home from school:

-Black t-shirt and jeans.
-Grey t-shirt and navy skirt.
-Black turtleneck and browny-grey skirt.
-Black button-down and browny-grey skirt.
-Black A-line dress.
-Dark purple t-shirt, black turtleneck, and jeans.
-Any or all of the above with black boots, black ballet flats, black platform sneakers, black belt (hahakarate), black tights, and/or black leggings.

The most interesting piece of clothing I've worn all summer so far has been a pair of electric blue walking shorts, and even those were framed with black. Black t-shirt, black flats. My wardrobe has been, to say the least, BORING. I've justified it with the fact that dark neutrals are chic and timeless, and it's not like I don't look good, I just don't look very interesting.

The cry goes up from the townsfolk, "O Woe! How shall our dearest Yessie Bear save herself from the black abyss of boredom?"

And I state, with a voice as booming as a thunderstorm at sea:

"RAINBOWS."

And the townsfolk respond, slightly confused, "Why?"

And I give them my reasons:

-Rainbows go with everything. It's all the colors put together! It's practically a neutral! You really can't go wrong with rainbows, because they match, well, EVERYTHING.
-Rainbows have positive sociocultural implications (GAY PRIIIIIIDE).
-Rainbows are FUN. Who doesn't look at a rainbow in the sky and crack a smile? NOBODY. Not even Old Man Grumpus can resist good ol' Roy G. Biv.
-Rainbows are PRETTY, too, and they're part of nature. If you're accused of wearing too many brights, or too many colors that can't be found in nature (which, actually, is a bit of an impediment to looking chic, as style should appear effortless and unnatural colors are, well, unnatural), you can toss your chic hair and say in your most chic voice "Why don't you try refracting light through a prism sometime? Maybe you'll learn a thing or two", and trot away. Chicly, of course.

HOWEVER, even I have to adjust rainbows to suit my personal style, because they have the potential for mega tacky if done wrong. Thus:

-I don't own any rainbow tops. Bright colors covering the entire upper half of my body wash out my face (on the pale side of peaches and cream) and my (grayish-green) eyes. I keep them to accessories, or to the occasional skirt (I have one crazy handmade-looking mini that gets worn over jeans, and a plaid pencil skirt).
-I don't wear enormous amounts of rainbow accessories at a time. Today, for example, I wore a black collared t-shirt, boyfriend jeans, and a gumball beaded rainbow necklace. If I really want to go overboard, I might wear my rainbow mini with a bracelet or two, or maybe my peace sign ring. But generally I stick to the tried and true 'neutrals with a pop' method.
-My rainbows don't have primary colors. My necklaces stick to the pastel-y pinks and rich fuschia kind of rainbows; turquoises, teals, oranges, burgundies, magentas, purples, golds, mustards, greens, hot pinks galore, even browns (which is an unexpected neutral to set off rainbow colors with and thus much more interesting than plain old black). While Roy G. Biv is great, I need less expected colors (secondaries, tertiaries, etc.) to make my look a little more modern and funky than classic and, well, predictable. (It took me a while to warm up to my peace sign ring for this reason; it has the 'classic' rainbow coloring and is bordered by black and looked a little twee at first--though now I adore it!)

Lately, all my shopping sprees have drawn me to the accessories aisles to find my latest rainbow bracelet, or ring, or necklace. What's your latest color-related obsession?(closeup on necklace details. ignore the blink. claire's, gifted, strawberry, claire's.)

(the crazy handmade-looking miniskirt; my first and favorite piece of rainbow attire. thrifted.)

(the plaid pencil skirt; not exactly rainbow, but full of poppy fascinating colors that it basically qualifies. also thrifted.)

ehmyuhschmoozetastic

My new favoritest picture of me, like, ever. That sweater(dress?) cost me a dollar. IT'S AMAZING.

I know, I look like a schmooze. But in a way that's like "DAMN, I look fantastic and I paid about $10 to look this good."

(thrifted sweater(dress), thrifted belt, leggings from a random knockoff shop on 14th, Nine West boots that are invisible in this picture)

sweat suit alternative

(all thrifted, pants originally from Express)

Tim Gunn knows what he's talking about. I wore this to lunch with a friend, who commented enthusiastically on the duster. I call it my "Jedi Robe". Yeah. I'm a dweeb.

when you kiss me heaven sighs

(thrifted dress, thrifted cap)

This dress begs to be slouched up with torn, ugly jeans. I met it halfway with a newsie cap.

Lily Donaldson WOULD have perfect taste in little black dresses.

I seriously changed my clothes like four times today, except for the black tights.

Oh, and I've been listening to Roisin Murphy nonstop since last night, so let me know if you're lonely, babe.

(dress, vintage H&M. tights, Strawberry. shoes, thrifted. belt, thrifted. iPod, Apple. Hair, self-cut.)