Showing posts with label graduation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label graduation. Show all posts

Friday, July 3, 2009

A DIY Grad

Just a quick post on my graduation dress and my first brush with DIY:


The dress was a lovely $5 find from the thrift store (the tag says it's from Express), but it originally was just the strapless dress and a bit longer. With one day before graduation, I felt like the dress wasn't quite special enough for the occasion, so I hemmed my dress to above my knee and bought a $4 scarf from Wet Seal in this pretty green tone that matched the pattern on my dress. I cut up the scarf and sewed a few rosettes on the front waistline and twisted part of it to make a strap.

Friday, June 19, 2009

The Gift of Graduation

I just wanted to share two items I got for graduation. One was from my mother, and one I bought myself.

For a while, my mother had this gift card to Coach for $388, and she hadn't used it for the longest time. We had planned on getting a bag that we both could use, but recently she's found some bags that fit her needs and still hasn't gotten around to spending that gift card. Ridiculous, I know...but we're both very picky about our purchases. Then, a few weeks ago, she offered the card to me as a graduation gift -- she figured that our prior plan of sharing a purse wouldn't be practical while I was away at college (by the way, I'm still deciding whether or not to reveal my college...). I was so excited, and in typical me form, obsessed for weeks and weeks about which purse to pick. I knew I wanted a brown one, so I could wear it with both black and non-black looks, and so it would go with the various other neutrals I insist on wearing (mainly every neutral colour besides brown).

Finally, finally, I settled on a purse. I brought my most Coach-knowledgable friend to the Coach store on Michigan Ave. and selected a small chocolate brown purse. It's a good thing I came when I did -- there were only 7 of that bag left in the country!

Of course, I haven't removed the tag yet and probably won't for another week. But that's just the way I ensure I really want something.


I kind of wanted to get a special something for myself this summer, and was debating on whether to splurge on a nice pair of summer sandals or a great pair of sunglasses. I settled on a pair of sunglasses, because I figured I could wear those for more than two years, whereas a splurge-able pair of sandals might be on the trendier side, and therefore not as necessary to be reliable for more than a year.

I've been passing by the new Loehmann's on State Street, which is kind of like a bigger Nordstrom Rack. I recently discovered their sunglasses section, which is filled with a wide array of hit-or-miss designer sunnies (and an odd amount of Jessica Simpson sunglasses. Really?). I had tried on full-priced designer sunglasses, and concluded that the Ray-Ban aviators worked well with my face shape. Unfortunately for me, they were $100+. Not so good for a high-schooler. So after visiting Loehmann's for a little while, I started going back to two pairs of sunglasses: a red plastic framed pair of Marc by Marc Jacobs sunglasses, and a pair of bronze Missoni aviators. Now, one of the problems with shopping at a place like Loehmann's is that you get lots of odd, cast-off sunglasses. The MJ glasses, while cute, were a little goofy. One might interpret it as kitschy in a good way, but...in general, I try to aim for older-looking things, and red plastic frames certainly did not say "older." The Missoni aviators were pretty, but again, kind of leaning towards cast-off; they had twisty curly-que details on the sides and were veering into "bug" territory with the size of the frames.

Then, one day, when I walked into Loehmann's fully expecting to have an internal debate as to what style of sunglasses I should buy, I came upon these:


Yep, those are Ray-Bans. And yep, they're $60. Granted, they're a little pricier than the Missoni glasses ($45) and the Marc by Marc Jacobs sunglasses ($55), but...I loved the style and I loved the frame colour and...come on, they're Ray-Bans!

I am officially in love. Of course, I haven't taken the tag off of these either and I've been having many internal debates as to whether I am being too excessive with my purchases, but today I came thisclose to taking off the tag. Maybe tomorrow I'll actually use scissors.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

What's Next?

Holy moly.


I'm not in high school anymore...

Though it may not have clicked yet, at the same time, it's all I can think about. The two nails on my wall which I posted about earlier host clothes that represent my mood; my cap and gown have been hanging there ever since graduation.

After having gone to the same school since kindergarten, it's a weird feeling knowing that I never have to go there again. I'm excited for college, but sad to leave a place which holds so many fun memories.

I've been so caught up in graduation fests and a new internship that I've hardly had time to post, but I'm basically brimming with things to share, so expect more things as I continue to be in denial about the newest chapter of my life.