i love Joan Holloway

Mad Men continues to be an incredible influence on fashion trends, even as the show moves into its fourth season. Horn rimmed glasses, brooches and ornate hats are everywhere throughout the show, so it's no wonder it's started to filter into fashion.

Cooperative Double Play Dress, Urban Outfitters

Ready-to-wear 2008 Spring collection, Marc Jacobs

Claudette Hat, ModCloth

Lo-Res heel, United Nude

oh 50s, i love your skirts so

It could be just my love of Mad Men, but Peter Lindbergh's Vogue editorial looks absolutely wonderful. Let's just hope we don't have to wait another 18 years to see the next one.









Via Fashionologie

today i am a señorita

vintage sheer red shirt (Nadia's House of Serendipity)
vintage Spanish skirt (Gilles Street Markets)
mustard flats (Betts)

Today's outfit was inspired by a) it being waaaaay too hot to wear yesterday's clothes*, and b) this bag from Gary Pepper Vintage.



Most of the time that's how I choose what to wear. It's not usually a case of weather or practicality. It's more like "this is awesome and I need to wear it today, like right now. How can I make this happen?", and then hoping you have the right skirt/top/belt/whatever to help pull it together.

Of course, sometimes, it doesn't work, and I end up with half my wardrobe** on the bed. But I've found a way around that as well. I close my eyes, take a deep, calming breath, and think about the clothes. Then I put on whatever combination that occurs to me***. Most of the time, it's the first outfit I tried, but with a different vest/belt/etc. But whatever happens, it's always infinitely better than standing in front of my wardrobe in my underwear, being frustrated at my clothes.



* 30 degrees in autumn/winter! It's crazy.
** okay, not that much (because that would be a lot of clothes), but a big pile of clothes.
*** try it next time you're stuck on what to wear. I swear, it helps.

Winter Prep

I read a lot of fashion blogs, and a large amount of them are for countries where right now it's snowing outside instead of ice-cream-melting-sun-burning heat. While this is good (it always helps to know what styles will be coming in during the winter, since most of the stuff in Australian stores is at the very least influenced by the USA/UK/Europe), this is also bad, since it makes me want to buy coats and not, say, singlet tops.

The main offenders are Hel Looks and Copenhagen Street Style which are almost making me wish for cold weather. I think I like the outfits on Copenhagen Street Style more, but I like that Hel Looks always adds the name, age (most of the time), fashion influences/inspiration, and sometimes even where/when they got certain items.

Old School Style

Vintage-inspired looks have been making a comeback as of late, which is something I can defiantly get behind. I've always loved older styles, especially the late 50s/early 60s stuff, every since I bought my first high-waisted floral skirt allllll they way back in year 9 of high school. So naturally when I heard about Mad Men, which takes place during that exact era and designers were citing the show as an influence, I had to see it.

I loved it. Even setting the amazing clothes aside, the show itself - the characters, the plot, the dialogue between characters - is absolute perfection. Even the casual sexism of the male characters doesn't bother me too much (it's not like they could take it out of the show), because the show itself isn't sexist. Each episode gives as much time to the lives of Betty, Joan and Peggy as it does to Don, Roger and Pete.

The women of Mad Men (L-R: Betty, Joan and Peggy)

I've only seen the first season so far, but already my love of Betty and Joan knows no bounds (my love of Peggy, not so much, but I hear she gets more awesome next season).

Betty Draper

Betty's Grace-Kelly-esque style is one of my favourite styles in the show. She always looks the part of a perfect 50s housewife, even when (spoiler) daydreaming about the door-to-door salesman or being asked for a lock of hair by a neighbourhood child.

Get Betty's look: (clicking on the pretty pictures takes you to their store)

Joan Holloway

Joan is my favourite character, so I'm probably being a little biased when I tell you that she is awesome. She has curves and is sassy and bitchy and so confident. I know I should like Peggy more because she has aspirations to have a career outside of being a secretary. But I think that's the beauty of Joan's character: she's good at what she does, and she looks the best doing it.

But really, anything that figure-hugging and shows off your curves works wonders if you're going for the Joan look. Bold colours and cuts match Joan's personality because she has a confidence to carry it off - and you guys should too.

Get Joan's look:

Fashion Under the Influence

(from Hark! A Vagrant)

Today for my Adaptations class we watched the 1995 miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice*, and while watching it I couldn't help but wonder how much of my fashion taste has been influenced by watching the series when I was little.

For example, my love-standing love of bonnets, particularly of the straw-and-flowers variety:THEY ARE SO CUTE, but so hard to find.

And my love of crop-jackets:

(especially this one, the puffy sleeves are so adorable)

Not to mention my love of Colin Firth, rufflely-haired men in suits (I had waaay too much fun fiding those pictures), old fashioned dances and tea, and my dislike of boy-chasers (see: every scene with Lydia in it).

Despite that fact that my mother is quite a tomboy, I turned out to be quite the girly-girl, and I think this might go some way to explain it.


*if you've only ever seen the newer Keira Knightley version SHAME ON YOU, the mini series is way better.