sleepy lazy days

I haven't written much. Things have just been sort of meh.

I'm gearing up for a grueling week at work. Usually I work about thirty hours a week, which is tiring enough (and this is coming from the girl who used to work nearly fifty hours in the hot Orlando sun!). But the alterations manager is on vacation, so we're all working extra. I'm working five days in a row, which might possibly kill me. So I've spent most of the day in my pajamas, nibbling on my leftover corned beef sliders from the pub.

I might have to revamp my goals a little bit. I picked so many arduous, long-term sorts of things that while I've made progress, I haven't completed anything. And that makes me feel a little dumb.

Oh, well. Onwards and upwards, I suppose!

Sleeping Beauty

Today was a lovely, lazy day...so no outfit post. No sewing, no writing...no wrangling bridal gowns at the shop.

Kat came over and we enjoyed lunch from Panera and a movie marathon. It's nice to spend time with my friends without school or work interfering.

She introduced me to a game called Dark Parables: The Curse of Briar Rose. It's a PC search-and-find game based on Sleeping Beauty. It's terribly addicting, and I beat the easy level in a few hours.

It's very atmospheric and appeals to the logic side of my brain. And it also piqued my interest towards my ideas for a Sleeping Beauty-inspired novel. I've dabbled in it on and off since my sophomore year of high school, but playing the game gave me some great ideas.

Also, the princess will be named Faustina. I think it's pretty.

altogether separate

You know, I'm not quite sure why I started this blog. Honestly, I feel a little narcissistic. A blog all about me, me, me...

And it's not like I've never blogged before. I actually maintained a blog for about two years, writing about school and theater and my wedding and working in Orlando. I just got the urge to start something new, and here I am.

I went for a walk today, and with plenty of time to think, I mused about my blogging. And I think I know why I started this.

I've gone through a lot of changes in a very short amount of time. Since last December, I performed my last university role, graduated from college, got my first "grown up" job, got married, and moved out of the house. That's a lot of upheaval in the span of five months.

And in those five months, I've gone from someone who identified herself as a single girl, a student, and an actress. Now I'm just your average housewife...and I don't want to be that.

I have always been stubborn and fiercely independent, and getting engaged never changed that. Don't get me wrong- I feel that getting married was the right thing for me to do, and I love P dearly. But while we were engaged, we were at separate schools an hour apart. I could still stay out late, spend hours in rehearsal, and lounge around my private room. Now I'm living in a rather small apartment, married, and without classes or rehearsals to go to. While P and I still have our separate friends and hobbies, I am still rebelling a bit against the fact that I am a wife.

I think I have to re-identify myself, especially when it comes to my hobbies. I've been in theater since I was three years old; I've been involved with 34 different productions. The last time I went a full year without being involved with a show I was in kindergarten. I feel a bit lost without the constancy of auditions, memorizing lines, showing up at rehearsals. And I definitely miss the camaraderie.

I think I'm blogging to find myself. And I think that's why I started a new blog, rather than continuing the old one. My original blog was full of college-girl insecurities and problems that I don't deal with anymore. My life is completely different, and I think I needed a new outlet.

And I think that I'm turning to fashion as a way of expressing myself, now that I no longer have a reliable source of theater. Well, fashion and writing. I have a lot of novels and short stories tumbling round in my head right now...

So that's that.

Although, before I close this entry, I just want to reiterate one last point. Yes, I am stubborn and independent, but I am also completely sure that I was meant to get married, and meant to be married to P. No amount of stubbornness can change that fact.

biting the bullet

Well, I did it. I opened a new Etsy shop. It needs a spiffy banner, but if you go to Good Call, Baby Doll on Etsy, it'll take you right to me.

So far I only have two listings: a custom stomacher gown, and a custom chemise a la reine. I'll add the ruffled frock gown, standard frock gown, and pinner apron as well, but right now I have other things to do. Like picking out an awesome outfit, and getting ready to go thrifting.

But in the meantime, please visit here!:

fashionably late and baby steps

I'm late to the fashion party, so to speak.

I have never really been considered fashionable. My childhood was spent in whatever my mother dressed me in- it wasn't until middle school that I realized that my high-waisted straight-leg jeans and tucked-in polo shirts were dorky. I have always been self-conscious, so I spent the next few years trying vainly to dress like my peers.

In the middle of my freshman year of high school we moved to northern Kentucky, right on the border of Ohio, and I entered a new school for the first time since kindergarten. And this new school required uniforms. The next two and a half years were fun for me- collecting neutral-colored but exciting shoes, wearing mismatching socks and crazy earrings, and dolling up my incredibly long hair.

However, we moved to Tennessee two weeks before my senior year of high school started. Now I had to follow a strict dress code...I would have preferred to have a uniform. I wore dress pants and collared shirts day in and day out for that entire year.

When college hit, I was attacked by the freshman...well, thirty-five or so, and launched into an up-and-down weight battle that is still going on. I wore ill-fitting jeans (even short lengths are too long on me) and lots of knit tops from the junior's department.

Yes, I wanted pretty clothes, but I didn't know what I was looking for. In fact, I still don't.

All I know for sure is that I want a wardrobe that I can mix-and-match, and I want it to be primarily dresses. I discovered in my last year of school that I was much more comfortable and felt more like myself when I wore dresses instead of pants, and I've only worn jeans three times so far this year.

Unfortunately, my wardrobe isn't very well planned. I need to design outfits that can go together from the beginning, and then start mixing and matching from there. The thing is, I don't know what I want.

A lot of people can define their style: preppy, punk, rocker chic, trendy, vintage. What's mine? Eclectic, I guess, which is a nice way of saying that nothing I own goes together.

I have to embark on a planned journey towards a real style. And believe me, I've read the books about "what fashion staples every woman needs." But what do I need with khaki slacks and oxfords?

I've found a starting point...but I hope it's not too creepy. I've just been a huge fan of The Clothes Horse for about a year now, and I've realized that her style is the closest to what I'd like to wear. I've been rereading her blog archives and studying the pieces that she has, trying to figure out what pieces I need to look for.

Like I said...it's kind of stalkerish. But I'm really fashionably desperate. And I love her style.

Baby steps towards dressing better, that's all it is. It's going to be a long process...I hope everything works out in the end!

spendthrift?

I will be the first to admit that I have been indulging my shopping desires a little too much lately.

The big thing is that I NEED TO AVOID EBAY. Plain and simple. If I go on ebay, I bid. "What harm is one bid?" I think to myself.

And then I've placed bid after bid after bid...and I win them. Then I must pay. Gah.

Plus, I succumbed to the siren song of JoAnn's. This is the first time I've gone to the one in Madison, and I am completely impressed. Their fabric selection is wider and has better quality cuts than the one in Cool Springs. I think it's because the Cool Springs one is busier.

I went in with a list...and came out with a completely different list of projects to be made. I'm actually happier with these fabrics than my original plan, but still.

I think I need to plan my shopping trips better, rather than constantly changing what I'm looking for. I've created a list of basics that I need to look for...maybe that will help me create outfits that look pretty and cohesive.

In the meantime, I'm going to plan my outfit for tomorrow. I'm working an afternoon-to-close shift...and it's probably going to be hot. So...skirt and tee shirt? Yes, skirt and tee shirt.

But in the meantime, I'm terribly in love with this pattern:

Gorgeous and versatile.

(and I've had it for a month or two already...)

in which we learn that both I and my camera are dumb

Ready for YET ANOTHER round of good news and bad news?

Good news: Turns out my crappy camera does have a timer. It was a present for my nineteenth birthday, and I just now realized that.

(item: I am twenty-three years old right now.)

Bad news: My camera promptly died whilst taking a picture, and didn't save the file properly. And I have to leave for work.

Ergo, no outfit picture until this evening.

In the meantime, please enjoy this video of a man getting hit in the face by a water balloon.

good news...bad news

Good news: My outfit is decent...so I think I might post for the very first time on Wardrobe Remix.

Bad news: My husband is asleep, and my camera doesn't have a timer. So this might have to wait until this evening, after eight hours at work and a trip to JoAnn's (I'm out of machine needles).

In the meantime, please enjoy this video of a rabbit opening an envelope.

make 'n' shop

What am I thinking about right now?


I've dabbled with owning an Etsy shop, but it's never been very successful. I'd really like to sell things I've made and offer commissioned costumes...I just don't know what I'm going to call it.

If I ever design an original line of clothing, I have a name for it. But should I go ahead and make a new Etsy shop for it, while the current (meager) shop languishes? Or should I just spruce up the current one?

Decisions, decisions...

Portrait of the Blogger as a Young Girl

My sister posted some old childhood photos of us...I think we were pretty cute kids.

(And in case you were wondering, I'm older by four years.)

I'm probably watching Sesame Street while my mother tries to take a picture.

That was my all time favorite sleepwear. I called it my ballerina nightgown.

I actually got that same doll for Christmas again last year.

Yes, Belle was definitely my favorite princess when I was little.

I always loved reading...Lindsay liked looking at the pictures. Now that we're almost grown ups, I love to write and she loves to draw.

The first day of third grade for me, the first day of kindergarten for Lindsay. And more proof that Belle was my favorite princess!

My mouth looks funny because I had to wear an orthodontic piece called a frankel for several years. It was painful, but it meant that I only wore braces for a year and half.

So that's a handful of pictures from the past. Although I don't think I would want to wear any of the outfits ever again.

Except the pink dress. I might wear the pink dress again...

But just for fun, here's my sister and I now! This was taken at my bachelorette party in February. She bought that red coat at a thrift store, and that night two drunk gay men tried to buy it from her while we were at IHOP at three in the morning. She wouldn't let them buy it, but she did let the blond one try it on. It was hilarious.

Good grief...

This is an excellent evening to stay inside with a good book, hot chocolate, and a really large blanket.

But it would be ever so much better if the hubster had decided to stay home with me instead of going down to Green Hills to play video games with the guys. You see, I-24 is flooded. Badly flooded. Submerged, even.

So now I'm sitting alone on the couch, alone, sulking, aimlessly wandering through the internet while watching How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days. He'll be home soon, though, for which I am truly grateful.

I would post my outfit for the day- the Soda Fountain Dress from Modcloth with a petticoat, silver ballet flats, shiny blue trench- but I arrived home rather bedraggled. So no picture.

And my dinner was rather dull- seared tuna and seasoned pasta. So no thrilling recipes.

I have no music, no movies, no books, no theater, no cupcakes, no babies (maybe...), and therefore I am as dull as dishwater this evening.

Therefore, please enjoy this video of a cat trying to run up a slide.


Have a good evening.