black capricorn day

since the weather decided to stay warm and needs no more incentives from me, i decided i can do an all black outfit for a change and get away with it. i missed doing that, and though everybody is pulling their most vibrant colors out of the closet these days, it felt somewhat right. it doesn't mean my mood has changed or i am feeling down or anything, i just felt like doing something i am most comfortable with. color is not my strong point, and while my spring and summer wardrobe does contain a lot of color, they're not really strong, bold ones, in your face and such. darker colors are definitely my comfort zone. like i said before, my style tends to be all over the place, since my inspiration is drawn from japanese fashion, rock/punk/indie music, manga cartoons, french  and italian films or burlesque costumes. to me lace is one of the most versatile fabrics as it is on one side very fragile, delicate and feminine and on the other one mysterious, erotic and dark. so yeah, i fell like a bad girl today, and i like it!

 shirt: thrifted * pants: stradivarius * shoes: random

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lessons learned

one thing i learned is in fashion you should never say never. things you might hate now and vow never to buy or wear might come back later and bite you in the ass. let's take a trip down memory lane and try to visualize all the horrible trends from the 80s and early 90s you never though would come back to see the light of day, and yet they did. of course, trends always come back in an updated manner, they are reinterpreted and reworked to suit the current demands. i remember less than 10 years ago i wouldn't be caught dead wearing anything high waisted. take for example this denim skirt i thrifted about 5 years ago. up until recently i've always worn it in such way as to hide the high waist. i never tucked in my tops and shirts and went for a more casual and relaxed look. now, i couldn't love its high waist more. it instantly makes any outfit more polished and chic. a stripped t-shirt seemed the perfect match for it, and i actually fastened the belt a few holes back  to make it rise up even higher. turned out a bit on the french side, n'est pas? j'adore ce look!

t-shirt: thrifted * skirt: esprit, thrifted * tights, shoes: random * belt: gift

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manga

growing up i used to watch a lot of manga/anime cartoons. the characters were so unlike anything i had ever seen before. the big staring eyes, the huge tears, the pigtails and school uniforms, the knee socks and big bows and all the wonderful adventures they embarked on. i was fascinated. i still watch manga movies from time to time and since then i developed quite a huge fascination for japanese culture. i guess i still associate knee socks with manga girls and it was so much fun putting together this little outfit. seems like these days my childhood haunts me in very pleasant ways. i haven't worn knee socks since i was a kid, and seems to me the more i grow up the more i want to become a kid again. but that's just human nature i guess. i do believe we become sad little people once the kid inside us disappears, so we should definitely keep celebrating childhood every day.

 blazer: thrifted * dress: h&m * socks: ? * shoes: red lips

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the kid in me

every time i visit my parents i turn back into a kid again. must be the fact i'm sleeping in my old room, mom bakes bread and cakes and everything smells so nice in the morning and we all sit together watching tv and end up dozing off. this weekend, just like old times, me and my sister went through our mom's closet trying on her dresses and shoes. we would always play dress up when we were kids while our parents were at work. but this time around, the dresses my mom wore back then actually fit us. she really has some amazing dresses, most of them custom made at the tailor's with specific instructions she gave. the truth is, back when she was young you didn't have much choice but make your own clothes if you could sew, or have them made at the tailor's. i ended up taking a purple summer dress (yeah i know, purple, what a surprise) for a shoot in the park and i'm keeping it. turns out most of my mom's dresses are quite see through so i had to borrow a slip from her, but i do need to find one of my own. i need to hit the thrift stores in search of one, cause i don't think they make them anymore. or at least not like they used to.

cardigan: missy glam * dress: vintage * shoes: amanda, my sister's

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the edges are no longer parallel

to be honest there wasn't a lot of thought put into this outfit i wore yesterday. after staring at my wardrobe for a long while, i just started pulling random stuff out of the closet and stacking them one on top of the other. i just hate this ever changing weather, turning from bad to worst from one day to the other. first i practically put on the things i would have worn had it been warm outside, then added something for a bit of warmth and then something else and so on, until i got properly dressed for the weather outside. this is pretty much the sequence i went through in the morning while dressing up. nothing fancy, just comfortable, layered clothes. i was keeping my fingers crossed the whole day for the weather to get warmer so i could drop some layers off, but it didn't. oh, well... and i just realized i took the pictures from a weird angle and my legs look  short. but that's enough rambling for one day. i feel weird talking so much about the weather, it's starting to feel like the weather channel here. the weekend is pretty near, so i hope everyone has a great one! i'm going home to visit my parents, so I'll see you next week!

 bolero: stradivarius * skirt as top: vero moda * tank top: zara * jeans: sabotage * shoes: converse

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safari

remember when you were a kid and on rainy days you couldn't leave the house and go out and play? i used to imagine the most awesome games and role plays on such occasions. waking up this morning made me want to be a kid again and instead of confronting the rainy, bleak weather outside to stay indoors and play games. i imagined what the opposite of such weather would be and decided to take an imaginary voyage to kenya. i would go on a safari. i opted for neutral colors and comfortable clothes such as cropped pants, a simple tank top and a button down shirt. if you guys wanna join me you're more than welcome. i packed some cookies for the road, they are attached to my bracelet and earrings. thought we would stay in tents, watch the great wildebeest migration, visit the masai mara, meet the maasai tribes and enjoy the beach and the warm tropical water. how does that sound?

shirt: j.crew, thrifted * tank top: zara * pants: stradivarius * shoes: red lips * belt: thrifted * accessories: handmade by a friend

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behind closed doors

as i was telling you, this weekend we went around the city center and tried to discover the hidden treasures behind the doors of the historical buildings. people still live there, and in some of them there are offices and all sorts of small shops, but since it was a sunday and they weren't open, we really didn't have any business going in. some of the doors were actually locked and we couldn't get in, which was too bad because we knew their courtyards were wonderful. so we felt a bit like burglars going in, up the stairs, taking pictures and whatnot, while trying not to bother anyone. though not all of them are in such great condition, we really found some great details. I was mostly interested in the details on the front doors and the circular staircases, which still had their original wooden steps. most of these old buildings have architectural influences coming from the austro-hugarian empire as well as turkish.

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explore the city

if last weekend was all about escaping the city, this one was about exploring it. along with my boyfriend and a friend of ours we went snooping around old buildings around the city center and took some photos. we were interested in discovering the hidden treasures these old historical buildings have to hide in they courtyards. it's too bad that these buildings are not properly taken care of. they are all built in the same style, with a austro-hungarian influence. I know there are also some buildings with turkish architecture, but I guess they were behind the doors we couldn't open. I was mostly drawn to staircases and front doors, as they had some beautiful details. but I'll save those photos for a separate post tomorrow. it turned out my outfit was quite color coordinated with some of the buildings we snooped around. I chose a burgundy floral dress with a asian inspired collar and a matching pair of tights. I just love the way they look together. and then my dark blue oxfords I've been wearing non stop since I got them.

dress:thrifted * tights: charme * shoes: red lips

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born in the 80s

it wasn't until I left the house that I realized how 80s inspired my outfit was. I guess the denim jacket with the sleeves rolled up over did it. though I was born in the 80s I can't say I have too many memories or references regarding the fashion trends back then. well, we were still a communist country back then and so little information entered the country. clothes, food and home appliances were most of the times smuggled into the country. I guess our 80s lasted well into the 90s. can't say there are too many trends from the 80s that I would like to incorporate into my wardrobe today or want to reproduce in my daily outfits. so when I saw this beautiful venetian mask at my friend's apartment I knew I had to snatch it for a photo shoot in the park, and it completely turned things around. it was so sunny and warm outside and it felt just perfect lying in the grass. and then the cutest stray puppy came by and wanted to play and we were so happy to have him around and include him in some photos. he really made my day.

jacket: gap * t-shirt: united colors of benetton * dress: self made * shoes converse

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not so casual friday

everybody tends to dress down on fridays, but for no reason I decided to do exactly the opposite and put on a preppy office look. though I don't always feel this way, fridays are a celebration of the weekend to come. later in the day it turned out I did the right thing dressing up, as I would go to a concert at the philharmonic in the evening. seems like I'm catching up on the cultural events this week. can't wait to see what else the weekend has in store. I shall only demand your attention for a few photos and let you get started on your weekend. have a great one, everyone!

cardigan: unknown * shirt: h&m * pants: stradivarius * shoes: dgm

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out in the world

finally my newly altered vintage dirndl dress is ready for show and tell. as I was saying in a previous post, I had the hem shortened a bit so it would be knee length, and I am wearing it front to back. I really like how the bare back looks. I totally forgot to put on the matching jacket, ups, but I promise I will show it to you guys soon. in fact, I think it looks kinda costume-y if I wear them both. I try not to take vintage literally, and add some accessories for a mix and match vintage look. I am wearing my handmade fruit earrings and brooch, created by a romanian artist and yellow tights to make the overall look fun and playful. you might have noticed something else that's new: my lotus tattoo. I am so excited about the way it turned out, and I am happy to show it now that it's all healed up.

cardigan: h&m * dress: vintage * tights: fiore * shoes: red lips * accesories: handmade

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