When sensational Sarah of Yes and Yes (two of my favorite words and definitely one of my favorite reads), approached me to guest post on Painfully Hip, I nearly pooped myself… it felt almost akin to Angelina Jolie asking politely if she could guest host on The Bonnie Hunt Show.
I thought I had the subject of packing light covered, but now she’s gone ahead and one-upped me like I’m, well, Bonnie Hunt.
Thanks so much, Sarah (I think)!
Do you guys actively fantasize about The Type Of Woman you want to be? My imaginary best self usually boasts a wardrobe of carefully selected vintage gear, makes witty commentary about current events (“Oh that Kim Jung Ill is just rapacious!”), owns a boxer named Steve and never, ever has to check her luggage.
While I may never accomplish the dog-ownership (my apartment’s too small) or the witty commentary (unless you count thinking of a clever comeback in the car two hours later) I think I can manage the luggage component of that fantasy. In fact, I’ve got this bit so down pat, I successfully packed for a weekend in Chicago using only my purse.
What? Yes.
Now, I grant you that my purse? Well, it’s rather large. But within its confines I managed to fit my netbook, camera, makeup bag, pajamas and two outfits. If you’re keen to try this madness yourself – a few tips:
Dresses are Best
Dresses are fantastic even when you’re not trying to pack in your purse – one thing! outfit complete! You can bring one cute dress and a few things to layer with it and viola – several outfits, you genius, you!
Accessories = Totally Different Outfit
Yes, I’m now applying for a job with the Obvious Committee. But it bears repeating – headbands/necklaces/leggings completely change the look of your ensemble, right? I brought a cute navy dress that I thrifted to wear on its own with a funky necklace as I poked around Millennium Park and shopped. The next day, I wore it with a little button-up and a different necklace when I met Winona of DaddyLikey fame for lunch and gossip.
The All Important Big Scarf
The big scarf. It elevates most any outfit, makes you look like you miiiight be European (or at least from New York) and it can double as a pillow/wrap/towel/blanket. When I got off the bus in Chicago at 6 am, I wandered around the city in my pajamas taking photos. When I stopped at a coffee shop for breakfast, I asked the barista if it was painfully obvious that I was wearing my pajamas and she assured me that it wasn’t. I credit my big scarf for this answer. And her desire for a tip.
Skimp on the Toiletries
If you’re staying with friends or at a hotel there’s really no need to bring shampoo/conditioner/lotion and the like, eh? They take up heaps of room, weigh your bag down and might spill all over that cute satin lining. Besides, I’m always partial to trying out my friends’ products to see if I’m missing out on anything.
The Patented Roll-Packing Technique
Any experienced packer will corner you to sing the praises of roll-packing. Rolling your clothes will keep them (relatively) wrinkle free and take up exponentially less space. If you want to up the level of anal retentiveness just a bit, you can put your rolled clothing in a separate bag inside your purse so they don’t come unrolled and mingle with everything else. You will also be less likely to pull out your black thong at Panera when you’re digging through your purse looking for change.
Would you ever pack in your purse? What are your packing tips?
(that’s to be read in the same tone as you would read “spring break!! wooo!!“)
a little while ago i wrote a post about self-imposed fashion “rules,” and how to go about getting over/past them. i mentioned that my main rule was the “you just don’t wear black and brown together. ever.” i believe that i forgot to mention my second biggest rule, which is “diana never wears strappy/peep/toe-showing shoes.” (this goes way back to early childhood, when i convinced myself i had the ugliest feet in the world. it’s funny how i’m still letting a 6-year-old tell me how to dress.)
my third self-imposed rule is, “i wash my hair every day.” maybe not with shampoo, but at least rinse it off in the shower.
well, apparently this road trip is all about looking my stupid rules in the eye, saying “eff-you!” and reclaiming my fashion freedom.
i’ve procured many a peep-toe pump at thrift stores along the way so far, and even went so far as to purchase a pair of vintage perforated tan strappy wedge sandals that i’ve been – get this – wearing on an almost daily basis. this may sound trite to some, but to anyone who’s suffered the debilitating effects of a self-imposed fashion rule knows just how big of a deal it is to finally overcome it. i’m thinking of throwing a party in honor of my newfound freedom.
i’m going to bombard you with photographic evidence now, because i’m so excited about overcoming these life-long “issues.” you may all pat me on the back. one at a time, please.
exhibit one – the strappy sandals:
i’m rockin those bad boys and i didn’t even give myself a pedi! not bad, huh? i give full credit to the shoes.
exhibit two – combining black and brown in one outfit:
i’m coming to the realization that (at least as far as my personal taste is concerned,) it’s all about the shades of the brown and black being mixed, as well as doing it in small doses – shoes and belt in brown, dress in black? doesn’t look too bad…
(also, i wore this combo for “hiking day.” i would just like to say that black might not be the best choice for hiking under the sweltering desert sun. in case you were wondering.)
exhibit three – brown and black again:
this time i think the dominating white in the dress made it possible to mix in the brown shoes and belt without too much “eye ouch.”
and lastly? this has nothing to do with the outfit, and everything to do with me and amber choreographing our new broadway musical:
oh, and in case you’re wondering, road trips are totally not conducive to daily hair-doin. i’m embracing hair powder into my life with open arms, and i feel like a changed girl. i like it!
(side note: in the vein of some totally shameless self-promotion, i believe amber mentioned it already, but i’ve been documenting the road-trip in a not-quite-so-fashion-focused way over here. i’m trying to update on a daily basis, so if the nitty-gritty interests you, come visit! i like you!)
funny you ask, because i happen to be a bit of an expert in that field.
let’s not waste any time on small-talk – we’ve got some Serious Money-Saving Hair Business to get down to!
1. you know that thing they do every time you leave the hair salon? the one where they say, “so we’ll see you in 4-6 weeks, right? how about we just book that next appointment right now, since we fill up so fast…”
well, that’s a lie. (usually.) i worked in a pretty upscale salon for a year when i was still in nyc, and even there, under most circumstances it was possible to book an appointment with your favorite stylist about a week in advance. (i mean, if this is your wedding day hair style were talking about you might want to call more than a day ahead, but otherwise… hold your ground, soldier! don’t let them bully you into committing to shelling out another $30, $60, $150, or whatever it is your stylist charges every four weeks.)
2. (this ties in with #1…) take some time to find a stylist you love.
someone you trust, who really “gets” not only your look, but also the texture of your hair. this is super-important. and unfortunately, most often found at the higher-priced salons. the up-side of this though, is that with the right cut, you can easily go two, 3, even 6 months between visits. hair doesn’t grow that fast, and in most cases it takes a few weeks to stop looking “freshly butchered” and grow into it’s full potential.
3. experiment with hair accessories.
even when you know you’ve pushed it way past “acceptable,” you can usually get a few more weeks, (ahem… months? stop staring at me.) out of a ragged ‘do by clipping it up, pinning it back, twisting it around something, knotting it, braiding it – and if all else fails, i heard the turban is making a comeback.
what if – like me – you are morally opposed to bling in the weave?
pick an accessory that’s small, tasteful, and similar to your hair color. check it:
this is a fine example of what i like to call a ‘totally classy hair-piece.’
it also happens to be holding some Very Angry Bangs back while i procrastinate getting a trim.
you can find more totally classy hair pieces by clicking on the picture. or here. i dare you.
bonus: they’re a total bargain, and made by the sweetest etsy-er ever.
4. ask about (free!) fringe-trims between visits.
most salons at the mid-to-nice end of the spectrum offer complimentary bang trims between visits. (of course you still want to slip your stylist a little “thank you” cash, but that’s nothing compared to the standard 20% on a full-priced haircut.) getting your fringe trimmed between cuts will do wonders for hairs that seem like they’ve grown past the point of acceptable. unless you’re doing something drastically short or super-shaped, no one’s going to notice if your sides are half an inch longer than they normally are. this leads me to #5:
5. trim it yourself!
i’m serious. i’m also serious that there are some pretty big rules that go along with this advice. such as:
- take time. this is not something you want to tackle when you’ve got 5 minutes to get out the door for work.
- don’t cut more than 1/4″ in one snip. you can always keep trimming. unfortunately, (i’ve learned) you can’t glue that stuff back on once it’s landed in the sink.
- cut it dry. never EVER trim when it’s wet. hair “shrinks” up once the water-weight isn’t weighing it down. i’m not kidding. don’t do it.
- do not combine this activity with wine consumption, tequila shots, beer-bongs, or any other methods of alcohol ingestion. ”hair-cutting” and “party atmosphere” do not belong in the same bathroom. even if it’s just a party of one…
- same goes for “emotional turmoil.” if you and the boyf just exchanged a few unfriendly words, this is not the time to pick up the scissors. turn to the beer bong instead, ok?
- oh, and use hair scissors. they don’t have to be expensive ones, but come on, we’re classy ladies (and lads.) do we really want to trim our hair with the same scissors we just pruned the ficus with? no.
6. preventative maintenance.
don’t shampoo every day. this is incredibly damaging and entirely unnecessary. trust me, i have that lucky combo of baby-fine locks and hyperactive grease glands – (is that what they’re called?) i will be retiring the day they develop a car that runs off of sebum. but in the meantime, i’ve learned that my hair is much much healthier when i rinse it every day in the shower (and even use a vigorous scrubbing motion, which helps distribute the oils more evenly,) but only shampoo every 3-4 days. same goes for using heat tools – if you must blow dry, aim at the roots and spray the ends with a heat-protecting product. combining these two will almost entirely eradicate split-ends from your life, which means, “hair cut what?!”
(throwing in a little deep-conditioning treatment every once in a while doesn’t hurt either…)
see? i just saved you a ton on your hair expenses. that’s more than that geico lizard can say…
Yay, Diana!
For more cheap-as-free hair and beauty tips, here is another amazing PainfullyHipster post by the lovely Mary Catherine about spending pennies instead of hundreds on better beauty products.
-Amber
so the other day a friend of mine was whining (i mean, cheerfully reflecting,) about how she never seems to find any of these so-called amazing “scores” while thrifting. we weren’t very far into the conversation when she turned on me. ”oh yeah… you’re the bitch who found the brand new chanel pea-coat for $6!” she said. i would like to note that she was not using her inside voice at this point.
she then demanded that i “hand over” my secrets.
some good came from all this abuse though. it got me thinking about all the “thrifting tips” i’ve come up with over the years. then i remembered how much i like making lists, and i decided to combine the two.
would you like to see it? of course you would.
diana’s thrifting tips
- go regularly, and go on off-hours. the first helps you acquire more goodies. the second is for sanity’s sake. seriously though, if you don’t go on a regular basis. you’re just asking to miss all the good loot. you can take this a step further and inquire about “restocking” day. as in, when do they do it? then mark that day down in your little black book and make sure you go.
- a lot of the larger/more “established” thrift shops – especially in bigger towns and cities – have “last chance,” “outlet” and “as-is” shops. what this really means is “this is the place where we send all the goodies that didn’t sell in our full-price shops.” (tucson has “outlet” shops for both goodwill and the salvation army. all clothes are $1-$3, except for on “half-price” day, which seems to be every day i’ve gone in.) i can’t even begin to explain how wonderful these places are. it’s amazing what treasures make it to these shops. the ladies at the goodwill outlet told me clothes only get one week on the full-priced store racks before they get bundled up and shipped to the outlet. (i didn’t tell my bitter friend this, but it’s not just a chanel that i’ve thrift-scored – i found a vintage burberry trench at one of these “outlets” recently, for $2.98. seriously.)
- make a list of what you need, and refer back to it to avoid stocking up on things you don’t need. also, racks of $3 clothes are not an excuse to inundate your closet with heaps of poor-quality crap. there is no excuse for that. maintain your standards, ladies.
- shop off-season. you’ll find the best deals and have a better selection to pick through. (winter coats are plentiful and purchased for pennies in tucson in august. i would imagine the same would go for vintage sun dresses during january in vermont.)
- give some thought to a “thrifting uniform.” you want to wear something that is comfortable and easy to try things on over. (in case of long lines for – or even non-existent – changing rooms.) i like leggings, long, slim fitting tank or tee-shirt style dresses, a loose-fitting cardigan and slip-on flats. if you’re not wearing socks, at least slip a pair in your bag for trying on shoes. not doing so is gross. and i will judge you.
- you can also take an even easier route and throw a flexible sewing tape in your bag for taking measurements right there at the racks. make sure you have accurate measurements of yourself before doing this though.
- approach things with an open mind. if you go out with specific desires – “i want a pale yellow floral house dress made in 1953. in a size small.” – you’re probably going to be disappointed. remember that things can be shortened, re-sized, altered entirely – by you, a crafty friend, or even a tailor. and even factoring in the tailor’s fees, it’s still cheaper (and cooler) than buying something brand new and mass produced.
- try to find shops off the beaten path. shops in areas with a high population of amazingly hip college students will be a) picked over, and b) pricey. look for the ones near ritzy 55+ communities. go wild.
- i’m a little nervous about sharing this last tip, out of fear of a good lecture from anyone will a little self-respect, but just hear me out, ok? flirt. not in that creepy, “unwanted attention” sort of way. i’m not even suggesting you give out your phone number. but putting on a big friendly smile and striking up a conversation with the occasional employee – male or female – will do some pretty amazing things. i’ve actually found this to be useful in all areas of life. my brother once told me, “you could flirt a dog out of biting you!” which i take to be a compliment. i don’t see anything wrong with securing a “50% off everything, just for you… shh!” by using some (genuine) friendliness. it is my opinion that it brightens both party’s day.
compiling all this in one place has given me an uncontrollable itch to hit up my favorite thrift shops right this second, so i’m out, guys.
but before i go, i thought of one more thing – bring your own earth-friendly canvas shopping totes with you, and stuff those, rather than taking plastic bags. but i’m sure you already do that, right? high-five!
If you like this post, make sure you check out Amber’s thrifting tips in this related post:
Ask Painfully Hip: How do you make great finds at the thrift store?
i’ve been clipping photos, articles and entire editorials that i find inspiring for ages. i’m pretty sure i’m not the only one who does this. it’s great to have a collection of inspiring imagery on hand – my big problem though, was always how to store them in a usable way. once things got tossed in the “idea box,” very rarely did they see the light of day again.
i meant to start a “style journal” for quite a few years – one which i updated regularly and used as a reference tool. i’d started a few, but never really showed any follow-through until recently, while stuck in bed with the flu, i forced myself to tackle the project like i meant it.
i’m not even going to tell you how many days it took me to get through the whole stash. i will say however, that it was worth it. i feel excitement for my closet where there was only waning interest before. what’s even better is that i feel a little more direct in my enthusiasm. and anything that manages to accomplish the impossible task of drumming up some closet glee in the midst of the mid-season doldrums is a magical, magical thing in my books.
the amazing thing about keeping your own style journal, is that unlike wardrobe_remix or the multitude of other fabulous “daily style” photo sharing sites, your journal is for your eyes only. (unless you want to share.) it’s private. it’s not an end product, but a tool to create the end product. you don’t have to worry about presentation – it gives you a rare opportunity to really analyze what grabs you, and play around with things you might be intrigued by but not quite sure how to try.
daily “what i wore” sites, street style sites and personal blogs offer endless inspiration, but unless you’re one of the lucky few with a strong foundation, it can be easy to become distracted – and overwhelmed – by all the shiny pretty things. (i do not at all mean to imply that fantastic personal style is unattainable to all but a lucky few. what i am saying is that a little under-cover work is really all you need to take your style to a level that you feel best expresses who you are. that’s the whole point of style, right?)
this is how a style journal helps. it’s a foundation you build to support your needs. it’s a fantastic go-to source of immediate style inspiration, catered specifically to your preferences. it’s a reference point to remind you of what you are striving for on days when you feel less than inspired. it’s actually (i’ve decided) a pretty awesome thing to have around.
still not convinced? that’s ok. i’ve got more.
- putting it all in one place and being aware of your preferences will help you start to see what works for you, and what doesn’t. most of the time we’re attracted to styles that work with our personality and body type, and having a collection of options at your fingertips will remind you of how many choices you really do have.
- knowing what works for you – and what you like – will keep you from being blindly pulled from one trend to the next, and help you develop your closet into a well-thought out and coordinating collection of pieces that work for you and work together. (just think about that for a minute…)
- keeping a style journal will help you become a more efficient and conscientious consumer – which saves both money and the environment. it will help you know what you are looking for when you are buying, which really – when you think about it – seems like a silly thing to even need to mention. we don’t wander blindly through a car lots, test driving random vehicles that strike our fancy. very rarely do we even wander into a grocery store without some sort of shopping list to remind us of what we need. wardrobe investments should be no different.
- a style journal gives you a tool to help better understand yourself, which in turn allows you to present yourself in a more thought-out and complete way. what happens then? people take you more seriously and treat you with more respect. the way you present yourself is how the world sees you, and if you appear confidant and organized, the world will respond accordingly.
the way you decide to keep your style journal is entirely up to you. i’ve found it extremely helpful to make notes in mine as i go along, but i know some people also like to keep theirs as a picture-only sort of log. a lot of times i will have a “style epiphany” when i’m looking at a picture, and my geeky self likes to keep a log of these things. the margins of my notebook are packed with things like “oh! i totally get why this outfit works, while a similar one i tried was a total flop…” or “this would look even better paired with —” i’ll even push the geek envelope one step further, by jotting down phrases, styles and eras that come to mind when i look at a picture that really inspires me. as silly as that sounds, it serves a purpose – it helps me see a common thread between previously (seemingly) unrelated images.
it goes without saying, but style is a life-encompassing word. your personal style is not limited to just your clothing choices, and any positive change you make in one area is going to affect other aspects of your life as well. as you get to know your likes and dislikes a little better, its fun to branch out into other areas of personal style (art preferences, home decor, etc.) and see where those take you as well. it’s all interconnected – have fun with it!
|
Painfully Hip Local Links
Sunglasses Shop. Shop for Miu Miu Sunglasses
All images were either created by the Painfully Hip Design Collective, used with permission, or found on the web and believed to be in the public domain. If any images that appear are in violation of copyright law, please let me know and i will remove them immediately.
Thanks for reading,
Amber
painfullyhip at gmail.com
|
