Shopping Success

Ah, the day after vacation. Lounging around, taking in the lovely air conditioned spaces of your own country and watching way too many episodes of HGTV's Design Star. Unfortunately, after a good many hours doing so, your shirt may wind up as rumpled as mine did.

The list:

-white 3/4 tee, H&M

-white lace tank, F21

-jean pencil skirt, Zara

-yellow perforated leather sneaks, OTBT

-aqua paisley scarf, vintage

I have a penchant for loose tanks and form-fitting skirts, I've noticed. I like the free flowingness of my top half, and how it is totally reigned in and streamlined on the bottom. Here you can see the lace detail of the top properly, as opposed to last week when I tucked it in. I'm a sucker for pretty little details like that.

The vintage scarf is one of my scores from a lot purchased on ebay for $16. It may have been my most successful purchase ever, in fact, since I wear  many of the items frequently. I subscribe to a number of "success" rubrics-- low price per wear, extreme markdown, thrift finds-- which may of course be mere justifications, but do make certain items more treasured than others. 

I'm interested to know:

What was your most successful purchase? How do you define shopping success?

A selection from our trip:

Giveaway Winner

I'm happy to announce that the winner of the Misikko iron giveaway is Jenny of Closet365! Jenny's blog is great fun, and her style is definitely something you'll want to check out. Congrats, Jenny!

Pink and Red

That is right, I'm back! Our vacation was absolutely wonderful, and I can't believe it is over. We really packed it in and I am exhausted, but every minute was worth it. I'll share some pictures over the next few posts to give you a taste of our experience in Paris. These pictures are from my last day at work before vacation. Somehow that day always takes forever to end.

I was wearing:

-white tank, Hanes

-pink henley, Romeo and Juliet Couture

-red flowered skirt, 

-brown flat sandals, Vera Wang for Kohl's

-brown headscarf, Israel

I just love pink and red together, and was quite happy with how this outfit turned out. In the heat of summer, layering is mostly out of the question, so I instead turn to color and pattern for some interest.

At the Rodin Museum Garden:

Last Day to Enter the Giveaway!

For a brand new Coroliss Pro flat iron from Misikko, all you have to do is comment on this post! Giveaway ends tonight at 12 AM EST, so get to commenting.

Baudelaire

A few of you asked about my Baudelaire reference a few posts back, and since this will post while I am in France, I'll leave you with an excerpt from Salon of 1859:

[…] A revengeful God has given ear to the prayers of this multitude. Daguerre was his Messiah. And now the faithful says to himself: “Since photography gives us every guarantee of exactitude that we could desire (they really believe that, the mad fools!), then photography and Art are the same thing:’ From that moment our squalid society rushed, Narcissus to a man, to gaze at its trivial image on a scrap of metal. A mad­ness, an extraordinary fanaticism took possession of all these new sun-worshippers. Strange abominations took form. By bringing together a group of male and female clowns, got up like butchers and laundry-maids in a car­nival, and by begging these heroes to be so kind as to hold their chance grimaces for the time necessary for the per­formance, the operator flattered himself that he was re­producing tragic or elegant scenes from ancient history. Some democratic writer ought to have seen here a cheap method of disseminating a loathing for history and for painting among the people, thus committing a double sacrilege and insulting at one and the same time the di­vine art of painting and the noble art of the actor. A little later a thousand hungry eyes were bending over the peepholes of the stereoscope, as though they were the attic-windows of the infinite. The love of pornography, which is no less deep-rooted in the natural heart of man than the love of himself, was not to let slip so fine an opportunity of self-satisfaction. And do not imagine that it was only children on their way back from school who took pleasure in these follies; the world was infatuated with them. I was once present when some friends were discretely concealing some such pictures from a beautiful woman, a woman of high society, not of mine—they were taking upon themselves some feeling of delicacy in her presence; but “No,” she replied. “Give them to me! Nothing is too strong for me.” I swear that I heard that; but who will believe me? “You can see that they are great ladies,” said Alexandre Dumas. “There are some still greater!“ said Cazotte.

As the photographic industry was the refuge of every would-be painter, every painter too ill-endowed or too lazy to complete his studies, this universal infatuation bore not only the mark of a blindness, an imbecility, but had also the air of a vengeance. I do not believe, or at least I do not wish to believe, in the absolute success of such a brutish conspiracy, in which, as in all others, one finds both fools and knaves; but I am convinced that the ill-applied developments of photography, like all other purely material developments of progress, have contrib­uted much to the impoverishment of the French artistic genius, which is already so scarce. In vain may our mod­ern Fatuity roar, belch forth all the rumbling wind of its rotund stomach, spew out all the undigested sophisms with which recent philosophy has stuffed it from top to bottom; it is nonetheless obvious that this industry, by invading the territories of art, has become art’s most mor­tal enemy, and that the confusion of their several func­tions prevents any of them from being properly fulfilled. Poetry and progress are like two ambitious men who hate one another with an instinctive hatred, and when they meet upon the same road, one of them has to give place. If photography is allowed to supplement art in some of its functions, it will soon have supplanted or corrupted it altogether, thanks to the stupidity of the multitude which is its natural ally. It is time, then, for it to return to its true duty, which is to be the servant of the sciences and arts— but the very humble servant, like printing or shorthand, which have neither created nor supplemented literature. Let it hasten to enrich the tourist’s album and restore to his eye the precision which his memory may lack; let it adorn the naturalist’s library, and enlarge microscopic animals; let it even provide information to corroborate the astronomer’s hypotheses; in short, let it be the secre­tary and clerk of whoever needs an absolute factual exac­titude in his profession—up to that point nothing could be better. Let it rescue from oblivion those tumbling ruins, those books, prints and manuscripts which time is devouring, precious things whose form is dissolving and which demand a place in the archives of our memory—— it will be thanked and applauded. But if it be allowed to encroach upon the domain of the impalpable and the imaginary, upon anything whose value depends solely upon the addition of something of a man’s soul, then it will be so much the worse for us!

I know very well that some people will retort, “The disease which you have just been diagnosing is a disease of imbeciles. What man worthy of the name of artist, and what true connoisseur, has ever confused art with industry?” I know it; and yet I will ask them in my turn if they believe in the contagion of good and evil, in the action of the mass on individuals, and in the involuntary, forced obedience of the individual to the mass. It is an incontestable, an irresistible law that the artist should act upon the public, and that the public should react upon the artist; and besides, those terrible witnesses, the facts, are easy to study; the disaster is verifiable. Each day art further diminishes its self-respect by bowing down be­fore external reality; each day the painter becomes more and more given to painting not what he dreams but what he sees. Nevertheless it is a happiness to dream, and it used to be a glory to express what one dreamt. But I ask you! does the painter still know this happiness? Could you find an honest observer to declare that the invasion of photography and the great industrial mad­ness of our times have no part at all in this deplorable result? Are we to suppose that a people whose eyes are growing used to considering the results of a material sci­ence as though they were the products of the beautiful, will not in the course of time have singularly diminished its faculties of judging and of feeling what are among the most ethereal and immaterial aspects of creation?

alltumbledown en vacances

My berets are packed... à bientôt!
While I'm gone, why not enter the giveaway?

Father's Day

 

Dad-

A lot has changed over the past 10 months. I started a blog, finally learned how to drive and made some great new friends. I learned what true sadness means, felt unbelievably alone and realized how many people were there to support me when I fell down. Some things never change-- I'm not applying to law school like you always wanted, but I hope I am still making you proud. I shake my legs just like you did, and every time I look in the mirror I see your face staring back at me.

I miss you everyday.

Misikko Hair Iron Review + Giveaway

Since I cover my head outside of my house, I don't heat style very often. In fact, I don't think my hair has been anything but air-dried since the winter, when I tend to blowdry so as not to freeze when I step outdoors. I'm usually just fine with my almost-straight sticky-outty hair, but when Misikko contacted me a few weeks ago about doing a review, I jumped at the opportunity! You see, my last hair iron was purchased in high school- and that was a while ago. Misikko is a family-owned and run company that sells the latest and best hair irons, professional hair dryers and hair-care products from Hana and Chi.

I received the Coroliss Classic Pro Iron 1' in black. First of all- the packaging was adorable, and it arrived really quickly. In addition to the iron, it also came with a  bottle of Hana Shineshield and a practical carrying case. Beware: candid unstyled/brushed pictures ahead. 

 Attractive, yes. I forgot to put on makeup for the "after" to make the transformation as miraculous as it always seems in infomercials.

After 5 minutes with the iron on a medium setting, my hair was pretty amazingly straight. I think I'll experiment with making curls for my next go! For other reviews, check here.

And now, dearest readers, I have the privilege of gifting one of you with the Coroliss Classic Pro from Misikko! This giveaway, worth $200, is sure to make your day (and your hair!)

To enter:

1. You must be a follower of alltumbledown. Google Friend Connect or any type of reader is fine.

2. Visit www.misikko.com and leave a comment on this post about your favorite product on the site. Please make sure that I have a way of contacting you through your blogger profile or by leaving your email address.

3. That is all! One entry per person, please.

Note: This giveaway is open to US/Canada residents only because of voltage. The contest will end next Monday, June 28th at 8:00 PM EST.

Start commenting, and happy straightening!

A Little Sneak

Yesterday, I gave three walking tours. That was over 5.5 hours of walking, and my knees are feeling it today! I'm resting up in anticipation of our trip next week, which will surely incorporate tons of walking. At least I wore my new pseudosneakers for a little bit of support!

The list:

-white lace tank, F21

-blue grandpa cardigan, Gap

-patterned skirt, Cynthia Steffe

-purple skinny belt, Calvin Klein

-yellow sneaks, OTBT shoes

-glass ring, gift from Dad from Venice

-yellow knit beret, Grace Hats

I'm not much of a sneaker person, but I saw these the other week at Lohemann's and thought they'd be perfect for heavy walking days when I want something to keep my feet from falling off altogether. I have a slight crush on this skirt, and styled it pretty similarly to the last wear.

Here you see the little lace bit at the top. Unfortunately, the inset at the bottom was hidden under the skirt. I thought the ring picked up on some of the colors in a wonderful way, so I threw it into the mix.

Seersucker

I promise, I have moved from in front of the stove in the past few days. I have to admit-- I wasn't too jazzed about this outfit, and even considered not posting. But this blog is as much about my style failures as successes, so here you have it.

The list:

-purple tank, F21

-black cardigan, Spring + Mercer

-seersucker skirt, Grace Elements

-oxfords, CG

-green belt, H&M

-floral pendant necklace, DIY'd from vintage brooch

-sparkly scarf, gift from sis from Israel

Maybe with a beret? Or different shoes? I am not sure why this outfit seems off to me. There are elements I like-- the skirt hiked up by the wide belt and the blousiness of the tucked-in tank. Oh, and the fake glasses.  Perhaps the later pictures just didn't reflect an awesome outfit? I guess we'll never know. Baudelaire would certainly have something to say about the proliferation of style blogs and the valuation of mimesis over beauty.

Graduation Day

Another late day, as evinced by the kitchen location-- it is the only room in our apartment that has overhead lights, so it makes for the best post-sunset photoshoot spot. After work, we went to see hub's younger brother graduate from high school. I forgot to bring a book/newspaper/crossword puzzle. It was a little slice of torture.

The list:

-mod patterned dress, Carmen Marc Valvo

-puce lace cardigan, F21

-silver ruffled flats, Steve Madden

-silver locket necklace, UO

-puce hat, Parkhurst

Styling this dress at 7:30 AM was a bit of a challenge for me. I paired it with black, which looked too somber, and then with grey, which looked wonderful-- but I had no hat to match. I threw on the cardigan/hat combo you see above, and actually wore it with a purple skinny belt to tie it all together for most of the day. By 10:30, when I took these pictures, the belt had been exchanged for loose, free flowing ease. Any suggestions for next time? It has nice, thick straps, so I could stick a shirt underneath, but I generally prefer the look of cardigans over rather than shirts under.

I am in high gear planning for our trip to Paris next week, and taking suggestions! What are your favorite spots in the City of Lights? Off-the-beaten-track galleries, fun nighttime activities, and for my kosher friends, best places to eat?

Hot Air Balloon

I sort of forgot to take pictures of my outfits since Thursday, except for this little shoot from Saturday night. Whoops. I usually find taking daily photos pretty easy, but sometimes I remember what it is like to be a regular person and get lazy.

The list:

-yellow cardigan, Lux

-black pleated skirt, Club Monaco

-grey gladiator heels, DKNY

-pink gold belt, H&M

-hot air balloon scarf, 

-gold and blue chandelier earrings, Express

-brown straw fedora, Jessica Simpson

I don't typically wear skirts this length, but I really love the detailing on this one. Paired with flats, it can read a bit frumpy, but when paired with some fierce shoes, I think it works rather well. As many of you who dress modestly can surely attest, there is a fine line between appropriate and frumpy. Heels are one of the ways I find helpful in staying on the correct side of that line. The shoes are definite favorites, purchased last year for about $60. Despite the rather dramatic height, they are quite comfortable. I wore them almost all day Saturday, but after about 8 hours I did change into flats.

The hat is my sole purchase from Jessica Simpson's clothing line. In general, I've never been a fan and have avoided buying things when I noticed the brand name, but this hat, at half price, was just too fun to pass up. I've definitely done a good job of building my straw hat collection over the past few months, and this brown stunner fills a gap.