As you can see from the numbering, not only was there not a bonus outfit, there wasn’t even an outfit on a scheduled day. A weird combination of things on Monday gave me all the effects of a migraine (though it was not one in practice) and I just couldn’t deal with outfitting. I was able to sketch out the outline of an ensemble for today before bed last night, which was helpful when I woke up more than an hour before my alarm this morning and developed a bunch of additional aggravations over the course of a day. So at least I was capable of doing the project today.
Sentence-diagram knit top: Svaha USA
Long knit skirt: April Cornell
Plum & lilac striped socks: Sock Dreams
Shoes: Fluevog Wicked Thanks
Knit & lace scarf: Target
Iridescent glass flower bead pendant & earrings: Designs by Victoria (no longer operating)
Makeup—Aromaleigh unless otherwise stated
Foundation, concealer, undereye: standard
Contour: Medousa Menagerie Amphisbaena
Eye shadows (all discontinued): lid, rocks! stillinhollywood; browbone & inner corner, Lost in Faerie Rosina; crease & outer corner, Eye Lustre Isabella
Liner: Gothic Lolita Elegant Reverie (discontinued)
Mascara: standard
Rouge: rocks! wildflower (discontinued)
Highlighter: Catherine of Aragon Humble & Loyal
Powder: Gothic Lolita Moonbright (discontinued)
Lips: NYX Cosmetics Powder Puff Lippie Senior Class
In retrospect, this outfit leans a bit “ceramics teacher at the new age women’s center,” which isn’t entirely my style, but I think it’s coherent within itself. I don’t wear long skirts these days as much as I used to, but this is one of my most reliable pieces and it’s comfortable when I’m dealing with tired and achy days.
Svaha USA, where I got the top, specializes in nerdy STEAM designs; most of their ideas are inspired by hard sciences, but there’s a subset of their designs that comes from various facets of publishing. This top features that hardcore and now little-scene grammar process, sentence diagramming, and the sentences diagrammed come from works including Alice in Wonderland, Anne of Green Gables, and Sense & Sensibility. Being a writer and editor, I was tickled by the concept, and the fact that it was purple made it a must for me. Svaha’s clothes are made well and a lot of it is in soft organic cotton knit, and many of their items come with pockets (though not this top, as it happens). And their sizing goes up to 4X, plus they have kids’ clothes and fun accessories. I like them a lot and have several other pieces, including a skirt with proofreading marks and another with typewriter keys.
I love these shoes so much. They’re the most comfortable heels I’ve ever worn. I randomly bought them off eBay when I found them for a fairly low price (for Fluevogs), and when I got them immediately regretted that I hadn’t bought every available color and style when they were in stores. They hit everything I need in shoes: a distinctive, quirky style; wide enough for my cranky feet; arch support; super comfy rubber soles; and a thick, solid heel that doesn’t strain my feet or my back. I continue to hunt for other styles, but more than a decade since they were released, I know it won’t necessarily be easy. Today, they were right for how tired and aggravated I was.
Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.
Popcorn & Pretension 