Thursday, September 29, 2011

I Learned Fast How To Keep My Head Up

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So, ladies and (probably not) gentleman, life has been kicking my butt something fierce this week. Well, mainly school and breakup guilt have been kicking my butt, and my butt is not appreciative of said kicking. Things have been stressful, as they're apt to be, and I've really been trying to "keep my head up" above the rising water line of all sorts of anxiety. I'm quite a sensitive lady, and have had lame breakup emotions hanging over my head since the weekend, so I've been feeling quite guilty and selfish. Add on top of that a fairly hectic schedule and tons of school work and you've got one stressed Cole. I don't want to complain, even though that's kind of all I've been doing this post, but I wanted to explain my sparse blog presence as well as express, for you guys and for myself, what exactly has been going on in my head lately.

This outfit, frankly, makes me feel like the mayor of cozy city. It was rainy for most of the day and it was my last day of classes, so I wanted to wear something comfortable, neutral, and cute-ish. I was going to complain about getting caught in torrential downpours while wearing a white blouse and a black bra (which did happen), but it was actually one of the funnier, more stress-relieving parts of the day. Everyone out on campus got soaked, and it was pretty fun running through the rain to shelter, super visible bra or not.

Cardigan, Blouse: H&M, Jeans: Urban Outfitters, Boots: Famous Footwear, Brooch: Mom's

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Monday, September 26, 2011

When You Touch My Face, The Oceans Part

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Today is one of those days. You know, the ones where the universe reminds you in a rather non-sensitive way that you're a dumb, inadequate student, and gives you blisters on the back of your feet that force you to walk to the car barefoot, and makes the weather change drastically so that a denim jacket is not only no longer appropriate but sweat inducing, but then you keep trying to be positive and are all "I happen to like this denim jacket! And these shoes are worth the blisters! And I'm not dumb, I'm AWESOME." You know. So before I go all whiney on you all, though I've been doing plenty of that on twitter today, I'm going to go and try to be a good student and get a decent amount of work done tonight so I can feel less inadequate. Watch out Iliad, HERE I COME. It's going to be a long week, isn't it?

So, I almost didn't take pictures of this outfit because of the whole shoe thing, but I figured if I suffered through wearing them all day for the sake of a cute outfit, there better be pictures to document my doing so. I didn't have any clue what to wear this morning, meaning it was the perfect opportunity to attempt pattern mixing in a haphazard way. I quite liked the end result though.

Blouse: Nordstrom Rack, Skirt: Forever 21, Shoes: Urban Outfitters, Jean Jacket: Salvation Army, Craziness: Hereditary

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole




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Sunday, September 25, 2011

Strictly Business

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I'm not a fan of work clothes. Generally, I think pencil skirts, fitted button downs, and trousers look plain old terrible on me. Then I came across these slacks in H&M, and for $15 dollars mind you. And honestly, part of me just wanted "work clothes" because I have a job, even though the people I work for are generally in jeans but, you know, whatever. So, the pants were flattering, made me feel slightly professional, and were cheap enough for me to not feel guilty if I ended up never wearing them. But here I am, WEARING THEM. I had to go to work today as a site manager (read: sitter in the office for three hours...er?) for someone who had rented the space for their event, and I figured if there was ever a time to wear those pants, this was it. So, wear them I did. And site I managed. While this isn't really my style, per say, I figured it would be fun to show you guys this "professional" outfit anyway.

Pants, blouse: H&M, Cardigan: Gap, Shoes: Urban Outfitters

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AND, just for fun, this is the face I make when I hear terribly inappropriate/uncomfortable/saucy music ("Let's get it on, till the early morn, girl!") blaring from the children's birthday party happening across the street:

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Friday, September 23, 2011

Short

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This dress is short. Like, "acceptable to wear in public but just barely" short. Like, "I really shouldn't have worn this to work even though my bosses are casual" short. Like "even though my boss was all 'you look like a cute, cheery gogo dancer today' I should have maybe worn tights" short. I love this dress too much to listen to common sense, though, so I spent most of the day pulling it down in an insecure manner. I mean, with tights I feel perfectly comfortable with the length, so hopefully once it chills up outside this dress will be getting a lot more use!

Dress: thrift store, Trench: H&M, Shoes: Urban Outfitters

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Real Mature

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So, I hate to get all mushy-gushy here (that's a lie, mushy-gushy posts are the best and I love them dearly), I just wanted to say how much I appreciated your feedback and thoughts on my last post. I definitely got teary (or, uh, maybe outright cried. Maybe.) when I read your sweet, supportive words. My life is in this weird transitional space right now, and it's really rather wonderful to be a part of this community, and to be able to share all of my messy experiences with you all.

I suppose I should talk about what I'm wearing now. Yesterday, it came up at work (read: I brought it up because I'm ridiculous) that my birthday is fairly soon, and that I'm going to be 20, to which one of my bosses was all "We've got a kid on our hands!" or something to that extent. And of course, I replied in my most dignified, adult (read: whiny baby) that I was not, in fact, a kid, and that 20 is a very adult age to be. As you can see, today I am wearing a large bow in my hair and a top covered in tiny deer, and (as you'll see if you scroll down) am twirling like a ballerina just for the heck of it. Clearly, I am well on my way to adulthood.

Blouse/dress: H&M, Skirt: Forever 21, Shoes: Urban Outfitters, Jean Jacket: Salvation Army, Bow: Bethany

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Monday, September 19, 2011

In Which I Wear My Chucks and Talk About Moving Forward

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I’m the sort of person who needs to have a plan. As much as I like the idea of running out somewhere on a whim with friends, If I’m going out, I like to know in advance where we’re going, what time we’re meeting, and who’ll be there when I arrive. When I was with my ex-boyfriend, I loved being able to say that when I would be able to move to California at some point with him, maybe in two years or so. It was nice to have my future planned out because I like plans. As I think we all know, though, plans change. Life throws things at us and we’re forced to respond, and our response alters the trajectory of where we’ll go next. In the past, and even now, I hated uncertainty. I like knowing that I’m doing the right thing and that I’m making good decisions. Even when our lives are relatively stable, though, we don’t often get the assurance that what we’re doing is best, at least in my experience.

Something that’s been really helpful and wonderful for me, though, is listening to the experiences of other people. I’ve found that hearing about peoples’ lives and the choices they’ve made for themselves, from dealing with breakups they never saw coming (or, like me, making the terrifying decisions to end something that had lasted a very long time) to taking the risk of moving someplace entirely new. Hearing someone say that they’ve done something I feel to scared to do on my own makes me think, “Well, maybe I can do that.” I’m so busy telling myself that if something’s not planned, I can’t possibly do it. “I need a boyfriend to move across the country. No one will ever love me like my ex and I made a huge selfish mistake in breaking up with him. I can’t balance work and school. I can’t make new friends.” Am I worried about these things being true? Of course I am. Because these prospects are all terrifying. But, I’m trying my best to embrace the uncertainty of the future as a positive thing. Life right now are wide open. I’m a junior in college, I just started a new job, and I just made a big change in my personal life that I never thought I would make. I’ve been thinking of all of these things as daunting, like everything is out to upset me, and that I’m not capable of being strong and successful. I’m just beginning to look at my life as something full of opportunities for the taking. Sure, I don’t know what’s going to happen or who I’ll meet or where I’ll go, but these are good uncertainties. Things often aren’t as final or limiting as they seem, and though I know I’ll have moments where I throw tantrums and question all of this, I think I’m on the right track.


Just a note about what I'm wearing, since this is a self described "fashion blog." When I met with her, Michal and I were talking about our past fashion misadventures and how we used to dress, and skater shoes and converse came up. Since then I've been wanting to wear one of my old pairs. You'll notice the Bayside lyrics on the toes ("I've made mistakes, but I'll find my way) though I wrote the lines backwards on the wrong feet. There're also some Jack's Mannequin lyrics scrawled on the side, along with a Thoreau quote, and the word "transcend" written on one of the laces. All the words on those shoes seem appropriate for this post, and the idea of looking backwards but moving forward also seems quite relevant.

Dress, Jean Jacket: Salvation Army, Converse Sneakers

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Sunday, September 18, 2011

You've Got Too Much to Wear on Your Sleeves

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This is what I wore on Friday, to an open mic night at my workplace. The event was pretty fun. A bunch of people from the area came to share some of the things they've been writing lately. Some were good, some were infuriating. Well, mainly one was infuriating man who read poetry children had written and made comments throughout mocking it. That was swell. Poetry is something dear to my heart, and I don't like to see people kick it around. It was really nice to hear a lot of different voices though. My most favorite of the night was this guy who read his children's story to us (he even showed us the pictures!). It was a story about a guy who loves to eat so much, then gets a job at a restaurant, but gets fired because he eats too much! I wanted to be like, "Did you mean MY LIFE?" but I, uh, didn't say that to him. I did tell him that I loved his story though, and he and his wife seemed like just the sweetest people. Overall, it was a nice night. OH, and you folks that like the Shins (should be all of you, really) will appreciate this. One of my bosses at work has the "clap clap clap clap clap clap WOOH!" from the opening of the Shins song "Kissing the Lipless" as his notification sound. It's fantastic, and I'm jealous I didn't think of it first.

Top: Delia's, Skirt: H&M, Shoes: Urban Outfitters, Jean Jacket: Salvation Army, Adorable dinosaur pin: Bethany of Bunny Picnic!

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Look at the adorable dinosaur pin Bethany sent me! It's the cutest ever, and he and Thoreau are now just hanging out on my jean jacket together. You all should visit her wonderful store!


Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Friday, September 16, 2011

Meeting Michal!

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So, yesterday I got the opportunity to hang out with one of my most favorite blog pals, Michal of North Country Girl! She and her friend Erin are in the city for the week, so we decided to indulge in some tea, scones, and sandwiches at Alice's Teacup. Let me just say, these ladies are a hoot and a half. I don't think I stopped laughing or talking the whole time I was with them. Michal is just as wonderful, funny, and delightful (I've been using that word SO MUCH lately) as she is in person, and I had a great time getting to better know her, and meeting her best friend Erin, who's just as awesome. There was much talk of blogging, unfortunate fashion misadventures (pink velour tracksuit, anyone?), and philosophical discussions of the Aristocats and Cinderella. Afterwards, we stopped into an American Apparel store to, well, basically mock everything they stocked. Fun! We ended the afternoon taking a few pictures in Central Park, and then parted ways as I ran through traffic to catch my bus home. I had SUCH a wonderful time with Michal and Erin, and I hope I get to see them again soon!

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Tea! I had the Indian Chai and it was lovely.

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Hummus Sandwich!

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Pumpkin Scone!

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Michal was wearing such a cute outfit! Denim vests are the best, seriously.

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Hooray!


Until tomorrow,
Nicole

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Three Ring Circus

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At first, the only thought that came to mind concerning this outfit was "delightful." It's a very cutesy, cheery, and downright delightful outfit (a bit too delightful, probably). As I thought more about it throughout the day, though, I realized the outfit really reminded me of a circus. Bear with me here. The pinstripes on the skirt reminded me of the stripes on the circus tent, the animals on my belt were like the animal performers, and my top just seemed like something a clown might wear (hopefully, it's a chic clown).

Today's been a good day. I'm trying really hard to appreciate the good things in my life, like my new job, and see the positivity in most things. I've struggled with anxiety for a really long time (I'll have to do a tmi post on that soon) and with my breakup, school starting, and a new job, it hasn't been easy for me to be focused and happy. I'm hoping though that with time, I'll be able to work through what I'm dealing with right now, and come out of it a much better, more...well, delightful, person.

By the way, is it just me, or does my face look slightly demented in most of these photos? Maybe that's just my natural appearance?

Blouse: Modcloth, Skirt, Shoes: Urban Outfitters, Belt: thrifted

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Until tomorrow,
Nicole