My Simple Boot Strap DIY

Because I'm not courageous enough to have an asymmetrical haircut, get a sleeve of tattoos, or have unusual piercings, I have to get a little punk rock in in more subtle ways.  I figured studded boot straps were a good accessory to add just a teeny bit of rock & roll to my outfit.

These were so simple to make, and luckily I had all the supplies already.  I was originally going to stud the entire way around, but once I got three in, I kind of liked that look.  Who knows, I may end up adding more later.

Here's what I used to make them:
- black leather (or vinyl as a budget option, and JoAnn has some pretty believable faux leather)
- silver and gold tone double cap rivets/studs, size small (I got mine from Michael's)
- a leather punch (also from Michael's)
- a rivet setter & anvil (but you could just use a hammer and a hard surface)
- large brass rings

Here's how I made them:
- I measured how long I needed each section of leather to be, and added some length so it could be doubled under the the studded/riveted area
- Cut my leather strips with an exacto knife.
- Folded the leather around the brass ring.
- Punched my holes in the leather where I want the studs to go.  It's probably best to measure, but I just tend to eyeball everything.
- Hammered in my rivets/studs.
- Moved onto the next side and repeated all the steps to get the leather around the second ring.
- Did the same thing all over again for the second strap!

It's super simple, and these slide off, that way I can wear them on other boots!

makes my heart go pitter pattern

so i think i've come to some sort of realization.  as much as i've tried to make myself think otherwise, i believe i like patterns more than solids.  i've always felt like i'd prefer solids, and i used to tell myself that it was just more difficult to find solid colors, but i'm finally taking the first step and admitting that when given the choice, i go for patterns (and especially patterned shoes).  whew, i can't believe i just said that.

blouse: TJ Maxx // skirt: target // belt: vintage, thrifted // shoes: chelsea crew via modcloth

the weather is beautiful, and while summer clothes still suit the temperatures, they don't suit my mood.  but, i can't exactly put on cozy cardigans and boots without the guarantee of smelling like an armpit.  so that's why i loved this outfit; sleeves and closed toed shoes, but still lightweight and comfortable and no offensive armpit odors.  win!

what i'd like to be wearing

no, it's not mint green skinny jeans, zara heels, sheer blouses or arm parties; what i'd like to be wearing are these awesome vintage finds and handmade pieces!  it's probably a little nuts that i spent the morning browsing the internet for all of the things i'd like to have after i spent the weekend going through closets and drawers getting rid of all the things i don't need!  i may have a problem...

from the top: vintage dress, booties, sunglasses, purse, blouse, ring, panties, dress

aside from cleaning out clothes and shoes i don't need, i also cleaned the rest of my house (yay) and ate ice cream, ice cream, ice cream, and ice cream.  oh, and watched movies.  it was a pretty low key weekend, but that's how i like it!  how was your weekend?

a woman's right to shoes

so yesterday's post was serious, and today's post is, uh, ridiculous.  maybe.  i hope you're a fan of sex and the city so you can understand the silver shoe thing!  when i watched the episode "a woman's right to shoes," where carrie's beautiful new silver jeweled manolo blahnik peep toes were stolen from the party, i fell in love with those shoes, and although i didn't know when - if ever - i'd have the need for silver jeweled peep toes, i knew i wanted some.  so fast forward a few years until now, and guess what, i actually do need silver heels!

this is the ultimate in frivolity, so bear with me.  i haven't forgotten about those heels all these years later, but like i said, i didn't need a pair as i'm sure they wouldn't be worn much.  on saturday i met my sister, my stepmom, and one other bridesmaid for a dress fitting for my sister's wedding next june (p.s. i'm going to be a bridesmaid).  when i asked her what type of shoes we were to wear and she said, "it doesn't matter what style they are as long as they're silver," i think my heart skipped a beat.  that meant i now had a legitimate, bonafide reason to own shoes like carrie's!

so here's the thing: i can be incredibly impulsive when i decide i want something.  my sister's wedding isn't until next june, so i truly don't need these now.  BUT, i have a difficult, if not impossible time finding shoes in my size (5), and i found a pair that's not only my size, but it's a steal of a price, AND they are so similar to carrie's manolos that i bet i could trick someone into thinking they are real (but obviously joking is no friend of mine.  obviously.)!  but there is only 1 left in my size.  so what do i do?  buy them now and covet them forever or let them go and wait until closer to the wedding date to start shopping for their twin?  HELP!

have/want

the internet is a dangerous place, my friends; full of little treasures that i tell myself i need. no, not need, but must have if i plan to go on living. i'm honestly that bad about it. and when you think about it, after all the cleaning out i've been doing in closets, i've really just been making room for new things, right? for this edition of have/can't live without want, i went straight to the montana snow vintage shop, which is packed full of great vintage clothes and accessories!

i have a pair of bright pink cropped pants i got from modcloth back when they were having their cabin fever sale, and i want that awesome vintage geometric blouse! it's a fun spring color combination, don't you think?

i have a forever 21 cardigan, and, SURPRISE, another striped banana republic shirt, and i want to pair them with this unique vintage hand pendant necklace. i've never seen a necklace like that before, but i immediately fell in love with it!

i have a plain jane vintage speckled wool skirt that i thrifted probably three years ago. because of the skirt's uber-plain style, i like to wear it with a unique or printed top, like this yellow plaid vintage blouse. and then i'd finish it off with tan wedges or my favorite pair of vintage clogs.

because i love print mixing, because i think a small print is as good as a neutral, because i have a slight obsession with shoes, and because i have more wants than i could count, this one is a want/want! i want those gorgeous timo wedge sandals from blowfish, i'd pair them with the pretty vintage sheer dress, and i'd wear them until i started to smell. no. wait. i'd wear them often, but i'd try to throw in a few other outfits here and there.

i'm curious, what's on your wish list right now?

also, if you haven't done so yet, be sure to visit beca's blog and enter the HUGE GIVEAWAY! win a print, a pair of dinosaur toes hoop earrings, a pair of beca's awesome wood sunglasses, and a crochet headband!

shoe minimalist vs. shoe hoarder

behind every man that believes three pairs of shoes - one for biking/hiking/running/whatever, one for the beach, and one for weddings and funerals - is sufficient for life, i imagine is a woman who believes three pairs of shoes is sufficient for that many days of the week (or, depending on what your plans are that evening, three pairs may only be sufficient for a single day). such is the difference with chris and i.

chris's everyday shoe is his beloved pair of black etnies that are older than some of my friends' old-enough-to-ride-a-bike-without-training-wheels kids. while he'll probably wear them until the soles fall off, i've been thinking maybe it's time for an upgrade. notice i didn't say replacement? so without insulting his etnies, i asked him to sit down with me and look at fashion shoes for men on macy's site (because really, who doesn't love a store with a wooden escalator?). here are his picks:

i was really curious to see what he'd choose and how it would compare to my favorites (which tend to be anything that would make a guy look like a skater from 1980's southern california), and i was surprised and excited to see that his two favorites (converse and lacoste) were among my top picks! apparently i don't only get excited about shoes for myself! and to prove my 80's skater taste in shoes, here are my two favorites for him:

does your husband or boyfriend believe in the three pairs way of living as well? if you could go shoe shopping for him, which styles would you choose?

have / want

it's that time again to show you some of my current favorites from the interwebs and dream of how i'd pair them if only i could find a way to become independently wealthy so want would always equal have. on a somewhat related note, i'm glad to finally be dressing like a woman rather than an androgynous preteen, aren't you?

the first look includes a white chiffon blouse i already own and a pretty vintage tribal print skirt from pasadena vintage. i'd probably also pair this with ballet flats and bouncy hair and wear it seven days a week.

the second look actually isn't a look, but i'd wear it to dress up a simple outfit. included: a vintage faux fur collar and one of my great-grandma's old rhinestone brooches, as well as (be still, my beating heart) ritzy gold flats from wanted. i'd probably wear this with skinny jeans and a striped shirt. or maybe colorful cropped pants and a cream sweater. my point is - the possibilities are endless!

the third look is for when i have to dress up or want to be taken seriously (read: when i have to meet a client that may not take me seriously because of my small stature and soft voice). it's so ladylike, isn't it? shown is a vintage beaded clutch that's sadly been collecting dust, and a gorgeous velvet blazer from fine and dandy vintage.

whether i go to the rodeo, take a walk through the country, or just go to the grocery store, this outfit would make me feel lighthearted and cheerful all day - a side effect of a good novelty print. the amazing vintage rodeo print skirt is mine all mine, and the ugglebo lisbon clogs should be!

what are you dreaming of today?

what i wore: because my aunt wants to see it even though i look homeless

i had actually kind of planned on doing an outfit post today because i'm just so enamored with my $5 dress, but once i got home and looked in the mirror at my hair, i really didn't want to as the sight of me may scare small children. but, since my aunt kimberly wanted to see what i was wearing, and mainly how i wore my fancy new sparkly toms, i figured i couldn't let her down. just try to remember that i don't look quite so much like a disheveled, crazy homeless lady all the time.

$5 clearance dress: target (it has great waitress blouse style sleeves, so i can't wait to wear it in the spring), cardigan: i don't remember, leopard shoes: target, sparkly shoes: toms, bullet necklace: dinosaur toes, key necklace: bueno bueno. note about necklaces, i felt a little like mr. t when i put on two necklaces this morning, but since the outfit was plain and those are my two favorite necklaces, i figured it would be okay. i love it when a plan comes together (okay, so not mr. t, but it's still the a-team).

in my defense, my hair looked MUCH better this morning. since it's so long, it's kind of difficult to do much with it, but my one go to style is a low bun to the side which looks pretty good. but of course i had to show the side without the bun. smart move. also, i did not wear two different shoes today. i may be a little crazy, but not that crazy! i wore the leopard print flats to work, but then went to get the toms this afternoon. chris actually bought me the gold herringbone toms i so desperately wanted for christmas, but it turns out i got the dud pair. the right shoe fit perfectly, but the left shoe was bigger in width and length to the point it was actually too big for my foot. so i went today to do a shoe switcheroo, but they didn't have another pair of size 5 gold herringbone toms. i actually wasn't upset though because it meant i got to exchange the dud pair for a glitter pair! so i'd say the mishap ended up working in my favor! tonight chris and i are going out to dinner with pop and my stepmom, so i'm sure you can guess which shoes i'm going to wear!

the hair accessory is of course flojo. she has separation anxiety, so once i got home from work i had to let her come be in the pictures with me, otherwise she'd end up screaming herself hoarse thinking that we wouldn't be together.

so all in all, i'd say it was a pretty schizophrenic day. crazy hair, a parrot on my head and a picture with me wearing two different shoes. i bet people that don't read blog posts and only look at the pictures will think i need help.

how was your thursday?

wishlist wednesday!

you know one of the things i really hate about being a woman, besides aunt flo? it's the way we can talk ourselves into believing we really need something that, when we think logically, know we can live without (even though it's difficult). when it comes to shoes, and especially boots, i wish i could be more like a man, in that i'd be happy living with only three pairs. well, i'm all woman about boots, and as far as i'm concerned, the more i have, the happier i am! here are a few pairs i can't live without wouldn't mind adding to my small (even though chris would disagree) collection...

i know the last two pairs aren't boots, but i want them just the same. sources: 20twenty vintage, lolly crisp vintage, blueberry deluxe, rarae aves, need supply co.

now that we got the wish list out of the way and i can mourn over all the shoes i don't have, i have a few questions for you... i've lost several followers this last week, and while i know it's completely normal, and i'm not taking it too personal, i want to know what you expect in a blog. i've asked before, but be honest, even if you say my blog totally sucks and needs a major overhaul; you won't have to see me crying because of the shield that is the internet. kidding. but seriously, what would you like to see more or less of? do you like the wishlist wednesday posts?

if you have a wish list you'd like to share, please leave me a link in the comments section so i can see what you're currently lusting over!

get in my closet!

I have a love/hate relationship with Anthropologie. I love love love their clothes, shoes, housewares and accessories, but I hate that it can't all be mine. Too bad they don't have Forever 21 prices. These are some of my current faves, ESPECIALLY the sandals! I've always had a LOVE/LOVE relationship with shoes!