i ruin clothes: a totally thrifted outfit post

chris and i suffer from what we like to call "the poor kid syndrome." it's a pitiful state of mind in which one experiences severe heartache and distress upon ruining any possession. early in our marriage, chris and i were poor kids, and that can be attributed to my college education. then we saved like champs, were on top of the world, and only occasionally experienced symptoms stemming from the poor kid syndrome. last year, chris's asshole former employer decided to stop paying him and skip town. yipee! so now we're back to full on syndrome symptoms. what does this have to do with my outfit? a lot.

cardigan: vintage/thrifted, dress: vintage/thrifted, belt: vintage/thrifted, boots: vintage/thrifted (but unworn when i got them!!!)

in the last post i did about my thrifting finds, i showed you this dress that i instantly fell in love with and knew i had to have; i mean, everything about it is perfect! unfortunately, there is no fabric content tag in the dress, and unfortunately i'm an idiot when it comes to laundering clothes. i meant to hand wash and air dry the dress, but i guess i was in a hurry (like i usually am - the night before work i realize i have no clean clothes or underwear) and just sort of threw everything in the washer without really thinking. the dress isn't too small by any means, but it did shrink up a good two inches in length. it's not that i mind wearing shorter dresses, but for the love of everything holy i can't manage to keep my skirts down when even the slightest breeze comes, so obviously, the shorter the length, the more chance i have of showing my ass. i only paid $3 for the dress, so it wasn't like it put me in the hole, but still, had i taken the time to actually think about what i was doing i'd still have those extra two inches. so i did some sulking, and even let out a few gentle sobs that night. i kid, i didn't cry...but i wanted to, thanks to the poor kid syndrome.

on a more positive note, here are two things i love: 1. having dresses that work well as skirts or dresses, so you basically have two pieces of clothing in one, and 2. the clothing in this outfit cost me less than $10. BAM!

did someone say free?!

i don't know about you, but i love a good freebie! i had originally planned to do an outfit post today, but because i've got a stack of work that really needs to be finished today, i thought i'd just do a quick post to let you know about a fun holiday deal i've got on my website!

from now until christmas, all orders of $75 or more will receive a FREE pair of hammered brass quartz hoops! i figured this would accomplish two important things at once - 1. encourage people to get out of the mall and support local and handmade businesses this holiday season, and 2. thank all of the wonderful customers who buy from dinosaur toes!

i wish i could stay and chat longer, but adulthood, jobs, and responsibilities are calling, so i better get back to work. i hope you have a good monday!

16 miles

dear beca, i am still alive, so please blog stalk me. sometimes when life gets busy, i don't realize i've been away from my blog as long as i have, but thanks to friends like beca who remind me they're awaiting my return, i get excited about posting again! so how was your holiday american friends? and how was your non-holiday international friends? mine was great! well, thanksgiving was nice, but the real fun was friday...

the weather was absolutely gorgeous and warm, so pop, aunt debbie, her new husband steve, and i all went riding on the blackwater creek trails on friday. i have to say, that's got to be one of my absolute favorite things to do in lynchburg, and it's something pop and i really enjoy doing together. for the most part the trails go through a natural area and follow the blackwater creek, and then the james river, but part of the time you go through historic downtown lynchburg which i love! we rode 16 miles exactly, and when i was about 1/8 or a mile or less from my aunt debbie's house (she lives near one of the trail entrances, so we just rode from her house), i couldn't pedal up the hill any further, my bike leaned to the left, and i fell into a fence. i kind of felt like an idiot, and i'm hoping no one saw me!

oh, also, i'm pretty much the riding with no hands champion, even around curves, so i had to show them my skills and dare them to try and beat me. i remain the champion.

i also ate too much. then i ate too much again. and then chris and i bought ice cream. sooo, it looks like i'm going to need to go riding again in the next couple of days!

badonkadonk & print mixing: an outfit post

i'm glad i finally realized that print mixing is a good thing, because it opens up a whole new world of opportunity as far as outfits go! our weather has been pretty schizophrenic lately, so one day i'm wearing short sleeves and using the AC, and the next i'm wearing a faux fur wrap and blasting the heat to combat purple fingers and toes. lately we've been enjoying weather that's better suited for mid-april, but i'll take it as long as i can get it...and then i want several feet of snow!

cardigan: the limited (i think) via rugged wearhouse, dress: target, belt: it came with a dress, wedges: payless, badonkadonk: thanks a lot, genetics.

can you believe it, and outfit where i'm not wearing my black riding boots! crazy, i know. i'm still in the infant stages of mixing patterns and prints, but i'm coming to realize that, to me, leopard is the easiest print to pair with others; i don't know if it's the color or the fact that it's almost as basic as black, but i find that it seems to go with pretty much everything. my butt, on the other hand, doesn't go with much. as long as i'm not getting into kim kardashian territory i think i'm safe but i wish i knew a flattening method!

are you guys all ready for thanksgiving? i'm ready to eat enough for three adults and one young child, but the way i look at it is, i can eat until i bust my pants wide open because the day after pop and i and maybe some other family will go bike riding at the black water trails, so basically thanksgiving will just be building up my strength for a day of riding! you can pretty much find ways to rationalize everything, especially when the subject is food.

oh, and if you haven't yet checked it out, the lovely toni and i are doing a charity auction to benefit the rachael horton compassionate fund, so take a look to see if you're interested, or pass it along to anyone you think will be!

Dinosaur Toes and Lost Cabin Vintage for RHCCF

I'm so excited the time has finally come for Toni and I to unveil the collaboration we've been working on for the last couple weeks! Toni and I have each created a handmade item exclusively for this auction, with 100% of the proceeds going to The Rachael Horton Compassionate Care Fund.

On April 8th, 2010, Rachael Horton, along with her husband Aaron, was killed in a devastating apartment fire; on that day, animals and pets lost a dear and devoted friend. Before her passing, Rachael would use money from her own paycheck to provide treatments to animals when their owners weren't able to afford it. The Rachael Horton Compassionate Care Fund was set up in Rachael's memory to honor her dream of having no pet turned away from life-saving treatments, or face euthanasia, due to an owner's inability to pay the vet's bill. Through generous donations and local events, animals that may have been euthanized have instead been treated, just as Rachael would have wanted!

Toni, from Lost Cabin Vintage, has created the "Apple Isle," a beautiful and unique hand-dyed vintage slipdress, especially for this auction. Fits sizes Small, Medium and Large.

The Dinosaur Toes necklace I've made for this auction is a hammered brass horseshoe with a chalcedony stone spike. The pendant is attached to a section of polished brass chain and is 28" long.

To place a bid on this fun handmade combination as a gift to yourself, or for someone else this holiday season, just fill in your name and email address in the form below, and your bid amount in the messages box. Names and email addresses will be kept confidential, and you can keep track of the current bid amount here, as well as Toni's blog! Also, to help spread the word, we'd be so grateful if you'd blog, tweet, or facebook about this auction! Bidding for this auction will end on December 10, and your package will be shipped via Priority Mail no matter where you are in the world, that way you can get in time to give for Christmas!

foxyform.com