L(ong)-B-D

dress & sweater: forever 21 ♥ dollhouse loafers ♥ f21 & handmade bracelets

You can't call a maxi dress "little" but this one has quickly become a staple, like a little black dress but more comfortable, casual and everyday. And since I'm lazy, I found out how well it works as sleepwear. I might just have to try to bring back bed-gowns, my boyfriend seemed to like it. But before I slept in it, I threw a short-sleeve sweater on over it for a slow, sunny workday.

I'm both excited and bewildered that it's already May; excited for summer weather and making ice cream, but confused by how quickly this year has passed. Wasn't it just Christmas? Nope, apparently it was just Cinco de Mayo. I didn't "celebrate" but we ended up eating lunch at Chili's, which was offering a Coronitas margarita, which was pretty fun. I've never found a restaurant or bar that offers this delicious and airy combination of Mexican beer and margies.

[ DIY: Toast of the Tulle ]

In this post I collected some good DIY ideas from forever21, and yesterday I put one of them into action.

I used an old plain top from my "waiting to be made-over" pile, a 5" strip of tulle, and a needle and thread.

 Coincidentally (I think not?) this black sweater is from Forever 21. I like the belled sleeves,

but the fitted torso is a little too plain for me so I haven't worn it in ages.

The ruffled tulle and handmade quickie belt gives it both more femininity and edge.

Voila! New half of a perfect party outfit! New Years perhaps?

[ Thanks Forever 21 ]

I gotta hand it to for Forever 21 - they never fail to remind me how easily I can make a lot of their clothing; putting it another way, I got really inspired to update some of my plain old tops...

Off to the fabric store for some tulle and chiffon strips!

[ Bargain Basement: Chloe vs Forever 21 ]

One of the biggest downfalls of reading copious fashion magazines while on a shoe-string budget is that you're exposed to a million different wonderful things you can't possibly afford. I know there's a lot of hoopla about the knocking-off of designer duds, but I can't bring myself to feel too badly about it.  Not saying I'm into counterfeit, but I love me some trickle-down...

Fashion is a multi-billion dollar industry, and it's also apparently run by some pretty big cry-babies. Let's just knock this one off to imitation being the biggest form of flattery...

I'm a little obsessed with Chloé (the ads as well as the clothes), and I'm especially enamored of the Paraty bag

But with a four digit price tag, I thought it was a pipe dream...

until I stumbled across this gem:

 

Forever 21's gray Roxanne $36.80

 Did I mention gray is my favorite non-color? What time does the mall open again!?

Openopenopenopen...



[Editor's Note: the F21 bag walked into my work on a customer, so I asked her about it and she let me see. It's pretty well constructed and sturdy, and I want it even more now!]