rageddy ann + sweater + lace pants

Dressing up a basic sweater is TOUGH to do. Trying to look non-frumpy in your grandpas slightly over sized sweater takes skill. I think one of the best ways to dress up a sweater is to tuck it into a high-waisted skirt or some fun pants and add dressy accessories.  I took my style and added a bit of whimsy to the outfit by pairing it with my Rageddy Ann bag (complete with mini Rageddy!). Probably meant for a child this is just my kind of thing to spice up a basic outfit, plus its the perfect size for going out at night, and a conversation piece! On my instagram I took a few photos of my adventures with her.   what a doll that raggedy ;)  I wasn't sure how red would work with the purple hair but after seeing photos I am loving the combo! It is making me want to pull out more red in my wardrobe and a few other sweaters I have that highlight red!  I am linking up with IFB PROJECT #118: Sweater Girls for this post.  ~Outfit Details~ Sweater: Thrifted Vintage | Hope's Outlet Necklace: Vintage | College Town Vintage Boots: Jeffrey Campbell Bag: Vintage | Shelby's Place

fall plaid poncho

I am on this kick of "fall" insert whatever I am wearing here for blog titles. I think it works. Also on a kick of these kick !@# boots. I've had this poncho since last winter and have been wanting to style it. It has been really hard for me for some reason! I finally think I found the perfect outfit though with my velvet vest and skirt and flowy vintage top. It's getting SO COLD out its practically winter. I am glad I took advantage of the great weather last week to get some blog photos done!!
What other ways would you style a poncho? I kept searching for different ideas but I think because this vintage poncho is so unique i had a hard time picturing it in those outfits. 
~Outfit Details~ Poncho: Vintage Thrifted | Salvation Army GR Shirt, Skirt and Vest: Thrifted | Hope's Outlet Boots: A Gift! Blixen | Wolverine

fall floral dresses

I love how the fall colors have been sticking around so long! My dad reminded me on an adventure we took that usually by this time all the leaves have turned and are starting to fall to the ground all brown. This year we have really only had one frost and it wasn't a very heavy frost (however now its going to snow all week?) So still some of the trees are even green! I have been loving driving and seeing all the beautiful colors. I was inspired by the colors to wear this dress. A fall floral is fun to do and I think this Miss Frizzle like dress does the trick! I love pairing fall colors (dress) with spring colors (bag) and the pop of denim really screams fall to me. Plus the purple bag brings out my hair ;)

I am OBSESSED with my new Samantha Pleet for Wolverine boots. They were inspired by an 'explorer, Karen Blixen. In reality she was kind of just a lucky girl who had lots of cash, got to live in Africa and guide safaris. I love the whole idea of an explorer inspired boot collection! It kind of brings to mind a Jane/Tarzan feel. That being said they are insanely comfortable, well made and perfect for exploring right out my backyard. I love supporting local businesses and these are made by Wolverine (a local company out of Rockford, MI). I figured they would be Made in America but come to find out the entire Samantha Pleet line is made in China. I was really disappointed to find this out but I should know better to not assume and do my research before hand. Many of their mens work boots and the original 1000 mile for women are made right in Rockford. I am not surprised that this designer line would be made in China with its popularity, but I am kind of disappointed. Regardless I will continue supporting Wolverine because of their locale and the wonderful quality! They obviously have some great Chinese producers putting together this product and I am actually quite impressed! I hope because of that and the price point (300$) that they are made by well paid happy Chinese factory workers. I am sure they exist and in my mind I am just pretending that is the case.

~Outfit Details~

Dress: Probably my first vintage buy EVER and it doesn't fit right in the tatas so i don't wear it often!

Vest: Thrifted | Shelby's Place

Bag: Chocolate Handbags of NY | Uniquely Stranded (remember i used to work there ;))

Boots: A Gift! Blixen | Wolverine

Necklace: Vintage | My Mom's Jewelry Box

pants problems

I love these pants.  Dead stock vintage high-waist flares. I had been looking for the perfect ones for-EVER but because I had to try them on (just how i am with pants!) my choices were limited. I finally came across a great pair at one of my favorite vintage stores in Portland, OR called LuLu's Vintage. During the year of slow fashion (keep portland weird) I wore them for the blog once fresh off the rack while I was still actually on my visit to Portland. Well then I washed them and now they are all 'stone washed' with lines and !@#$ everywhere. My mom says this is a normal thing and I shouldn't be worried but it makes me sad/angry. I just wanted them to stay pristine and perfect. If I wouldn't have spilled Voodoo donuts on them I probably wouldn't have washed them and gotten a few fresh uses of them but of course, I did. SO I washed them. I am debating re-dyeing them but am also just growing accustomed to the vintage look of them. 
Currently obsessed with this vintage fascinator! It came into my work and my colleagues were YUP Rachel will want this. And boy were they right :D I have another that is black that just looks killer with the purple hair. But I am kind of loving the brown combo. It picks up some of the golden brown that still in my hair. In fact I am so obsessed with fascinators right now I keep Hearting them on ETSY! 
This bag holds the perfect amount of stuff! My phone, keys (complete with mini Rubik cube {yes I am a dork} and moo card holder), Wolverine wallet, lip-gloss and LUSH solid perfume fit perfectly! I even have space to throw in a small paperback and my sunglasses for a day of errands. 
The more I think about it the more I will am leaning toward keeping them all funky washed, maybe if I was them more it will look less like a mistake and more like it was meant to be! But who knows maybe I will go crazy, get some denim dye and do em up again. What do you think I should do?

~Outfit Details~ Everything in this outfit is vintage and/or thrifted (except my undergarments ;) hehe)!  Top and Vest: Thrifted | Shelby's Place Jeans: Deadstock | Lulu's Vintage  Shoes and Belt: Thrifted | Love INC in Spring Lake Bag: Thrifted | Hope's Outlet Shirt Clip: Vintage Clip Earring | Mom's Jewelry Box Ring: Vintage | Grandfathers

black and grey polka time

With the new purple do' I have been trending toward quasi monochromatic looks. Mostly entailing the scale from black-white . I have been having a hard time getting motivated to get dressed. After my birthday I got kind of sick and now I am playing insane amounts of catch up. I have been reworking my closet hoping that will give me a new sense of adventure with my wardrobe. I tried to change it up by adding in these polka dot blue jeans and I think it gave this top a really cool look.  meanwhile the crazy dog girls were playing on the hayride..... Lately I can't seem to focus my photos when I am using my tripod. I think it is telling of my life. Focus is missing right now and the evidence of that is filtering into everything!!!
~Outfit Details~ Top: Thrifted | Shelby's Place Jeans: DIY | Shelby's Place Thrifted Jeans Jacket: My Mom's Boots: Carlos Santana | Ebay a long time ago

slow your reading

Reading is one of my favorite hobbies. I am actually a serial reader. I think serial readers are more than hobbyists. Its kind of a lifestyle. I could read until my eyes bleed. In fact I have read so much over a few days that I don't see right for weeks afterwards, my eyes are constantly searching for the words on a page and not able to focus on life outside of the story. There is nothing slow about my reading. I quickly hop from book to book and often have multiple books going at a time (these of course include but are not limited too my: at work book, by the toilet book, time for bed book). In fact I will admit that a lot of my laziness for the blog change over has been me being sucked into book lives. But I decided to put down the current reading obsession to give you a welcome to the Slow Reading aspect of my blog. I love books and love sharing my love of books so I hope this will be a continuing series about how to slow down your book consumption. There is an actual "slow movement" section called "Slow Books" and that is where Slow Your Reading was born. The slow book movement is about reawakening a desire to read and to step away from the TV. I prefer slow reading to slow books because I think it just sounds better. 

I'm a huge fan of actual books. Made of paper or fabric, hold em in your hand. Getting pages dirty or ruined when you drop them in the tub, good old fashioned books. I love the smell of new books and of excessively old books in a library. I love bookmarks and pages dogeared.

A lot of people have issues with libraries. In some ways I can understand this, bed bugs being found in libraries scares the crap out of me but not enough to stop going to my library. Reading to me has always been a gateway to the world regardless of the internet. I use the library to delve deeper into topics i have researched on the internet. I can read loads of stuff online but again there is something about reading an actual paper book. I am not one of those people who scoffs at a used book. I look at the stains on a book and wonder who the person holding this before me was and why they read this book. Were they traveling? Sitting at home? I always am curious.

 One of the best ways you can slow your reading is to check out a book at the library. Right now I have the max number of holds at the library for all the amazing young adult books that come out in the fall. Yes. I have to wait a bit longer but usually I am the first on the list (probably because I am crazy about my book habits) and if I am not it doesn't take that long for it to come to me.

Look at my big-ole-stack of library books!

I will do more posts about slow reading in the future. What would you like to hear from me about? My plans for this section include talking about the books I read and other ways you can slow your reading. Do you enjoy taking out books from the library?