Sequin Courage

Skirt? No label, from Milli's Top? Winners Shoes? DvF, StyleSense Wristlet? Coach, bridesmaid's gift Necklace? Vintage, The Last Hurrah

It's not a competition but if it were, this skirt would win. Win everything but Miss Congeniality, seriously...
It was Matt's company party this past weekend and last year, when it was his first year at that company, I went conservatively festive in a black frock ('conservatively festive in a black frock?', thanks goodness I am not a copywriter...). But this year... I brought out the big guns. I know more people and one of my very good friends works for the company now and that gave me a whole lot of sequin courage. Of course, the fact that, despite my best efforts to become a socialite, there has been a dearth of event invites also spurred me into wearing my favourite skirt. It is rare that I get the chance to really dress up, so if something comes along, I embrace the opportunity fully. Last time I wore this skirt it was my brother's wedding. I wore it very similarly and we took pictures with cows. I can't top cows... I tried and all we got before the sun set was a garage door...

She Thrifted

Meet Monkeyface from Hello, Monkeyface! She thrifted this wool skirt and silk blouse.
I like Monkey face because she thrifts. I like Monkeyface because she's funny as shit. I like Monkeyface because she is an international woman of mystery. I like Monkeyface because she has a cute monkeyface. And I like Monkeyface because her pictures always look saturated and dreamy... and she takes all her own pictures! A few posts ago she showed a step by step of how she gets her pictures to look so cool and I wish I never read it... In my mind, Monkeyface is actually Cat Deeley in a world of consistently perfect lighting and I am not ready for that illusion to end.

Positivity

Dress? Ann Taylor, thrifted Belt? Michael Kors, Winners Bomber? Costa Blanca Boots? Ash, Winners Eelskin clutch? Thrifted

I've been trying this new thing called Positive Thinking. I hate it.
I mostly enjoy the warmer months of the year, but I am trying to focus on the good things that come with cold weather. Like the fact that we can take quick outfit pictures at Whitehern without being interrupted by wedding parties and lovers having whimsical picnics. Whitehern is a historical house and walled garden in downtown Hamilton. It's like a secret garden in the middle of high-rise office buildings and understandably it is often used for professional photography. So, when it was chilly and rainy, we took advantage of the quiet and used it for some unprofessional photography. And while we are doing that thing called Positive Thinking, I am glad that Matt is no where near a professional photographer because when I googled Whitehern, I just saw that a photography permit is $165... Oops?

Light Bright

Wool dress? Thrifted Shoes? Ash, Winners Necklaces? Banana Republic and The Last Hurrah Sequin clutch? Vintage, gift from my parents

It's tricky to take indoor pictures. I try to avoid it but if the outfit is exponentially better than the weather, I do what I can... Our downstairs does not have a lot of natural light but our upstairs has a lot of mess (for shame...), so I turn on the lights and open every curtain in the living room and welcome each light particle with love. Even then, it is still not enough light to get a decent picture. I found a construction light in the attic and I used that to augment. Then it was too bright and my shadow looked like a lurking monster across the mantle (even worse than the fourth picture) but I remedied that with a sheet of tracing paper across the bright bulb. As that construction light is serious business and burns hot, I hustled back and forth with the self timer and took some pictures really quick, only getting cat distracted twice. When the tracing paper started to smell like it was burning, it was time to quit. That's how Matt knows it's dinnertime as well; when it starts to smell like it is burning.
I'm kidding, it's dinnertime when Matt walks through the door with Subway.