black widow

Whenever I dress in all (or mostly) black, there are always a few people who ask me if I've "gone goth". I personally prefer the completely pretentious and overused term "Parisian chic"! There is something so lovely about the women of Paris, the ones who roam the streets wearing black stockings and beautiful mini-dresses and berets, and sit in cafes eating croissants and drinking their cafe au lait... perhaps it's a ridiculously overused trope, but I adore the idea of it nevertheless.

On Mondays, I'm stuck in class from nine o'clock to five o'clock, and I only have time to grab coffee and croissants from a nearby cafe at random intervals throughout the day. So, Mondays have been dubbed my Parisian days, and I try to dress accordingly... x

(camel cashmere cardigan, spotted tights, red flats, black lace top, black mini circle skirt)

 

x

x

x

daughters of darkness

A cinema-loving friend has been trying to convince me for ages now to watch some 1970's lesbian vampire films with him. I've refused, for no apparent reason (other than the fact that I've never really watched vampire films or old horror films). But last night, I finally gave in and watched a brilliant piece of cinema (with art direction by Francoise Hardy, of all people!), called Daughters of Darkness. It's a Belgian film from 1971, starring the ever so-stunning Delphine Seyrig (from one of my favorite Catherine Deneuve films, Donkey Skin) and has the absolute loveliest fashion. x

This gorgeous vampiress wore the most beautiful things. 

The film's main couple (especially Stefan!) was wonderful. 

x

x

I adore how dreamy all the shots were, especially for a horror film. 

x

x

Delphine Seyrig is a beautiful goddess. 

the gram, pt. 3

A sort-of-stranger once asked me: "How is your life so lovely? Can you teach me to be the way you are in the world? Everything seems so perfect; everything you do is full of the prettiest, most delicate things." While this flatters me endlessly, I don't find my life to be so lovely most of the time. It's not all soft, and lacy, and delicate. But quite often, the things that keep me going are. They are the little things, the gentle moments, the natural beauty that I come upon when walking down a road or through the aisles of a grocery store or in a relative's house. There is no secret to finding these beautiful things, besides the fact that you must learn to observe and to relax at the same time. I like to think that the prettiest things make themselves appear when someone goes through life always looking, but never searching. At least, that's what I try to do. 

(these lovelies are from the archives of my instagram feed, seen here)

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

baroque

I'm not usually one to follow each season's trends, though I do enjoy browsing through fashion magazines (particularly Vogue and Elle) each month and marveling at runway photos. However, the trend for this fall & winter is one that I certainly WILL follow... involuntarily, that is. My go-to material/pattern when it comes to planning autumn outfits has always been needlepoint/tapestry. Last year, I found a lovely tapestry circle skirt while thrifting (I think, perhaps, it is my best thrift store find to date). And, of course, there are these incredible needlepoint loafers, which I received for Christmas two years ago (after much hoping and pleading), which I pair with tights in nearly every fall ensemble I wear. Not to mention my ever-growing collection of floral tapestry purses and clutches... I shall never get tired of tapestry prints, and I shall never get tired of anything that's inspired by the Baroque period, or by the grand halls of Versailles, as much of this years Autumn/Winter RTW collections are. 

And the winner, in my eyes, goes to Dolce & Gabanna's stunning array of cake-like shoes, floral tapestry dresses, and shimmering headpieces.

x

x

 

 x

x

 

x

x

pretty in pink

I will be the first to admit that sometimes I truly think I am six years old at heart. While rifling through my local Goodwill store today, my eyes only seemed to land upon the girliest things possible, as is often the case. Perhaps I'm some mixture of somebody's grandmother and a very young girl... x

A lovely pink shift dress, a pink silk hanger, a pink velvet-lined vanity box, and a lovely snow-globe.

x

I filled the beautiful vanity box with my favorite brooches and gemstones.

I had a hard time deciding between this glittery garden faerie snow-globe and one with a swan princess. x

november dreaming

...I am a little obsessed with channeling Audrey Horne, Edie Sedgewick, and Jane Birkin recently (but mostly Audrey Horne.)

This autumn, I've been absolutely infatuated with certain colors, textures, and patterns. Most often: ox-blood, mustard, tan, cream, cashmere, suede, velvet, corduroy, and plaid. I suppose this is nothing new, as those are the quintessential autumn shades and materials, but I can't get over how lovely they are... and the fact that I've been watching Twin Peaks and listening to only sixties music lately doesn't help! You truly can't get lovelier than the outfits the lovable Audrey Horne wore in that magnificent show... full skirts, plaid, and the wooliest, prettiest jumpers. x

(Collared fur coat, cream cashmere jumper, rust suede mini skirt, brown mary-janes, vintage gold purse, red hair barrettes, rose gold clip-on earrings, old-fashioned heart locket)

(Plaid cape, red peter pan blouse, sun & moon needlepoint loafers, oxblood snakeskin bag, glitter nail polish, sheer stockings, corduroy mini skirt)

(Plaid pinafore dress, cream coloured blouse, fur collar coat, brown leather satchel, yellow mary-janes, Miss Dior Cherie perfume, oxblood knee socks)

(Collared camel cape, white bow-tie blouse, oxblood beret, vintage black purse, heart lollipops, floral tapestry loafers, ribbon black knee socks, green velvet skirt)

(Black fur collar cape, red plaid dress, floral tapestry purse, deep red lipstick, black bow mary-janes, black stockings)

Wishlists here. x

dear lana,

I love you. I admit it. Lana Del Rey is most certainly a guilty pleasure, but I can't deny the catchiness of her music, the loveliness of her looks, the loveliness of her music videos. And the loveliness of that super-fuzzy, pale pink sweater she wore for the famous H&M campaign...

And wearing the same sweater almost makes me feel as if I'm part of some 1960's lingerie catalog...

x

x

x

x

the dutch-african getaway (pt.1)

It's taken me far too long to post this (in fact, I still have three more rolls of film that I must get developed), but back in September, I ventured to two wonderful and exotic places: Amsterdam and South Africa! I've been finding it quite difficult these past few months to adequately articulate what those experiences were like, and I think, perhaps, my pictures do it better than I ever could. And though I was only in Amsterdam for two days, I feel so very lucky to have had the chance to go to both of these lovely places. I have all sorts of film photographs (ten rolls, to be exact) of lions and elephants and zebras and other brilliant wildlife, but some of my favorite memories were of the littlest, most insignificant moments on my adventure. x

Amsterdam x

The Victoria Falls Hotel, Zimbabwe x

Amsterdam x

x

Kruger National Park, South Africa x

Amsterdam x

Amsterdam x

Cape Grace Hotel, Cape Town x

Riijksmuseum, Amsterdam x

x

... and many more to come! x