Polly Dolly - To The Max!

Welcome back to another Polly Dolly challenge ( as hosted by Danimezza ). This week Dani has been inspired by a bad retail experience, and her desire to try a new trend....and has asked to dress our Polly Dolly in a....

Polly Dolly - To The Max! by Amy1984 featuring platform high heels

I dont know about you, but maxi skirts, for me, always give off a beachy, laid back, 70's vibe - so thats the first thought i had for my Polly Dolly. I found her a long hippy/Gypsy inspired skirt and then teamed it with a simple white fitted tank and denim vest. Of course, a 70's vibe calls for platforms, and these denim wedges are hot! The trilby and aviators modernise the look, and my Polly can fit everything she needs in her gorgeous leather satchel. A fresh scent, a slick of gloss and some cool, laidback tunes ( the " More Adventurous " album by Rilo Kiley ) complete the look. Whatta ya think?

Hand-me-down Evidence

Just a quick post - so you now how i mentioned that in my Hand-me-down post that my mother had dressed me in my cousins hand-me-downs, even though i am, in fact, a girl and he was a boy? And that i couldnt find the photo of me in red " Sherriff " overalls? Well, my mother found it and here it is for your viewing pleasure...

Oh yea, thats me - a bit over 2 yrs old i think - in my fash-tastic hand-me-down overalls with my chubbster brother. Aren't we vintage gorgeous?

Its All In The Contrast

Its Friday, so i'm again taking part in Danimezza's Polly Dolly Polyvore challenge. This week Dani has been a bit inspired by the look and feel of " Black Swan " ( the film Natalie Portman has been Oscar nominated for ) and wants to know how we would dress our Dolly ( or ourselves ) in - Clever Contrast.

Its All In The Contrast by Amy1984 featuring peep toe booties

I've gone with a beautiful maxi dress in a vibrant, feminine pink as the main feature of the outfit. I like the contrast of the feminine colour and cut of the dress with the masculinity of the leather jacket, and the booties instead of a finer stiletto. The statement necklace is bold, but the fringe makes it soft ( and compliments the jungle feel of the leopard print ). I've finished off with a cute lady-like clutch and " With Love " by Hilary Duff. Why ? My friend used to wear it and despite its fluffy, romantic name its actually a very wood, masculine scent. Just gorgeous!

My Own Personal Polyvore

I was really looking forward to this weeks Polyvore challenge and then... its missing! Danni hasnt made her post yet so i thought i'd do my own challenge. I'd seen a few posts this morning in regards to personal style, so i thought i'd create two sets for myself - the first being my typical day time style, and the second what i would wear on a special, night time, occasion. First up: Daytime.

Please note the awesome Chuck Taylor All-stars and the requesite bootleg jeans. I always bootlegs because i'm quite short and a bit curvy, so i find bootlegs balance me out. Complete the outfit with a cute t-shirt ( thats a Green Day t-shirt - Green Day rock! ), a comfy cardi and my watch and i'm ready to hit the shops, take Flynn to the park or lounge around at home.

Ah, special occasion - like going out for dinner with Mick or a party. You may be able to tell that my favourite colour to wear is red, which is why i picked this dress ( its actually very similar in style to one i had made for myself in Vietnam - half a dozen more kilos of weight loss and i might fit back into it! ). I also love a high heel and i think the studs on these ones are sexy. As far as make up, i'm an eye girl.... i dont do lips. Its mascara and eyeliner all the way baby!
So there you be - i'm not quite sure what you'd call my style ( any ideas ? ) but those are representative of what i would normally choose to wear. How about you? Do you have a personal style, or a style that you would aspire to ?

Polly Dolly

So, this is my first ever time playing along with Danimezza's weekly Polly Dolly challenge - and i have to admit, i'm both a bit excited and nervous for people to see my results! I've always wanted to take part but never really had the time up my sleeve but today i took the challenge and had a bit of fun. This week Dani wants us to know if we had our favourite celebrity for the day, how would we dress them?

And there it, my first Polly Dolly outfit for the gorgeous Audrey Tatou. I couldnt pinpoint just one favourite celeb so i went with Audrey because i like her style. I see Audrey wearing this down to a cafe for a croissant and a coffee with some friends. I think French woman have a simple, clean-lined style ( hence the typically French striped boatneck top... ), but, like her character in " Amelie " i thought Audrey would appreciate a few quirky, cute additions, such as the double strand of cherry bracelets, the ruffles on the flats and the bow worn pinned to her beret. I also went with a Chanel fragrance in homage to her having played Coco Chanel on film, but went with Chance, which is quite a sweet, playful scent.

So - how did i do for me first effort?

" It's In Fashion " Is NOT An Excuse

Oh yea, i'm up on my fashion soapbox again. Lets face it - i'm no style icon - but i know what i like and i know what is not flattering. Which is, unfortunately, not the case with everybody else. Some people know what they like but what they like is bleh; some people think that just because something is in fashion means they should wear it, regardless of what it actually looks like on them; and some people have no clue, dont want one, and wear whatever they feel like, regardless of current fashions and/or flattering-ness ( which isnt a word, but who cares ? ).

I'm all for individuality, so if you're one of these totally awesome people that can shop at flea markets and op-shops and throw together the most gorgeous, vintage, rocking ensemble without the slightest hint of effort, than good for you. What i'm not for is slavery to fashion, and heinous crimes against said fashion - you shouldnt pander at the fashion alter, but nor should you ignore it so much that what you pass as an " outfit " could burn someone elses retinas. I'm also " anti " some apparently fashionable things, or fashion trends. My biggest bug bare? Leggings.

I've said it once, i'll say it again, as loud as the blog medium will let me: LEGGINGS ARE NOT PANTS. Leggings ( or tights, whichever you prefer ) are not acceptable as an alternative to pants. They are not interchangeable. I'm ok with wearing leggings are under skirts and dresses - hell, i'm even alright with leggings under shorts ( although its not entirely flattering ) - but what i am not ok with is leggings, on their ownsome, worn as one would wear a pair of pants. Witness:

Stolen from www.domestica.typepad.com

You will  notice that these are leggings - NOT pants. I can see every contour of this girls body - hell, she's naked enough to be able to rest the support pole between her butt cheeks. Pants would contain hardy fabric which would make this little disappearing trick a little, well, trickier. Also - notice that poor old Pop there does not know where to look. Probably because if he looks down he will not only be able to count the individual dimples on this girls thighs, but he'll also be able to tell how good a job her waxer does. Seriously, a little mystery would be so much more attractive. AS WOULD SOME PANTS!!

My other pet fashion hate the moment ? Boys in tight jeans. Tight jeans are awesome for legendary 80's rockstars ( see, please Bon Jovi, Jon and Micheals, Brett ). They are not so awesome for every pimply, teenage skate rat i see skulking around the mall. Especially when  the tight pants are accompanied by a visible underwear waistband. I dont wanna know what brand of underwear your mum buys you, and i dont want to get the  hint of your adolscent plumbers cleavage. I feel like a grandma but.... for God's sake, pull your bloody pants up!

Ok, rant over. I just had to get that off my chest before i go through my wardrobe and figure what still fits my post-pregnancy body ( baby boobs are an issue... ) and therefore prepare myself for what fashions may confront me at Tar-jay and Big W ( oh yea, unpaid maternity leave is also a wardrobe issue ... ).

And this is why i'm going broke buying womens magazines

So, just to begin with, I am sitting outside in the sun, blogging from the beautiful sunshine-iness of my backyard - laptops rock! As do lovely almost - Spring days in Australia. Aaah...

Anyhoodle, I just wanted to discuss the female obsession with shopping. Perhaps i'm being cliched here, but girls like shopping. More to the point, I like shopping, even if i'm not actually buying anything ( thats called " window shopping " for the uninitated ). Guess its that whole
" thril of the chase " thing - there's something about having a vague idea of what you want and going on the hunt for it. And yes, most times i will have a semi-formed idea of what i'm after - especially when shopping for clothes. Which is what i was doing this morning. However, being that I am not so financially well-endowed, I went shopping with a view to lay-by ( or lay-away as you American type people call it ).

I really like lay-by. I know its incredibly " old school ", but i still like it. Yes, i know you can just put things on your credit card and get them NOW but somehow i always forget to put regular payments on my credit card and then you end up in a little thing called debt ( argh! ). So I rather like being able to find the things i want but dont necessarily need right NOW ( its all about now!now!now! these days, isnt it? ) and being able to pay them off when i actually have a little cash. Plus, if i forget to go and make a regular payment, someone from the store will ring me and remind me - unlike the credit companys who will just keeping piling more payments ( hello interest charges... ) right on top of your bill.

And i know you fashionista's out there are saying - " But wont the things you put on lay-by be waaaaaaaaay out of fashion by the time you pay them off ? ". Well yes, they would be if you were into totally disposable fads. However, i'm not - i'm trying to fashion myself ( ha ha! unintended pun right there ! ) in the Audrey Hepburn/ timelessly/effortlessly chic mold. Which is hard to do on a budget in a country town, but i'm giving it a shot. Sure, i'll incorporate some of the seasons trends into my wardrobe, but only if they suit me. I pretty much like to stick by the " wear what suits your body shape " rule. If i had a dollar for everytime i'd seen somebody wearing a trend that didnt suit them - shout outs to cigarette pants, micro minis and floaty maxi dresses here - just because they were in fashion, i'd be able to afford to start my own fashion label ( which would be called House of Amy, because " Amy " is French. French is always fashionable ). So many times i just want to walk up to impressionable young women, shake the shit out of them and say " Who let you walk out the of the house like that ?!? Go buy yourself a nice pair of jeans, a tank top, and some ballet flats and you would look SO MUCH BETTER! ". And its not like i'm against freedom of fashion expression - Kate Moss, Chloe Sevigny and Lou Dilloin almost always look fabulous - but most women are not Kate Moss, Chloe Sevigny and Lou Dilloin. We regular type women are more, say, Rachel Bilson, Jennifer Aniston or Susan Sarandon - that is, to say, still totally cute, gorgeous and sexy, just less suitable to eclectic, crazy fashion.

So i'm not saying lets all get about looking like clones of each other - hell no! If you're into vintage indie cool, then be into it. If you're all pin-stripes and ballet flats preppiness, then rock the prep-college look. If you'd rather be all street, then wear you're Chuck Taylor hi-tops and hoodies with pride. Just please choose pieces that work with your body shape. I just wanted you all to look good people. I'm all about the beauty!

P.S I put a dress on layby for my almost three year old neice. Its a tiny little collared shirt dress, red with white polka dots and pintucked sleeves. Too cute! If they had an adult version in the store i would have totally bought it for myself!

Women of the world, take heed....

I'm going to bring up a very serious topic, one close to my heart, one that many women the world over are uniting over. In fact my favourite fashion blog - http://www.gofugyourself.com/ - has started an official " watch " so that we may all be aware of the perils. Of what may you ask? Of leggings.

Yes people, leggings. You know, those footless hosiery type items that came into vogue sometime last year and seem to be everywhere ? Leggings. Here is what i want to impart to all the ladies out there : leggings are not - i repeat, ARE NOT - a substitute for pants. They are not stand alone trousers made to be worn with a blouse, or cute smock or funky singlet. They are essentially an undergarment, which means they are supposed to be worn with something. They are not intended to substitute for your favourite pair of jeans. Just today i saw a young woman, around the same age as me, wearing a cute layered singlet ensemble up top paired with skin tight black leggings. I mean these things were so tight she was either not wearing any underwear ( in itself hazardous ) or her g-string had been swallowed up by her hungry arse, because i could see every dimple of cellulite, every ripple of muscle, the exact shape of her arse cheeks and god knows what i would have been able to see had i been looking at the front of her ( thank god i was walking behind her, not towards her ) but i could see no trace of underwear. These leggings were leaving absolutely nothing to the imagination at all, and there in lies my problem with them.

I like to think i'm young, i'm funky, i'm fashionable but i do believe in some modesty. Like i've already said, leggings are not pants. Leggings are leggings. Leggings are opaque footless tights, they are heavy hosiery, and where does hosiery belong ? Underneath something else. I have no problem with leggings worn under a mini skirt or a dress - except the fact that they chop off the length of a womens leg making her appear " stumpy ", unless she's 6ft tall and a size 8 - but worn on their ownsome ? Tragic, tragic fashion mistake. If i can tell what underwear you're wearing ( if any ), how you like to keep your bikini line, or how much cellulite you may or may not have just by looking at your legs and bum encased in tight, tight fabric - there's something wrong.

So budding fashionista's of the world, lets take a stand against the legging. Lets say we will not stand for hosiery as outerwear, nor will we stand for underwear as outwear ( that means you hot pants ... if i can see your arse cheek at the bottom - THEY'RE TOO SHORT ). We will dress to fit our body shape, we will flatter our figures and drive men wild not with what we AREN'T wearing, but with what we are. We will dress to please ourselves, whether that makes other women jealous or inspired.

It is all well and good to say " I wear what i want , i dress how i like " but wouldnt you rather take that into consideration with what actually looks good and flattering on you? I am not saying we should all dress uniformly from the pages of Vogue ( hello, those clothes dont work on real people ) I am merely saying we can keep a signature style that is flattering rather than frightening. We can be quirky and fun without looking queer and funky. And, most importantly, we certainly can embrace pants and throw away the leggings.....