A. and A2. Get Married!

Posted on | June 30, 2010 | 228 Comments

Just Married!, originally uploaded by academichic.

This past Saturday, after more than 10 years together, A2 and I got married! We traveled to one of our favorite places on earth, Northampton, MA, and had a small intimate wedding with just our immediate families. We have talked about marriage for years now, but started seriously discussing it after a few close friends, including S. and T., got married recently. We have always said we wanted an intimate ceremony but a big party and after being a part of S. and T.’s perfect little wedding and enjoying lots of friends and good music and another friend’s larger wedding, we knew we wanted both. So, we chose to do a small ceremony this past weekend which will be followed by a larger party this fall. It meant so much to us to be surrounded by our families as we declared our love and commitment and we can’t wait to celebrate that with the many important people in our lives in just a couple months.

J Crew Brides, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

On A:

Dress – J Crew Cotton Candy Alexa in light pewter
Shoes – Off Broadway, customized by me
Pearls – borrowed from my mom, my sisters, and a couple friends
Earrings – gift from A2
Bracelet – gift from S.
Bouquet – made by me

On A2:

Pinstriped Vest – J Crew
Pinstriped Pants – J Crew
Grey Shirt – Banana Republic
Shoes – J Crew
Corsage – made by me

Endnotes:

Ever since J Crew came out with their bridal line, I have imagined myself in one of their dresses – turns out we were both meant to be J Crew brides! Many elements of my ensemble either came from J Crew or were inspired by their styling and the bulk of A2′s outfit is J Crew. We each wanted to wear something that felt like us, made us feel confident, comfortable, and radiantly beautiful. Our afternoon outdoor wedding, our personalities, and our thoughts on marriage all contributed to our sartorial choices, which in the end we couldn’t have been happier with.

We chose Northampton for the wedding, both because it is a place filled with wonderful memories for us and because it is in one of the few states where it is legal for us to marry. A little gazebo, in a little park, which we decorated with paper lanterns and potted lilies, proved the perfect setting for a little wedding. Along with a singer/guitar player and our officiant, our families piled into the quaint little structure for a short ceremony filled with many smiles and many tears (of joy of course)!

Gazebo, originally uploaded by academichic.

A’s Family, originally uploaded by academichic.

While, as I said, I had long pined after J Crew wedding dresses, when it came time to actually choose my dress, I decided I wasn’t comfortable with a long white wedding dress. It didn’t seem to fit my ideas of an afternoon ceremony in the woods or my ideas and beliefs about marriage, something A2 and I have spent a long time discussing. So, I turned to the bridesmaid section and was instantly drawn to this Cotton Candy Alexa dress. I knew the cut would be perfect for me and I adored its understated and sophisticated elegance. I also couldn’t resist a grey wedding dress with a built-in belt and pockets!

The Dress!, originally uploaded by academichic.

I love the idea of wearing something borrowed for a wedding and almost as soon as A2 and I announced our wedding plans to my family, I was struck with a bit of genius! I asked each of my four sisters and my mother if I could borrow their various strings of pearls to wear on my wedding day. The idea was partially inspired by the multi-strand pearls J Crew was selling for a while. I thought they were beautiful, but way to expensive and I couldn’t imagine when I would ever wear them. I think my wedding necklace turned out much more stunning and was much more meaningful. I wore my mother’s pearls as is, since they are the longest strand, and my youngest sister’s single pearl on a chain rested in the middle surrounded by pearls from my other three sisters, E. and another friend, and my own pair all attached to a white ribbon tied in a small bow at the nape of my neck. It was a bit of an experiment pulling them all together on the morning of the wedding (the first time I had all the pearls together in one place) but I couldn’t have been happier with the final result.

Pearls, originally uploaded by academichic.

My shoes were another custom piece that I absolutely love! I spent an entire weekend in Chicago with my mother scouring Michigan avenue for the perfect pair of shoes. I wanted dark grey peep toes but not one store from Aldo’s to Barneys had what I was looking for. Given the insanely low price of my dress, my mother was willing to drop some significant money on the shoes (ok, maybe not Barneys’ prices, but well above my usual $60 threshold). But alas, I left Chicago empty handed. The next weekend I was shopping at the outlets with E. and another friend and we decided to stop in the discount shoe shop, Off Broadway, and there were these simple dark grey suede peep toes. They where comfortable, a beautiful color, and less than $40. To make them a bit more special and to tie them in with the dress more, I picked up two fabric flower hair pieces from J Crew and fashioned them into shoe clips. It’s a hard call, but they may have been my favorite part of the ensemble.

Cheap Custom Wedding Shoes, originally uploaded by academichic.

I also made my own bouquet and corsages for my bride and our mothers following the same steps S. and I used to make the bouquets for her wedding. The hydrangeas began to fade pretty quickly after the ceremony and picture taking was over, but they looked gorgeous when I need them to.

Home-made Bouquet, originally uploaded by academichic.

No matter what we were wearing, how well the flowers lasted, or how well my hair held up, we both felt radiant and so happy all day. It was such a wonderful day made so special by having our families there with us. We have been back in Academichic Central and back at work for a couple days now, but we can’t stop smiling at each other! Apparently, this is married bliss!

Just Married!, originally uploaded by academichic.

Looks for After Class

Posted on | June 23, 2010 | 6 Comments

17 June 2010 – After Class Casual, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

Above:

Tank – American Eagle
Pants – Ann Taylor Loft
Bag – Crystalyn Kae
Flats – DSW
Cuff – gift from S.’s mom

Below:

White Shirt – Gap
Yellow Stripe Skirt – H & M
Scarf as Belt – thrifted gift from S.
Sandals – Charlotte Russe
Wooden Bangle – gift from S.

17 June 2010 – After Class Casual, originally uploaded by academichic.

Not much time for details tonight, but here are a couple of outfits I have worn this week after a morning of teaching. The goal was to stay cool as I ran around town doing errands and the like.

I’m sorry for being MIA, but I promise I have a really really good excuse, which will be revealed very soon, so bear with me. I’ll be back in action next week. Until then, have a great weekend!

21 June 2010 – Staying Cool, originally uploaded by academichic.

21 May 2010 – Black and Tan

Posted on | May 21, 2010 | 10 Comments

21 May 2010 – Black and Tan, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

Black top: BR Factory
Necklace: Target
Belt: Old Navy
Skirt: thrifted (The Limited)
Shoes: Target

End Notes:

Yesterday, the New York Times published an article on khaki’s comeback: Khaki Gets Street Cred. My favorite line from the piece? “More dressed up than jeans without getting all fancy-pants.”

You may recall my previous vacillations over the place of khaki in my wardrobe past and present, but after reading that NY Times piece yesterday I decided to give this skirt another try. I may not have “street cred,” but I figured that layered necklaces, a belt with hardware, and cage heels could combine forces to fight the khaki skirt’s inherent preppiness. Plus, I figure that any outfit that you can name after a duo of beers has to be worth a shot.

(Hmmm, that’s an idea for the weekend…)

How are you giving khaki “street cred” this spring? Or does the entire notion of khaki-with-edge confound you?

21 May 2010 – Black and Tan, originally uploaded by academichic.

Tom Bihn Winners

Posted on | April 16, 2010 | 2 Comments

The winner of the Tom Bihn Passport Pouch is Tara (commenter 27).

Tara’s favorite Tom Bihn accessory: “probably the shop bag (though the knitting bags are awesome and would probably get me to pull my needles back out after a long knitting hiatus!). I like the passport case above…for a passport and travel documents, it makes lots of sense.”

And her ideal trip: “Spain. For the 6th time. I can’t get enough.”

The winner of the Tom Bihn 3D Clear Organizer Cube is Marjorie (commenter 267).

Marjorie’s favorite Tom Bihn accessory: “the large packing cube.”

And her ideal trip: “I would love to travel to Greece, Italy or Spain. I’ve never been to that side of the world.”

Congratulations Tara and Marjorie!

Be sure to check back later today for yet another great Friday giveaway!!

And the Winner is…

Posted on | March 5, 2010 | No Comments

Thank you, everyone, for participating in our Echo Scarf Giveaway! That sums up our Scarf Month related giveaways, we hope you enjoyed the scarf tutorials and that those of you, who won a scarf along the way, are enjoying styling it up and trying new knots with it.

The winner of the Solid Pleated Wrapping Scarf is Miranda, Comment #116.

Miranda checked out Echo’s new Spring line and said this:

I’m coveting the nautical links dress in primary blue or khaki. Usually I’m shy about full-print dresses, but it’s so summery!

Congratulations, Miranda! Please send us your address and we’ll get that scarf out to you as soon as possible.

Echo Scarf Giveaway

Posted on | March 2, 2010 | 325 Comments

For our last scarf giveaway, we’re thrilled to be able to offer you this ‘Solid Pleated Wrapping‘ scarf in a bold pink from Echo Design. This gorgeous scarf has a similar crinkled look as the one S. wore recently, but is slightly longer at 80 x 22 inches. The longer size makes it perfect for wearing it over the shoulders in a pashmina style as well as in any number of knots around your neck.

To enter, visit Echo’s site and leave a comment tellings us which items from their Spring Line you’d most like to make your own. For a second chance to enter, leave a separate comment telling us how you would wear the pink crinkled scarf were you to win. Entries are open until Thursday, Midnight Central time, after which we’ll randomly choose a winner. Good luck!

And the winner is…

Posted on | March 1, 2010 | No Comments

Thank you all for entering our Infinity Scarf Giveaway on Friday. Our winner is Becky, Comment #17:

Becky suggested a “deep purple” scarf as a color she’s like to see offered by Kangaroo Knits next. That sounds gorgeous, great idea. For now, we hope you enjoy your black and gray Infinity Scarf, Becky, and make sure to send us your name and address so that we can ship that out to you as soon as possible.

If you didn’t win, we have one more scarf giveaway to conclude Scarf Month, so check back tomorrow for another opportunity to snatch some swag!

Post Script: Margie, the artist behind Kangaroo Knits, sent us this message:

I’ve been reading the comments of your readers during the past couple of days and I love the excellent suggestions. In fact, I would like to use some of their ideas to create skinny versions of the scarf for the spring season. I would like to thank your readers for giving me some inspiration!

A.’s Scarf Storage

Posted on | February 23, 2010 | 16 Comments

A.’s Scarf Storage, originally uploaded by academichic.

As promised, here is how I usually store my scarves. I say usually, because in all honesty, many often end up on the coat rack, a shelf in the closet, the top of my dresser, over the back of a chair, or on my bedroom floor. I keep 10 – 15 scarves on this fabulous scarf hanger and the rest in a basket.

Scarf Hanger, originally uploaded by academichic.

My sister gave me this hanger for my birthday one year and it has proved to be one of the most practical and well used gifts I have ever received. I hang it in the closet alongside my other hanging clothes. You can find a similar one at organize.com. Personally, I wish I had one, or even two, more.

Scarf Basket, originally uploaded by academichic.

I keep the rest of my scarves in a basket I purchased at Target. This works well for the scarves that are either too small, or too bulky, or too circular for the hanger. I have to admit, you can often find scarves cascading out of the basket, which I store on the top shelf in my closet, but I actually love to see the scarf waterfall when I open my closet door.

How do you store your scarves? A.

And the Winner is…

Posted on | February 22, 2010 | 1 Comment

Thanks to everyone who entered our giveaway for the vintage scarf S. thrifted in Munich! Our winner is Emily (comment #216) who wrote:

I would wear this scarf with a white t-shirt and dark brown wool trousers…I’d probably tie it using the sneaky knot, and have the scarf in place of a large necklace.

That sounds lovely, Emily, and we hope you enjoy the scarf! Send us an e-mail with your mailing address and we’ll get it out to you as soon as possible! And stay tuned for one last giveaway this Friday as our scarf month comes to a close.

Scarf Giveaway #3

Posted on | February 18, 2010 | 491 Comments

For this week’s scarf giveaway, we’re doing something a little different. This scarf wasn’t sent to us by a sponsor but instead thrifted (with love!) by S. in Munich, Germany. We would like to show our appreciation for all your support and thoughtful input during our scarf month (and always) by sending one winner a little package with the above vintage scarf from Germany. This little beauty measures 32 inches on all sides, is a large square, and 100% silk.

If you would like to enter the giveaway, leave us a comment telling us what your favorite item to shop vintage is. For a second chance to win, leave a separate comment telling us how you would wear this scarf or what scarf tying technique you might try on it. This giveaway is open until Sunday, Midnight Central time, after which we will randomly select a winner.

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