Slouchy Day, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Dolman sleeve cardigan: Ann Taylor, gift from MIL
• Scarf: China Town NYC, gift from SIL
• Sweater: Forever 21
• Belt: thrifted
• Skinnies: Ann Taylor
• Boots: Steve Madden, via eBay

End Notes:

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. Those are not the Steve Madden boots with which I started out this 30 for 30. They are still Steve Madden boots and they were still scored on eBay, but when my mother-in-law was here over Thanksgiving she kidnapped my older, tan pair and took them to a cobbler for some much needed TLC. Re-soling and leather conditioning is not bound by the 30 for 30, apparently.

As for the outfit itself: it’s warm and snuggly and just right for staying cozy as the temperatures drop.

—

Fall Wedding, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources (Part II):

• Sweater dress: Ann Taylor
• Necklace: Target
• Tights: Banana Republic Factory
• Booties: Steve Madden Ollie

End Notes (Part II):

This past weekend I also had the joy of witnessing the wedding of one of my dear friends. It was a late afternoon, fairly casual wedding with lots of unorthodox touches that reflected the vibrant, carefree personality of the bride. I tried to walk the line of dressy and casual with a sweater dress glammed up a bit with jewelry, booties, and the rich color pairing of aubergine and navy.

I felt a little bit like I was cheating social mores by wearing something as comfortable and cozy as a sweater dress to a “fancy” event like a wedding. I’m curious how our culture has developed this tendency to equate comfortable clothes with casualness and uncomfortable garments with more formal occasions. Why is that? How did that happen? Any fashion historians want to offer an explanation? And who wants to help me make a deliciously warm and comfortable fleece pencil skirt?

Sources (from left to right):
On J:

• Chinos- Brooksbrothers
• Shirt- Uniqlo
• Bowtie- Jcrew
• Navy Legacy Blazer- J.Crew
• Shoes- Sperry

On S:

• Dress – Laundry by Shelli Segal, via TJMaxx
• Shoes – Antonio Melani, via Dillards

On A:

• Dress – J Crew, customized by E.
• Shoes – Off Broadway, customized by me
• Bracelet – Gift from S.
• Earrings – gift from A2
• Necklace – pearls from my mom, my sisters, E. S. and L.

On E:

• Dress – Forever 21, refashioned (twice) by E.
• Necklace – Forever 21
• Belt – Gap Outlet
• Shoes – Lauren by Ralph Lauren, via Macy’s

On L:

• Dress – Max and Cleo, via Filene’s Basement
• Shoes – vintage Calvin Klein that she had re-soled

Endnotes:

When A2 and I decided to get married, we opted for a small ceremony in a special place with just our families.  We wouldn’t change a thing about it, but we knew from the start that this would mean following the wedding with a big party.  We wanted to celebrate with all of our incredible friends and extended family.  So this past Saturday, three months after our wedding, that is just what we did!

And of course, all the chics (J. is less than thrilled about this new title) were in attendance and dressed to the nines!

L. wore a smashing black cocktail dress with a full floral detail around the bottom.  My favorite part? It had pockets!  She finished the look with a pair of vintage satin Calvin Klein kitten heals that she had re-soled.

As to be expected, this was a party full of fabulous footwear!

OMGshoes, originally uploaded by academichic.

S. actually wore the shoes she wore for her own wedding last summer.  They were the perfect sparkly addition to her sparkle-topped halter dress in my favorite color.

I also wore the shoes from my wedding ceremony – one of my favorite parts of my wedding ensemble and the inspiration for the party dress.

Cheap Custom Wedding Shoes, originally uploaded by academichic.

While not rocking party shoes, J. snazzed it up with a stylish and playful bow tie.  His slacks and blazer hit the perfect note for this semi-formal event.

J’s Bow Tie, originally uploaded by academichic.

E. looked radiant in her bright orange dress. I think that is exactly how I described her the first time she wore this dress, which she has now refashioned twice. I enlisted E.s refashioning skills for my own custom party dress.

I considered wearing the dress I wore for the wedding ceremony, because I loved it and felt beautiful in it, but in the end decided I wanted more of a party dress for this event.  I still wanted to wear my shoes and the pearls (see the story here) and to keep with my grey color scheme AND didn’t have much money to spend on it.  I found this dress at J Crew and loved the color, the full skirt, and the price (I ended up paying $35 for it).  It started as a halter dress, which seemed a little less formal than I was going for and was not fitting me perfectly in the bodice.  I showed the dress to E. and she quickly came up with the idea of using the halter ties as straps and adding an off-white ribbon around my waist to draw in the shoes and the pearls.  The crossed straps added visual interest to the back and allowed us to raise the neckline some.

So thanks to E. I got wear a custom dress with my custom shoes and jewelry!

CustomDress – Thanks E.!, originally uploaded by academichic.

A. & S., originally uploaded by academichic.

A2 & L., originally uploaded by academichic.

I am particularly lucky to be able to count this stylish bunch among my closest friends.  J. S. E. and L. each played such a huge role in the wedding and party preparations and I can’t thank them enough. We couldn’t have had our dream wedding or thrown such a perfect party without them!  I don’t know when we will all be in the same place at the same time again, but I am so grateful it happened on this one wonderful night!

J. S. E. and L. – A2 and I love each of you so much! Thank you!

A.

The Chics!, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Purple beads – Yves Rocher and F21
• Black onyx earrings – TJMaxx
• Black dress – Target
• Purple tights – Rewe (grocery store)
• Gray wedges – Report, via Solestruck.com
• Belt – Banana Republic
• Flower pin – Dulken & Derrick, via Blue Onion Marketplace

Endnotes:

Last night I saw one of my favorite operas, Mozart’s The Magic Flute, and it was amazing. The performance put on my the Munich Opera was beyond words, it was just soooo good. I’m still in awe.

I wore, of course, my same ol’ go-to: this little black dress and my gray wedges. The following montage shows how the same dress and shoes managed to look pretty different with just a bit of creative restyling using scarves, belts, and jewelry each time I wore it to the opera here. Even if it doesn’t look all that different to you, it felt like a whole new outfit to me each time and that’s the point; I didn’t feel like I was just wearing the same thing every single time I dressed up. I cast my vote for last night’s black and purple look as my favorite thus far. How about you? Which do you think worked best?

I wore my hair in a dutch braid that wraps around into a messy side knot and I accessorized with layered necklaces and a gorgeous purple flower pin from Blue Onion Marketplace. Speaking of which, make sure to check back later today to see if you were one of our three lucky winners who will receive their own Dulken & Derrick flower pin following our weekend giveaway! S.

7 December 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Details in purple, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

On S1 (above):

• Black dress – Target, remixed
• Silk tie belt – from another (thrifted) dress, remixed
• Vintage brooch – was my grandmother’s
• Pink pashmina – H&M, remixed
• Gray wedges – Report, remixed
• Pink clutch, Ann Taylor, remixed

On S2 (below):

• Ivory shimmery top – recent H&M purchase
• Black pencil skirt – recent H&M purchase
• Ribbon weave pumps – bought in Romania years ago

Endnotes:

Saturday night found S2 and I enjoying a wonderful production of Janacek’s Janufa at the Munich Opera House. The night ended with enthusiastic Bravas and Bravos from the audience and we, too, shared that enthusiasm despite having seats that allowed us to see no more than 65% of the stage at all times… ahh, the nosebleed section of the Opera.

Since I’m abroad this year and have a limited wardrobe, I wore my one black dress that I packed and will likely wear for all formal events to come. By styling it differently each time, I hope to avoid having you (and me) groan, this outfit again?! as I pull it out over and over. This time I added a pink and tan obi belt, which comes from this silk dress I wore on my last opera visit, and a pink pashmina. I also took a cue from A., who’s done this brilliantly a few times lately, and added a sparkly brooch to my belt for added drama and dazzle.

Vintage Brooch, originally uploaded by academichic.

Ideally, I would have worn these shoes with the above outfit, but had I packed those, last night would have likely been their main starring role on this trip. Instead, I brought my trusty gray wedges, which can be dressed up enough to go with a Little Black Dress but are also a smarter every-day, get-lots-of-mileage-out-of-me shoe choice.

24 October 2009 – Night at the Opera, originally uploaded by academichic.

Meanwhile, S2 looked stunning this this ivory shimmery cowl neck top and black pencil skirt combo. But I think her shoes truly did steal the show here: cream peep-toes with a dark brown ribbon weave, lovely! A great example of how a patterned shoe can add the perfect finishing touch to a basic outfit.

Ribbon weave shoes, originally uploaded by academichic.

I think it’s also worth noting that we went to the Opera wearing outfits comprised almost entirely of Target, H&M, and thrifted pieces. And we didn’t look that bad, right? I hope you’re having a wonderful weekend as well, whatever Saturday night found you doing. S.

Munich Opera House, originally uploaded by academichic.

Layers, originally uploaded by academichic.

This afternoon I will be moderating a discussion after offering m thoughts on a campus-wide lecture given by a prominent activist. I figure, this time, it’s ok if I am one of the most dressed up people there.

I have to say, before our recent “roundtable” discussion about interview-appropriate wear, I would have worn something pretty similar to this for an interview. Now, I think I would definitely loose the sweater tights and belt, but I think I would still wear the rest. Does it need a suit jacket or a button down to be interview-appropriate?

A.

Shoes and tights, originally uploaded by academichic.

How about a brown bag about proper attire for an on campus T-T job interview? (They’re coming up in the next three months!)

one key question: wedding ring on, or off?

T-T interviews, for those of you not campus situated, are “tenure track” interviews, offering the most coveted of all academic jobs to those embarking on the job market. So, naturally, a key question is What To Wear? How to best present oneself to these potential employers?

Our approach would be to mix and match suit separates and ‘dressier’ pieces to create a look that is simultaneously professional and still personal and representative of our style personalities. As for the wedding ring question…we’ve already put in our two cents when this topic surfaced a while ago, but we would happily reopen this ever present dilemma for discussion.

So we open the forum to the rest of you, in true brown bag fashion, to engage in a dialogue what will hopefully provide our readers with many great ideas. And good luck to all of you interviewing this fall!

Sources:

• Sweater cape – F21, remixed
• Green button down – J.Crew, remixed
• Maroon top – a.n.a., thrifted, remixed
• Skinnies – thrifted, remixed
• Blue pashmina scarf – TJMaxx, remixed
• Boots – Dillards, remixed
• Green tote – Kenneth Cole, remixed
• Umbrella – Totes, remixed

Endnotes:

It’s been raining on and off for the past few days here, and it even snowed a bit this morning! It’s not so bad actually, after having lived in Salzburg where it rains about 200 days of the year, I’ve developed a few good rainy-day coping mechanisms:

1) Don’t bother straightening hair. It’s pointless.
2) Always carry a cute purse-sized umbrella to pull out at a moment’s notice. Having that available will make a rainy commute much less of a bother.
3) Boots. They keep your feet dry and the bottom of your pants from turning into an upwards-creeping soggy mess.

I once saw a sign in a Colorado storefront window that read something like “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing”. I too have found that given the proper attire, most weather is manageable and even enjoyable. If there were only sunny days, I wouldn’t get to snuggle with a cup of hot tea, acquire a collection of fun and colorful umbrellas, wear fun wellies to go puddle splashing with my dog, or watch the streets turn glossy and shiny with beautiful reflections of the colored buildings in the rain. Don’t you agree? S.

PS: Fellow Müncheners, you’ve been good about recognizing my photo backdrops thus far! Do you know where I’m standing today? (I can see this turning into a fun game…

Sources:

• Black Jersey Dress- Banana Republic
• Earrings – Birthday Gift
• Brooch – Vintage Threadz, etsy
• Clutch – Grandmother’s
• Shoes – Seychelles, via solestrcuk.com

Endnotes:

When we posted advice about what to wear to a winter wedding last weed, we certainly were not thinking winter wedding season would be so soon be upon us.  It was cold and gloomy last night in Academichic Central, perfect weather for a movie night at home, but I had an elegant evening wedding to attend!

Based on the formal language of the multi-layered invitations I deduced that this would be a rather chic event.  I have been to a few black-tie optional weddings and have always worn the same black halter dress from  Banana Republic, changing out the accessories and shoes.  I love the dress and I usually love how it looks on me, so I didn’t even bother trying it on, but for some reason, last night I just wasn’t happy in it.  A2 tried to convince me to wear it, but I wasn’t leaving the house in something that didn’t make me feel good.

Packing Update!, originally uploaded by academichic.

Suddenly I had very little time to throw together a formal look for a gloomy night.  I dug through my closet but everything was either too casual or too summery.  I settled on this jersey dress because the color, the unique neckline, and detailing at the waist  all making it a little more evening appropriate.   Yet, it was still jersey dress.  I decided it was nothing that a great shoe and a little sparkle couldn’t fix!

Earrings, originally uploaded by academichic.

Brooch, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:
All remixed but the skirt

• Green Skirt – thirfted w/ E.
• White Sleeveless Blouse – Gap
• Cardigan – Banana Republic
• Earrings – Gift from E. (birthday last year)
• Bracelet- Gift from S.
• Pashmina – China Town, NYC
• Brown Wedges – Kenneth Cole Reaction, via DSW
• Belt – New York & Company

Endnotes:

I planned this outfit out last night so it is not at all influenced by S. and E.’s posts today… do these two know my style or what?! :)

7 October 2009 – My Birthday Suit!, originally uploaded by academichic.

7 October 2009 – My Birthday Suit!, originally uploaded by academichic.