Awesome Things I Can't Afford Saturdays

As someone who was laid off a few months ago and has been frittering away her savings since, I am not in the position to be buying ridiculously expensive things. I have never actually been in such a position, but I like to pretend when I am employed full time and have my Visa handy (I always have my Visa handy). I might as well be Jennifer Lopez because I pretty much buy whatever I damn well want. Why pay off student loans when you can have yet another leather purse or those drop earrings you've been visiting for a week? You can't think of a good reason can you? Me neither. My car is a piece, I can't afford Starbucks, my cell phone is rather embarrassing, but I have an amazing wardrobe. I really, really do.

So I am here to present to you a new weekly posting to indulge my impractical sensibilities: Shit I can't afford Saturdays. I know shit is sort of a vulgar and crass word, but I find cuss words really add a dramatic flair that other words simply can't. Plus they're fun. And my blog is fun. So "shit" is here to stay.



Anyways, without further ado I present to you Cornelia Webb's $220 finger ring. It's like a thumb thimble, but way cooler and not nearly as useful. Not only does it lack utility, it probably interferes with things like unbuttoning your jeans, typing, getting dust out of your eyes, and petty theft. And yet here I am hopelessly enamored and fabulously broke.



Webb's Facebook Fan Page tells us that she started creating jewelery in her spare time as a medical student. Perhaps she got the finger mold from her quality lab time at the hospital morgue? And just when you thought things couldn't get any cooler Webb employs prison inmates "to assemble her designs, as both a step in motivating people through creating beautiful things with their hands and as a way to keep production close and limited."

Genius.

Who doesn't want a ring that reeks of misdemeanor crime and rigor mortis? And who would have thought a science nerd could have such wicked business sense? I not only want this finger ring, I respect its humble prison roots. It's just so bad ass (I will be using that word too).

Follow my blog with bloglovin

Fashion Inspiration: Kirsten Dunst in Miu Miu

Although I tend to err on the more conservative side of fashion myself, I truly appreciate it when others take risks. Case in point: Kirsten Dunst in a provocative yet child-like Miu Miu Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear frock. I cannot think of anyone better to pull off such a look than the former Miu Miu campaign model. She is quirky, eccentric, bold, and embodies the contradictive sexy-yet-innocent motif that Miuccia Prada's spring collection carried (note the red swallow print juxtaposed with sexy ladies along the torso).



While Kirsten styles the dress with subtle black accessories allowing it to retain focus, I probably would have worn Mary Jane pumps to exaggerate the school girl influence this look denotes or even carried a lunch box inspired purse. Kirsten, however, puts a lot less into her look than most girls would with a $2,400 dress. After all effortless chic is Kirsten's niche in the celebrity fashion world and it appears to work well for her.

Below are some other looks from the collection that I wouldn't mind walking the streets of New York in. You can also view a video of the full collection here.

Product Spotlight: Essie Nail Polish

Are you really matte about me Essie? Because I am totally matte about you.

There are two kinds of people in this world: those who obsess about nail polish and those who don't. I know I'm making a strong divide, but nail polish is just one of those things that you either obsess about or are oblivious to (like recycling or Rob Patterson).

This, I suspect, is due to two characteristics of nail polish:

Firstly, once one makes a commitment to nail polish it is difficult to remain aloof to any bit of polish chipping or nail breaking. And chipping and breaking happens constantly regardless of how much keratin you digest (fun fact: nails grow faster in the summer than any other season). Indeed, nail maintenance can be rather demanding and an emotionally exhausting endeavor (yay neuroticism).

Secondly, it appears to me that nail polish is one of those small negligible purchases that allows itself to be bought in not-so-innocuous-on-my-visa-statement-after-all frequency. Relatively cheap and small items always have the consequence of becoming collected and like squirrels hoarding nuts for the winter, girls amass unreasonable amounts of pretty paint.

So understandably, when one comes across a nail polish that particularly tickles one's fancy one goes a little bonkers like I did when I bought Pink Parka by Essie.



This shit is bananas.

It has an eye-catching matte finish, goes on very smoothly, and lays remarkably thinly on your nails. What more could a nail polish junkie want? MORE.

Essie Weingarten, the founder and president of Essie created the brand back in 1981 due to a lack of fashion-forward shades in the market. Weingarten says. “Years ago, the polish choices at the salon didn’t reflect that; they were so limiting, so I took a risk and made shades that were new and exciting.”

From the bottom of my lacquer addicted heart: Thank-you Essie Weingarten.

You can check out Pink Parka and other Essie matte nail polish online here.

Trend Spotting: Maybe Clogs Aren't So Bad After all.

Normally I am quite excited when an unusual trend presents itself. Every now and then, however, something questionably ugly comes along that makes me wary. I know I am probably the last person on earth to embrace clogs, but something typically associated with Dutch dancing (clogging) and gardening gives me reason to remain skeptical. "Comfortable slip-on shoe" doesn't exactly ring style savvy to me either. However, after Karl Lagerfeld gave us the nod with his Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear collection last year and with every fashionable celeb now following suit, I find it safe to say: clogs are O.K.




Sometimes I feel manipulated by Karl. Sometimes I feel he does things just see if he can get away with it, like when he debuted furry monster boots earlier this year. Some people would call that an abuse of power. Not cool Karl. Not cool. With that said, these chunky wooden-bottomed shoes have grown on me, unlike the yettie boots. Also, all the cool kids are wearing them and I want to be cool.



As we can see from this selection, clogs are incredibly versatile. They can be worn well with a loose trouser, cuffed jeans, wool leggings, a sexy dress and bare legs etc.... They even look good when Ashley Olsen wears them with pajamas. It would appear one can't go wrong with them, but lets not forget we're looking at runway models and heavily photographed celebs. If you have larger calves I would avoid this trend or stick to the more dainty styles like Sarah Jessica Parker's above. Dresses and skirts should also be kept above the knee as well. This keeps the shoe looking youthful and fashion forward rather than something resembling clunky, garden footwear.

My clog pick is from Gucci's Hysteria collection.



Now THAT is a clog I would be proud of wearing. Elegant, sexy, refined and it's also conveniently on sale at Neiman Marcus right now. These Stuart Weitzman clogs aren't so bad either. Now to find $267 US to mindlessly blow on shoes...