Skewing a Bit Bohemian

Things are starting to change a bit for me, fashion-wise. A big part of this has to do with me getting hella old and starting to try to do things like manage money wisely (ICK) and really trying to figure out what I want to do with my life (DOUBLE ICK). And an even bigger part of this, as hokey and cheesy as it may sound, has everything to do with me becoming more comfy in my own skin.

I am starting to realize that even though I may push myself into the ole reliable Gap Perfect Trousers and other vestiges of business clothing, I will always have a bit of bohemian running through me. I am most comfortable in a dress of some sort and my starting-to-get-just-perfectly-beat-up Frye Harnesses. I know it is TOTES SHOCKING--the girl who (still) breastfeeds her toddler and washes out her cloth diapers in something called "Rockin' Green" would be a bit of a hippie. WHO KNEW? Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go fertilize my tomatoes and tell you what the REAL CRIME is.

(I'm just going to go on the record here and say I'm having tomato envy. No, that has nothing to do with fashion. I have the hugest tomato plant--biggest I've ever grown. And while all my gardening buds have little tomatoes, I have just a few blooms. NADA, really. My grandmother reassures me that mine is a late August bloomer. Whatevs. Tomato envy is the worst.)

At any rate, though, coming to terms with my hippie-dippie self has been a real breakthrough for me. I would like to say that that is cheesy, and that is not how I really feel (the "breakthrough" and all), but really, it pretty much sums it all up. I feel kind of renewed on the whole fashion side of things, and JUST IN TIME FOR FALL. Sadly, I'm sure the divorce papers will be in the mail the second that I go to Matt and say, "Honey, by the way, I've discovered myself. And the new me needs a fur lined vest and some mini dresses. Oh, and to get my MFA. Because how can I be bohemian chic without (another) superfluous degree!?!?"

I owe a lot of this to Anita Pallenberg, I must say. After putting it off for a couple of months or so, I finally read Keith Richard's Life, mostly in preparation for our decidedly adults only trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this weekend (!). And I found myself with this huge girl crush on her because of some of the pictures in the book. Those pictures led to some innocent googling, and before I knew it, I owned a pair of metallic gladiator sandals and was foaming a bit at the mouth as I compared them to a black and white picture on the internet. And while you ponder at how weird that is, let us all be thankful that I'm emulating her in fashion only and haven't developed any kind of paranoid heroin addiction. Yea for my particular brand of crazy! And yea for the fact that I haven't decided to emulate anyone in Motley Crue's The Dirt, which I also (re)read! To paraphrase one of my favorite shows, Californication, one wrong step in that direction and you're the asslicker. No, you don't want to know what I'm referencing.

This is what I'm talking about:

I just love the unfussy glamour of it all. The lady certainly knows her way around a hat. And did I mention that she rocks BANGS? JUST LIKE ME? My God, people. The awesome.

I really want to make an effort to imbue my Fall purchasing with just that little bit of boho. Sure, I have the parameters of real life to work in. There's work and there's parenting and there's a lot of other shit to contend with where I can't wear a humongo hat and a fur coat and just be like, "What?" I took a look at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale the other day (and didn't buy anything...boo-urns on being a responsible grown-up person who has to take her brood on vacation and you know, feed them and shit!), and noticed some key pieces that I think I'm going to buy later/find dupes for. And I'm starting to think of accessories in a new way, trying to jazz up what I already own with some belting, some big ole bangles, a jazzy new necklace or so.

One late summer purchase I've made (to wear to the RnR HoF, actually) in this vein is this dress. Let me just say, I adore it. If you are a shorty like me and have been wanting a maxi dress and just haven't found one you can rock without a hem job, this is your dress. It is the perfect length on me in REGULAR (they do offer petite if you are so inclined, but read the reviews). I am currently trying to think of some very fun ways to style it--have thought of my long, black fireball dupe necklace, a fedora, a paisley scarf, and a skinny silvery belt as all contenders.

Interestingly, I was trying all this on the day that I received the dress and ecstatically removed it from the package. Matt was sitting at our computer, planning our trip to DC, which he has choreographed TO THE VERY SECOND. I came out with the scarf looped and belt on, and Matt goes, "Are you trying to look like Steven Tyler?" I said, "No," and moped a bit. I go, "I'M TRYING TO LOOK LIKE I AM DATING SOMEONE IN A FAMOUS ROCK BAND. BUT NOT LIKE I AM HIGH ON SMACK. GOD." Matt smiled at me and said, "You know, if I were in a famous rock band, it would probably be a band like Rush."

Maybe the divorce papers will be on the way WAY before I do my Fall shopping....