Happy Holiday(partie)s!

Sorry for the long overdue post -blame it on the holiday relaxation that finally kicked in! Today's post is short and sweet (and a little funny) - just an idea for the holidays. It also gives me the opportunity to wish you all Merry Christmas partying all the way from Athens! ;)

I'm wearing essie's "spin the bottle" nail polish -thought I'd let you know cause I love it!

Transcending purpose

Rarely do I simply accept a garment's designated function as exclusive. If you dig through the (blurry) archives of this blog you can see what I'm talking about: sweaters as skirts, scarves as tops, cardigans worn the wrong way around, a lot of knotting, chopping... OK, I'll stop bragging, the point  is that you can do so much more with your clothes if you use  your imagination a little -here are a couple of ideas :)


DIY top: I stole Ivania's idea and slashed an old Tshirt into a tank top with a high neck and (very) low arm holes... It's super easy -snip, snip!- and I love this cut because it's sexy by virtue of showing shoulders and ribs in lieu of the more predictable chest or midriff areas.

I'm wearing DIY top, random sports bra, Weekday skinnies and fluffy cardigan. Also, my hair is shorter now.

Cardigan-turned-dress: Speaking of the fluffy cardigan, I've been wearing it with everything (it's so cozy and warm!) but you didn't think that I'd stick to using it as a cardigan did you? I recently discovered that you can also wear it as a wrap dress. Just drape it together and fasten it with a belt. I actually love the chic shape and the texture of this 'wrap dress' :)

Going out

I’m wearing: zara t-shirt, weekday jeans. h&m coat, zara pumps and DIY clutch. Thanks to E. for taking these pictures!

Lately, when I go out, it’s not about being pretty and girly in twirly skirts and colours and shit. Instead, it’s about clean, powerful lines and minimalism. Personally, I find myself much more confident in such an outfit; I feel like myself, not like I’m impersonating a princess -and that, I think, is what makes it sexy in my opinion. This is not a manifesto against dresses, I’m only making the point that wearing clothes that aren’t the most feminine (black jeans, a t-shirt, a mannish coat) in such a way that is so boldly and unmistakably feminine makes me feel empowered  instead of flashy and frivolous.




If you’re interested in finding out more about the femininity discussion and where I get some of my ideas underlying what I write here, look up Judith Butler. She’s a very important gender studies scholar and proposed, among other things, that gender is a social contruction and not an essence we are born with. She argues that our gender and sexual identity is only the result of our performing it; and there are many ways of doing that. But don’t just take my word for it; Parker’s Critical Theory textbook (a must-read introduction to literary and cultural studies) has a useful intro on Butler and on gender studies in general.




A close-up to show you my self-made clutch. Isn’t it beautiful?

On free (and not-so-free) bags

Ivania's already done it (of course): a plain clear plastic bag (the thick kind of plastic) transformed into a minimalistic hanbag that's also free!





Something quite similar but not quite free was, a couple years ago, Jil Sander’s plastic market bag. According to the internet, what was essentially a coloured bag made out of thick plastic was retailed at 130 euros, became the it-bag of the season and was sold out everywhere. Whether you find the idea of carrying a bag whose contents everyone can see appeals to you or not, I suspect everyone who paid so much money for a plastic bag had a. more money than sense, b. money to burn, or c. recently had a lobotomy. Sorry Jil.



Personally I still haven’t experimented with this idea, but a visit to the Stedelijk museum (where I inevitably spent hours in its gift shop/awesome bookstore) gave me another updated version of the clear plastic bag which I might be persuaded to try: The plastic bag with the Stedelijk logo around the edges. It’s so hipster, man! You’re being fashionable AND showing you appreciation for modern art at the same time!




Seriously though, what do you think? I might take this for a spin, although it will have to be on a night out/outing where I don’t need the 12645629854745 things that I usually carry around with me. The problem with a bag like this is that you’ll probably end up carrying around used tissue, tampons  and secret world domination plans other random items in plain sight. Which I’d rather not because none of these are particularly beautiful to look at, or anyone’s business.


And then of course, after getting past all these issues, there is still the most important question to ask: “but won’t it look silly?”

Wristband + watch

Remember this outfit? I wore the leftover fabric from my DIY as an wristband, but I forgot to photograph it, so here it is.




I basically just took the fabric which was a 5cm wide circle and twisted it many times around my wrist, and then I wore my watch over it, tucking the back part into the fabric.

In my opinion, this is a great way to a. make sure nothing goes to waste, and b. create an accesory that’s interesting without being obnoxious -I hate wearing things like bangles that always get in the way and make a lot of noise, so this discreet, functional way to decorate the wrist is perfect for me!

Chop it yourself

top: DIY from unidentified old hand-me-down, skirt: vintage (mom’s), blazer: thrifted, tights: fogal (because apparently when we wear fancy tights we list them!), booties: h&m

Look at how serene I look. This is what happens when your vision becomes reality.

How it started:



I saw Ivania wear a white polo neck crop top in her blog a few days ago and I loved it! Obviously I had to have one  like that. I found it on the asos website, but then I thought I already had a black sleeveless polo neck top that I almost never wore because it was too short (for normal-length tops anyway!)… so I thought, why the hell not make it a (free) DIY?

I calculated how much I wanted to shorten it, and decided to do 5 cm. first, then tried it on again and decided on chopping off an extra 5 cm. -I was feeling brave :D. Anyways, the way I did it was I smoothed it against a flat surface and measured the length I wanted to cut off from the bottom on both sides. Then I marked the lengths and used my measuring tape (for lack of a ruler) and a coloured pencil to connect them with a line, so that I would cut straighter. (It’d be better  to use chalk though, especially on a light-coloured top) Then I made the cut, and voila! Obviously I did this whole thing right before going out so hemming was out of the question, but I washed the top and the hem is holding so far!

And because I don’t throw anything away, ever, I used one of the leftover circles of fabric to make an armband, over which I placed my watch. If only I’d remembered to take a close-up picture of that! I’ will next time.

I wish I had another white one though… I could wear it with my black blazer and sort of re-create her look, but with a lot of other things as well. Maybe I’ll treat myself ;)







Anyways, ever since I saw the crop polo neck I knew I’d want to wear one with my grey skirt, and the occasion (bar outing) thankfully presented itself. I wished, wished, wished I had black pointed high-heeled pumps (remember the ones by zara?), they would have gone perfectly with this minimalist outfit… But I am a student on a budget so I can’t buy shoes that won’t get worn more than once a month… I settled on my eternal wedge booties (and tights, because it’s still cold, not that the tights are very warm  anyways but still). And the blazer for the same practical reasons, although despite the fact that it kills a bit of the sexiness of the outfit I think it looks cool.

However, I didn’t let that ruin my mood,  and after I took these pictures my friend lent me the most amazing pink lipstick to wear. I don’t think I’ve even worn pink lipstick before, I’m always weary of slipping into Barbie territory, but this lipstick I tell you was perfect, and because my clothes were really sober, it worked great. (I am patting myself on the back now). Otherwise, I did my face as usual and used liquid eyeliner on my eyes. And for the finishing touch, something I do about 3 times a year: I blow-dried my hair straight :)