Why Do You Wear Red?
In preparation for asking what you like to combine with red, I’m curious — why wear red in the first place? No matter how hard I try to eliminate it, there’s always a need for some kind of red in my wardrobe.
Some possible reasons for choosing to wear red. Do any of these sound like you?
- Red is bright and fun!
- Red packs a punch with my sophisticated neutrals.
- I prefer the more subtle shades and tints of red, such as burgundy or pink.
- Traditional in many settings, red is logical choice for patriotic holidays, Christmas, and so on.
- Red clothing enhances the red lipstick I love to wear.
- Red is intense.
Personally, I identify with 2, 3, & 4. (I look dreadful in red lipstick!) How about you, why do you wear red?
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Weekend to Remember
Someday, probably after this week, maybe not until after the current show (Little Women, the musical) is over, I will get back to normal blogging. But costuming the show is not the only thing I’ve been exceedingly, unusually busy with: this past weekend I had a little vacation with my honey. We attended a marriage conference.
Prior to packing, we received an email warning us that it was likely to be cool in the ballrooms. My uniform of choice for the weekend:
wool trousers worn with heels + long-sleeved cotton t-shirt + wool layer
The only problem with that particular template is that the location of the conference was somewhat of a natural paradise. That is, it was a gorgeous fall day, beside a lake, and I was wearing high heels. That’s okay, we really didn’t have time to enjoy the outdoors anyway.
If you should choose to attend a Weekend to Remember conference in your area anytime in the next year or so, you may use my group code to save $$ on the registration fee. Code is 11912 and registrations must be mailed or phoned in. I highly recommend it!
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Fashion Lab: Frankencoat
My husband named this project “Frankencoat” because it is actually a dress with pieces of other garments, plus fabric, sewn onto it. It may be used as a costume for a youth production of the Broadway (musical) version of Little Women. Or it may not.
Initially planned to be a hag dress, the gray tweed was deemed too nice by the director. At the same time, I was struggling to come up with ladies coats in the shape I wanted; most modern wool coats (at least the ones we can afford to use for costumes) are boxy and shapeless. So was the dress.
Here’s what I did:
- split the dress up the front and cut off the bottom. The extra off the bottom became the little cape effect thing below the collar.
- Next I took the top of a black velvet dress I had found, which wasn’t being used for anything. The top may actually end up being used now, I didn’t have to cut through the zipper and I serged around the bottom to keep it from fraying. Making a seam at the waist of the dress, I attached the full black velvet skirt to the inside. Then I sliced up the dress to allow the black velvet to show. How hack is that?
- A sleeveless vest with fake fur trim donated the toggle closures.
- Some random velvet I had laying around (for what purpose, who knows?) covers the collar, trims the little cape thing, and fills in as a faux back half-belt.
- Lesson: baste everything first! Can you imagine having to take out little stitches from this stretchy fabric? And tweed?
There it is. One of the reasons I haven’t been around much. (I had hoped to get this posted in time for the fabulous festival on costumes at dramatis personae. Perhaps she’ll have mercy on me.)
What do you think? I’m happy I made it, but this may be the most daylight (or spotlight) it ever sees. 
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Adapting Proportions for Figure Type
Of the six figure types, only two - type A and type V - differ significantly in width from top to bottom. To figure the length proportions for those two figure types, use the Golden Mean proportions like always and then add a little bit of length to the slimmer portion.
Does that make sense?
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What to Wear with Green
Recently it occurred to me that green, while an easy color for many to wear, doesn’t necessarily lend itself to mix and match. A quick trip around the color wheel reveals why:
- yellow: too 1960s. Not bad if you’re young and you throw in white.
- orange: resembles the autumn landscape. Do you want to look like a deciduous forest? To approximate a single tree, pair green with brown.
- red: at best, red & green are reminiscent of 1990s interiors; at worst, a color-challenged Christmas. Pink is sometimes doable, but grass green and pink is too young and sweet for me to wear.
- purple: throw in the right shade of brown and it works.
- blue: safer than most other color combinations. Just wear your green sweater with blue jeans and everything will be just fine.
- green: when combined with hunter orange, two or more greens make a perfectly coordinated “sport” ensemble.
Which leaves the neutrals:
- black: the hag chorus in Little Women is wearing mostly green and black.
- grey: finally, an option that seems current!
- white: a better choice for Christmas outfits.
- metallic: ditto the above.
Which leads me to easy ways to wear green. In a print.
Or as an accent.
How do you like to wear green?
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Weekend Reading
Thanks to Vildy, I have something to offer for interesting weekend reading: Trinny and Susannah reveal 12 women’s body types - which are you?
Can you find yourself?
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Frugal Mom Wears the Fall 2007 Trends
Five Fall trends, based on “Sneak Peak: Autumn 2007” at youlookfab, and how the frugal mom might approach them this shopping season.
- Pants: for the sake of longevity, I’m going to suggest wide-legged trousers. Color? Probably grey. Trousers are a great way to wear a color that you may not prefer next to your face and wide-legged has the potential to look chic and classic for years to come.
- Puffy: The Civil War Era was all about puffy sleeves. (For Autumn 2007 we are seeing puffy everything.) The purpose of the added volume back then? To make the waist look small by contrast. Tuck that in the back of your mind for consideration, because …
- Hourglass: that’s a way almost anybody can achieve an hourglass silhouette. Back then they wore puffy sleeves and huge skirts, along with a normal waist (not so much corsetting). A prediction: be on the lookout for the return of hourglass silhouette coats. I’ll buy one!
- Riding boots: Thank you to all my relatives who have contributed to my birthday/riding boot fund. No time for shopping at present. (he he - stealth pun!)
- Patent: Black is the classic in patent. Brown is iffy. As an alternative to black, consider a belt or bag in one of the season’s jewel-tones: purple, royal, magenta, etc.
What trend are you hopping on this season?
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Before You Go Shopping
Occasionally I still get fooled into thinking that shopping is a leisure activity. Let’s face it: shopping is hard work! To improve the likelihood of success, try these tips:
Dressing for clothes shopping includes wearing a simple top which you can try things on over and slip-on shoes, if possible.
Choose your destination carefully. Before you even get to the store consider:
- Does this store stock a good selection in my size? This one gets me all the time. For example, the Eddie Bauer outlet doesn’t even offer their outlet label in XS. If less than half the offerings are in my size, do I even want to expend the energy to drive out there, get out of the car, pick through everything, and so on? No. If possible, concentrate on stores where your size is in the middle of the options, rather than at one end.
- When thrifting, look for stores that organize the racks by item and size. Hopefully, in your area, as in mine, this is becoming common practice. My favorite thrift store even puts things on the rack in color order.
- More thoughts on where to go: Choosing Where to Shop.
Is shopping therapy for you? Or does it make you need it? Share your best tips!
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The Fabulous! Festival, Workplace Edition
Welcome to the October 15th fabulous! festival, aka the Workplace Edition. There were lots of entries, so let the festivities begin!
What to Wear to Work
Gemma Palmer presents Personal Style In The Workplace posted at Jumble. Warning! The photo accompanying this post is a bit revealing.
Fabulously Broke in the City asks: Dressin’ sexy in the workplace - acceptable for all ranks? Or should you play it safe? And then, What if everyone wore flipflops? (My hero contends that’s how we recognize the beginning of the collapse of civilization.) In addition, some people just don’t get the distinction between social and business clothing, and part of that distinction is work appropriate fabrics.
From the perspective of a hiring manager, Déja Pseu presents: Get a Job! Part 1 - First Impressions, tips to make a good first impression (and some common mistakes to avoid), and Get a Job! Part 2 - The Interview posted at Une femme d’un certain age. Also from Deja Pseu: The Woman In The Grey Flannel Suit, thoughts on the modern plague known as “Business Casual.”
Again on the topic of business casual, Miss Janey presents HATtastic: Biz Casual- What’s It Mean, Anyway? posted at HATtastic, saying:
Electing to downgrade to a business casual atmosphere is a slippery slope, one which very few can navigate, and one which, once breeched is hard to return from.
Our fabulous! organizer/administrator person, Meg, explains Dressing for Job Interviews at Casual Companies. She also delivers solid advice concerning the question Is It OK to Dress Better Than Your Boss?.
Concerning business wear for men:
- Dracon shares a humorous question and answer From a CE-related Instant Message: Work-wear worries posted at Calculatus Eliminatus.
- Individual Chic: The quadruple whammy guy posted at Individual Chic goes out to suit wearers. Icy says, “seriously you need to get your details right”.
And this late entry on the topic of teacher dress codes: Teacher, Teacher at The Shoe of Salvation.
Not fabulous, not even related, but still worth including:
Tracee Sioux presents Gossip Girl & R-A-P-E posted at So Sioux Me, saying:
If a girl wants to look pretty and be liked by boys does it mean she’s “asking to be raped?” That’s the message Gossip Girl marketed to teenage girls …
Other Fabulous Entries:
Maria Palma at Beauty is Within: Beauty and Fashion Blog reminds us that There’s Always Time to Look Fabulous! (when it comes to being beautiful and taking care of yourself, it’s all about priorities!).
Home Office Women tells the Story of a Fashion Entrepreneur.
Doris Chua presents Get Trendy with Camouflage Apparel posted at Doris Go Shopping, Beauty Talk posted at Doris Chua: Organics & Your Health, and My Fashion Sense posted at Life, Travel, Passion & More. Phew! And more I couldn’t fit in. 
Introducing Rose Apodaca, the pop culture and style journalist whose first book, Style A to Zoe: The Art of Fashion, Beauty, & Everything Glamour
hello kitty hell presents Hello Kitty Men’s Fashion posted at Hello Kitty Hell. (Sure. Why not?)
Fashion Poirot, Lola Neopolitan, presents Fashion Poirot- Rihanna.
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of the fabulous! festival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page. 
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Scarves: Do You Wear Them?
Me? Hardly ever.
The Budget Babe has posted 6 ways to wear a scarf. If I were inclined to try something other than a wintery warm scarf tied on lariat style, how about #4 (but not quite like that), tucked inside a sweater in place of a shirt?
Speaking of scarves, what do you think of this one?
La Redoute - Free Beige Suede Bag with order of $50 or more, code LRFREEBAG, 10/15-10/21
