The Magic Skirt

Look at me, pretending I know how to have my picture taken while standing in front of the many piles of recycling I never quite manage to take out...

And yes, I realize the lighting is terrible. Nothing to be done about that, sadly, while living in this apartment. Hopefully you get the idea, especially because the main point here is the shape of the skirt.

Here is the story of this skirt. There's a boutique near my parents' apartment called Purdy Girl. Their stuff is really cute (and I've seen some Stitch Fix items there), but also basically always out of my budget. But they moved a few months ago and put their whole store on sale for 50% off, so I ended up buying two skirts, including this one.

Usually when I shop, I can tell what I like or don't like right away. However, I wasn't totally sold on this one. Instead, I did that annoying thing where I made people in the store tell me if they liked it or not. I was worried it made me look hippy, but they assured me that I should get it. And now I look at it and think, how is it possible that a skirt could make my waist look so small? We all have our moments of vanity; welcome to mine.

The skirt has a really pretty blue/ black pattern with touches of silver, so I kept everything else basic black and added the moonstone pendant I got in Nepal. I wore this to synagogue, where I was complimented many times and told more than once that I looked like I was going to a holiday party. Tis the season, right? What to do you wear when you want to feel pretty?

What I'm wearing: Moon skirt via Purdy Girl (similar here), Kosher Casual top, HUE tights, Aerosoles heels (similar here), necklace from Nepal (similar here)

Summer Bucket List: Outdoor Karaoke!

Only 11 days behind! I'm catching up, right?

This year, 4th of July fell on Shabbat, which meant that many of the usual fun activities-- barbecues, going to the beach, taking the subway to watch fireworks-- were off limits. So instead, on Friday, July 3rd, my friend Jess and I went to outdoor Karaoke in Riverside Park.

What is outdoor karaoke, you ask? Well, this summer, for the first time, on two Fridays, the Parks Department sets up a stage from 6-9 on the pier at 70th street. People can sign up for songs, and then get to (have to?) sing in front of the whole crowd, and anyone else who might be walking by. It was very hilarious, and the first people were pretty awful, which means that it wasn't so scary.

However-- HUGE bummer-- we had to leave before it was our turn because Shabbat was coming. BOO. We were going to sing Don't Stop Believing and it was going to be epic. Sad Rachel. Also, this was going to be a big deal for me, because as some of you know, there are few things that would be as out of character for me as getting up and singing in front of a ton of strangers. The next karaoke date is on the weekend of my parents' 40th wedding anniversary, so I won't be able to go, but perhaps next year. In the meantime, we enjoyed beautiful weather, some hilarious moments, and the five-year-old we befriended getting up and singing Let It Go in front of the crowd.

The fancy stage,

The sun is setting! Shabbat is coming! Must run home!

In other news, I wore my red and blue Eshakti dress because it seemed so patriotic. This was my first Eshakti purchase, and it might still be my favorite. I LOVE this dress. It is so 1950s-ish, super comfortable, and the perfect shape for my body. Plus, of course, pockets. Obviously.

Hope you all had a fun 4th. Almost two weeks ago. Oh well. Better late than never, right?

What I'm wearing: Eshakti dress (similar here, I added 3/4 sleeves), Franco Sarto sandals via DSW

The Times, They Are A Changin'

Ok, I know what all of you are thinking. Rachel used to blog so much and now we hardly hear from her! Has she lost interest? Is she too busy for us? Has she started walking around naked all of the time and therefore has no outfits to show us????

Dear readers, I assure you that it is none of those things! Instead, there has just been a lot going on, but I promise I think of you often. Here's what's been happening on my end of the world:

1. My sister and her family moved here! This is a VERY exciting development in my life. Now, instead of having to fly across the country to see each other, they're just a walk away! So far, I have taken Simon to the movies and Leo boating. Maddie and I just chill, because she's a baby. Pictures to follow in future posts

2. My June job ended. We had a great five weeks together and it was sad when it was over. In case you were wondering what I was teaching, here is a cartoon of how the Talmud explains putting people to death:

3. My comps list got approved! So in theory I am in the process of studying for my seventh and final comp. You notice that I say in theory. Hopefully it will happen for real soon.

4. My July job started. Dear readers, I love July. It's my favorite month of the year. I'm teaching full time, on three different topics, so it's a lot of work, but I am so happy to be teaching this much again that I am trying to enjoy every moment.

5. The bucket list marches on! I am trying to make sure to do at least one fun thing a week. It's good for me and so far I am enjoying.

So that's what's been happening. Less computer time means less time to blog-- that is the one unfortunate part of all of these good things. I'm trying not to think about what will happen in August, when I am back in the library all the time.

In the meantime, here are some pictures of my beautiful eyelet dress, which I loooove, and which I finally found a sweater to go with. 

Happy summer! What's keeping you busy these days?

What I'm wearing: Anne Klein dress (similar here), Boden cropped cardigan, Franco Sarto sandals via DSW

Suburbs Have Staircases!

Today, we continue my exploration of the wonders of suburban living. (AKA, these pictures are also from last weekend.)

In addition to having a yard, in the suburbs, people often have houses! And those houses have multiple floors! For example, I slept on the third floor, where the ceiling was all slanty. Will the wonders never cease? So here I am, making friends with the staircase. Hi, staircase! I am only used to things like you outside of my living space!

Just kidding. I am not actually as much of an alien, or city snob, as I am making myself out to be. But it is true that I have never lived somewhere with an inside staircase.

Anyway. Let's talk about texture for a moment, shall we? I am very into fabrics that have texture, especially ones like this dress, which is otherwise solid. I'm not sure the pictures show it super clearly (next time I wear it I'll take a close up), but this dress actually has a beautiful eyelet overlay over a solid base layer, which makes it much more interesting up close than it appears to be from far away. The attention to detail is what turns it from a plain blue dress into something really special.

I've been trying to use this blog as a way to get a little more adventurous in the way I dress. It hasn't really happened yet, but something I sort of want to try is pattern mixing, which seems scary but seems to work really well on other people? So I'm wondering if using a solid but texture piece might be a good way to start out. We'll have to wait and see.

Finally, this dress is a great lesson of "good things come to those who wait." I loved this dress last year from Boden, but it was too expensive to buy since I knew I would also have to find a sweater to go with it, etc. Then, a couple of months ago, I realized it was on major clearance, plus an extra 15% off. And luckily I got the last one in my size! I've already worn it a few times, and look forward to wearing it with other (brighter!) colors as the weather continues to improve.

Come back next week! Featuring our first Q and A post, and a spotlight on the many glasses of Curly Hair With Glasses. I tell you, the fun never stops.

What do you do to make your look more interesting? Any advice on pattern mixing?

What I'm wearing: Boden eyelet dress (sold out), Boden cropped cardigan, Audrey Brooke flats via DSW

1955 in 2015

If you've been paying attention (and I know that read this blog is all any of you do!), you would have learned the following things about me:
1. I love dresses.
2. I am glad to live in 2015 as a Talmud-learning feminist, but from a fashion perspective, I wish I lived in the 1950s.
3. You can always get me if you give me pockets
4. I am all about combining modesty with my own personal style, and not letting it ruin my overall esthetic.

Enter: eShakti. Do you know about them? If not, here's a brief overview. They are a clothing company based in India that does custom dresses. They have a great vintage feel to them, which makes me love them even more.
Here's basically how it works: They have many dresses, skirts, tops and the like on the website. So you browse through and see what you like. Let's say you like a dress. but it's too long, or too short, or doesn't have sleeves. For $7.50 extra, you can customize your dress. Yes, really! And once you are customizing, you can make as many changes (e.g. sleeves, neckline and skirt length) as you want for that $7.50 cost. For example, this dress was shown as sleeveless, but I added elbow length sleeves so I wouldn't have to wear it with a shell or a cardigan. Or, if you want, you can also choose to enter your own measurements and have the dress custom made to your body! And every dress comes with pockets!

I know what you're thinking. These dresses must be crazy expensive. But no! They start at around $50.  Okay, so are they using sweatshops? I did some research when I first heard of them, because I did not want to be responsible for children being forced to sew my clothing. But my research shows that they actually have good labor practices. So sign me up!

Ok, I look sort of demented. Ignore the face and love the dress.

I got pretty hooked last summer, and ended up with more eShakti dresses than could really be considered reasonable. I pared down a bit by selling a couple on eBay, but these are still going to be go-to summer dresses. I get tons of compliments every time I wear them, including many for this one when I wore it to synagogue today.

I have already converted my sister Sarah. Want to join us? Let's bring the 50s back! (For fashion only, I promise.)

Some things to know:
1. Because they custom cut every dress and then ship from India, the process takes a while (about 3 weeks in my experience.) So this is not great if you're in a big hurry. And shipping, not surprisingly, is a little pricey, but it balances out in the end.
2. They ship via DHL, so you need to be there to sign for the package. Consider shipping to work if you live in a house or don't have a doorman.
3. They run a little smaller than most of the other clothes I buy. For example, I almost always wear a 4. in dresses, but the dress you see above is a 6, and as you see, it fits me like it was made for me. So if you're between sizes, order up. (And trust the measurements they give on the website.)
5. I have a couple of friends who were not happy with eShakti's quality about 6 years ago. I have been nothing but happy with what I've gotten from them. The only problem I've had is buttons falling off every once in a while, so you might want to hang onto the extras that come with the clothes. The fabrics are also mostly lighter weight, so they're better for the summer months.
6. If you're not happy with your purchase and decide to return, you can get your money back for the base price of the item, but not for the customization fee. (That $7.50.)
7. Right now, you can get a great deal! All new customers can get $40 off their first order right now, and everything on the website (other than the overstock section) is buy two get one free, or buy three get two free. Free dresses! Click here for more information.

That's all from me for now. Happy weekend, friends!

What I'm wearing: eShakti shirt dress (similar here), Franco Sarto sandals

Fancy Friday

As you might have guessed from the pictures, this outfit is actually from last Friday, back when I had my fancy but non-me-feeling hair. I don't have much to post otherwise from the last few days, because I've mostly been either holed up in the library or wearing gym clothes while scrubbing my apartment to get ready for Passover. On Passover, there is a strict prohibition against eating, or even owning, chametz, which include all grain products unless they are especially prepared as matzah. So many people go crazy cleaning at this time of year. Personally, I'm a strong believer in "dirt isn't chametz," but it is also possible that I would never do more than incidental cleaning of my apartment were it not for Passover, so I take advantage. Anyone else with me on this one?

I really love this dress. In fact, I loved it so much that when it went on major clearance, I bought another one in blue. (Buying things I love in multiple colors is a bad habit I have that I'm trying to break, but I am more successful some days than others.) I think the shape is super flattering, the sleeves are perfect, and it should surprise nobody by now that I am a sucker for all things polka dotted.

The one thing about this dress is it's black. I wear a lot of black-- probably more than I should-- but I try not to do it head to toe. So in this case, I added some purple tights for a little bit of color, and I wore my loud turquoise glasses. Sometimes a pop of color is all you need.

Rumor has it that it will be in the 60s tomorrow! If that's true, I promise to try to take a picture of my outfit, pasty white legs and all! Let's hear it for no tights!

Have a great night, everybody!

What I'm wearing: Boden dress (still on major sale!), Matisse by Coconuts boots (similar here), Hue tights

Willing Spring to Come + Stitch Fix Update

Happy spring everyone! The word on the street is that if you live in the western part of this country, then it's warm where you are. Here in New York? Not so much. I know I'll regret saying this one day when it's 90 degrees and humid, but I just wish it would get warm already! Every fall, I get impatient for it to get cold so I can wear cute outfits with boots and tights, but now we've reached the time of year where I am itching to have bare legs and a jean jacket. Apparently, I am never satisfied.

In an effort to at least start transitioning out of my winter wardrobe, I wore one of my favorite dresses for Shabbat this week. This dress is amazing for many reasons, but one of them is its versatility. I have successfully worn it with boots and tights, and with sandals. It works either way, making it fully three season functional. Plus, it's my favorite silhouette (fitted on top, pleats on bottom), which is super flattering to my pear shape. And the red adds a nice pop of brightness to what was sadly a gloomy day.

In general, I'm not a big accessorizer, mostly because it never occurs to me to put jewelry on. The one exception to this rule is scarves, which I wear often because I tend to get cold easily. As you see in the pictures, I wore the dress two ways yesterday-- with a bright turquoise scarf for color contrast when I was cold, and then with a multi strand necklace once it warmed up a bit. Either way, the awesome boots were back in full force. (Sorry that the awkward mirror selfies are back. I was photographer-less last night.) Which look do you like better?

Finally, thank you to those of you who weighed in on my Stitch Fix! I heard some of you had problems with the comments. My apologies; I have hopefully fixed it so that they should work from now on. In the meantime, I appreciate those of you who weighed in on Facebook or through other media. I decided to keep the purple dress and the blue shirt. The crowd was pretty united against the red top and I didn't love it on the second try, especially at that price, so back it went. Even though I only kept 2 things, I felt like this fix was a great success. It was totally on target for my look, and I'm excited to get my next one in April. Want to get in on the fun? Sign up and order your first box here!

What I'm wearing: Boden dress (similar here), Hue tights, Aldo boots. Leila Rowe necklace (similar here), Scarf from Loehmanns (similar here)

Pretty in Paisley

Happy weekend, everyone! I hope you're enjoying warmer spring weather wherever you are. Here it was wet but warm. After the winter we had, I'll take it.

One thing to know about me from the outset is that I LOVE dresses. Somehow they are just more fun than skirts-- I don't know why. However, it is also often more difficult to fit them if you are a different size on top than on bottom, like I am. Add to that the need for sleeves, and it seems like too much trouble. But with a little ingenuity, a cute look with a dress is in your reach!

One of the things I think about is how to uphold my standards of modesty without looking strange or conspicuous. This requires a lot of creative layering. Usually, throwing a cardigan on over a sleeveless dress is a good solution. However, I am very petite on top, with super narrow shoulders, and much wider hips, so I have found that cardigans over dresses often make me look strange. Instead, it often looks better to wear a shirt under the dress, but of course, that can look weird too, if you aren't careful.

A few tips: Pick a dress that has a simple neckline, so the shirt underneath doesn't distract from the main look. Button down shirts with collars often present a nice professional look, combining fashion and function. And whatever you wear underneath, make sure it is fitted, to give you a smooth line. Nobody likes to feel lumpy. There are great shells out there (try here or here), and they are definitely worth investing in.

Many thanks to my lovely neighbor, Shaina, for her help with the photos. Apparently the downside of living alone is having nobody to take pictures of you for your blog. Oops.

I'm wearing a Boden dress, a Joe Fresh shirt (similar here), Hue tights, and Coconuts by Matisse riding boots (similar here.) Sorry you can't really see the boots, but they're very wet anyway. We'll try again next time.

How do you like to layer it up? Leave your thoughts in the comments!