When Too Much Is Not Enough

Between all the things I love, be they vacation, shopping, cooking, reading, or hanging out with friends, they all have one thing in common ... opportunities to wear sunglasses.  Sunglasses are the best thing since sliced bread.  I swear I'm not joking.

starting at the top left: betsy johnson, a.j. morgan, 

charming charlie, charming charlie, and american eagle

In this photo we see only a small cross section of my sunglass collection.  I became obsessed with sunglasses at a young age when I could only wear prescription sunglasses in this weird marble/blue color while I desperately wanted to wear cat-eye-hot-pink-cinderella-glitter sunglasses.  I'm sure you can see the importance of wearing a pair like that.  

Though some people think it's odd to wear sunglasses at all times while outside, you honestly should.  It's not just for people like Rachel Zoe, a pioneer of wearing sunglasses in dark places.  (She took Corey's words to Hart ... pun intended.) Why pay tons of money every year on anti-aging products for your eyes when you can buy a pair of sunglasses that will last years AND look super stylish.  The trick to this is wearing them when you're outside, every season, and splurging on classic pairs.  The sun still shines in the winter!  If you follow this advice, the only lines you'll have are laugh lines, not lines from squinting or sun damage and a life-long fashion staple.  (Think about the bragging rights after you've had them for 10+ years?!?  I mean, once you're over 5 years, you're golden.  Example: I haven't had Taco Bell in at least 9 years.  That's kind of impressive if you knew where I went to school.)

Going back to our amazing, non-expiring, compliment inducing, anti-agers, just like with sunscreen, you need to make sure with sunglasses that you have proper spectrum protection!  They only work if you wear them and have the proper amount of UV screening.  

CARDINAL RULE: Only buy sunglasses marked with either 100% UV protection or over 400 UV lenses.  

There is never a reason to compromise this rule since, regardless of how cute the frame, you're wasting money on a product not at it's best.  It's like buying a shirt that was ripped in half: though you can probably learn to make due with it and get it for a great price, you're still getting damaged goods.  If you buy a product at 95% UV protection, the sunglass maker is only out to make a buck, not actually provide a good product.  

All this being said, I also recommend glasses that have pretty consistant shading to them.  Though having it fade to clear towards the bottom might be stylish, your delicate under eye skin probably would not be getting the same amount of protection your eyebrows would be getting.  It's also helpful while driving since having a such graduated lenses can be distracting.  

Now, back to lighter topics, don't these glasses make you think of Harry Potter?

I bought these A.J. Morgan sunglasses for under $2 about a week before the second deathly hallows came out.  I was neck-deep in potter mode.  This is also probably the best deal I EVER got on sunglasses ... though I'm always looking out for the next pair!

My next tip: you don't need to spend too much on a pair of sunglasses to get a great pair.  If you still want that designer look, I totally recommend going to Stein Mart where they have brands like Michael Kors, Betsy Johnson, and Jessica Simpson on super sale.  No one needs to know how much they really cost!  It can be our little secret.

Last piece of sage advise: only buy a super expensive pair of sunglasses if you know you're going to wear them A LOT/they are a classic frame that will never go out of style.  Case in point: I asked for and was gifted a pair of medium ray ban wayfarers in black for my birthday.  I, without exaggeration, wear them everyday.  That means, to date, I've worn them over 430 times.  This pair is my go-to pair.  They go with everything, look stylish, and have SUPER dark lenses.  Sometimes, I'll even have 2 paris of sunglasses in my purse at a time: stylish sunglasses to wearing around and my ray bans for the serious stuff!  Always be ready for anything!  I mean, my purse is often times large enough to fit an entire sunglass hut inside so there's no reason to be caught fashionably off-guard.

Hope this helps everyone with their own sunglasses collections!  Too much is ever enough when it comes to this accessory and, if you want to try a trend, try a cheap (but fully UV protected) pair from a place like Forever 21, Charming Charlie, or Stein Mart.  

Live in comfort and shock with style!  Also, don't get crows feet before you have to.

PS: If a pair dosen't fit all that great/too tight but is cheap, break out a sander and sand down the sides so they open up more.  I've done this countless times since my noggin is the size of a basketball ... I also do this sort of DIY with all my clothes.  I'm the straight girl of mad fashion mistakes (though I do love the "Gay Macgyver of High Fashion").

Boots NEVER Go Out Of Style

Do I love boots?  YES.  Does the world love boots?  DOUBLE YES.  And by boots, I don't mean the pharmacy (another love of mine) but, rather, something everyone has worn for forever and ever and ever.  Seriously.  Even Robin Hood wore boots.  If he were real.  Here's proof: Robin and Little John rockin' booties. You're welcome.

As for the more recent history, we'll start in America: for the past few years, it seems that hooker/witch boots were in style with serious pointed toes and #2 pencil graphite thick heels that towered past Babel.  I'll confess that I owned (still own) a pair that I will not picture here.  Thankfully, the women of Europe got wise ... and knew what the rest of the world needed: thicker heels, semi-loose fit through the leg, and cool metal accents.  When that style seriously hit the US, every woman's arches sighed in relief!  You mena we can be comfortable!?  YES!  

Thus was born my new shoe addiction.

Shown here are a pair of short boots by Gabriella Rocha.  

This pair was less than $50 (including the cool skull laces from Charming Charlie) on Zappos and even have a side zipper making it super easy to adjust any pants/socks/tights you might wear to complete your ensamble.  


To personalize these a bit more, I added the aforementioned skull laces from the boutique Charming Charlie and did realize that the laces are black and the boots are brown.  Who cares?  Regardless of what someone says about colors and seasons, I believe you should wear what you think looks good and, if you're confident, everyone will love it (or in my rent's situation, get used to it).


Finally, I want to talk about the heels: I am a firm believer that you don't have to break your back for beauty ... possibly go through a bit of pain, but never to the point of suffering.  I, like any girl, love what a good pair of heels can do to my lower half.  I just don't like what happens after a couple of hours of standing.  The moral of my story is: be reasonable to the situation and respect your body.  I personally believe that everyone should have some kind of heel or arch support.  It would probably change you're life!  If you mess-up your feet, like dominos, the rest of your body is hurt!  Example: if your arches are falling, to compensate, your body pulls your knees in and, since your knees are pulled in, your hips get pulled ... then the process goes up the rest of the way to your neck and you're buying stock in tylenol for the rest of your life.  Dont' let it get to that point!  


Live in comfort and shock with style.  My new words to live by :)


PS. Boots can last forever if you take care of them so make sure to polish (if you can) and, when the time comes, get your heels/soles repaired.  Who wants to toss their favorite boots when it takes half the price to make them look new again?  Seriously, think about it.

are unfinished edges a bad thing?

If you were asking my grandmother that question, the answer would be a resounding "YES."  In her opinion, some of the worst crimes against fashion are pieces of clothing where patterns don't match at the seams (hurts the eyes), unfinished edges (the clothing will rip at first use), and over-embellished tops (robs her the chance to use every necklace in her closet in her outfit).  


And that's SO not me.  


In my world, sometimes those things have to happen.  Fashion doesn't have one definition.  Fashion also doesn't totally define a person.  It's the most adaptive form of expression: from a kentucky tuxedos and ostrich-feather skirts or sequin vests to your birthday suit, everything a person wears shows a little about who they where, who they are, and who they want to become.  An example is a woman wearing clothing too large after losing immense amounts of weight or the new college graduate wearing ill-fitting suits with too-tight collars.  We've all been somewhere, we got here, and we're going there.  Duh.  


Needless to say, we all make choices, like different things, and, without a doubt, abhor what we don't understand.  I try to give everything a chance ... it might strike out but you can't knock it till you try it!


Regardless, no matter the materials, a ball-gown sized confidence always makes a look.  


Rock that gold lame tube dress, light-up stripper heels, and feather headdress.  You will turn head but if you've got the guts too pull it off.  DO IT.