A Quick Way To Save $210.21

I really dug this top I saw at Nordstrom yesterday. I love the punk rock influence. But to spend that much money on it when I could do it myself? Never. Doesn’t spending that much on something negate the whole punk ideology?

(Sorry about the bad pic quality, but in case you can’t tell those are safety pins circling her neck).

Price of this Norma Kamali for Everlast top=$229

Black cotton jersey t-shirt from American Apparel=$16

Jumbo box of silver safety pins=$2.79

Saving $210.21 on a designer shirt you can make yourself and keeping your punk cred intact=priceless

(Sorry to employ this over-used and cliched credit card commercial rip-off, but it got my point across, no?)

I Love It When I’m Right

So the new Panic at the Disco album “Pretty. Odd” came out yesterday, and as I was sitting on the bus with my headphones in digesting the Smörgåsbord of sounds, I realized I was right all along. As I stated in my previous post (see Sgt. Pepper or Sgt. Panic?), I thought the new video for “Nine in the Afternoon” was full of Beatles references. Well, evidently, so is the new album. A lot of the songs sounded like they were straight off of Rubber Soul or Revolver. Even the intro to the album, “We’re So Starving,” was a lot like the Beatles intro to Sgt. Pepper. The review of “Pretty. Odd” by USA Today was titled “The Beatles Take on Disco Style”, and according to that cultural database known as Wikipedia, the album was actually recorded at Abbey Road Studio in London. Weird. Beatles redux or not, the whole album is pretty awesome. I highly recommend downloading it. Some of my faves include the soft ballad “Northern Downpour,” and the bouncy cutely-named country song “Folkin’ Around.” Download, listen, enjoy.

You’re Not a D-cup!

For years and years I’ve been wearing bras in a size 36B. It’s what I feel comfortable in, it’s what fits me best. Or so I thought. The other day I was in Nordstrom looking for a new nude bra that isn’t horribly ugly and boring, and asked the salesgirl if she had a certain bra in my size in the back. She took one look at me, cocked her eyebrow and said, “You’re not a 36B.”"Yes I am. It’s what I’ve been wearing for years.”"No, you’re not”After I finished being stubborn about my size, I asked her what size I am. She whipped out her tape measure (which was a semi-uncomfortable experience, I’m not a prude and I’m not uncomfortable with my body, but I don’t make it a habit of showing my boobs to complete strangers, sorry Girls Gone Wild) and proceeded to inform me that I’m actually a perfect 32D.”You’re joking. I’m not a D cup. No way.”You see, I’m on the small side on top. Not flat to be sure, but I’ve always been pretty slim and not overly endowed in the boobage department (my sister got the boob gene). But sure enough, she brought a selection of 32D bras in for me to try and they all fit perfectly, if not a little tight around the band. But being that I’m so used to 36 bands feeling kind of loose, that was to be expected. Turns out when you go down in band size you go up in cup size. I had no idea. So now I am in the process of restocking my bra collection to my new size. I bought a few Calvin Kleins (the best bras out there if you ask me) and have a lot more to go. I’m loving the Elle MacPherson intimates collection, as well as the Betsy Johnson lingerie line. Stella McCartney has a great lingerie line too, but when I get to the point where I feel like spending $150 on a bra is justified, I’ll let you know.I told my friend Alison about my bra sizing adventure. The first thing she did was look me up and down and say the words I’m sure I’ll hear now quite often.”You’re not a D-cup!”

Can’t Shop Vintage

For those of you who are unlike me and can actually find great things in vintage shops, you might want to know that there is a vintage fashion expo in San Francisco this weekend. For more information on the event go to http://www.dailycandy.com/san_francisco/fashion/I for one have always envied those people who, when complimented on the great dress/hat/shirt/etc. they are wearing, can nonchalantly say with an air of smugness, “Oh, it’s vintage.” How cool does that sound?Living in San Francisco, and not too far from Haight Street at that, there is a vast supply of vintage clothing shops everywhere. But as much as I’ve tried to like the vintage fashions in these shops, when it comes down to actually buying and wearing something, I’ve never felt cool enough to pull that off. I’ve never really found anything that I thought wouldn’t look dowdy/geeky/fashion victim wearing. Something about the smell of the industrial-strength detergent they use to kill any germs the previous owner might have had eeks me out a bit, I think. For years I’ve coveted the great 70’s style coat with a fur collar that Kate Hudson’s Penny Lane wears in the movie Almost Famous. I’ve found a few that are close in a few vintage shops, but something about them always left me wanting, so still I go coatless.I would be lying if I said that I have never found anything good in a vintage store. I’ve actually found some really great accessories, like a stretchy black belt with a cool gold clasp, a brown western-style children’s belt with a bull on the buckle, and lots of cool bracelets. I’ve even found a great pair of red Prada wedge heeled sandals. And yet, I hardly ever wear them. I once did and I thought my feet were going to fall off from the pain. The shoes were so used to being on someone else’s feet, they therefore decided to chew up and spit out mine. But I just like being able to say that I own a pair of Prada shoes.Who knows, maybe I’ll go to this vintage fashion expo and find some great things. Or maybe I’ll just go and get creeped out by the smell. I’ll let you know.

Sgt. Pepper or Sgt. Panic!?

OK, as an introduction to this blog, one thing you need to know about me…I’m obsessed with music. Everything that has to do with music. John Lennon’s acid-drenched imagery, Janis Joplin’s crazy hippie garb and lonely-girl mystique, Bowie’s great eyeliner, Dylan’s epic poetry. My current obsession (and by current I mean since their first and only album came out two years ago) is the band Panic! At the Disco. Their second album called Pretty. Odd. comes out later this month (March 25th to be exact–mark your calendars!) and they have already released a music video for the first single from that album, Nine in the Afternoon. For those you don’t want to buy it on iTunes, you can check it out on YouTube. The video blew me away. It was like the band took a page from the Sgt. Pepper playbook. Honestly, watch the video and if you have any knowledge of Beatles music and history at all, you’ll know what I mean. The marching band, the mustaches, the shaggy mop-top hair. Ok, so the long underwear isn’t as charming as the psychedelic marching band outfits the Beatles wore, but you get my point. Even the scene in the beginning where Panic! is being chased by the screaming girls is like straight out of A Hard Day’s Night. It’s worth downloading just to see the crazy imagery. Not quite as good as their video for I Write Sins Not Tragedies, but then again I am a sucker for creepy carnival videos featuring circus freaks. But that’s just me….PS: Brendon, you’re so gorgeous it doesn’t really matter, but you need to cut the hair a little. Just a suggestion.