summer's nowhere near over, but already i'm thinking about fall. while bopping around the apartment today and working on some mending/alterations from my restyle pile, i got inspired to throw together some fall outfits, and dress up my mannequin, penelope. i'm proud to say that nearly everything she's wearing is hand-made or found second-hand.

-psychedelic bandana: thrifted in florida -red/white vintage tee: thrifted in florida -tiny denim jacket: buffalo exchange -button-front patchwork skirt: pattern was designed by and made by me, with fabric from an enourmous thrifted wrap skirt that was thrifted ages ago in florida. -brown vintage boots: thrifted @ goodwill on e. 23rd street, manhattan.

-simple orange wool crocheted scarf: hand crocheted by me -green wool oversized sweaterdress: designed and hand-knit by me -70s peach colored tank: thrifted in florida -vintage levi's 501's with bleach spots: thrifted at the salvation army in hell's kitchen, manhattan. -brown/beige snakeskin shoes: old stuart weitzman's, from beacon's closet

-yellow 70s henley knit top: beacon's closet -red long-sleeved vintage peasant top: beacon's closet -red leather belt with snakeskin patch: zachary's smile -vintage gold beaded necklaces, thrifted in florida -acid-wash skirt: from a vintage store in east london, UK. -floral canvas and leather bag: miss sixty store in amsterdam, NL. -yellow/tan campers: camper store, NYC.

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question:

tis better to follow trends, pick and choose them to your taste, or eschew them altogether?

i'm not saying one is better than the other, not at all. i just wonder where other people stand on this sort of thing.

i've been following many fashion/style blogs lately, and some of my favorites tend to focus on seasonal trends. while i do keep all three eyes (hah!) open to all things fashion-y, i don't always spend a lot hitting the fashion fashion spots trying to keep up with the latest and the greatest. instead, i truly just go out and find what appeals to me, whether it's trendy or not. sometimes my whims intersect with the hottest trends, but often, they don't. it is as if i simultaneously care and do not care.

i wonder if this is because i am somewhat older (31 in 8 days!), and am set in my ways? i often find myself obsessing or fixating on certain things, and these span several years or seasons or even years, though some do have a shorter shelf-life.

i also have a sort of hard-to-fit figure, so even if it's the hottest thing off the runways, it probably won't fit me or suit me anyhow.

then there's often the waste angle: i don't want to spend good money on a bunch of little trendy things, to have them fall apart after a few washings/wearings, or spend a lot on something designer-y but trendy, to have it become declasse too fast. i'd rather buy something i know i'll love and use again and again, if i'm going to bother spending more than a few dollars on it.

i think of styling clothing as an art: it's a singularly fun form of expression. it's about color, texture, proportion, design...clothes and accessories are to self-expression as paint is to the painter or words are to the writer. we all put the elements around us together in a different way. the way things fall together on my body (or perhaps yours as well) is about serendipity: found objects come together and tell the world about who i am: who i have been my whole life, what is dear to me, how i am feeling that day.

trends can fit into that expression, that story, but for me, they can't be the whole story. i have to be me, or i feel i'd be pretending to be someone else, or telling another person's tale.