My fashion sense might be defined by an obsession with merchandise that is “ugly / pretty.” What’s “uglypretty” you ask? Well, first of all, I bought a UNITARD this year (how impractical is that?! as many have said, to pee is a pain in the arse). So, uglypretty is when you know that by all standards of logic that something is ugly, you could probably write a paper on why it’s ugly, but you are drawn to it despite all logical reasoning. Alright, there is some logical reasoning for me, and part of it is that I’m drawn to bright colors (yum, lime green!) like a tv addict to the season premiere of LOST.
1. TIGHT TIGHTS (Celeste Stein Designs, Bamaku Pattern $19)
I am obsessed with the god-awful pattern on these tights! They are an awkwardly brilliant combination of fantastic colors and geometric designs. How yum would this be (did I just say that? god, I’ve been reading too many teen fashion magazines) with a solid yellow skirt, or, for the more uglypretty daring, a PATTERNED SKIRT.
2. MADE FROM AN EARLY 90s COUCH? (Urban Outfitters, Brushed Skirt, $48)
So, before my dentist’s office redecorated, I am almost positive that my youthful self knew that, very soon, those chairs which were upholstered in fabric JUST LIKE THIS had to go. Little did I know that I would later want a skirt made out of ALMOST THE SAME MATERIAL.
3. THIS ONE TAKES ME BACK (Disney Store, Minnie Mouse Sweatshirt for Adults, ON SALE FOR $7)
First of all, I probably had this sweater in first grade. Second of all, it is turquoise. Third of all, I love Disney. FOURTH OF ALL, I love sweatshirts (cozy loungewear for the stay-at-homer) that I feel cute in, even if it’s uglycute. I had the brief flash that I would like to be employed JUST SO I COULD PURCHASE THIS SWEATSHIRT. I LOVE IT. It doesn’t help that it’s only seven dollars… right at my fingertips…!!!
4. WHERE’S WALDO? (George Terrific, where is he sloppy joe shirt)
Okay, what’s with those really round “beads” that resemble…. Also, it’s huge. Also, GIANT STRIPES. And not just any stripes, red stripes! I think I saw these in a children’s book somewhere… And yet, I could almost guarantee that if I wore this, no one else would be wearing it. UNIQUE!
5. MMM YUMMY (Threadless, The Things I’ve Swallowed, ON SALE FOR $6)
Do you like sea food? Well, you can SEE your food everyday when you wear this colorful t-shirt full of ugly things.
6. 80s BARBIE? (American Apparel, Printed Nylon Leggings, $42)
These are so fun, a fab choice for a casual party. The little flecks of color look a little like SPRINKLES, so maybe you can wear them to a funky tea party with a kind of Alice in Wonderland theme where you have cupcakes with your tea.
Note: The fab font used in this post is Impact Label, free for download on dafont.com.
1. 50s Silk Blue Swing Dress, indigolace on ebay
2. Adrienne Vittadini Silk Scarf, sarmar04 on ebay
3. Lacina Top, Anthropologie, $39.95
4. Sunglasses, Forever 21, $2.99
5. Chirp and Tweet Dessert Plate, Anthropologie, $14
6. Red Wool Princess Coat, shop blue bird on ebay
7. Cupcake Apron, Boojiboo on etsy, $28.75
8. Painted Rose Hairclips, Forever 21, $2.80
I have to dedicate this post to my co-worker, Patrick, who recently lent me season one of Pushing Daisies. The exchange went somewhat like this.
Patrick: Would you like to borrow my season one Pushing Daisies DVDs? [Read: I would like to have someone to discuss Pushing Daisies with on Thursday mornings. Please watch quickly, and get caught up.]
Tricia: Umm…okay.
He gave me the DVDs, and I watched. In one day, I watched six episodes. Consecutively. Yes, I understand that this fact is a little embarrassing. Which is why, after the sixth episode, I left the apartment to get a cupcake. Then I returned, and resumed watching.
Produced by ABC, Pushing Daisies is the most whimsical, wildly imaginative TV series that I have ever watched. Visually, Pushing Daisies resembles a love child between Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Tim Burton (Ignore the biological impossibility! Imagination!). Since Amelie is my favorite movie, by far, it makes sense that I am utterly smitten with Pushing Daisies. There are even a few parallels between Pushing Daisies and Amelie!: the Pie Hole (Montmartre café), Chuck (English-speaking Amelie!), costume design, and the first episode of Pushing Daisies even features a song from the Amelie soundtrack!
The plot revolves around Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with the touch of his finger. After reawakening the dead, Ned has a minute to retouch the person. If he doesn’t, the dead thing stays alive and someone else dies in exchange. Finally, if he touches anything that he had once revived, the thing stays dead forever. Make sense? I hope so. Ned and Emerson, a Private Investigator, use Ned’s extraordinary gift to solve murder crimes (and cash in on the reward money). Originally, this plan worked well, until Ned had to reawaken his childhood sweetheart, Chuck (!@#!@$%!$!@#!$%!!!!)
Ned can’t bring himself to un-reviving Chuck from the dead. Which is great, because I ADORE CHUCK! She is brilliant! Witty! Quirky! Charming! Adventurous! Oh, Chuck! How I wish I could be you! Chuck is a hybrid of Zooey Deschanel, Rory Gilmore, and AMELIE. Some of my favorite fictional/real people! So many exclamation points! Furthermore, Chuck always wears the most sparkling clothes! She pairs wonderful dresses with perfect little cardigans! Chuck joins Ned and Emerson, and the show chronicles the team’s sleuthing adventures.
So after six straight episodes of Pushing Daisies, what do I think about? How can I be like Chuck?! I subsequently went to this Pushing Daisies fan site (where all the pictures in this post are from!) to oogle at the Pushing Daisies cast (mostly Chuck). Chuck wears a lot of 1950s swing dresses, and ebay is the perfect place to find them. The dress up, up above has a Chuckish silhouette, and is well-tailored too! On trips to the morgue, Chuck frequently wears bold-colored wool coats, sunglasses and scarves so Mr. Coroner doesn’t recognize her. (Her disguises are kind of fruitless, but I enjoy seeing her disguises nonetheless!) I wear nearly as many cardigans as Mr. Rogers, and Chuck seems to be the same way too! I’ve always fawned over Anthropologie’s dainty cardigans. They’re always so cozy and detailed! Chuck also enjoys lovely hair things: Audrey Hepburn-sized hats and flower hair clips! When she isn’t at the morgue, Chuck helps Ned bake pies (and even suggests that the Pie Hole should serve CUP PIES…CUPCAKE-SIZED PIES…panda-precious!), and wraps herself in cute aprons. Lastly, a perfect plate for the Pie Hole’s famous Three Plum pie. Yummy!
