Purple Majesty

 1) Celtic knot amethyst earrings, $20, local fair
2) Scarf, $0.50, Goodwill
3) Purple button up, $20, Express
4) Pin stripe trousers, $30, Express
5) Purple ballet flats, $5, Charlotte Russe

Yes, I know.  "It's Friday, why aren't you casual?!" 
Because I'm new and I love this job.  I'd really rather not fuck it up 3 days in by wearing the wrong clothes.  I generally try to play it safe and dress more formally until I know the office dress better than "business casual."  In today's climate, that could mean anything from a golf polo and good jeans to pants and a button up to a suit with a good tee.  I strike the middle ground and go with business slacks and a less casual tee.

Lazy Pin-Up

1) Marcasite star flower earrings, gift
2) Red scarf, $1, eBay
3) black shirt with white Swiss dots, $20, Express
4) Jeans, $20, Lucky via eBay
5) Red flats, ancient, Converse One Star via Target

This shirt never fails to make me feel good about my body.  Tiny Swiss dots on my tiny frame, a neutral pattern and colors, and a fit that's perfect.  On a crappy day, I reach for this shirt.  I also love these flats.  I'd be happier with a more minimalist sole (these have the standard converse sole), but other than that, they're generally all I need to punch up a neutral outfit to something not quite so waitresstastic.  Well, that and what is rapidly becoming the scarf of the day.
It appears that I rotate between necklaces and scarves from summer to winter.  My necklaces (with a few beloved exceptions) tend to get a little dusty when it's cold or chilly out, and my scarves tend to sit in the closet unworn when it's hot enough to fry an egg on the hood of your car.

Use It Up, Wear It Out

1) Cameo style amethyst and silver earrings, $20

2) White scarf with painted flowers, $0.50, Goodwill

3) Purple button up, $20, Express

4) Navy floral cami (unseen), $8, Express

5) Dark wash jeans, $20, Old Navy

6) lavendar rope side wedges, ancient, thrifted

I rescued these shoes several years ago from a thrift store. I made the mistake of wearing them and they started falling apart on me.  I had checked them in the store for any apparent loose ends, talking soles (heh, they had a good song or 2), or other construction issues and hadn't seen any.  When they started talking to me, I chucked 'em into my "needs Gorilla Glue pile" and forgot about 'em.

Well, yesterday, I was rooting through my lab and found the  Gorilla Glue section of the needs repair pile.  I found this and one other pair of shoes that could be repaired with the shoe glue/ patch I had left over from trying to fix a pair of old steel toe boots.  I later found out that the other pair were completely irreparable; they were just too far gone.  This pair, on the other hand, I was able to fix.  (Never did get around to the rest of my pile of "needs fixed.")

Moral of the cheapass story:  just because the shoes need repair, doesn't mean they're bound for the trash heap.  Gorilla Glue is one of my best friends.  That shit'll glue anything to anything, almost as well as epoxy or model airplane glue.  The stuff I used, though, was made by Kiwi.  If you ever hafta buy shoe repair/ cleaning/ shine stuff, get Kiwi.  It's the best of the best and cheap as hell.  That and their boot/ shoe patch has repaired more than a few pairs of my shoes back to good condition.