To-Do Check Up

Okay, so last week I listed a few things I needed to do. Sadly I've only actually accomplished one - which was buying some patterned tights. I also bought some other lovely things that I didn't put on the to-do list, but probably needed: a nautical striped shirt, a cropped faux leather jacket, an asymmetrical/flowy/long grey sweater, and a new black skirt with elastic waistband! All fall essentials! Today I accidentally stopped by Target to see if they had these ankle booties that I like (they were out) and then walked down to Payless.... and bought a pair of Oxfords! I've been looking for some at thrift stores, but it's hard to find vintage shoes in my size that aren't going to fall apart. So, why not buy a new, cheap version of the old thing? Here they are:

They have heels, too.... oh and these are some of my new tights....
The more excited I get about fashion, the more I realize how expensive it is to be fashionable! Thank goodness for stores that will sell me cheap versions of things (even though they are sometimes less pretty). Lookin' fine if I do say so myself (and sort of like a grandmother, but grandmas can be cool, right?). Well, I'm still working on my list, although I think I'm getting closer to a tattoo. I've got a couple friends who are down for getting them together (accountability is crucial) and soon. Also my mom taught me how to use contacts this weekend, so now I have no more excuses for calling the eye doctor and ordering some. I hope your night goes well - if you're down at the Bluebird or somewhere downtown real late, you can buy a hot dog from my main man, Jared. He'll be out there til the cows come home (or until around 4 am). So stop by and say hello - but keep your hands off, cause he's mine ladies (and dudes)!

Va-Va-Valley Girl Boots

The Valley Girl boots are in! I broke them out for XRA Fest this weekend, which turned out to be both a very good and bad decision. You know how my heart is set on fashion over function, so wearing boots with heels to a looooong show was maybe a terrible idea - but man I looked good! There are some really terrible pictures of me on Facebook from the show, sadly I am super sweaty and you can't see my boots. So I decided to wear them again today!

My lady clients really love them! One of them told me today, "Annie, if we ever saw you come into work wearing jeans and a t-shirt, we'd send you back home!" Apparently I dress up a lot! Thank goodness it is fall time and jackets/tights/boots are permitted (and I don't sweat like crazy because its 90 degrees). The lovely purple jacket and gray dress are both from H&M. Tights that you can't see very well (but have wonderful black dots on them) from Target.

If you missed XRA Fest, then you missed a major PARTY! I danced so hard my calf muscles are still sore! As usual a bunch of dudes took their shirts off and even jumped on stage while Rodeo was playing, knocking me out of the way so they could sing in the microphone. It was crazy. I also got to see some friends I haven't seen in a long while (like Tiffany & Penelope). I hope your weekend went well, and that you got to see lots of sweaty dudes take off their shirts, too.

Busy Weekend?

ME TOO! In a few hours I will be traveling up to Fairmount for the first night of James Dean Days and to see my family. My little sis is coming up from Tennessee and bringing a gal pal - so we're gonna hit the town Melton-style! That mostly means I'm going to be wearing way too much clothing for the hot weather and we will be laughing, singing, and making fools of ourselves, walking up and down Main Street, looking for the best fair food. We will then play a Glee board game that my boss gave me this week as a belated birthday gift! I can't wait! More laughing, singing, and making fools of ourselves (and probably some crying, you know how I love Glee). Tomorrow I will be returning to Bloomington in time to practice with the boys and go to XRA Fest, which Rodeo will be playing. The Fest starts tonight at Russian Recording (you should go!!!) and continues tomorrow night at the Bishop. Some great XRA bands will be playing - go check 'em out!

Also, one of my greatest fears came true last night: I went to class, heard a friend talking about a paper, and then realized I totally forgot about a paper that was due yesterday! I felt like such an idiot! Good thing I took off the afternoon to travel up to Fairmount - I can finish my paper while waiting for my family to show up! Yikes! You'd think by now I would be a better student and know where to look in my syllabus for assignments. Well, have a good weekend, and hopefully I'll see you at a show!

Monday To-Do List

On Sunday Jared and I took a look at the 2nd Street Antique Mall. It's a bit pricey and mostly has fancy antique stuff (Jared and I prefer the junkier items found in flea markets), but I did find a booth with lots of vintage lace, ribbons, and fabric. I found a few fun things I think I can use for some upcoming projects! Here are my finds:

Sorry about the poor quality cell phone pics! I recently came into some extra money (for being a super bad-ass social worker) and am planning to purchase a digital camera soon. It's on my to-do list anyway, along with several other things like homework and cleaning my house. There are a lot of things I've been getting excited about lately, so here's a list of non-school/work related things I want to do (not necessarily in this order):

1.) Buy a digital camera
2.) Buy a bicycle (preferably a red one)
3.) Get a tattoo (at least 1 out of the 3 I have planned)
4.) Order contacts (I lost my glasses last week & Jess found them at the bottom of her trash can. So I'm looking at contacts!!!)
5.) Buy a few pairs of brightly colored or patterned tights

So these are my leisure-related priorities. If you'd like to be involved in any, please let me know! I'm always looking for shopping partners and people to hold my hand when I'm getting tattooed. I also might need someone to teach me how to use contacts.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changin'

While I frequently peruse the many pages of vintage wonders posted on Etsy, I have never actually bought anything from them. During my bathing suit crisis, I looked at vintage bathing suits every day on Etsy, and sadly never bought one. Today is a monumental day because I bought something on Etsy! I have been eyeing a pair of vintage boots online, and today I just did it. I clicked the "add to cart" button and bought them! Who knew I could be so brave?

Here they are - the lovely "Valley Girl Boots" from kickinthemulevintage on the great Etsy.com! Ah... perfection.

Jess and I have been talking about the itch for change.... I recently satisfied mine by chopping all my hair off. But the itch always returns, much like an STI. So I have been thinking about tattoos and finally laid to rest the eagle chest piece. I do have three serious ideas for tattoos now, one of which I hope will be coming very soon. I can't wait to show you, but until then, it's a secret! Hope you have a fabulous weekend, full of impulse buys and hopefully void of STI's (in case you didn't know, STD was recently changed to STI to avoid some of the stigma that comes with the word "disease." Not sure if it really helped...).

Gleekin' Out

Have you watched Glee yet? It's only the best show I've seen. Glee is a mix of my two favorite things: teen dramas and musicals. Could it get better than this? I think not.
I think you've heard of the Melton family curse, right? If you are unaware, I will fill you in. The Melton women have been cursed with overactive tear ducts. We cry no matter what emotion we are experiencing. Watching a scary movie? Yes, I'm crying because I'm scared. Romantic comedy? Yes, I'm crying because it's heart-warming and funny. Make me mad? I'm crying. Life falling apart? I'm crying. Happy news? I think you get it. Well, I also cry when listening to music, especially music with lovely harmonies. And how does Glee affect me? Well I cry watching every episode. Whether it's the music, the hilarious jokes, or the melodrama, I'm cryin' my eyes out. So, if feel like watching something hilarious and dramatic that also happens to be a musical (how can you lose?), please check it out! Then maybe we can watch it and cry together. Or you can watch it like a normal human being and I'll sit beside you crying like a baby.

It's that time of year...

For tights!!! And boots!!! I wore both today, and I can prove it. What a lovely day.
I've waited for three months to bust these babies back out (I unfortunately wore some tights at the end of May during some sweaty Rodeo shows - not a good idea). This Saturday my agency is having a Square Dance to raise some funds, and I'm on the prowl for the perfect dancing outfit. Let me know if you have ideas! So far, I just really want to wear my Wal-Mart cowboy boots (which Jess gave, thanks dear) and I'm looking for a dress with a full skirt. Or maybe just a skirt. We'll see what I can come up with... I may just have something perfect lying in my closet. Well, I'm off to organize my office and then on to class. Hooray for going back to school and taking classes that don't teach you anything! Gotta love grad school.

My Apologies...

Now I know I said no more fashion posts, but today I just couldn't resist! I found this dress in a pile of clothes that was donated to the house I work in, but no one wanted it! So I took it off their hands. I felt like I was from a totally different time when I walked out of the house today.

I paired the dress with a little black belt, some black heels (you know how much I love my heels) and a some pearls. If you look carefully, you can see I have a stray strand hangin' around that isn't connected to anything (this is very typical for me). And, as always, I need a giant bow in my hair! I felt a bit like the Anne-Marie from All Dogs Go To Heaven, running around with my short dark hair and giant yellow bow. If you don't remember what she looks like, I would suggest watching the movie again, it's a real tear jerker (although most movies are to me).

Right after this picture was taken, I switched my fancy clothes for my work out clothes and actually went JOGGING! Well, I tried anyway. I got a few blocks and thought I might die, had to slow down, then would try jogging again, and slow down again. Eventually I had to stop jogging because I couldn't stop coughing! Every year around this time I start getting a bit of a cold, as the seasons change, and I got one sneakin' up on me now. But the point is, I exercised! Hooray! So for the rest of the night, I'm going to eat Pizza Rolls and potato chips, while watching Dynasty, which Jared picked up for me at the library. In case you didn't know, Fallon, Mr. Carrington's daughter, is also the actress who plays Nancy Drew on the tv series!

And for those of you who didn't know, I've taken a new interest in making jewelry things. I'm working on snazzing up a chain with some ribbons right now, but haven't had the time to finish it. I'll post some pictures when it's finished. Well, hope you have a great week, and don't forget to take your allergy medicine because it's terrible out there!