I left my head and my heart on the dancefloor

Bodysuit: K-Mart
Skirt: Temt
Jacket: Saba, via Anglicare
Necklaces: short gold layered chains - vintage (my dad's late mother's), long layered chains - K-Mart

I like op shopping. I do, I enjoy scouring racks of odd clothes trying to find that one perfect something. But really, I'm not fantastic. You know how some people it's like they'll go op shopping and come home with a hundred new different outfits all for less than $10? Yeah, that's not me. I'm alright at op shopping for things like homewares - punch bowls in particular haha, or collectible porcelain, stuff like that. But clothes I am not good with. I don't know if it's me or just the places I look but yeah, not great.

Except I found this awesome Saba jacket for only $6 in Anglicare Fremantle the other day! At first I passed it over cause it wasn't my size, but then I went back to have another look because really, how often do you see a fairly new Saba jacket in such good condition for $6? And I tried it on, and it is so cute! It comes just a little above my wrists but (as is the current trend) I rolled up the sleeves. The Freo Anglicare is surprisingly good actually, I also bought a grey blazer there for $2 a few months ago and whenever I've worn people always comment on it and are then shocked when I tell them where I got it and how much it was!

I've also finished my Bachelors degree! Obviously I'm waiting for results, and continuing the seemingly eternal wait for my Honours application results, but it's so exciting! However, not having anything to really do at home now besides work and, well, that's it, I'm finding myself bored a lot of the time. This isn't how it's meant to go! I've finished uni, I should be excited all the time! Haha if only..

Some girls won't dance to the beat of the track.

She won't walk away, but she won't look back.
She looks good but her boyfriend says she's a mess,
she's a mess,
she's a mess,
How the girl is dressed.
she's a mess,
she's a mess,
she's a mess,
she's a mess.

Baby loves to dance in the dark,
'Cuz when he's lookin' she falls apart.
Baby loves to dance in the dark

I think I made you up inside my head

So, uni is almost over. Like, really really almost over. And I'm freaking out. Not because uni's almost over, although that is scary and weird and what am I going to do after uni?! But because I've applied for Honours at Monash (Politics/Gender Studies) and Uni of Melbourne (Gender Studies) and I won't find out until December whether I've been accepted. I'm hoping for Uni of Melbourne because the more I think about it, the less I want to do a combined Honours with Politics anymore. Funny how things change. I went into uni set on doing Political Science, working in politics - it was what I wanted to do, for ever. And now, now I love Women's Studies and I couldn't imagine working anywhere but in women's issues and rights. But I guess I just have to sit out till December and hope for the best!

While I'm passing the time, I've been buying shoes. Lots of shoes. Shoes fill half my room, and then some (my room is pretty small, to be fair). I've just bought another two pairs from Go Jane, and I've got the Jeffrey Campbell 99 Wedges on pre-order from Revolve Clothing. So excited!

It was Carey's (my Assistant Manager at Temt's) birthday on Saturday so I got dressed and showed my face very briefly before coming home and sleeping - I just didn't have it in me, plus I had work today. Ugh, Sunday trading.

Top: Temt
Skirt: Quirky Circus
Jacket: Ebay
Shoes: Ebay
Bag: Temt

Too many sequins, I'm sure many people would say. But I'm making the most of sequins while I can! Also I like my cheapie Ebay heels (look to be inspired ever so slightly by the Gucci Baboushka studded heels) although they are, well, cheap haha.

ffffffffffffffffff

I just don't get how people excuse offensive or bigoted opinions or whatever, because the person saying it is "just like that" or "they don't know better" or "that's how they are". Okay, so? It may be a reason, but it's not an excuse, you know? Just because someone doesn't know better doesn't mean they shouldn't have to.

I am not a perfect person. I do and say things that show off my privilege a lot. I try to recognise this, try to make sure I know when I'm coming from a position of privilege and then keep it in check. I'm not going to sit here and say I'm perfect - that I've never said racist things, I've never slut-shamed women, I've never used the word "gay" as an insult - things like that. I try really hard to look critically at these things and check my privilege, to use a phrase.

So I get fed up with these excuses that I seem to hear so often. Apparently, my thinking that people should be held accountable to their words and their actions, and that people shouldn't be given free passes to not show the basics of human decency, apparently this makes me high and mighty. Not even calling people on their privilege or their comments or whatever, but just the simple act of expressing the opinion that something is offensive or whatnot.

I mean, quite frankly, if you're going to sit around making up excuses for why people are allowed to say sorts of offensive, sexist, racist, homophobic, etc etc etc, things, then I would rather you think I'm high and mighty because I'm just glad I'm not being an ignorant, bigoted asshole. I'd rather be ~uppity~ because at least it means I'm ruffling feathers, and hopefully this means I'm doing something right. Because if I was doing something wrong, no doubt I'd be having excuses made for me, you know?

out of the ash I rise with my red hair

Dress: Mink Pink, via About A Girl
Sequin blazer: Cotton On
Tights: Myer
Booties: K-Mart
Bracelet: Cotton On
Bag: Equip

Had a friend's 21st last night - it wasn't a huge party, just a nice sit down dinner with free bottles of wine. Which I drank a fair bit of. And then spilt over the table and myself. So now I have to wash my dress and blazer after only one (the first!) wear.

I also finally gave in a bought a version of the YSL cage boots - these are from GoJane and, including shipping, cost me just over AU$60 - which considering the prices of other knock-off/inspired cage booties by Dotti or Siren, is a bargain.

Image from GoJane.

I like the fact that it has a platform, plus the heel isn't as high and stiletto-y as the Siren versions - yay for comfort!

Next on my list of shoes I just HAVE to have are the Jeffrey Campbell 99 zip wedges - they look to be inspired by the look of the Acne wedges this season, and I love it!

Image from Need Supply.

she makes a lot of abstract art; she haggles for the cheapest price

I'm a student. I work part time but to be honest, I don't get paid a great deal. I don't have much money. So I buy pretty cheap clothes. And it's kind of led me to develop a certain, I wouldn't use the world style per se, but a particular look. My friends and girls at work will often see stuff and be like "Oh, I saw this and thought of you!" Generally that stuff has sequins on it, haha!

Dress: Mink Pink, via About A Girl
Singlet: Temt
Leggings: Temt
Cardigan: Kenji, from Myer
Knitted beret: Forever New
.. and new sandals (you can kinda see the bandaids from where they cut my feet first time I wore them): Target

Altogether everything there would have cost ~$100, and I can wear everything there with multiple other items of clothing, so it's a win-win all round. And of course in the background is my highly decorated room!

Photo from Gaga Daily.

Just booked tickets to Lady Gaga in Melbourne next year (23rd March)! So fucking excitedddd!

we're happy cause we're shinin'

Balmain Collection AW 09

I love sequins. Like, really really love them. They're sparkly and fun and can be dressed up or down (but mainly up, because seriously - sequins!). It's starting to get a little out of hand, actually. I now own one full sequin dress, two partially sequined tank-dresses, a cropped sequin blazer, and currently have on layby another, less structured sequin blazer. Sure, it might not sound much but it doesn't help that whenever I see sequins I automatically want it.

Case in point? Forever New's silver sequined boyfriend blazer. Unfortunately the picture is no longer up on their site, but it's exactly the sequined blazer I'm looking for - the silver will balance out my huge amounts of black sequins! Likewise unfortunately, it's sold out in my size in the entire state, so unless they get more stock in, I'm going to have to keep searching for an affordable silver sequin jacket. :'(

it's her life and her life is worth living

So, I've decided to start a blog to keep track of, well, my life. I want to look back in ten years time (if the internet's still around in ten years, I don't know) and remember what I was interested in and what music I listened to and what clothes I wore. If no one even reads it, okay (I guess, haha), it will be somewhat.. cathartic, I suppose? So I think I'll be mainly going on about articles I've read that I found interesting and music and clothes and shoes I want and wear. Hopefully it'll be fun!

This piece from Feministe really struck a chord with me. I don't have kids or anything but I think for a lot of women - including myself, for sure - there are these tensions between conforming to societal standards of beauty and, I guess, understanding and recognising these standards and societal pressures.

Sometimes I feel like I should know better, you know, I've read the Beauty Myth, I'm generally pretty good with recognising beauty standards, but at the same time..? I wear makeup and dresses and heels and I do my hair and love to shop and worry that people will KNOW if I haven't shaved my legs or whatever.

And what happens when I have kids? Do I tell them that they don't need to adhere to these beauty standards, that they're just a patriarchal social construct to keep women subjugated and they are beautiful for who they are, not how well they perform femininity, all while wearing makeup and heels? I find it really hard to reconcile with myself sometimes.

But, I guess, doesn't Naomi Wolf make the point in the Beauty Myth that we shouldn't look down on women for conforming to these beauty standards? And women can and do get pleasure from these things - but then is that because society tells them that when they look a certain way, they're ~doing it right~? Tricky.

Photo by Dina Goldstein as part of her Fallen Princesses series.