day one hundred sixty-five

please don't take this personally, but you're really starting to bug me. i know you can't help it. i might even be leading you on a bit, wafting past you trailing the alluring smells of dinner that my husband cooks each night. but then you get too close. you sit with your arms on my back or my neck or my leg. and then i feel the horrible zap through my skin.

you bit me...and now i want revenge.

it's a close race. i swat at you, but you keep lunging back at me. i try a spot of shadowboxing. you win the rodeo prize for sitting on me the longest without letting go.

but in the end, i always win.

take my advice: there are much better birds out there for you to chase.

*****

green tank top over dress: can't remember origin, a year old ($30)
jeans: donated by coral sproule for this project - thanks! (free)
brown sandals: aldo, about four years old (about $80)

grand total:
about $110.08

day one hundred forty

coolest near-celebrity near-sighting of the day: wylie dufresne! um, yeah...there's no way he would have been making an appearance in our itty bitty town. or shopping at the local drugstore.

but i was tempted to ask the guy if he knew how to whip me up some liquid toast. mmmmm...

*****

today's look while loving top chef:

brown top over dress: value village, a year old (about $7)
blue pendant necklace: magpie, about eight years old ($30)
jeans: liquidation world, about a year old ($3)
black ruffled platform shoes: if footwear, a year old (about $110)

grand total:
about $150.08

day one hundred thirty

when he's not working or looking after T or washing dishes or digging massive gardens, The Husband is basically a gourmet chef. we pretty much eat restaurant-quality meals every night of the week. take a moment to savour tonight's menu: to start, homemade ciabatta bread with a trio of dips: homemade hummus, tzatziki, and kalamata tapenade. then marinated flank steak fanned over a bed of nutty brown rice. balsamic reduction. sweet shrimp bathed in garlic. sweet and sour red peppers. fiddleheads. dessert: pavlova with rhubarb coulis and strawberries. oh my.

and now you know why i picked a stretchy dress.

*****

today's look while licking my plate:

white sweatshirt over dress: stitches, seven months old ($7)
jeans: stitches, four years old ($30)
brown shoes: aldo, four years old (about $40)

grand total:
about $77.08

day one hundred twenty-three

if there was such a thing as an internet psychologist patrolling the internet, i'm fairly sure they would diagnose this site as suffering from a bit of an identity crisis. i suppose it's technically a bit of a fashion blog since it revolves around my two-dress project, but i don't consider myself very fashionable and the only reason i'm taking my picture every day is because i have to as proof. but then i go and write about life stuff even though it's not really at all related to what i'm doing. to top that all off, i went and got myself a nice bout of writer's block, so i've decided to take sngz's great suggestion from the comments yesterday and write about sites that inspire me. some i check daily, others i like to save up and catch up every week. hopefully you'll return the favour and tell me about your favourite inspiring sites so i can get addicted to them too and kill a couple more hours that i don't really have checking them out. here goes...

the recent leader of the pack with her own paragraph, the gold star of websites on my must-see daily has to be awarded to the uniform project. sheena is hands-down the master of creativity and fashion. she inspired me beyond belief with her year-long dress project - which sadly ended just this past friday - but she has great plans up her fashionable sleeves, and i can't wait to see what's in store next. luckily there are plenty more inspiring people out there...

here are the rest of my must-reads (with links) in no particular order:

fashion/crafty types:
makeshift: i've written about her here before. this fellow canadian is handmaking all of her clothes for an entire year. truly intriguing.
new dress a day: i've also mentioned this site here before. this girl is making also making a new outfit every day for a year...on a strict budget of $365 for the entire year.
grosgrain: so many talented seamstresses out there! this lady sews an abundance of beautiful outfits and literally gives them away for free. i haven't been lucky enough to win one yet, but hopefully someday...
katie did: again, beautiful handmade things of all kinds can be found here - usually modeled by her beautiful children.
forty-sixth at grace: amazing photography, poetic site.
angry chicken: this lady sews, cooks, writes, she does it all. and is entertaining to boot.
made: another amazing sewing site full of modern ideas.
the purl bee: the nyc shop's site that i am dying to buy some wool from sometime in this lifetime.
brooklyn tweed: he's a man and he knits. what could be cooler?
the sartorialist: the master of fashion photography. captures everyday street fashion in a way no one else can. his images make you want to move immediately to paris. or new york. or wherever.

interesting individuals:
the end mark: got to give a shout-out to steve who inspired this post! i really like his laid-back style and his writing. plus he's a big fan of canadian musicians! (sorry, forgot for a moment that you hate the exclamation mark...)
the girl who: i've followed her for years. she is also a huge inspiration. she's another reason i'm doing this dress project. she's just all-around amazing and one of my favourite reads.
thunder pie: husband of the girl who. i've never read writing like his anywhere else. this man needs to write a book books.
dooce: call her a mommy-blogger, love her or hate her - i think she's great. she says it like it is which makes her alright in my books.
city wendy: a fellow redhead with a knack for making everyday life interesting.
the bloggess: too funny for words. the kind of girl you wish you could hang out with for a few hours.
judysquared: i introduced her to you when she won my contest. this girl is seriously talented when it comes to textiles. that, and aren't blogs just that much more interesting when you actually know the person behind the writing?

foodies:
smitten kitchen: i don't check out food blogs as often as i used to since The Husband has morphed into a gourmet chef over the past couple of years. but smitten kitchen can always be counted on for great ideas and gorgeous photography.
sweet fine day: see above. this site is drool-worthy.

that's not even the half of it! i spend a good portion of my free time poring over strangers' lives. again, please let me know who your favourites are. spread the love!

*****

today's look while giving few people some well-deserved recognition:

white t-shirt under dress: smart set, about three years old (about $10)
white skirt under dress: the dump (free)

grand total:
about $10.08

day seventy-two

lately tenzin's been eating up a storm. he must be going through some type of growth spurt. we don't sit down for just one breakfast in this house. there's the early morning pre-breakfast. then comes the main breakfast. then a couple of hours later, a big lunch. and then, of course, dinner which we now eat at the same time many senior citizens are just pulling up to the tables themselves. all of this happens with about four snacks in between. so basically, we are non-stop eating around here. it's all about making food while wondering what the next meal will consist of, while simultaneously either planning another trip to the grocery store or raiding the cupboards for snacks.

that's why i've nicknamed him "the black widow". if he keeps this up, he'll be giving her a run for her money someday very soon.

*****

today's look while wondering if anyone else would like to enter their toddler in an eating competition:

grey t-shirt under dress: the dump (free)
pink tie around waist: refashioned by me out of an old t-shirt (free)
brown corduroy pants: jeffrey rogers, from england about ten years ago (about $30)
winter boots: aldo from last year (about $75)

grand total:
about $105.08

day fifty-nine

two months down...four more to go! so far, this adventure in dressing is living up to its name. this month, my dress and i have:

* been heckled
* stayed up way too late
* squinted a lot
* been inspired
* held a contest
* sent birthday wishes
* redesigned the olympics
* made dinner

and once again, most importantly, i received three generous monetary donations for almost home which is why i'm doing this adventure in the first place! thanks so much again to everyone who reached into their pockets for this amazing cause. just a reminder, i stayed at almost home for three weeks while tenzin was in the nicu. they are not part of any hospital and don't receive any united way funding which is why every little bit i can raise for them will go a long way.

i have high hopes for march to hopefully raise even more money for this amazing place. could you please do me a favour and email/facebook/twitter my website to a few of your contacts? i need help getting the word out since there are only four months left to go!

and last but not least, please don't forget about my contest! how could you? i've been bothering you about it non-stop for nearly a week...which means that there is only one day left to enter! i will be choosing the winner tomorrow by 6:00 pm - the largest donation of the week wins their name in lights! will it be you? check back tomorrow to find out...

*****

today's look while ripping one more month off the calendar:

black sweater over dress: fairweather, about two years old ($20)
brown tights: (about $12)
striped socks: zellers, a year old ($5)
black platform shoes: aldo from two years ago ($125)

grand total:
about $162.08

day fifty-eight

this afternoon, i cooked dinner. so what, you say? well, i'll admit i haven't cooked in ages. so long, in fact, i actually can't remember exactly when the last time was. i don't count breakfasts, as in throwing a piece of toast in the toaster, no matter how good that piece of toast may be. i used to cook all the time, but then lost faith along the way a bit. i used to be alright and then gradually, every dish i maked seemed to be subpar. something would always go wrong or taste strange or was downright unimaginative. and when you have a husband who'd a bit of an anthony bourdain/gordon ramsay/thomas keller/marco pierre white hybrid, there's really not much point in trying anymore.

i've always been drawn more to baking, but even the last time i did that was a bit awkward seeing as i was making oatmeal cookies and partway through realized i only had one-third the required amount of oatmeal. kind of reminds me of the time we barely had any ingredients in the house and i decided i'd make a really easy chocolate cake. i searched for and found a simple recipe that only contained five ingredients. and i forgot and/or screwed up the quantities of three of them. ever tried shiny chocolate unraised gelatin? unfortunately, i have.

but back to tonight's dinner. which i actually cooked. i made indian food and it worked! it tasted edible and everything. okay, so The Husband added some amazing homemade naan bread to the mix which i have to say elevated it all to that next level, but oh my. i think i have refound my faith in the food gods.

amen.

*****

today while swinging around while dinner simmered:

grey t-shirt under dress: donated by my sister for this project - thanks! (free)
grey tie around waist: donated by my sister for this project - thanks again! (free)
brown pants: secondhand (free)
winter boots: aldo from last year (about $75)

grand total:
about $75.08

p.s. - are you getting sick of me reminding you about my contest yet? you only have till monday for a chance to see your name/message/cause in lights!

day forty-five

do you do valentine's day? we don't in this house. used to be we'd fulfill all of the obligations, tick all the correct boxes. hastily bought card? check. flowers because it's the done thing? check. fancy dinner out so everyone can see just how romantic we are? look! check. but then we discovered that was all we'd been fulfilling - obligations. sound unromantic? not really. sorry, we're just not that into it.

plus, it's not as though we're exactly lacking in fancy dinners around here.

*****

today's look while still wearing some pink (and a helluva lot of other things):

black turtleneck: old navy, about two years old ($15)
black dress under dress: smart set, about two years old ($30)
pink tie around waist: refashioned by me out of an old t-shirt (free)
brooch worn on waist: jacob, about four years old ($15)
black hairband: can't remember
pink flowers on hairband: refashioned from an old pair of secondhand shoes (free)
black tights: zellers ($8)
black ruffled platform wedge sandals: if footwear, about nine months old (about $110)

grand total:
about $178.08

day forty-three

tomorrow we're having a giant early chinese new year buffet. there is much preparation and cooking to be done for this feast. a feast so elaborate that The Husband was out in the driveway today using the car's air compressor to inflate a duck. say no more.

*****

today's look while being a willing taste tester:

long grey sweater over dress: secondhand (free)
grey tights: (about $15)

grand total:
about $15.08

day two

today i put on the shorter dress and decided on a few more layers...baby, it's cold outside!  i tried to make a snowman this morning, but the snow wouldn't hold together. that's after stuffing a screaming toddler into a puffball of a snowsuit, putting on hats, mittens, and blankets and stuffing him into a sled.

so after about three seconds of trying to get non-sticky snow to stick, we headed back inside for a warm lazy day instead.

*****




today's look:

striped top: value village, about five months old ($7)
jeans: stitches, about four years old ($30)

grand total:
about $37.08