Edgy Haircut

So apparently I'm updated now.

I signed up to get my hair cut at Sassoon Academy, because ever since I had my mom cut off ~12 inches earlier this year, I've felt like I didn't know what to do with my hair and that maybe they could help me figure something out. Because I signed up to be a model, I only paid $21, but it was a surprise when I was lined up with the edgiest-looking student, a 60-something-year-old Japanese woman named Yoko. When I told her I was open to ideas, I wanted something easy, and that I had some pictures I could show her of haircuts I liked, she was very insistent that she didn't want to see the photos.

The teacher who walked around checking progress mentioned several times that she didn't get the feeling that "Michelle really wants something super edgy" and that she thought I'd just want to tuck it behind my ear. I agreed. But Yoko was really set on doing something so I would be "updated." Her idea included a fringe and I haven't had one since I was 12 or so. I hated my mom saying, "You can't go to school until your bangs are curled" every morning, and the process of growing said bangs out seemed so annoying to me at the time that I just haven't wanted them since. Oh well, they're back! Also, I don't ever recall having hair short enough to feel like it's been buzzed, so it's a first to have a weird little short part in the back.

Anyway, I kept telling myself that it was just hair, but the result was a bit shocking to me and for the first few days I felt like Cousin It (I had to show Michael who that is) and I felt like I had to explain to friends I saw that yes, I had a weird new haircut. I actually really liked that I finally had a new hairdo and that they'd taken my face shape, hair texture, desired maintenance, cowlicks, and other things into consideration, but in a way I felt like Yoko tried to make me someone I'm not and I feared that I might have to go find someone to give me a pixie. However, I've since kind of figured out how to calm it down a bit, and it's definitely less edgy when parted on my right instead of my left.

Yoko told me that all I needed to do was blow dry and then basically mess up my hair to make it look good, but I didn't expect that I'd need to wash my hair every single day to make it look good—no pony tails for me right now. It's weird to wash because there's not enough long hair to gather together to squeeze out. Also, the bangs sometimes get really greasy and separated from me biking and/or not wanting them in my eyes all the time and then I feel really embarrassed by them and can't do much to hide them—they still get a greasy split in them when I use a bobby pin because of how thin my hair is, and dry shampoo doesn't seem to do much.

I've since grown to like my new hair.

So here are the photos Yoko took (meaning this is how she intended it to look on a daily basis, which it definitely doesn't because I just can't handle it all over the place). 




And here are some pictures of me with the new 'do:

Fashion in China

Fashion in China is very interesting. Not that I am a very fashionable individual myself (I mostly just want to be comfortable).



Mixing patterns: yes.




That is a lot of different patterns in one outfit. Even the woman next to her is intrigued.




Man wearing black and white harem pants.




Couples that dress together stay together.




Not only do people wear full-on pajama sets, they wear them in public.







Add ruffles, lace, or fur to anything and it WILL be better.




These look like doctor surgery shoes to me.







The guys in China are loving this forward-combed hairdo.




Frilly underwear.







There are definitely some lovely clothes that make me think of my sister Heidi.







Lots of cheap flats!




The shoes are the best part of this outfit, IMHO.




Crocs/rubber shoes.



Shoes with hidden heels. Their shape kind of reminds me of the old footbinding shoes.




Fringe and shiny greenish yellow shoes.




Cute ruffle and button detail on the pants.




Bowler-looking tassel shoes.




Men wear nylon socks with designs.




T-shirts under something sleeveless: not just a Utah thing. (Honestly, I've always liked this look, though I know people like to make fun of it.)




I nearly bought this reindeer cardigan. Cute, right?




I'm loving the jumpsuits that are back in. They look so comfy.

Calling Amazing Shoppers

I have been scouring the internet for a rain jacket. This is what I want:

trench coat style
with a hood
with a belt
khaki/beige/tan color
waterproofish
classy buttons (I like the double breasted style, but it doesn't have to be that way)
XS
less than $150


Like this:



















 





It doesn't seem to me like it should be that difficult, but the combination of the XS and the hood and the $150 is making the search very frustrating. I ordered a small, but it looks goofy--I tried it on at work (that's where I had it shipped to), and the CTO said, "You'll grow into it." :D

The person who finds this jacket so that I can buy it wins a prize. That is all.

Frumpy

Today, I wore a blue SendGrid t-shirt with shoes and pants that made me feel frumpy, not helped by my unwashed hair.

My one coworker saw me and said, "Oh! I have that t-shirt! I wear it as a pajama shirt!" That made me feel even more self-conscious about looking frumpy.

Then later, I was in the kitchen, and the CEO, a very fashionable woman, walked past me and said, "Oh, I love . . ." and before she got to the end, I thought, "What in the world is she going to compliment me on? I'm so frumpy today." But she finished with, "SendGrid. They're great." Ha ha ha.

Casted

Yesterday, I finally successfully completed my search for mint skinny jeans that weren't über-pricey.

I had a few short hours to enjoy them . . .






because this leg and this foot ain't going to see the light of day or the shade of jeans . . . for at least a moon and a half. Sad day.






















P.S. This thing weighs a ton, or at least as much as the Golden Plates. I can't wait to have a super-strong upper leg and a toothpick lower leg.

Not Your Ordinary Rain Jacket

I have a list of clothing I'd like to get to update my wardrobe, but finding them is proving to be difficult, especially since I'd like to use three gift cards that I have (all from different places). Oh, how I wish I could find everything at a good price at one website and have it all sent to me.

The J.C. Penney gift card is proving to be the most difficult. Not only did they not have any of the things I'm looking for, I couldn't find anything I liked in their store. I've gone over and over their website, only to find a few items I liked that were sold out in my size or the color I wanted. Plus, their search or labeling seem to be off. I found a cute lace cardigan after some searching, but it didn't show up when I typed in "lace." Sadly, they are out of the color I want.

Anyway, I had to share this tidbit. I typed in "rain jacket," and this was the one and only result:




They sell those things? Why?

Repetition and Minimalism

The other day, I was thinking about how daily repetition in life drives me crazy if I think about it for too long. Then I started wondering why it was that I then love repetition in minimalist photography so much.
















Usually when I think of repetition, it is disorderly--think laundry and dishes. Or boring--think the same commute every single day. Or mind-boggling--think the never-ending-ness of the universe. Or overwhelming--like putting a song on repeat. Each of these cases represents something negative to me.






However, I realized that repetition in minimalist art and architecture is beautiful to me because it takes that annoying, real-life repetition and captures it so that it will never move again. The repetitive has become non-repetitive. Seeing those beautiful lines captured so they look orderly is beautiful to me. They tell me that repetition can have order and finality.





Do you like minimalism? Do you like repetition? Do you feel the same way about my connection between the two as I do?

(Photo sources: here, here, and here.)


P.S. Do you like my new blog design? Comment here and you'll be entered to win a Bueno! [Now closed.]

Re-Design 2012

If you subscribe to my blog through a reader, swing on over to the blog, because I just finished re-designing! (And if you don't subscribe, do so, please!)


 

If I get more than 10 comments about the re-design, I'll send one (random) comment-leaver a Bueno! [Now closed.]

Noun: A Person's Place for Things and Saint Cupcake

Noun: A Person's Place for Things in Portland, Oregon. Though my visit to this place was completely unplanned, I walked in feeling like I'd been there before, like I'd seen this place on one of the many design blogs I read and that it needed to be shared, especially with my boutiquing mom and my crafty sister.

The store is reached through an equally-cute cupcake store called Saint Cupcake. Every special item was tagged with a simple story of its origin. For example, flat felted circles declared, "Some would call this a trivet. We prefer 'modern doily.' Use it as a coaster-for-two, or as a buffer between your favorite lamp and your scratch-prone end table!"

I just had to share (and I hope the owners of both stores aren't too put out by the pictures I snuck--it's free advertising, right?).

Saint Cupcake:






Noun: A Person's Place for Things:

Thanks, Archana

My Indian friend Archana was nice enough to let me try one of her beautiful saris.




Archana also showed me the latest smash hit song in India. It keeps getting stuck in my head and I keep it open in a tab so I can see the awesome dancing. See for yourself:



(FYI, "chammak challo" means "hip shaker.")

Dresses/Dress Companies That Make Me Sigh

Have you seen the Ruche website? (You wouldn't believe how fast these dresses sell out!)

$28 "Doodle All Day Floral Dress"




William Riera:

$69 "Grace"




BHLDN:

$1400 "Pinwheel Tea Dress"