Tunes Tuesday, "Kindness Be Conceived,"

​Thao Nguyen's music is always a must-listen for me, so it was thrilling to get to interview her for Refinery29! She's a NOVA native, a talented musician, an activist, and has a cool sense of humor to boot. Check out my interview with Thao at Refinery29, and if you wanna see Thao & The Get Down Stay Down on March 20 at the Black Cat, you better loiter outside looking for a ticket, because it's sold out now.

"Kindness Be Conceived" (featuring Joanna Newsom) is from the new Thao & The Get Down Stay Down album 'We The Common' out February 05, 2013 in North America and February 04, 2013 in rest of the world.

​In a collab dreamed up in indie music heaven, here's Thao and my fav Joanna Newsom singing on "Kindness Be Conceived," a track off Thao & The Get Down Stay Down's new album, We the Common. This song is lilting and California granola crunchy, and so pretty. But there's some rocking out on We the Common too. That's what I love about the album — all the songs sound so different, yet Thao's style is unmistakable.

Boots With The Fringe

My irrational dream right now is — drumroll please — ivory white booties. Not only are the boots I'm lusting after stain-magnet white, they also have fringe. I've owned white boots before, incredibly, and they were a massive mistake but apparently I've learned nothing.

Sam Edelman Louie Fringe Boots, $160

​OK, I know what you are skeptical. But stay with me. How cute do they look in this Shopbop editorial? The boots go with everything from dresses to rocker skinny jeans, and they almost look practical. If that word can be applied to fringe boots.

​I showed my roommate these boots and she said "They look like a pony in the wind."

Exactly!​

​I consulted with my online shopping buddies, Debie and Lani, and they were onboard with fringe-y boots, but not with the white. Which is understandable. Sugar Rock Catwalk fashion blogger extraordinaire Lani gave me some great suggestions for less spendy boots in darker colors that could possibly withstand Coachella.

​Pink & Pepper fringe boots, $60, Charlotte Russe fringe boots, $19.99, Betsey Johnson Yola boots, $75

She also suggested the leather version of the Sam Edelmans, and unfortunately for my pocketbook, I think I still like them the best. The black version is pretty rock and roll, and via the blog Le Catch, I found a photo in R29 of Lucky editor Elle Strauss wearing the black Sam Edelman Louie boots and looking chic. P.S. Le Catch is incredibly addictive, Marlien has such an eye! I found it this weekend and read back pages and pages. Do you read it already?

I'm still on the fence about fringe boots — Joe is not on board at all — but here are some Clarks taupe lace-up boots I actually purchased last week. I had a very similar pair that I loved but somehow managed to spill bacon grease on while attempting to pour the grease in the trash can. It missed the trash can entirely, missed the floor, and instead landed on my boots. Spot on. A direct hit. Bummer, man. Anyway, the replacement boots are adorable and have all the comfort you'd expect of Clarks, and they (theoretically) look good with dresses too. 

I'll let you know if I pull the trigger on a fringed pairs. As always, weigh in by leaving a comment. Fringe boots: sassy or spazzy?​

Fit to Be Tied: The Best in Bows

If something has a bow on it, chances are high that I will buy it. Bows are girly as all get out, yes, but they are so pretty and whimsical that I can't resist them. I made a collage of some gorgeous bow-ed items that have caught my eye recently, including a sweetly sexy dress, a Parisian-cool t-shirt, and classic little bow earrings.​

​Dress: Erin Fetherston, $375 (it's a little bridesmaid but I'm obsessed with it!); T-shirt: Mademoiselle Tara via ASOS, $135.65; earrings: Kate Spade via Nordstrom, $48 (Kate Spade should be your first top for bow-bedecked items, BTW); Clutch: Rebecca Minkoff Mini Sweetie Bag, $209 

IRS Romance

I just sent my accountant my 2012 tax questionnaire with all my paperwork, and towards the end of the questionnaire, there were questions about 2013 so he'd know what to plan for the future. One of the questions read:

"Do you anticipate a change in marital status in 2013?" And there was space to check yes or no.

But in between "yes" and "no," I wrote: "Possibly."

I wonder what the accountant will think of this. Maybe he'll have a laugh.

I told Joe about this, and he said. "Did you write: it better?"

Tunes Tuesday, "Drove Me Wild," Tegan and Sara

​Even though Tegan and Sara's new sound is synth-ier this time around for their new, seventh album Hearthrob, they're still singing about heart-wrenching breakups. 

Artist: Tegan and Sara Album: Heartthrob (2013) Download: http://www.filepup.net/files/NSMHXEP1359413665.html Tracklist: 01 -- Closer 02 -- Goodbye, Goodbye 03 -- I Was a Fool 04 -- I'm Not Your Hero 05 -- Drove Me Wild 06 -- How Come You Don't Want Me 07 -- I Couldn't Be Your Friend 08 -- Love They Say 09 -- Now I'm All Messed Up 10 -- Shock to Your System For promotional purposes only, if you like the album support the artist and buy it!

Seven albums...man, time flies. That's a lot of heartbreak. Who are all these mean girls? It's good for fans of Tegan & Sara's music I suppose. I love the fizziness of this new album, and although Closer is my favorite song, I'm picking "Drove Me Wild" as a close second. These are the sunniest tracks, lyrically. Just check out the song titles of some of the others: "I Couldn't Be Your Friend," "How Come You Don't Want Me," and "Now I'm All Messed Up." It's really a fun pop album though, I swear!

My Visit to Drybar Georgetown

Have you all tried Drybar yet? I've been reading about the only blowouts salon chain for so long, and ever since an outpost opened in Washington, I've been curious to experience the cult of blowouts. This is the longest my hair has EVER been, so now seemed like an ideal time to try it out before I chop it in the spring.

So this past Friday, I hoofed it to Glover Park/Burleith for an early morning appointment. Note: it may say Georgetown on the website, but that's a bit of a stretch. If you don't have a car, the location is inconvenient, but buses do run up Wisconsin every 10 to 15 minutes. Here's a rundown of my Drybar experience:

​The design is beautifully done. It looks appropriately posh, and makes that $40 a pop seem like a bargain. (Joe, you might want to stop reading here.) The place is huge too, there's a whole back room with styling stations near the shampoo room. I didn't wait at all for my appointment. I met my stylist, got my hair washed, and chose the Mai Tai from Drybar's "menu" of hairstyles, and drank some lemon-flavored water. No champagne as it was 8 a.m., but maybe I should've gone for it.

​​As seems appropriate in the girliest place ever, flat screen televisions played The Devil Wears Prada without the sound on. I caught the tail end of this, and then the first 5 minutes of Mean Girls. Again, of course they played those movies. 

Actually, I barely watched any of it because I took my glasses off and the screen turned into vaguely-Anne-Hathaway-shaped blurs. This is where my guide stops being a service to readers, because I can't see at all without my glasses and I have no idea how the stylist created my hairstyle.​

​But this is how it turned out:

​Ignore the overgrown bangs, please. I really liked the job she did, and enjoyed the overall experience as a girly treat, but I don't know if wavy done hair feels like me. I know that's more about my own issues and way beyond the purvey of Drybar, ha. My friend Alex said, couldn't you have done this yourself? Maybe if I really tried with the curling iron.

​No, looking at this picture I realize that there is no way I could do this myself. The back looked really pretty. It stayed this way pretty much all day, looking a little less "done" by the evening, then turned into very loose waves the next day and was pretty much gone the third day. But your milage may vary.

On the way to the salon, I read the Yelp reviews and some people were really unhappy. Women are just so picky about their hair.  And everyone's hair is different, so it seems even more difficult to fit everyone into a "Cosmo-Tai" or "Mai-Tai" or whatever. That's a lot of hurdles for drop-in blow-out places like Drybar to jump through. I feel like I have a level of trust with my own hairstylist that is difficult to replicate with a one-off appointment. I also wonder if the stylist positions here are a difficult job to fill in general, since your tips have a cap on them without cut or color? Do most people who love doing hair want to cut hair as well?

But I can see why these styles of salons are hitting it big. If you have a special occasion or maybe you want to get your hair did and feel pretty, this does the trick. I'll probably just stick to my normal hair appointments and try to get better at doing my own hair, but it's nice to know that it's in the neighborhood. Curious about trying Drybar DC for the first time? Want to tell me about your experience? Comment below!