New Hair

I chopped all my hair off two weeks ago. 

After the cut, I asked Joe, "Is my new hair swaggy?" 

"It's something," he said. Then after my protestations, he demurred. "It is definitely swaggy." 

For your reference: on the left is fresh from my hair stylist and on the right is my subsequent attempt to style it. 

I specifically requested it to not be like Miley Cyrus, but I think it's a little Miley. Whatever. I'm digging it! I was actually inspired to go short by Michelle Williams (Who What Wear just wrote about her undercut ) and also Robin Wright in House of Cards. She rocks that cut. 

It took me three years to grow my hair out and then in an hour, it was all gone. It was the longest it's ever been in my lifetime. You can see it here in the pages of Interior Design magazine (I "modeled" for my company's photoshoot. I haven't mentioned that here, but it was surreal!)

I don't miss the long locks. I think I wrote about the fact that I was freaked out by how much hair fell out daily. Maybe I never noticed it when it was short, but when it was long, it scared the bejeezus out of me. After I went to Iceland and ruined my hair in the Blue Lagoon and it was looking particularly terrible, I googled "women's hair loss" and just cried while reading the stories. Irrational behavior on my part, I know. I actually called up Joe and just scream-cried into the phone. In between sobs, I managed to get out the words, "All my hair is falling out." Joe was so sincere, and took me at face value. "What can I do? Can take you to urgent care?"

That wasn't necessary.

OK, so that's my insane reaction to long hair. I never got used to finding strands everywhere, but I still seem to have the same amount of hair as before so no harm no foul. I was just so sick of it so it's time for something new. I think I need new, edgier clothes (or girlier clothes?) to go with this swaggy hairdo. And fun earrings. I'm thinking statement earrings and ear cuffs. So now you know, I got this haircut to show off trendy ear cuffs. 

Leave me a comment if you love it or hate it, or if you have any suggestions for fun products for punky, edgy short hair. 

New Hair Cut: The Modern Long Bob or "Lob"

So ​before I went to Coachella, I almost dyed my hair pink! In fact, my stylist attempted to dye it pink, but for some reason it didn't take. Maybe God was watching out for me. It would've been subtle, I swear. She suggested doing an ombre baby pink on the ends, and it would've been cute. But maybe that's a lot of look for me, so perhaps its for the best.

​The pink might not have worked out, but I did get a new haircut. My hair was the longest it's ever been, and it was driving me crazy. I feel like the long bob is having a moment (or the lob, if you will), so I found some inspirational images to show my stylist. Check it out below (oh hey, rocker Taylor!).

Image sources: Taylor​, Miroslava, Alexa, tutorial from amazing stylist blog She Lets Her Hair Down

​I like how it turned out a lot, but I can't make it look as good as my stylist did. That's always the case though. I'll post a picture when I can get my act together. Also, the past few weeks I've been itching to go a lot shorter (oh hey, Michelle Williams pixie crop!).

What do you think of the long bob? What hair trend are you feeling lately?​

What They Wore to Coachella

Part of the Coachella mystique is the fashion blog coverage of what the beautiful people wore to party in the desert. There's an entire genre of clothes that now exists, thanks to Coachella and Glastonbury et al: Festival Style. Perhaps it's because we went the second weekend, and all the glam people go the first weekend, but I observed that most people wore as little clothes as possible. We're talking just walking around in bikinis and sports bras. Not particularly fashionable. I get it. It is so hot there. I envied the bikini chicks. Also, this is not a place you want to take a Chanel bag, which I saw in some of the blog slideshows. It's dusty and vomit-y. Fashion people be trippin.

​Here are the main trends I observed: high-waisted booty jhorts, crop tops, floral crowns, disgustingly dirty Toms, crop tops, baby doll dresses, crop tops. Did I say crop tops? I'd like the record to show that I predicted this trend's revival back in 2009. Maybe Coachella is the only place it's really taken off.

​Anyway, before the trip I evaluated my wardrobe for Festival Style and found it lacking, which resulted in a mini-shopping spree. I bought four new things to wear and assembled three Festival Outfits. But then disaster struck, when my flight was delayed and I missed my connecting flight, which caused my suitcase to go missing. Wouldn't that be rich, I thought, if I lost my luggage and had to wear the same t-shirt and pair of jeans every single day. That would serve me right. But thank God, because somehow, against all odds, my little suitcase turned up behind the desk at the Yuma United Airlines counter. 

New for Coachella: Bag from Levi's (similar), Sam Edelman Louie boots (on sale here!)

Here's what I packed for Coachella. Nothing too groundbreaking but I tried. My issue was that I wanted to keep cool but avoid strappy or strapless tops in an effort to avoid getting a sunburn. ​The maxi dress with the cutouts was probably the best choice, in terms of being breezy but covered up. The second day I wore an ultra-light see-through shirt with a swim top underneath, and the last day I wore my boots and a pair of bright blue shorts I bought from the vintage/resell shop Meeps in D.C. I thought, "Yeah, I'm going to get some cool high-waisted vintage shorts to wear to Coachella, look at me." But then I took them home and looked more closely at the label. It read "The Gap." Vintage shopping fail. Bah.

The shorts did come with a neat fabric belt with geometric shapes, and judging by the whip-stitching, it looks like someone may have made it. I also thought that these shorts were ​scandalously short, but damn, compared to the other girls at Coachella, they were practically Mom jhorts. I saw so many butt cheeks hanging out of high-waisted jean shorts. That was standard issue.

And I bit the bullet and bought the fringed boots I was debating in an earlier post. No, I didn't go with white. ​These were comfortable enough to make it through most of the last day, although I was happy to have brought along flip flops too. And the suede survived the dusty, muddy field. Phew! My poor friend Emily was leading the way through the crowd and she stepped in a pile of vomit. That is a very Coachella story, I feel. And that would've been game over for the fringe boots. As luck would have it, Emily had on sneakers so it wasn't as horrible as it could've been.

I tried to look for fashion inspiration from my fellow concertgoers, and don't get me wrong, there were a ton of beautiful people there. They looked good. But it wasn't anything I couldn't see in D.C. on an Urban Outfitters mannequin. Except for one outfit I spotted, which I will try to replicate below:

​PacSun Eyelet Bustier Tank, Minkpink Bustier, Nasty Gal Oversize Denim Vest via R29, N_8 Draped Knee-length Skirt, Steve Madden Troopa Boot, Young Frankk Peak Brass Ring

One girl wore a bustier top with a knee-length mustard yellow circle skirt and a tough pair of boots, and she looked so fresh.  I thought it would look good with a black or white top, and maybe you could throw an oversize denim vest on top of it for some D.C. modesty, and add a streamlined, bold ring to finish the look.

I would love to try to rock this, just need to find a cheaper skirt... Thanks for reading my Coachella fashion post!

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 

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!