DJ Night Outfit: Honky Tonk Night at Marx Cafe, August 14

Have you been to Marx Cafe in Mount Pleasant?  They've been doing interesting DJ nights for ages.  Way back in 2006 when I was an intern at DC Style magazine, I wrote an article about a monthly reggae night at Marx Cafe.  To be honest, venturing up to Mount Pleasant was a little scary for a sheltered Fairfax kid like me - I thought this was an adventure.  Now flash forward to 2012 and I live around the corner from Marx Cafe.  And this sign in their window intrigued me.

First of all, the $5 (+.50 rounded up for inflation) beer and whiskey shot is a deal.  Fits the Outlaws theme.   And honky tonk sounds like a good time.  So here's my new feature idea: I'll pick cute outfits to wear to various DJ nights around town.  And since Isabel Marant says that Western shirts are cool, we gotta wear a Western shirt to honky tonk night!  Not cowboy boots, I just can't go there. These little heeled booties keep it sharp.  So what do you think?  A little bit country, a little bit rock and roll with the skinny jeans, I hope. 

Honky Tonk Night at Marx Cafe by adelechapin featuring bandana tops

Free People bandana top

freepeople.com

Madewell high waisted skinny jeans

shopbop.com

Sam edelman booties

urbanoutfitters.com

Cleobella cross body handbag

endless.com

Vacation Pix: Chamonix and Annecy

Finally posting photos from the end of our French vacay.  We spent four days or so in Chamonix, one of the birthplaces of mountain climbing.  Joe loves climbing, so this is his mecca.  Here he is in overgrown schoolboy mode, crashing a French field trip to learn about Mont Blanc.

Chamonix looked like your quintessential European skiing town, except with the addition of a Chanel store.  Every ski town has a Chanel store, right? 

Why didn't I buy one of these puppies?  Kicking myself now. Click the link below to keep reading!

One day we took the Aiguille du Midi cable car, Europe's highest cable car. I don't really like heights so I'm glad our gondola looked safer than this one!

I don't know how these climbers do it.  So intense!  Joe said climbers love Chamonix because it's really challenging, but it's not remote, so you can still go to the town and get a beer at the end of the day.

Don't worry, I'm not opening that gate for any reason.

"Open raft?"  No thanks!

I loved this little birdie and took many, many pictures of him.

In retrospect, we should've spent one more day in Paris and one less day in Chamonix.  But we kept busy.  One day we hiked on a trail to the Chalet Floria, a little cafe and garden at the end of an hour-long hike.  On our last day, we rented a car and drove to Annecy, a beautiful little town with canals that earned it the nickname "Venice of the Alps."

How pretty is this lake?  We saw swans everywhere.  They were bigger than your average toddler.

I achieved my goal of swimming in a mountain lake!  The water was freezing cold and crystal clear.

Poor Joe was allergic to the town, though.  He couldn't stop sneezing, which must not have been fun. This day trip was the only time we fought on the trip.  It's stereotypical, really.  He was driving the rental car and I was navigating.  Apparently, he didn't think that my method of saying, "Turn here," while we were going through roundabouts then pointing in a vague direction was very effective.  Then we forgot where we parked our rental "econobox" subcompact minivan.  Fun times!  

Can You Hear the Beat of My Heart?

Who What Wear's latest "Ask a Stylist" column with the designers from Current/Elliot has a lot of great tips, but I couldn't get over the A.P.C. heart-print cotton tee they recommended.  It's the sophisticated version of the heart prints we wore growing up, don't you think?  I would wear the A.P.C shirt on days I'm feeling ladylike, and this awesome Laugh Cry Repeat tee in white if I wanted a girly shirt with a downtown vibe, maybe with black jeans and moto boots.  Edgy heart print - it can happen.

Here's some more options I heart (haha): the Laugh Cry Repeat tee in tote bag form, a cute ASOS cardigan with heart elbow patches, what may be the most adorable sweatpants ever, and of course, Comme des Garcons canvas heart high-tops.

Tunes Tuesday, "Five Seconds," Twin Shadow

I was a huge fan of Twin Shadow's first album, and I'm stoked that their sophomore effort,Confess, is just as great as the 2010's Forget.

Stereogum says Confess is better, but I can't say that with certainty because I'm so hung up on Twin Shadow's first single, "Five Seconds," today's Tunes Tuesday pick. I haven't been able to get past pressing repeat on this song to really delve into the whole album yet. Everyone loved the Drive soundtrack last summer, and if you are one of those people, please do yourself a favor and listen to "Five Seconds."  It's got the best dark, New Wave-y sheen to the whole thing.  And the moment when George Lewis Jr. somehow manages to half croon, half shout, "I'm not trying to make you cry," and the synths kick in is just 80s sonic bliss.

Geneva Vending Machine

Tunes Tuesday, "Danse Caribe," Andrew Bird

"Here we go mistaking clouds for mountains," Andrew Bird sings. Maybe I've been doing this recently, seeing obstacles where perhaps none exists, and that's why I have this track on repeat. Love this sweet live version, with a folky jam section, and whistling, natch.

PS - this whole album really grew on me (I typed this and then Googled the NPR review, which described the album as a grower). Yes, give it a few listens, and you'll find yourself returning to the quiet depths of Break It Yourself.