Happy Monday, my darling readers! I’m finally back in the swing of things at work after my week-long debilitating battle with tonsillitis (I’m sooooo fifth grade) that landed me in the Emergency Room on Valentine’s Day and eating nothing but chicken noodle soup and vanilla milkshakes all week. So, back to solid foods and an overflowing inbox!
I'm pretty sure I killed about 10 cans of this stuff.
As I’m sure you can imagine, my past weekend was painfully unfashionable and filled with recuperating and class on Saturday and Sunday. (My Doctoral classes meet once a month from 9-5 on Saturdays and Sundays; ultimately this always kills my weekend!) But, I did make my way to American Apparel Saturday after class to finally use the $50 Groupon given to me as a Christmas gift from my darling sister-friends Katie and Allison. So, let me relive my Am Appy trip… First, let me start by saying that I’m not a downtown girl. Really, I’ve come to the conclusion that nobody in Nashville is. Downtown is reserved for the following: a) sporting events (of course, I never attend these), b) taking your friends and family for a drunken country night of bar hopping when they come in town and want to do something decidedly “Nashville”, and c) the rare occasion you and your friends decide to act like tourists for a night and try out your new fake Mississippi accent. So yeah, I’m not so keen on the downtown adventures. And Saturday evening.. not exactly the best time to hit up some retail shopping.
Tourist, forreal!
First, WHY is American Apparel downtown? Whyyyy? It took me a solid twenty minutes to find parking; in addition to the usual Saturday night madness, I’m pretty sure there was some sort of sporting event taking place, and i.e.- taking my parking spots! Second, when I finally made the three-block trek from my car to Am Appy, I had to weave between tourists taking pictures, slowin’ me down. Third, Am Appy was packed! I mean, this is a good thing, but a little annoying for the customer that’s actually trying to shop and ignore the country tourists making comments like, “Why the hell would I pay $32 for a damn t-shirt?!”, and “I think this is a costume store.” Boo, tourists! Boo! Also, it may have been super packed because it was the last day to use the Groupon, and all the procrastinators were waiting until the last minute- just like me.
So, despite my annoyance with everything surrounding Am Appy, I absolutely love that store. The merchandise is so simple, clean, classic, yet edgy. It’s always fun to dress up some simplistic American Apparel with some wild accessories or ridiculously absurd shoes.
Even though I love this retailer, I rarely get down there to shop (see list of reasons above), so I racked up on some things, and made some ridiculous purchases. Everything I bought was either see through or sheer. Watch out! My purchases are definitely not work appropriate, and my students actually might die if they see me out wearing them.. but, whatever. I’ve been on a major black-themed wardrobe with a pension for lace or see through garments. Here’s what I bought:
First, I purchased the El Salvador lace tee for $38.00. While the model shown is wearing a tan tank underneath, I plan to wear a bandeau bra and high-waisted skirt. Now, here’s where we get a little tricky. I’d love to pretend that I have the absurdly slender / size 0 shape the model has, but I don’t. And that’s fine. I’d feel a little weird about wearing this shirt and bra with, say, a pair of jeans. It just wouldn’t look as fabulous as it should on me. So, quick tip: To pull off the see-through tops, pair them with high-waisted garments- skirts, pants, shorts, whatever. Wear them around your ribcage and you’ll be looking stylishly chic.
Second, I continued my lace obsession (which is a MAJOR trend this season, by the way) and purchased the Sleeveless Lace Chiffon Dress for $58.00 in black. Again, I’m in total love with this. And unlike the model pictured, I actually do plan to wear a bra with this. And for the folks who love the lace look but don’t want to rock the bra-only Sara Jessica Parker feel, throw a black tank top under this, and you’ll be good to go.
Next, I purchased the darling Chiffon Double-Layered Shirred Waist Skirt in tan for $42.00. I love this skirt. It may be 100% see-through, but I hope that if I pair this with some black tights and black slip, I won’t look too scandalously dressed. But if I do end up looking like a scandal, so be it!
I guess even though I was still sickly and recuperating, I did manage to score some sweet finds this weekend. I just need to prepare myself from now on when making the venture to Am Appy and get ready for Country explosion.
photo credit:
shirt: http://www.americanapparel.net/storefront/photos/zoom/serve.asp?media=rsalc300e_BlackElSalvador.jpg
