Saucy. ($2 dollar special.) Moda International black silk wrap tank, $1 (sale) – ReStyle thrift store | DKNY two-tone tan/black pants, $1 (sale) – ReStyle thrift store | Banana Republic twisted black and tan leather slip-on heels, $4, Gold Mine thrift store (Ketchum, ID) Cheep!
Too kool for school. Like an existential model, I had this Gwendolyn Brooks poem in my mind during this whole self-examined photoshoot, because I’m so cool you guys. We real cool. We / Left school. We / Lurk late. We / Strike straight. We / Sing sin. We / Thin gin. We / Jazz June. We / Die soon. boutique castoff Lush teal green tank, $3.75, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Ralph Lauren Jeans Co. faded black denim – $1 (sale), ReStyle thrift store | Banana Republic twisted black and tan leather slip-on heels, $4, Gold Mine thrift store (Ketchum, ID) Rolling with the Holmies. (Groans. Revokes cool card.) Cheep it up.
I’m a real metal winner. (Mettle, too.) (Just no medals.) Hawaiian Moon sage green silk dress – gifted & thrifted | vintage Carmelton bronze sheer party top (made in USA) – $1, ReStyle thrift store | Cindy Says green-gold hells, Piece Unique, $I can’t remember but they were half off Cheep!
This is the first, and probably the last, time I’ll ever wear this hard-to-match orange-y knit top, these wonky over-sized, white pants. But with thrift store shopping, there’s zero buyer’s remorse when you make a mistake. You basically give a donation to a nonprofit for real good stuff. Then you make killer $7 outfits out of it. And when you’re done, you just “release it back into the stream,” as I call re-donating, like a down-home preacher would speak of a soul at a funeral. Real life is not so cut and dry. Your choices much more complex and layered. The missteps much more costly. But at least, every single day is another shot at a new outfit.Fiets Voor 2 orange creamsicle knit top, $3.75, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Izod of London white pants, $5, ReStyle thrift store | Cindy Says green-gold hells, Piece Unique, $I can’t remember but they were half off Cheep it up.
Sequins. Once to me the very definition of standout, of stage wear, of sexy. For all seasons. Lately, I’ve been staring at the thick of sequins in my closet, wondering, “Where did that girl go?” Lately, my tastes run a bit more up close and personal. To catch the gleam of the gold threading in the white flowers of this lace. To see the iridescent sheen of the transparent beads on this Christian Dior belt. To see earrings made of cotton candy pink enamel and gold dragonfly wings. I suppose I no longer want to demand—glittery style-wise—people to look at me. I want to draw them in. Or just amuse myself, alone. Liz Claiborne gold threaded lace top – $1 (sale), ReStyle thrift store | vintage Christian Dior iridescent beaded belt – $5, Repeat Boutique consignment store | vintage Pride & Joy blush rose pants (made in U.S.A.) – $1 (sale), ReStyle thrift store | Damiani (made in Italy) bronze & gold sandals, $5, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store Cheep, cheep.
In honor of the Olympics, I wear the outfit most closely resembling any sort of sporting thing. Apparently, my only reference point seems to be the tennis scenes from The Royal Tenenbaums. Suffice it to say, perhaps I am not an athlete. But I know how to sport a look. Buttons orange & black striped white tennis dress – $5, Idaho Youth Ranch | Recycled rubber, cable & wood black studded biker bag – $7, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Guess black patent leather with gold buckle stilettos – $11, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store Cheep it up, Olympians.
Kinky hair, don’t care. I found this Rachel Roy dress at a thrift store this Sunday, and all I could think of was that buzz when Beyonce’s affair-anthem “Lemonade” came out—circling around the sexy fashion designer, an ill-fated Instagram, and an onslaught of bee and lemon emojis. Then, for the following 3 days, the line “Better call Becky with the good hair” has been playing on repeat in my subconscious. It’s like mental water torture. Juicy dress, though. Rachel Roy coral & black banded dress – $8, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Kate Spade nude wedges with gold studded bow – $70, ROSS Dress for Less in Portland (originally $300) Free bonus Opal sighting. Cheep it up.
If I made a dating app, I would call it Cosmic Connections. It would be designed with vintage 1992 graphics and the spokesperson would be Aunt Cleo. If you swipe up, she’d pop up like a soothsayer Carl Sagan with a shot from outer space, as if to say, “the universe is infinite and we all be stardust, so don’t you worry man.” Dating reality check. Thanks Aunt Cleo. Anyway, I realized when I joined Tinder for a brief spell (review: You feel like the Bachelorette for several weeks, until, after several elimination rose ceremonies, you realize most of the guys there are just as douchey as most of the guys on the Bachelorette), that I had no actual outfits to wear on dates that didn’t send up immediate weirdo red flags. So this is my version of a date dress. It’s like, so cosmic man. (And like “normal,” right? Right? Riiiiight…). Jonathan Martin cosmic stripes on black print wrap dress – $8, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Damiani (made in Italy) bronze & gold sandals, $5, Idaho Youth Ranch …
Better hold on to your handlebars. Tonight, I co-hosted/creative directed—alongside the inimitable Boise Bicycle Project rock-star Jimmy Hallyburton—”I want to ride my bicycle! Stories on two pedals“—a special storytelling show inspired by Queen, Boise’s elite Car for Bike traders, and the freedom of free-wheeling stories that come from putting the pedal to the mettle. Time after time. Ambiance Apparel sheer black & rose print tank – $3.75, ReStyle thrift story | Step In Style pink & black art deco-ish dress – $35, Eyes of the World | Black & gold arrow banded belt – $0.94, ReStyle thrift store, DKNY platform wedges – $20, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | 1920’s Afghanistani silver and colored glass necklace – $350, Armor Bijoux vintage jewelry dealer Vinyl of the Day: “A Day at the Races” by Queen Cheep!
Down in the shadow of the penitentiary Out by the gas fires of the refinery I’m ten years burning down the road Nowhere to run; ain’t got nowhere to go Born in the U.S.A., I was born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A., I’m a long gone daddy in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A., born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A., I’m a cool rocking daddy in the U.S.A. – Bruce Springsteen [Brief programmatic pause to wave a red handkerchief for Bruce Springsteen’s backside.] Sami New York purple silk camisole – $3, ReStyle thrift store | hand-knitted (the word “hand-knitted” is the only extant label) turquoise vest, $3, ReStyle thrift store | Rampage woven brown leather belt – $2, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Jones New York rust silk skirt – $4, Idaho Youth Ranch thrift store | Kate Spade nude wedges with gold studded bow – $70, ROSS Dress for Less in Portland (originally $300) | Gold leaf earrings – gift to the girls from the bride, Linnae, at her beautiful wedding this weekend | Green agate stone three strand necklace, 8,000,000 Turkish …
Cheep 