My new love: My Mom, the Style Icon

I have been known to borrow clothing from my mummy. For example:

This sweater was originally my mother's, circa the 1980s. She had some pretty cool clothing back in the day, and still does.

These moms though, they are truly magnificent. I discovered My Mom, the Style Icon about half an hour ago, and it is definitely one of my new favourite blogs. If my mother and grandmothers had clothes that amazingly awesome, I would probably never shop again.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

India Arie

Lately I've been listening to a lot of India Arie. I've also been watching her videos pretty much non stop and now I can't wait for summer, which is about 5 or 6 months away, but I can't wait for the warm glowing heat. I think I sort of want to start wearing a lot of white, even though I know that I don't look particularly good in white.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

Blizzard! (The snow kind, not the DQ kind)

I apologize for my long absence, after a "strenuous" exam session, I felt the need to split my time between 1. Sleeping for ages and ages, 2. getting up at a lunch time and going shopping, and 3. watching Star Wars because Harrison Ford=hottest guy ever. And I actually really really like the original trilogy, and like the prequel trilogy quite a bit too.

While all this was happening, blizzard swooped in, and I took some pictures:

I have a few ideas for posts, but none of them are fully developed yet, so I'm going to work on those tomorrow.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

Highlighter Guts and Chunky Knits

In case you had ever wondered: this is what highlighter guts look like when they aren't protected by the plastic exoskeleton. More precisely, this is what highlighter guts look like on oatmeal colour school floor tiles dating from circa 1970. The tiles, not highlighter guts. They showed up between 1 pm and 3:45 pm this afternoon.

After I took this picture, I said to myself (I talk to myself a lot), that would be a cool outfit!

Grey and Pink by RosieUnknown

So I obviously made a polyvore set inspired by it. Ok, so I used pink instead of yellow, and grey instead of oatmeal colour, but the idea is the same. Lots of chunky knits, cosy fabrics, and just enough hot pink to make the outfit, well, pink.

Love, Rosie

Oh oh, it's magic!

Have you ever found a piece of clothing that made you feel great for absolutely no reason? Not like that dress that makes you feel a million bucks because it make your waist look a size smaller and your boobs a cup size bigger, but a piece of clothing that does absolutely nothing towards making you look younger/older/slimmer/curvier/whatever you want to look and yet still manages to make you feel amazing.

This sweater is my special for no conceivable reason sweater. It isn't shapeless, but my torso isn't a square so it's shapeless on me. It is made out of pure wool, and sort of itchy. The sleeves swallow my hands. It isn't very long.

And yet, I love it. It is warm. It has sheepies on it. My mummy knit it (for my aunt, long before I was born). One of the many colours in it makes me look "healthy" (according to my dad). And when I wear it, I feel like I'm glowing, like nothing can touch me.

I don't know why, I'm going to put it down to Mummy Magic, or madness, I'm not sure which.

Love, Rosie

Have you ever had a piece of clothing that was unexplainably special?

(I think the title might be from the song Magic by The Cars. But don't quote me on that.)

We have a winner!

Exciting news: my giveaway ended last night, and I am proud to announce that the lovely KD of Style Child is the winner! ( I used random to generate a winning number.) Why she likes mirrors?

"I love mirrored surfaces because they're so minimal but so decadent and so versatile at the same time!"

Thanks to everyone who participated, and thanks to CSN stores for enabling this giveaway.

Love, Rosie

22 hours left

Hey! Just a quick reminder that you have less than 24 hours (around 22 to be precise) to enter my giveaway. You could win a really neat compact mirror, so please go and tell me why you like mirrors. And if you post a link or tweet about my contest, leave me a second contest for two chances to win.

Love Rosie

What I Wore: Pink and Purple

I'm still a bit sick, and my nose just about matches my shirt, so I decided against head to toe shots, but I really wanted to share this outfit.

I made this necklace this summer, and I have no idea why I don't wear it more.

I was having trouble finding things to wear with this shirt, since I wanted to play up the bright colour, but not necessarily make it the main focal point of the outfit. (Wow, do I sound like a fashion snob or what?) Anyways, the solution was found in what is possibly my favourite skirt. What better to complement bright pink than a bright purple?

The sleeves are possibly my favourite part of this shirt:

Because of this little detail, I have dubbed this shirt my princess shirt. Although the name is rather royal, this shirt was dirt cheap. I happened to be wandering a local Stitches this past Saturday, and just as I turned to leave, I saw a rack labeled $3. Turns out that one of my favourite shirts, along with a few others, were selling out to make room for the spring/summer clothes. I took advantage of the sale to buy the shirt I knew I liked in white and red, as well as the pink shirt shown here, the same one in black, and another cool shirt that I sort of need pictures to describe.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: There are only three days left to enter my giveaway for a chance to win a compact mirror!

All I want to do is sleep!

I've been trying really hard to be a good blogger this year, and so far I've been doing alright, but now I have a bad cold, an insane number of evaluations and exams, and the difficult situation of making new friends all at once. So, please forgive me if my posts are a little sparse for the next week or so. I need to study, but all I want to do is sleep. I would like to take pictures and wear cool outfits, but I can barely muster up the energy to get out of bed. I would love to be social and bubbly, but it's all my full blast iPod can do to keep me awake.

In the mean time, please enter my giveaway! I've only had a few entries so far, so the chances of winning are rather good!

Or, if you are more photographically inclined, check out my other blog, Exposure Extraordinaire.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

What I Wore: Going For A Walk

Sweater, Wet Seal, thrifted; Skirt, handmade by me; hat, stolen from my dad; boots, La Canadienne; belt, handmade, gift; Sunglasses, RayBan.

These pictures turned out a bit over exposed, but I guess that's what you get when you try to set your camera while wearing sunglasses.

I really have to study for my science test, so I obviously spent the whole weekend procrastinating, and at some point I said: "Hey! I'm going to get dressed and go for a walk." Well, when you are me, a walk means walking briskly though town until I see something/somewhere I would like to photograph, take pictures, and head home via a different route, in case I spot something else that's cool.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: Please, please, pretty please with a cherry on top enter my giveaway!

A Small Step... Drink Tea

I had an idea for a new type of post: every Saturday I will try and think up a small change I'm going to make in order to be a healthier, happier person, and share it here.

This week though, I'm going to share something I have been doing for ages: drinking tea. Tea has all sorts of health benefits, and when I read this post on Mermaid in a Manhole, I decided that I had to make tea a bigger part of my life. The problem: I don't actually like tea. So I tried all sorts of teas, but it was always a bit of a chore to drink it. I had almost given up, when I found pomegranate green tea. It's a sort of clear, red drink, and has a taste that I can't quite place. Now I drink a mug every morning while I put my makeup on and do my hair, and usually another cup in the evening when I get home from school.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: Please, please, please enter my giveaway! All you have to do is live in Canada or the US and comment on this post telling me why you like mirrors to have a chance at winning a sleek little compact mirror.

The Traffic Pylon Sweater

When I got home from school today, I found my father and sister wearing balaclavas, and a clear bag with something bright orange, like traffic pylon orange, in it at my spot.

It was a super awesome bright orange polar fleece sweater I had been admiring on the 66 North website a few weeks ago.

I immediately went and took off the shirt I was wearing with the red skinnies (it's awesome, but this one is cooler), pulled on the first tank top that come to hand, and tried it on.

Mummy thought that I looked adorable (I've only been telling her twice a day for the past several years), so she had me get out my camera so she could take pictures. After I got it on, and unzipped the hood again, I realized that it is pretty much the softest sweater on earth, so I started dreaming up outfits to wear it with. Here is what I came up with:

Vik Sweater- Take 3 by RosieUnknown

Vik Sweater- Take 2 by RosieUnknown

Vik Sweater- take 1 by RosieUnknown

Which is our favourite? How would you style this sweater?

Love, Rosie

PS: Please come enter my giveaway for a chance to win a compact mirror!

What I Wore: Defying the Weather

Sweater, Smart Set, thrifted; leggings, ???, some shop in Sweden; skirt, ???, thrifted; shirt, Smart Set, thrifted; boots, La Candienne.

At some point last weekend, I decided that I was sick of letting the cold weather control my outfits, and since then three out of the four outfits I have worn involved skirts or dresses, but with lots of long sleeves and leggings added in for warmth.

I had completely forgotten about this skirt, but when I needed something to wear over leggings in this outfit, I happened upon it. I'm pretty sure it is one of my favourite skirts of all time: high waist, check. short hemline, check. extremely tight fit, check.

I first thought about wearing this shirt with that sweater last week, but since I try not to rewear pieces too close together, I delayed wearing it. I'm glad I did, it looks so much better with the navy blue pinstripes of the skirt than it would have with boring old jeans!

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: If you are in Canada or the US, please enter my giveaway!

A Giveaway for the Magpies Among Us

I don't think I tell you all how awesome you are often enough. But really, all you wonderful, kind, encouraging, witty readers never cease amazing me. So when I was recently approached by CSN stores about either reviewing a product or doing a giveaway, I knew I had to do a giveaway. CSN stores offers everything from stools to art, but I honed in on the mirrors.

I'm not sure if I have ever specifically talked about my attraction towards reflective surfaces or not, but I love mirrors. And windows. And cars. And those shiny fridges. ANYWAYS, you now have the chance of winning a mirror from CSN Mirrors. The Blomus Miro Makeup Mirror, to be precise.

I'm afraid that only readers in Canada (Hurray!) and the USA can enter, but if you live in one of these countries, or I guess know someone in one of these countries who would be willing to ship it to you, all you have to do is comment on this post telling me what you like about reflective surfaces. If you tweet about the contest or post a link elsewhere, leave a comment letting me know, and you will get an extra entry. You have until January 23, 2010 to enter. I will close entries at 12 am (midnight) AST.

Good luck!

Love, Rosie

What I Wore: Maybe Vintage

Jeans, KappAhl; tank top, Joe Fresh; Sweater thing, vintage, borrowed from my mummy; belt, Joe Fresh; boots, La Canadienne.

I'm not sure if this sweater really counts as vintage, my mum got it in the early eighties. Vintage or not though, I love it. I found it in her closet almost a year ago now, when I was in the middle of my eighties obsession, and have been trying to figure out how to wear it ever since. I say it in the back of my closet yesterday evening, and I knew I had to wear it. I decided to play it safe with the rest of the outfit, since it is a bit of a statement piece.

Then I realized that my mother was considerably larger and wider in the shoulder than I am, even when she was younger. The shapless-ness was soon cured with this belt, and the wide shoulders actually made my waist look quite narrow.

Daddy picked me up after school today, because he needed a computer mouse, so we went to Staples. I love Staples. Actually, I'm pretty happy to be left wandering any where, from stationary stores to gardening/home repair stores to random farms. ANYWAYS, while he was checking out the mice, I wandered over the the camera isle. I spent a while admiring a Canon EOS Digital Rebel, then turned my attention to the limited selection of camera accessories, which are more in my price range. And what should I find, all lonely at the back, but a Gorillapod. I have been keeping my eyes out for one for about six months, so I immediately picked up the case. And realized that it was awfully small compared to my Canon Powershot A590 IS. I happened on a sweet young salesman though, who let me take it out of the package to try it out.

I'm so glad he did, because I absolutely adore it! Small enough to fit in my purse (which doubles as my camera bag), it is remarkable sturdy and versatile. I can't wait to try it out more!

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: If you want to follow my adventures with the Gorillapod, check out Exposure Extraordinaire, my photography blog.

What I Wore: Triple Matchy

Blue shirt, Blue Lagoon gift shop; black shirt, Seduction; skirt, Åhlens; leggings, ???, thrifted; purple socks, gift from my Grammy; shoes, Converse All Stars.

To sum it up, I felt sort of like an athletic fairy rockstar. Athletic because of the two shirts. Don't ask why, but I have always found that a t-shirt over a long sleeved shirt makes me look like I should be working out at the gym. The fairy part come from the skirt obviously, and pleather leggings just scream rock star to me.

My Grammy gave me these purple socks for Christmas, and they match this skirt perfectly, so I had to wear them together. They are pretty thin though, and converse are notorious for not being warm, so I'm wearing another pair of socks underneath, and actually wore pants and boots until the bus was almost at school. Then I managed to take off the boots, take off the pants, and get the converse on without drawing too much attention to myself.

I'm actually tripe matchy with the purple, since I'm wearing a purple eyeshadow I got after I saw the S/S10 Dior looks, but by this point in my day I was exhausted, and a close up on my eyes wasn't sounding like such a great idea.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: If you like desserts, fruits, sunsets, or school buses, please come visit me at my new photography blog, Exposure Extraordinaire!

Sexy Secretary with a dash of Punk

Lately I have been feeling rather dissatisfied with my outfits and clothing in general. There are some outfits that I love, but I feel like a lot of them leave me thinking: why did I wear that?

So I started thinking about what I wanted to wear, and came up with the following:

Dream Style: 10/01/2010 by RosieUnknown

I think I want to go for a slightly sexy secretary look, with a bit of punk/goth thrown in for the fun of it. I'm craving pencil skirts, tight v-neck sweaters, wide belts, high heels. Sleek, simple lines, but interesting colours and textures.

I have long since given up on trying to find a pencil skirt that will fit me, I think I will have to embark on a sewing project, but more on that later.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: I you wanted to make me extra happy, you could check out my new photography blog, Exposure Extraordinaire.

My Someday Tattoo

The other day I was sitting in French class, waiting for it to end so I could go home, and happened to doodle a little chain thingy. The original drawing was on the back of a test, so I recreated it with my wacom tablet.

It just so happened that my paper was set to a sort of peachy colour. Then I realized that it would be perfect for a tattoo. I have always said that I would never get a tattoo, that I couldn't do something that permanent to my body.

But the more that I think about it, I want to get a tattoo. I don't think that I will just go out and get one for the sake of getting a tattoo, but someday, I will get one to commemorate something.

I may not be able to get it for another several years (you have to be something like 18 to get one without a parent's consent, and my mum would never agree to a tattoo), but I know that one day, I will get that design tattooed unto my collar bones. Yes, my collar bones. The tattoo will be high enough to be shown off easily, but low enough to cover when necessary. And I love collar bones. I find them rather attractive, strange as it may sound.

I also sort of want to get something done on the underside of my wrist/wrists, but I have no idea what. Maybe an infinity sign, or a celtic knot.

Love, Rosie

PS: If you are interested in seeing the pictures I have been taking lately, please check out my new blog, Exposure Extraordinaire. (You should also check it out if you want to read about my "deep" thoughts, or you want to see pictures of a stuffed cat)

Product Review: Maybelline's Mineral Power Concealer

After a concealer disaster on Tuesday, I immediately went out and bought a new one, better suited to my skin tone. Ok, so I didn't have time till Thursday evening, but immediately sounds way better than two days later.

ANYWAYS, after hemming and hawing for a good ten minutes, I decided on Maybelline's Mineral Power Concealer in fair (0-1). It claims to have "Healthy perfecting coverage" and "creamy texture" that's "never cakey or heavy".

I wore it today, and as some one who has tried many different concealers, I can confidently say that for me, this is the best one I have used. It lasted all day with only very minimal touch ups, it blended amazingly with my skin tone, it wasn't too heavy and I barely noticed.

I'm not going to go so far as to say I have found the Holy Grail of concealers, because I don't believe their is one*, but I may have found a concealer I will stick with for a while.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

* Since everyone's skin is different, there can be no concealer that will be perfect for everyone.

PS: Virtual cookies if you go check out Exposure Extraordinaire, my new photography blog!

What I Wore: Delightfully Tacky

Blazer, La Classe Couture; pants, Lululemon; black shirt, Seduction; floral shirt, vintage fabric; belt, Joe Fresh; boots, La Canadienne.

I wanted to do a really nice outfit post today, but by the time I go home it was completely dark and all I wanted to do was put on pyjamas. So instead I'm just showing you the interesting part of my outfit: The floral "shirt". It is not, in fact a shirt. It's just a rectangular piece of fabric. I wrapped it around my neck, safety pinned it in the back, added a belt for waist definition and a blazer for warmth/to cover the improvised back, and voila: a delightfully tacky shirt!

I am wearing a long sleeved shirt underneath, cause it's cold in winter up here, and I like not showing everyone my bra.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: Please, please and pretty please with a cherry on top, come check out my new blog, Exposure Extraordinaire! We could really use some followers who aren't A) Friends of Findlay, B) Findlay's sibling, and C) Findlay. (All of the above people are very awesome, at least the ones I've met are, but still, make me feel loved too!)

What I Wore: Appropriate for Cat Burglary

Jeans, KappAhl; shirt, Smart Set; Cardigan, Joe Fresh; boots, La Canadienne. This cardigan is actually purple, but I didn't realize how strangely the photos turned out until about half an hour ago.

The reason I was taking pictures of this outfit in the first place was because I had the perfect picture in mind. I was going to spin around, my cardigan would flare out, my hair would fly around, and you would see the shirt underneath. When at try number five I was still getting this:

I decided that not getting frost bite was more important than getting the picture I wanted.

The one good thing about these photos is that I discovered that this would be an excellent outfit for cat burglary. Why, you may ask? Because I climbed a rickety chain link fence in it to take them, that's why. In heels, with a purse, and no gloves, in the dead of winter. The things I do for art *le sigh*.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: For a chance to win some neat prizes, and get a discount just for entering, check out LuShae Jewelry.

Over worked and over tired

I learned something today. It wasn't about la Théorème des Facteurs (math class), about the weather (science class), about women in WW2 (history), about short stories (French), or about cameras (tech).

Today, I discovered, that it is in fact very, very important to take the little stickers on concealer packages that tell you if it is for warm or cool skin seriously. As I happened to glance in the mirror in the school bathroom today, I noticed that my new concealer looked terrible. Sleepy eyes and warm lighting in my bedroom had let me leave the house with make up that wouldn't blend nicely with my skin tone!

Moral of the story: Read the label.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

(Sorry if that made no sense. I am in the stage between normal and adrenaline, I call it over tired and over worked.)

What I Wore: In one tiny photo

Err, yeah. I know this doesn't give you a very good idea of what the outfit was actually like, but it was pretty boring. Green tank top (Seduction), bluey purple sweater (Smart Set), magenta scarf (gift), and a pair of navy jeans.

To tell the truth, I'm not totally sure why I'm posting this at all. I think because I love the colour combination. I think you can safely expect to see more strange colours coming from my closet soon.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

Beauty Trends for 2010 (I hope)

This post was planned for yesterday, the second, but just before I could start writing, the power flickered and we had to unplug the airport, so no Internet. Consequentially, the yesterday referred to in the text is actually January 1.

Yesterday evening, I sent out a tweet asking for post ideas. Hanako66 suggested trend predictions for 2010. I had already written and published a post, but I loved the idea. I spent a good part of today trolling Style.com, looking at pictures from the Spring/Summer ’10 collections, more specifically, looking at the beauty section. After much thought, I chose three looks I would love to see become more wide spread.

Chanel:

I love the simple, natural looking makeup and hair, paired with glitzy hairpieces and jewelry. The natural look appeared in several shows, but I found that Chanel pulled it off the best. All the others looked like they were trying a bit too hard, and they ended up looking like caricatures, in my opinion.

Christian Dior:

I also adored the vintage inspired lips and hair, combined with bright eyeshadow and dramatic lashes that we saw at Christian Dior. At first I was on the hedge about it, I found it a bit much, but it’s really growing on me.

Versace:

The carefree rocker chic look used by Versace is another favourite of mine, the bold eyes and dewy lips are simply amazing, in my opinion. I may be crazy, but I feel that these looks capture the devil-may-care attitude that is so often portrayed in pop culture (and that I secretly want to find).

What is your favourite makeup style for 2010? What do you think will become the most widespread?

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

(All photos courtesy of Style.com)

Because I Like It

(So, this picture is relevant because a) it has too paths in it, a big one and a little one; and b) because I like it and wanted to share it with you)

After yesterdays post in which I looked back on how my style has changed over the last year, I started wondering: where does personal style end, and wanting to stick out a bit begin.

I first started thinking about that this summer, when I was in Sweden and my "look" was sort of main stream. Then this fall I noticed that more and more of my classmates were dressing more like me. Ever since, I've been pondering the question: is it still my style if it's main stream?

I'm a firm believer in wearing what you want to wear. Logically, I should say that I'm going to wear what I like, when it's in fashion and when it isn't. The less rational part of me is saying: come on, we should change, we don't want to be like everyone else! But in a way, that's still letting the masses control how you dress.

All that was really just a long and convoluted way of saying: if you truly dress however you want, you should wear clothes because you like them, and not because others are or are not wearing them. (Although public nudity is against the law, so please don't go on strike from wearing clothes entirely. I don't want to be the cause of any arrests!)

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

PS: If you a)have any interest in photography, b)are bored, c)need a dose of randomness, d)want to make me happy, please check out a new blog that I am a part of, Exposure Extraordinaire. And if you like it, please follow! We could use some followers who aren't Findlay's friends.

A brief reflectoin

Wow. It's December 31st, 2009. Already. This year has been, on a whole, rather wonderful. Some bloggers are doing wonderfully comprehensive posts about their years, and their goals, but I'm not going to do that. Instead, I'm just going to reflect a bit on how my style has evolved over the past year.

So, in January 2009, I was a lot less outgoing. I was still in my all black faze. I started venturing out of my comfort zone, with a funky necklace here, a cool belt there. I pretty much stayed at this point until the summer, when: I started wearing ears, I started wearing extreme eye make up, I had a brief fling with plaid, I wanted to go goth and I grew a lot more confident in my clothing choices.

As of September, my personal style hasn't changed all that much, although I have been leaning towards sleeker silhouettes, and simpler styles in general, but I still have a place in my heart for anything extravagant, sequinned, leather, or crazy.

Ok, so enough with my directionless ramblings. I'm not doing anything for New Year's Eve, but if I were, I would be wearing one of the following dresses:

New Year's Eve Party by RosieUnknown

After all, if you can't wear something fun on New Year's Eve, when can you?

Well, this is the end of my last post of 2009. I hope that 2010 will see new things, both here on Through the Wilderness, but especially on my brand shiny new blog, Exposure Extraordinaire, where I, along with two friends, will be posting a picture every single day this year. Please come on over, say hi, we'ed love to here from you.

Thoughts? Requests?

Love, Rosie

What's your ideal outfit for NYE? Your ideal way to ring in the new year?