Smaggle Style

Today was so productive but so busy. I had a cardio box class this morning and I was so awesome that the trainer thought I had boxing experience! Hell yeah - Watch out Rocky I’m coming to kick your arse! Then I had a crazy busy day at work and now I’m off to have coffee with a friend. Then Mr Smaggle and I are having a cheeky date - we sneak sushi into the movies. We’re such crazy kids…

* Red dress from Tree of Life

* Brown wrap top thrifted from Salvation Army

* Bangles from everywhere

* Crochet collar from Mr Smaggle

* Shoes from a family friend. Hand made Italian leather thank you very much… I love them.

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

 

 

 

I bloody hate Grey’s Anatomy. I can’t eat, I can’t sleep and I can’t muster a single non-surgical thought until I finish season 2. I was up until 1am this morning waiting for Denny to die, waiting for Christina to melt her ice queen snow and commit to Burke and waiting for George to grow some testicles. And after 6 episodes in a row none of the above has happened and Mr Smaggle and Mr Squiggle (the man’s brother) are refusing to speak to me until stop calling Dr Sheppard ‘McDreamy’. I think I need counselling. Today was fairly quiet at work but Browny and I mustered up enough energy to go for a walk. This afternoon I’m off to buy fruit and some ingredients to make Mr Smaggle some wheat-free treats!

* Read dress from Tree of Life

* Grey top from SES

* Vest thrifted from Salvation Army

* Scarf from Sportsgirl

* Black knee high socks (I believe these belong to Mama Smaggle)

* Brown flats from Payless

So… has anyone else been watching Grey’s Anatomy?

Love Lady Smaggle

 

My day today was just the right amount of busy. Busy enough to keep me occupied but not too busy so as to stress me out. I’m feeling a little unwell today and I am trying really hard to not get sick because I have to work tomorrow and go to a party tomorrow night and I don’t want to be sick for either of them. This afternoon I went to buy the second series of Grey’s Anatomy on DVD but it was $100 so I decided to give it a miss. I then visited my lovely friend Fliss on the way home and now I am wearing my pajamas and watching a crappy movie. I plan on getting an early night so I am well rested for my big day tomorrow…

* Glitter skirt from Smarty Pants

* Top thrifted from Brain Injury Foundation

* Shoes from Gertrude Street in Melbourne

* Beaded cuff from Mr Smaggle’s mum from Vietnam

* Snake ring from Kenneth Jay Jane

* Bangle from Diva

Love Lady Smaggle

xxx

Today was super busy at work which made the day go super fast. This afternoon I’m off to the gym then the theatre and then to my rehearsal for my new play. I’m really looking forward to the weekend I am starting to get quite tired now…

* White dress from Big W

* Black shrug undone from SES

* Black singlet top from Supre

* Brown boots from Redpath

* Ring from Glassworks in Kingston gift from Matt and Ged

* Coin necklace from Poppy Smaggle

* Earrings from Mr Smaggle from Ebay (Before we even started dating we were chatting on MSN one night and I got really distracted by our conversation and lost these earrings in a bidding war. He found another pair and won them for me. What a cutie patootie…)

One of my male readers requested that I write a post on men’s style. Well that’s the clean version. What he actually wrote was ‘I want to elevate myself above the level of “sloppy douchebag”‘. Right. Well lets start with the basics then shall we? In boy language so we’re all on the same page…

* For God’s sake wear pants that fit - Sloppy pants are terrible. Do you want people to think that you wear nappies? Are you perhaps using the excess room for storage? Are you hoping to grow into them one day? No? Then burn the bastards and get some pants that hug the parts we ladies so admire. Your bums. Not the other things… Never wear pants that hug those.

* Don’t be afraid of accessories - Hats and scarves boys. Hats and scarves. Both at the same time if you’re feeling a little devilish. I find the difference between a well-dressed gent and a stylish one is usually as simple as a hat or scarf.

* Don’t be afraid of colour - If the colours of your wardrobe are black, grey, brown, green and blue it’s time to start thinking in technicolour. Think red, orange, pink (carefully) and yellow… That’s right I’m talking all the colours that hang on the wrong side of the colour wheel. Little splashes of colour in your belt or your shoes is all it needs. A funky red watch, some crazy neon yellow trainers or a thick dark pink leather cuff. Seriously you will be beating the ladies off with a stick. Actually the men too because they’ll be trying to steal your fabulous man accessories.

* Dress to your body shape - If you are 6 foot 4 and built like a pre-pubescent girl wear skinny leg jeans like a mofo. If you are a gym junkie wear long sleeve collared shirts rolled up to your elbow to show off your amazing forearms. If you are short and cuddly go for tailored shirts untucked with well-fitting pants and a hat to balance you out. It’s not rocket science just look in the mirror and figure out if what you are wearing is flattering. Take a bitchy girl shopping with you. Sisters and mothers are ideal.

* Get your clothes tailored - Don’t give me your ‘I can’t afford it’ sooky-la-la bullshit. It costs $20 to $30 to have a shirt taken in at a tailor and around half that for having pants taken up. Quit your whingeing and just do it. Is $30 (the cost of a few beers and a burger at the pub) worth it to have a shirt that fits so well that ladies will caress it as you walk by…? I thought so.

* Add your own funky twist - Dye your hair a funky colour or wear lots of rings. Maybe wear a short beaded necklace or a long string of leather wrapped around your wrist? If you could send one message to the world what would it be? Try to convey it through your clothing. You don’t speak to everyone you see so give them a visual message about who you are and what you stand for.

* Get over it - I know you love your stinky grey hoodie. And that t-shirt with the marijuana symbol on it that you wore every weekend in year 10. And your first ever $100 suit that you wore to your cousins wedding. Throw it all away. Right now. Anything faded, stretched, sans elastic, too big, too small or half devoured by moths has to go. Anything with Loony Toons, Ren and Stimpy or South Park should probably be confined to bed wear. Unless you want to get laid.

Be observant. Next time you see a guy whose style you admire try to pin point exactly what it is that you like about it. Try and figure out if the look will work for you and experiment with different things. And check out these street style sites that regularly feature classy men in their natural habitat. Here are a few looks that I love…

Hel Looks

His braces look fantastic and they match his shoes. Uniformity on a man makes me weak at the knees. He is also a well built guy with short legs and the braces paired with straight black elongate him making him appear taller. And check out the beard and moustache combo. What an extraordinary man he is.

Hat and scarves! Hats and scarves! Okay I admit the pants are a little scary and perhaps you shouldn’t try them at home but look at how much the red scarf lifts his ensemble. He has combined accesories AND colour. This guy is a genius.  

Skinny leg jeans look fabulous on skinny guys. His t-shirt and jeans fit perfectly and his accessories are awesome. Obviously this look may not be quite right for you but he is still sticking to the general rules. 

Face Hunter

 

This look is fabulous. Clean, well cut and lovely use of muted tones with a splash of rich mahogany. And look at him working his body shape! Oh yeah!

Now this look may be a little Edward Scissorhands for you but he is still working the rules. Well fitting pants, chunky shoes to balance his body shape, fabulously unique hair and excellent use of accessories. The slightly arrogant charm is also working wonders for him.

Great use of colour and very brave accessories. Is anybody else impressed that a guy can pull this off and not look totally homosexual? I mean he could be gay of course (not that there’s anything wrong with that) but the point is he manages to rock a rather feminine look while keeping his sexuality elusive. The saucy devil.

Simple and clean lines to work in with his body shape. The shades are all kinds of perfect. The jeans are a little saggy but I forgive him because of his delicious olive green coat.

Why not double layer two hoodies on a cold winters day? Start thinking out side the box babies! No matter what kind of jeans you wear make sure they fit well! And what a wonderful way to wear a tie. You could almost get away with this in an office job.

Love the pants and the orange vest. The tailored jacket is divine. His confidence is also incredible.

And what’s a men’s style post with out a little Depp? (Ladies this one’s for you…)

Johnny Depp

Most Stylish Men

USAToday

People

Oh Johnny. No other man can ever compete. Okay I can hear the cries of protest from you lads out there wondering what is so special about the way he dresses. I know he sometimes looks like he is wearing pajamas but all I have to say is this…

Meet Vanessa. Johnny’s partner. She’s French. Just something to think about…

Oh and if you choose to ignore my advice and dress any way you damn well like I beg you to do it well. If you are going to spite me make it REALLY SPECTACULAR. Like these fancy fellows…

Hel Looks

I will leave you with a quote from the beautiful Diana Vreeland…

‘Never fear being vulgar, just boring’

Dedicated to Arran.

Yesterday was delightful. Mr Smaggle and I got all dressed up and went to a Melbourne Cup Day lunch at our friend’s house. We drank champagne and ate tiny tomato tarts and yummy pavlova. Here are some photos of my gorgeous friends looking stylish for the cup…

Sam wearing a hat from Mrs Dewson’s Hats and Mikimoto Pearls

Charlie wearing Mellisa shoes

Steph

Alex wearing a hat from Mrs Dewson’s Hats

Jess

Stuart

Dave

Azz

We spent the afternoon playing poker and eating cheese. As one does on Melbourne Cup Day!

Facehunter was the first ever street style blog that I found. And the day I did I spent the next 8 HOURS going through every single photo in the 2 year old archive. This site is magnificent. I won’t bore you with the details of my relationship with Facehunter because once you visit this mastermind yourself, you too will feel the love that only London (European)street style can provide. My only issue with this site is a petty one - it’s winter in London and summer where I am so the fashions are little irrelevant. So I’ve skipped back to August this year and picked a few beauties to steal summer style tips from… naughty.

Tank tops with really wide arm holes - mmm… smacky-licious.

Fascinators that sit flat against your head - try feather pads or crochet material.

Arm socks - for when those evenings get a little chilly but you still want to show off your shoulders.

T-shirt dresses - perfect for throwing on over your swimmers, layering over shorts and mini skirts or for wearing as a loose dress while sipping cocktails on a balcony over looking the ocean.

A white dress, a shit load of bangles and some red lippie. Stunning.

Strapless dresses and tops to show of your shoulders.

A funky straw hat and some well fitting jeans. Strawberry locks would be nice too if you can manage it.

Sleeveless hoodie with hoodie part actually in use! Genius.

Dressing like a doll - little hair clips, cute skirts and bows.

The maxi dress. Well come on, weren’t you all wondering where Cosmopolitan got it the trend from?

What is wardrobe_remix I hear you ask? Well actually most of you reading this are probably from remix but for those of you who aren’t here is the deal. You toddle on over to Flickr and make yourself an account. Then you post one head-to-toe photo a day then send it to the wardrobe_remix group and people are welcome to comment on your photo if they like it. With no nastiness allowed and a big emphasis on remixing and thrifting clothes it’s an eclectic mix of over 5000 people from all over the world sharing their daily fashion with each other. It’s just like a big old love in of the quirky, the cute and the seriously stylish fashionistas. Wardrobe remix comes to you from the fabulous Tricia Royal from Bitsandbobbins. Her blog is lovely and colourful and her idea for wardrobe sharing is utterly splendid! Here is a little tasty treat of my favourite beauties from the pool of photos… and by that I mean that ones that I have been stalking.

This is lebonbonmulticolore - She is my darling of wardrobe_remix. I discovered her through The Cool Hunter months ago and I adore her.

 

Strawberrykitten- This girl dresses like a manga cartoon and she is awesome. She makes a lot of her own clothes too.

 

Persephassa - Every day this girl looks like she drinks tea and strolls around under canopied trees. She is just marvelous.

Verhext - She is so beautiful. And she rocks curly hair! She is simply a gorgeous creature.

And Miss Piksi - She is brand new to wardrobe_remix and I am completely fascinated by her sense of style and her gorgeous photos. This one is for Mr Smaggle because he loves Marimekko. 

It’s just too inspiring. And everyone is so lovely. And stylish. And creative. It’s like finding a lovely pre-made family full of people who are as wacky as me…