What I'm Wearing Weekly: May 12-17

I'm a fan of style blogs and street style images to help jumpstart my creativity with my own wardrobe. But sometimes, I look at what style bloggers are posting and just think, WHERE could they possibly be wearing that?!

Case in point: 

Blazer, distressed boyfriend jeans, heels, grey tee, fancy statement necklace. I actually really like this outfit, so I'm not trying to dog on the style--but where in the world would one wear it? Not at my work, and it's too dressy to take in a game and too uncomfortable to run errands in. No. Not happening.

I get that a lot of style bloggers work in the creative field where more casual/creative dressing is perfectly acceptable...but a lot of us don't work in a similar environment and yet we still want to dress cute and creatively.

Sooooo for anyone who works in a work environment like mine, I've decided to start posting what I wear on a regular basis*. I work in a hospital, where matching pant suits are not the norm, nor are jeans or Tshirts. Most of my female coworkers wear dress skirts or pants and a nice top, or simple dresses. Most of my male coworkers where slacks and a dress shirt, with or without a tie.

The goals of posting my outfits are 3-fold and mostly selfish: 1) To give readers a closer glimpse at my own style, because I always like to read blogs where you get a sense of who the author is; 2) to provide some outfit ideas for those of us that work in a slightly more restrictive environment than many style bloggers; and 3) to give me a working library of outfits I've worn, so that on those mornings when nottttttthhhhhing is working, I can just pull up one of these posts and recreate a look that's worked for me in the past. Lazylazylazy!

Here's what I put together this week:

What I'm Wearing Weekly: May 12 by mjchirpich-1 featuring moon collection

Another thing that is sometimes frustrating when reading style blogs is how many times you see "c/o," meaning that the item was gifted. Most of us don't have that blessed side-effect of our jobs, so we tend to work with a set wardrobe that needs to be remixed to get the best use. I think it will be interesting for me to see which items I wear the most and least, and to challenge myself not to repeat outfits just because I'm lazy.

What's your favorite outfit this week?

*Confession: I don't actually own all of the exact items on this board, but I own most of them and have found items that look similar to those that I have that are no longer available. This week, I actually own the following exact items shown: Monday's dress and boots, Tuesday's chambray shirt, Wednesday's dress (I've removed the ruffle) and heels, Thursday's shoes and skirt, and Friday's tank, pencil skirt, and heels.

How To: Remove Tarnish from Metal Lamps

Recently I snagged a pair of lamps from a new-to-me Etsy shop Ramona Morningbird. The listing photos looked like this:

I was so excited to find these lamps, as I've been searching high and low for a matching pair of square-based metal lamps for our bedroom, as seen in this post.

I knew from the photos that I'd be needing to polish the brass lamps to remove some of the tarnish. The lamps arrived quickly and were very well-packaged (kudos to the shop owner!), but as suspected they were a bit grimier than I would like for something I'll be sleeping next to.

So I found this tutorial on how to polish brass lamps. I adapted the 'beauty mask' recipe they provide--I didn't have white vinegar on hand, so I used some apple cider vinegar. Therefore, my recipe for the beauty mask was: 1 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 cup flour, and 1/2 cup salt.

The instructions on the tutorial say to leave the paste on for a few hours, but I found that it stripped the grime within minutes, if not seconds, after application of the paste. Don't believe me? Here are the results:

Cameo appearance credit: my puppy Charli :)

This looks like shadow effect, but it's not--the left side is the 'before' and the right side is after applying the mask for a couple minutes.

The biggest surprise, other than how quickly and well the mask worked, is that my lamps are actually copper, not brass!

Before/after 

Aren't they gorgeous!?! I wasn't actually able to remove all of the marks that I had planned, but I like them flaws and all--gives them character! Now I just need to buy a couple of these rectangular shades, trim the shades in a dark ribbon, and plug these bad boys in :)

What's been your latest, greatest Etsy find??

Flirty Summer Dress Roundup

It was 90 degrees in the Utah desert today, and I've been craving flirty, loose, breezy dresses. Here are some of my favorites!

Flirty Summer Dresses by mjchirpich-1 featuring a pleated dress

Which one's your favorite?

Weekly Wishlist: Rainbow Bright

This week's Weekly Wishlist is composed of a bunch of items I used in last week's posts that I'm still drooling over...plus a gorgeous dress from Modcloth that is a serious contender for a college reunion and a wedding I have coming up this summer:

Weekly Wishlist: Technicolor Goodness by mjchirpich-1 featuring white pearl earrings

If I bought the dress and earrings, I could use existing items in my wardrobe (bangles, leather clutch, similar wedges) and rock the outfit on the left to my summer events. Then, to get more mileage out of that beauty, I'd wear the dress with a jean jacket and sandals for a weekend soiree!

Wedding/Weekend by mjchirpich-1 featuring ball gown dresses

Remixing Wardrobe: Red skirt and patterned tank

Like I said in a recent post, I think that Lulus.com has been killing it recently. I just put in an order for two items from this past week's weekly wishlist, so I decided to virtually imagine how I'll be able to mix them into my wardrobe.

Luckily, the two pieces, a patterned tank and a flirty red skirt, play together nicely. So it's easy to imagine the two together, either at work with a blazer and briefcase, or as a more casual outfit with flat sandals and a fun bag.

New Clothes Two Ways by mjchirpich-1 featuring high heels

Each piece is really versatile on its own, too. The red skirt can be dressed up or down and paired with lots of fun colors:

Red Skirt 4 Ways by mjchirpich-1 featuring fitness shoes

Top left: I'd wear this to a fun party--those shoes deserve to go somewhere special!
Top right: Lately I'm loving lavender and red together. I'd wear this to work with a white jacket or out to a nice dinner with my man :)
Bottom left: A couple boho-inspired items make the skirt casual. I'd wear this to a concert!
Bottom right: I actually bought this polkadot/giraffe shirt (I find it hilarious) and returned it...because I didn't think I had enough outfits/places to wear it. Stupidstupidstupid, I could wear it shopping with my red skirt!

The tank I bought is a fun mix of patterns and a flattering shape. I thought up a few ways I want to wear it:

Tribal tank 4 ways by mjchirpich-1 featuring charm jewelry

Top left: Dress the shirt down with flat T-strap sandals (so much more chic than flipflops, and just as comfy!), cutoffs with lace, and some simple earrings and a bag.
Top right: Surprisingly, the fact that the shirt already has a couple patterns makes it even easier to mix with MORE patterns. Although these white dotted jeans are meant for skinny-minnies, not ladies with junk in the trunk like myself, I still want to wear this whole outfit out for drinks with the girls!
Bottom left: The tank can be easily dressed up for work with a white blazer, black heets, and black pants with a special accent stripe.
Bottom right: Casual skinny jeans, rolled on the bottom, look so cute with fun wedges. Cinch your waist with a red belt and add a studded tote, and you're ready for anything.

What do you think? How would you wear these pieces?

Daisy Buchanan Circa 1922/2013

Well my last post certainly drew a crowd! Glad to see so many people are product nerds like me :) If you're new to my blog, welcome! Happy to have you.

I'm sure many of you are just as excited as I am for the new Gatsby movie (and, like me, many of you are probably equally excited for the costumes as the story!). In honor of that great novel that everyone reads in English lit, I've rounded up some beauuuuuutiful jewelry from Bauble Bar.

Here's what I think Daisy Buchanan would be rocking back in 1922, and how she'd reimagine her style if she were transported 91 (!!) years in the future:

Daisy Buchanan Circa 1922/2013 by mjchirpich-1 featuring green jewelry

I personally would love to own any of these beautiful pieces, but have my eye especially set on the gold aztec neckalce and the cuff on the lower right!


Annnnnnd, in celebration of the weekend, I've put together 3 outfits inspired by these lovely gems. I have plans to go out with the girls tonight, and this is what I'd love to wear, if only I could be so lucky:

Bar Hopping with Daisy Buchanan by mjchirpich-1 featuring vegan handbags

Ask the Experts: Product Order

You've probably heard the old adage, "Beer before liquor, never been sicker. Liquor before beer, you're in the clear." Pretty obvious, right? So why isn't there a similar catchy saying for the order in which you use beauty products? And why do I ALWAYS forget that saying and wind up with a massive hangover? It is these existential questions that are occupying my waking thoughts lately....(kidding...mostly).

It all started when I was drooling over reading the lovely beauty regimen of Megan, author one of my favorite natural beauty blogs, Seed to Serum. Her routine prompted me to ask--what is the best order in which to layer your products? Water-based before oil? Vice versa? Creams then oils? Where do serums fit in? 

Megan helpfully posed this question to the founder of La Bella Figura and wrote a blog post responding to my question, which can be seen here. 

In short, LBF says that your most active product should go first--makes sense to me, sort of. But I was still a little puzzled--what about water/oil interactions? What about molecular size of the products? How do we really know that our products are working if we layer them incorrectly??


Ask the Experts:
Soooooo I asked several companies that I appreciate for their scientific approach to skincare. I sent the same email to Sibu Beauty, Osmia Organics, Yuli Skincare, and Mad Hippie, as well as Spirit Beauty Lounge . Each expert had interesting feedback and, to my frustration, not all were in agreement.

Sibu Beauty (shout-out to my local company!) took a scientific approach to the issue, which I appreciate. They say, "Skin care products range from water-based to an emulsion to an oil base.  Did you ever do the chemistry experiment to determine the density of fluids?  Pour some water into a glass and then pour some oil in to see which one stays at the bottom and which one floats on top.  You'll find that water is the heavier fluid and the oil will float.  For this reason, you always want to apply your skin care products starting with the water-based to the oil based.  Moisturizers are an emulsion of water and oil so they fit into the middle of the spectrum... If you apply a water-based product or serum after an oil or emulsion, it will not penetrate the oil barrier to absorb into skin.  The actives from the serum or water-based product would be lost. If you apply the water-based product first you will seal those nutrients in when you follow with the oil-based product....[The] order of product application is as follows:  Cleanser, Toner, Serum, Moisturizer, Oil."

Sarah Villafranco, MD from Osmia Organics, agrees: "I would almost always want to apply a water soluble layer before an oil soluble layer or an emulsion...[We] are all trying to get more water into our skin, period.  Water goes first, oil &/or cream provides a protective layer to slow the evaporation of the water based product, and the water in our skin in general....I would put the product with an oil phase on last."

Mad Hippie ended up with a similar conclusion but came at it from a different angle. "We recommend applying the products thinnest to thickest (serums first, then creams)," they replied, then went on to say, "[We] feel that putting on an oil under other products prevents the other products from absorbing properly.  By applying the oil last, you are locking everything in."

To confuse things a little, Yuli Skincare confirmed what I suspected: There are a variety of factors that play into creating an ideal product order so as to fully utilize each product to its fullest potential. "Moisturizers like your typical lotions are mainly there to perform a singular function: keep skin hydrated," Yuli said. "Our skin cells have a semi-permeable membrane meaning that molecular size can dictate what is absorbed and what 'sits on top'. Moisturizers usually sit on top because they are designed to form a barrier to seal in hydration. Their molecules tend to be larger....[A]nything layered on top of an 'effective' moisturizer is not going to get absorbed well."

Yuli further offered a counter argument to what the previous three companies advised by stating, "[Oil] molecules in general tend to be smaller to penetrate the semi-permeable membrane rather than just sit on top of skin.... There should be minimal obstacles between serums and your skin so that they are unhindered in penetrating the dermal layers. The toner should go on first to condition skin so it is optimal for accepting the treatments. Then the serum should go on, then the oil. Allow to absorb. Then add the moisturizer which will seal off the barrier so skin can absorb the remaining nutrients."

Interestingly, Spirit Beauty Lounge agrees with Yuli: "All emulsified products, moisturizers and creams regardless of their potency or intended efficacy should be layered over deeper penetrating oils and serums. Lotions and creams will always work on the superficial layers of the skin and also act as a protectant and barrier over the products applied before helping to prevent them from evaporating or being leached out of the skin by the environmental climate."

Conclusion:
Thus, it would appear that there is contradictory opinion even amongst experts that I trust. Therefore, as with many product-related decisions, it's ultimately up to the consumer to educate oneself to decide what works best for him or her. 

For me, I weighed the experts' opinions against my own knowledge and product list, and this is what I decided: currently I'm only using my DeVita sunscreen as a moisturizer, and as a physical block I want that on top of everything (which brings up another question--I didn't ask about where sunblock plays in!). So, I'm following this regimen: Andalou toner (soon to be replaced by Yuli!!!), Mad Hippie serum, Sibu sea buckthorn oil. WAIT for oil to absorb. THEN apply Devita sunblock/moisturizer.

What's your take on this topic?

Many thanks to the experts for taking the time to respond to my emails!