paperfashion

Katie, an old high school classmate, writes a blog and crafts for her Etsy shop, Paperfashion, full of her lovely fashion prints.  Seriously, y'all, this girl's got talent.  I remember drooling over her pieces back in the day but her craft has only gotten better.  They are really too good not to share...

 

 

And how can you resist these delicious little prints?

Don't you just want to buy the whole store?

Thanks, Katie, for letting me share! 

over here: hair advice

Asking for hair advice over here...

If you've ever grown out your hair before, what are your tips for keeping it fresh in through the Blah stage?

where have all the slips gone?!

During the last week before school let out for break, I attempted to jazz things up a bit with my ensemble.  And by "jazz up," I mean I actually went back to professional-wear after two weeks of "dress down" days in my blue jeans.  (Every year a team of people at work sells two-week dress down passes to benefit students and families in need.  Donation for two weeks of dressing down during my burn-out time in the semester?  Pshhhhh yea, pass it down.)

Anyway... most mornings when I am getting ready for the day the house is dark, quiet... no one is even thinking about putting their feet on the floor for at least a few more hours.  So I do my best to keep it dark and quiet.  Which does not always go smoothly for me in the clothing department if I haven't planned ahead.  (I don't plan ahead often which is sometimes unfortunate.  After this story I promise that is an effort I am willing to put forth.)  The day I am talking about is like the best Exhibit A for my faulty (un)planning.  I grab one of my favorite dresses and pair it with tights and a cardigan to make it work and weather appropriate.  Or... so I thought.

On the way to work I'm thinking that maybe the cut of the dress is a little shorter than I had counted on and kept trying to shake that feeling that "something is off."  I get to work a few minutes early, I head to the bathroom and -- holy crapola, I forgot the slip -- you can see straight through the fabric.  Luckily, I haven't been seen by many and I get to work early most days when I'm on my own anyway so I duck out (at record speed, obvi) to Target in search of a slip.  Just a slip.  You know, those things you put under dresses or skirts to keep people from seeing the space between your legs or whatever.  They're pretty common, I hear, and I know I've seen them a hundred thousand times at the Target near my home. 

I get there and I'm circling the racks where they should be... circling...  circling... frantically circling.  An employee approaches me, clearly a little concerned, and I ask her about the slips.

"Oh, we recently stopped carrying those."

"..." I stop and think for a second or two.  "You mean, you don't carry them at all? 

"Nope."

"Oh... kay.  Thanks."

Since I'm tight on time, I don't even waste a second.  I just run to the juniors section and look for those elastic-waisted mini skirts all the girls have been wearing to school.  I know they are in there somewhere and I'm just hoping that one of them will double-duty as a slip for the day and then, who knows, maybe as a dishrag the next.  Almost right away I see one with loads of creamy pink baby ruffles that could maybe work with the purple of my dress but it's a friggin XXL and, of course, it's the last one.  I take it anyway, knowing that with the elastic band it's only a matter of rolling once, maybe twice, and securing with something I can no doubt find in my desk.  Get back to the parking lot, pull it on under my dress with a little peeking out at the bottom, get back to work and, I kid you not, I haven't received more compliments on a dress I've worn all semester.  What was originally a pre-work disaster in my mind turned out to be a small success for my wardrobe and I actually spent the rest of the day feeling great without worrying about the sheer fabric of my dress.

This was also an even better lesson in the "one piece, two+ ways" arena.  (I am bad about wearing the same thing, the same way and with an overflow of clothes in my closet that is just unacceptable.)  Here are two different ways I wore it...

Back in July, I wore the same dress for our wine & dine dinner at Chateau Elan for our wedding anniversary.  I belted it with the sash it came with to hike it up just a little and paired it with a studded headband and pretty, but sturdy, open toe mary janes to dress it up without overdoing it. 

Dress - Francesca's Collection

Shoes - Linea Paolo

And here I am at the end of that very long, wardrobe-malfunctioning day.  This is how I actually wore it through the day...

Day-saving ruffle mini - Target

Black wrap-tie cardigan - Gap

Tights - F21

And here is one more way I could have worn it, though I don't know that I actually would and it's really just to show you the rolled/tucked/XXL ruffle mini in all its peep-show-saving glory...

On several occasions I've also thought about wearing it as a top with a study-fabric skirt.  Think something like this but sans houndstooth and more understated:

(The actual color of the dress is closer to this picture.  My malfunction pictures are all kinds of weird and messy, including colors.)

 

Have you ever had a wardrobe malfunction before work or when you had to be somewhere and look presentable?  What did you do to fix it?  Were you pleased with the result or did it simply serve to get you through the day?  

And seriously... where did all of the slips go?!  

now THIS is style

if you like glee....

... then you will LOVE this:

What Would Emma Pillsbury Wear?

There's just nothing else I can say about that.

curly girl design

Several months ago now my mom (who is awesome and painfully thoughtful) gifted me with the cutest water canteen I ever did see:



And it just happens to be designed by the same small company that also makes some of the cutest prints that I ever did see: Curly Girl Design.

Lately, I see so many people in Athens leaping from the Nalgenes-of-old to stainless steel canteens as a big thumbs-up to the "eco-chic movement." At least it is a huge step up from ugly disaster-proof plastic (and maybe I'm silly) but I can't help but wish that they were all a little more stylish like the ones from CGD. :)

academichic

I know, I know. Long time no post. I'm working on it, promise.

With all of the time I haven't been posting here, I've been working my brains out, loving on my sweet little family and soaking up the holiday season.

But to get my fashionista fix I've been stalking a few fun and (sometimes) frugal fashion blogs. One of my absolute favorites that I, of course, have to share: academichic. I found them through Flickr's wardrobe remix tag and have been addicted from the start. They have several posts and tutorials that take an academic approach to mixing your wardrobe. How fun is that? Definitely satisfies my inner school nerd, for sure. For the collegiate Athenista their site is a must-read!

card-again

I am a big fan of cardigans. You will proably hear me say this again... and again. (I stand pretty firm in the thought that a cardigan can pull its weight in "dressing up" almost any casual afternoon ensemble. I'm also a teacher so what can I say, it goes with the territory.) I'm also a pretty big fan of Nordstrom -- while they lean toward the pricey and mainstream, I cannot put a count to the number of times I've been surprised by a thrifty and unexpected find in either clothing or shoes (and even baby!). (Also, the closest one to Athens is at the Mall of Georgia in Buford.)

So, it comes as no surprise to me that I am really loving Nordstrom's Point of View post on the "versatile" cardigan. They styled three different looks -- casual, work and "out" which, minus the "work ready" for most college students in this town, is pretty parallel with the work-to-home-to-evening transition that a lot of Athenians go through in a typical day.

Click here to view their stylings.

What's your take on the cardigan? As versatile for you as it is for me? Do you find it's an easy (and often fun) office-to-casual transition or do you like to leave it to one or the other? Or do you totally shun it on the whole?

street style, first edition

Finally, the monsoon ceased and we can see some local Athens street style! First up: downtown. The sun warmed us all up a little by the afternoon and some Athenians let me snap a couple of photos.

The late afternoon was cool but sunny and not cold enough for a full-on sweater. So my first lovely Athenista (who was sweet as pie) belted a gray chunky knit vest -- perfect for the cool-but-not-cold afternoon downtown. I love those boots.




I must have passed this couple at least twice before I stopped them for a photo. Aside from their glowy happiness (seriously, these guys just radiated happy), it's hard to pin down exactly one thing that made me do a double-take... I love the combination of colors between the two of them and her clutch? That's love right there.



My last Athenista seemed hesitant but I'm so glad she indulged my whim. Everything about this is my taste. Perfect for an afternoon around town and how easy would it be to throw on a cardigan or a trench in the later hours?



Thanks, guys!

places i love: ike & jane

Yes, yes, I KNOW, this has been a verrrryyyy slllooo....ooooo...wwwwwww start. I assure/promise/sign-my-soul/cross my heart and hope to die that things will really get rolling very soon. I know you are probably itching to get to the street style. (You can attribute most of the lack of street style posting to the Noah-amounts of rain we've been getting. I'm a paranoid party pooper and refuse to take my camera out in the rain. But I must say, you Athenistas got some serious rainy day style!)

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In the meantime... what better way to start than to touch on a few of my own (and many, many others') favorite local haunts? Let me introduce you to (hands . down) one of the very best, most delicious and certainly most stylish bakeries in town: Ike & Jane.


(all photos courtesy of ikeandjane.typepad.com)

See those cute window flowers? They're made of tissue paper. And they look awesome in the mid-morning light. And the logo (which features Ike & Jane's signature "cuffin")? So cool. Their place is full of so many neat little touches that are cost-efficient and also make the space so calm, unique and stylish.

Corie was a doll and let me bug her with a million and one questions (some serious, some probably silly) for you guys. She gave me so many fabulous answers it really deserves two posts! This place and these ladies and gents really know what they're doing: the atmosphere is super comfy, the coffee and the lattes are YUM and ohhhh, THE PASTRIES!

Why did you decide to open Ike & Jane? And why, specifically, did you choose Athens?
My partner offered me the opportunity to help him out with a new business idea he had. And by idea I mean cafe, and by cafe I mean DONUTS! hah. I spent most of my adult life in, around, and running cafes... so it was a good fit, I suppose. I also love love love people. Which is a lot of why this particular job appeals to me so much. Long story short, the space opened up, we jumped on it and ran with it. I've lived in Athens for several years (longer than I care to elaborate on!) and live around the corner from Ike & Jane with my husband. I love Athens. Which is why I was still here in the first place ;)

Tell us a little about what you do at Ike & Jane.
I guess what we do at Ike & Jane is provide a little bit of happiness to the people that come and go. A lot of what I feel a cafe should be is kind of like Cheers. Eventually you get to know more and more about your customers, your staff, and every day is a little different. You can chit chat with your customers, give them a smile and send them on their way with a warm drink in hand and a delicious treat on its way to their belly. So, in order to provide that we have breakfast sandwiches, donuts, lunches, soups, smiles, coffee, espresso drinks... you know, cuffins... so on and so forth.

Who dreams up all of the interesting (and delish) ideas for your unique selection of donuts and pastries? (Really, guys... these folks KNOW donuts!)
The donuts and other assorted goodies are a collective effort. All of the employees (and some bolder customers!) throw out ideas and we give them a shot. If it works, we keep it! if it doesn't, we modify or try something else. I think the most successful customer idea was fruity pebbles on a donut... I'm not sure we've hit on a donut idea that people didn't love quite yet. There's really nothing to hate about a donut! Which is why the GIANT donut is so amazing (employee idea!) The non-donut pastries are mostly the brainchildren of our baker, who spends 10 hours a day dreaming up desserts and bringing them to sugary life.




(Ike & Jane got festive for St. Patrick's Day)

What is your favorite time of day at the shop?
My favorite time of day at the shop is probably 8am. or right before. It's usually pretty busy, but manageable; the sun has the best angle into the cafe and the customers are all running a little behind to work. Getting them in and out and keeping them happy is one of my favorite things to do. I also enjoy the lunch rush around 12:30 because the customers are endlessly excited about their food. Always puts a smile on my face to see people excited about what we do.

What kind of style or atmosphere do you try to achieve and/or maintain? Is it intentional or mostly happenstance?
As far as our atmosphere goes, I wanted i&j to be as comfortable as possible. Selfishly, because I knew I'd be there everyday, and because if the employees are comfortable in a space, the customers invariably pick up on it. And what I'm most most most interested in is making sure that i&j is somewhere that locals (and their non-local counterparts) can go, and feel at home whether they've been there once or 400 times. So I chose colors, equipment, furniture, art, logo... etc that felt home-y and cheery to me. I like to think that the design was partially happenstance with a lot of intention. Ike & Jane is my life. Literally, my house looks almost exactly the same. Which is mostly unintentional. Once all the colors were on the walls I realized that 90% of what's in i&j is in my home and wardrobe and makes me feel comfortable... which I think makes other people feel comfortable.

What do you notice about the culture of style (fashion, home or otherwise) in Athens? (I loved her answer to this one. Right on.)
One of my favorite things about Athens is that it's a moderately sized city, with a very distinct lifestyle. Not too many people take themselves too seriously. It's relaxed, you can get to know your neighbors, your co workers, random people you see at the grocery store all the time, and it's nothing abnormal. There's a certain small-town quaintness to Athens, despite the fact that so many people live here. I'm glad Athens has managed to maintain a lot of it's home-grown appeal. And with that home-grown appeal comes a lot of homegrown style. The houses in my area are mostly older re-finished homes that have the marks of their owners in one way or another that lend themselves to relaxing, taking a step back, and enjoying your home life. That's what Athens is to me. Family & friends relaxing.

Do you find that the style of the friendly people behind the counter at Ike & Jane are kind of an outpouring of the heart of your business?

As far as the style of my crew goes... I'm not sure I'd say it's an outpouring of the cafe every day. Sometimes they're a hot mess! BUT!!...I think it's important for employees to wear what's most comfortable for them. The more comfortable they are, the happier they are and that's very important. They have to be kind and polite, of course, but I like for it to be genuine... People are way more comfortable in their own styles! Especially when you consider how many strangers they have small conversations with all day!

I'd say my personal style is an outpouring of what I want for the cafe. I'm into basics with a smile. Solid shirts, jeans, flats. I think your personality is more an expression of you than your clothes are on any given day. But maybe that's the school uniforms in me talking! Hah.

THANK YOU, Corie, for being so generous with your time, answers and, of course, the caffeinated and sweet deliciousness you provide us with! What a fantastic portrait of Athens style!

(I should also mention -- because you aspiring business owners might be interested -- these guys came a looooong way to get this place up and running. To view the evolution of Ike & Jane from drywall to cuffins, you can go to their blog (ikeandjane.typepad.com) and start from the beginning. Incredible!)

what i'm (not) looking for

With the (very slow and "methodical") start of this blog, a lot of questions have come in about where we're headed... what exactly is Athenista looking for? Honestly? There a hundred ways to define what "we" (me and, assuming, my audience... I guess that's something to be decided, eh?) are looking for. So to keep it simple, and for humor's sake, let's look at some things we aren't looking for.

Over the weekend, I found an article poking fun at the very popular Sartorialist. Obviously, I love what the Sartorialist does for fashion. But, I must admit, I don't frequent the blog very often and there are probably a few not-so-solid reasons for that which I won't go in to. Suffice to say that you need not go through a mental flowchart of what to or what not to wear for "the Athenista" to catch you/photograph you/blog you in your natural habitat.



Like I said, I love what they do (high-fashion street style blogs are easily my guiltiest pleasure) but we're looking for something a little more... Athens, if you will.

If you're not familiar with Athens, let me just tell you that Athens is a college town. A big, Southern, student-saturated college town. And while the sorority-style stereotype is certainly pervasive in the local fashion scene (and you will encounter it in one way or another in future street style posts, rest assured), I can firmly guarantee the absence of any ensemble that contains most or all of the following: Uggs, Soffee shorts (with leggings! or, worst of all, pantyhose!) and a pastel North Face fleece. Nothin' wrong at all with these things in their own right but put-together... it's just not quite what we're looking for.

But, it also needs to be said that BECAUSE Athens is a college town, we have a lot of style variety here when it comes to fashion. And decor. And business. And how we live our lives. So, simply put: we're looking for everything in the middle. From just-shy-of-the-Sartorialist to Greek Row, we want to see it! All styles and trends -- layered, basic, cozy and sleek... we want to watch you all run the gamut.

Stay tuned this week as we grab a "cuffin" and visit with one of our favorite local cafe & bakeries, Ike & Jane, and post our first edition of Athenista street style!

Keep the questions and submissions coming to AthenistaStyle@gmail.com

yello

Welcome to Athenista Style! Created to showcase the spectrum of style and happenings here in the Classic City -- Athens, GA. We focus on fashion and street style and would love to hear from you all you loverly and local Athens fashionistas -- Athenistas!

If you are interested in contributing photos, articles or random bits of Athens goodness, email AthenistaStyle@gmail.com for more information.