Fashion Resolution.

My New Year's Fashion Resolution (everyone should have one!) is to only buy and wear things that I love, things that call my name. I want my wardrobe to sing to me, to make my heart jump, to make me feel expressed and in love and hot. I want my wardrobe to be filled with a curated collection of what makes me feel most like me; shoes that are shaped perfectly, tops that I could hang on my wall as art, pants that...fit. I have a long way to go. My shopping M.O. has always been to buy things that make the most sense in my budget. The rubric for grading purchases has been more wallet-based than anything, and while I know that is important--a girl needs to eat--so is feeling good in my clothes. I've also always suffered from Fashion Phobic Fat Girl-itis which is marked by acute symptoms of self-criticism and the overriding thought that I should wait until I lose the weight and LOVE every inch of my body before I spend more than the minimum money on clothes. Well, I call an end to that bull shizz! I do love myself, body and all. It's an amazing feeling and I'm going to celebrate by raising the bar on what I let into my closet. (Somehow I'm hoping this sets a precedent for my love life to. I'm raising bars all around.) No more misfitting items just cuz they are on sale. No more boring colors because they are left in the pile of discounts. No more! No more! I will dress to express. I will shop to love. I will invest. I will spend time cultivating my personal style and I will honor that, not my miserly side. I will, damnit! And I'm going to start with purchasing things from a site that Donna K. sent my way. Have you guys heard of Need Supply Co.? It's filled with coolness for moderate prices. It's my new aesthetic in an online store. Love it. Above and below are some looks.

How badass is all of that gear? I apparently want to be a lil more crazy cool in the '10s too. I'm especially wanting that penknife necklace. I could open some serious mail with that thing.

Happy New Decade!

Biker Babe.

Model Marissa Miller got a motorcycle for Christmas and makes it look good. That's an understatement, she makes this full throttle fantastic. I want one. I also want all of those accessories, the boot, the leather jacket, the all black everything? Yes please. Here's Marissa taking the bike for a spin:

She needs a tee that says "If you can read this the bastard fell off."

I Now Work At A Disco With Beth Ditto. Yes I do.

My coworker Graig and I have turned our humble office into a disco. How you might ask? It's easy with the addition of what I have now come to believe is an office supply necessity. Introducing the Desktop Discoball!

You know you want one.

All you do is hit the lights, push the lil button and watch the spectacle of silvery light spin. Now, you can't just have any music playing when this thing is going, you need to maestro the perfect soundtrack. May we suggest the soulful stylings of Ms. Beth Ditto, who has become out daily work party's star performer. She's so amazing. Not only is The Gossip's song "Heavy Cross" too good for words according to Graig, but Beth Ditto is one of my favorite fashion icons, so it all works out incredibly well. The Ditto's curvaceous figure is the least of her most amazing attributes, girl can belt it out and she's a singularly sensational role model for liberation of all kinds: aesthetic, sexual, body. It just doesn't end. Here she is in the song's glittering and golden video:



And, just in case you doubted the girl's for realness, check out this making of the video feature that highlights her greatness.



Don't you just love her? Party on, Beth. I'll see you at work in the morning.

Brett Manning Is A Girl.

Some artists have a way with smiles, or a great method of rendering the perfect hand, or they capture the twinkle in an eye with graphite on paper so well that it stares at you. Then, some have a way with texture. Ms. Brett Manning is an artist with a knack for rendering fabrics and hair and textiles in such rich detail that it begs to be worn or touched, even in two dimensions.

Her illustration work is unique and full of something special that comes through in her advanced technique that looks effortless on paper. Don't be fooled by her boyish name, Brett's site insists she's all girl; and the girl's got the goods. You can scoop up prints of her paper works or tees with her great graphics printed right on the front. That's where fashion illustration belongs, right? On clothing. It's so meta. I love it. Maybe next she could make a dress in a fabric printed with a pattern of her sketches of dresses, or a cotton scarf printed with her drawing of lush knits? Just a thought...

Lovely Lady Bumps.

Snookers and her Lady Lump.

Remember when Marge Simpson reached into her blue bouffant and pulled out a lifetime of various supplies? That is the first thing I think of when I see women with really big hair: "What are they hiding in there?". Thanks to Snooki (aka Snickers, Shnikkkkiz, Snooks), the Jersey Shore hair style du-eternity (BIG!!!!) is back with a vengeance among certain sectors of the female population, and there is now an entire industry of BIG hair that makes it even easier to get a pouf that will double as storage space a'la Marge. Introducing Bumpits!



Dear Lord, I love modern technology and I love infomercial acting even more! Apparently Snooks is not a fan of the Bumpit. Nope, not at all. She teases, no cheating. Here she is on Leno (I know, I can't stand him either, but it the Snooks) dogging the do aide and being her generally guidette self.



Gotta love the Snookers. Do you have a Bumpit? Don't lie! I need to know. Tell me. Now.

Common Goods: You Make Me Feel So Much Better.

I know a lot of people are unnerved by the site of medical uniforms. I guess there's no better reminder of your fragile mortality than setting your eyes on people who are employed to do nothing more than fix you when you break. I have a different feeling when I spot a nurse's uniform: total comfort. My school nurse was a fetchingly maternal red head named Mrs. Melamed, and as a burgeoning hypochondriac I visited her every chance I got. I found reasons to need band-aids, tissues, a drink of water, those cheese/peanutbutter cracker packs she had in her office, anything just so I could show up in front of her and know that I was ok. She made me feel safe. She also called my parents and ratted me out as a frequent visitor, but it's ok; I forgive her. In honor of my fond memories of nurse Melamed, here are some Common Goods:

Don't you just feel better now?

We've Got (New) Issues.

The newest issue of Style Sample Magazine has hit the interwebs. It's full of fashion blogging goodness, including a cover story on Andy from Style Scrapbook penned by lil' ol' me. Andy's a sweet, multi-culti stylecon for the new ages, and totally worth checking out.

Also, SSM's online format convinces me even more that paper magazines will join casettes in that big Crazy Eddie's Electronics in the sky soon enough. I love paper and this makes me sad, but the ease and glow of the new issue at your fingertips is a lil cooler than cool. Big thanks to Editor in Cheif Tamia Stinson for her hard work and DIY ethic.

Go Hardcore or Go Home.

The best part of Mark Leckey's "Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore," his trippy 1999 video art ode to the British clublands of yesterday? The clothes.



There's something charged about what people wear when they go out. It's the apotheosis of their identity; the thing they most want to say to everyone who sees them. It's the way they most want to look. Going out clothes are not work clothes, not school clothes, they aren't stay at home or run errand clothes, they are "This is me." clothes: This is me hot, ready, and at my self-defined best. This is me attracting you, this is me telling you something real about myself, or at least trying to. This is me in my dancing shoes. This is the best I've got. Check me out. But hurry--it will all look foolish, ancient, and undeniably out-of-touch before your hangover fades.

But, while fashion trends come and go, the energy of a night out--shaking your ass to a repetitive beat while some substance, or even plain adrenaline, courses through you in a high-ceilinged, crowd-stuffed, reverberating space--is easily one of the more lasting incentives to don your best outfit. It may be one of the more lasting reasons to make it through your life actually: To go out.

Stills from the film.

Leckey's video is made of found footage that looks like it was unearthed from some hazy, hallucinogenic, dream of how things used to be, and really puts a finer point on the ephemeral nature of fashion. Just the fact that I have to explain who Fiorucci is (only the most coveted designer brand of the late '70s/early '80s, only the inventor of designer denim, only the brand Madonna wanted most) speaks volumes about how short lived cool or hot or essential items are. People used to fork over paychecks for the stuff, and now most don't know what it is. Makes you wonder how silly your life will seem in retrospect, right? Actually, it will never seem silly to you. It will be deathly serious in its cool factor to you. It will be laughable to those who came along even a day past your prime. Your kids will laugh at you, that's for sure. Those are the breaks. Keep it moving people, just keep it moving. And while you're moving, why not do it to a beat? Cue the throbbing bass and the dancing masses.

You can see the full video and tons of other amazing works of video art at UbuWeb. Thanks to the best dressed coworker I have, and brilliant analyzer of film, Mr. Graig Uhlin of Mass Ornaments for the resource.

Do Good: One Mango Tree

Happy New Years, or should I say happy new you? It's a great time to start fresh, isn't it? The clean slate of early January is filled with a hope that doesn't quite diminish until, well, the second week of January. While there is still time I wanted to introduce a fresh feature on I Want To Wear It. It's called Do Good and it will be a portal to fashion related charities, fair trade shopping outposts, and general ways that you can get your style on and still give back. Why? Because karma is a bitch or a blessing and I'm going to get you on the right side of that "or". First up in the Do Good corner of this blog is the site One Mango Tree.

The ladies of One Mango Tree.

Founded by director Halle Butvin, the site has set out to better the lives of women in war-torn countries, especially particularly ravaged area of Uganda. They are currently doing this by empowering women to make and sell the crafts, jewelry, fabric items, bags, etc. that they are so skilled at creating and that there is such a demand for outside of their remote villages. To do this they handle the website, the operations set-up, the business side of things, and simply pay the women fairly for their creations. So, instead of buying oh-so-trendy Africana-esque accessories this season, buy the real deal and pay their makers more than pennies for their time and talent.

I really love the jewelry that is on offer through the site and a particularly presidential apron that would be perfect for baking official Obama bread in.

Remember that? Good times, 2009. Good times. All of the items above are priced from between $12 to $20, which makes them even more wonderful. This year make your wardrobe a reflection of who you want to be; fill it with beautiful items made fairly. Do good. Feel good. Look good. Happy New Year!

Click any image above to be directed to One Mango Tree.com (except the Obama bread, that one's mine!).