Live Colorfully; Live Brasilian

Make up pouches by Kate Spade (thank you, outlet sales!)

Praia Ipanema Kanga from Brazil

During my time visiting the Delaware shore, I also managed to hit up some outlets, which are right along the coastal highway. When I returned home, I noticed that my new make up bag purchases comprise the colors of my favorite Brazilian kanga. This was not on purpose. It just sort of happened. But I love the colors. Live colorfully, indeed. :)

In which I dress the colors of a watermelon

I wore this to the pool (though I did have the forethought to put in my contacts after I snapped this photo). The local city pools are such a great deal if you can get into a "pool family." Basically a bunch of us go in for group passes and spend about $15 each for unlimited access! I haven't had a lot of time to go yet this year. But I hope to correct that soon enough! I'm headed back today and maybe tomorrow. It should help me maintain my Maine tan. :)

The shirt is something I bought in Rio from an adorable little shop called Cecilia Brandao. It features an image of the street car that takes you from the steep hills of Santa Theresa, into downtown.

Chris bought a shirt there too, and he wore his right away.

It's also related to the street car, as it features one of the more harrowing parts of the route. I've posted this photo before but it is one of my favorites from our trip. It was taken right after the street car kind of quit on us. It did so shortly following the Los Arcos De Lapa aquaduct it must traverse before it reaches the station.

(image from this fantastic blog featuring old post cards, here)

The historic street car is the oldest trolley of its kind in all of South America. And it is an incredible bargain! So even though it feels a little dangerous when you are going across the very high aqueduct, it is definitely a worthwhile experience. 

My khanga sarong scarf is also from Brazil. I am kind of dying to go back, if you can't tell. :)

Summer work piles up right when I leave town

I was out of town for a few days so I didn't have free time to update. Now that I'm back I am bit behind on everything so I just wanted to share a quick outfit. It has been incredibly hot here. My home lacks central air conditioning and the air conditioning in my car decided to stop working (which is frustrating since I just spent a small fortune on repairs last month). So when I am in Pittsburgh I am dressing for comfort.

This cotton dress was an early xmas gift from Chris that he bought and gave to me in Brazil. I was excited to pull it out for summer since I only wore it once last December. I paired it with my map print bag from ebay, an anthro belt, and flats.

 The blurriness of this photo is ridiculous and for that I am sorry. But the blurriness kind of makes the print of the dress look more like fireworks which is the only reason why I still opted to share.

Fellow PA blogger, Dana of Curvy With a Side of Confidence recently received the Versatile Blogger Award and was sweet enough to pass it along to me. Be sure to check out her great blog! I will have some reviews, outfits, and post trip updates on the blog this week. I hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

Bathing Suit Season and Body Anxieties

The cheapest maxi dress coverup I could find at Gabes

Chris in Buzios

Memorial Day marks the official opening of swimming pool season around these parts (though sadly for me but smartly for local families, the Pittsburgh city pools wait until the end of the public school year to open). Although I bought a bathing suit before my December trip to Brazil, I am always on the look out for swimwear that can support a bustier bosom. I've come to adore the Triumph For Your Curves brand (even if the name is silly) for their fun prints and wide range of bikini tops with underwire (sized like bras in a wide range of cup sizes, and everything!). I've also heard great things about the Figleaves in-house brands (Midnight Grace, etc.) and Freya, though I cannot speak to their longevity or support from personal experience. 

Although I have far from what most would consider a bikini body, I started wearing one within the last year or so. I decided that I was sick of tankinis (since I always pulled up the tank part of the top to sun worship) and one pieces (which made going to the bathroom a pain in the butt). I am no stranger to those body image issues that effect most of us. But I have come to feel relatively bold when it comes to swimwear, especially during out of town travel. It already helps when you are in a place where no one knows you except for your travel partner(s). But when you couple it with the relatively exposed swimwear culture of Brazil, I was even more confident running around, flabby body and all.

As examined in this entry from feminist fashion blogger Millie of Interrobangs Anonymous and posted on the website of MrsBossaDoesTheDo, vacations carry liberatory and experimental potential. An otherwise safe, static style identity can try new things without the watchfuls eyes of preconceived expectations. I wrote in the comments section:

There is something really liberating about being in a place where no one knows me (except the person with who I am traveling). Fewer expectations and fewer closet options mean that I am simultaneously less and more confined, if that makes sense. I don’t have to feel like I am dressing my usual “part” because I won’t see anyone who usually sees me but I have such a smaller range of options because I tend to try to pack lightly. 

One of my favorite things about traveling to Brazil last December was how completely body unconscious people were on the beaches. Granted, my boyshort bottoms had more coverage than most of the men’s trunks, but I found it really refreshing to see women of all ages and shapes and sizes wearing the tiniest of bikini styles without reservation. I wonder on some level if this is merely a product of availability? If swimsuit retailers there only sell tiny suits, then everyone has to wear them by default. But those typical anxieties about how my body looked on the beach (the feelings that I try to fight because they run so contrary to my feminist beliefs) were a little less intense as a result. I felt comfortable because 1. no one knew me and 2. everyone there wore tiny bikinis, making my less-tiny-but-still-bikini style seem modest. 

I obviously cannot speak for the women who live in Brazil (a culture where I have read that plastic surgery and plastic surgery tourism are more common and less costly than in the US, and gender roles/expectations for conventional femininity remain relatively rigid in part because of ongoing influences of the Catholic faith and the prevailing traditional standards of beauty). But for me it felt really powerful to walk around the beach without a coverup and without the same anxieties about body judgments.

Are you ready (I mean emotionally, not physically) for bathing suit season? I'm trying to get back to how I felt in December, regardless of the location of the pool or beach... But I've got a ways to go. 

For more feminist style content, visit here.

Pre-Bay OOTD

purple silk top by DVF

J.Crew rosette cardi

Off Fifth skirt

flats from Brazil

I wore this before I left for SF but never had time to post it. I paired it with my 3/4 length sleeve built in scarf MBMJ coat.

The Shoes were a purchase from Brazil.

And I realized later that they might be a little too close to some Christian Louboutin flats. Not exactly. But a little close.

The shoe industry in Brazil is pretty extensive but a lot of the boutiques and fancier stores had taken obvious inspiration from aspirational brands. I saw Brazilian-style Varinas, Revas, and Chanel-esque flats. And when I got home I saw the shoes that perhaps inspired the ones above. I feel a little mixed about them now but they are so comfortable and cute that I can't just not wear them.

BTW don't forget to email me (jesspgh at gmail dot com) your hardest working garments!

Brazil in December: The Outfits

It's hard to feel fashionable when you are transitioning from freezing cold temperatures and a half a foot of snow to 90 degrees and sun. But I'm hardly complaining. I adored my heaping helping of vitamin D and relished every minute of my reunion and honeymoon with Chris. Clothes were low on the list of  priorities during my time in Rio and Buzios.

Ann Taylor Loft top

Anna Sui for Anthropologie skirt

Halston sunglasses

random striped tote bag

Dip dye Keds

This is something I wore for our first walk around the neighborhood of Ipanema. I loved the respective sidewalk mosaics for Copacabana and Ipanema. They provided a unifying aesthetic element that really felt iconic by the end of the trip. I ended up buying a printed sarong (called a Kanga) that featured the pattern you see above.

Though they're completely touristy, they're also so useful and I was grateful that I didn't have to vacate my beach chair to make the purchase due to the numerous roaming souvenir and refreshment salespeople who frequent the crowded beaches of Rio.

Marc by Marc Jacobs Floating Lotus dress

Tory Burch Revas

I wore this outfit any time I wanted to feel a little more dressed up than my saltwater soaked hair could convey on its own.

Chris bought me this easy jersey knit dress that is printed with graphic firework-inspired designs. I paired it with Havaianas and a belt from Anthropologie. I wore it in Buzios, the night we missed the sunset by about 5 minutes. Bonus big hair thanks to the very strong winds at dusk that day.

You can't see it that well but the Chirping Chemise was a great lounging option for the balcony in Buzios.

I wore this dress I bought a few years ago in St. Barths everywhere in Brazil too. It is the perfect dress for a warmer climate because it is light and comfortable. Here I paired it with Chie Mihara Lumi flats.

The day we accidentally found ourselves climbing Corcovado I was thankful to be in shorts and sneakers.  Unfortunately, Chris found himself in a bathing suit and Havaianas. The views made it worthwhile.

The women's style in Brazil was very feminine. I was overwhelmed by the prevalence of bows adorning shoes, dresses, and jewelry (both for sale and being worn). Ruffles and frills were very popular and the women didn't let the hills and mountains (that make so beautiful this geographical terrain) stop them from sporting sky high heels in many contexts. When I saw stylish women (and I spotted many) I noticed that they moved in a way that seemed effortless and graceful. Their hips swayed noticeably as they walked. And when we went out to a samba club, such outfit choices made even more sense to me as I watched them swing and dance to the music. While I was glad I brought many dresses with me, I definitely felt less pulled together than the majority of the stylish Brazilian women in the areas we visited. But I am not accustomed to the temperatures and was working with a limited closet. Still I was very impressed by the shoes and dresses I saw being worn, specifically.

From Rio to Pittsburgh OOTNight to Day

Although this entry means I will be blogging Brazil in reverse, I wore a new green dress I bought in Buzios on my 15+ hours of flying/connecting back to Pittsburgh from Rio. It managed to still look pretty cute by the time I was home and able to winterize it (see below). I'm wearing a pair of leather  zipper trimmed captoe flats I bought in Ipanema, and sporting quite a holiday tan on our balcony in Santa Theresa (right before we checked out and headed to the airport). I cannot rave enough about the kind staff at the Hotel Santa Theresa. Because our flight wasn't til 11pm (Rio time) they allowed us a very late check out which meant we could spend the entire last day relaxing and exploring the neighborhood. Here's Chris enjoying his last look at the city at dusk.

And here we are together (unflattering angle and all, since we took it on a chair with a timer):

By the time I got home and could winterize my green dress, I was a little wrinkly but I had two new necklaces to wear!

One from Chris who bought me the longer necklace in St. Barths and one from my Fashionism.org secret santa, who got me a beautiful wax stamp initial necklace. I've wanted one for so long!

She also got me all sorts of other goodies like the beautiful Orla Kiely tote bag and the tarte lip stain. Chris and I took the quiet time at home to exchange our gifts.

 Chris loved his Fiori's T-shirt.

It feels a little bittersweet to be in a place where a white Christmas is a reality rather than the stuff of fiction. I became such a sun worshiper in Brazil and already feel vitamin D deprived. But it will be great to see family tonight for the Feast of the Seven Fishes! And I am sure I will soon find comfort again in layering winter clothes. Feliz Natal and Happy Holidays to you and yours!!

Havanianas Ubiquity

I will probably soon bore this humble readership with tmi about Brazil but one thing that struck me immediately was the inescapability of Havaianas in Rio (and in/along the way to Buzios). They are everywhere. You can buy them everywhere. People wear them in nice restaurants and to the beach. While dining at Satyricon (where Chris unknowingly ordered the same thing Madonna had when she ate there) I saw people wearing them. While sweating from dancing to samba music in a crowded club, people were wearing them. On the subway. In the mall. At the gas station. They even gave us two pairs at one of our hotels alongside the fancy tiny soaps. Granted, this was the splurge hotel (for the last night of our honeymoon). But you get the point. They are everywhere. And they are fairly cheap here. Chris keeps mocking me for buying so many. When we see a stand, he's like "oh hey you probably could use a few more pairs."

I hope the TSA folks don't think I am trying to import the volume I bought (for personal hoarding purposes) toward some unsavory profit motive!  Anyway, I promise to update with outfits soon enough (and I promise to withhold my most prevalent Brazilian outfits comprised of bathing suits). In the mean time, Boa noite!