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Tuesday, January 31, 2012

100th Post!

I have for you today a very short post, because I am stuck in the library. I feel this strange sense of Deja Vu and a vague, nightmarish sense of trauma. Basically, the library makes me sad.

But here to brighten up this post is a street style photo of Sloane. I know, you might be thinking, "Brighten? But she's wearing gray." But for some reason, she sure knows how to liven the color (shade?) up. Must be all the layering, subtle shade differences, and varying textures. I'm going to go ahead and not make a joke about her "gray-t" outfit. Oh, wait, I did it anyway. Ouch.


Have a colorful day.

-J.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Ready to Start

There are days when the last thing I want to do is walk up to people and ask whether or not I can take their photo. Sure, there are fashionably dressed people dallying around all day, everyday, but it takes a certain kind of resolve to decide to ask someone, which is necessarily fueled by enthusiasm, energy, and a sort of optimism that assumes I will not get shot down. This semester, more often than not, I find myself in an acrid mood, and the last thing I want to do is go bother strangers or infect them or I don't know, approach them in the wrong way.

But when days like that come about, visiting The Sartorialist (an ace street style blog by Scott Schuman) is always a surefire way to get me inspired. Though I rarely see people dressed as ostentatiously as his subjects around campus, it reminds me of why street style is so interesting and singularly fascinating--it's the people. In fact, the fashion is almost secondary, but just barely.

As much as I love shooting my friends when I run into them, what really makes street style blogs great, and what I'm most enthusiastic about, is meeting and photographing new people--what's even better is when they're interested in what I'm doing.

On such a small campus, it's hard to find new subjects. Even so, it's a delight whenever it happens. I'm learning to appreciate it. I think it will always be the greatest motivating factor.

I kind of lost the plot! Point is, I hope to always be inspired to be a better street-style photographer. I guess. Either way... Here's a street style photo of Quela; I shot this last Wednesday. I loved the subtle color of her boots; they were a very light mint or pine green... and just her layering.


See you soon (more photos to come!),

Jenn

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

There's nothing like a long, agonizing day to make you realize how nice some downtime is. Well, not actually downtime. I'm scrambling to do work (not really--this is me "scrambling") and get started on this essay that's due the day after tomorrow. The saddest part is, I think of all this interesting stuff to write throughout the day but when I get in front of my computer, with my lids drooping and brain pulp-like from the daily grind, I always manage to forget.

If I talk any more, a slew of negativity will pour from my mouth, so I'll just direct you to the street style photo of the day. Adesewa! She's in one of my classes and she is quite sweet, and also stylish. Love the shoulders on that jacket. And I wonder if the sweater is vintage, as well? I'm backed up on photos, by the way. This is from almost exactly a week ago. As much as it excites me to have a lot of photos on the back-burner, I also hope to be more efficient with posting them, promise!


Ta,

Jenn

Sunday, January 22, 2012

So This is The New Year

Feeling down? Gloomy because of January weather? I know personally that I felt an upshot of hope and possibility when 2012 was just arriving. I spent the first few days with friends, going on road trips, feeling completely at home--it seemed like it was going to be a fantastic year. However, since coming back to school, the weather's been morose, and so have I. I don't think I was properly prepared for the onslaught of work, responsibility, competition, and social pressure that I came back to... in fact, I found myself rather apathetic to all of it. Oddly enough, so have many of my friends... there's been this common theme of "not knowing who I am" or maybe a strong sense of disillusionment.

Well, the fix for that is simple, my friends. What you're suffering from is the post-holiday, post-new-years-high blues. Whose bright idea was it to start the solar new year when the weather was still miserable and our bodies and minds so sluggish after the holidays? That's only going to be a wet blanket thrown onto your new year cheer. Chinese people had the right idea in making it almost a month later (lunar new year, whatever). No matter how the seasons crawl and shift along the year, stretching the summer into September and the dead of winter into January, Chinese New Year is generally a month later... and February is usually warmer, right? At the very least, it's a shorter winter after Chinese New Year marks the year. And that's today, by the way. I won't be able to join in on the celebrations, seeing as my parents are either in China or en route to China, and probably 16% of Nashville's population knows what moon cakes even are, but it's a happy new year anyways. You can start over starting over.

I shot a few photos of Itoro last week. He owns the blog thecreativeroutine and wanted me to link you guys there, so click on the first photo to visit his blog.




I particularly liked the layering of his collared shirt, sweater, and leather jacket. The colors worked well with each other yet had a unique feel to it.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Let's Talk About the Weather

Has anybody noticed how cloudy and morose it's been lately? Apparently one of the days in January, often the 21st (but maybe the 17th) is supposed to be one of the most statistically depressing days of the year. If you google it results do come up but I really wonder where they get their sources from. Even so, I'm not surprised. I don't recall one blissful, sunny day in the past week.

Today I have a picture of Gary, the first faculty member to be featured on the blog! I actually don't know what he teaches, or what kind of faculty he is. In fact, I wasn't even the ones to take pictures of him. This was the only one that wasn't too blurry to post.


Ta,

Jenn

Thursday, January 19, 2012

An Education

Someone once told me that it's lucky I go to a liberal arts University, because everybody is so well dressed! And I agree... there are well dressed people around here literally all the time, which is partly why I started this blog. People should have their efforts documented! Hah. If only I could take pictures of everybody all the time... but alas, classes. Yeah, almost forgot about those for a minute there.

I got a street style photo of Patrick the other day, charmed as I was by his layering. I don't know which I like best, the gray blazer (vest?) or the white collar peeking out from underneath. All of it, probably.


Have a good one,

Jenn

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

It Wasn't Yet The Spring

This is how Terrible my Tuesday was... so much, in fact, that I was too exhausted to blog about it yesterday even though I really wanted to. I'll just give you the short of it, though, seeing as it's Wednesday, and almost Thursday... Got drenched in the rain while trying to guard the not-water-proof camera with my life... faced with injustice in Bio Lab after MLK day... I wonder if one of the viable symptoms of Seasonal Mood Disorder is rage instead of just melancholy, because I seem to have stumbled upon a previously-undiscovered, unbridled breed of it. Part of being a better person is letting it go, though... right? Whatever. I'm over it.

Today was definitely better. Well, it was to a certain degree... I did trudge through the cold for what seemed like hours but I ended up eating some really tasty dinner for it. Also, I got more pictures! Progress, yay. I'm considering... printing a bunch of URLs onto cardstock and just kind of handing those out to people I photograph... It's a lot easier than ripped out pages of random notebooks... But kind of like unofficial business cards, right?

As I mull over that, here's a street style photo from last week! I love Camille's coat and the contrast between light and dark... and if I'm not mistaken that's a wishbone necklace! Awesome.


Sunday, January 15, 2012

The Passage of Time

During my time in Atlanta this winter break I really came to feel how precarious are the tenuous threads that connect us to a place. Before leaving for college I'd been there almost 18 years of my life. A mere twelve months away (cumulatively) and already it felt like a strange destination, like a place I never really knew. What's worse is that I hardly know Nashville except for maybe the square mile in which I live and attend classes... in fact, it's probably a smaller area than that. So, after a bout of childhood, the tethers that connect us to our hometown are suddenly cut, and it's not until then that we realize we're just floating in space, belonging nowhere until we decide to root ourselves down. If we even can. I know this sounds all "Garden State"-esque, but it does come with a silver lining.

It's the people that count! Winter break would have seemed so bleak if it were not for my friends, some of whom came home from college and some who live in Atlanta indefinitely. We took advantage of our short time together and went on a few trips, got a few tattoos. You know. Casual.

Here are our photos. A few include fashion details and some quirky places around Macon, Georgia and Atlanta.

Ghost Towns of Macon













Picture from the Vintage Stores of Little Five Points
Criminal Records! in Little Five

Love,

Jenn

Friday, January 13, 2012

Adapting

New technology is great but it can be oh-so-frustrating! It took me forever to learn how to connect this borrowed camera to the computer, which resulted in many moments of me pulling out my hair and yelling at technology, the cosmos, and life in general.

I've been adjusting to my new schedule, which is simultaneously exciting yet entirely hellish. I can only imagine how much time I'll spend slaving over books this semester, stamping out my youth with every test trumped and paper produced. And to think, I promised myself an easier semester after the crap I put myself through last year! Oh well. Right now, while I still can, I'm trying to figure out how to multitask rushing to class and getting as many great pictures as possible. Now that I've learned how to connect this camera, which was much more trying than it sounds, trust me, hopefully there will be an onslaught of posts! I'm excited to have a productive new year. Hope everybody's looking forward to upping the standards of style and getting their picture on a (one-day-to-be) famous blog. Yeah. I said it. Prepare yourselves.

For today, I give you a slightly blurry street style photo of Francesca! She is very sweet, and I have photographed her before (if you recall the neon green bag of yesteryear--still totally in, by the way). It's slightly blurry because I left the photos on my dad's computer back home, and I pestered him to email them to me. This is the only one I got out of the few that I took, so this is the one I'm posting.


 
  Her brogues, which unfortunately due to my shoddy photography are rather hard to distinguish, are fabulous. Yes.

Jenn

Monday, January 9, 2012

First Day of School

Remember when you were a kid and it was the night before the first day of school? I used to lie in bed until three AM, because I wouldn't be able to sleep I was so excited. I've realized the beginning of a new semester is somewhat similar to that when you're in college. New classes, new faces, new rhythm to set yourself into... You can just imagine the excitement and anticipation that everybody relishes but won't admit to having.

Unfortunately, my day didn't start out so great! I forgot a writing utensil, was stressed out about scheduling conflicts, ran around like a chicken with its head cut off, and waited in the package pick-up line for an hour. By five o'clock, I had given up on YES-stalking my wait-listed classes and resigned myself to defeat. Oddly enough, my day got better after that... I've come back from dinner to find that my classes worked out and I'm where I need to be! Yay life! I shall celebrate with Gushers!

Also, I will start shooting new street style photos tomorrow. I'm out of stars, though, and haven't had time to make new ones. Sigh. So many loose ends. For now, here's a street style photo from finals season. I love Cam's yellow peacoat. Yellow is such an underrated color.


How was your first day?

Love,

Jenn

Friday, January 6, 2012

Oh, Is It That Time Already?

Well, if I had one New Years Resolution, it would probably have to be to take better care of my face (along with reading more books, and being a better and kinder person). It kind of reflects a wider resolution, that is, to keep myself healthy. Last semester, I left my health on the wayside as I decided to spend valuable sleep time pursuing better grades, good times, and a job. I won't say it wasn't worth it, but there comes a time when your sallow complexion faces you head-on in a mirror and you can't deny the truth any longer. Also, I'm pretty sure the stress gave me face wrinkles, which is just not on. So if I have to take hours off work, I'll do it! And if it means I ditch homework for sleeping, it is for my own good! I am thinking long run here, guys. Not long run like medical school, long run like my fifties. And onward.

Here's the outfit post I promised weeks ago. I've had these pictures burning a hole on my hard drive but just couldn't be arsed to "edit" them. But finally! And just in time for the first day of the new semester.

I don't usually dress this way, but sometimes it's nice to look like I'm on the way to a job interview. Or some off-kilter private school. I've heard both. Anyways, the greatest thing about this outfit is that the entire top half were all gifts... which really introduce you to a novel way of dressing. I kind of like it.

Hi, what is my face










That's all, folks! Catch you next time!

Also, it's a new semester. So more street style photos to come! Obvi.

Jenn

(Photography by Diana because she is a blessed soul)

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Winter Wear: Getting it Right

It is always a delight to photograph Scott (he's also in a few of the October VPRS fashion show behind-the-scene pics), or just to see him around campus, because he always looks so put-together.

Before the past few months, I never understood or really appreciated the subtleties of menswear. I assumed that Vanderbilt frat-letes were the pinnacle of fashion, probably because their color palettes so reflected my own. Little did I know that there were details such as bow-ties and top hats, cardigans and trouser pleats, suit jackets and brogues and the calf sock to appreciate, as well. A lot of thought can go into menswear, and most times it's a seeing the woods for the trees type deal, adding details that go towards creating an ensemble that, well--works.

Back to Scott, though. This was probably my favorite street style photo of the bunch because his outfit just works. I love his use of contrasting neutrals when it comes to his army-green jacket combined with his trousers and boots. None of the pieces are extravagantly colored, but each holds its own and contributes enough so as to not get lost in the "noise" of too many pieces. The scarf on top adds a bit of fresh color and gives the outfit a focal point, as well. Speaking of layers, as you can see, there aren't too many obvious examples of layering here, yet his outfit look complete: not too busy, and not too sparse.


Thanks, guys! Look forward to an outfit post, and some sartorial "detail" posts from Winter Break.

Jenn

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Is it July Yet?

Another street style post for you today, one of the lovely Erica! I am very disappointed to say that all the pictures I take are ever so slightly out of focus... Well, that just means there's a lot of room to improve, right? I did quite enjoy Erica's color scheme (red, white, and a navy blue). It was quite a refreshing sight, as that week had proven full of long coats and leggings, and it's nice to see a colorful skirt every once in a while. However, it must have been terribly cold! Only in the South can you wear a short skirt in December, I'd say that's one of our enviable qualities.



I spent the day applying for my very first internship (here's looking at you, Northwestern)! Or research program, same thing. I feel very productive, and in the effort to keep up my productivity, I decided to update as well, with some street style and a little bit of an update on life.

The New Year has treated me well so far. The first day, I saw some old friends. The second, I went on a bit of a day trip and got some nice pictures (which I will post here soon). And the third, today, I've got a new follower and I finally got off my ass and did something! Technically I was sitting on my ass while I did it, though. So I use it figuratively.