Leah – Page 14 – Leah Wise

live/wear + week in review

December 7, 2012Posted in thoughtsTagged article, blogs, fashion, list, livewear, productivity, style, weekly reviewLeave a comment

livewear

After car repairs ruined my last full day off, I needed to pick myself up and get motivated this week. Surprisingly, it worked. I listed several items on etsy, went to the bank, paid my city taxes, revised an article (more on that soon), completed a poem, did three loads of laundry, finished The Autobiography of Malcolm X (all 466 pages!), and kept the house (very relatively) clean. Additionally, I read some good articles online:

A New Theory of PTSD and Veterans by Tony Dokoupil
This is Christ’s body, broken for you by Rachel Held Evans
Why I Never Play Hard to Get by Rachael Kay

and discovered a few blogs:

Thanks for reading. What did you accomplish/take pride in this week?

a poem for Advent

December 6, 2012Posted in thoughtsTagged advent, christ, christianity, death, girl on fire, guilt, life, original, poem, poetry, salvation, vanity2 Comments

Light of Christ

She held it cupped in her wrinkled palms,
across her lifeline, it burned
And fragmented and grew.
She peered in, squinting hard,
Hands to nose
Stars igniting in her eyes.

She clenched it then, tightly
Pushed it away with the force of her now
elongated arm, like a sigh, or fainting,
or a fervent dance.

She didn’t let go.
Afraid, though, of
The Revealing:
over-exposure,
Conviction – no trial necessary

But it hurt, holding its
heat, its heaviness
She shuttered her eyes

Release.
She knows it’s gone.
She can see the sun with her eyelids pinched tight.
A whisper, a knowing – she musters the courage to
Look.

She is enwrapped in a gown of radiance
frothy and feathered and laden with silk,
A light that imparts light
A glow that reveals, not her own:
griminess, despair, darkness.
The light of truth and love,
The light of Christ encroaching on:
decay, vanity, deceit,
Death.

Embraced, ignited,
A girl on fire
Enshrouded in the revealing and
Holy Light of Christ.

on living honestly

December 5, 2012December 5, 2012Posted in thoughtsTagged bangladesh fire, black friday, consumerism, desire, ethics, factory, fair trade, fast fashion, forever 21, gandhi quote, gluttony, international market, liveable wage, modern slavery, moral imperative, morality, secondhand, suffering1 Comment

I’ve been burdened by the sentiment above for the past several months. On my old blog, I started a goal called The Secondhand Year whose guidelines demanded I buy as many material goods as possible on the secondhand market instead of buying into an unethical, international fast fashion market. I struggled with it. I excused myself by it. I succeeded and failed in equal measure. But I can’t give it up.

I not only believe but know that it is immoral to participate in our consumerist culture in full knowledge that I contribute to darkness and suffering. When I purchase a garment from Kohl’s or Sears or Forever 21, I implicitly shout that I am ok with treating people who work at their garment factories like crap, that I am ok with the fact that they don’t make enough to give their children better futures, that they consider suicide a viable option, that they could very easily die for the cause of producing cheap garments at less than a liveable wage for gluttonous Americans. We must look like devils to them, absorbed in our coveting and spending and hoarding. We freaking shoot people on Black Friday to buy the products they slaved over at low, low prices without a second thought about their well being.

I’m being dishonest if I toss and turn over this reality and promote its demise but continue to buy into it. Shopping is the thorn in my flesh. I may fight against its flirting gaze for the rest of my life. But I have to keep fighting.

oh, Christmas Tree

December 3, 2012December 3, 2012Posted in life in photosTagged christmas tree, decorating, fair trade, holiday, home tour, rustic, ten thousand villages, tree topper, vintage2 Comments

The tree is up, adorned with an assortment of ornaments, old and new. Our most prized ones are from Ten Thousand Villages, a Mennonite-founded company that provides jobs to artisans around the world at a fair wage. The tree topper is 1970s Hallmark.

live/wear

December 2, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged abstract, cardigan, elle decor, fall, interior design, livewear, modern, outfit, ruche, supermodernity, tapestry bag, tights, wedge sneakersLeave a comment

livewear

This outfit is a bit crazy. But this room is a bit crazy, in a good way. Who would have thought to mix a tangerine, oriental rug with graphic, modern art and über contemporary accents (apparently Elle Decor)?

I tried to pick up not only the color scheme but also the sense of texture and playfulness of the room in my outfit, accenting a gray chiffon dress with a patterned cardigan, carpet bag, and statement wedges. I’d like to lounge on that couch and peruse an art book for the afternoon. But I’m not sure I’d like to live here full time. Super modern isn’t really my thing.

While doing some “research” for this post (aka, looking up words to get some context for my thoughts), I stumbled upon this Wikipedia article on hypermodernity/supermodernity. So long, post modernism? Even fashion can be intellectual.

month in review: 11/2012

December 1, 2012Posted in UncategorizedTagged charlottesville, christmas, luray caverns, monthly summary, moving, saunders-monticello trail, shenandoah valley, thanksgiving, woodstock, workLeave a comment

November is difficult to summarize because I can barely remember what happened before Thanksgiving. I think I’m finally at the point where calling these posts, ” …months in C-Ville,” is unnecessary; I no longer think of my life here in terms of my moving date, which is a sign it really feels like home.

Thanksgiving table, sans Turkey

Last month, I:

toured Luray Caverns and Woodstock, VA with Daniel and his dad
found a limited edition, made in Israel, art print for .50 at Circa
went on an invigorating walk on the Saunders-Monticello Trail with two new friends
had to wear a jacket every single day
thrifted a ton of vintage (and a few things for myself)
drove to Richmond twice in one week to pick up and return my sister to her Florida carpool
took my car into the shop twice
watched Waitress and sipped hot chocolate with a friend
promoted Water Lily Thrift‘s first annual Black Friday sale
edited a product information email for my boss
got another raise at work
finished ballet classes for the season
wrote an article
got halfway through The Autobiography of Malcolm X
visited Carter Mountain with Daniel and my visiting friend, Andrea
spent Thanksgiving week with two friends and my sister (who also happens to be my friend)
hosted Thanksgiving
attended the Tree Lighting ceremony downtown
bought lots of Christmas gifts
hosted a church mini-potluck (where everyone brought dessert!)
bought my first real Christmas tree
began an ornament collection
tinkered with the blog layout

I’m so glad I sit down to make these lists. Without them, I wouldn’t realize how much I actually do and accomplish each month. It looks like we had quite an adventure after all! Guests, parties, outdoor trails, holidays. We’re regular Charlottesvillians, it seems – all settled in and welcoming people into our home.

December is here. It’ll be an exciting month.

images & inspiration

November 30, 2012November 30, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged composition, crafts, diy, fall, fashion, images, inspiration, internet, photos, pinterest, set1 Comment

I love the composition and timeliness of this photograph by Elizabeth Messina for The Huffington Post.
Stripes and polka dots in fall colors appeal to me.
Inspired by Downton Abbey’s Season 3 wardrobe.
I’ve seen a few building projects that use unfinished crates from Michael’s, but this is one I might actually do.
The setting of this image makes very little sense, but I like the outfit and the stacks of books.
A photo by Paper Crowns, a Charlottesville blogger!

It’s almost time to write a four months in Charlottesville post. Isn’t it weird that it’s practically December?

end of season

November 25, 2012November 26, 2012Posted in life in photosTagged apple, apple picking, blue ridge mountains, carter mountain, charlottesville, fall, friends, hike, orchard, photography, virginia, winter2 Comments

We’ve heard a lot about Carter Mountain during the last few months. The orchard opens to tourists when apples are ripe for harvesting in the early fall. Most apples have been picked by this time of year, but we thought we’d take the trip anyway (it’s only 10 minutes away from our house) since Andrea was in town.

The view was more extraordinary than I expected so close to home and we all had a lovely time walking through the orchard (but the hike back up to the parking lot was torturous). We collectively picked one apple as a souvenir. I still haven’t eaten it. It’s probably going bad!

tree lighting

November 24, 2012November 24, 2012Posted in life in photosTagged black friday, charlottesville, christmas, downtown, downtown mall, dusk, fall, holiday, photos, season, tree lighting3 Comments

We headed downtown with my sister yesterday evening to witness the annual downtown Christmas Tree Lighting. Since we arrived early, we stopped by the coffee shop to say hello and pick up an iced mocha and mini muffins.

The tree lighting was a bit anticlimactic, but the weather was mild (though a cold front blew in swiftly last night) and the sky was teal after the sun set. After the tree was lit, we got some dinner at The Whiskey Jar, then shopped around before heading home.

I didn’t manage to get a single clear picture of the lit tree, so the above will have to suffice.

Today is my sister’s last full day in town. We plan to buy a tree and make the house festive this evening. Christmas has been a letdown for me the past couple of years. I really want to invest time and energy in the season this year – I want to do things the right way and be thankful and warm and content.

wishes

November 23, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged american eagle, basics, black friday, clothes, coupon, list, outfitters, polyvore, preppy, sale, shopping, thanksgiving, wishlist1 Comment

We’re having a nice time visiting with family and friends-who-are-like-family this week. We made delicious turkey, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, stuffing, pecan pie, and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies for our Thanksgiving feast.

This was my first time hosting – although I helped with the past two years’ meal preparations – and it was a bit overwhelming. I (mostly) forget that I’m an introvert until I’m surrounded by a handful of people for days on end. I become agitated and feel the need to flee, but I have to push through it, resist the urge to snap at people, and drink more coffee.

We’re likely spending tomorrow basking in glow of the coming Christmas season with local festivities instead of braving the ravenous crowds at retail chains. I’m morally opposed to Black Thursday/Friday in-store sales, but I love to peruse online sales (although I guess it may be just as bad for warehouse employees this weekend as it is for store employees). But as I always say, there’s no harm in window shopping. I am particularly drawn to the preppy basics American Eagle offers. All items are 40% off until November 25!

AE wishlist

Boyfriend Cardigan
Leopard Print Belt
Simple Striped Dress
Bass Heeled Booties (way out of my price range)
Purple Dress
Patterned Bucket Bag
BC Footwear Wedge

(click collage to view links)

sup?

November 20, 2012Posted in life in photosTagged carter mountain, family, friends, loved ones, thanksgiving, travelLeave a comment

Hello. I’ll be back to my regular blogging schedule next week (do I even have one of those?), when I’m weeping alone in my dark, basement house because all of my friends have gone back to Florida.

Andrea (and her husband, Mike) and my sister, Jennifer, are visiting this week. It’s glorious.

on wearing pants

November 16, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged cold weather, curvy, fall, ideas, inspiration, jeans, jeans shopping, mossimo, outfits, pants, pattern mixing, pear shaped figure, skinny jeans, style1 Comment

I do not like pants. I’d much prefer to wear a skirt or dress every day. There are a few reasons why I turned my back on pants: 1. my hips (ahem, and behind) grew disproportionate to my waist during my growing-up years (but really, who’s to say what’s disproportionate?); 2. the search for proper fitting jeans is endless, mind-numbing, and degrading; 3. skinny jeans with too little stretch are rather constricting; 4. I lived in Florida, so I didn’t really need to wear pants.

But now I live in a clime where fall and winter are real events, not just markers of time. The weather has been mild for the most part, but I’m beginning to regret walking from my car to work in a dress and knee high socks. My thighs are numb by the time I arrive. I need to suck it up and wear some pants (that sounds like a sexist metaphor, but if it weren’t sexist, I’d say that I just created a pretty great double meaning in that sentence).

I forced myself to brainstorm outfits that aren’t atrocious to get myself excited about jeans-wearing.

jeans outfits

Sheer shirt layered over tee + pattern mixing
Striped shirt + cardigan and moccasins
Casual graphic tee + cozy accessories
Tunic and flats + oversized sweater

Do you like jeans? How do you dress for cold weather?

inspired: Mathijs Delva

November 15, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged flickr, forest, golden hour, image, landscape, mathijs delva, nature, nostalgia, photography1 Comment

Mathijs Delva‘s work is difficult to describe in non-cliche terms. It’s breathtaking, ethereal, harmonious, nostalgic. His landscape work makes you want to fling your arms wide in exaltation and go live in the photograph.

(one, two, three, four, five)

Images via Mathijs Delva on flickr; individual links above. To purchase images, visit the photographer’s website.

bohemian

November 13, 2012Posted in inspirationTagged beanie, bohemian, boho, denim vest, floral, free people, maxi skirt, minnetonka, moccasins, polyvore, stylemintLeave a comment

(noun) : a person, as an artist or writer, who lives and acts free of regard for conventional rules and practices.

I’ve been attracted to the bohemian, Free People, aesthetic for many years now, but I never really believed I could pull it off. Maybe I like it because I am a Type A personality; I might be imaginative, but I certainly don’t live outside societal bounds or push the limits very far. I am a rule follower. But clothing allows for a little eccentricity without real risk, at least on your days off. My favorite thrift store in town occasionally carries clothing from Free People in my size and I’ve begun snatching it up when I can find it.

boho

Moving allows for reinvention. I can be anything I want to be; I’m not barred by past assumptions. And I realize I never really was.