Six Items or Less, Day 7.

I’m reading a new book. Betcha can’t guess what! (Photography and art direction cred to Tori, again)

Last night, Tori pointed out that I had only worn five of my six pieces thus far, therefore living up to the “or less” part of this Six Items dealio.

Normally, this would have been a victory; however, my reluctance to wear the sixth piece — my light blue Steven Alan dress (the one that the navy blue rope belt in my previous entry came from) — may or may not have been rooted in the fact that right now, it’s not fitting so great. Two words: Oprah arms. Seriously. It’s like trying to fit sausages into casings that are too small.

Pssssssych. But for real.

So I did something that I’m not positive is legal in The World of Six Items or Less: I swapped one as-yet-unworn piece out for another; in this case, the Steven Alan dress for the polyester/rayon blend “blouse” I bought as part of my Log Lady costume. Today, I wore it with another of my six pieces — the Levis — as well as my:

• Vintage Justin boots (again)
• Montgomery Ward sweater (again; also part of my Log Lady costume)
• Other pair of glasses (round, yellow Christian Diors from the mid-’70s to mid-’80s)
• J. Crew leather belt
• Czech coin earrings, hand-selected by Tori before scurrying off to work (while I was still half-asleep) from her personal collection

Together, this look is what I like to call “Grump Chic,” because the combination of polyester/rayon, mohair and mugginess doesn’t do a whole lot in terms of breathability, and I was sweating most of the day.

I have two necklaces (one of which I wore yesterday, the other of which is currently M.I.A. in my room) and only one pair of earrings to my name, so borrowing a pair to complete this look was crucial. Even though I feel a little ashamed that I have so few baubles to call my own, I feel like borrowing from a friend (especially one with good taste and in such close proximity) is more in keeping with the Six Items or Less ethos, which I think has something to do with consuming less and in turn relying on others more.

Kudos again to Tori for doing that which I could not do for myself, i.e. take a full-length picture of myself in decent lighting using an iPhone.

Tags: six items or less, vintage