Black and Red

I like combining black and red.  They go together like Ricky and Lucy.

I also like interesting designs.  My favorite necktie has cool jagged horizontal lines.  Last night I was at Marshalls and saw a similar design on a dress, using black and red.  How could I resist?

Do you share my affection for these two colors?

Too Far?

Okay, the suspense has probably been killing you, so here's my wilder take on yesterday's outfit.  You get the full view of it in the second and later pics.

Which outfit do you prefer?  And do you think I went too far with this one?

My philosophy in fashion is to embrace what appeals to me, regardless of convention.  First, because I was forbidden to dress up for most of my life and, second, because I want my life to be undiluted by social pressure.  I'm reaching for my dream without inhibition.

Wild? Or Demure?

I was in a creative mood tonight.  I played around and experimented.

I created an outfit out of several old pieces.  Because I incline toward bright, bold colors, I toyed with those.  The result, I fear, is too wild.  Too bright.  Too crazy.  That's my style, but I worry it is too extreme for you.  So I tried something else.  I took most of the same elements and made a more demure look.  In monochrome shades of gray and black.

What I'm going to do is show you the second outfit tonight and the wilder outfit tomorrow.  That way you can view each on its own merits.  I'm curious which you'll prefer.  Or if you'll even accept my wild side.  When I go crazy, I really go crazy!

Here's the conventional, demure look...

Shot Out Of A Cannon

Hunter S. Thompson, the crazy writer, sought thrills most never dream of.  He took hallucinogenic drugs, hung out with Hells Angels, and consorted with corrupt politicians.  There was little Hunter wasn't up for.  It should come as no surprise then that Hunter discovered motorcycles, the ultimate thrill machine.

A motorcycle magazine (Cycle World) had a Ducati sportbike sent to Hunter and asked him to write about his experience riding it.  The article, which is famous, is vintage Thompson.  Here's my favorite part:

"Some people will tell you that slow is good -- and it may be, on some days -- but I am here to tell you that fast is better. I've always believed this, in spite of the trouble it's caused me. Being shot out of a cannon will always be better than being squeezed out of a tube. That is why God made fast motorcycles, Bubba...."

High and Low

I appreciate things both high and low.  I look for something's intrinsic value, which is different from its cultural and class association.  Some things considered to be "low class" -- like motorcycles -- are insanely fun and valuable.  Other things considered high class, like haughty restaurants, are stuffy and uncomfortable.  The key is to hone in on a thing's intrinsic value -- what it offers in reality.

I apply this approach to food.  Last Christmas, I savored caviar that cost $400 for a tiny amount.  It was delicious.  Today, when buying a birthday gift for my dad in the liquor store, I stumbled upon something that made me laugh.  I bought bottles for both him and me.  Here they are...

Made in rural Tennessee, this Moonshine is apple pie flavored.  The same flavor that Mags Bennett made on the terrific TV show, Justified.

Have you ever tried Moonshine?!

Duality

In an effort to reduce spending on new clothes, I surveyed my closet for items into which I can breathe new life.  I found this dress.  The dress is, in fact, the very first one I ever wore on my blog.  Back in my LiveJournal days, I bought this piece mail-order from Metrostyle.  (I wasn't brave enough back then to enter a real clothing store.)

The dress is feminine, yet bold; mature, yet youthful.  Those themes persist in my fashion choices to this day.  My whole life has been an attempt to reconcile opposites.  Male/female; young/old; proper/wild.

To update the dress, I'm adding a new belt and a cuff-bracelet I picked up yesterday on Canal Street.  Have you heard of Canal Street?  It's on the edge of Chinatown in NYC where you can buy grey-market goods at low prices.  The bracelet was only $10.

What do you think?

Things I Saw Today