earrings - Berber handcraft, gift from Tunisia / perfect army jacket - Zara / cat print blouse - Zara / overdyed skinnies - Zara / shoes - Toms
I've talked a little bit about how gorgeous our apartment in Marrakech is - there are the multiple sunny balconies, the profusion of awesomely spiky plants, the tiny vintage bottles in every room, the perfectly curated collection of bespoke objets d'art, and, of course, the overwhelming profusion of gorgeous textiles - but some of its greatest features by far are the mirrors.
Every room of this (sizeable!) apartment contains at least one large mirror, and none of them are hanging from the wall. Instead, every single one of these mirrors sits on the floor and leans against the wall - creating the perfect angle to reflect me at a tall and lovely 5'8" at least. As a result, I've found that the longer we've been here, the less I worry about silly things like figure flattery and proportion, and the more comfortable I've gotten wearing things that I'd normally consider 'unflattering' - things like cuffed pants and blouses tucked in below my natural waist. I'm not sure how well these proportions work for me outside of the magic mirror, but I can't deny the mini-ego boost of catching your reflection on your way to the kitchen and thinking, damn, I look good.
So maybe instead of worrying so much about 'dressing for my body type,' I ought to tip all my mirrors back a little and enjoy the benefits of this particular small fiction.
20 comments:
magic mirrors are important for cancelling out those sometimes-unflattering photos that everyone takes once in a while. plus i actually love some alleged-unflattering proportions--like rolled up jeans, be still my heart, i think they always look amazing.
and i didn't get a chance to comment last time but your saga of buying the same army jacket four times made me crack up--i totally do the same thing with gray cardigans (and striped shirts, and high-waisted skirts) and it kinda made me want a military-esque jacket of my own--yours flatters you so well!
the mirrors are a wonderful idea, should try that!! Lovely outfit :)
You look great! I want that blouse!
Like this look. If I buy jeans too long I just turn them up with cuffs, solves the problem and gives a different look. Your apartment sounds fabulous btw :)
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I love rolled up jeans; I've read elsewhere that they're supposed to be unflattering but I just don't see it. I think yours look great!
Love the whole look! And your apartment- there are no words for the jealousy that I have! :)
The mirrors don't lie. You look fantastic!
Ha! Maybe that's what I should be doing then to make my 5'5 frame seem taller :)
Love the casual chic look of this outfit, especially with that jacket over the more delicate blouse. And your backdrop is gorgeous as well. I have a question since you're writing about this amazing place you're staying at - how do you find these places of residence? Are they provided as part of your academic travel arrangements? I love catching little glimpses of them in your photos.
S.
I'm totally into the whole tucking your shirt in below the waist. The mirrors where I work are super flattering and slimming, so I feel like I'm living a lie! But I'm definitely okay with it!
And I love this outfit a ton. I am so excited for rolling up jeans more often and bare ankles (and legs for that matter), yay for Spring!
And, it is a VERY flattering outfit.
I think maybe everyone has some sort of ur-garment that they were separated from in another life, and so they spend this one constantly trying to recapture that lost style.
I highly recommend it - it doesn't matter that you know it's an optical illusion, somehow it still works!
Thanks Gyda! The blouse is actually a very recent Zara purchase, inspired by seeing it on eat.sleep.wear and loving it!
I usually turn my cuffs up on the inside, since all jeans are too long for me :)
Thanks Felicity! It's funny how unimportant so much fashion "advice" can be in the real world, when nine times out of ten, if you feel good, you'll look good.
At 5' 4 3/4," I can't recommend the tilted mirror enough :)
As I mentioned to Jade above, I realize my post made it totally unclear but these photos weren't actually taken at my apartment. We have been staying at some pretty incredible places though, all of which we've found through Airbnb. I really recommend it, especially if you are traveling with more than one person. Right now we're on our sixth rental through their site, and we haven't had a bad experience yet. We've rented both spare bedrooms in people's apartments and entire flats, and it's been really nice to always have access to a real kitchen, and to someone who can give you local advice. Sometimes you get some extra hospitality too - we actually just got back from being taken out to dinner tonight by our hostess here in Marrakech.
Thanks Jade! These photos actually weren't taken at our apartment (although I couldn't have made that anymore unclear in my post, whoops), but at the Palais El Bahia in Marrakech. It's a gorgeous palace with lots of great tilework and lovely courtyard gardens, but these pictures were taken in my favorite part - an enormous tile courtyard that's fallen into disrepair.
Aw, thank you!
Isn't it funny how it doesn't matter at all that you know the reflection is distorted? I totally don't care that I'm living a lie either!
your blog is fantastic. i love the concept behind it!
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