President-Elect Joe Biden & Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris

Dress: Victory Dress in Reliquary Print by Effie's Heart (size 4x) via Gwynnie Bee

Cardigan: Jessica London (size 22/24), thrifted

Tights: Snag

Shoes: Sam Edelman via eBay

Earring: Wendy Baker

Necklace & Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo, Kate, & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-70

I was totally smitten with this dress..I wish I could have kept it forever. However, I have way too many dresses & I'm the odd person who has been losing weight during the pandemic. Like all Effie's Heart dresses...this one fit perfectly...it also had pockets & a swirly twirly skirt. And that print really spoke to my former goth girl self...once a goth, always a goth? 

Even though Halloween had passed...everyday is Halloween, right?! I felt the urge to pair this dress with these amazing tights I'd gotten from Snag last year...which of course led to more orange accessories. 

And my first wearing of these adorable stripy shoes I found on eBay. 

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Perversion, Tattoo Liner in Trooper by Kat von D, Huda Beauty eyeshadow palette in Coral Obsessions, NYX Liquid Suede lip color in Orange County, OPI nail polish in A Woman's Prague-ative & Orange You Fantastic! 

I've been eyeing this Heidi Daus bat necklace on eBay for a while & I finally got a good price on one...will I ever wear it?? Someday. And from the same seller...an acorn & oak leaf necklace I adored...even though it's tiny...for me. A yellow purse...because I don't have a large yellow purse. And more jewelry from Etsy. 

Glittery lipsticks, a polka dot bracelet in the appliance colors of my youth, & 2 floral necklaces. I cannot stop buying things online. I don't even really feel that badly about it. 

Last Saturday, while it was still in the 70s outside...I traveled over to Kate's side of town...just hours after it was announced that Biden would be our new president. Everywhere I went there were people waving flags & signs & honking in celebration. It made me tear up on the way there & outright cry on my way home. I love Madison. Kate opened up a bottle of sparkling wine from Michigan...Vote...& we drank it outside among the fallen leaves. 

Every once in a while, then sun would find me in the shade & I soaked in the vitamin D & enjoyed the last of the warm days of the year. On my way home, I saw one of the recently uncovered ghost signs on the Great Dane. 

Later that night...our Vice President-elect, Kamala Harris & President-elect, Joe Biden...spoke to us...spoke to our country with compassion...something I haven't heard from our leader in nearly 4 years. It gave me hope. Neither of these candidates were in my top 5 choices (Elizabeth Warren! Bernie Sanders!), but I think they can heal our country & make it a better place to live. Again, it gives me hope when not much else has lately. I'll take it. 

 

Vote

Dress: Cobalt Floral Smocked Detail Midi Dress by Taylor Dresses (size 24) via Gwynnie Bee

Cardigan: Jones New York (size 3x), thrifted

Tights: We Love Colors in Red

Shoes: Clarks, thrifted

Earring: Sobral via eBay

Necklace: Wendy Baker

Bracelets: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-70

I just happened to have this blue & white dress from GB on Election Day...so I added some red. The fit was spot on because of the smocking around the waist (& arms). The lining behaved nicely & I'm a fan of midi dresses...this one had a lot of fabric in the skirt which made the ruffle midway down the skirt cute instead of a weird cutoff point it can turn into with a tighter bottom. Most definitely a warm weather dress...but as we had temps in the 70s all last week, it worked. 

I had it all planned out...David had an appointment just down the street from this mural...which had been patriotic for at least a month. They decided to start painting a new mural on Election Day...why?! So I've got a bit of the red, white, & blue peeking out behind the new stripes of color. 

I tried to wear *2* earrings on this day, but one immediately fell out as soon as we started taking pictures...matching earrings is just not meant to be for me. 

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in LSD, Mon Ennui Cosmetics eyeshadow in Year of the Dragon & Lumiere, Russian Red lipstick by MAC, UD lipliner in 714, & A Kiss on the Chic nail polish from OPI. 

The Rainbow Girls are one of the marvelous new groups I've discovered during the pandemic...I don't even remember how. And now, because of them...I found another online gem, UnderCovered...this particular week they were covering Rainbow Girls 2017 album, American Dream. Various artists covered the songs...& I LOVE me a good cover. 

The Dresden Dolls opening up Rocky Horror, my failed trip to the beauty supply, & more progress on the mural. So, first my patriotic mural was being painted over, then my other reason for driving David to his appointment, picking up conditioner at Salon Centric, also was a bust...I forgot many places were closed for Election Day...as it should be. 

Watching election results with Angie via Zoom & drinking wine. Such a stressful week last week. A little UW talk on the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. 

I decided I needed more Eminence skincare...because why not slather your face in ALL THE EXPENSIVE THINGS?! A new Heidi Daus autumn necklace from eBay. And several conditioners from the beauty supply to try to correct the damage Olaplex did to my hair. 

 

Tea Time

Dress: The Sarah Dress in Tea Time Print by Effie's Heart (size 4x)

Tights: Catherines

Shoes: Mudd, thrifted

Earring: etXarte

Necklace: former Etsy shop

Bracelets: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-70

I bought this dress over a year ago from GB. I adore the style, cut, fit, & length of the dress...as usual, Effie's Heart gets it right. I also like the unusual tea pot color combination...& a rare long sleeve EH. 

I first wore this dress when David & I were visiting my parents in Tennessee last fall, but we never got around to taking outfit photos. 

Another blustery day. 

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Mildew, Too Faced eyeshadow in Totally Fetch & Sprinkles, Mildew eyeshadow from UD, Big Bang lipliner & lipstick by UD, & OPI nail polish in Greenwich Green. 

My favorite restaurant, Heritage Tavern, is doing takeout Thanksgiving...so I ordered it for me & David. It's going to be very sad not being at Angie's for Friendsgiving this year. djellafine doing a spooky Halloween set & a bunch of new to me artists live on Green Note. I especially enjoyed Ginger Cowgirl. 

The Green Note founders...which I'm only posting a picture of because...look at that embossed...wallpaper?! tin?! It's amazing. Davina urging us all to vote. And Halloween marked The Dresden Dolls 20th anniversary...so they went online the day before & did a talk about it & answered questions...it was fantastic. I also learned that the very first show Kate & I attended was at Schubas on August 14th, 2004...& that Brian had just found out his childhood family dog had died. I got a new iPhone & Book Book to put it in...it's supposed to be gold, but it's an extremely light gold. It will stay in its case & I'll never see it anyway. It takes noticeably better photos. Marianne! Doing a live chat on Instagram with sewist, Kelly Hogaboom.DJ Carrie Monstar doing a spooky Halloween DJ set...I only got to watch/listen to the first 20 minutes & it was gothfabulous...unfortunately, Twitch silences music because of copyright issues when it's no longer live...so I couldn't go back & hear more. Apples from our favorite orchard at market...the final time of the season. And Carsie & her band playing a Halloween rent party...she tried to bleach her hair to dress up as the chick from Ozark that she looks like...followed by a Patreon Zoom chat. Jake'O playing a Halloween show...& carving tiny pie pumpkins...I only wanted them for their seeds...but it was fun doing simple faces on them. While David & I played with pumpkins, we listened to my Halloween playlist. And...a photo of me wearing this dress when we were in Tennessee last year...back when we could travel & be around people *dramatic sigh*. Soon, right?

Haircut! What?!

Dress: Sunset Floral Print Crepe Fit & Flare Dress by Gabby Skye (size 24) via Gwynnie Bee

Tights: We Love Colors

Shoes: Nine West, thrifted

Earring & Bracelet: Wendy Baker

Necklace: A Luscious Thing (former Etsy shop)

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-70

I was in LOVE with this beautiful dress...the colors! Orange, various purples, & burgundy flowers made this the perfect autumnal floral dress. The asymmetrical hemline was adorable & so were the ruffle-y sleeves. The fit was spot on & look at that cute cutout in back. This dress had no stretch, so I was surprised it fit me in a size 24. 

We really lucked out finding these gorgeous hydrangeas still in such good shape...we've had a few frosts already...it was a lovely backdrop for this outfit. 

I felt pretty on this day...perhaps because I finally got a HAIRCUT! My first since February. 

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in 1999, Huda Beauty eyeshadow palette in Ruby Obsessions & Amethyst Obsessions, Mahogany lipliner by Estēe Lauder, NYX Simply Red lip cream in Knock Out, & Hollywood & Wine nail polish from OPI. 

My stylist, Sigrid, went out on her own...so I thought the risk would be smaller than when she was at a bigger salon...so a haircut...& a Tamara de Lempicka on the stairway. A video chat with the girlie! And day 2 of the Champaign-Urbana Folk & Roots Festival.

Some of the highlights from day 2 included...Southwest Watson Sweethearts, Hot Club of Cowtown, The Sapsuckers, & Nikki D & the Browns. Kate & I were supposed to see Hot Club of Cowtown earlier this year...performing with Davina, doing songs from WWII. I also listened to a couple of Halloween DJ sets online, including one from DJ cypher. 

Chocolate Zebra Safari

Dress: Chocolate Zebra Safari Perfect Faux-Wrap Dress by Leota (size 4L) via Gwynnie Bee

Cardigan: Seventh Avenue, thrifted

Tights: Snag

Shoes: Soft Style by Hush Puppies, thrifted

Earring: former Etsy shop

Necklaces & Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-70

As usual, this Leota fit perfectly, but I did have to pin the neckline closed. My favorite part of this outfit was how well the cardigan & dress went together...I mean, they were made for each other, right?!

I did a really silly thing...I didn't make sure I downloaded these photos before reformatting the memory card...so David spent hours recovering them for me. 

It was lightly drizzling during this photo shoot...so I am covered in droplets. But...I dyed my hair, which made me ridiculously happy.

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Roach; Fireball, Scorched, & Dirty Talk eyeshadow by UD, Smashbox Liquid Metal in Haterade; Sunrise & The City nail polish from Morgan Taylor. 

Dan Rodriguez playing from his van...on the road doing backyard house concerts. UW live online...The Art of Papermaking...I only watched about 20 minutes of this. djellafine playing gothy tunes on Twitch. 

I left the house! This was my first time at Costco since the pandemic began. David & I felt it was safer to get our flu shots here than risk our doctor's office. Last holiday season I bought gift certificates at a discount to use for my facials...but who knows when that will be possible again? So we stopped by ANiU & I picked out some Éminence skin care to pamper myself at home. And, finally! I got my first round of prolotherapy shots in my knee...in 6 weeks, I'll go back for more. I am hopeful this will help my knee heal enough that I can walk without pain. Fingers crossed. 

I think because I listen to a lot of live music online, Facebook advertises things to me...& I'm grateful...because I've discovered new music during the pandemic...at least I'll always have that. So, despite not happening too far away from me...I learned about the Champaign-Urbana Folk & Roots Festival. It was fantastic! It's all still online if you want to check it out. Here are some of the acts I enjoyed from the first day...Dom Flemons, Hannah Mayree, Jake Blount, & Kilborn Alley Blues Band. 

I also watched a show from Hook & Ladder...Mary Bue & The Monarchy. So many new artists were added to my Spotify lists. 

Pictured below are sex toys...I am putting a space here in case you are against? sex toys. 

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The Lelo Sona 2 Cruise has gotten so many mentions as best sex toy...that I wanted to try it out (it's the purple one). I told David & put him in charge of "surprising" me...so, of course...being David...he got me some of their other offerings too. However, I am too enamored with the one I requested to have even tried the others yet. You all need this toy, ladies. And I'm not typically a toy girl...in fact...I just went from 0 to 3 toys with this one shipment.