elephant in the room

The "Walk Like An Egyptian" pose...but not. No, not at all actually. 

Top (came w/belt): Marshall's// Skirt: Ruche// Cardi: Target// Wedges: Cole Haan// Hair bow: American Apparel 

Elephants + Houndstooth! I personally think it works. 

 "pop lock and drop it" pose

Who else here is uncomfortable when things that need to be addressed, aren't? I'm that person that can never just 'pretend' that things are fine. I won't ever ignore what's lurking. I won't refrain from addressing issues to avoid confrontation. Confrontation doesn't always have to be bad.  Sometimes it's necessary. Confrontation, in my experience, really just turns into a conversation that is however-long-overdue (two minutes or two years, it needs to be said), so I associate these two words rather closely together. Announcing the elephant provides clarity - this can obviously apply to a wide range of scenarios from personal relations to social gatherings to professional atmospheres. Although, for some reason, and I don't know why this is, some people are fine with going about their business and sweeping things under the rug. (I'm on a roll with idioms today.) I guess they don't like to shake things or don't wanna "go there." Let me, because I don't do well with nodding my head and smiling to things that don't sit right. That being said, I will only hold my tongue to a certain extent, e.g. timing and place. I have just always believed in being brutally honest, while displaying tact of course....Hmm, I'm gonna end this since I tend to ramble, but you get the idea. File this in your brain space as things to know about me. I'm Roni and I'm okay with confrontation. But elephants in the room? I'll point those suckers right out! :)
I'll be getting to the comments from my last post and reading all your blogs tonight since I don't have school till late tomorrow. The last two+ weeks have been insane in the membrane and I don't like feeling like a bad blog friend when I get behind on your lives. And just in case it's been a while since I told y'all, thanks for reading my little blog.  It means so much to me! My first blogaversary is actually coming up on the 23rd, eep!!

My style muses...

Let's face it, whether we want to admit it or not, we all get at least parts of our personal style from other fashionable guys and gals. We just find various creative ways to make it our own. Like I told y'all in my first post, my style primarily comes from my passion for the 50's & 60's eras (music, movies, housewives attire, etc) and a few other modern day stylishly quirky standouts. 
Here are some of my style muses, and really, people that I simply adore. 

My heart has always belonged to Lucy <3 I am ga-ga over her fun housewife-y dresses. I have a collection of everyday vintage and vintage-inspired dresses that I refer to as my 50's housewife ensembles.

I love embracing my girly side, so I'm completely in love with the extremely feminine styles of Jackie O. and Audrey. Many of my date night, dinner, holiday party and going-to-wedding dresses are reminiscent of these two ladies' styles. I'm just in dire need of finding some vintage pill box hats!

I couldn't find many style pictures of her, but I find Eva Gabor's character as Lisa in Green Acres adorable and charming. I have a huge soft spot for her.

Marilyn Monroe definitely had a very sultry style for that of the 50's era, and I definitely don't see much of myself in her style, however, I do love the glam that she embodies! I love this picture because it's from one of my favorite movies, "How To Marry A Millionaire", and I noticed that the vintage eyeglasses I bought a few months ago are pretty much identical to the ones Marilyn wore in that film. Plus this is one of the prettiest images of her ever, in my opinion. 

Mad Men is one of the most aesthetically pleasing television shows to watch, ever! Especially if you're a vintage lover. I probably feel as excited watching Mad Men as men felt watching Baywatch in the 90's.  It's magical! I love all the fashion from that show, but I'm definitely more of a Betty Draper kinda gal myself. I do have some Joan-esque attire in my wardrobe, but she totally wears it much more 'sexy' than I do...then again, we are on completely opposite ends of the voluptuous spectrum. 

Every now and then I channel my inner Bowie through my outfits. Not only am I obsessed with his music (I named my dog after him), but I love his out-there clothes, makeup and crazy hairdos.   

In more modern fashion, there's my beloved Karen O. (Everyone should be a fan of her band, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.) I'm not always a matchy-matchy kinda dresser, and neither is she. I love her edgy, yet feminine look.

And finally, there's Zooey Deschanel. I am smitten with her and have been since seeing her in Almost Famous. I love that in a few of her roles she is seen donning the same kind of outfits that she wears in real life. We have an extremely similar style and an obvious love for the same eras' fashion bits. (I am so addicted to dresses with lots of tulle -like the one on the far right!)

I have collected all these pictures over the years, so clearly I don't have -nor remember- any of the websites in which I found them anymore. I think it goes without saying that I acquired them all on the world wide web and I own none of these images. Apologies for not "officially" crediting (this is the first time I've not done it properly); I've made it clear that I'm fully aware of giving credit where credit is due if you have the location of the source, and simply stating that you don't own something if you use it and don't remember where it's from.  

Anywho, these are pretty much my style muses - I'm sure there are others. And I've added my own little funky Roni twists to the fashion by exploring new avenues and combinations of style. For instance, my child-like addiction to headbands (especially with bows) with every outfit - I have dozens, and it's become one of my trademarks, according to friends. Or my simple little day dresses with a pop of quirkiness that comes from my off-beat shoes. Heck, even my tattoos are considered accessories to blending in with tons of my clothes! Etc. Etc. Etc. 

Who are some of your style muses/influences/impressionable folks? Feel free to share or do a post of your own like this! I had fun sharing mine. :)

I hope everyone had a nice, relaxing Sunday. I know I did. I also ate a ton of nonsense, simply out of boredom, all day! Not that I'm complaining; it's that good boredom that I'm perfectly content with. 


Love & hugs,
Roni

13 things I'm addicted to: Fashion edition

*In no particular order, because I'm random like that. Oh, you can go ahead and file this in the "About Me" category too.*

1) Shopping!

2) Collars! I can't get enough of a dress, blouse, jacket with a pretty collar. Peter pan collars are my #1 favorite. 

I love this lacy bib-like collar: ModCloth 2010

3) Hearts! Prints, tattoos, drawings, stickers...I heart hearts on everything.

Trollied Dolly hearts dress: Ruche

4) Bows! Bows in my hair, on my clothes, bow ties...I have like 6 pairs of shoes with bows on them. (Look at the size of this bow, front and center of my dress!)

Yellow tweed dress: Anthropologie 2010

5) Any movies or shows set to appear in the 1950's or 60's era. Sure the story lines are usually great, but I'm strictly glued to the screen for those lovely dresses and the awesome music. Mad Men is a weakness of mine.

Mikey & I looking Mad Men-esque at a wedding. 2010
Dress: BlueVelvetVintage

6) Polka dots! But I think all girls are addicted to polka dots.

Pink & polka dot 2fer dress: ModCloth 2010

7) Red hair! I read an article several months ago (when I had my bright red hair) where all these actresses were interviewed about what their natural hair color was and why they dye it so frequently. Many of them were natural blonds that have been dying their hair brown or black for many years. Their reasons for the hue swap were different, but a lot of them said they just felt that people took them more seriously as a brunette, or they simply felt mother nature issued them the wrong hair color at birth, so they just pay a little money every 6 weeks to dye it accordingly. I started dying my hair red in January and I gradually went redder and redder before going completely fire engine red. The way I felt with that color and the way people responded to it made me feel like I should have been born a red head. I just felt so much more like my sassy, feisty self with it. I've been a brunette again for about four months, and I'm so bored now that I've felt such a revival after having gone red!

See, I went from red to really red! Both outfits from ModCloth

8) Vintage! What I love most about vintage stores as opposed to thrift stores (I do enjoy thrifting when I have the time; I've been doing it since I was bout 6 years old) is that someone has already gone out and picked the gems for you! You just get to sift through treasure, rather than in some cases, junk. Most vintage shops are owned by someone who actually works there on a daily basis and goes out in search of the best of the best vintage products. People like Johnny at Speakeasy Vintage in Montclair, take the extra steps to have the pieces they find washed, dry-cleaned, and fixed up by a seamstress if there are small imperfections. I was really impressed by his commitment to selling damn near perfect vintage!

50's vintage tennis dress: The Attic, Las Vegas

9) Lace! There is just a timeless elegance in anything lace. So pretty.

Lace 2fer dress: Ruche, also sold on MC

10) Granny shoes! Also called oxfords, wingtips, saddle shoes...or even bowling shoes, if you're my brother. I'm very much obsessed with these and no, owning many pairs never gets old.

11) Girls with tattoos! Love them. I'm pretty much drawn to conversation anytime I meet a pretty girl with colorful tattoos. I feel like we're all part of our own [cool] little club. *hold still for my Tatted Beauties post I'm going to do in the near future*

12) Retro/vintage-inspired swimsuits!

Swimsuits: Esther Williams via ModCloth

13) SHOEZ in general! This should probably just fall into the category of shopping. :)

Irregular Choice shoes, NYC
This one day Mikey spoiled me!

Clearly there is more to me than just shopping and worrying about pretty clothes. I just wanted to do a little post like this for the new friends I'm making in the blog world who are also fashion addicts and have similar tastes. I know I personally love seeing blogger's outfit posts and their "things I love" posts, because it's likely I'm digging the same stuff, and it's also interesting to see how much you have in common with people who are otherwise just strangers to you.

Have a great rest of your day, friends!

Love,
Roni

Why, hello there!

So here goes the introduction:
My name is Veronika but my nickname since birth is Roni. Everyone calls me Roni so you can too. :)
I've had a few friends for a while now tell me I 'need' to start a blog...I'm not sure why, but recently I've found myself with the desire for a new outlet or new atmosphere for a means of expression, other than where I normally babble on Facebook. It dawned on me that a blog can be my little creative nook every once in a while, or everyday depending on how often I feel the need to share something neat or what I deem as memorable...which will likely be a ton of things since like the title of my blog states, I'm a very nostalgic person - I actually refer to nostalgia as being like a disease to me since so often I'm plagued with these overwhelming feelings of "I remember when" or "I miss...". It's quite sad, lol, but I'm happy that I have so many beautiful images to keep going back to in my mind. My life has had its share of what I call 'shit shows' but they don't compare to the truly glorious moments I've experienced, and both the good and the bad have taught me lessons or given me something I can cherish. 
Other than documenting how I spent my days I'd like to note the outfits I wore since I'm very big into fashion and it's one of the things that friends and strangers alike are very aware that I'm passionate about. Music and movies are definitely passions of mine as well and pieces of each of those arts are muses for my style.  For example, I listened to a lot of doo-wop music growing up as a child and watched a ton of films that were set in the 50's and 60's that I developed a deep fascination for those eras and have incorporated a great deal of the fashion trends from back then into my style today. I remember always telling my mom that I was born in the wrong decade or that in my other life I was a teenager in 50's and I wore poodle skirts every day and had a boyfriend that looked just like James Dean. It was the music that just made me fall so helplessly in love with wanting to be apart of it all. Songs like "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" by The Platters, "Girl on My Mind" by Buddy Holly, and "Sea of Love" by pretty much anyone that's ever covered it, were just so romantic and for me, define the purity and depth of love that the music of that time showcased. I envy the guys and gals that got to slow dance to those songs at their school dances. And movies like Shag, Cry Baby, American Graffiti, Breakfast at Tiffany's and so many others are just many more of the images that have inspired my tastes throughout these last 27 years. 
OH! I should warn the blogosphere that I'm incredibly new to this so if I make a few mistakes or don't know how to put links up or whatever, please don't be too hard on me. I'll get better - hopefully, ha! And I do hope my blog won't be terribly boring to people. For now, seeing as how I don't have any followers since I just did this on a whim in the wee hours of a Sunday night, this will be like my public/personal journal documenting my life. 
I guess I'll start with this weekend. On Friday my mother-in-law, Doranne, came up from North Carolina (I forgot to mention I'm currently residing in New Jersey -I'll update the "about me" section later) and we all met at my husband's grandpa's (we call him Pop Pops) house in Secaucus.  It was a lovely time! We celebrated Pop Pop's 80th birthday a couple months early since Doranne was in town and made a party of it with pizza, pasta and my favorite...CAKE! It was nice to see all my husband Mikey's aunts, uncles and cousins, whom I refer to all as my own family members. At one point during the evening I sat on a chair and watched all the family-togetherness ensue and it made me choke up with happiness, as this is the kind of thing I miss doing with my own family back in Texas. I'm just glad that we're living in a state where we do have family close-by and I can enjoy these moments again. 
Here is what I wore to Pop Pop's house on Friday:
*I'm a major sucker for peter pan collars! You will see these a lot on my blouses, cardigans and dresses.*
Outfit deets: Dotted with hearts blouse-Forever 21; Tulle cardi via ModCloth; Jeggings - Pac Sun 2008; shoes - Jeffrey Campbell via Solestruck

Saturday was an exceptionally beautiful day in October! I mean it was GORGEOUS! It was just one of those days where even you yourself just feel wonderful inside and out, and I know I was exuding a supreme level of happiness. :) Mikey, Doranne and I set out to our neighboring town of Montclair and enjoyed lunch at a cute and uber busy little restaurant called Raymond's. When I saw that they had a few Mexican breakfast dishes I lit up with excitement! (I'm 100% Mexican, even if I'm asked DAILY by total strangers if I'm Asian, Jewish/Asian, Black/White, Black/Asian, Romanian, Indian, Hawaiian, etc. LOL!) I ordered the migas plate and although it didn't taste quite like my mommy's, it was still satisfying.  It was nice to sit and chat with my mother-in-law over lunch and I know my husband was beyond thrilled to be sitting across a table from his mom. I adore his love and respect for his mother - it's definitely a quality every woman should seek out in their partners. After lunch we had to take Doranne back to our apartment to pick up her car so she could go back to her hotel and prep for her 35th high school reunion! Can you imagine that?! Oh dear, I can't believe next year will be my 10 year high school reunion! It went by way too fast and I'm still unsure as to whether or not I will attend...I'm leaning more towards the latter. Anywho, after we got home and Doranne left we sort of just lounged around our apartment for an hour and then I blurted out how bored I was and Mikey suggested going back to Montclair to walk around (it's such a cute town!), so we did. We went to a Halloween store, Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, and finally to The Office Beer, Bar and Grill where we had wings, nachos and drinks. I had my favorite Belgian Beer, Lindeman's Framboise. If you haven't tried it, DO IT. It's absolutely delicious. My girlfriends and I would go through a couple bottles every time we got together for movies and chats in Vegas. I just associate it with great memories every time I take a sip. :) 

Here's what I wore on Saturday:

*note the peter pan collar dress - told ya!*

Outfit deets: Dress - Etsy; tights & oxfords via ModCloth; bag - Melie Bianco  

And here is a picture of Mikey and I as we waited to cross Bloomfield Avenue at some point that night. 

I look like I have Bugs Bunny teeth in this picture! Lol, maybe I do...?
Well, today (Sunday...actually it's now technically Monday) has been very uneventful, but I'm not complaining. Mikey and I slept in till 3 p.m. (don't judge us) and then watched television together. Bridezillas is a guilty pleasure of mine and I actually got him to watch it today! He HATES that show. I don't blame him; the women are sometimes pretty frightful and I know I'm already a handful, although nowhere near as 'wild' as they can be. 
Other than overindulging in trash TV we did homework and ordered a bbq chicken pizza from Dominoes - YUM! 
I hope you enjoyed my very first ever blog posting (even though I know I'm really just talking to myself right now)!
Goodnight and sweet dreams. 
Sincerely,
Roni