The Muse: Empire Building

Coat: The Kardashian Collection via Sears, a gift from my grandmother
Sweater: Twelve Layers, thrifted via Into the Wardrobe
Skirt: no label, probably homemade, thrifted via Goodwill
Bracelet: Poundland, UK
Shoes: Enzo Angiolini via Building 19
Purse: Nine West, thrifted via Second Time Around

 In case you hadn't guessed from the sticker on my coat, these pictures are a little out of  date. We had a professional day on Election Day because the high school gym is a polling place, but I forgot and didn't dress down (not that I ever really do). Luckily I left on time that day, right at 2  o'clock and was able to get some great photos right behind my polling place, at the old Diamond Hill Ski lodge. My polling place actually changed for the first time since I started voting, the redistricting is annoying because we have to travel farther, but the location is much better for photos. I've used this area for photos before, you can see the pictures from this summer here. This was also the first day cold enough that I discovered just how uncomfortable being a fashion blogger in New England during the winter can be. Coat on, I was just fine and dandy. Coat off, I almost left some piece of skin behind stuck to really cold surfaces like the kid in A Christmas Story. I used to read the fashion blog of a girl in Alaska who would take her photos in skimpy little dresses while lying on the snow. I'm pretty sure now they were staged. Short sleeves in November may seem a little backwards, but our library is all glass and we have a distinct greenhouse effect, by about third period we have the fans running full blast in the office. Not that this prepared me for shivering outside at four o'clock. On the upside the mayor of my town held the door for me when I was leaving after I voted, so I braved the cold not just to build the great American empire, but for the celebrities, and a few good photos.