So every year, Boohoo comes out with some primo affordable shit for the Halloween months, I say months because that's how long it lasts for me. For the average person, the way I dress can sometimes give the impression that I'm "too jovial", too "Halloween 365", to that I say.....well....yea, but no.

I want y'all to know how difficult is was for me not to showcase all of my skeleton outfits (thanks, Boohoo.com), it's seriously all I want to wear for a good long while.
I have an absolute weakness for all things bone. Give me a skull or a skeleton anything, and I am here for it, I want it, I need it!

AND, apparently, back in the 1300s, folks sometimes decorated their homes with skulls as a reminder to celebrate life, so cheers to that!

WAIT, wait, wait, wait......not every skull is created equal...I think I've mentioned this before. just know that the love is real and though there are limitations, boundaries, qualifications, it doesn't take much for me to fall head over heels for skull/skeleton paraphernalia. Now you take that mindset and apply it to things like...unicorns, flamingos, mermaids, you get the point, I am seriously all over it, in there like swimwear.

Saw what i did there? Mermaids...swimwear...? No? Stop lyin', I know you saw it.

My style is truely a beautiful and wild splash of textured paint on a pristine sheet of canvas, I am seriously everywhere with it, but the common thread is that I WILL in fact incorporate a stud (hence this bracelet you see in nearly all posts), a skull, a skeleton-ish type of something, every chance i get. it's who I am implicitly.

I grew up in the Lower East Side, in New York, during a time when (at least in my opinion) the alternative scene, and all of its subcultures, were EVERYTHING. I sometimes wish I grew up there, in the village, in the 70s or 8os. I'm sure it would've had some more amazing, crazy moments and adventures. Nowadays, the East Village is NOT what it used to be.

I say all of this to say, as much as I've grown and evolved into the woman I am today, I still have all of who I was, providing the light/fire in my soul, it guides me, it shines through every time I put a lewk together. And, I can't tell you what to do....but I implore you, you should try and do the same. No matter the changes, remain you.

As for the specs of this look:

The duster is incredibly stretchy and may fit you if you go down a size or two from your normal size.
The bag is no longer available at Forever21.com (where I bought mine)...but, there's some other options bellow.
The boots or on super sale right now on Torrid.com, and they fit my big ole ankles and lower calves, so run...don't walk.
And lastly, the dress is reeeeeaaaalllly stretchy, I'm a true 3x (22/24), I get a 20 in everything Boohoo, but I ended up getting this dress in a 16 due to it lacking sizes by the time I was able to purchase it. So make of that what you will. Now, I've included some options that can give you similar vibes with either a little imagination, and/or a willingness to slightly veer of the road of mermaid....although I know that's what most of you came here for.

What I'm Wearing:

Crown from Charlotterusse. $7
Sunnies from Hottopic. $5 (No longer avail., alternative HERE)
Necklace from Forever21. $6 (No longer avail.)
Velvet duster from Boohoo.com. $10 (On sale, alternative HERE, and HERE)
Bag from Forever21.com. $19.90 (No longer avail. altern. HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE)
Dress from Boohoo.com. $10 (No longer avail. in plus, I'm wearing a size 16 and I'm a true 22/24. Alternatives HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE, .... oh and this exact one only comes in a size 4 and 6 now *Crying face emoji*)
Boots from Torrid.com. $52 (On sale, I'm mad because it's on sale now for even less!)

Let's start by saying, I'm in no way a professional as far as me being an art major, nor have I studied color theory at great length. I am, however, extremely passionate about color and all of the varying combinations. I love the conventional AND the unconventional pairings (I'm sure there's a specific term for this), and I do not shy away from color expression. I follow my gut and use what I may have come across or learned through out life, to guide me.

I'd also like to take a moment and address the disobedient dreadlocks that decided to pop out of my neat little bun on the top of my head *Side- eye in Spanish*.

When I buy something, there's a few things that happen out right; first I'm like, does this fit my "uniqueness" qualifications (cuz though I'm more into finding basics to anchor all my unique pieces...I'm far from basic), and then I'm like....how many millions of things can I pair this with?

When pairing things I do in fact take color theory into consideration, color palette is of great importance to me, THEN everything else gets put on the table (juxtaposition, comfort, whether it suites the character I'm choosing to "play" at any given time, etc...). Some of my favorite color combos are pinks and greens, blues and orange, and how any color pops against a neutral such as brown, black and white (which is still up in the air as to whether or not blk &wht are technically a color or not), etc..

My goal most times is make a statement, I AM HERE, HEAR ME ROAR, TAKE IN ALL OF THIS FABULOSITY. Now, there are many ways to stand out aesthetically (even if your pieces are void of color), but my favorite expression is with a manipulation of color and/or even print combinations.

Here, I've decided to go with the tried and true blue and orange. The best thing about color combos is how you can combine a multitude of tones, hues, shades, depths, of each color. Instead of a primary type of bright (red, blue, and yellow), I ventured outwards and began combining secondary colors with my anchored primary (blue). I took a dustier medium blue and paired it with varying shades of orange, warm browns, taupe and terracotta. This is something I translate to my makeup application. Think of the different shades of orange and warm browns as my transition colors into and away from the bright blue. This look overall is a basic display of complimentary colors, and even though it's quite bright and out there for some, it's the easiest route to color combinations.

There are even more color ways and combinations once you start to incorporate analogous color schemes (e.g red-orange, orange-red, orange-yellow, yellow-orange, etc...) It is easiest to combine these colors and flawlessly create gradients and monochromatic looks. When it comes to color theory, you have primary colors , secondary colors, analogous color schemes (the colors that bridge the gap from one color to the next), etc...

Once you've gotten the hang of it, the color palette is endless and you'll never be the same....at least I wasn't. I was mixing colors that seemingly didn't belong together, since I was a wee one, and it turns out there was an actual method to the madness...I just didn't realize (nor did the plain-Jane folks in my family) that I was on to something. I urge you....I DARE you, to experiment and see how fun it can be. Now don't get it twisted, there's nothing wrong with going the colorless route, like I said before....you can still stand out in a crowd, devoid of color, if you wanted to.

I may do a whole series on color combos, standing out without color use, going monochrome with color, and breaking some of the print mixing rules and still making it work. You tell me, which one you want to see and which I should do first?

What I'm Wearing:

Head scarf from a streetfair. $5
Lightweight faux suede jacket from Gslovesme.com. $20 (On sale)
Top from Walmart.com. $12 (No longer avail., altern. HERE, and HERE)
Corduroy pants from JCP.com. $25 (On sale, no longer avail., altern. HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE)
Shoes from Mandee. $15 (On sale, no longer avail. similar HERE, and HERE)

MER-BONES.

COLOR THEORY.