I'm baaack! No really.

I should probably count how many times I've written "it's been a while since I've posted" here on the good ol' bloggie. This time it really has been a while. Quite a LONG while actually.

Since I've been MIA I started contributing to Directors Live, a cool new film web site.That plus a number of not-so-fruitful job applications and life in general has unfortunately kept me from spreading Cleveland style to the masses.

But with this toasty C-Town summer we have going, why not do a little reboot? Stay tuned for new posts, hopefully much more frequently! And don't forget to follow Crooked River Couture on Twitter!

Stash Style Pop-Up Shoppe

I told you I'd post again soon! In addition to Small Business Saturday this weekend, there is a great trunk show happening at Beachcliff in Rocky River. Last spring I wrote about Stash Style, my favorite boutique in Chagrin Falls. Since then, the Chagrin location has closed, but the owner has set up various pop-up shops selling goods all around town. Lucky for us, one of these very pop-ups is happening all weekend long!

The Stash Style blog has been full of photos of all kinds of great items available this weekend. So far it seems there will be plenty of holiday goodies, as well as everyday finds perfect for gifts. Last Christmastime I bought an adorable yellow and white mini tree knick-knack and a sparkly silver vintage ornament (among many other things). They promise to have loads of vintage ornaments this year, all for just $1 a piece!

I'm hoping to get some Christmas shopping done there this weekend, so I may not be posting everything I buy - it would ruin the surprise if any recipients were reading! Hope to see you all there this weekend, I promise it will be worth it!

Stash Style Pop-Up Shoppe
Beachcliff Market Square in Rocky River
Fri,  Nov. 25: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sat, Nov. 26: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sun, Nov. 27: 12 p.m. - 4 p.m.

Small Business Saturday

Dredgers Union on E. 4th

It's been a little while since I've posted here on good ol' Crooked River Couture. As many of you can probably relate to, life gets busy and crazy sometimes, and I found myself in a bit of a funk. What better way to bring myself back to life than with some Cleveland fashion blogging! One thing I have been doing is writing some pieces for Examiner focusing on, what else, Cleveland fashion. I've written two pieces so far and hope to do more, so be sure to keep up on them!


As for my trusty blog here, it's been a bit of a struggle coming up with ideas for posts. I think I need to be a little less picky and a little more open to any kind of Cleveland style topics. I would also like to keep up a little bit more on fashionable events going on around town. So I think that's how I'll start!

Vanity Lab

This Saturday, November 26 is Small Business Saturday. This is the second year for this great nation-wide event that promotes local independently owned businesses. It's kind of the local version of Black Friday, which we all know is the biggest shopping day of the year. After you've had your fix of name brand products for a fraction of the price at malls and shopping centers, think about heading out for Small Business Saturday to help out your local businesses and boutiques!

This blog has been dedicated to all the great shops around town. Here's a link to some I have covered. Think about heading to one (or all) of these places, and more!

- Lion and Blue in Lakewood
- Vanity Lab in Westlake
- One World Shop (Ten Thousand Villages) in Rocky River
- City Buddha in Cleveland Hts. (Coventry)
- Flower Child in Cleveland (Clifton)
- Salty Not Sweet in Ohio City
- Room Service in Ohio City
- Dredgers Union, Downtown (E. 4th)*

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving, a greater Black Friday and the best Small Business Saturday! Check back soon for some more updates, I hope to be churning them out faster than I have been lately!



(*Note: CLE Clothing Co. will be opening up a shop on E. 4th this weekend! Make sure you hit that up on Saturday too!!!)

Ingenuing above the Cuyahoga

Ingenuity: the power of creative imagination.

Woah. That's quite a definition, thanks to my Dictionary app. In my honest opinion, this very power is one of the most powerful powers one can possess. And it perfectly describes what I witnessed on the lower, old streetcar deck of the Detroit-Superior Bridge last Saturday night. It's Cleveland's coolest kids' favorite weekend of the year, the Ingenuity Fest! Where else can you soak up art, music, drama, science and technology all in one place? Actually, if you look hard enough you could find quite a few of those things in several places around town. BUT when else can you do it UNDER A BRIDGE?!? I simply adore the Ingenuity Fest and wish my life was a little more like it every day. I would totally become a troll (not the interwebs kind, the real kind) if it meant I could live under that bridge. And, of course, if it was constantly filled with such ingenious awesomeness.

When I was telling people that I was going to or had gone to the Ingenuity Fest the question that usually follows is "Oh yeah. What is that again?" To which I am dumbfounded. I probably should be able to describe my favorite Cleveland festival a little better than by saying, "Um there's like art and stuff and it's like, ingenious?" But it really is something you can't understand unless you've experienced it.

The best way to do it however, is through photos, which is what I plan on doing in this here blog post with the goal of luring you to the festival next year.

I know what you're thinking. What does this have to do with fashion? Well, people were selling fashionable things there (very fashionable things in fact) and it's art and fashion is the most commonly experienced form of art and stop yelling at me! Oh you weren't? My bad. Anyways YES there seemed to be more selling of fun and funky artifacts this year than I remember from last year. The first stand I came about was a new Cleveland Tshirt company I have not had the pleasure of coming across yet, I Love CLE. I loved their Ohio shaped Cleveland design, which really sets them apart from other C-town shirt sellers.







You may recall my gold triangle ring I bought from Salty Not Sweet this past spring. We were browsing a jewelry table and saw that very ring! Bestie and I felt really super cool when we asked, "Do you sell your stuff at Salty?" Even though we already knew the answer. Otherwise there was a serious case of gold triangle ring copycatting going on. But yes was the answer and I am so glad they were selling their goods! My favorite items had to be a pair of gold zig zag earrings and a pair that were zebra striped. As I love my animal prints I picked them up to discover they were actually cut up credit cards. Upon further observation though I realized they were H&M gift cards! SUCH a great idea! I've always had really chicly designed gift cards which are always sad to part with. I could keep them, but then again what would I do with an empty gift card, no matter how cute it is? Um, duh make earrings out of them, hello! The power of creative imagination at its best, people. They also had some unique long necklaces  adorned with gold feathers and tiny bird cages. Sadly, when we made the rounds and headed back to where the tables were set up the happy jewelry people had fled. I'll definitely have to hit up Salty again to get more of their info!

Recently I have noticed an increase in Cleveland art and prints. One vendor had some great photos of our fair city for fairly reasonable prices. I have seen so many great artists and photographers with Cleveland-inspired art I can't decide on one to actually add to my collection! I think when the day comes that I have my own place I'll finally make my decision. I loved the street name prints I saw at Made in the 216 event at the Dredgers Union in July, but some of these were fantastic as well.










This particular signage isn't even art, it's an actual street sign harking back to the day when this lower deck of the bridge was used for streetcars. I absolutely loved it and my little iPhone took a pretty legit photo, thanks to Ingenuity Fest lighting. I might have to take this and turn it into art myself. Somehow…










Perhaps the most literal cross between art and fashion was the table of tiny hats. And no, Amy Poehler and Kristen Wiig were not selling them. Bestie and I could not get enough of these funky tiny hat and hair clips in just about any and every shape and size you could imagine, and even some you couldn't. For example, Bestie could not pass up the head topper with her boyfriend, Optimus Prime on it. I mean come on, how awesome is that?!? She wore it the rest of the night and received several compliments.

The rest of my photos aren't fashion per say, but could definitely serve as some kind of artistic inspiration. And what did we say about art and fashion? FASHION = ART. Boom. So I thought I'd add a gallery of the rest of my photos which include glamour shots of the bridge and a few of my favorite artists' installations at the Fest.

I had an amazing time at this year's Ingenuity Fest. Like I said before, I really wish the bridge were that awesome all the time. I wonder who I can talk to about making it a permanent market, kind of like the open air markets in Charleston, SC and other cities. Because come on, how GREAT would that be? So here's to the power of creative imagination, and hoping we get a little bit of that action every single day.

"Cock your hat, angles are attitudes."

As I tweeted last week, I got to go shopping the past two weekends! A rarity these days, on account of my shallow bank... account. But I had some spare change and thought I'd have a little me time at Great Northern Mall and Crocker Park. I even got into a kind of "what the hell, I'll buy it!" kind of mood. Don't worry I didn't go too crazy, just crazy enough. And by crazy enough I mean crazy enough to buy THIS hat!

Ohhh yeah. Here's the story... Remember when I went to LA last month? My friend and I did a little shopping in Old Town Pasadena and took a pit stop at H&M. There was this GREAT maroon fedora kind of hat with a black band and feathers on the side. It looked fun so I put it on and kept it on for the remainder of our browsing. When it was time to leave, bestie said to me, "aren't you getting that?" I told her I didn't think so, it was $17 and I didn't really need it. Turns out it didn't matter that I didn't need it because I totally bought it when I saw it here back home. I wore it the rest of the day at the mall and I felt so baller. It fits so nicely and honestly feels down right lovely on my head! I have thusly dubbed it my new fall hat and will be really mad at myself if I do not wear this thing OUT. I hope to be known as the maroon hat girl all around Northeast Ohio.

Speaking of hats, I also bought a new straw hat at Kohl's. It's replacing one I got there a few years ago that was actually from Guinness and had a fun shamrocky patterned band around it. But due to excessive wear and tear, my good ol' chapeau has just about run its course and it was time for a new one. This one is a bit more structured and has a very nautical red and navy band. I've already worn it on a few bad hair days this week!

Back at H&M, I also bought a great new bag. Remember my white lace bag I bought on eBay? Don't get me wrong, I love that purse but it's a bit small and honestly a little too springy/summery, so when I saw this Givenchy look-a-like in a nice rose tan I had to snag it. 

The other thing I fawned over at the Pasadena H&M was this feather-patterned scarf. The past two autumns I've bought a new scarf there and I absolutely love them. I usually get a really fun and colorful one, big and comfy that I can throw on with any outfit between now and March! Keeping with this tradition when I saw the feather scarf I did not buy in Pasadena I, you guessed it, bought it here. Can't wait when it gets really fall-y and I can wear it with my trench coat and drink pumpkin spice lattes. And wear my maroon hat, of course.

Skip a week to a quick outing at Crocker Park. I hadn't been in the new Anthropologie yet, which is probably a good thing because that place is down right dangerous. I want EVERYTHING but can afford NOTHING, with one wonderful exception - SALE ITEMS! This blue striped dolman sleeved top was marked down twice - from $78 (ridiculous) to $39 (obnoxious) to $19.99 (fairly reasonable). And now it's mine!  It's kinda funky but also kinda awesome and I can't wait to wear it.

I hope I didn't bore you with my shopping sagas. I just really haven't really been for a while. And honestly, even if I hadn't bought anything it would have been fun. Just being around fashion when I haven't for so long was plenty to tide me over! So here's to retail therapy, or, giving that whole "I'll go window shopping without my wallet" thing a go :)

*Title quote by Frank Sinatra

Just do it (yourself)!

I’m baaack! I know it’s been a while since my last post, and trust me it’s been killing me. On my time off however I did take a fun little trip to Los Angeles. I had a blast and even as you know I love the Cleve, it was good to get away. (And the weather was beautiful!)

So between the trip and work I’ve had limited time to get my blog on! But fortunately I had some recent inspiration for a post and I’m bringing it to you right now.

I’ve noticed lately that DIY projects are becoming really big. It’s always cool to answer the question “where did you get that?” with “I made it myself!” Whether it’s an expertly crafted silver ring or just a scarf made from some fabric you found lying around the house. That particular joy, plus the usually cheaper cost, makes DIY the perfect way to add new items to your collection.

This personal DIY revolution of mine started this spring when I saw something online about making old t-shirts into scarves. I have so many old tees that, for some reason, I refuse to get rid of. (Never know when you might need that holey graphic tee from Target that never fit…right?) I figured that making things I hoard into things I’ll actually use was a pretty good idea.  I preferred the simple t-shirt scarf to the fringe one. It’s so easy, just cut a straight line across the tee right under the armholes so it’s just a rectangle (or square) shaped. Throw it over your neck and voilà!  I made a few scarves, but seeing as how it was late April I didn’t have a ton of time to wear them. Looking forward to the fall for that!

I kind of went scarf crazy and cut up a ton of my old shirts. Some were kind of small and weren’t going to make great scarves. So I got creative and made headbands out of them. Especially in the summer I wear a lot of cloth headbands to keep the hair out of my face. My favorite one that I made was this one, constructed out of a shirt printed with a plethora of peace signs. It was always so cute, but just not as a tight fitting t-shirt. I didn’t have to do much after I cut it for the scarf, again just straight across under the armholes. Then all I do when I want to wear it is twist it around, double it up, and stretch it around my head!  I usually twist it twice, it makes a nice knot on the bottom and looks a lot better. When I’m feeling particularly funky I sometimes put the knot on top instead of under my hair. Either way, so cute, so simple and so cheap!

A little while later I took a trip to Pat Catan’s, also known as the World’s Greatest Craft store. Look it up. Seriously, Catan’s is one of the greatest Cleveland institutions, far superior to national craft supply chains. I had been noticing that feathers were very in but I could never find any feather accessories I was crazy about, although I liked the idea. I thought I would see if they had any fun feathers at Catan’s to maybe make something out of. You know how sometimes you have a shopping mission that comes up short? Well this surely was not one of those times. I found a four pack of tan and black feather bunches that were so perfect. All I had to do was wrap the tips with wire and slip on an earring hook and I got these great new feather earrings! A very legitimate alternative to feather hair extensions.

With this DIY kick still going, I found myself in Urban Outfitters at Crocker Park one lovely spring day and happened across this great book on their book table. It’s called P.S. – I Made This… and it is choc full of fun and easy DIY fashion projects. Instead of paying $20 I figured I’d see if the library had a copy. Lucky me! Found one at the Lakewood Library for, oh what? FREE. There are so many great ideas in this book, I highly recommend checking it out.

So far I’ve only done one project but I definitely plan on doing more. The second I turned the page to see this ring necklace I knew I had to do it. I have so many rings I never wear and, as the book describes, not enough fingers for! From class rings, to a bent Claddagh, heirlooms from my mom and grandmas and cheap ones from mall stores, I had plenty to go around. All I had to do was round them all up, buy some strong cord and slide them on! I twisted the cord to create a braided effect and to make it extra strong. I just did this one the other day so I haven’t worn it yet but I am so excited to. It is sure to be a huge conversation piece!

I hope this will inspire you go out there and make some of your own fashions! Not only does it keep you from spending money you don’t have, it really is fun and makes each item more meaningful.  And, coming from someone who can’t sew to save her life, it’s easy to find ideas for any skill level. Have fun!

Sorry for my absinthe...

...er, absence.  I took a little mini vaca to the Golden State last week! Had such a great time in beautiful sunny LA, but I'm glad to be back in the CLE! I'll definitely be getting some new posts going soon. Bought a few cute things in Cali to show off as well as some stuff I've picked up here and there this summer back in the 216.

And watch out kids, fall is right around the corner! I received one of my September magazine issues already and I'll know when my September Vogue comes when I see the forklift hauling it down the street.

So I'm hoping I'll take my Nikon out to snap some fashionable pics for you, my stylish Cleveland blogosphere, and have something to write about! Stay tuned, and stay cool :)