Day 54 of 57: Mod Bod, Green Scheme

    On day 54 of 57 Days of Dresses Jason and I had lunch at one of our favorite downtown eateries, Rosetta's Kitchen. Jason got the "Family Favorite:" a tasty plate of peanut butter baked tofu, mashed potatoes with gravy, greens (usually kale) and a generous slice of hot cornbread (pretty much a "meat and three" dish without the meat), and I got a big bowl of seaweed salad. If you're ever in Asheville and you need a place to eat, go to Rosetta's.
    Besides being an awesome and homey vegan/vegetarian restaurant, it recently added an "Everybody Eats" sliding scale meal. Hungry patrons short on cash can come in an pay anywhere from $2-$6 and get a generous serving of brown rice, the day's beans and a side of tortilla chips or slaw. That means a family of four could potentially walk in and eat for under $10. I admire how Rosetta's Kitchen really puts their motto, "Feeding the Family Right" to work in the community.
Considering the greater Asheville area has been ranked nationally as the third worst area for food hardship, perhaps this is a restaurant trend that can catch on. Kudos to Rosetta's Kitchen for helping to keep the community fed.
    Besides a happy visit to Rosetta's, the weather was perfect for a photo shoot!
    So, I know this is suppose to be the "winter edition," but, as we've all probably been experiencing, there hasn't been much of a winter, and these past two dress days are proof. I suppose the first official day of spring is March 20, so, au sortir de l'hiver.
     This is a fabulous vintage mod mini that I found at a local thrift store. This A-line mini has a beautiful floral pattern that stacks on top of itself. The dress is sleeveless and has a jewel neckline. The waist has belt loops that I have set off with a solid white belt. Did I say this dress is tiny! It's very short, even experimentally short, but those '60s were wild times. The hem is falling down is some areas, but that'll be an easy fix. Long live the dress.

Day 53 of 57: Polka, Dot?

    Day 53 of 57 Days of Dresses was the last day of Jason's parents being in town for a short but sweet visit. We saw them off at the Grand Bohemian after a breakfast at the Red Stag. Jason and I went on to enjoy a nonchalant day of guitar shop-browsing, junk shop stopping and errand-running with Jason. It was truly a relaxed and sunny day.
     I found this polka-dot halter dress at an Asheville thrift store for 3 bucks! The bodice features ruching from the bustline to waistline, which really makes this not-your-average halter. The V-neckline has a slight plunge that gives a little extra va-va-voom to the decolletage. The skirt falls to knee length and the halter ties make for a big, beautiful bow. This fit-and-flare A-line dress fits like a glove and is a great addition.

day 52 of 57: The Leopard Queen's Tree

    On day 52 of 57 Days of Dresses, Jason and I enjoyed a sunny Saturday afternoon celebrating his last day being 36! There was also an anti-nuclear plant protest going on downtown, followed by an Occupy GA in Pritchard Park, but we didn't stick around for that. Something about the serious and somewhat dreary tone of a protest and assembly that really doesn't encourage birthday celebration feelings.
    We started with lunch at Papas & Beer, a local Mexican restaurant recommended by a fellow vegetarian friend of ours. As we were walking up to the entrance, something along the lines of "You win this time Mexican" was scrawled on the side of the building. Weird.
    The chips and bean dip was tasty, and the self-serve salsa bar--an all-the-rage attraction at the local Mexican restaurants here in Asheville--had a good selection of sauces ranging from a pumpkin dip to a roasted tomatillo salsa verde to a "kids dip." Our meals arrived; Jason got the Baja fish tacos (he eats fish occasionally) with no sour creams or beans and extra rice, and I got the veggie fajitas with corn tortillas and no sour cream--our usual Mexican fixes. Our food came out fast and we got to grubbing. The quality and flavor profiles were typical of "Califorina" style Mexican restaurants: Unauthentic, Americanized and too salty. Oh, how I miss living in Arizona.
    The meal ended abruptly and, well, crappy after finding a piece of meat at the bottom of my fajita sizzle skillet. Touching and mingling and mixing with what was suppose to be a vegetarian meal. I know these things happen every so often, and it's just the risk a vegetarian runs when eating out at establishments where meat is prepared. But, man, when it happens, it really turns your stomach. Needless to say, we're probably not visiting Papas & Beer any time soon.
    After being fed, we headed to the west side of town to bask and gallivant in the sun, and found this quaint community garden. It was eclectically decorated with oddities, old shovels, hula hoops, glass bottles and a bright blue tree. Definitely a place for a photo shoot, and a future picnic!
    This leopard-print maxi dress is a fabulous piece I picked up at the Downtown Market here in Asheville. It has an empire waist, long sleeves and a U-neck. Being 5'9", I'm happy that maxi dresses are never too long for me---this one falls slightly above my ankles. I decided on a casual Saturday, so I'm sporting knee socks and my trusty chucks. Good thing, too, since Jason and I decided to take a few leisure strolls around the west side and downtown. When it comes to jewels, sometimes too much is not enough, and I went for silver-studded bohemian beauty: A ring on each finger, bangles, earrings and necklaces. The finishing touch was one of my handmade feather hair clips featuring Canada goose and bluejay feathers.
    Sometimes my honey-brown complexion doesn't do well with leopard-inspired prints--the pattern just doesn't pop--so I like the way the cooler tone of this dress works better with my natural warmth. It can be hard finding a good animal print, but when I do, I love it!

Day 51 of 57: Dinner and a Dress to Kill

    Day 51 of 57 Days of Dresses. Jason and I went out to Avenue M for dinner. It was out first time visiting the restaurant, and we weren't too impressed, but willing to give it another try. The drink list was suitable, although the special was a dill pickle martini that might suggest a tangy and salty flavor profile those lovers of dirty martinis with extra olives might enjoy, but for me it suggested the kitchen had a surplus of pickle juice the restaurant wanted to do something with.
    We got the Modern Mediterranean sampler for our appetizer, which was a medley of sun-dried tomato basil hummus, baba ganoush, falafels, olives, grilled veggies and pita. It was delightful pleasing and the emerald green inside of the golden-brown fried falafels was a telltale sign of made-from-scratch.
    For dinner, Jason got the House-Made Veggie Burger with Swiss and a side of sweet and russet potato fries, and I got the Garbanzo Salad with tofu instead of garlic goat cheese. Dinner took a little longer to come out, but the wait was occupied with fun conversation and chit-chat between the two of us.
    The restaurant's decor is modern, eclectic, minimalist and slightly rustic. The high vaulted wood-panel ceiling and exposed steel beams with brightly colored paper flowers hanging from them were very cool. The warm lighting also accentuated the darkly stained, oddly shaped tables.
    At last, our meals arrived.
    Jason's burger only came with sweet potato fries, instead of the sweets and russets liked he asked for: A minor setback to our dining experience, seeing that the sweets were absolutely delicious. The veggie burger was dressed with lettuce, tomato, carrots, avocado, zucchini, parsnips and a red pepper Veganaise. The patty had a full, rounded flavor and satisfyingly heavy mouthfeel, but it was very messy and fell apart too easily--sadly a common problem with homemade veggie burgers. The kaiser roll was typical and didn't do it any service. Overall the veggie burger was maybe slightly above average.
    My salad had crispy fried chickpeas, grapefruit segments, almonds and golden fried tofu atop a bed of arugula and spinach with a champagne vinaigrette on the side. The salad was, unfortunately, lacking. The presentation was a little sloppy, the tofu was completely bland, and the spiciness of the arugula greatly overpowered the savoriness of the spinach. The fried beans--a culinary fad I desperately hope goes away soon--did add a much-needed crunch but had a bitterness to it; the scant sprinkling of almonds were a neutral element, and the grapefruit was kind of out of place. However, the mildly sweet champagne vinaigrette was pleasing and somehow tied all of the oddly matched flavors together. Still, I wouldn't eat it again.
    After diner, we were ready for a photoshoot.
    This vintage teal bodycon is another fabulous find at Local Honey in Nashville. This mini has a turtle neck and long sleeves. The dress itself is cut to an hourglass figure, so it hugs the contours of the bust, waist and hips perfectly. The dress is a very simple style, and gives the wearer legs for miles when matched with pumps or booties.I have it paired with a an intricately-patterned jacket I got from Free People, Messaca "Julietta" booties and my trusty pink pocketbook, also from Free People (like I said before, I have way too much Free People stuff). This is the type of dress that really brings a sense of physical self awareness to the wearer--hence the namesake of these skin-tight "body conscious" dresses--but if you got it, it's nice to flaunt it every once in a while, and this is just dress to do it in.

Day 50 of 57: River Arts, Graffiti High

    Today, Day 50 of 57 Days of Dresses, marks the last week of this fashion celebration I've endeavored in. Today Jason and I visited pawn shops in search of guitar gear, had lunch at the local Himalayan restaurant, Kathmandu, when on a country cruise up the mountain side and admired the rolling hills, walked along the French Broad river, browsed the local firebrand bookstore, and check out the artist studios in Asheville's River Arts District.
    The River Arts District, or "RAD," as some local factions call it, is a run-down industrial side of town down by the river that I guess artsy types built up and created studio spaces and other creative spaces there. In addition to folksy, fine and forgettable artist studios there's antique shops, coffee bars, a dog wash, performing arts stages and the Bharatanatyam dance studio I go to. There's also an abundance of graffiti on everything, which--during these bleak winter months--adds a much-appreciated splash of color on dreary early twentieth-century industrial buildings.
    Despite the blustering wind, the day was rather sunny and reasonably warm between blusters. Granted today wasn't like the 70 degree springtime preview weather a couple of days ago, I'll take sunny and windy in the mid-40s on a February afternoon.
    I got this bodycon dress at the Free People store in Nashville. I've probably spent way too much money there in the past year, but now it's out of driving distance, out of mind! This dress is long-sleeve, which is great for windy "winter" weather, and looks awesome with a part of thick, warm leggings underneath. The dress has a ruched side and a crocheted decolletage that accents the boat neck nicely. The raw hems on the sleeves and the miniskirt add a deconstructionist element that juxtaposes the detail of the crocheted decolletage. I love bodycons, and I love this dress!

Please excuse the tag!