some gifts to make up for my absence

Well, I guess I'm the life blood of the blog right now.
To make up for my absence (and to fill your time) I figured I'd post some of the fashion related blogs that I enjoy reading as well as online fashion inspiration I pull.

First and foremost, I'm a big ol' fan of Threadbared.  Academics looking at fashion?  Yes, please!  While their posts are generally fantastic, I especially love their entries looking at the politics of vintage, thrifting, and labor. 

Threadbared also turned me onto lipstickeater which is hard to describe but thoroughly addicting.  Expect ruminations on issues of femininity, sex, sexuality, gender, the body, clothing, and too many literary references to count.  It is one part critical observation, two parts personal documentation (complete with intriguing comments, personal experiences, erudite ruminations, and one probably NSFW drawing).

I generally like StyleLikeU because it's video interviews of people talking about their approach to dressing.  I've been a bit bothered by the hipstery, Native appropriation love through many of the more recent videos (if you're interested in the politics surrounding this, Threadbared has you covered with  six posts on the subject).  Overall all, though, there's some great ideas about basics and approaches to dressing that I found intriguing, if not replicable by me: Ladyfag (NSFW), Joanne, Nikki, Craig, Gregory, Mario, Taylor, Sammy K., Jermaine, Hunter, Alex, World Famous BOB, Zamari, and Jenny.  Granted, much of this is antithetical to the idea of a minimized wardrobe but I do find myself enjoying the videos of people with an extremely simplified color palate and an emphasis on drape.  Also, there are many other videos I like, this was the quickest list I could build with people who I explicitly have sought out their videos to watch and rewatch.

The voyeurism of street photos and the enjoyment of editorial repetition get me here: Street Hearts, dirtyflaws (occasionally NSFW), Street Peeper, nerdboyfriend, The Sartorialist, Hel Looks, Copenhagen Street Style, The Urban Gentleman.

Finally, if the like the idea of the discussion of an outfit without a photo, you may thoroughly enjoy The Considered Ensemble.

Overall, these are the primary blogs that appear in my blog reader, that I get excited when there's an update, that make me think of things that I may want to incorporate into my approaches to dressing.