I'm not shopping, but I'm thinking. I want a fun, updated holiday outfit. My party clothes are feeling a bit predictable (I've been doing plaid pants plus fitted sweater or silky blouse; or occasionally a black dress with sparkly tights). I visualized this outfit below as I was falling asleep the other night, and put together all the pieces in Finds to remind myself. This is a 90s look, no? Chunky sweater plus miniskirt plus kooky tights. A la Clueless or Empire Records (how did Empire Records never get as popular as Clueless?!).

I've been a wuss about tights the past few years. I used to be able to wear skirts and dresses in mid-winter, but I run so cold now (I blame three years in the southwest) that I rarely bother. If I wear a dress, I wear it with black or grey leggings so I don't freeze (and sometimes wear Heattech long johns *under* the leggings). So I have this huge collection of cool tights that I only wear a few times a year. I really shouldn't add more, but it's a cheap way to create variety and I'm always finding pairs I like.

The other nice thing about this formula is footwear can go a lot of different directions. I own none of the right pieces to actually do this (except some shoes -- the last three pairs -- that might work), but we'll see. I really like the idea of it and may scour thrift stores for an approximation.