Granny Square Dance Stance: '90s Nostalgia but Never for Algebra or Other Unpleasant Things

Boots: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Eighties Explosion Charm Necklace

Dress: Rewind, Kohl's

Scrunchies: Lady Arya, Zulily

The pose in this first pic was the husband's idea.  At first, I thought it was silly, as if I were wielding my granny square bag like some kind of nursing home vigilante.  But later I decided I liked it.  Maybe that's because this bag is one of my favorites.  It's so colorful and is roomier than it looks, its slouchy frame molding itself to anything I toss inside.  Best of all, I got it from Delia's way back when I was sixteen.  Remember flipping through the Delia's catalog and going on an imaginary shopping spree before deciding to spend your after-school job money on blue nail polish, then calling the order in on your landline?  Good times!    

Bag: Excel, Delia's

Anyway, I was so excited the day this bag arrived.  And I distinctly remember wearing it, along with my homemade cutoffs and halter top, to the Y100 music festival, which was held outside of Philly.  Green Day headlined, and at the end they set their drums on fire.  But before you go thinking that I was a badass, I should say that I went with my mom (and my sister and my sister's best friend and her mom).  So when I carry this bag these days, it's like I'm bringing some of the '90s with me.  Well, the good parts.  There were plenty of bad parts too (show me someone who didn't have any during her formative years, and I'll show you a liar).  But no need to go into that here, where I'm all about the fuzzy, feel-good vibes of nostalgia.  As Baz Luhrmann says in "Everybody's Free (to Wear Sunscreen)," "Advice is a form of nostalgia.  Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than it's worth."  

Which brings me to the rest of my '90s-inspired outfits, including a baby doll dress, a jumper, neon barrettes, and butterfly-print tights.     

Boots: Betsey Johnson, Zulily

Dress: Trixxi, Kohl's

Striped bangle: Mixit, JCPenney; Yellow bangle: Silver Linings, Ocean City

Dress: Candie's, Kohl's

Top: Derek Heart, Macy's

Black Cherry Bow Necklace, Red Ring Necklace

Skirt: So, Kohl's

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Zulily

Dress: Candie's, Kohl's

Bag: Betsey Johnson, ROSS; Bracelets: So, Kohl's

And that's the end of this strut down memory lane.  Before I go, though, I've got two confessions to make.  The first is that last week on my way to the dentist, I rocked out to my Forever '90s CD (My favorite jam?  Eve 6's "Inside Out").  The second is that I still have a pair of (store-bought) cutoffs, complete with daisy appliques.  They're not from my teens or anything, but I haven't worn them in years.  And after trying them on with, of all things, fishnets, I think it should stay that way!  

Because nostalgic or not, some things -- algebra included -- are best left in the past.  

At least that's my advice to myself. :)