who's that lady...

I just recently finished watching all four seasons of Mad Men. yes, I know what you're thinking- what took me so long? well, sufficient to say I am now obsessed. I have a love/hate relationship with Don Draper and, based on knowledge acquired from other tv shows,  believe him to be a sociopath.

but that's not what I want to talk about.

I want to talk about the ladies! the ridiculously beautiful, endlessly stylish array of ladies. I had no idea that the 60s were my favourite fashion decade till now. pencil skirts, gorgeous florals, petticoats, pumps and super-flattering silhouettes; what's not to love!

I've decided to do a little Mad Men feature for the next couple of days. just a little post on each girl's style, and later I'll post my own recreations of their looks.

first up is my new personal style inspiration- Joan Holloway.

Joan is the office hottie. not hard to understand, right? she's got a killer bod and a keen fashion sense. and I'm not about to write a character sketch, but I love how feisty and in charge she really is. which is awesome for a woman in the 60s.

her style is classic office vixen; pencil skirts, modest necklines (to balance her va-va-voom at work, I assume), bright colours, and cuts that flatter her figure.

I want this chick's wardrobe. I'm even tempted to go out and find a little gold pen to wear around my neck.
I have no idea how she gets that amazing hair, though. I mean other than the hair stylists on the show.

and in real life, Christina Hendricks is just as classy and stunning. she always manages to find flattering, feminine, and sexy dresses that show off her great personal style. obviously she's one of hollywood's more buxom ladies, but she always carries herself tastefully and with grace.

one of my favourite things about Joan/Christina is what she's done for tv body image. she made the standard skinny girl look like old news! she's a full-figured gal, and everyone can see that she's stunning.

I'm sure most girls struggle with weight/body issues at some point in life, and recently I've been really conscious of mine. but I read somewhere that Christina Hendricks is a US size 14, and that made me feel fantastic. not like, "ooh, I'm smaller than her," but that she's a total hottie with a atypical celebrity body type. how could anyone look at her and ever think being a size 2 would be prettier?

she's gorgeous, stylish, and inspirational.

here are some ways to dress like her!

Modcloth of course has some great Joan-esque dresses, including this red one from Pinup Couture. you can find other gorgeous & playful retro dresses at their website, pinupgirlclothing.com

I recently discovered shebycindy.com, where you can find these exact Joan Holloway outfits! a bit pricey, but totally worth it. 

last but not least, Bettie Page makes beautiful vintage-inspired dresses. you can find them at bettiepageclothing.com, and Modcloth also carries the brand.

and of course don't forget etsy! I've got my eye on a few Joan dresses. hopefully they won't get snatched up before I get my first paycheck...

all this Joan talk makes me want to work at an office instead. 

♥

playing: diamonds on the insidee- Ben Harper