Search Results

Guys, I'm no Nostradamus, but from where I'm sitting, it looks like we''re barrelling headlong into another round of quarantine and lockdowns. And just in time for flu season, no less. It was one thing to be doing the social isolation thing in the spring and summer months; you can still get outside and sort do a modified version of whatever your thing is in summer. But now a majority of us are going to be moving this microbial rodeo indoors? Yeesh. But since we're being realistic, and I am nothing if not realistic, we might as well do this thing in style. I mean, come on. It's not going to do anyone's mental health any good to have to exhume the putrid remains of last spring's lockdown sweatpants, is it? No it is not. I see absolutely no reason we can't bring back a little swoosh into our lying-around game. Add a little silky fabric here, maybe an ostrich-trimmed mule there. More Slim Aarons, and less People of Wal Mart. Come on guys, we can do this. I'll leave you with a few photos for inspo.

Howdy there fashionphiles! Highland Fashionista on Etsy is running a Labor Day sale this entire week! Everything in the shop is 20% off, so you can go ahead and pull the trigger on that thing you liked. New items are also being added on the regular, so keep your eyes peeled, you never know when that perfect pre-loved find might crop-up! Here's a sneak peek! Click on the photos for more info on individual pieces. Here's wishing you and yours a safe, healthy, and restful Labor Day!

I get asked about my affinity for westernwear all the time. I suppose it's not an obvious choice for someone from a mid-sized city in Wisconsin (not exactly the heart of the west), who has spent the last few decades travelling the globe before ending up in the Scottish Highlands for most of the year. Again, not exactly a place where you hear the jangle of spurs in the supermarket. I suppose it all began with this guy. I think I was maybe 10 years old in this photo. That's Prince. He was our horse when we were kids, and even though he definitely had his own ideas about what he wanted to do in any given moment (because horses), he was a very good boy. Even though we tended to ride him in English tack as much as western (that's just what our instructor tended to teach), I always really appreciated, and even preferred the comfort, ease, and light-handedness of classic western horsemanship, and of course all the accompanying gear. Plus, I have never been able to keep a pair of traditional light or white dressage breeches clean. Not even for five minutes. Not even for two minutes. How do people do that!?!? I'm 49 this week and I still can't do it. The weather can pretty much give you its full "greatest hits" treatment in Wisconsin in the course of a trail ride, and western clothing always made me feel like I was wearing the right thing to get too hot, too cold, wet, muddy, dusty, grasshopper-y or whatever else was in the air that day. Skip ahead to now-times. Living mainly in Scotland over the last twelve years, I found myself slowly creeping back into my cowboy boots. Geographically it may seem a bit weird, but when the climate is often the same whether it's January or July, you're probably not going to be too far from dressed for the weather in a pair of jeans and boots. I suppose my return to working around horses more often again also had something do do with it, but it was really working on finally launching my vintage shop that got me really thinking about my westward-leaning sartorial tendencies. That tends to happen when you're faced with a mounting pile of vintage clothing, comprised quite heavily of western and western-adjacent pieces that one needs to inspect, catalog, and photograph. In doing so, I've learned a few things, as evidenced below. Oh, and these photos are clickable by the way - should you want more info on the pieces. Because what kind of shop owner would I be if they weren't? Westernwear is Fun For me, fun is the primary motivating life force. Life is simply just too short for anything else. While launching my shop, I realized that there are a ton of amazing vintage sellers out there, each with its own unique signature from the everything-goes eclectic to lingerie-only to neutrals-only super-duper austere. Looking at my pile of colorful, fringey, boldly-patterned and textured vintage goodies, there was really only one way that this thing was ever gonna go. Whee! Westernwear is Comfortable Granted, there are always sartorial exceptions to my claim that an entire fashion genre is comfortable, so please don't send me photos of your most uncomfortable western-themed, concho-encrusted bustiers. I get it. Choices have a lot to do with comfort. But by and large, western-themed garments span a broad range of styles that allow us to make comfortable choices. Fuller skirts, boot cut and bellbottom jeans (my favorite), and wide sleeves are very much a thing, and I'm here for it. And perhaps more poignantly? Not a sweatpant or yoga pant in sight. Wait, what are we supposed to call them now? Pandemic pants? Apartment pants? Yeah, whatever. Those. Westernwear is Distinctly American I suppose my status as an expat of over a decade has a lot to do with my nostalgia for western-themed Americana, but nonetheless, there really is no other style of clothing that screams AMERICA at the top of its lungs in this way. We're always the loudest in the room, aren't we? But you can't beat Americana westernwear as a sartorial choice for a summer BBQ. In recent times, what with all the political unrest and unsettling nationalistic carrying-on and such, wearing distinctly America-themed, lighthearted clothing almost has an element of shame attached to it for a lot of people. But I think that is exactly why I feel so strongly about it. Not because I'm some super-extreme nationalist (and if you've been reading for a while thank you for laughing at the very idea of that), or because I think that America is the greatest country on the planet 100% of the time, because trust me we're not...no country is "the greatest" 100% of the time. But rather because I think it's important for us to remember that fashion is expression, and expression is for everyone. So-called "patriotic" sartorial choices are simply not the domain of a particular ideology, and I positively recoil at the idea that the co-opting of something like our national flag to express dodgy ideals has become a thing we might have to discuss. Yet here we are. Americana-inspired clothing, whether it be a simple t-shirt with the flag on it or a full red white and blue sequinned, skin-tight bodysuit with led lighting sewn into the lighting that is so bright you actually have to plug it in to recharge at night - that should be a bit of fun that we can all enjoy, not an emblem of a particular movement. Particularly a movement that does not include all of us. Right Prince? (he agrees, even if he's looking a bit annoyed with his rider at the moment, who I'm pretty sure has her hat on backwards in this photo.)

Last week, my sister showed up for our road trip in a canary yellow mumu, and it was the cutest darn thing ever. Admittedly, this took me completely by surprise . As much as I love all things fashion, up until that point I never really considered a mumu to be "real clothes." Over the decades, the poor, long-suffering mumu has often found itself as the butt of jokes, referenced when once attempts to paint a mental picture of a Mrs. Roper type, or perhaps an alcoholic cougar hoping to lure the pool boy into her den. I'm always glad to be wrong when I am able to shed one of my ingrained prejudices against certain fashion items, and my mumu revelation after gazing upon my sister's canary-hued realness was one of those times. The mumu is not the domain of the eternally drunk and chronically pantsless - the mumu is iconic. It is colorful, it always fits, and it is insanely well-ventilated. Less crazy cat lady, more Slim Aarons. To that end, some of you may have noticed a few changes in some of the links and icon graphics on the site - namely those for my Etsy shops. I am currently in the process of expanding my Highland Fashionista Etsy shop (once the depository for things I've knitted over the years) to include vintage items. I'm sort of "soft-open" right now, and will stage a more coordinated re-launch in the coming weeks once I've gotten through a little more inventory. The knitwear will re-appear in the shop when I return to the UK. Having been touched by the Mumu Angels last week, I could think of no better time to grab a few of these pre-loved classics for the shop and take them for a test drive. Let us all welcome the mumu back into our non-sarcastic fashion vernacular. Huzzah! 80s era Hawaiian print mumu / 80s-90s era green mumu

Once again I'm honored to partner with Scotland-based Eternal Collection in what turns out to be a very well-timed post, what with the beautiful, sunny weather we're having in Scotland right now. As most of you regular readers already know, in warmer, sunnier weather, I tend to choose bright colors and riotous floral and tropical patterns, requiring very little from my accessory game other than a little flash of something - just for balance and to feel "finished." At least, that's how I like to think of it. This Seashore Amazonite and Freshwater Pearl Bracelet fits the bill exactly. Often when it's warm, or more often when I'm packing my outfits for a warm-weather trip and have a finite amount of stuff I can bring (because the airlines practically require a second mortgage to check a bag these days), I usually will only bring one, maybe two main pieces of jewellery with me, so whatever I bring has to be versatile. And this bracelet really is. It's got just a bit of color, a bit of silver, and a sprinkle of the kind of whimsy that I tend to love in my summer clothes. While my next trip across the pond is yet a few weeks away, I'm already mentally packing those few extra things I'll put in my backpack, and this bracelet from Eternal Collection is definitely one of them. What's even better, they are having 50% off of a lot of the styles on their website right now, so get in there you guys! The other stuff: Palm Beach Sandals, similar / Lilly Pulitzer Essie top / thrifted cutoff shorts (old) / Lilly Pulitzer Marlow dress (past season), more recent season / Michael Kors Sandals (old), sort of similar (£££)

This post is for astute reader Kelly, who has been asking me to do more Lilly Pulitzer posts for some time now, and I have not gotten around to them because a lot of my Lilly stuff is in Florida, which is currently the viral epicenter of the universe. Thanks for your patience Kelly, more are on the way at some point, I promise. This is the Lilly Pulitzer Essie top. I have several of these. They fit well - with a certain amount of ease that works well when the weather is hot. And, perhaps most relevant to my affinity for them and in keeping with reason Pulitzer began her line of rather vibrantly-printed clothing in the first place - they effectively camouflage any dirt you get on yourself, which naturally is a favorite pastime of mine. This particular evening, I paired it with my Free People bellbottoms, really in more of an attempt to keep out the mosquitos due to the fact that at the time, I had not yet completed my two week quarantine after flying to the US from the UK, and needed to be able to sit outside at a distance from my family for a meal and not become part of the menu myself. This is one of those looks that just sort of happened; unwashed hair (you can always tell because of what I like to call my "emergency braids"), a quick pull-on top, and by the time I got to the bellbottoms I started to realize that I actually was creating sort of a thing here. I decided just to go with it, and I rather like the effect. It's like something that the black sheep older sister of a super- preppy 1970s family is wearing as she pulls-up to the country club in her VW camper van, knowing full well they have a "no denim" rule.

A bit of a different background for you guys. I'm in the US at the moment, and yes, I had to fly back mid-pandemic. I am currently on day 9 of my quarantine, so my trips outside are sort of limited to workouts and outdoor socially-distanced dinners in my mom's back yard, which is where I snapped this with my iPhone. Flying in the middle of a pandemic wouldn't have been my first choice, but sometimes things cannot be helped. Anyway, so far so good. I wore all my super-sexy PPE gear on the plane (well, I wore a mask and goggles. Not the gown, gloves, and face shield), and overall people were pretty well-behaved. A few people got lazy with the masks mid-flight but the flight attendants were pretty quick to correct that. And just another reminder to everyone, if you're wearing your mask below your nose.....no. Just, no. That is tantamount to only pulling your bra up over one boob, or if you're a guy, pulling on your trousers but leaving the fly open and letting your family jewels hang out the opening. Just, cover both your nose and mouth, okay? Okay then. It is hot here. I mean HOT. I've been averaging two showers a day after workouts and being outside, and I have not put a stitch of makeup on the entire time I've been here. But what's good about the heat, besides actually getting to experience real summer, is that is that I finally get to wear this jersey dress I found at Gap about 100 years ago and have hardly worn. In Scotland it's just not all that climate appropriate. Normally I'm not really gravitating to black clothing all that much any more, nor would I think of it as a hot weather color, but this really is a perfect travel dress. The comfort of the heavy jersey fabric, the drape, the fact that it's long enough to be able to sit any way you like in it, but that the curve in the hemline on either side makes it easy to walk....it really is perfect for hot weather. Oh, and it doesn't wrinkle. Because I hate to iron. When travelling, unless it's some sort of special occasion or emergency, I'm probably not going to do it. Life is way too short for ironing. Gap dress (old), similar / M&F "Twister" straw hat / Target sandals (ancient), similar

I found this duster-style vest on Ebay for under $10, and thought I'd give it a try. Normally I don't have much use for clothes that are more form than function, and this is essentially just a big swath of fabric, and in a size larger than I usually wear, no less. However, I've discovered that in warmer weather, sometimes you might be bumping about the place in just a t shirt or tank top, then suddenly you go inside or out in public (not so much these days) and you feel sort of naked all the sudden. Doubly so if you live somewhere where they ride the air conditioning really hard. That's where this top comes in handy. Yes, it's essentially just a tablecloth-sized piece of fabric, but it hangs nicely, and gives-off a kind of dramatic swoosh when you move around in it that makes you feel all fancy, or maybe like a vampire stalking about in a cape or something. I don't know, it's just nicer than feeling a bit exposed in summer. Is it something that I'll wear a lot? Probably not, but in a pinch when you don't feel like getting changed and want to throw together some sort of look before running out the door? Absolutely.

This is a simple cotton shift dress made by the aptly named European brand Nude Atelier, and let me tell you...it is COMFY. Seriously you guys this thing is as comfy as a mumu. The dress came in my subscription box from Lookiero (who are not paying me, I hasten to add), which I do on-demand every once in a while just for inspiration. When I first laid eyes on this piece, it was one of those dresses that I normally would not have not given a second look to for so many reasons. It's midi-length (which I have always found a difficult length, although admittedly, it's growing on me), it has very little hanger appeal (okay, not the end of the world but still), it isn't a particularly colourful or eye-catching print (you know me well enough to know I like color and pattern), and overall, at first glance it seemed to be the sartorial equivalent of a massive yawn. That said, the entire reason I occasionally dip into the world of online stylist edit boxes is to try and push myself into things I might not ordinarily try. Well, that and it's also fun. And now that I've discovered that there is an "on-demand" setting for these subscription services, I feel more comfortable about doing them, as you can chose your deliveries to come only when you're feeling that your budget allows. This being a slip dress, I almost didn't try it on. Having been alive and in my 20s for the 1990s, in my mind slip dresses were and are the domain of those wraithlike girls that were a thing during that era. I can say with good authority that I am not, nor have I ever been one of those girls. I am, in the words of a riding instructor I work with from time to time, "built for work ". I consider this a high complement by the way, particularly in the context of having been sat atop one of his very well-appointed reining horses at the time. Anyway, this dress. It's made of the soft combed-cotton and is lined (also cotton). It breathes. It's roomy. It looks cool belted. It looks cool with my boots or with sandals. It's perfect for hot weather, or layering-up. And perhaps most importantly, it got me to try something new, and succeeded in closing the deal. If you're in the UK or Europe (sorry fellow Americans, they're not in the USA at this time) and want to give Lookiero a try, you can get 10% off by entering the code: LKKRISTIN2LBD Dress: Nude Atelier via Lookiero / Ariat belt / Dan Post "Heartbreaker" boots (old), similar / sterling silver star dangle earrings from a sale at TK Maxx, similar / Judith Ripka heart ring, Judith Ripka multiple heart ring (old), similar / Oasis bag (currently unavailbale), similar

Well heloooo there! Yes, it's been a while. Things have been a bit hectic lately, but today I managed a quick run out to the back shed to take a few snaps of this badass shirt that I'm wearing today. I'd been stalking this Ryan Michael shirt that I'd seen in a couple of places online, but it was always just too dang expensive for me for something that I didn't really need. It was getting harder and harder to find (almost impossible now), and I had sort of given up on it, when one day, one of the few eBay alerts I've ever set in my life pinged at me, and there it was, about a third of the price, and in my size. Yes please. It's a combination tie dye and plaid, combed cotton, western snap front, fully plaid-lined, double-layer tiered wide bell sleeve with an unfinished hem. Whew! There's a lot going on here. I know, it's wild, and granted, this shirt is what I would call a specialist shirt. You do not want to reach over a bowl of cheesy Ro-Tel dip in this baby. You certainly do not under any circumstance want to pass the potatoes over a votive candle. I've actually seen this. My dad and mom used to host my dad's foreign university students for dinner when we were little, and I watched wide-eyed as a girl from England lit her chiffon bell sleeve on fire at the dinner table. Everyone made a huge fuss, but for my 9 year-old self it was totally amazing. Chiffon really goes up you guys, I'm serious. Such drama. Maybe that's why I like this weird, wild shirt so much. THE DRAMA. Without the fire. Ryan Michael Shirt (sold out), similar / thrifted J Crew denim skirt, similar / Dune sandals (old), similar / Shyanne earrings (old), similar / turquoise and chrysocolla rings (old), see similar in images below

I don't know about you guys, but I'm getting pretty sick of skinny jeans. I'm sick of the acrobatics involved in trying them on, I'm sick of looking at them coming and going on every single person on the street, and most of all, I am so very sick of constantly hiking them up. Yes, even the so-called "high-waisted" ones. And just to add insult to injury, skinny jeans, like a lot of terrorists, tend to take hostages - their chosen hostage taking the form of your underpants as they are dragged-down with the lycra-assisted gravitational pull of the jeans, revealing your hidden plumber-butt shame. Typical of a dysfunctional relationship, I guess skinny jeans figure that if they're going to literally go down, they're taking whatever they can with them. Eventually you'll start to wonder what's wrong with you that these skinny jeans that aren't even that old are doing this, and you'll start to worry that maybe you got a fat pandemic booty when you weren't looking (because no way it's the beer), then skinny jeans will gaslight you and be all like "See? This is why we can't have nice things..." Okay, perhaps I'm exaggerating just a tad, but I stand by my complete and utter ennui with the whole skinny jeans thing. Granted, I acknowledge that they are a wardrobe staple, and I don't think I'll ever be able to completely leave them behind, but these days, I'm pretty damn choosy about which ones I'll wear. If they even so much as hint at making a southbound move while they're on my body they're gone. I do not negotiate with terrorists. So let's talk about my new obsession, my pieces of flare, if you will. Or flare(s) in this case - full-on bell bottoms. Flare-leg trousers are flattering on just about every body type, but are a particularly rewarding choice if you're tall, because it's a lot easier to find super-long inseams with flared jeans. These have a cool, retro vibe about them, and manage to look quite feminine without the trying-too-hard, "sausage casing" effect of skinnies or leggings. This particular pair is from Free People, and I love them. They're super-stretchy without being restrictive (no acts of terrorism here), making it so much easier to express myself. And I do like to express myself. Free People Just Float On flare jeans / H&M blouse (old), similar / chandalier earrings (old), similar / sterling silver cuff bracelet (old), identical / Hagit Gorali sterling silver and pearl ring (old), similar (same designer) This post has been shared with: High Latitude Style

Yes it's true, this is my second consecutive OOTD post featuring a pair of wild trousers. Ya got me - I have a thing for trousers that leave those who might come into contact with me with the impression that they might actually be talking to someone who has escaped an asylum somewhere. Warmer weather sort of brings-out the girly prints; both in the world of retail and in our own sensibilities. I know that this is probably nothing more than a reaction to months of wooly opaque clothes adorning our bodies, but even so I find myself being drawn to florals and lace and cutesy little embroidered things at this time of year. I am probably one of the last people who would describe herself as a "pink girl" or into lace or any of the other hyper-feminine trends that surface this time of year, yet there we are. Life hack: mix your hyper-feminine pieces with a few edgier ones for balance. With anything I wear, I always feel more comfortable if I put a look together, then sort of mess up its hair a bit. What do I mean by that? I guess I've always felt that for my lifestyle, dressing head to toe in a perfectly-finished high end look is a bit too "done" for me. I need to add a bit of an edge. Jeans, cowboy boots, a funny t-shirt, chunky jewellery - whatever it takes. Consider this look. This blouse is a really feminine eyelet material with slightly puffed sleeves. The trousers are a form-fitting lace pattern. I suppose this look could go pretty high-end with a pair of stilettos, some high-end jewellery, a nice watch and Chanel-type handbag (I might actually have to get a handle on taming my hair to pull it off)...you get the idea. But in order to mess up this look's hair a bit, I wanted to add some tougher leather accents - an obi cinch belt and my favorite pair of cage wedge booties. Sure, it's still perhaps a bit much for pandemic life (which is going to be the name of my next band BTW), but for me, it just sort of settles into the sweet spot where I feel balanced. blouse: Oasis / trousers: H&M (old), similar / shoes: Kelsi Dagger (old), similar / turquoise bead bracelets: from my Etsy shop, similar / silver bracelet: Brighton (old), similar / obi belt: ASOS (old), similar / earrings: Shyanne (old), similar / turquoise rings (old): similar, similar This post has been shared with: Away from Blue