Erika S. outfits, over analysis

Over Analysis: Levi’s Ribcage Jeans

Welcome to a new series on this blog: the Over Analysis.  I spend way too much time going over small ridiculous details about clothes, skincare, makeup, anything else most people consider shallow. This series is about as deep as a puddle.

I love high wasted jeans.  They help balance out my long torso-short legs proportions. So when Levis came out with their new Ribcage Jeans, I immediately had high hopes.  I have a few of their wedgie fit jeans already, so I figured these would just be just as good, if not better.  Well, they are, and they aren’t.

First of all, they don’t stretch, at all.  I like that a lot about these old school Levis styles and that is one of the reasons why I buy them. The thickness of the denim really holds everything in and creates a very streamlined look that I love (just check it out on the model). The problem is that I’ve put on a few extra pounds (kilos) this past winter, and they’re really, really, tight now.  If the denim had a bit of stretch, it would be no big deal.  These on the other hand with a 12″ rise are very unforgiving and will jam into your waistline like no other after a large meal. No food babies allowed, and no seconds at dinner especially when sidelined from anything active due to a shoulder injury.  The only thing that keeps me from feeling like a stuffed sausage is the wide leg, which brings us to the next thing.

The legs are a bit too wide for my liking, and they make me feel like I’m veering into Jnco Jeans territory. I know I’m totally exaggerating here, but I’m really used to my skinny jeans, and straight leg cuts are as wide as I feel comfortable.  These I feel like go a bit too straight/wide, making me look a bit stumpy (admittedly, I’m 5’11” so it must be all in my head).

Now on to the good stuff, things I love about these jeans and why I decided to keep them and wear them.

They don’t stretch. I know, I know, I just complained about that in a lengthy rant above.  But the fact that they’re 100% cotton means you can wear them over and over and they will never bag in the butt or the knees. Saving water FTW! They will never pull/stretch out of shape or get premature holes in the back pockets if you’re a back pocket key stasher like I am. 

I love the color and the lack of distressing or whiskers. I’ve been wanting a pair of plain classic blue jeans for a while now, and these fit the bill perfectly.  I’m a bit over the distressed look and really over the whiskering in the crotch area. They’re like runways pointing straight at the reproductive bits and I just don’t want that kind of attention while I’m teaching physics. These jeans are tight AF right now though so they’re pulling at the hips weirdly and making whisker like folds, so…at this very moment I’m reconsidering wearing these again till I can properly get back to my usual F = ma. Anyways, I get a bit of a 50’s vibe from these jeans, which I love. 

Lastly, these jeans are made of selvedge denim.  I’m not sure what that means, but I think it has something to do with the edging of the fabric.  Other than the white piping on the inside seam, I honestly can’t tell the difference between selvedge denim and regular denim. I guess they’ll never unravel!

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cardigan and shirt: madewell – jeans: levis – shoes: sven – watch: fitbit

Erika S. outfits

3 Mile Dim Sum

Today is Halloween.  Some people are crazy about Halloween — I am not one of them.  I haven’t dressed up for it in years, unless you count this as an old man of the sea costume.  Is it really a costume though if it’s your usual look?  Nothing here is new…just the same old stuff out of my closet.

hat and jeans: f21 – jacket and belt: hella old gap – shirt: levis (last seen here) – tank: alternative apparel – bag: freitag – boots: boutique 9 cooper ankle boot

Today is also the third day we’ve been out of school because of Hurricane Sandy.  Now it’s looking like classes will not resume until Monday.  I’m on an extended staycation now.  I’m lucky…others in Manhattan, Jersey and Staten Island are dealing with toxic flood waters and sustained power outages.  With nothing better to do, we walked all the way down to Sunset Park (Brooklyn’s Chinatown) for lunch.  The subways are still down so from Park Slope it was a 58 block walk (3.5 miles).  Dim Sum at Bamboo Garden was mediocre at best.  There are three more large dim sum houses in that area though, so I’ll eventually get around to trying all of them to find my favorite.

Nelson was obliging enough to let me test out my camera settings on him.  Thanks, bud.

Erika S. outfits

summer uniform

New York is HOT.  Today it was like 100˚F out (it’s now 11pm, and it’s 83˚ outside).  I’m used to 50˚-65˚F weather every single day in SF.  This whole summer/fall/winter/spring weather thing was foreign to me, till now.  So now I have a summer uniform.  Every morning, I throw on one of two pairs of denim cut-offs, a tank, sunnies, and I’m done. Granted it’s not very exciting, but it’s functional on my bike, maximizes ventilation, and provides enough surface area for sweat evaporation without making me feel like I’m a stripper too naked.

These jeans used to belong to B till I saved them from the Goodwill pile and chopped the legs off.  There is a hole in the back pocket created from years of packing his “daily carry” knife, so I almost lost my current favorite lipbalm the other day.  I’m planning on stealing patiently waiting for B to get rid of another pair of jeans so I can stop wearing these everyday.  

sunnies: f21 – tank: h&m – shorts: levis 501’s from b – bag: freitag – sandals: dv by dolce vita – watch: marc by marc

Erika S. outfits, teaching

in between the storms and the races

It stormed like crazy last night.  We don’t get real lightning and thunder very often here in SF, so when it does happen everyone talks about it.  City dwelling high schoolers reverted to grade school kids sharing their fears.  It’s funny here in SF: earthquake? “Meh, no biggie.”  Thunder? “OMG that was sooo scary!”  The storms cleared today, but it looks like another one might be rolling in this evening.  I took advantage of the lunchtime sunshine.  Too much blue?

My mom gave me this necklace about a year ago when she was going through a rough time.  She picked this necklace out when she was 12 years old in Saigon, Vietnam.  Her favorite uncle had given her money for something like this just before he died.  The character (in cantonese, which we speak at home) is “fook”, which means good luck or good fortune.  These necklaces are not meant to be taken on and off frequently, so I just leave it on all the time.  Wearing it all the time also means I tend to get sideways glances/stares from chinese people on the street.

Asian people tend to think I’m Caucasian and and vice versa.  Kids are usually obsessed with questions like “what are you Ms. Schenck” at the beginning of the year.  Last semester, I made it a point to tell them flatly, “I’m San Franciscan American” and left it at that, redirecting each time.  Mostly, they would get visibly frustrated and try to guess.  Eventually, after much explanation and discussion, they stopped asking.  They laughed when I pointed out that other countries don’t obsessively classify their residents by skin color (hello, I’m Chinese Brazilian!  or hi, I’m African Australian!).  They agreed that knowing my ethnic background would in the end have no relevancy.  But they still just wanted to know.  So they went out and asked around and eventually figured it out.  I understand when they talk shit in Chinese, after all.

shirt: levis (last seen here) – dress: many belles down (orange version seen here) – belt and tights: j.crew – boots: h&m – other necklace: unicorn crafts (last seen here) – bag: f21

Erika S. outfits

brunch with aly

Brunch with Aly!  We went to Savor, over on 24th street.  Easy, fast, yummy and won’t break the bank too hard.  Aly is my friend Marisa and her hubby Al’s kid.  Aly is almost 3 and a squirmy little kid, as expected.  She’s so cute!

big kid clothes– sunnies and cords: f21 – shirt: levis – t shirt: target – belt: old gap – shoes: vans – tote: marc by marc jacobs – that thing that looks like a pager but it actually a glorified pedometer: fitbit