it’s that time again — tulle is having a monster sale on selected goods. for prices that range from $5.99 to $8.99, you get a pretty good range of stuff this time around too. my picks are below, but you might wanna take a look-see yourself at everything they’ve got to offer — before sizes run out!

mixed cable sweater in teal

also in: black, crimson
original price: $78
tulle’s day price: $6.99

why: i don’t know about you people in other states, but here in chicago it’s been just about the coldest october in recent memory, and my extensive collection of fine gauge cardigans, while insanely cute, just isn’t going to cut it. i need me some cable knit, and i need it NOW. bonus points for being cute and coming in nice bright colors.

baby quilted skirt in crimson

also in: black
original price: $63
tulle’s day price: $6.99

why: let me tell you a story. once upon a time, cold weather was my nemesis. i refused to go anywhere without cladding my legs in chain mail pants denim or corduroy or 15 pairs of heavy duty tights. then, i discovered how to wear skirts in cold weather. and lo, the heavens burst open and a chorus of angels sang, etc. this skirt, being quilted, is perfect for cold weather, because it’s heavy enough to withstand sudden gusts of icy chicago wind without exposing any ladybits. and i don’t know about you, but anything that prevents frosted ladybits is alright by me.

wool plaid shawl collar coat in graphite/black

also in: lavender/ink
original price: $110
tulle’s day price: $8.99

why: in my head i have this entry planned called “i don’t think so, tim: how to wear plaid without looking like al borland.” and it is pretty awesome, and this jacket would be on my list. it does everything right: the cut is slimming, the wide collar adds some interest, and the colors don’t scream LUMBERJACK. winner.

canvas sherpa vest in graphite

also in: evergreen
original price: $78
tulle’s day price: $6.99

why: okay, so the styling on the tulle site isn’t so hot. but bear with me here — couldn’t you just imagine this over a slim turtleneck dress, tights and riding boots? so very fresh-from-the-ski-lodge chic, no?

oh oprah. is there anything you CAN’T do? print this coupon now for 50% off any pair of payless shoes. valid in-store and only till TODAY, so take advantage of this NOW!

from the what i wore posts, it’s pretty obvious that you know that my love for colors is deep and unending, like my love for sneezing pandas or oberweis chocolate milkshakes. but i do get it: color is SCARY. and figuring out which colors go with which can be a process that can make you want to rip your hair out and wear black for the rest of your life.

but never fear! i have a handy-dandy list of resources that can help you – yes, you! – conquer your fears and dip your toe into a whole new world of fashion possibilities. and the best part is that these resources are great for a shot of instant inspiration too.

1. pantone
every season, pantone releases a spiffy little booklet of upcoming color trends and how designers will be rockin’ them on the runway. for example, fall 2009’s color report features:

the nifty color report not only shows you some beautiful sketches of next season’s designs, but it also tells you how to pair those colors to create some awesome combinations:

“Pairing Honey Yellow with its color wheel opposite, Purple Heart, will surely add a surprising flair. Or, for a more typical fall combination, group Honey Yellow with Burnt Sienna and Iron.”

want to be ahead of the game? pantone just released its spring 2010 color report… take a gander at the colors featured and start stocking up!

2. colourlovers

have you seen colourlovers? because it is sort of awesome. a whole community of people who love and work with colors in real life post their color palettes, patterns and combos for your viewing pleasure and inspiration. it’s kind of the shit.

3. wear palettes

i place wear palettes firmly in the realm of GENIUS IDEAS. mostly because it’s GENIUS. wear palettes collaborates with lookbook.nu to create color palettes from selected real-life street style photos, so you can see how those colors work together on a real person.

4. your very own fellow cyber fashionistas
speaking of genius and real life, your fellow bloggers can be an endless source of inspiration! the academichics had a comprehensive color series going on that you can see here, and street style sites like weardrobe, the wardrobe remix group on flickr, and lookbook.nu are full of stylish, creative people rockin’ that color combo you never even thought of – never underestimate the power of seeing real people pull off a fantastic outfit!

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so there you have it. i send you off now on your own color journey, with the stipulation that you show me your own fabulous experiments so that YOU can become MY inspiration! what color combos are you rocking this season? what resources do you use to inspire you?

before i embarked upon this Mission, i was firmly anti-working out, and i used every reason i could come up with in order to not have to work up a sweat. it’s too cold, i’d say. it’s too hot. i’m too tired. the tennis court’s too full. gossip girl is on. my mom’s going to call and i’m going to miss it and she’s going to be pissed. i don’t like gyms. people will laugh at me.

that’s the problem with getting yourself off the couch and running your first 5k — there are no more excuses. you’ve already done it before, so how can you not do it now? what’s stopping you?

sometimes i catch myself trying to make excuses. sometimes i catch myself losing my drive. and then i sort of have to check myself and be all, listen self. you better shape up, because do you really want all this pain and sweat of the past couple of months to go to waste?

no. i don’t. i really, really don’t.

which is why, in order to give myself another goal, i’m running another 5k this sunday, almost a month exactly after my first. and this time it isn’t about setting myself a time or competing against anyone — it’s about knowing that first time wasn’t a fluke, and it’s about proving to myself that this is something i can do over and over and over again.

i’ll keep you posted.

there was supposed to be an outfit post for today, but yesterday i had a bad day, a fat day, a bad case of the uglies that i couldn’t shake.

you know those days, right? those days when you get up, and nothing looks good on you, and nothing seems to fit, and nothing goes right, and you hate your body a little bit but you’re not even sure why? that was my funk. i wanted to be invisible. nothing made my day better except being able to go home after work and relax with a bowl of hot soup and the latest episode of glee (side note: freaking. LOVE. that. show).

so here’s my question, because i need your help. what do you do on days when you’re having trouble loving yourself, even though nothing has changed, and you know you should? leave your positive thoughts in the comments, or send an email my way!

when the kate spade fall lookbook first came out, i squealed because the looks were SO. CUTE. and i was dying to replicate them once cooler weather rolled around.

images from the clothes horse.

then, i realized one big problem. The Tights.

ladies (and gentlemen, i suppose?), i fear the colored and patterned tights. i adore them, don’t get me wrong, and own several pairs, but always seem to balk at actually wearing them. well, NO MORE. yesterday i wore a colored tights-centric outfit, and i plan to do so for the rest of the week continue experimenting. the results:

dress, cutiemus. cardigan, target. shoes, target, thrifted. burgundy tights… i don’t remember.

i didn’t necessarily have the items to replicate any kate spade looks, but i went for the same colorful, whimsical, bright feel. thoughts? how do you rock colored or patterned tights?

pretty sure the universe is telling me to shop. observe:

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where: macy’s online
what: extra 20% off plus free shipping
promo code: PL8KM912J3X
until: thursday, october 22nd

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where: chickdowntown.com
what: 35% off everything
promo code: FALL35
until: wednesday, october 21st

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where: dsw.com
what: $10 off $49
promo code: SHARELUV
until: monday, october 26th

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also, don’t forget modcloth’s twelvsies tuesdays — where they offer 12 random items at 12% off every tuesday. click here for today’s items!

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TODAY ONLY: steve madden shoes are on sale at 6pm.com for up to 65%, for anywhere from $14-$60.

as part of the ongoing mission to Get Fit, i take a dance class once a week called “flirty and fit.” every thursday, i go into a studio with a small group of women, face a mirrored wall, and watch myself try to replicate my instructor’s sensuous, burluesque moves. she tells us to “make it sexy” and i cringe, embarrassed by my clumsy attemps, convinced of my own blatant unsexiness. if only, i think, if only i didn’t have to look at myself. if only we didn’t have to face these mirrors.

and then today, i thought… well, why? why am i rejecting my body? why do i deny myself the right to be sexy? who am i to reject my ability to be fabulous, to feel good, to think of myself, “damn, i’m looking fine today”?

are our bodies perfect? hell no. does that mean we should deny ourselves the right to celebrate them anyway? HELL NO.

so today, i’m reclaiming my body. i’m reclaiming my sexy, my fabulous, and my foxy, all the way from head to toe. and tonight i’m going to shake that booty, work that core, and smile at myself in the mirror for being so damn fine. i suggest you do the same.

* image courtesy of special on flickr.

finally, a statement from fox regarding the jessica simpson-dallas cowboys clusterf*ck of an ad that i blogged yesterday:

“Burger King Corp. did not have any editorial input in the creation of the animation that ran last Sunday, and no one from Burger King Corp. approved it before it aired. Upon reflection, our poor attempt at humor was insensitive and we deeply apologize to anyone who might have been offended.”

Burger King adds: “Burger King Corp. has a long-standing relationship with FOX Sports, as well as an extensive media partnership with the network. The specific content for this sketch involving Jessica Simpson was not developed or aired by BKC or any of its agencies.”

not to state the obvious or anything, but sports and inequality have been a point of contention for a long-ass time. there’s the title ix thing, there’s the issue of salaries and payouts, there’s… well, i could keep ranting, but that’s okay. point is, we’re supposed to be at this point where as a society we start rolling back these dated misconceptions of women in sports; we’re supposed to be making progress. and then, shit happened. namely:

one. burger king, the nfl, and jessica simpson.

this is a clip that played on fox nfl sunday on october 11th, featuring animated versions of dallas cowboys players.

if you couldn’t bear to waste time watching it (i can’t blame you for that one), it features jason whitten, marion barber, tony romo and wade phillips, and a lot of fat jokes about jessica simpson.

reasons this is so tasteless i almost feel dirty just watching it:

• dear universe, for the last time, JESSICA SIMPSON IS NOT FAT. also, it’s not like i even like her that much, but seriously, girlfriend has had some bad luck lately, and heaping on the fat jokes on top of that is sort of like kicking someone in the shins when they just broke their ankle.
• i know the connection between this ad and OHN, a self-professed personal style blog, seems tenuous. let me explain. ads like this reinforce an ‘us versus them’ mentality, portraying men being men having man time in their manly man cave, making jokes at a woman’s expense. the way i feel about sports is a lot like how i feel about fashion: it should be fun, and it should NOT be exclusive. being active and athletic is a great way to get fit and feel good about yourself and your body, which affects your style and the way you dress; anything that makes you feel like that world is not something you can or should be a part of… well, it can go suck it.
• really, like we need yet ANOTHER media outlet to reinforce negative body image for women (“if jessica simpson is fat, i must be a HEIFER.”)

two. sports merchandising sucks.

i’m a huge soccer fan, and when i go to the local pub to watch the game, i want to be able to show my support for my team with gear — a jersey, a t-shirt, whatever. but since i am also, y’know, a WOMAN, and since this pub is downtown and i tend to want to walk around and do other things after, i also want my gear to fit me, and not seem like i am drowning in borrowed jerseys.

now, i support a UK team, and merchandise in the US is slim pickings, unless i am willing to pay insane amounts on international shipping. apparently this means my choices are as follows:

translation: i only watch soccer for the hot players, not because i could possibly love the game.

translation: i only watch soccer because my boyfriend loves it.

translation: the only shirt i could possibly wear that could feature my team MUST be pink and sparkly. otherwise how can i possibly prove my femininity?

look, i am all for pink and sparkly, and i’m sure plenty of people think the first two shirts are funny, and maybe they are and i’m just not getting it. but where’s the balance? where are the team jerseys cut for women — don’t tell me they don’t exist because i’ve seen them? where are the t-shirts that feature cool designs with serious quotes from the top players — like they market to the men? why do these people insist on dressing their female fans like soccer barbie?

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this is a long post that’s probably making less and less sense by the sentence, but for every step the sports world takes to move forward — think positive nike ads and the like that play to a woman’s strength — little things like this set it about a squillion times back. tell me i’m not the only one angered by all of this.

*images courtesy of whoareyadesigns.com and manutdshopusa.com.