I spend too much time complaining about the weather, and instead, should look at it as an opportunity to branch out with some new accessories. One item that tends to get overlooked, maybe because it's not actually worn, is your umbrella. I'll start with the super expensive ones by Passotti Ombrelli and end the post with some more affordable choices to lessen the pain.

Pasotti Ombrelli (pasottiombrelli.com) is an Italian company that produces a limited amount of umbrellas a year and mainly sells them through boutiques. However, thanks to the beauty of the internet, a few styles are available online. Exquisite does not begin to describe the level of detail put into these pieces. These umbrellas are definitely functional works of art, right through the unique handles for each style.

Galleria offers a collection of out of the ordinary umbrellas on ebags.com for about $30 each, a fraction of the cost of a Pasotti Ombrelli. Though these guys aren't quite as luxurious, the Galleria umbrellas are still pretty cute, coming in a variety of shapes and prints.

Cute cocktail rings

Chunky rings are always fun, especially with holiday party season coming up. I ran across these on the Emitations website and thought they were adorable. The bling makes these cute little animals a little edgy and definitely keeps them from being mistaken for kiddie jewelry. Each ring is also exquisitely detailed with individually set stones. A wider menagerie of animal rings are available at emitations.com.

Eyelure

As much as I love observing fashion, for the most part I don't usually go for the super-crazy things that draw a little too much attention. However, an over the top accessory can be fun sometimes (except for the ones in the last post), and these false lashes by eyelure (eyelure.com) fit the bill. They are obviously party-ready, and give you an excuse to go all out with a sparkly dress and outrageous shoes to complete the look. These lashes seem like they would turn you into an instant flirt, encouraging a lot of eye-batting. How could you not have a good time wearing these?

These pictures come from the Top Shop website which sells them online

Very expensive. Very weird.

Here's some solid proof that just because something is designer and costs a lot, doesn't mean that it's cute. Or even sane. I'm all for standing out, but I have my limits. If I had to wear one of these, I'd go with the shoe because you could probably work around them. Though, they remind me of the hair of the bad guy in that movie the Incredibles or something like that (even though he was blonde I think). The bonnet and mini-hat just scream unstable personality. My big test for not falling for a designer name is whether or not I would buy the item if I saw the same thing at Walmart. Sorry to say, I think with these I'd laugh my ass off. Maybe I'm not just getting something here because several fashion experts must have thought these were marketable enough to try to sell.

Short(er) sleeves and long gloves

As I've mentioned several times before, I get crabby when I'm cold, and cold to me is room temperature for most people. So, whenever I see a coat with 3/4 lengths sleeves, I just think 'that's about as practical as a sleeveless turtleneck sweater', despite how great they look in photos. But, as with many things in life, there is a way to make them work and still stay cozy (and happy) when it's chilly. One look I'm really loving now is long leather gloves paired with shorter sleeved coats. Kind of like wearing long leather boots with skirts, but for your arms. I'm so glad long gloves and over-the-knee boots are popping up everywhere this season. They are the rare cold weather accessories that still make you look, well, hot.

Nighttime shorts

While out and about yesterday, I spotted a girl looking absolutely adorbale in shorts, paired with tights, boots and a long jacket. The shorts just gave the whole outfit that extra edge, even though the rest of what she was wearing was rather plain. That's kind of what you need though to balance everything out to pull this look off for everyday wear, since shorts in chilly weather would otherwise stick out like earmuffs on a 90-degree day. I put together a couple nighttime looks featuring shorts. I'd wear both outfits with black tights. and keep accessories simple since the shorts on their own make a statement..

Sweater: Soft and sexy wrap; victoriassecret.com

Shorts: Jewel button shorts; forever21.com

Necklace: UO tassle lariat; urbanoutfitters.com

Boots: Chinese Laundry Kingdom; piperlime.com

Sweater: Cascade cardigan; anntaylor.com

Shorts: Sequin glam short; forever21.com

Blouse: Kimchi Blue beaded tier tank; urbanoutfitters.com

Bracelet: Heidi Daus "Irresistibly Yours' bracelet; hsn.com

Booties: Vince Camuto Missie boot; endless.com

Cold Weather Minis

It's still not so cold out that a cute mini-skirt is out of the question. The weather is also a great excuse to bring out more richly detailed pieces for daytime. Thick embroidery and a little sparkle aren't so out of place when it's chilly, since they tend to make clothing look a bit heavier. With tights and the right boots, mini-skirts can be a great way to stay chic in the cold.

* Urban Outfitters carries a variety of pieces from Urban Renewal, and these leather skirts are just a few examples from the line. Vintage and surplus apparel are turned into one-of-a-kind pieces in Philadelphia, and sold on Urban Outfitters website. Aside from these skirts, Urban Renewal offers dresses, shirts, jackets, etc. It's great to see a company as large as Urban Outfitters supporting re-use and recycling of apparel.

Keeping warm

Even though it's not sub-zero out yet, I'm starting to feel like I need to bundle up and am ready to hibernate until spring. Thing is though, it seems like there are a lot more cute winter accessories out there than actual warm clothes. I've assembled some of my favorites, with no particular rhyme or reason, I just wanted to avoid anything really basic. Any of these could easily be a focal point of an outfit because of either the material, detailing or because they are things that you don't see too often (like the arm warmers).