Bigass Long Weekend Wrap-Up: Double-Plaid Office Punk; Closet Superhero; Safety Pins and Leather; Patchwork and Tulle

I'm back! I hope all my Canadian friends had a lovely Thanksgiving and/or enjoyed your long weekend. I certainly did!

Let's start with Friday, shall we? My office was dead, as many people took an extra day off. 

I love plaids, any kind of plaids, and they just seem to go so well with red. Classic!

• Sweater - RW & Co., consignment; purchased here for $15.98
• Trousers - Talbots, thrifted; last seen here in February with Etro
• Shoes - Half Truth Veda, Fluevog; last worn here (as my walking shoes) to meet John Fluevog in September
• Coat (below) - L'Atiste, consignment, Vancouver; purchased here for $31.00

Plaid always make me think of punk.

I think I'm punk at heart. A bit of a rebel, loud, opinionated?

Sounds nothing like me...

These lovely trousers are wool and are fully-lined.

I used an old jewelry gift bag with the top draw-string part cut off as my backer for the ginormous brooch I'm wearing on my new-to-me sweater.

I also had a black tank on under the sweater to give me an extra layer, and for tucking into the trousers.

My last red sweater died from moth attacks. Vizzini is terrible at killing moths.

"Slander! Lies! They are just less tasty than shoelaces."

This sweater is a blend with about 20% wool content, so not itchy and not a moth-attractant- and I like the length of it.

I built my outfit around this wonderful coat that I was super-jazzed to wear.

 Oh, yeah, double plaid!

I showed it off to tons of my colleagues - for a close-up of the pattern and the assorted gewgaws on the front, go here.

I might have done a little 80s dancing in this - it reminds me heavily of the late 80s when this oversized cloth coat look was a thing.

It's not a warm coat, so it won't be worn in the dead of winter, but it was perfect for a crisp early fall day.

The stuff:

I had a busy day, and was glad I'd worn easy shoes. I walked home in these after work.

Black bling:

Monster Brooch is one of my favourites. Such a statement.

• Leather cuff - Guess, thrifted
• Spider ring - gift from Mom & Dad, c. 1986
• Onyx/silver ring - Tocarra, vintage fair
• Earrings - Glee
• Brooch - vintage fair

L and I spent our evening playing board games on Friday night - I was up early for my shifted Mental Health Walk on Saturday morning. Now that our Ulti season is over for another year, I prefer to do my MHWs during daylight hours instead of after work, when it's dark.

Fresh from my walk, I changed into practical clothes for brunch with L. We did our advance voting (national election), then went to Pluto's for brunch.

• Sweater - Jay Jays, thrifted; last worn here in March for our anniversary trip to Vancouver
• Skirt - Peter Pilotto x Target 2013, consignment; first worn here in August with mixed patterns
• Boots - Truths Teah, Fluevog; last worn here in February for a Futurist Ubanite outfit for the Art Gallery
• Coat (below) - Danier Leather; last seen here (2nd outfit) last weekend

We walked home from there, and then I walked over to Yvonne's and we did her fall/winter closet swap-over.

These were easy clothes for bending, stretching, hanging, folding...doing a closet overhaul is hard work!

I should have steamed out this sweater - it's still quite wrinkled from being packed away.

Randall thought I looked like a superhero. I was Yvonne's closet superhero - we had a blast pulling out all her winter stuff.

I was much happier with this very short skirt worn with tights.

Did you notice that my tights have a diamond optic pattern in them? You can see it in the stair picture.

Outerwear - it was threatening to rain and we got a bit of a drizzle in the morning, so I had to wear my hat.

I left it at home in the afternoon as it got sunny out.

Bundled up and ready for any weather.

My scarf and glove are easily tucked away in my purse if I don't require them.

• Hat - vintage, thrifted
• Scarf - c. 2006, San Francisco
• Studded gloves - Danier Leather

The stuff:

I bought these wonderful boots after Christmas last year, and only got to wear them a few times before I packed them away for the season - this is their fourth outing, and they are softening up nicely. I walked to town and back in them, then to Yvonne/Randall's and back in the evening, so probably racked up close to 4 kilometers, and my feet felt great.

Minimal bling:

 Just simple things that won't get in the way.

• Earrings - Tania Gleave, Vancouver
• Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes

The closet swap-over took about 5 hours (with a break for fortifying snacks!), and that plus my 8K walk that morning just wiped me out. I crashed on the couch on Saturday night.

We had a bit of a sleep in on Sunday morning, and just puttered around the house. I'd spent some time the night before putting together an outfit to wear to our long weekend get-together with our group of friends: the Family That We Choose.

Ah, the sun felt so good...

This is my outfit for "Visible Monday" over at Patti's Not Dead Yet Style. Go!

I had helped Yvonne style two outfits for her week, and realized that I need to put that kind of thought and care into my own outfits. Taking the time to "test drive" an outfit for a special event really pays off.

It's faster to get ready, and you know your outfit is going to look good and feel good. Planning my outfits is self-care for me.

• Jacket - Gianfranco Ferre, Spring 2003, consignment; purchased here for $185.00
• Blouse - Planet, consignment; last seen here in February with lemon on a snowy day
• Suede skirt - Ann Taylor, thrifted; last worn here (2nd outfit) in January with this same shirt worn under stripes
• Boots - Vog Together, Fluevog, consignment; last seen here (4th outfit) in November for Winesday at Ali's

I was prepared for all the temperatures that our days hit this time of year, from sunny to chilly to brr! cold!

This is my first wearing of this spectacular designer jacket - I modeled my styling close to the Vogue runway shot (picture here), with the cuffs unzipped and flipped all the way back.

I felt like a pirate, although one covered in safety pins (really, check out this pic here from when I bought it). This is covered in bronze safety pins.

 The back of it is also covered in safety pins, which hold the seams together.

 Isn't it amazing? I was showing it to my friends all afternoon. It weighs a ton.

I took my jacket off a few times, so this version of my outfit did get seen.The blouse is quite old for me - I first wore it here in September 2010 and paid $30 for it on consignment.

Counting back, I've worn it 20 times, so I'm at $1.50 per wear.

It's been rescued a few times from the giveaway pile, but I've never found a better leopard blouse.

 No upgrades needed here! 

The leopard footless tights are also over 9 years old.

I bought them on super-mark-down at Le Chateau way back in the day and they're still holding up (and staying up) well.

The jacket zipped all the way up - it's rather snug and boob-mash-y when fully zipped.

Just showing you what it looks like. The cuffs are also zipped - they're too long like this for my taste.

I prefer the bottom and top zip partially opened, again, as it was styled on the runway. Flip those cuffs back out!

 The leather - which is buffalo leather - is quite stiff, but softened up as I wore it.

I really enjoyed this piece.

I'm looking forward to styling it up for a work look (although I'd happily wear this outfit to work - you know me!).

Done up and ready to head out.

A brown fur scarf tucked into the neckline, and long brown leather (cashmere-lined) gloves to keep my hands and forearms warm.

• Scarf - thrifted
• Gloves - Club Monaco, consignment
• Purse - Roots, thrifted

The stuff:

A fully brown-toned neutral outfit, top to bottom. We bused to town, but walked home, which is about right for these boots.

Bronze bling:

Some of my favourite fall items are back in circulation!

• Chain/leather bracelet - thrifted
• Eelskin/gold bangle - faux Gucci, gift from Mom & Dad, Italy, c. 1986
• Spinner ring - Twang & Pearl
• Feather ring - Fossil, thrifted
• Bronze ring - P. Sarpaneva, vintage 70s, vintage expo
• Earrings - thrifted
• Chain bracelet - Club Monaco

Vizzini has been very cranky with us, both because we've been out a lot, and because he misses the warm weather.

"If you stayed home, I could sit on your warm laps."

He's found a sunny spot to glare at us from.

"You're going to leave me again?"

Sorry, buddy!

L and I played boardgames on Sunday night, which felt very decadent. I do love a long weekend!

Today/Monday, we went out to my mom's to have a birthday/Thanksgiving lunch and to see all of our extended family: my brother, Dave, our nieces Sydney and Zoe (and Zoe's boyfriend, and her roommate and her boyfriend), and our nephew Matt. We had a lovely time - our Thanksgiving is very non-traditional (no turkey!). We had a bagel bar and deviled eggs (my favourite). Yum!

I like to dress up when I see my family.

• Sweater - Artisan de Luxe, consignment; last worn here (2nd outfit) in March for brunch with L
• Tulle skirt - Trina Turk, consignment; last seen here in December 2018 with layers of cosmic jewelry
• Boots - Prepare Map, Fluevog; last worn here in February with double brown down (both of those items were culled last year)
• Leather coat (below) - Danier Leather, thrifted; last seen here in April

I love the fit on this patchwork sweater - I often find thick sweaters are too bulky on my small frame.

By the way, aren't you impressed with my brightness and colour in these pictures? I found this awesome link here* on how to change settings on one's camera to take better/brighter pictures, and I experimented a bit with my point & shoot camera.
*linking 'cause I love, of course!

My colours are a lot more accurate, and my pictures are much brighter.

 I do have to take a few more pictures, because blurry photos are now more frequent due to the settings and my shaky hands.

I'd rather have better colour and a slight blur on a few pictures, though.

I am pleased to be taking my pictures up a notch, especially as we go into "no daylight" season. I take all of them with a timer, always have!

I'm also happy to be delving into my leather collection. Sept/Oct and March/April are the best "leather weather" months.

Blues and bits of purple/burgundies. I like my outerwear and accessories to all be coordinated with my outfit.

• Velvet scarf - thrifted
• Wool gloves - Parkhurst

The stuff:

The boots look a little on the pink side here, but they are more like the purple in the stair picture. Super-comfy and I'm really tall in them due to the hidden platforms.

Oops, forgot to do a "bling" picture.

• Bronze cuff - c. 1970, Mom's
• Raven cuff - Jezebel Charms, gift from L
• Crystal ring - Uffizi Gallery gift shop, Florence, Italy
• Jade/brass ring - c. 70s, Mom's
• Earrings - c. 1994, LA Express

Mom gave me a lovely birthday card.

 And a shopping gift card (I'll restock my make-up at the MAC store).

And these lovely gold studs.

 I like the beveled detail - they sparkle! Thanks, Mom!

When we got home, Vizzini was completely ignoring us.

"Oh, me? I've been fine, I suppose." 

He sulked a bit, but got excited when L sat down to read for a while.

"There's a blanket out! I see a lap that needs a cat!"

He's stretched out on L like a super-kitty right now.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Thank you so much for stopping by.

Birthday Week: Legs Lacroix

The weekend is upon us, as Birthday Week continues with a favourite fall dress. 

It's a jammy dress, nothing else to it. Comfy as heck.

• Dress - Desigual by Christian Lacroix, thrifted; last worn here (3rd outfit) in January with red boots
• Shoes - Napoleoni, thrifted; purchased here for $16.95
• Leather jacket (below) - Danier Leather; last seen here in April

I love the trompe l'oeil print - the top bib portion is embroidered and beaded. Edited: link to a picture of the fancy stuff here.

 I often wear this dress with tights - wearing it with nylons felt a bit bare. Legs McGee, that's me!

The dress has horizontal lines of gold sparkle in the fabric.

 But it's the print that is so awesome.

I first wore it in January of 2016 (here - I have purple hair!). Can you believe I only paid $24.00 for it??

 This is the tenth time I've worn it, so I'm at $2.40 per wear.

Leather weather!

 I had a company shindig after work and knew I'd be walking home, so I wanted to be bright. Safety first!

Bundled up for the chilly morning and evening walks - more frost.

Orange and red for fun.

• Toque - Danier, thrifted
• Fur scarf - thrifted
• Gloves - Parkhurst

The stuff:

(I've been working on my camera settings for better lighting)

 I'm happy to report that these shoes were fantastic and comfy to wear. I really like the shape of them, and the deep oxblood burgundy colour.

Gold bling:

The usual suspects.

• Belt - thrifted, Powell River
• Earrings - thrifted
• Amber ring - c. 1996
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jewelers, c. 1965, Dad's

More birthday presents! L spoils me.

Clockwise from top left: "Princess Bride" talking book, a collection of modern Cthulhu mythos stories, an action/fantasy novel, a cheesy-looking 1950s paperback, a My Chemical Romance CD, a Fluevog gift card (yay! shoe shopping!), and two pieces of jewelry.

The left necklace is probably from the 1930s, and seems to be pewter and amber.

 The chain thing on the left is a bracelet. The links are hollow, it's stamped silver and made in Thailand. Both were purchased at the Vintage Mall (A+ for secondhand shopping for presents!).

A close-up on the sections of the necklace.

They remind me of droplets of sap coming out of pinecones.

And now, I'm off! This weekend is a long weekend for Thanksgiving in Canada, and I have a bunch of events planned. I will be back on Monday with tales of adventure! Wishing you all a happy weekend!