Sunday, July 24, 2011

A Daze of Days (Including a Full Vintage Outfit)

Drapey (Not Working With My Figure) - Thursday


Some days you just don't want to wear clothes that show everything; sometimes you just want to be covered up and be all drapey and flowy.

Thursday was one of those days. I was browsing around in my closet, looking for something to wear, when I found this brown dress. I've had it for over 3 years and it's one of those basics. And yet, I hardly every wear it. Last time was here, a year ago.

I've been bored with my clothes lately. I think it's partly the weather, because it hasn't really felt like summer until this weekend (woo!), and I haven't been able to wear all my lovely light summer clothes. So here we are, with a camisole, dress and cardigan.

Outside:I realized, wearing this very loose-profile outfit, that I'm totally used to wearing form-fitting clothes now. I used to live in baggy clothes when I was 50 lbs heavier. However, as I tell my WW group, "I worked damned hard to get this body, and I'm going to show it off!" Ha!

The stuff: I love the vintage-y look of these shoes. I wish I'd bought the python printed ones as well. *sigh*

That's my Grandma J's necklace and earrings, from the late 50s/early 60s (heh, I've worn these shoes and this jewelry before!).

Cardigan (Bobeau), dress (Suzy Shier, consignment), camisle (Esprit), shoes (Guess), necklace/earrings (Renoir, vintage, Grandma J).


Double Leopard With Ruffles - Friday

I wanted to have a simple, comfortable ensemble for Casual Friday:
This is my third wear of this sweater (last seen here, scroll down), and this is my awesome A-line denim skirt from Caro.

Outside:I thought I'd be more horrified by the double leopard than I actually was - I think it's because the cardigan is more orange, so it doesn't come across as totally matchy-matchy (don't get me wrong, I love matchy!).

Cardigan (Twelve Layers, thrifted), skirt (Bebe Sport, swap from Caro), shoes (can't remember, the Bay some years ago).

Mid-Century Modern - An Art Gallery Expedition - Friday

I've gone to many dos at the local Art Gallery; they always have something fun going on. This week, they have a new exhibit of Canadian mid-century furniture and housewares opening, so they had a little gala event for opening night.


This is a great shot from Elaine:I love all that wonderful teak and clean lines.

We were encouraged to wear our best "Mad Men" Don and Betty Draper outfits, so of course, I busted out the vintage! This is my real vintage dress (last worn for my niece's baby shower and we're now coming up on her 2nd birthday!) that I got back in 2009 for around $25 at a thrift store.

The jacket you see hanging behind me came with it - it was chilly out in the evening so I wore it for the walk to the gallery.Vizzini helped me take pictures.

The shoes are also vintage:
I featured these on my "Never Seen - Clothing Archive" series in May 2010, but I haven't actually worn them in over 5 years. It was great to be able to show them off again.

Check out the insides:
They are a size 10, have a AAAAA (that's 5 As) heel, and they say "a "Red Carpet" invitation to a unique way of life". Isn't that awesome? I got these over 10 years ago in a vintage store - probably didn't pay more than $30 for them.

I love the details:
The black part is actually the sole (it's all one piece) and wraps up around the sides and back of the heel.

Some details of the dress - check out the size tags I found:
Size 14 has changed a lot in over 50 years! This was just right in the waist on me, but big in the hips and bust.

Some of the lovely seaming on the bodice:
I like the "woven" look of it.

The neckline is so amazing:
You just don't see details like that anymore.

I wore my non-vintage Aldo Accessories bag:
Vizzini's having some water. I am not a purse or bag person, so I don't really have many vintage bags. This was close enough and it held what I needed to carry!

With the jacket on:
Totally matronly! Why make such a giant, unflattering jacket for such a fitted and lovely dress? I don't understand this style at all.

I mean, really!
Could it make my waist look any wider??

Outside so you can see the colour:
Fab, isn't it?

I wanted to bouf out my hair, but realized too late that I don't actually own any hairspray! I made do with hair paste and a combination of mousse and ratting it with my fingers.

I also haven't dyed my hair in a while, so I needed to hide the roots line:
This piece of grosgrain ribbon worked great, with this vintage mink brooch pinning it closed.

I also wore my Grandma J's full set of copper jewelry with it:
I felt very snazzy. L and Elaine and I all wore our vintage and had a smashing time. They had a little "living room" set that you could have your picture taken in, posing with props for a vintage look. Then they projected the pictures with funny captions on a screen behind the two DJs:Both of the DJs were dressed like that - very groovy!

Dress/jacket (vintage, thrifted), shoes (Red Carpet, vintage, thrifted), jewelry (Renoir, vintage, Grandma J), purse (Aldo Accessories).

Lazy WW Outfit, Post-Ultimate and Shopping - Saturday

I worked for a few hours at the WW centre on Saturday morning, then dashed off to play Ultimate after. I wore my easy-to-change in and out of clothes:
I last wore this dress in January as an "at home" ensemble. That black cardi is becoming a workhorse, as are the shoes.

I went thrifting after lunch and found a few things. Yay! New stuff to make new outfits. What fun!

Hope you had a good weekend!

Dress (BCBGMaxAzria, thrifted), cardigan (Kensie), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction, consignment).

14 comments:

  1. I would love to see that exhibit! That era of housewares is fascinating, and is, admittedly, my inspiration for our new apartment's living room. Well, with a modern twist.

    That is a great outfit to wear to it! Is there any way you could get the jacket tailor so it's more fitted? While the drapey looks great in your Thursday outfit (still shows off your figure, just more subtly), I agree, the jacket's a little wide!

    ReplyDelete
  2. So many cute outfits. I cheered when I saw your post. Have you noticed over time with blogging the thing that "the masses" tend to view as "Basics" no longer appeal? I find my basics to be those quirky pieces that I want to wear over and over.

    That gold necklace is very awesome. And I love your vintage look! I too wonder about adorable dresses coming with square jackets. I lovelovelove your hair all styled up like that!

    Vintage sizing isn't the only odd thing. I picked up a pair of red skinny jeans at the thrift store today, saw they were labeled an "8". I stared at them because they looked really small, tossed 'em in the cart to try on. Turned out they were by a subset of H&M and were a UK size 8 (US4). If it fits, wear it, I guess!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, the vintage ensemble is lovely and the jewelry you're wearing with it is perfect. Perhaps the jacket is so huge because it was made for a much bigger woman. Tell the WW gals right!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lovely Sheila mix!! How about cropping that vintage jacket a bit, so it would leave your waistline exposed? The dress is fabulous and the jacket hides it! (transform it to a short cardi of some sort). Kisses dear!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow what a bumper post. I love your photos - you always look so elegant.

    ReplyDelete
  6. So much style going on! I love the "double leopard" outfit, the shoes are perfection. You look smashing in vintage and the color of that dress with your hair = best.

    Yay for a Vizzini appearance too. He's getting big!

    ReplyDelete
  7. The full vintage just B L E W me away !
    OMG ! what a gorgeous dress ! The color, the fabric and even the jacket - and the price !! It's a total winner for me :)
    I must say that I like it more sans the jacket - but it's too pretty not to wear it together - or at least make an entrance.
    I am thinking of so many ways you could wear that jacket on its own....

    ReplyDelete
  8. I really like the first drapey look..I might just give it a try! You are a master accessorizer...great work as always.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I never understood the appeal of that boxy jacket style... but the dress is fab! And your grandmother's jewelry... gorgeous

    ReplyDelete
  10. very nice vintage outfits are given here.. i fall in love with dresses..thanks for the post dear..

    ReplyDelete
  11. The vintage dress and jacket is precious! Would the jacket look good with jeans? And you are right--the neckline on the dress is really pretty. Just dont make 'um like that any more!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I absolutely LOVE the draped outfit! Soooo flattering and one of my fav.s (black;)
    Also your shoe collection is wonderful!
    I wear a vintage size 16 usually as the sizing back then was so much smaller (way before happy meals ;)

    And, how was your Lucinda concert???
    We went again a couple weeks ago!
    She was with Amos Lee who was also really good!
    xXx
    Reva

    ReplyDelete
  13. Pretty, pretty, pretty! (Except for the brocade dress and jacket together; that is kind of frumpy, LOL. That's why they say you need to tweak vintage sometimes to make it more modern!)

    Love that ruffled animal-print top. It's so you!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Cara, it was really cool! I recognized a lot of stuff I'd grown up with (and now I feel old). It's a great design aesthetic! I have thought about altering the jacket, but I'd like to keep it intact - I just don't wear it with the dress and it's all good.

    Megan, thank you! Yes, I agree that sometimes the basics take a back seat to really quirky items. The necklace is actually real copper - I love the vintage look of the pieces from that era! My hair was so hard to get it that way! Yeah, you can't get hung up on the number on the size tags - it varies so much!

    Terri, thank you! I think the dress was made for a bigger woman (but with more foundation undergarments), and I know that this jacket was just the style then! Thanks, hon!

    Dimi, thank you - nah, I'm not going to alter it, since I probably won't ever wear it again. Thank you!

    Jane, thank you!

    Patti, thanks! Yes, Vizzini is grown fast!

    Lorena, aw, thank you, sweetie! I love the dress as well, but the jacket I can leave. It looks weird on its own - I've tried!

    Pam, thank you!

    'Doll, I know, it's just so unflattering! Thanks!

    Rothcomilitaryclothing, thank you for reading and posting!

    Paula, thank you! No, the jacket doesn't actually look good with anything! It's going right back into my vintage storage.

    Reva, thank you, hon! Yes, the sizing was really different, eh? Lucinda was awesome!

    Kristen, thank you, and I totally agree re: the jacket! I love that leopard cardi too.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are so incredibly special, and I love them and hug them and treasure them forever. Please feel free to tell me what you think!

I'm not currently able to respond to comments, but I will make every effort to answer questions. I do read every single one, and appreciate your comments.

Please note that comments containing affiliate links spam-y sites, spam comments and anything I deem inappropriate will be deleted.

Cheers,
Sheila