Mom-Day Adventure: Murder at Bowker Creek in Classy Grey, and a Wee Shop

Welcome back to Mom-Day Adventures, my friends! I've missed seeing Mom in person, and it was so good to catch up and spend some quality time in nature.

We revisited Bowker Creek, near Oak Bay High School - the last time we strolled here was in July 2024 when we spotted a bunch of cooper's hawks. 

I spent some time in the morning, playing around in my closet and putting together an outfit. 

"I did Classy Lady for you!" I said to Mom. 

• Wool blend jacket - Sasson, vintage 70s, thrifted; purchased here for $24.95
• Silk/cotton sleeveless blouse - Eddie Bauer, thrifted; last worn here (2nd outfit) in November 2024 for the Fluevog sample sale
• Sparkly turtleneck - Jacob, thrifted; last seen here (3rd outfit) under a Finnish tunic
• Skirt - Soaked in Luxury; last worn here in November 2024 for a painty Monday
• Shoes - Groovy Aubrey, Fluevog; last seen here in January with a flowy outfit
• Princess velvet coat (below) - C & A Golden Gate Collection, vintage 80s, thrifted; last worn here earlier this month

I layered a sleeveless ruffled blouse over a long-sleeved sparkly turtleneck for warmth. 

I wore this new-to-me vintage Sasson (sah-SOHN) jacket over it all, and it remained belted. 

I loved the jacket - it's such lovely quality and the sweet puffed shoulder delights me. 

My painty skirt goes with everything. 

I added my Princess coat over it.

We had a delicious lunch at Christie's Pub after our walk, and then I wandered over to House of Savoy to spend the gift card given to me by my generous VP who retired. 

Incognito. It was sunny here and there - a treat! 

It's supposed to start raining in earnest soon. 

Accoutrements: 

My dad's scarf - he wore this when he played in dance bands in the early 60s to earn a bit of extra money (he played saxophone). 

• Leather purse - Aimee Kestenberg, thrifted, Powell River
• Scarf - Dad's, vintage 60s
• Leather gloves - consignment

I acquired the scarf in the mid-80s, and often wore it. It's been well-loved. 

The stuff: 

My shoes were much commented on as we wandered along chatting. "Thank you!"

Copper bling: 

I accessorized to the hilt, pinning two brooches to the jacket, plus my usual hand party. 

• Eelskin belt - Yves Saint Laurent, vintage 80s, thrifted
• Copper/enamel bracelet - Matisse by Renoir, vintage 60s, vintage expo
• Copper leaf brooch - vintage 60s, thrifted
• Wide copper bracelet - Renoir, vintage 50s
• Copper owl pendant necklace - Bell Trading Company, vintage 60s, thrifted, Vancouver
• Copper leaf earrings/copper/enamel brooch - Matisse by Renoir, vintage 60s, vintage fair
• Copper ball ring - vintage 70s, consignment
• Brass ring - vintage 70s, vintage mall.

I wore the owl necklace in hopes of spotting more birds. It brought good luck! 

Mom's been working on a quilted runner for the grandchild of one of her friends. She wanted unicorns, pink and purple. 

You can see the tiny neat stitches on the purple back-side on the right, outlining the unicorn. Mom's holding a darker purple fabric that will edge the entire piece. I think it's wonderful, something a little girl will love. 

We arrived at the Oak Bay track, and were greeted by the raucous chorus of crows. 

You could say it was...

A MURDER!

There have to be 30 crows in the tree, with more coming. 

Such a dramatic sight! 

And you know me and drama...old friends.

 I heard the tak-tak of hummingbirds, so I was watching for them. 

This was VERY far away, at the top of a tall, tall tree. 

Blown out to see the green body. 

What a lovely creature! 

She looks pensive.

"It's too damned cold."

This time of year, everything is still bare, but there are signs of spring everywhere. 

The creek gurgled along.

A fairly low amount, but the coming rain will swell it. 

There were very few people around. 

Lots of ducks! 

These two waddled over.

And then their friends came too! 

It's not quite the Great Swan Attack of 2023 (here) but that's an alarming number of loudly quacking ducks. However, ducks are not as scary as a giant swan barreling right at you. 

Mom, you good? 

Looking fab in her plaid coat and teal corduroy pants! 

I hoped that the trio of birds at the top of this massive tree were hawks.

But nope, just more crows. 

Clusters of snowdrops around this tree. 

Spring is coming. 

Mom and I rested on a bench for a while, watching birds and just gabbing. 

Pale yellow flowers and a brick chimney. 

Time to head back for lunch. 

This will all be very lush and green in a few months. 

Bye, ducks! 

I wonder if it was the same two, coming to check on us. Yes, we're leaving, jeez! 

This seagull landed and started at me, so I talked to her.

You going to pose for me? Be blog-famous!

The crows were still there in their murder, as we got close to the tennis dome and the parking lot. 

I can't resist, I love crows. 

All at the very top of the tree.

Watching everything...

So spooky! 

We heard a squawking to our right. 

More sentries! 

We felt most unwelcome. Fine, we're leaving! 

Mom and I both enjoyed salmon burgers and a salad. We were stuffed! 

Looking sporty in pink with glittery buttons and jaunty hood. That was so fun, Mom, thank you so much! 

I had a good poke around at House of Savoy, chatting with Zenija and Molly.

This is a bracelet! Half of it is solid silver - the other half reminds me of old watch straps. 

It's stamped ".925 Mexico" so Mexican silver. 

This was $70.00 (Zenija generously gave me a small discount). 

And I applied the gift card to this amazing dress...tunic...top. I'm not sure what it is, but it's amazing.

Yes, it's black, and we all thought it was silk. It has a wide V-neck and many tucks, pleats and interesting draping. It's right up my alley.

Dang, its previous owner cut the tags out! 

That's always disappointing, but sometimes you don't want a giant white tag - I get it! 

It's a very  special piece by Junya Watanabe for Comme Des Garcons. He designed for them starting in 1993, but I think it's probably from the mid- to late-00s. 

It was on sale for $225.00 (marked down from $300.00). His dresses run $300 up to several thousand dollars, even secondhand! I'm excited to style it.

I had a quick poke in Good Things Consignment Vintage and this cuff bracelet caught my eye.

A bigass stone, some brass trimmings...bone?

It has a pin "lock" at the back.

It fits my small wrists well. 

The inside looks like wood, and I can see that this has been broken and repaired at some point. 

However, it was $35.00 which felt good. I'm going to guess this is from India and is probably tourist bait.

I had a browse in Pocket Clothing too, and found a few treasures. 

I could not resist this fish bones belt! 

Seriously, a fluffy tail and a grumpy-faced fish?

I had to have it. 

It was $48.00, but I didn't hesitate. 

I think it's probably from the late 80s or early 90s. That's clear elastic used to link all the "bones." I spotted one online for $195.00!

I also gasped at this wrap-around dress. 

The pattern is so intriguing! It reminds me of Spir-O-Graphs from when I was a kid. 

Look at that! 

Very hypnotic! 

The swirls are red, blue and green.

It has a hole that one tie threads through, a belt-look on the outside for the other tie, and it does up in the back.

A content tag is good. 

Cotton and viscose, washable. 

Hey, I know that label! It's another Fenno-Sport (same as this dress here), also made in Finland. 

$48.00 also seemed very reasonable, since their dresses sell for the hundreds. I couldn't find one like this online, but the style is very early 80s.

This plush pink velour appealed to me. 

A stretchy waist...

A nice slit for walking.

Sewn all the way around, a mark of quality.

A very old label! This is probably from the 70s based on the washing instructions.

The CA number gives me Parktown Knitting Mills - from when there were production centres in big cities in Canada. 

Look at that lovely label! Very fancy, Ms. Carriere. I found NOTHING about this brand, no other examples of it online. 

I guess it didn't last very long! 

It was only $30.00.

Looking forward to styling it up! 

And now, my friends, it's late and I'm tired. One more day of work and the weekend will be here! I'll be back on Sunday with tales of adventure, so do pop back in to check that out! Thank you so much for dropping in!