Wednesday, June 24, 2026

Pop Art, a Leather Tie and New Shoes

Another hot day and look at me, way overdressed for it.
It was fine in the office AC!

  • Cardigan - Desigual, consignment; last worn here in December 2025 with a striped skirt and red boots
  • Shirt - Eddie Bauer, consignment; last seen here in May with taupe tulle
  • Trousers - Long Tall Sally, consignment; last worn here in April with the floofiest sleeves of all
  • Sandals - Sorel; last seen here in September 2025 with wacky pants

I loved wearing this cardigan as always - it's such a fun pattern. 
I've worn it with these Boss Pants before. I've also worn it with this shirt-tie combo. Just not the top and bottom together. 

Barnabas helped. 
He can't get enough lovin' - I could hear him purring. 

I always have time for a cuddle! 
A good look at the details of the cardigan - isn't it awesome? Very Lichtenstein-esque! 

The stuff: 
These shoes were way more comfortable than I'd remembered. Must wear them again soon! 

  • Leather tie - Le Chateau, vintage 80s, thrifted

Bold bling: 
All firm favourites. 

  • Black and white cuff - vintage fair
  • Black and red cuff - Bakelite, vintage mall, gift from L
  • Earrings - Tania Gleave, Granville Island
  • Lapis lazuli/Fulvia Ring - Wendy Brandes

Colleague Carol, I blame you! She pinged me that she'd popped into local shoe store The Cobbler and bought a pair. They always have good sales (I've been shopping there since the 80s!) and I don't mind buying retail to support a local business. In fact, the shoes I wore today were bought there, as were my yellow Doc Martens.
I looked carefully at all the sales, tried a couple of pairs on, and then looked outside my size for anything interesting - shoes are as annoying as clothes when it comes to sizes. These lovely pink and orange sandals caught my eye, and they looked much smaller than a size 11/41 usually is. 

They fit perfectly, and I liked that the orange strap could be tightened up for my narrow feet - it's also far enough up the vamp to not have the shoes making that slap-slap noise. 
They were only $40.00, and they are by Los Cabos, a brand I've never heard of. 

A cute sole. 
Yup, they're marked a size 41.

Unfortunately, they are not leather or anything natural at all. 
We'll see how they last, but for now, I'm excited about the potential. 

The kitties have found the coolest spot in the house. 
It's supposed to cool off slightly - and maybe even rain - in the next few days. Phew! 

Book Club last night - we discussed Michael Crummy's "The Innocents". 
A blind racoon lives near Rosanna's house. 

She generously gave us a tour of her garden (the chicken wire fencing is to keep deer out).
From left, me, Rosanna, Cat, Jennifer, Ciara, Yvonne and Caro. 

I'll be back tomorrow with Mom-Day adventures. 

Tuesday, June 23, 2026

Animal Print-o-Rama

I was shocked when I walked out of my office building and hit the wall of heat this evening. 
I had to dash home for Book Club, so at least I didn't get sweaty on the way home. 

  • Denim suit - Smashed Lemon, Dots sample; last worn here as a full suit in March with bits of white patterns
  • Shirt - Essentiel Antwerp, thrifted; last seen here in January with purple and amber
  • Shoes - Chloe, consignment; last worn here in April with a poufy skirt

The office was full of people with two lunch meetings. I had to leave one to go to another! 
I found myself wanting more short-sleeved light tops to layer under this cotton suit. 

I went without the jacket briefly in the morning, after my walk to work. 
It's quite the print-mix, isn't it? Snake print and leopard, together at last.

Incognito. 
Someone on the street hollered, "I love your suit!" at me, and many of my coworkers were enthusiastic.

The stuff: 
I wore these loafers in the "heel down" position all day.

  • Belt - Leatherworld
  • Lion buckle - Zara, thrifted (I cut the cloth belt off it)
  • Cat/mirror brooch - JJ, vintage 90s, Mom's

Mixed bling: 
Kind of random. 

  • Leather/multi-metal bracelet - Jenny Bird, consignment
  • Eelskin/gold-tone bangle - vintage 80s, thrifted
  • Wooden Klimt ring - consignment
  • Silver/smoky topaz ring - Anneli Neuman, Sweden, vintage mall
  • Earrings - thrifted, Seattle
  • Necklace - FAC Saks Fifth Avenue Collection, thrifted, Sidney

Hot kitties: 
I found Barnabas sprawled out on the tiles last night. 

Who's under there with you, bud? It's Whateley!
Barnabas always looks at the world upside down. 

Monday, June 22, 2026

Black and White and Blue

Another week, and I'm almost halfway through my season now that it's officially summer. There are still loads of backwards hangers! 
I'm diligently building outfits featuring some of my favourites. 

  • Waffle jacket/cardigan - Issey Miyake, consignment, Sidney; last seen here in March with my First Day of Work outfit revisited
  • Toga top - Zara, consignment; last worn here in September 2025 with snakeskin 
  • Mondrian skirt - LS, consignment; last seen here (2nd outfit) in April 2025 for Urbanite at the Art Gallery
  • Shoes - Vogettes Pina, Fluevog; last worn here in May with velour and tulle

My Mondrian black, white and blue skirt has been a longtime friend. 
It makes me happy. I wasn't as enamoured with the white crinkly top, so it's going to go into Limbo after I was it. 

I needed arm coverage for the sun - another hot day! - and added my Issey Miyake cardigan/jacket. 
I hadn't planned on wearing it in the office, but the AC was chilly! 

Incognito. 
This was all quite loose and comfortable. Only the white top got sweaty!

The stuff: 
I need to get my few summer hats into rotation. 

  • Paper hat - thrifted
  • Aluminum belt - vintage fair

Silver bling: 
All armoured up! 

  • Silver mesh bracelet - consignment, Sidney
  • Silver/obsidian cube bracelet - consignment, Sidney
  • Silver/obsidian link bracelet - consignment, Sidney
  • Silver/obsidian necklace - Mexican, consignment, Powell River
  • Silver clip-on earrings - Mexican, consignment, Sidney
  • Silver/obsidian ring - consignment
  • Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes
  • Silver/crystal ring - Soul Flower
  • Silver ring - consignment, Sidney

Cute pictures of the boys from the weekend.
Whateley likes to lurk under the benches where the terra cotta tiles keep him cool. 

Barnabas came for some lovin' while I read out on the deck. 
We sat in the sun for a bit. 

Whateley crashed beside me while we played board games. 
He was sleeping with his eyes open - very creepy! 

Sunday, June 21, 2026

Bigass Weekend Wrap-Up: Friday Taffeta and Daisies; Brunch and Winesday in Pink and Orange

Welcome back, my friends! I hope you had a lovely weekend! 

We have two outfits for you: Friday's office outfit, and what I wore to brunch on Saturday and later that night for Winesday.

Here's Friday - I paired my Rifflandia tee with this very fancy new-to-me taffeta skirt. 
And then a daisy bomber jacket to keep me covered from the sun.

  • Nylon daisy bomber jacket - Stella McCartney X Adidas, consignment, Vancouver; last seen here in April with grey and yellow
  • T-shirt - Rifflandia merch, thrifted, not tracked
  • Skirt - Dominique De Sentino, consignment; purchased here for $59.50
  • Leather shoes - Karl Lagerfeld; last worn here in April with big sleeves

As you know, I like to mix band tees with fancy skirts, so I just rolled with that. Rifflandia is now shuttered (it's always money), so now this is a collector tee!
I LOVED this ginormous taffeta skirt - it's such a great shape (rather like a mermaid) and the pleats all kick around when I walk. 

Because it's still a slender silhouette, it didn't get caught in chair wheels or underfoot while going up and down stairs. 
It also makes a wonderful swooshing, whooshing, shushing noise. It's musical! 

I fully intended on wearing the outfit like this all day.
But I was foiled by the building AC, cranking away against the high-20s temps. (Barnabas butt!).

So I wore it like this for most of the day.
Also fine! 

And zipped up and incognito on the way home. 
I picked up my weekend stock of fizzy water on the way home and was a wet puddle of sweat by the time I walked home. This nylon daisy jacket does not breathe! 

The stuff: 
The pins were barely visible on the lapel of the jacket. I knew they were there! 

  • Silk scarf - Kenzo, vintage 80s, thrifted
  • Heart pin - consignment
  • Bee brooch - gift from Megan Mae

Yellow and purple bling: 
One of my favourite colour combinations.

  • Yellow cuff - thrifted
  • Carved jadeite bangle - consignment
  • Silver/amethyst ring - vintage mall
  • Gold/amethyst ring - Francis Jewellers, c. 1965, Dad's
  • Venetian glass necklace/earrings - Venice, gift from L

Whateley is soooo photogenic. 
What a lovely boy. 

Barnabas, on the other hand, he's a sexy kitty. 
And he knows it! 

After a fun-filled Friday evening of board games, L and I were up early on Saturday - he for Ultimate Frisbee, and me for rotting in bed, reading with coffee.
It was windy but sunny and warm, so I dressed for it! This calls for a massive swooshy skirt. 

  • Hemp blouse - Sure 1032, last worn here in June 2025 with a chartreuse miniskirt
  • Cotton/silk skirt - H&M's "A Tribute to Marimekko", thrifted; last seen here on our April 2025 jaunt to Sidney
  • Shoes - Groovy Aubrey, Fluevog; last worn here (2nd outfit) in May with more pink and orange for brunch
  • Puffer vest (below) - Zara, consignment; last seen here in May for a Mom-Day at Beacon Hill Park

I wore this for brunch, a grocery shop afterwards, then for a 2-hour nap, and then for Winesday...all the way till 1:44am when I got home. 
Barnabas barged in for picture time. Nothing new in this outfit - it's all my old favourite pieces. The hem shirt, the silk and cotton swooshy skirt...

I looked like this while in the car and sun in the morning. 
While at John's Place, two other customers asked server Shane if we were the owners of John's! (Uh, no, my name is not John). Why? Because we were fancy! 

And this is my Winesday version, with the puffer vest added for extra mosquito coverage while we hung out in Vero's backyard. 
Barnabas' little head! At one point, I had the scarf completed covering my face, and my hands were retracted into the blouse sleeves. 

Ready to hang with my gals! 
I had a "sea" theme going on. 

The stuff: 
My friends admired it all, especially the scarf and the bright tones. 

  • Leather purse - Aimee Kestenberg, thrifted, Powell River
  • Silk scarf - Marc Rozier, consignment

I didn't want to remove the brooches from the vest.
I did all my "stuff" picture before Winesday (and before my nap). 

  • Fish brooch - vintage fair
  • Shell brooch - J.J., consignment, Powell River

Oceanic bling:
I had fun pointing out all the marine-themed pieces. 

  • Fish stretch belt - consignment
  • Pearly bracelet - thrifted, Powell River
  • Carved faux cinnabar bangle - consignment
  • Turquoise ring - consignment
  • Coral/olivine ring - Honolulu, 1977, Mom's
  • Gold/opal/diamond ring - Francis Jewellers, c. 1983
  • Earrings - Martha Sturdy, vintage fair
  • Articulated cloisonné fish necklace - thrifted, vintage 80s
  • Fishbone necklace - Roberto for RLM, consignment

I'd forgotten about my "sweet 16" opal ring. 
My mom insisted on me getting this - I recall the process being fairly miserable (I was 15-16 and rather angsty) and I found the ring too frou-frou for my taste. But it's pretty, and liked it on my silver right-hand ring stack. 

Barnabas, are you watching for Yvonne and my cab?
He's watching someone walk their dog.

I scooped him up on Friday afternoon for some love. 
He's such a cuddly thing. 

Whateley, meanwhile, is ever on Bathroom Patrol. 
Well done, sir! 

I walked down to the Ulti field before brunch. 
Even post-game, L is still styling (I bought him the tiger socks for his birthday). Love the colours! 

This gent - Corey! - looked fabulous. 
He's a John's Place regular, always dresses like this, always wears Fluevogs. He's wearing one of my old necklaces! 

Early evening (around 7pm) at Vero's. 
She's very near Swan Lake, so it was Mosquito Central, even after we put the fire pit on. 

We had plates and just passed the food around. The giant ziploc bag of chocolates was Dangerous. 
I may have eaten a few of them! 

Carolyn took a picture of me, all bundled up and hiding from the mosquitos. 
And yes, I take my own glass when I party at someone's house - one less vessel for them to wash. Rock on, my friends! 

Leaving you with two of the sweetest pictures. 
Whateley crashed when I got up on Sunday. 

And Barnabas just plunked himself down beside me. 
Such a funny boy! 

And there you have it, Gentle Readers! I'm off to enjoy a quiet day with my fam - wish those of you with dads (or if you are a dad, or have dad-like qualities) a very Happy Father's Day.