One Thousand Posts

Not that it really means anything except that I have just kept on posting, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, but this is my 1,000th post since I started my blog way back in March 2008.

Wow, that's a lot of posts! Thanks to everyone who:

• inspired me (you know who you are),
• has ever commented,
• reads, lurks or finds me from weird random Google searches.

You all rock, in the best way!

I had thoughts of doing a What I Learned From Blogging post or something like that, but I'm crampy, cranky and hungry, so I'm just going to post my outfit. Probably not my 1,000th outfit but close to it. Nothing really special either; just an outfit.

Here we go! The sweater is new-to-me, thrifted a few months ago and stashed away for cooler weather. I like the colour and the fit. It was all of $4.50:Although it's acrylic, it has very little wear (I alway check for pills under the arms), and acrylic is good for cold offices and chilly September mornings.

The skirt is also new-to-me, picked up last weekend:

It's another Danier Leather skirt, and was only $6.00 in a thrift store. You seldom see printed leather or suede, so the plaid really grabbed me.

The stuff:

My lovely cherry red Miz Mooz boots and the awesome necklace from Tina.

Here's a better look at the plaid print on the skirt:

Olive green printed over with darker green, and the shiny bits are a burgundy/purple (they look shiny in the 2nd picture above).

Here's to another 1,000!

Sweater (B.U.M. Equipment, thrifted), skirt (Danier Leather, thrifted), boots (Miz Mooz), necklace (gift from Tina).

A Twofer: Plaid and Polka Dots

Whew, this is going to be a quick one, but I hope it's worth it. Lots of new-to-me things! Woo!

Let's start with my Tuesday outfit: The red sweater is new-to-me - it was $6.00 in a thrift shop. It's just from one of those mall chain stores, and it's acryllic, not a natural fibre like I usually like, but the colour was nice and vibrant, it's washable and I liked the neckline on me. Neckine: always important!

The skirt is also new-to-me. I got this one on consignment for around $22.00. It's actually a wool blend. I can't resist a plaid!

The skirt is a wrap-around, so I wore a full slip with it, which kept me warm at the office.

The boots are brand spankin' new! They are Gabor (a Danish brand) and were regular $374 (yikes) - fortunately, I found them for 1/2 off. That's still expensive, but I think it's worth it to invest in a good dressy boot. These are leather, they have adjustable calves (they actually feature calf widths!), and I walked to and from town in them and did my WW meeting in them and my feet had no pain at all!

My usual table was in use when I got home from WW so I used the floor:

I love the leather straps and buckles on the skirt! Great detail. I just wore filigree silver jewelry with this.

Sweater (Reitmans, thrifted), skirt (RW & Co., consignment), boots (Gabor), cuff (St. Paul's Cathedral gift shop), earrings (Plum).

Today, I really wanted to wear these polka dot silk trousers again before it gets too cold:

I finally found the perfect thin pink sweater for them! The sweater was $16.00 on consignment, which is probably close to what it actually sold for new - it's the same mall store as the red sweater above - I hate when consignment stores do that! Again, though, at least it's washable.

I really love these pants, but I need some new ideas for what to wear with them. They are navy blue with pale pink polka dots and pink piping.

I've done grassy green, pink and white/cream with them. What else do you think would work?

The stuff:

My fun shoes worked well with the pants. I love bows.

For some reason, I got a lot of compliments on the cheap earrings and bracelet. I guess everyone was trying to avoid looking at the pants, ha!

Well, they are sparkly. Who doesn't love sparkle?

Sweater (Reitman's, consignment), pants (Noa Noa), shoes (Jeffrey Campbell), bracelet (can't remember), earrings (Jacob).

More Washable Suede!

Have I mentioned how much I enjoy thrift and consignment store shopping? I was reading some magazine recently that said over 70% of people are now shopping second-hand. I like that I'm not contributing to made-in-China cheap clothing, that I'm saving money and that I'm helping out local charities and shopowners by buying local.

Not that I'm all righteous about it! Please keep buying new so that I have stuff to buy when you consign it! Ha!

This outfit features only two second-hand items: this fabulous skirt and an orange cami that I'm wearing underneath the blouse: That's my paramecium blouse (L's name for it), with my big ol' soft suede belt (I had to cut another hole in it this morning to make it fit at my waist - the end of it is secured with a paper clip!), and this new-to-me Danier Leather suede skirt.

Just like this suede skirt and this suede skirt (both thrifted), it is machine wash, tumble dry! Love it! No dry-cleaning bills for me! I paid $30 for the skirt, and not having that extra upkeep is totally worth it.

It has a lovely mermaid shape:
The shoes are also new - brand new - and are one of the pairs I got at the Bay for $29.99 this past weekend. They are leather and I love the classic cut and colour. They were also amazingly comfy all day.

Check 'em out:

So pretty. I love that caramel colour.

And although I'm not a brand snob, I know quality with or without a good label:

Thank you, Ralph, for these lovely shoes.

I am especially thankful for this:Regular $99.00 and I got 'em for $29.99. Score! Heh, you can see that the other pair was an even better deal...

Oh, I need to look at them again...

Classic. That's a better representation of the colour, too.

Blouse (Liz Claiborne), cami (Liz Claiborne, consignment), skirt (Danier Leather, consignment), shoes (Lauren by Ralph Lauren), ring/earrings/belt (Aldo Accessories).

Oh, and I almost forgot! I'm participating in Visible Monday - thanks, Patti!

A Casual Weekend of Shopping

I went fairly casual on Friday to the office. We're shuffling people around from one floor to another in preparation for renovations, so I wanted to be in stuff that doesn't matter if it gets dirty.
My casual uniform of long-sleeved tee under a graphic tee. Sadly, my birdy shirt is about ready to go into the consignment bag as it's getting a bit worn out. Plus, must make room for new things!

It's been cool in the mornings so I hauled out my boots and knee high socks. By the end of the day, I was still pretty warm, but it's getting to be boot time! I'm so excited.

Red tee (Press), brown tee (Truly, Madly, Deeply, consignment), skirt (Smart Set, consignment), socks (Hue), boots (Aldo, consignment), belt (swap from Ruth).

On Saturday, L and I went out for lunch with Nick and Karen.

I've been wanting to wear this sweater for ages! I bought it in a thrift store months ago, back in mid-June. The weather was sufficiently erratic for me to do summer on my feet and autumn on my top half.

Again with the casual uniform, only with a sweater instead of the graphic tee.

These tapered skinnies are so versatile. I wish they were not so low-waisted, though. I'm always pulling them up!

The sweater is 70% lambswool, 20% angora and 10% nylon (helps hold the shape) and is quite soft and light. The label looks at least a decade old:

And I think $3.25 is a pretty good deal for this sweater.

I went shopping after lunch with Karen - this was actually a really bad clothing and shoe shopping outfit, as it's full of buckles, belt, layers, and I was carrying a coat. There was an insane sale at the Bay: all non-fall season shoes were on for either $19.99 or $29.99. I snagged 2 pairs and am stoked to wear them! I'll be wearing one pair for my birthday party (coming up in a few weeks).

Sweater (Guess Jeans USA, thrifted), tee (Banana Republic, thrifted), jeans (Jackpot, swap from Caro), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction), cuffs (Reaction Leather and SkinzNHydz), belt (Shi Studio), buckle (She She Shoes).

Today, I counted on the weather to stay on the sunny side of things, so I went with my sandals, a nice flowy skirt and the same tee as Friday (it was layered, it's still clean!).

It was sunny as I walked to down, then the skies opened up. I spent an hour in another thrift store, shopping as I dried out.

Next weekend, I'm going to pack away all my summer stuff and make room for the winter things in my closet. I also took a bunch of my boots down to the cobbler for new heels! Fall is here!

Turquoise and Zig-Zags

Today's outfit was built around this awesome sweater. It reminds me of all that zig-zag stuff that was popular in the 70s - what was the name?

Anyway, I was out thrifting after Ultimate last weekend with Alison, one of our newer players, and spotted this on the racks. The colours were too bold for her, but seriously, few colours are too bold for me. I pulled the turquoise out of it with this skirt and a turquoise cami (not quite the same shade but close enough!).

Black is the obvious choice to wear with it, so I did all my accent pieces in black:

My heeled loafers, my black earrings and necklace. I love the drama of the black wrap tie hanging down. Drama, I tell you!

And guess how much I paid for this lovely wrap sweater?

Um, yeah!

Here's a better look at the pattern:

It has white, black, turquoise, baby blue, orange and hot pink. Love!

The stuff:

These shoes are quite comfy, but a whole floor of our office was on the move today and I was lugging around boxes and bins of paper, and now my dogs are howlin'! I cannot wait to sit down with my dinner and some wine!

The jewels:

A bit blurry, sorry. My Grandma J's faceted jet bead necklace from the 50s, and some modern stone earrings.

Wrap cardi (Le Chateau, thrifted), cami (Esprit), skirt (Cabri, thrifted), shoes (Kate & Me), necklace (Grandma J, vintage 50s), earrings (The Cobbler).

Kitty-Bombed in My Patchwork Dress

Today my company had a special event - both of our local offices met up and walked and then had a barbecue after. One of my co-workers from the other office said he missed my colourful outfits and asked me to wear something bright.

Of course, I did! My amazingly beautiful Desigual dress that I got in London in May 2010. The weather was a little iffy (will it rain? will it be sunny?) so I wore my drapey black cardi with it. I changed into runners for the actual walking part, although I could have easily done it in my kitten heels.

It felt weird wearing tights. I couldn't wait to get them off when I got home!

This made me laugh when I uploaded the pictures:

Vizzini hears the camera timer beeping. "Hmmm. I should go see what's going on," he thinks.

It ended up being rather warm, especially during the walk. I was my building's "ambassador" so I was zooming back and forth in the crowd, chatting with people and basically bossing them around, as I am wont to do.

The back of the dress:

And it's Vizzini, the Mad Photo-Bomber! I've been kitty-bombed!

With the cardi over it all:

A little more worky-work.

I wore my Grandma J's clip-on crystal earrings:

I have a matching round domed pin too, but I didn't wear it.

Dress (Desigual), cardigan (Kensie Girl), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction, swap from Cat), earrings (vintage 50s, Grandma J.).

I arrived home last night to find a package! I love getting packages!

Megan (and Ally) teamed up: Ally shipped some of her unwanted silk ties to Megan and Megan turned them into beautiful works of art! She sent me this gorgeous obi and button flower wrist cuff. I can't wait to build an outfit around them. Thank you so much - you are both wonderful ladies.

The note says: "Sheila, I couldn't help but feel you could do this obi justice. From Ally and me, here's a tie belt and wrist cuff to jazz up your fab outfits. Hope you like! [heart] Megan"

Aw!

A Whole Lot of Ruffles

I miss my outside shots now that it's getting dark so early (sigh). However, now that I can walk to work in my street clothes, I'm actually dressed in the morning at home, so I can dash out to the stairwell:
The return of the ruffly skirt! It's also the first wearing of these Hispanita boots in several months.

My khaki jacket over a new-to-me vest:

Showcasing the lovely pin that Steph sent me. Thank you! So funky!

The vest:

I do love the "lock and load" properties of vests, don't you? This one is a fine-wale cotton corduroy and has sweet little watch pockets on the front. It was $6.50 in a thrift store.

The stuff:

Even though the outfit didn't have a) stripes b) pink or c) hearts aside from this pin, I liked how it pulled the whole ensemble together.

Jacket (RW & Co., consignment), vest (RW & Co., thrifted), sweater top (Trina Turk, consignment), skirt (Dolcezza), boots (Hispanitas, consignment), earrings (Plum), pin (gift from Steph).

Leather Monday and a Sunday Walk

It's Monday, and you know what that means: Visible Monday! Patti over at Not Dead Yet Style has been doing Visible Mondays for ages, and I've always wanted to participate, but haven't had the energy. Well, Patti, this one's for you.

My leather dress: I've worn this not too long ago; I'm showing off the accessories this time around.

I'd show a good shot of the shoes, but Inigo insisted on being in the picture this morning.

Ah, there we go:

Doing my cuffs and showing the shoe profile. Are they not marvelous? And yes, they are Fluevogs.

Check 'em out:

These are from the old version of the "Listen Up" family (same as my Harlows, Ivannas, and Audreys) - the new version of Listen Ups have a different heel (like my O'Haras). This shoe is called the Mansfield.

I found them in a consignment shop for $60. I'm anywhere from a 9 to a 10 in Fluevog (their sizes are hugely erratic, depending on the style) - this one's a size 10 and looks barely worn, so my guess is that someone ordered it online for their size 10 foot, and it was super-tight on them. It's quite tight across the top of my foot, so I'm really glad it laces. I wore these all day at work, including walking 4 blocks to a stationary store and back, and my feet feel pretty good.

Right beside them in the consignment shop was this beauty:

Another awesome Smoking Lily find! It's a black leather belt with silk-screened gold bugs and blue lines, with a big gold buckle. It was only $18, which is no doubt a steal, since their stuff is really expensive (it's handmade here in my city, no sweatshop, no factory). I wasn't able to find any reference to them making leather belts, so it may be a one-off. Anyway, I love it, and it was soft and comfortable to wear.

I liked the gold accents on the belt, so I did all gold jewelry:

My Foxy necklace and clock hands earrings.

I also snagged another pair of L's cufflinks to wear with my shirt:

They are Egyptian cartouches, and are stamped "MMA 1976". I did a little Googling and it looks like these were part of a huge collection of King Tut-inspired items that the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City issued to commemorate the King Tut exhibit in 1976. Check out some of the cool pieces here. Wouldn't you love to find one of these necklaces in a thrift shop??

I bought L these for Christmas a few years ago for $5 - they were in a big jar with a bunch of other cufflinks.

Dress (Danier Leather, consignment), blouse (Banana Republic, thrifted), shoes (Listen Up Mansfield, Fluevog, consignment), belt (Smoking Lily, consignment), earrings/necklace (Foxy), cufflinks (MMA 1976, antique shop).

On Sunday, I decided to go visit the aforementioned consignment shop, and I thought I'd take my camer with me.

But first, the shopping outfit!

Break out the boots! Autumn is nearly here!

A simple jacket for warmth, a nice jersey top, and a jean skirt:

Just a pair of hoop earrings and I was ready to get shopping!

Jacket (Nygard, thrifted), top (Merona, consignment), skirt (Bebe Sport, swap from Caro), boots (Aldo, consignment).

On my walk, I passed many lovely gardens:

I liked all the colours in this and the way the sunlight is dappled across the plants.

I am always on the lookout for cool grafitti:

That is an awesome sabretooth cat!

This is some of my region's natural vegetation:

Garry Oaks, scrub, cedars.

And Oregon Grape:

I like those kinds of fences.

Check out the amazing root system on this cedar tree:

It's almost like a mangrove tree.

I passed the graveyard:

I can't resist taking pictures of it.

And I love when flowers grow beyond their garden's boundaries:

Those Black-Eyed Susans are lovely.

Apples grow really well in our climate. This apple tree is in someone's front yard:

The apples are small and very red. I bet they'd be good in a pie!

Hope you had a fabulous weekend!