Monday, September 19, 2011

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!

12 comments:

  1. That leather dress is soooo cute. I'm kinda jealous.
    -Meagan
    http://spunkychateau.blogspot.com

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  2. The shopping outfit looks just like you should wear shopping on a Sunday! And those clock watch hands... hm... will have to check around for some of those!

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  3. Sheila, thanks so much for participating in Visible Monday, especially with that awesome leather dress and those Fluevogs! Oh man, those give me shoe envy. ; )

    And I love the back stories for the gorgeous belt and the cufflinks. It makes your clothes come alive more, when you tell their stories!

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  4. I love that dress on you. I cannot imagine wearing anything leather here I would roast...
    I have never seen an apple tree !!! how very cool.-
    Lorena

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  5. Awesome shoes as usual!! And the first outfit reminds me of the ladies in Mad Men! The shopping outfit is sooo cool! And showing off your neighborhood is such a pleasant surprise!! It's a beautiful place to live! Kisses :)

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  6. That's a gorgeous belt. And, in the past, I never would have thought leather could work for a dress, but now I know it does. Yours is perfect. Finally, in conclusion, let me add that we enjoy all the lovely pictures you added to this post!

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  7. Thank you, Meagan and thank you for reading/commenting!

    Cara, totally. Aren't those the coolest earrings?

    Patti, it's about darned time I participated. :) I will try to make it every week! The stories about clothes are what I love too.

    Lorena, really? I can't even imagine not ever seeing an apple tree!

    Dimi, thank you! Yes, I appreciate the beauty of my city.

    Ally, thank you! It's all about the cut and colour! Aw, that's so sweet, thanks. :)

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  8. Reading this post a second time, I realize I overlooked the cufflinks. Very cool -- I believe you're right about the provenance. The King Tut exhibit was HUGE when it hit New York in the Seventies and this is exactly the sort of item the Museum giftshop would sell.

    Your interest in the history of clothing sparks my interest in the history of clothing.

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  9. Ally, aren't they the coolest things? I want the entire collection of the King Tut MMA jewelry! I remember when the King Tut exhibit came to Seattle in the 70s (around the same time). I love knowing where things come from.

    Wendy, yes, it's quite a tail!

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  10. Oh, I love when you take pictures along your walk! That cedar tree's roots are amazing.

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  11. Thanks, Kristen! I will endeavour take more soon.

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