Sunday, September 16, 2012

Sept 14th, 15th & 16th - Outfits #12-15 - A Weekend Was Had

And...let's wrap up the Dress Week of Horrors! I've had a very busy weekend, and now I want to relax and watch football. The round-up of all the Dress Week of Horrors participants will be up tomorrow. Thank you to everyone who left me a link or emailed me a picture of themselves in a dress!
Let's get 'er done. 

Friday! This one's for the reader who complained that my dresses didn't look like dresses because of all the layering I've been doing with them. 
The return of the fabulously polka-dotted dress (last seen here). This time I wore it with my vintage dark red ruffled slip under it, and my Fluevog Presence Impulse flats (last worn here).

I added a Megan Mae button flower to the bow at the waistband.
The floofiness of the slip amped this dress's Swoosh Factor up to 11!

After work on Friday night, I met up with L and some of his coworkers for a couple of drinks, and then L and I went out for Thai food. We strolled home - it's still deliciously warm and sunny here - and then hung out and played board games.

Dress (Ann Taylor, thrifted), slip (vintage, Suzette Lingerie, consignment), button flower (Megan Mae), pendant (Raven's Rest Studio), shoes (Presence Impulse, Fluevog).

I got up bright and early on Saturday morning, and went to my WW meeting.
The purple dress of earlier on this week is worn on its own this time. It's a pretty simple cut - I think I was in love with the colour more than anything.

We had Ultimate Frisbee afterwards (we play from 11am to 1pm), so I wore my comfy flat sandals (last seen here).
I wear soccer boots with cleats for running around on the field, and they are not built for comfort. I made a spectacular block on a pass - worthy of a TSN highlight reel! Woo!

Dress (Enfocus Studio, consignment), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction).

After Ulty, L and I and a few friends went for lunch, then I came home and puttered around in my closet, thinking about the October, November and December capsules. January's going to be a bit of an afterthought once I unpack all my winter stuff next weekend.

I also had a nap before heading off for Winesday with my wonderful women! It was so warm out, I went fairly light, but it does tend to cool off in the evenings here (comes from being so close to the ocean), so I did layers.
Same shoes, and my Spanish lady dress (worn as a dress!) that I wore here earlier in the week.

I layered my blue Noa Noa skirt underneath (this one, worn in April as part of a steampunk costume) - it's not part of the capsule, as I'm wearing it as a layering piece and only the hem is visible.
I was barefoot for most of the evening, and didn't need the orange scarf.

But I like how it looked with all the colours of the dress.
"What's that beeping?" Vizzini the Curious
 I wore a brown leather belt with silver panels, and silver feather earrings. Also, the trusty jean jacket.
That's a lot of layers...considering I'm wearing sandals! Ha!

Winesday went on until nearly 3am. *yawn* Sheila tired...

Dress (Lirub), skirt (Noa Noa), belt (thrifted), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction), earrings (locally made).

Today, I dragged my sorry butt out of bed and walked down to the grocery store (thank goodness for free delivery!), then met Mom for lunch.

I wore my cerulean blue linen maxi skirt again (last seen here), with a grey camisole and my cobalt blue cardigan (last seen here) over that. Same shoes for the whole weekend - I'm a little stiff this morning from Ulty.
"Where have you been? Feed me!"
I was so disorganized this morning, that I forgot to take my pictures before I left - by the time I got home this afternoon, the sun was in a weird spot in the sky so I couldn't do the stairs picture. Vizzini just barged into the shot and sat down.

Cardigan (Jessica, consignment), cami (RW & Co.), skirt (no label, thrifted).

Mom and I spent the afternoon at Dallas Road, and sat partway up the hill at Beacon Hill Park to do some "en plein air" painting. Mom's an artist (she was a teacher too), and I've been doing art my whole life. I last did some painting classes a few years ago, and learned how to use acrylics. I have a bit of talent, but I'm not a professional or anything. I just like to dabble.

If you're interested, here are a couple of links to two paintings that I did in my class. This one is a painting of L's folks old house and waterfront property in Powell River; they sold it and moved, and the new owners tore down the house, so now it doesn't exist anymore. I gave it to them as a gift (I painted it from a photo I took). This one was copied from a photo in National Geographic (it currently hangs in my bathroom).

We sat on a bench overlooking the waterfront that is the southern tip of Vancouver Island. The sky was a clear light blue, and the water sparkled. We could see the Olympic Mountains of Washington State in the distance, across the Strait of Juan de Fuca (Port Angeles is often visible at the base of the mountains).

Anyway, here's today's attempt:
That's an 11 x 16" canvas board. I only use 7 tubes of paint: red, blue, yellow, white, Payne's grey, burnt umber and magenta. I mix all my colours on the fly. Acrylic dries really fast, which is challenging!

Mom also brought along a couple of 2 x 2" (yes, two inch) stretch canvases for us to do mini paintings:
That's looking west towards Sooke, which is a small community on the Island - it's about an hour's drive to get there. I quite liked doing the mini painting.

Here are some pictures that Mom took:
Working on my mini painting - the bigger one is on the ground (it has sun-glare).

Our pictures side-by-side on the bench:
Mom's bigger one is on a stretch canvas, and it was done in oils, her preferred medium.

A better look at her painting:
Pretty awesome for only 2 hours!
I paint in a more impressionistic way - hers is a better idea of what the waterfront looks like (we both left out the people, the dogs, the cars and the tankers in the strait!).

Mom, with our bench.
Look at that gorgeous blue sky! Thanks for suggesting this, Mom! I had a great time.

Vizzini was being funny last night. He's very distressed by all oak and maple leaves starting to turn - some are falling from the trees. He becomes agitated and wants us to go out on the deck to check them out with him.
"The leaves must not fall!"
 He sat in his post while I sat in a deck chair looking up at him.
He's got his psycho face on.
I like his little paws hanging over the edge of the box.

He got stretchy...
"Get my good side."
 Then he languorously went down a level.
Hee, look, he's yawning - I see a pink tongue!

The Dress Week of Horrors round-up with all participants will be up tomorrow/Monday morning. Thank you to everyone who sent me links or emailed!

15 comments:

  1. There is so much to comment on here! First, I adore your polka-dot dress with those red shoes. And your Winesday outfit is awesome - I like the name of your outing with friends too.

    Finally, you and your mother are both such talented artists! I can't believe you painted those works in two hours. Truly beautiful. What a great way to spend time together.

    AND I'm bummed that I missed your Dress Week of Horrors!!! I kept thinking, oh, a week, a week, and then, bam, the week is gone! I look forward to seeing everyone's outfits. You are amazing for putting this together.

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  2. I love the graphic print dress with the pops of red and your Spanish ladies dress! Two of my fav dresses of yours (that is a grammatically strange fragment).

    Lovely paintings! You're a very talented painter. What a fun activity to go out and do. I've tried almost every medium, but painting was never my forte.

    Silly Kitty! I love his stretchy poses. We tend to call the kittens "flat-cats" when they do things like that. They act like their bones don't work and go all rag-doll like.

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  3. Hahaha...I'm just cracking up looking at the photos of your cat....he has real CAT-itude.

    The first two dress are really pretty. I like the scarlet red peeking out front he underneath the white/black polka dot dress.

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  4. Okay, where to start. First, what a great collection of super fabulous dresses!! I am NOT a polka dot girl but I just love that dress--it's my favourite of the bunch. And I super love that you spent the day outside painting. With your Mommy no less! Beautiful pieces! And I love your sweet Vizzini. The acorns have been falling like bullets around here. Glad it isn't windier--then they really start to fly! Apparently I just love this all, start to finish...

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  5. Great dress outfits, I really like the idea of wearing one underneath to add a different touch.
    The cat seems particularly full of personality so cute.
    The oil/acrylic paints are really lovely,but what I particularly like is that you and your mother share such a great relationship. My mother never wanted to do anything with me other than having me be her mini servant. It still continues that way, but with my own daughters I'm thinking perhaps we could take a cooking class together.
    The views there are beautiful, Vancouver is on my list of places I want to visit someday.

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  6. I love the dresses and adding another piece underneath to change the look is so clever.
    The cat has so much personality I love his appearances...
    The fact that you and your mother can have a shared hobby is so cool,Vancouver is one of my must see places. You have such a special relationship with your mother enjoy it.

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  7. I love all of these dresses - but I have to say, those are some fantastic pictures of Vizzini. Especially the close up of his face. What a beautiful boy! I never got a chance to send a picture for Dress Week. oops. I'll have to catch it next time!

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  8. I love plein air painting, that looks like so much fun, and how cool that is what your mom does! My mom was an artist, too.

    You had complaints? lol I'll know I've hit the big time when readers start complaining about my outfits :o You look so lovely in these outfits, and you've inspired me to hunt for a petticoat or slip I can use as a layering garment under dresses and skirts. Or maybe I can beg The Costume Technician to make me one for Christmas.

    Vizzini looks terribly noble! At least in the first pic!

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  9. I love the polka dot dress it is stunning: And of course the kitty is adorable too!

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  10. You looked fabulous in all of your outfits this weekend!1 I am truly in love wutgh the spanish ladies dress.
    You are an amazing artist-I love your work.
    and of course-VIZZINI!!!!! cuteness!!

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  11. Wow, Sheila! That polka dot dress and the way you've styled it gives your Spanish Ladies DRESS a run for its money - both totally fabulous! I'm thinking that "floofy" was probably your word first, I must tell Curtise, too perfect!!!

    That is one heck of a busy weekend. You are so elegant in blue with your bird earrings, and I love the photo of you in the sunshine and your mom in her red hat. That you've been painting your whole life doesn't surprise me - you do fabulous things with colour. I adore those wee paintings!

    I'm wild about those socks on Vizzini's back feet and if I ever met him would not be able to leave them alone, regardless of the danger. :)

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  12. Love the Vizzini pics! So many great dresses you've been wearing, although I think I like the polka dot one the best with the red, it works so well! You and your mum are very talented painters, what a great idea for a day out! :)

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  13. Amazing paintings, you and your mother are so talented! It must be heaps of fun to share a hobby with your mum. :)

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  14. Your dress selection was amazing and the part i loved the most was all the layering :)
    I knew you had artsy in you because of your clothes and the small figurines you paint but I did not know that you also painted canvases ! Although you probably already know, you are REALLY GOOD :)
    What a great way to spend the day with your mom.

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  15. That polka-dot dress is serious fun.

    I had no idea how talented you were at painting! What a lovely way to spend time with your mom, each of you painting in your own styles. So, so cool.

    Hee, Vizzini. George has a similar cat tree, and he hams it up on there too. :)

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