Bigass Weekend Wrap-Up: Triple Flares, Red and Leopard Go Shopping, and Cowgirl on the Town

I hope everyone's having a fun weekend - mine's been a lovely mix of social and not-so-social, gearing up for a busy week (and weekend ahead). 

Friday's outfit. I worked late, getting my work's annual stair challenge ready for the start on Monday. I'm on the orange team, so I worked lots of shades of orange into my outfit for the breakfast launch Friday morning.

• Jacket - Boom Boom Denim, thrifted; first worn here in April 2015 with flared plaid
• Sweater - Ralph Lauren, thrifted; last seen here in January for de-treeing
• Skirt - Maeve for Anthropologie, thrifted; first worn here in November 2015 with coppers
• Shoes - Sopranos Angelina, Fluevog; last seen here (2nd outfit) earlier this month for Christmas with my family

This is my outfit for both Anne's "52 Pick-me-up" at Spygirl (I'm sure one of my blues in this outfit is ink blue), and my extremely visible entry for "Visible Monday" over at Patti's Not Dead Yet Style. Go check both these ladies out! 

My coworkers loved this outfit, like, raved about it. There is something about this "fit and flare" shape that people respond to.

I rolled the cuffs up on the sleeves of the jacket this time and much preferred them that way. I had a lot of work to do, so I needed cuffs up and ready to get down to business.

Double flare! No, triple with the boot cuffs flared! It's the elusive triple flare! No wonder I had such strong reactions - flares are powerful things.

The stuff;

Lovely comfy boots! As you can see, I still haven't bought ribbons to play with instead of the laces.

• Necklace - Banana Republic, consignment

Vizzini didn't want me to go to work that morning.

"Stay home with me!"

If I could have, I would, buddy!

L and I chilled on Friday night and played boardgames until we got sleepy. Saturday morning was our usual brunch.

I planned to go for a thrifting expedition afterwards, so I dressed for trying stuff on.

• Dress - Olsen, consignment; first worn here in December 2015 with spotted shoes
• Shoes - Kenneth Cole Reaction, thrifted; last worn here earlier this month for brunch out

 I liked the matchy belt.

I'm wearing a vintage slip underneath this, but it's history - it twisted and rode up under the dress all day. Not keeping an item of clothing that annoys me!

I shopped for about 4 hours, visiting 3 different thrift stores.

Most of the time I had my leather jacket on.

Cross-body bag for easy browsing, and thin gloves get tucked into my pockets.

The stuff:

The shoes are history, off to the giveaway pile! Although a very comfortable rounded kitten heel, there's no padding on the front of the foot, and I could feel every bump of the pavement. By the end of the day, my poor feet were killing me! Bummer, but I only paid $8.50 for them and wore them 3 times. I'm okay with that cost-per-wear.

Vizzini hates when we go out.

"Come rub my tum!"

He gets very needy when we are out - he's very demanding. 

I did have a good shopping day, despite my sore feet. My first stop was the St. Vincent de Paul, where I found this lovely t-shirt fabric dress. 

I was in the mood to match things to my hair, and this dress is both comfy and flattering.

Plus, a good price!

$10.00 for this dress by Jackpot. And of course, that ribbon got cut off right away - it's only there to help the dress stay on the hanger.

I spent a good 90 minutes in the WIN (Women in Need) Warehouse store, having a really good look at everything. I had seen these shoes last time I was in, and tried them on.

I actually don't own a pair of navy shoes, and the wedge is a really comfy height. Also, beads one the toes!

They were only $16.95, and are barely worn.

The brand is Go Fresh, which I've never heard of.

I always check out the belt section. I am a sucker for a nice leather belt.

I like how the separate section is fully adjustable, to get the belt just the right size.

This was only $3.00.

I'm sure it would have been more if it had a label or tag on it, but the quality looks really nice.

I might have gasped out loud when I saw this black and white polka dot blouse.

Hello, 1996! I absolutely loved this shoulder cut-out design when it first came around in the mid-90s - I owned a white shirt like this that I wore with high-waisted wide-leg brown trousers. It was such a cool look. This shirt is very retro/pin-up looking.

It's made in Canada by Le Chateau, and was only $12.95.

I'm excited to wear it!

I'm always on the lookout for washable woven tops for layering and hot-weather pieces.

This one had matching shoulder pads - I cut them out right away.

It was made in Canada by Orchid.

Not bad for $5.95.

I hemmed and hawed about this sweater, but the rich amber colour and the awesome sleeves won me over. The sleeves have open knit-work that show one's arms all the way down.

I don't usually buy "fast fashion" brands like Forever 21, but for $6.00 I'll wear it a few times.

We have a bit of a peek-a-boo them here!

This sweater's "giraffe"-inspired pattern appealed to me.

I'm grooving on the bold grey and cream.

It's by Rino Rossi, a Canadian knitwear designer for the past 30 years.

It was $14.95, made in Hong Kong with lambswool and angora. Although it's been categorized as Vintage, I think it's probably from the 90s. Is 90s vintage? Dang, I feel old!

I have been on the lookout for a proper denim-ish pencil skirt forever! I've bought several of them over the years, and none have been quite right.

I like the high waist on this one, the light denim-y-cotton fabric, and the snaps along the pockets (the snaps undo to make the pockets bigger (yes!).

I also like the snap detailing on the back and the big industrial zipper down the full back of it.

It's by Tulle and was $13.95.

We'll see if this makes the cut and becomes The denim skirt.

You know I can't resist anything leather, so this purple suede shift dress was a gimme.

"Lick lick lick."

 Seriously, Vizzini, do you have to do that here?

"What? I'm keeping an eye on you while I bathe."

The dress! Yes, it was only $24.95!

Geniune Danier Leather, and made in Canada! This will be a good dress for layering blouses under it.

From the WIN store, I strolled over to Flavour Upstairs and had a good browse. I scored with this 100% cashmere Lord & Taylor sweater.

I'm reluctantly embracing a turtleneck, but I can't resist the luxurious feel of cashmere.

Such a glorious bright blue! And for only $24.99? Awesome - these start at $200 new.

Regular readers will have noted that I've been on a pants thing lately. From only a couple of pairs of trousers, I'm up to almost a dozen pairs of pants! This is unprecedented in my wardrobe - easily the most pants I've ever owned.

I'm drawn to a slim cropped shape and bold colours and patterns.

For $12.99, this Topshop pair is mine.

I'm really excited to wear these.

I deliberated for a while over this skirt.

It's neoprene and not very well made, but I love the bright colours and the watercolour-inspired print.

For $14.99, I figured, "What the heck?" It'll be a spring-summer piece, but I'll try to work a winter outfit out of it.

I spotted this crazy tie in the menswear section.

It is a really short, flared, pointy tie!

It says "Has a love letter won your heart".

It's 100% silk and made in Italy by Escada by Margaretha Ley - that was a very big brand in the 80s, very chi-chi. This tie has a really fun vibe to it - L thinks that it's actually meant for a woman and I tend to agree.

I also found this hinged cuff in a basket of trinkets.

I have really small wrists, so finding a bracelet that fits me is a challenge.

Even nicer, is finding a stamp inside!

I have several Trifari pieces - this is likely from the late 70s/early 80s - it was only $5.00.

I'll leave you with this picture of Vizzini helping me as I hang and photograph all my new finds.

"Nom nom, clothing tags are tasty."

He's always underfoot, silly kitty.

After my day of shopping, I had a long nap then got ready for a friend's surprise 30th birthday party. She loves country music, so both L and I went cowboy (I forgot to take pictures of L, but he was a very cool cowboy rockstar).

 This is a close repeat of this top/skirt combo worn in December 2014.

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• Shirt - Dept., consignment; last seen here in December 2015 with fringe-o-rama
• Skirt - Quilaree, consignment; last seen here a few weeks ago with my pearl tie
• Fluffy underskirt - H&M; I don't track it
• Boots - Adrian Agnes, Fluevog; last worn here in November 2015 with this same skirt

I'm wearing deep violet tights to go with the indigo-purple of the top.

Of course, I had to wear my uber-fringed coat with this!

I was the fringiest of them all! A big hello to all of the lovely people I met at Jenn's party!

The stuff:

Aside from yesterday's leopard shoes, I wore red shoes and boots every day for a whole week! Ten points if you noticed my unofficial theme.

Cowgirl bling:

Cowgirls always wear rhinestones.

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• Belt - thrifted
• Earrings - thrifted
• Turquoise ring - local
• Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend!

Purple Jerkin and Orange Suede

Oh, I need a weekend. 

But I'll settle for a night to myself, while L is out drinking with coworkers. Me and Vizzini, gonna chill on the couch and have some wine, oh yeah.

• Suede jerkin - no label, vintage 70s, consignment; last seen here in March 2015 with the same blouse
• Fruital blouse - no label, thrifted; last worn here in November 2015 under a sweeping red dress
• Skirt - Co and Eddy, thrifted; last seen here in November 2015 with a floofy cream top
• Shoes - Amalfi by Rangoni for Ingledews, vintage 80s, thrifted; first worn here in November 2015 with all the shiny and ruffles

I am still in love with this lovely jerkin (aka vest), even though I barely wear it twice a year; however, I think this skirt may be headed off to a new home. It has always been big on me, but since I've lost this last 10 lbs, it hangs quite low. And frankly, I work hard for this butt, and I don't like that it's hidden!

What butt? Am I right??

I'm always afraid that I will gain all my weight back (all 50 pounds of it!), so I might hold off on putting it in the giveaway pile until my bi-annual closet turnover at the end of March.

The stuff:

Love these awesome shoes. They are unbelievably comfy to wear all day.

• Earrings - thrifted

Dinner, TV, kitty. In that order.