Thursday, September 3, 2020

Pixels, Forgotten Green, and Half-Truth Tanya Flashback

Oh, it feels weird being at work on a Thursday. Tomorrow's going to be even more discombobulating. I'm so used to my 3-day workweek schedule now.
Today's outfit features a skirt I completely forgot about, as well as one of my favourite pairs of shoes in a Flashback. 

  • Blouse - Roche de Paris, vintage 80s, vintage fair; last seen here in Sept 2019 with dotted trousers
  • Skirt - Jaeger, vintage 60s, thrifted; purchased here for $16.00
  • Shoes - Half-Truth Tanya, Fluevog; last worn here in June with green silk, tulle and grey

As I pawed through my clothes, looking for backward hangers/as-yet-unworn items this season, I noticed one that I'd completely missed: this green viscose skirt! 
Here I was, all set to wear my emerald trousers with this silk blouse, when I had an emerald skirt already waiting to be part of an outfit! Tsk, shame on me! 

The blouse is vintage silk (that nice thick velvety texture) printed with pixelated roses. 
Pixels were a pretty novel thing back in the 80s. Computers were not in every home - my high school didn't even have them. 

Oops, the lining of the keyhole at the back of the neck is poking out. Good thing I looked at this picture in the morning and fixed it before I left the house. Heavens, it could have been a Fashion Disaster! 
Isn't the skirt nice? It's a heavy woven viscose (feels like linen) with good swing to it. The colour is more of a minty green than emerald.

Masked up. Dang, it looks grey, but it's a black/white pattern. 
I'm going to need a better black and white neutral mask - it'll be a wardrobe essential. 

By the way, the skirt doesn't fit me. I knew that when I bought it (it actually says 26" waist on the label), but I loved it and bought it anyway. 
There's my fix: clip the waistband tight on the furthest hook (it's supposed to do up with two hooks), and don't zip it all the way. Then cover it up with my blouse. No one's the wiser, and best of all...

KLASSY.

The stuff: 
It's nice to have a new skirt to match my green kitten heels. These are so comfy, and I have had regrets ever since I got them that I didn't get the same shoe with purple instead of green. Ah well. We'll review all the ways I've worn them in a sec. 

Matchy bling: 
I liked the long silver necklace and the bits of green in the jewelry. 

  • Necklace - Dots
  • Earrings - vintage fair
  • Silver/aventurine ring - consignment
  • Silver/onyx ring - Toccara, vintage fair

Flashback: Green/Black Half-Truth Tanya Fluevogs

I actually got these at the same time as yesterday's purple boots, here in Vancouver in March 2014 for our annual anniversary adventure - both pairs were on sale, so I got two (yay, L is the best!). I think these were $199.99. 
There they are, all shiny and new. I like the subtle green of the "rubbed off" texture. It's a lot more versatile than a solid green - more visual interest.

When I first got these shoes, I didn't have a lot of green in my wardrobe, so I relied on accessories and patterns to match to the shoes. There is one green sweater in my wardrobe that I've had since 2017, and it makes MANY appearances below.

So...guess how many times I've worn these shoes in 6+ years. 

And...guess how many times I've worn them with The Green Sweater. I'll reveal the answers at the bottom!

Here we are in March 2014, wearing my new shoes right away, as one does. 
Pattern-mixing is easy with stripes and dots. My green earrings were bought in Vancouver at the same time (I don't have them anymore), and that green necklace belonged to Mom when she was a kid. I still have that leather jacket.

In May 2014, I matched the green to the beads in my grandmother's Chinese character necklace. 
I have not yet worn that top this season...it's a wee bit snug.

Accessory repeat in June 2014.
I'd forgotten about this gingham skirt. It and the top are long gone. 

Oh, look, a green top (this is not The Green Sweater, FYI). 
My old silk "barnyard" skirt. All I have left is the belt/buckle and that red leather cuff. 

I like this outfit - the black and red with pops of green is so pretty. 
That was back in September 2014. 

With a matching green silk scarf in my hair and a new green/gold costume vintage necklace, in November 2014. 
I think I still have the scarf, but nothing else from that outfit. 

I bought this bottle green velvet blazer at the big Vintage Expo, and this is its only outing, also in November 2014.
One of my many black leather skirts that have rotated through my closet over the years. 

Pairing the shoes with my fruital blouse in January 2015. 
The green earrings were vintage screw-on ones. I still have the belt. I bought that skirt in Florence, and never quite got over paying leather prices for fake leather. Arg. 

I also still have this lovely houndstooth skirt, seen here in March 2015. 
I'm blurry due to my feline distraction there. 

I went through a brief phase of blazers - this vintage one was seen in April 2015. 
That swooshy silk skirt had a matching belt and camisole. All long gone. 

I wore the shoes with this skirt three times in three years. 
I still have the necklace. I gave that cardi to one of my coworkers, Jenn, who still wears it (well, back in the Olden Days!).

Does it seem like my closet has a revolving door? I do love to shop, and I only have so much room! I give away 100% of my old items to friends, coworkers and then back to charity.
Those are green culottes, worn in September 2015, long before culottes were on trend again. 

This really was the perfect red sweater. Sigh. Darned moths. 
The moths also ate this skirt. This was a December 2015 outfit, and don't I look Christmassy?

Woo, this is a lot of skin, and it is strange to not see my tattoos! This was in February 2016 - I had all my arm ink done in 2016-7.
That's a Betsey Johnson dress I paid $6.95 for and only wore once. This is the sole time I've worn coloured tights (other than black) with these shoes. 

You might remember this outfit from June 2016 from the Pierre Cardin skirt Flashback. 
Again, doing green jewelry to match the shoes.

I like this outfit from July 2016. I don't regret giving away the shirt and the skirt, though. 
I still have Mom's green/gold necklace. 

This is post-tattoo in September 2016 - my wide pleated sleeves are staying away from my puffy arm. 
The jungle skirt reappears.

This Comrags dress was itchy in the arm-holes (it was wool), and I could only wear it with a blouse under it, as I did here in March 2017. 
I still have that awesome belt, and the pleated ruffle blouse too. 

We saw this outfit from May 2017 in the purple leather skirt Flashback. This is the only wearing of this multi-coloured cardigan (it had holes).
Showing how the backs of the heels are raised in a little square design. Such a sweet detail. 

I wore these shoes for the Grand Opening of the Fluevog store in June 2017. 
Those raised bits on the heel can rub a bit over time, so I like wearing a little sheer socklet or nylons with them. I rarely wear them barefoot. 

With my Desigual dress in August 2017.
There's got to be green in there somewhere. 

Okay, here is The Green Sweater, acting as a bookend for the shoes in September 2017. 
When I find a winning combination, I'll wear it to death, so make your guess now as to how many times I repeated this (with different skirts of course - I'm not a complete Philistine!). 

Oh, there we are again, in November 2017. 
I adore that silver lame (lah-MAY, darlings!) skirt, and I especially love the polka dot tights with this outfit. 

A complete lack of green (other than the shoes) makes this January 2018 outfit unique. 
I'm not even wearing green jewelry! And there's no green in the plaid. Shocking.

Guess what sweater I'm wearing in February 2018?
That skirt's in the giveaway pile - so much wear, so many holes in it. 

St. Paddy's Day, March 2018, and L and I are headed out to do...something, probably involving friends at a pub. 
Yes, that's the same sweater! I still have that fabulous yellow brocade purse. 

With my fake Gucci (Gookey!) lace jacket and that same houndstooth skirt, in April 2018.
I'm surprised that I've only paired these shoes with my Gookey this one time. 

I wore the shoes twice with my Firecracker dress, this time in June 2018.
That is a gorgeous linen dress. 

I love how they look with this fabulous print dress. 
I gave that dress to Linda and she added another colour down the vertical seams and fitted it to her. How awesome. 

This is the last outfit with the purple plaid skirt, in December 2018. 
Green Sweater alert! I love my deep red lipstick there. 

This is totally a shopping outfit, from February 2019. 
Skirt-Sweater sighting! My Dolce & Gabbana skirt will get a Flashback in the fall. 

Deja vu, with a different skirt in March 2019.
I wore this to a vintage fair with my bronze leather jacket over it. 

Here's my Firecracker dress again - and my little firecracker kitty, looking nonplussed. 
It's hard to see there, but I have pale pink socklets on - I wore this for a day trip to Vancouver in June 2019 to visit Melanie and Shelley! Mini blogger meet-up! 

A simple outfit in September 2019. 
Just a sequinned skirt and a wool sweater. The kind of stuff most people wear to work, hee hee. 

Oh, what do we have here? Another Skirt-Shoe sighting, in November 2019. 
That's a different houndstooth skirt (I have one for each season). 

Silver ruffles strike again, in December 2019! 
This is the last time I wore the Skirt-Sweater combo.

And here is the most recent wearing of these shoes, with my new-to-me silk blouse and my navy tulle skirt.
Staying classy with a blazer. This was in June 2020.


The Green Sweater + Shoes Combo: I wore them together 9 times! And I'm probably going to wear them together again, so take that. 

Mathy stuff: I have now worn these shoes 38 times in 6 years. That brings the original expenditure of $199.99 down to a very respectable $5.26 per wear. I have many more miles/kilometers to go in these shoes too, so I expect that to go even lower. 


Random cat pictures! I was talking to Mom last night, wandering around the house, out on the deck, and what I did I spy out there? 
"I was hoping to escape from your blathering, Woman."


He never sleeps here! Since I set up the deck back in April with my reading/art areas, he's only ever slept on the "art" chair. 
"I like messing with your mind. Now, scram and let me nap."


Fine, I will! 

My friends, I have a short work day tomorrow, then I'll be off for 4 whole days. I'll be back on Monday/Tuesday with tales of adventure (and I have at least one over-the-top outfit planned that you will not want to miss!). Thank you so much for stopping by. Happy weekend!

20 comments:

  1. Morning Sheila, there was an audible sigh as I scrolled down and saw those hoes, wow you have some great shoes. I loved the print dress look and the Sept 2014 look there again there were so many others I liked too. You make my little game difficult lol I loved the perfect red sweater and the green too. You are so good as I said giving your clothes away. I have aquired a red jumper and I am def. trying harder since coming across your blog. have a great day Shazxx

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    1. Shaz! Aw, thank you - I love unusual shoes, but I'm also practical (sometimes). I have to give stuff away if I want to buy more! That is so cool that you're inspired, hon. Great work!

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  2. Your trick for fitting into a too-tight skirt is one I use all the time. Most of my clothes don't fit well so I've come up with several techniques to adapt them.

    I like your notion of "Fashion Disaster." After starting to wear women's clothing with their innumerable issues, I became aware of the real possibility of many fashion disasters. It deepened my empathy for the wearers of such garments.

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    1. Yup, we need to "customize"! Yes, we have many more components that can go awry!

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  3. Loving the vibrant green skirt and your quick fix. Just goes to show that if you like something and it's not your size you'll always figure out a way to wear it. My favourite trick has always been the waistcoat, if a dress doesn't zip up or if it's miles too big. Where there's a will there's a way!
    My favourite outfit has to be the Fluevog outing one with the parasol.
    Cats are so weird. Ours have their favourite places and then totally surprise us by sleeping on a chair that's been there for years but they've never even sniffed before. Look at Vizzini's face tho'! xxx

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    1. Thanks, Vix! Yes, there are always tricks to make things fit. I do the same with jackets. That parasol look was awesome - I felt great that day.
      They are weird, but also awesome.

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  4. I never would have know about the skirt if you hadn't shared! It's a great skirt so I can see why you had to get it to make it work! :) So impressive to see how many times you've worn those shoes too - they do pair so nicely with the green knit but you make a lot of other great outfits with them too! :) Green is a colour I've been trying to wear more often, always found it too tricky in the past!

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    1. I like sharing my tricks, even if they are odd! I'd rather give this skirt a home than pass it up because it doesn't fit perfectly. I'm really pleased with the shoes - green is not that tricky! I hope you will give it a shot.

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  5. Your shoes are wonderful. The tinge of green at the bottom is like a little surprise for the eye!

    Enjoy your 4 days off. X


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  6. Not sure how you could forget about that gorgeous green skirt! The silk blouse with its monochromatic pixelated roses is its perfect companion, as are those amazing shoes. I've taken note of your Klassy skirt-fitting tip! The shoes obviously needed their very own flashback. What a lovely parade of outfits you've treated us to. Hope you've enjoyed/are enjoying your break, Sheila! You totally deserve it! xxx

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    1. I know, WTF, Ann? I put it down to menopausal brain-fog. Glad you enjoyed the outfit - I also love looking back at all my old outfits! So fun. Thanks, my dear!

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  7. That's one gorgeous minty green skirt. Nice blouse you paired it with. I really like your green kitten heels. Great to see how you wore them in the past.

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  8. That is a lovely skirt. Is it going to be kept out for winter? It goes so well with the blouse.

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    1. Thanks, Mim. Oh, gosh, no - it looks/feels like linen, which puts it firmly into spring/summer for me. The blouse is also spring/summer (I don't wear blouses without jackets in the fall/winter, so long-sleeved blouses often get packed away).

      Delete
  9. You know, I have a very similar coloured green (pencil) skirt and haven't worn it in at least two years now. Thank you for the reminder to whip it out again - especially during these gorgeous days of summer-into-fall, when verdant pops still abound in the landscape.

    Autumn Zenith 🎃 Witchcrafted Life

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    1. Wear it while you can! It feels like fall in the air now - a lot chillier!

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  10. I plead guilty to buying things that do not fit that well and still wear them, like your green skirt, however I would have never known had you not mentioned it.
    We are still partially closed. I have been back to the office maybe 5 times since March.
    I am home most of the time and have been running a very small instagram vintage re sell shop which takes a lot of my time but its kept me sane.

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    1. I've done it so many times, Lorena, that I have lost count. I think it's important to let the readers know that I don't always fit the stuff I buy second-hand. This is how we make them fit!

      I'm glad you've been able to get out, at least. Sounds promising. We are mostly open, but people are not coming back to office spaces. Your resell sounds like it's been a lifesaver for you!

      Delete

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