Bigass (Long) Weekend Wrap-Up: Fall Palms and a Wee Shop; Book Club in Blankets; Bark Skirt Flashback

Hello, my friends, I'm back! I am a day late due to Sunday shenanigans, but that just makes for a nice juicy long post. Grab a cup of tea or coffee, and let's go! 

This is Saturday's brunch and post-brunch shopping outfit. 

Getting in a second wearing of this new-to-me skirt in its more appropriate season, and also I wanted to be SWOOSHY on Saturday. As one does. 

• Leather jacket - Danier Leather, consignment; last seen here way back in May 2019
• Copper lame (lah-MAY!) top - no label, thrifted; not tracked
• Skirt - Scotch & Soda, consignment; purchased and first worn here (2nd outfit) in July
• Shoes - Napoleoni, thrifted; last seen here in March in the last outfit before spring

I'm a little surprised that I haven't worn this orange leather jacket in well over a year, but it doesn't have pockets, so I tend to skip over it when I'm picking my outerwear. 

However, when do you see orange leather jackets, especially second-hand? Like, never! 

I was much happier with this outfit than I was with my first attempt with this skirt back in July. 

I wore a more snug top to balance out the fullness of the skirt. I did take the jacket off briefly while we had lunch, but then put it back on  - brrrr! It was cold this weekend! 

I spy L getting ready! Put on a scarf!

Better bundle up! I added a silk scarf at my neck, my new-to-me fuzzy hat, one of the masks from Mom, and my wooly gloves. 

Guess who's going shopping after brunch? 

• Hat - Principles, thrifted; purchased here for $19.99
• Scarf - Lanvin, vintage 70s, consignment
• Gloves - Parkhurst
• Purse - Ted Lapidus, vintage 90s, vintage fair

The stuff: 

A silk scarf is just as good as a wooly one for keeping one's neck warm, I find. These shoes are excellent for shopping - they are a deep browny-coffee shade. 

Simple bling: 

I wore Karen's pendant that I bought for her in Venice - aw, she went shopping with me. 

• Pendant - Karen's
• Earrings - LA Express, c. 1994
• Spinner ring - Twang & Pearl
• Feather ring - Fossil, thrifted

I had a nice browse in Vanity Fair Antique Mall, and found this gorgeous ring. 

It's a smoked topaz, set in sterling silver.

I know because it's stamped! You can see that it's been loved a lot - there are a fair number of scratches on it, but I don't mind that. I think the previous owner would appreciate that I'll wear it as much as she did.

It was made in Sweden. 

And it has the letters "AMC". I wasn't able to determine what this meant, but it's likely the artist's mark.

Edited to add info from reader Eva in Sweden! 

You asked about the maker of your ring. You were quite right, AMC is the hallmark of the smith. Namnstämpel AMC Namnstämpel AMC sattes på silverföremål och guldsmycken som tillverkades av guldsmeden / silversmeden Anneli Neuman, Säregen. Det finns endast en guld- eller silversmed som haft rätten att använda namnstämpeln AMC under alla år och det är Anneli Neuman, Säregen. Denna ädelmetallssmed startade verksamheten i Årsta år 2013.

Translation of the above: The hallmark AMC was put on silverware and goldware made by the goldsmith/silversmith Anneli Neuman, Säregen. There is only one gold- or silversmith who had the right to use the hallmark AMC, ever, and that is Anneli Neuman, Säregen. This smith started her business in Årsta in the year 2013. (quoted from https://www.xn--silverstmplar-ifb.se/namnstampel, link here)

Comments: Unfortunately I cannot find any pictures of Anneli or her work. The name of her company is Säregen, which means "one of a kind."

Eva, thank you so much! 

I don't think this was a very high-end piece originally, but you never know. Note how the back of the stone is open to reduce the weight and for cleaning. 

It fit (rare) and is very pretty on. 

It was $40.00. 

From there, I spent about an hour going through the Velvet Crease, where I found this cool leather jacket. 

I love the soft grey colour. It has a zip up the front, and two pockets, and has almost a cutaway coat with tails sort of shape to it.

The sleeves are inset with sections of thick knit for stretch. 

Only the top and sleeves are lined. 

The inside seams are neatly finished, but otherwise the edges have been left raw.

It's by Cigno Nero (that means Black Swan, hence the swan logo), which is an Austrian company. 

It was made in India, and is very soft. New jackets by them are in the $300+ range, although I see used ones for $200+ and up. Mine was $68.00. 

Vizzini was studiously ignoring me while I took pictures. 

"No love for you until I get fed."

I also found these lovely black leather gloves. I can't resist a pair of nice gloves, and these didn't look like they'd had any wear at all on them. 

These have a zig-zag design on the cuffs of alternating patent and regular leather. 

I didn't recognize the brand - Roeckl. 

But I dug around until I found the label - I do know quality when I see it! 

Cashmere and wool lining - so nice! These will be very toasty. 

Similar gloves on Roeckl's site start at $350.00! Wow, I got a bargain! 

I paid $20.00 for these, which now appears to be a total score. 

After a lovely quiet evening in playing board games and listening to music the night before, I had a wee bit of a sleep-in on Sunday before I got ready for Book Club. 

It was so bright out, I couldn't do my regular stair pose. Not complaining - I will take that sunshine! 

• Sweater - Wanko, thrifted; last seen here (2nd outfit) in October with a funky black suit for brunch
• Blanket skirt - handmade, thrifted, Powell River; first worn here in January for a trip to the periodontist
• Boots - DKode, consignment; last worn here (2nd outfit) in October (same outfit as the sweater)
• Coat (below) - Mallia, consignment; first seen here in October

I didn't take my coat off at all, but here's the full outfit. 

Just a basic cream turtleneck, and this crazyass skirt. 

I'm wearing a pair of brown Club Monaco wool leggings that I bought back in May 2019 (here) for $4.74. See? 

I removed the faux leather patches on the insides of the knees, then washed them, which revealed some moth damage; however, since I plan on wearing them as cold-weather layers, I don't care about a hole. 

Adding my snuggly warm coat. 

Mustn't forget my mask - this is one of Mom's.

All bundled up with a fur scarf and my wool gloves. 

I hopped the bus over to Caro's, along with a bag with my slippers (didn't wear them, but I should have) and a blanket (which I was so glad of).

• Scarf - thrifted
• Gloves - Parkhurst

The stuff: 

These boots were perfect for the little bit of walking I did to and from the bus stops. They were not very warm, though! I really wished I'd put my slippers on. I did have fleece-lined knee-high tights on under the leggings, but my feet were like blocks of ice after a couple of hours outside. I need some thick wooly socks!

Silvery bling: 

Load on the bling! First wearing of my new-to-me smoky topaz ring. 

• Necklace - Robert Larin, vintage 1970s, gift from L, vintage mall
• Leafy silver cuff - Karen's
• Round cuff - Robert Larin, vintage 1970s, gift from L, vintage mall
• Bronze ring - P. Sarpaneva, c. 1970, vintage expo
• Silver poison ring - Taxco, Mexico; Karen's
• Smoky topaz silver ring - Anneli Neuman, Sweden, vintage mall
• Steel ring - POLY, Art Gallery of Hamilton

I also wore my spiky grey metal earrings by Glee, but forgot to take them out for the picture. D'oh! 

I was first to arrive at Carolyn's - she and her kitty Fudge posed for me. 

"Oh, she's doing that thing where we pose."

Fudge is a cranky-looking boy, but isn't he beautiful?

Caro had our seating area all set up for us. 

She just purchased the wood/steel chairs, which she got off of Used Victoria (hooray for second-hand). They're from Restoration Hardware, a cool furniture store in Vancouver, but she bought them directly from local writer Esi Edugyan (link here 'cause I love), who wrote one of our Book Club picks from several years ago, "Half-Blood Blues"! How cool is that? 

I had a wander through her backyard and garden. That's the back of her house - it's over 100 years old. 

The little house on the left has a renter. So cute!

Fudge came to see what I was doing. 

"Allow me to pose for you, Strange Woman."

Look at those beautiful blue eyes! 

"I call this look "Blue Steel"."

He hopped up on the bench at the bottom of the garden.

"This is my best side."

He kept far away from my grabby hands, though. Smart cat! 

Looking back - what a gorgeous day! 

Blue skies! 

That's the view looking out past the garden - there's a big waterway between us and that apartment building on the other side. 

Yvonne arrived next, and handed over her cash from my Winesday birthday present. 

Then Cat arrived. 

We had sunshine on the patio for nearly an hour, and then it got COLD. 

Blankets for all! 

Mindy brought this gorgeous Edinburgh Tartan Shop blanket. 

She picked up that plaid bag at the Castle gift shop on our outing in September. 

One more picture of the mortified Fudge! 

"Sigh, very well."

This is probably our last time meeting in person for Book Club for a while - it'll be too cold to sit outside, and our province's health officer is discouraging gatherings with people who aren't in our "Safe Six" (people you bubble with, or see frequently). Thanks for hosting, Carolyn!

I'm cashing in some vacation time this week, and as Wednesday is Remembrance Day (a stat holiday in Canada), I'll be off work after today until next Monday. 

I felt like doing something a little "out there." How about pink angora?

• Sweater - DH by Daniel Hechter, vintage 80s, thrifted; purchased here for $24.99
• Bark skirt - Gunex, thrifted; last seen here (4th outfit) for a walk in March
• Boots - Lena Parfait Luxury Freeze, Fluevog; last worn here (3rd outfit) in November 2019 with grey Gigli
• Coat (below) - Auckie Sanft, vintage 60s, vintage fair; last seen here in September for a pre-scout walk at the Castle

I paired this new-to-me sweater with my brown "bark" skirt for a different neutral, and added bits of red and wine to the mix. 

I love this fun skirt - we'll have a Flashback on it shortly. 

Once I noticed that the pink soles of the booties were the same colour as the sweater, it was a done deal. 

I added the gold-foil printed tights for some more visual interest. 

A mixed purple and pink (and blue and black mask) - this one is from Mangos. 

A couple of my colleagues actually noticed the boots today! 

I was afraid I'd be freezing with bare arms, so I wore my rainbow leopard acrylic scarf in case I needed it in the office. 

I was actually fine - it was a busy day, and I did a lot of stairs! - until I had to wheel out a pick-up for one of my colleagues and got a blast of icy air. 

Bundle me up! It's the return of the Fuzzy Flamingo! 

I love burgundy and pink together, don't you? She (the coat) was actually a little chilly walking home, as we now are possibly expecting SNOW. I'll have to get my winter coats out soon. 

The stuff: 

I adore these booties, but they are quite high. I thought it was going to be a quiet today in the office today! Isn't that always the case?

Sparkly bling: 

I really liked how the reds and purples in this set went with the pinks and wines. 

• Necklace/earrings/bracelet - Myka, gifts from L
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jewelers, c. 1965, Dad's

Flashback: Gunex Brown Bark Skirt

I call this my bark skirt, because the texture (which is perma-creased) looks like cedar tree bark to me. I found it at Flavour Upstairs here in June 2014 and it's been a favourite ever since. 

It is a true circle skirt - it's unlined, but it's nice quality. It's a stiff woven polyester, and the colour is almost an iridescent brown/black; the hems are raw edges, but even after 6+ years, there is very little fraying.

It's by Gunex, and was made in Italy. You can see the crinkly texture there. 

No lie, it was only $14.99! 

I love that it can stand on its own. 

It rather looks like a tree stump there, doesn't it? 

Here we go! I wore it right away in June 2014 with some other new-to-me things I'd picked up recently. 

Only the bark skirt has survived my ruthless closet clear-outs.

I still have these shoes (Flashback here), but that top is long gone. This is from July 2014.

I notice that I tend to wear it frequently with patterned tops. 

Like here, also in July 2014.

That top is hideous! I still have the belt, the shoes (they are Vivienne Westwood) and the necklace. 

I changed that same day in July 2014 to this outfit to go see a movie. 

"I can come too, right?"

No cats at the movies, Vizzini! Those are my canvas floral Doc Martens, and I sleep in the moose tee now. I let go of my denim jacket a while back - it's not my style anymore. 

Ooh, it's very pretty with red - I should wear these colours together again. 

This is from December 2014. I still have the fur rose brooch, and I see my vintage red slip peeking out at the hem; I let go of those shoes and the sparkly red sweater many years ago.

I wore this outfit to learn how to Zentangle in April 2015. 

That Ralph Lauren scarf is still in my collection. 

Oh, here's another patterned top that didn't last very long, in August 2015.

I had those shoes forever! I let go of the necklace recently as it was getting too many scratches on it. 

My favourite scarf/shoe combo here in October 2015. 

That top is long-gone. 

I saved this vintage top, although it's too snug on me - it was snug in October 2016 too! 

We saw this outfit in the Flashback for these shoes (here). 

I'll be wearing this cool jacket again soon - this look is from October 2017.

Those shoes were Flashbacked here. 

We just saw this February 2018 look in the Flashback for the shoes (here). 

This picture really shows the flare of the skirt - it billows and furls when I go down stairs. 

I like this mix of textures, and you can see how dark the brown of the skirt is - it's nearly black. 

This was in October 2018. I let go of that sweater - it was a little too challenging. 

This was a shopping outfit in January 2019. 

Those shoes again! I still have the blazer and the Balmain scarf, but the cashmere sweater was attacked by moths. 

This was a comfy office outfit from December 2019. 

I have yet to wear my sparkly loafers, an egregious oversight! 

And here's the last time I wore it, in March 2020 for a walk with a friend.

This was my actual look - I just have a plain turtleneck underneath. I need to get this down puffer coat out! 

Mathy stuff: Including today's outfit, I have now worn my bark skirt 16 times! That brings us to 94 cents per wear. Good stuff. 

And now, my friends, it's my vacation! I'll still be posting, but just not work outfits. Enjoy your week, and stay safe.