Friday, May 21, 2021

Funky Friday: Blue Hair, Pastel Blue Flashback, and Pink Accents

Yee haw! Friday and the long weekend is upon us! We have the Victoria Day stat holiday here in BC, so we have Monday off. Yup, we celebrate Queen Victoria's birthday here, which usually means a giant parade and loads of partying, but this year (just like last year), it's just an extra day off. 

Of course, I get an extra-long long weekend, as Tuesday's a non-office day for me, so I'm raring for it to start! 
I coloured my hair yesterday as a pick-me-up. I had a box of Feria in Smoky Blue (a desperation purchase when stores all seemed to be out of my usual Smoky Lavender a couple of months ago) so I thought, "May as well join the blue-hair brigade!" Do you remember when older ladies were referred to as "blue hairs" or the "blue rinse set"? 

  • Jacket - Dolce & Gabbana, vintage, thrifted; last worn here in August 2020 over a toile dress
  • Top - Jones New York, thrifted; last seen here in August 2019 with checks
  • Skirt - Ted Baker, consignment, Vancouver; last worn here in November 2019 in autumn sunset colours
  • Shoes - Sol Sana; last seen here (2nd outfit) with a plain black dress in June 2020

Blue hair actually has a bit of history to it, I was excited to learn! Inspired by Jean Harlow in the 1930s and Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mum, not the current Queen) in the 1940s, women with grey or white hair would add a diluted blue dye (aka "bluing") to their tresses to make them appear more platinum blonde or whiter. Adding a blue (or purple) rinse cancels out the natural yellow/brassy tones in white/grey hair.

In the UK, the "blue-rinse brigade became a label for busybody-dom...and synonymous with unchangeable Thatcherite thinking." (link, 'cause I love). Well, that seems just a titch sexist! I'm glad we've reclaimed blue and purple hair as a fashion thing. 

As I still have quite a bit of light brown growth (my natural colour) in the back/underside of my hair, I get that yellow tone too. I remember my Mom's mother/my grandmother using a purpling rinse regularly into the 80s...and I also recall her having violet hair once or twice after leaving it in too long (which was a common occurrence - sometimes I also forget to watch the clock).

As my blue fades and/or is leached out by the sun, my hair will appear more silver, but for today's funky look, I matched my outfit to my hair.
This ensemble is one I created recently while playing in my closet, built around this amazing printed skirt, which is yet another Vancouver anniversary trip second-hand purchase. I always find such good stuff over there! 
I've been diligently cutting back on snacking (I'm a salty-crunchy lover, as well as a chocolate junkie), and am thrilled that this snug pencil skirt is fitting me again! 
I haven't worn the skirt that many times (this is only outfit #4), but I have a lot skirts, so it's hard to get to them all. I love the digital print on this. 

Without the jacket, so you can see my striped navy blue and white top, which has a tie accent at the neckline. 
I like the mix of stripes and floral or whatever this print is. 
There's more dark blue on the back of the skirt than the front. There's a fair bit of pastel pink in the pattern, so I tend to match blue or pink (or both) to it. 

Masked up - more blue. 
The blue jacket was a great find a few years back - it's vintage D&G. We'll have a wee Flashback on all the ways I've worn it shortly.

The stuff: 
Pink velvet shoes! I love this rosy-pink shade. 

Silver and pink bling: 
Sadly, I caught my salamander brooch on the edge of a printer at work, and broke the tail of it right off. I remind myself, "Things are meant to be USED."

I don't think I'll be able to fix it. The metal bar broke right off. 
Articulated brooches are fairly rare - my chance of finding another salamander is low, but I'll keep my eyes peeled. 

  • Earrings - thrifted
  • Filigree bracelet - St. Paul's Cathedral gift shop, London
  • Link bracelet - Fossil, gift from L
  • Fulvia Ring - Wendy Brandes
  • Shield ring - Nine West
  • Salamander brooch - vintage fair
  • Mask - Lazy Susan's

Maybe I should just permanently sew it onto the Fuzzy Flamingo? Or maybe a hat? What would you do?
 


Flashback: Dolce & Gabbana Studded Pastel Jean Jacket

I found this studded baby blue denim jacket here in December 2017 at the Patch on a "buy 2, get 1 free" deal - it was marked at $32.95, and was the cheapest of the 3 things I bought, so it was FREE. But we'll use the $32.95 for our highly-technical cost-per-wear calculations. 
Although it doesn't have the original price tag, it's clearly new, with a part of the tag still attached. 
I suspect it's late 90s/early 00s. 

Look at that leopard lining! It's a fine mesh.
It's got all the proper holograms and such, and it's made in Italy. 

I wear this where you might wear a denim jacket, as a topper for a bit of extra warmth, sun coverage or to match some other baby blue in my outfit. Following my motto "Always Be Upgrading", this is my upgrade from a plain jean jacket. 
You can see two missing studs mid-back and one at the back of the neck. This doesn't bother me one bit. 

Ready to see my outfits? I wore it right away in January 2018, layered over one of my Desigual dresses. The jacket is a snug fit - I have never been able to do it up, which also doesn't bother me.
I used to loathe pastels, but I've come around on them. I really love this pale blue colour - it goes with everything! 

I'm sick here in March 2018, and only wore this outfit for the time it took me to batten down the hatches at the office and then go home to bed. 
Only the jacket remains out of everything else in this outfit. 

I wore it to see Canadian pop-punk group The Beaches in April 2018 - a rare sighting of me in jeans! 
The one and only time I wore this Helmut Lang feather-printed dress - he and I don't see eye to eye (he's too body-con for me). I love that purse. 

This May 2018 ensemble reminded me that I used to have a sweater with a whale on it! How whimsical of me. 
I let go of this maxi skirt after a few wears, as it was way too long, and I didn't like the jumble of patterns. Give me one or two patterns, but not three! 

You might think this is the same striped top that I'm wearing today, but this is actually a different sleeveless striped top, with a mock-neck. I still have it (striped tops are useful). 
Not the skirt or shoes, though; they are long gone. This was in August 2018.

Layered as a jacket here in September 2018. 
One of my favourite skirts ever! I loved those shoes, but now Cat has them. 

I have a few matchy pieces that I often wear with the jacket: my Lady Footlocker (KLASSY) leather belt and these awesome Fluevogs. 
I wore that dress for a couple of summers, then got bored with it and passed it along. 

Another outfit with that maxi skirt, in May 2019. 
You can see how long it is there, even with me holding it up - it used to drag on the ground. 

Layered over my stretchy Etro dress, here also in May 2019.
I like the yellow accents. 

Worn as a topper with my Spanish Ladies dress, in June 2019. 
That makes me feel summery just looking at it! 

I dressed up here in April 2020, layering the jacket over one of my favourite vintage dresses. 
I didn't wear this out of the house - this was early in lockdown last year. 

An extra shot to flash the leopard lining at you! 
Sassy! 

As outerwear in May 2020.
I find this pale blue + studs much more interesting than a plain ol' jean jacket. Why wear denim when you can wear studded baby blue? 

Layered over my neon pink dress here in June 2020 for L's birthday wander downtown. 
My blue and pink Fluevogs have a touch of baby blue on the buckles. 

And here's the last time I wore it, as sun coverage over my ruffled toile dress. 
Same pastel Fluevogs. 


Mathy stuff: Today marks the 16th wearing of this jacket, which bring us to $2.06 per wear, IF I'd paid the full price of $32.95 for it. But since it was FREE, I'm in the negatives, ha ha! 


Vizzini, do you have a favourite outfit? 
"The ones that I can chew on or sit on."


That's not a surprise. He usually tries to bite the studs on it. 
"Just let me sleep, Woman."


Aw, I can't say no to that! Look at those little white bean toes! 


And with that, my friends, I'm off to enjoy my long weekend. I'll be back with tales of adventure on Monday. Stay safe! Thanks so much for stopping by! 

52 comments:

  1. The blue looks GREAT! My teenaged self would have killed for that hair. My adult self knows that blue hair doesn't suit my complexion (generally). I stick to reds.

    Poor lizard brooch! Things are meant to be worn and used though. Any chance it could be refashioned into an art project?

    Ah well. Living for the Viz pics. He's such a cutie.

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    1. Thanks, Megan! I'll go back to lavender, but I figured I could use a bit of a change for a little while. I may go back to red one day, who knows?

      I know, I'm so sad about it! I will figure out something to do with it, but not sure what yet.

      Cats are the best!

      Delete
  2. Great post my blogger friends. Have a nice day . Dilek ...

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  3. The blue rinse brigade never looked so good! I love it and the blue toned outfit shows your hair off to perfection!
    Poor salamander, fingers crossed you find an even better articulated brooch on your travels before too long.
    Look at that cute boy of yours! Our lads have had a mad morning, driven crazy by the rain. xxx

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    1. Thanks, Vix! I love matching my hair to my outfits. I still have two articulated brooches, so know they are out there, and hopefully we'll have vintage fairs again soon!

      Aw, poor lads. Vizzini hides when it rains too hard.

      Delete
  4. The right Jean jacket is quite versatile and yours fills that bill perfectly. I never had a studded one but did have a light blue wash and now have a dark denim wash plus the perfect floral pink one I purchased online thanks to your tip! Interestingly, perhaps because of fit, I like the pink one best of my two.

    Oh my gosh, just about every outfit with your jean jacket had me swooning. Your assortment of dresses is superb!

    I hadn’t heard of the blue wash thing but your explanation reminded me of The Red Hat Society (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Hat_Society) When I first heard of it, my understanding was when a woman reached a certain age she could do what she liked, and that meant donning the most amazing red hat she could find. The idea being to blossom if she hadn’t already done so. Or at least that’s how my much younger self understood it!

    Happy Long Weekend!

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    1. Thanks so much, Laurie! I love that you bought a pink floral jean jacket and that it's your fave now. Funny how our tastes change over time!

      Thanks, I do love my dresses! The Red Hat Society is from that poem, "Warning" by Jenny Joseph. https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/warning/ - I used to have a red hat with a purple band!

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    2. Thank you for the link to Jenny's poem. She definitely speaks to the sense of liberation that comes from turning a certain age, different for each of us (mine was 60 ;-)) I can picture you with a purple-banded red hat! I have a red winter hat with a red flower pinned to it, but no purple.

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    3. I first read that poem in the 90s and loved that feeling that when I got older, I could really be me. Then I realized, I could be me any time! It is liberating, isn't it?

      Delete
  5. PS I’d likely glue the lizard to a hat.

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    1. I'm considering it! Maybe I need to find a pink hat to attach him to...

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  6. I like the blue hair on you! And that jacket is perfect with the skirt - you really so wear it well, such a nice find! :)

    It's so sad about your brooch though :( I'd try sticking it on a hat if possible! Good luck!

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    1. Thanks so much, Mica!

      I will probably do something like that with the salamander. Thanks!

      Delete
  7. Love the March 2018 look but sorry you were ill that day-could not tell. So not snacking is the key!

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    1. It's the key for me, Sam. I eat a lot of popcorn and fruit, and skip the chocolate and chips. Thanks!

      Delete
  8. Love the 'Smoky Blue' hair and thank you for sharing the history of the (in)famous blue rinse! And yay for having an extra long weekend! Also yay for the pencil skirt fitting you again. I too am a salty-crunchy lover, by the way. And as I've just done my skirt change-over, I'm hearing you on having many skirts ...
    Love the striped top and blue jacket with your skirt, and those lovely shoes picking up the dusky pink in its print. I gasped when I read about the salamander brooch mishap. I hope it is salvageable although it does look fatal.
    Thankfully, Bess hasn't chewed anything yet, clothes-wise, but it's probably just a matter of time :-)
    Wishing you, L. and V. a most wonderful extended weekend! xxx

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    1. Thanks so much, Ann! I'm really proud of myself for sticking to my snack rule of only having chocolate on stat holidays (I ate a lot of it this past weekend!). So many skirts, right?

      Thank you! I know, I was so choked when it broke. I think I'll be able to use it somehow in some other way, but not quite sure.

      Thanks, hon!

      Delete
  9. Have a lovely long weekend! The outfit looks fabulous and I would call your blue studded jacket a Really Useful Item; a RUI. It looks great with so many things and what a bargain!

    Too long maxi skirts/dresses are such a pain. Either you have to wear heels underneath or you end up holding it like a Victorian lady; the solution is to hem them of course but the shape often rules that out. We need to grow a few more inches, Sheila, then the problem is solved forever!
    xxx

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    1. Thanks so much, Vronni! It's a RUI for sure - love that!

      Agreed - the length is so crucial. How can we grow just a few more inches?? ha!

      Delete
  10. Gosh, I love that denim jacket. It looks fabulous on anything. The blue hair looks fantastic too, such a soft color. Perfect for this outfit! Enjoy your long weekend. We are of to the sea for a few days, it wil be very very cold and windy and rainy! Haha, but we will enjoy!!

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    1. Thanks so much, Nancy! Isn't it a great jacket? Aw, thank you. Enjoy your trip!

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  11. Very good pattern mixing. I take my hat off to you for this styling. And I think it is the best styling of this lovely jeans jacket.
    Greetje

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    1. Thanks, Greetje! I'm happy to hear that - I like this outfit best too. The jacket is mostly just a topper normally.

      Delete
  12. Hi Sheila, fantastic hair, fantastic outfit. I adore the colour of the shoes! I adore blue I adore stripes so this is definatley a winning combination! There were so many outfits in the flashback I adored too. Lovely pics foa a very rainy evening here. Thanks for this post Shazxx

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    1. Thank you so much, Shaz! I love stripes too. Aw, I hope you get some sunny days soon!

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  13. Hope you had a nice long weekend - the university gave us Friday off too, so it means an extra long break for me. The blue hair looks great with your outfit! Sad to see the salamander brooch bit the dust. Perhaps you can add his upper half to your flamingo coat.

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    1. Oh, how nice is that, Shelley? I hope you enjoyed your long weekend.

      I thought of that, but it would look odd without the tail.

      Delete
  14. What a strikingly lovely hair colour! It feels extra at home during these last few weeks of spring, as blue skies glisten down overhead (most days at least). I very much remember older women being labelled as "blue-hairs" when I was younger (80s/90s). One still hears or reads that term every now and then to this day, but thankfully it's not used nearly as often anymore.

    I hope that you long week is going fabulously, dear Sheila. A touch of muggy weather today aside, it's bopping along really nicely around these North Okanagan parts.

    Autumn Zenith 🧡 Witchcrafted Life

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    1. Thanks, Autumn! Yes, I've heard that too, also back in the day. I hope you had a nice long weekend!

      Delete
  15. I have really been enjoying the blog lately but sometimes my occasional comments get posted and other times they swoosh out into the ether. I think I would attach the salamander to a piece of flannel or other material so I could attach him to coats, and hats, and other various articles of clothing or accessories.

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    1. I'm so sorry to hear that, Chalotalo - that's all on Blogger, unfortunately. I like your idea - then I could still wear it as a brooch. Thank you!

      Delete
  16. Perhaps all those old blue rinse dears we remember were just miles ahead of their time? I think it is fun and elegant!

    I hope you have had a wonderful long weekend. We are still under stay-at-home orders, so a very quiet weekend here in Ontario.

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    1. I definitely think they were ahead of their time, Nana! I wonder what those ladies would say now?

      I hope it gets better in Ontario soon - we just had a lot of great news re: our own reopening for BC.

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  17. Lovely lovely lovely!

    The minute I retire, I'm going blue! Your hair is gorgeous!

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  18. Concerning your lizard brooch---maybe take it to a local jeweler, known for repair? Is it sterling? A link fastening might be able to be crafted for it.
    Barring that, yes, I'd probably sew it to a coat or hat--at least for awhile.
    Good luck---it's a great piece.

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    1. It's not sterling, it's just a base metal. If I had a soldering iron, I could do it! I think I'll add it to a hat - I just need to find a good one for it. Thank you!

      Delete
  19. Oh poor Mr Salamander! How was he broke his tail- real ones grow back a whole body don't they? Sad that rhinestone ones don't.
    I really like your D&G jacket- it's a lovely shape and length and I love that it is a denim substitute. I'm not really into denim but I would gladly wear that.
    I really like your blue hair. It looks really pretty.
    Nice to see my old chewy friend Vizzini- naughty boy!
    Hope you enjoyed your weekend!x

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    1. I know, Kezzie - that's so funny, I thought that too. I wonder if the tail would grow back? Ha!

      Thank you! I am not a huge denim fan either.

      Delete
  20. Boo, total bummer about the lizard brooch! Love your blue hair, it looks fabouls. Love the denim jacket, a goid demin jacket goes with anything, I need to dig mine out of the closet and wear it. The shirt you worse is so pretty and the velvet shoes are beautiful.

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    1. I know, so disappointing, isn't it, Dar? Thanks so much! I gave up my regular denim jacket when I found this one - you're right, they go with everything!

      Thanks, hon! Great to see you.

      Delete
  21. Swoony over the hair color. I'm far too timid to try a temporary tinting on my hair (afraid it will permanently color it and require another grow out) but I do use a purple shampoo to address brassiness. And your outfit is fabulous. I adore the mix of the floral skirt and the striped shirt. The blue, not denim, jacket really pulls together the look.

    Rena
    www.finewhateverblog.com

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    1. Thanks so much, Rena! I find that the dyes fade out on these pastel colours really quickly, even the permanent ones.

      Thanks!

      Delete
  22. You look great with blue hair. Maybe you can give it another try some day or one of these days. I didn't know about the history behind blue hair.
    Your blue jacket is lovely. It was great seeing different ways you styled it.

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    1. Thanks, Ivana! Maybe - but I'll probably go back to purple once this has faded or grown out a bit.

      Thanks so much!

      Delete
  23. I love your blue hair and your outfit, Sheila! And I am not going to lie, but I shed a tear as I scrolled through your post and saw that your salamander brooch broke clean in half. I was admiring it immensely in the first photos. What a stinking bummer! Can it be glued back together and then maybe put a little tutu on it around the cracked part?! You could change her tutus to match your outfits!

    I use a purple shampoo and conditioner to keep my little white stripe white but it also helps when my roots come in with blending into the black a little bit more. Maybe. Maybe it actually doesn't and I really do need to get it colored professionally soon!

    I hope you have the best long weekend! My kids have a 5 day weekend from school because we had so few snow days this year. No need to cancel school for snow when we were all doing school from home!

    Shelbee
    www.shelbeeontheedge.com

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    1. Thanks, Shelbee! Aw, don't be sad, it's just a thing and is meant to be used - and things get broken. I lol'd at the tutu suggestion - that is hilarious! I do need to figure out something to do with it - I'm going to get creative and see if I can use it in some way.

      Ha ha! Here's to home colouring!

      thank you, my dear!

      Delete
  24. Thanks for this link about the Blue Rinse Brigade, which has put a smile on my face and made me remember all these blue and mauve haired grandmamas back in the 80's and 90's. Curiously, my mom is now dying her grey hair in a purple shade, but she looks more a punk than a tatcherist lady.
    You rock this blue shade and delightfully matchy ensemble. Love your denim jacket, the print of your skirt, and the cute striped top. Totally fabulous outfit!
    besos

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    1. I know, right? There were a lot of them around! We had the Raging Grannies here. I think that the blue and purple tints now (and lots of pink too) are much more of a punk vibe. I love that your mom had gone purple!

      thank you!

      Delete

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