Bossy Gold Jacket Snaps and Chrysanthemums

Happy Monday, my friends! 

I needed a little colour pick-me-up today in the form of this fabulous gold silk jacket. 

As the jacket is a very "bossy" piece, I let it be the focus of the outfit. 

• Jacket - Tangerine Jill, thrifted; purchased here for $52.00
• Bodysuit - Madewell, thrifted; purchased here for $6.50
• Skirt - Vivienne Tam, 2000 Fall Ready-to-Wear, consignment; last worn here in August 2020 (Flashback there too)
• Shoes - Leith, consignment; last seen here in May with Marimekko and orange

Bossy clothes are ones that hog the spotlight, either with an in-your-face colour, a bright pattern or a bold texture. If you have too much going on in addition to a bossy piece, the outfit will look like a jumble or mish-mash.

This jacket really is a scene-stealer, especially in this glorious gold shade. I can see myself layering this with a thick sweater and wide pants for fall. 

For my work outfit, I planned to wear the jacket on its own, just like this, all day.

Although it's a thin silk, it's very voluminous, so I needed a slim bottom to balance it out. I've had this skirt for ages (Flashback above) - this is now the 18th time I've worn it.

This wonderful pink skirt is woven with chrysanthemums in bands of white, purple and yellow. It even has pockets, which I discovered only last year, after owning it for 10 years! 

Masked up. Arg, it's not the right shade of yellow. 

I should have gone with pink. Oh, well. As usual, very few people saw me. 

• Mask - Lazy Susan's

Sunnies on, and feeling incognito.

This jacket got some tender-lovin'-care from me after I bought it, which I'll share with you at the end. 

Today's outfit also features the debut of my new-to-me bodysuit. It's a dark slate grey, which toned well with the purples, and gave a good backdrop for the necklace while letting the jacket shine.

I was happy with the snaps, as they do up more in the front than in the crotchal region. It was easy in the bathroom, I'm pleased to report. 

The stuff: 

I like the unusual colour and style of these shoes - it's handy to have a lavender metallic shoe! 

Matchy bling: 

I liked how my beautiful Venetian glass necklace went with the whole ensemble. 

• Necklace/earrings - gift from L, Venice, Italy
• Amber ring - c. 1996
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jeweler, c. 1965, Dad's

So, I utilized my Madd Sewing Skillz to fix this jacket. This is how it was when I bought it. 

As you can see, the sash belt has folded itself into a skinny, wrinkled mess, and although the jacket is a semi-wrap style, it is very slippery silk, so as soon as I moved in it the front gaped wide open. Super annoying! 

I found a packet of snap-fasteners in my sewing drawer; they were marked at 88 cents from Sears, so  likely from a very old "sewing kit gift" from Mom back in the 80s.

I sewed them on in the double-breast style: one snap closer inside, one snap near the edge of the lapel. 

Look at my excellent sewing job! 

I ensured that I only sewed through one layer of fabric, so that it wouldn't show on the outside. 

I also decided to stitch the sash to the existing side belt loops, so that it would stay in the loops and remain wide all the way around, and lay nice and flat on the back.

I used little hidden stitches.

You can barely see them, but if I decide I want to be able to remove the sash, they are easy enough to snip out. 

And here's how the jacket hangs following my handiwork. 

Ta-dah! It remained intact with no slipping and sliding at all during my work-day, even when I was taping up a box for shipping. Hooray!