Metal Mental Health Shop

Changes to my work-life are in the air, and of course, this stresses me out. I have to talk things out, mull over them, go down every path and think it all out. Then I give myself a talking to about how change is good and I can do it, and I got this. 

To give myself the space and time to do my brain processing, I decided to treat myself to a Mental Health Shop. Retail Therapy, baby! 

I armoured up in my metals. 

• Acid wash vest - Chiqle, thrifted; last worn here in June for the Training Day of Indolence
• Top - Plum, thrifted; last seen here in May under a slip dress
• Skirt - Mandala Design, thrifted; purchased here for $7.95
• Shoes - Truths Makena, Fluevog; last worn here in January for brunch

I had a lovely chat with a gent in line at the grocery store who noted, "You have your armour on." His denim vest was covered in metal band patches and we compared things we'd been covered with at metal shows: fake bodily fluids from GWAR for me, a literal "rain in blood" at Slayer for him. 

I did want to wear armour today, even though I ended up being chatty with a few people as I was out and about. 

I repurpled my hair this morning - you're not imagining it. 

The forecast called for possible showers, but it ended up being in the low 20s all afternoon. 

Did not need my scarf - it remained in my backpack the whole time. 

• Scarf - gift from Mom, Italy

I wanted to get a wearing in on of this new-to-me gold and grey brocade skirt, so I safety-pinned the sides to make the skirt fit better. 

I might loosen it up a bit so that the skirt sits slightly lower, and then I'll stitch it down. I wouldn't want to put my eye out if a safety pin popped off! 

Masked up.

I downloaded my vaccine QR code and printed it up in card form for myself and L. After Sept 12th, we'll be required to show it (printed or on a phone) to get into restaurants and any other public spaces. I'm totally fine with that - the cards don't link up to anything private, just a confirmation that I've been double-vaxxed. Isn't this danged pandemic over yet??

• Mask - Lazy Susan's

The stuff: 

I love the studs and the metal ring on these shoes. They are comfy, but I shopped for close to four hours, and my feet are now very tired. 

Metal bling: 

First wearing of this new-to-me brooch, which I pinned on one flap pocket of my vest. I wear jewelry that won't get in the way when I know I'll be trying things on. 

• Steel cuff - thrifted
• Brooch - thrifted; purchased here for $7.95
• Hematite ring - thrifted
• Silver/onyx ring - Tocarra, vintage fair
• White gold hoops - Frances Jewelers, 10th anniversary gift from L

I went to the Patch first, and had a quick browse - this involves me sinking my hands into the racks, and feeling for good fabrics, scanning for bold patterns, and keeping my eye out for the good stuff. 

Like this amazing dress! 

It's a layer of pleated chiffon over a fitted bodice.

I adore this deep red, and look at this upper body ruffle. 

It is nicely made, with strips of bias tape and snap fasteners to hold your bra straps in place. 

There is one random loop - not sure what that's all about. 

It's missing its belt, which was probably a long sash style or a rigid belt covered in the red fabric. 

That loop is hand-crocheted. I like to remind myself that a person made this. 

I put one of my vintage stretchy metal belts on with it.

"What's this? You bought me a present?"

I had to model it for y'all. 

"It smells so delicious."

I feel like a goddess in this! I cannot wait to swan about in it at a party! 

It's by Miss Elliette of California, and it was $36.95, which felt like a bargain. Yup, there's one on 1stdibs for over $500 and several related styles around the interwebs for well over $100. 

I found a good bio about Miss Elliette here (link 'cause I love): 

Elliette Ellis was born in Montreal, but moved to New York to attend art school, eventually deciding on a fashion career. After being married, she moved to Los Angeles, where she set up her clothing business in 1952. She specialized in feminine looking styles, using chiffon extensively.

I also found out that the underlayer is acetate and the ruffles are chiffon. Info about her here (you may need to zoom in to read it) from a NY Times article in December 1968. It says that the company grossed over $3 million in 1968, "..., which, while not awe-inspiring, is nonetheless substantial..." So rude! That's was a lot of money back then! According to her son, who commented on this blog post here in 2019, she is still alive - and I didn't find an obit for her. 

Moving on...I next went over to the Women In Need (WIN) store on Pandora Avenue for a quick browse. I limited myself to accessories, skirts, dresses and vintage, which took about an hour and a half - I had to get home in case the groceries were delivered early. 

I had good luck in the accessories! 

All of WIN's jewelry is $7.95. I picked up these stone turquoise earrings, and crystal stick-pin. L eyed it, so I might let him wear it. 

I did well in the scarves, plunging into basket after basket, feeling for silk and looking for fun patterns. 

This is an enormous scarf! I love the colour-mix here - this will go with a lot of my coats. 

The motif is...English? It has carriages and official-looking buildings. 

See? Very twee. 

It was $9.95 and was new with tags. 

Although it's polyester, it is incredibly soft - it fooled me, I thought it was silk. I can't read Chinese, so no idea what brand this is.

Next is a big scarf with roses all over it. 

It's Louis Vuitton, silk and made in Italy. Well....it is two of those things! 

If this were real LV there would be a wider red border all the way around, the colours would be bolder on the roses (red, pink and two shades of green), and it would have a big LV signature on the bottom. This is a knock-off from a LV/Stephen Sprouse collaboration (just like my other fake LV scarf here) of 2009, when LV head designer Marc Jacob paid homage to the late Sprouse with this roses print on a ton of LV stuff.

This scarf is silk, it was probably made in Italy (as a souvenir for tourists), but it's not Louis Vuitton (the O would be rounder on real LV). We shall refer to this as "Lewis" Vuitton so that we all know it's fake. Still, for $3.95? For a silk scarf? That's a bargain! 

I LOVE this print - it reminds me of Marimekko. 

It's tan, chartreuse, black and white, with fringed ends. 

It has a couple of small snags, but they are barely noticeable. It's either a fine wool or viscose. It was $3.95. No tags on it. 

I always paw through the nylons section - I'd rather pay $3.95 than full price for Rachel Roy nylons. 

And I can always use knee highs - for $1.95 for two pairs! Score! 

I found a purple leather purse. 

It's a cross-body, adjustable. 

Two front pockets, and a zipper across the front. 

There is a tiny bit of wear on the corners, and near the zipper, but I could touch that up with a couple of felt markers easy enough. 

If I even bother - that's minimal. 

Oh, it's by Danier! I totally thought it was going to be Roots, as they are known for this style. 

It's one open section inside, plus a zippered wallet area. 

And it was only $24.95.

That is a deal. I used to shop there and their bags were always around $200.00. 

I didn't find anything in the dresses, but I did find a couple of skirts. 

I hesitated over this, but was ultimately won over by the quality. 

It's got pockets! 

I like that the fabric is turned 90 degrees inside. 

Look at this beautiful fabric. It's all woven, not printed. 

White/cream, mustard, blue, and two shades of grey. This will go with a lot. 

Massimo Dutti, made in Morocco. They are a Spanish company. 

This skirt is beautifully made, from the covered edges, to the paperbag waist, to the belt loops. 

It was only $14.95 - their skirts start at $129.00 new.

And this was new with tags! Bonus! 

Here it is on. I put my blue Danier belt through the loops to show how it looks. 

"It's just laid out for me like dinner."

I had to move the dress into the closet once Vizzini started licking it. Little monster! 

I may have mentioned, I have a bit of a black skirt issue - I love unusual details, and they are often found in black skirts. 

This has pleats across the front, pulling it up in the middle. 

It's very sculptural.

I immediately thought of a white spinal column painted down the front, heh heh. 

But it's by Ronen Chen, so I probably should leave it alone. 

Made in Israel, how unusual! But Ronen Chen (an actual person) is Israeli and lives and works there (about him here - you'll need to use Translate). 

This was $23.95, but would have been ten times that new. 

His skirts run $200 and up. I've seen this brand at Turnabout for $$.

Here it is on. 

I'm deciding whether to turn this skirt into a Crafternoon project...

I found a really nice floral top - I am inordinately fond of dark florals - then realized it was a bodysuit! 

It's got a rather skimpy bottom - the backside is a thong! At least it has a couple of snap selections so that I can adjust. 

It has two rows of ruffles below the ruffled neckline. 

I love that floral print - it's very Old Oil Painting-adjacent. 

Ah, Abercrombie & Fitch, I've heard of them. This was a mere $7.95, and it was made in India.

Again, you can add a 0 to that - this is not a current bodysuit, but one with a full top like this would probably be around $75-100 new. The previous owner cut the content tags out, but it feels like silk - because it's from India, I suspect it's actually viscose.

It does not go with this skirt, but it fits - remember, we can't try things on at WIN anymore! 

I was pleased to note that it's lined in the body, with the sleeves left sheer. 

With one eye on the clock, I did a quick tour of the shoes - woo hoo! I'm so glad I did! 

These are gorgeous - I am in love! I like how the toes are darker than the caramel colour of the main part. It won't show when I walk in the rain! 

And you know my crow/Goth/metal heart is loving all these studs, right? 

Nice buckle too. 

I see the brand is on the sole. 

Mamzelle - never heard of them before. 

But they are incredibly well made. Beautiful leather lining.

Really nice finishing details inside, including a strip of leather over the zip so it doesn't rub. 

They are made in Portugal.

Their double heart logo. 

They're barely worn. 

And were only $24.95! 

But wait, is that another tag underneath I see? 

These used to be priced at $48.95! Mamzelle is a European brand, and these would have been around $200 new. Not bad for $24.95!

One more shot of the great find of the day! 

Swoosh! 

I hope you enjoyed shopping vicariously with me. What was your favourite? (other than the dress!) Should I paint my Ronen Chen skirt?