Monday Metal and Spotty Shoe Flashback

Hello, my friends! Back to work today, and getting in a wearing of my metal dress before the season ends. It has gotten much chillier overnight now, so much so that I layered my new turtleneck underneath.

I forgot to take the Stair Picture this morning. D'oh! 

I've worn a blouse layered under this dress before (enjoy the Flashback here), but this is the first time I've done a turtleneck. I used to hate turtlenecks, but now that my neck-skin is getting crepe-y (oh yay, thanks), I like them. 

• Turtleneck - Yest; purchased here on the weekend for $29.99
• Dress - Comrags, Spring/Summer 2011, thrifted; last seen here in July 2020 with blue crochet
• Shoes - Chie Mihara; last worn here in March 2020 with pink hair
• Coat (below) - Denny Rose, consignment; last seen here in January 

I wasn't sure if I'd be keeping the dress - things I put off wearing are often items I'm getting tired of - but I really did love wearing it again. 

I've always referred to it as my metal dress dress, as it's 8% metal in its content. It always looks rather rumpled and a little bit shiny due to that. 

The turtleneck sweater was great - it's a nice thin knit, not see-through, long enough to tuck into the waist of my control-top nylons (a good trick for smoothing!) and didn't pill anywhere. 

Solid. 

• Mask - by Mom

Outerwear: 

Isn't this a lovely coat? I adore the bands of colour - note how the pockets are along the seam. It's a wool/cashmere blend, so nice and snuggly without being too bulky. 

• Gloves - Parkhurst

I am a fan of fingerless gloves - they keep my hands warm in chilly thrift shops, but let me have my fingers free to feel for good fabrics. I usually buy a new pair every year, so I'll have to pop into Roberta's Hats soon to pick up my 2021 pair. They are wool and are made in Canada. 

The stuff: 

I'd relegated these shoes to the top shelves of my shoe collection as a party shoe (i.e. shoes I can't work in), but I'd missed wearing them, and the office was quiet enough I didn't have to do much walking around. We'll have a little Flashback on them shortly. 

Silver bling: 

A few big bold pieces to pop. 

• Silver leaf cuff - Karen's
• Silver hinged cuff - vintage, thrifted, Powell River
• Silver/crystal ring - Soul Flower
• Silver/onyx ring - Toccara, vintage fair
• Earrings - Brenda Schoenfeld, 1992, vintage mall

And they are all sterling silver! 

Flashback: Chie Mihara Spotted Shoes

I stalked these shoes at local shoe store Footloose for months before they finally got marked down to a price I was willing to pay. I bought them here in April 2015 in a fit of retail therapy.

They were reduced by $125.00...to $297.00 ON SALE. Eek! 

Now, y'all know I love my Fluevogs - which are also very expensive - but I am also a big fan of Chie Mihara's shoes. She is a real person (about her here, link 'cause I love) and she designs really beautiful shoes. 

These are made of cream suede, and they have a built-in platform of about 3/4"/2cm under the foot, which helps make the heel feel less high.

Check out the texture.

The black spots are raised - I love the knubby feel of them. 

I get a kick out of this funny shoe-bag they came in. This is what your feet look like after 35 years of wearing heels. Funny...but true!  

I don't wear these shoes as much as I used to, as that is still a high heel (around 3" which is my max these days). 

Ready to Flashback? Here's the first time I wore them, in an all-orange work outfit in April 2015, looking all profesh. I presented at my company's quarterly meeting, so I was doing Clothing As Armour before I even called it that. 

That's my cream brocade Le Chateau blazer that I still have (Flashback here). 

I actually have trouble matching these shoes up with my outfits, as they photograph as being sort of a "blerg" grey, instead of a bold cream/black pattern. 

This outfit is from May 2015 - I miss that cerulean vintage skirt but the moths got it. 

This is my same cashmere "t-shirt" that I still have, worn here in August 2015. 

I tied a spotty scarf around my waist to match the shoes, but it worked better in person. That blue skirt is a designer one I still own, although it's a little tight on me. 

Fellow blogger Lorena (here) added the cartoon birds to this September 2015 outfit picture for me. 

This yellow dress made me feel like a Disney princess - even more with the birds! I still have that obi.

I didn't keep this red sweater dress - I upgraded to a Better Red Dress, probably - but I love the simple look with the gold necklace. This was in December 2015.

See what I mean about the shoes? They don't really come across well in pictures. 

I wore them in May 2016 for Yvonne's "surprise" 50th birthday party, which was not a surprise, as Randall accidentally invited her to it with the rest of us. 

L is getting his shoes on while I pose - check out my swoopy hair! I still have this green satin dress - it's lovely, and I'd like to wear it again.

I'm just wearing them as a neutral shoe here in August 2016. 

That's my pink skirt that I still have (Flashback here). I passed the jacket along, as it gaped open in the chestal region (that's one of my vintage lingerie camisoles that should not be showing there).

I should have kept this vintage pussy-bow blouse, dangit - I had a collection of them and in a rash moment, put them all in the giveaway pile, years ago. This outfit is from January 2017. 

I still have that skirt - like the cobalt blue one above, it's a vintage designer piece, but I don't wear it as much as I used to. I will have to dig them both out and wear them again! They both deserve Flashbacks.

My current Best Blue Dress, seen here in March 2018. 

The shoes were starting to feel too high for my feet around this time (I only wore them once in all of 2017). 

This is one of my favourite looks - treating them as cream seems to work best for matching. 

You'll recognize my recently-worn black Dries Van Noten skirt. This outfit is from April 2018. 

The shoes did not go with this outfit of many greens, from August 2019. 

They look muddy/dirty compared to the brighter white of the blouse. I think I still have those trousers, but everything else has moved along. I gave that cardigan many chances, but it kept bagging out on me. 

And here's the last time I wore these shoes, in March 2020, a couple of weeks before lockdown. 

My pink leather skirt, my McQ by Alexander McQueen jacket, pearls...and my pink hair! 

Mathy stuff: I know this won't be a great average, since these were expensive to begin with. This is my 13th outfit with these shoes, which comes to $22.85 per wear. Actually, that makes me feel better! That's not so bad! 

Do you have a favourite outfit from my past looks? What would you wear with these shoes?