Mom-Day Afternoon: My Fashionable Forebearers, and Cat Pictures

As the temps today soared up to 27/high 80s (the deck thermometer is at 40/over 100!), the thought of strolling slowly in the baking hot sun did not appeal to Mom or I. 

Instead, Mom brought over two grocery bags of old family photo albums, so get ready for the fashionable lineage of my family! 

I dressed for the heat in one of the best pieces in my closet, the Spanish Ladies dress, bought on our London/Paris vacation with Mom in 2010.

 This is a Grade A Jammy Dress (it would be A+ if it had pockets). 

• Dress - Limb, Camden Market, London, 2010; last seen here in June 2021 with bits of blue
• Shoes - Wonders, consignment; last worn here in August 2021 with a dress I gave to Caro

You can enjoy my 2010 holiday here - it's backwards chronologically, and hey! that's the first wearing of my now-classic yellow leather Danier jacket, still a firm favourite 12 years later. Oh, I also used to paste George Clooney's face over L's back then. Rest assured, it's L. 

The dress has had a Flashback, here, and I've now worn it 25 times in 12 years.

Aside from not having pockets, this is the Best Dress Ever. 

Every outfit has been different, so it's super versatile, it has a fantastic pattern (Spanish movie stars, roses and cacti) and it's flattering as heck. 

I'm wearing a very pale pink camisole, otherwise it's "boobs ahoy!"

I have my petit-pants on underneath.

Masked up - we had lunch at Christie's Pub.

Lunch for two, please! 

Deep cover incognito.

I walked home after lunch just enjoying the heat and being outside.

Accoutrements: 

The giant scarf provided excellent shoulder/arm coverage. 

• Purse - BCBC Paris, vintage 90s, thrifted
• Hat - Heart's Content
• Scarf - Metropolitan Museum of Art, thrifted
• Mask - Lazy Susan's

The stuff: 

These are wonderful hot weather shoes - they are so comfy! 

Blingy bling: 

I was in a sparkly kind of mood.

• Belt - thrifted, Powell River
• Green rhinestone ring - vintage 70s, Mom's
• Olivine/coral ring - Oahu, Hawaii, 1977, Mom's
• Earrings - vintage market

Vizzini, how are you doing with all this heat?

"Feeling floppy."

He doesn't move.

"Not when you're in my face, Woman."

I've been helping Mom get pictures to go add to her collection of stores, once she is finished her Storyworth project started at the beginning of the pandemic, in May 2020. About them here - I link 'cause I love. If you have an older parent or even if you yourself want to prompt some memoir-writing, I highly recommend it! 

Vizzini, Mom's coming over! 

"I don't know her."

Yes, you do, you goober! 

"Really? Can she make it cooler outside?"

He was quite amenable to head scritches.

From safe under the table. 

There we go.

Now, who's enjoying a good tummy rub? 

Investigating the bags of albums. 

Don't worry, folks, I'm not going to inflict all of my family pics on you! Just a few...really!

I see some cuddling going on! 

"Yeah, no."

He jumped down right away, and left us alone. 

So! Pictures! I've curated some pics to show the strong, beautiful women of my family, as well as some of the fabulous fashion - there are some pics of me here too, from when I was young. 

This is a class photo from Oaklands School here in Victoria from 1923. I can't believe this is 99 years ago.

That's my grandmother with the white socks in the front row (there's an x on the hem of her dress), looking rather stylish. She would have been around 9 years old here.

This is her again, age 16. What a lovely young lady.

Love the pretty white dress - this is her confirmation outfit, I believe. 

Mom had multiple photo albums that were my grandmother's personal ones, which was really cool. I have never seen many of these pictures. 

Her mom, Dorothy, at Beacon Hill Park in 1934 (she's 20 here), feeding the ducks. It runs in the family.

"This was THE dress," said Mom. Apparently, my grandad (Mom's dad) got one look at Dorothy in this low-cut gown and fell head over heels, at a dance in 1937.

Such an elegant dress, with the pretty neckline and flounced dark lace hem. 

My grandparents were married two years later in 1939. 

My grandmother's gorgeous wedding dress. I love the ribbons training from the bouquet. The lace of the gown was turned into many dance costumes over the years, including the dyed black lace for the mantilla of this dress here (one of Mom's old costumes) I wore for Hallowe'en back in the early 80s.

My chic grandparents, Lester (Les) and Dee (as he called her). 

That was in 1939, likely on their honeymoon. 

My lovely grandmother's mother, Edith W. in a picture taken in Victoria, likely shortly after her small family emigrated from Burton-On-Trent. My grandmother was born in Victoria, but her older sister was born in England.

Loving the lace camisole and the layered top/jacket. It looks very modern! 

This is my mom's Grandma H (her father's mother), a rather "butter wouldn't melt in her mouth"-looking woman. 

Love the wrap cardigan, with the multi-strand necklace and the pretty brooch. I like her marcelled hair too!

This is a relation on my grandfather's side, Adele H.

A rather snazzy-looking dresser, she is! I bet she was a wild one! 

This is my grandfather (Mom's dad) and his cousin Eileen. 

I'm drooling over her checkered textured coat! She was a hoot (I remember her from when I was a kid).

This Hazel H, another one of Grandad's relatives. 

What a beauty she is! 

She was a Miss Calgary winner.

Good fashion genes from this side of the family! 

This gent is Harry, known to me from stories throughout my childhood of "rich Uncle Harry."

A very dapper man - look at that beautiful windowpane plaid suit! 

Uncle Harry would come to visit and would always bring my mom (Helen) and her sister (Marion, just over a year older) matching dresses. 

This is my Grandad, Les, with Mom (on the left) and Marion on the right - Mom said, "It must be payday, as Dad would walk us to town to pick up his paycheque, then buy us each an ice cream." Note the matching Uncle Harry dresses! This is in the late 1940s in downtown Victoria. 

Striped Uncle Harry dresses, here with my Grandad's mother, Grandma, c. 1950-1.

Helen/Mom is in the middle. Brian is her older brother (pic here from 2016 of Mom, Joan - Brian's wife - and Brian). I quite like his funky shirt.

Same Grandma S (note the awesome pose, I think I inherited it!), but with my Gram (Dee/Dorothy). 

Mom/Helen's in the middle, and those are Uncle Harry dresses too - very cute. 

These kids are getting older! Marion, Brian and Helen. 

This the final pair of Uncle Harry dresses - Marion's was green and Mom's was coral (she hated the colour, but would not let on). 

As you know, my family has been in Victoria for 4+ generations, so some of the same places - like Beacon Hill Park - keep showing up. 

Remember I was just talking about the swings at Beacon Hill Park? There's Mom as a little girl on the swings! I was disappointed on our last trip to see that all of the big wooden seat-swings that you see going in the background have been removed - I loved them. 

I thought you might be reassured that department store Father Christmases have always been creepy. 

That's Mom, looking like she might cry! This was taken in the window of the Hudson's Bay Company in downtown Victoria (note the fancy stamp on the picture holder). The Bay building has been converted to apartments and is now called "The Hudson."

This picture was featured in the Easter Sunday edition of the Colonist newspaper. That's Gram (Dee), with Brian (fancy satin shirt!), Marian and Mom. 

"I loved that coat so much," said Mom. "It was green and cream wool houndstooth with dark green velvet trim, and was from Tang's Pagoda. I wore it with my hat that had black ribbons that trailed down my back." Picture of Tang's Pagoda's building here, from 2020. 

I love this pic of Mom in her yard, holding her doll. "I'm in pants!"

Overalls, to be precise! Her hair is tied up in a bandana in an attempt to make the curlers work.

I mentioned dance costumes - guess who doesn't like her "Little Dutch Boy" outfit! 

Check out the gorgeous house next door - this is only a few blocks from where I live now (see that rock and holly tree behind Mom? Here it is in April 2020.

Mom was especially disgruntled because Marian got the Milkmaid costume. 

"Hers was all ruffles and pretty, and mine was...a boy," sighed Mom. Everything you need to know about these sisters is in that photo. 

Some more of Mom's dance costumes. 

I get my dramatic flair and theatricality from her! 

I also get my rebellious streak! This is Mom at her graduation (just turned 17, she skipped a grade), NOT wearing the traditional white dress! 

"My dress was pink," said Mom, " A bunch of us wore colour - we were the rebels." Aw! I love that! You look so beautiful there, Mom. 

Oh, my turn to come into the pictures, literally! That is me being held by Mom and that's my dad, Glenn, standing on the steps of my grandparents' house (Les and Dee). 

It's October 1967. Recognize the hat Mom's wearing? I'm wearing it here, with Mom. I also still have that coat, which has a mink collar (seen here back in 2010). 

Baby Sheila checking herself out in a mirror. "You loved giggling at yourself in the mirror," said Mom. Yeah, some things never change, ha ha! 

Mom in a very cool blue patterned shirt! 

This is me for Hallowe'en (I'm an angel), I think in 1968. 

I love Mom's orange coat! She still has that blue blown glass bowl in the background. 

My next Hallowe'en costume, sitting on the front steps of our old house (pic here, from 2021).

That fuzzy hat is green - I'm a pumpkin! That's my family nickname, but now (of course) I have to kill you. 

My dad's sister - my dear Aunt Lois - gave me this leopard-print hat.

Of course, I had to dress it up right away! Look at the lace gloves! I still have those - I modeled them here - I "liberated" them from Mom's dresser in the 80s. 

Finally! A decent picture of my Grandma J, she of the copper jewelry! This is Frances, and that's my Dad, her son.

What a lovely dress she has on - and it looks like she got a new Kodak camera for Christmas! 

I've been a tuxedo cat fan since I was a baby. 

This is Herman the cat, and our introduction. I used to chew on his ears. Like I said, some things never change!

Ah! Remember last week (here), when Mom and I went to Beacon Hill Park, and I said I remembered Queenie the Clydesdale horse?

I told you! That's me and Dad and Queenie! 

And here I am terrorizing the ducks. 

The tree that all the peacocks were in last week is in the background - this is near the present-day petting zoo, which didn't exist then. Dig the groovy old cars! This is around 1969. 

Check out my sweet woolly coat and bobble hat! 

Mom says there is a pic somewhere of Dad's father (my asshole Grandpa) holding me back from running into a pond after the ducks. 

I bet it was on this trip to Beacon Hill! 

I'm a bit older there, but obviously I'm all, "DUCKS!"

This is at the house I lived at the longest, my second house, where I lived from 1974 to 1989. This is in the early years, probably in 1974-75. 

My brother Dave, my gorgeous Aunt Lois, and me. See? I've always loved plaid! 

This must be one of our first Christmases in that house, c. 1975ish. My dad is in his "fat Elvis" phase, hee hee. 

I grilled Mom to see if she still had that gorgeous black skirt with the woven trim, but sadly no. Dig my plaid taffeta dress! I do giggle over Dave's matching knit set. Very spiffy! 

A different Christmas - that's Grandma J (Frances) on the left, and a tiny bit of Aunt Lois behind Mom. 

Mom is looking aces in her zip-front wizard top, complete with hood, and that's Dad (still doing Elvis) in his purple groovy shirt. It was the 70s! 

This is Dee and Les, same Christmas, I think. 

Gram's sheer purple blouse and two-piece woven outfit is the BOMB, and Grandad was always a very snappy dresser. 

I think this might be my first day of Grade 1, so 1972? That's our neighbour Steven - he's probably going to walk me to school. 

Mom crocheted that fabulous pink and white poncho for me! It had a matching hat (it was itchy wool). Note the flower-printed clear school-bag. So styling!

This is me standing in a neighbour's yard, looking down our street, c. 1973ish, probably first day of Grade 2.

That was a blue dress with tiny white polka dots, and red collar and cuffs. That's a solid Jammy Dress! 

And I finally, I found an original newspaper clipping from 1983 of our family reunion in Tisdale, Saskatchewan, of all of my Dad's family. His father had 5 brothers and one sister, the infamous Aunt Ann (scroll down here to read about her inspiration to me at this reunion). She's the green arrow.

My dad is the blue arrow; my brother Dave is the yellow arrow, and that's me in the front, the red arrow. 

Holy smokes, Vizzini, that was a lot.

"I'm exhausted just hearing about it."

Mom, thank you so much for bringing these photos over. It was amazing to see all the fantastic women and all of my fashionable family. 

Including you, of course! I love you! 

When I got home, Vizzini was flopped on the benches out on the deck. 

"Too hot."

You silly cat, the deck is the hottest place! 

"I just can't move."

From Mom and me, to all of you - thank you for your kind comments and for reading along with us on our adventures. It's been wonderful for both of us...

…so, Cheers! Here's to you! 

Well, that took a long time, and I need to go surf the couch. I'll be logging off for the weekend - which is a long one for us, with the BC Day holiday - and will be back on Monday with tales of adventure! Stay cool, stay awesome, and thank you so much for dropping by.