Mom-Day Adventure: Raiding Mom's Closet, Dad's Birthday in Sweetums, and a Wee Shop

Hello, my friends! Today, Mom and I hung out at her house together and then had lunch. Today is my Dad's birthday - had he lived past 55 he would have been 81. 

"I probably would have killed him by now," quipped Mom. 

I built my outfit around my new-to-me Dr. Martens boots (henceforth referred to as Docs). 

This outfit ended up being unexpectedly perfect for a couple of offerings Mom had discovered while cleaning out her closet. 

• Turtleneck - M&S, thrifted; last worn here in November 2022 with a summer skirt and Ally boots
• Sweater - Scotch & Soda, consignment; last seen here in December 2022 for brunch with my nieces
• Leather skirt - Danier, vintage 80s, thrifted; last worn here (2nd outfit) in November 2022 with lime boots for brunch
• Boots - Dr. Martens, consignment; purchased here for $61.99
• Sweetums cape (below) - vintage 70s, consignment; last worn here in January

Well, I'm intrigued! 

I started with the skirt and picking out the violet-purple in the floral canvas of my Docs. 

Let's do a neutral (grey) for tights and sweater. 

I have a camisole plus a hot pink long-sleeved turtleneck under that. 

The belt is a nod to the white in the boots, plus I prefer to define my waist. 

I just love wearing this leather skirt. 

It's so thick and supple. 

Outerwear - my favourite "coat" of the year is...Sweetums! 

You might think I named my cape after the Muppet character (this guy), but it's actually named after the Volkswagen bus we owned when I was a kid in the 70s. The VW bus was named after the Muppet (I loved the TV special "The Frog Prince" that aired in 1971 when I was 4!). 

I layered my purse under the cape. 

I don't wear the cape open like this, as it wants to fall off my shoulders, but I does look cute. 

Done up. 

It was slightly less cold than expected.

And the forecast rain did not appear. 

Hands retracted for maximum warmth! 

Accoutrements: 

You might have noticed I've stopped photographing my masks - I still pick out a matchy one and carry it, and wear it when I feel anxious (like on the bus or in a crowded store). It feels weird not wearing one, but I'm ready for the world to be normal-ish again. 

• Beret - consignment
• Gloves - thrifted
• Purse - Danier, thrifted

The stuff: 

Loved these boots! I'll pick up a pair of sport insoles for them - Docs are not the most comfy shoes. These were fine for the small amount of walking I did from the bus stop, to the WIN Boutique and home. 

I took the time this morning to pull out the ribbon laces and steam them. 

My steamer is the Rowenta Master Valet - highly recommended. The unsteamed ribbon is on the left, and the nice smooth one is on the right. I use the "gentle for delicate textiles" cover on the steamer all the time. 

And don't the laces look nice? 

So smooth! 

The stuff: 

I always forget about my fabric flower necklace - it hangs in my closet, off the corner of the mirror. 

• Flower necklace - She She Shoes
• Black brooch (worn on cape) - vintage, vintage fair
• Leather cuff - Guess, thrifted
• Studded cuff - vintage 90s
• Belt - Suzi Roher, thrifted
• Silver/amethyst ring - vintage mall
• Silver/Kyanite ring - consignment
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jewelers, c. 1965, Dad's
• Earrings - thrifted

Of course, I wore Dad's ring today. 

Mom was excited to share the few flowers blooming in her front garden. 

Yellow crocuses. 

A purple hellebore. 

This one has split into two. 

A big white hellebore. 

She's also got tons of daffodils and tulips pushing up through the mulch. 

As we were admiring her garden, we heard a cranky meowing. Hello, Rodney! 

"I was talking to this elephant, do you mind?"

Mom brushes Rodney for her neighbours sometimes. She's the Cat Whisperer. 

While cleaning out her closets, Mom discovered two sweaters she thought I might like. She knit this one herself back in the early-to-mid 1980s. 

I looked askance at it. 80s sweaters can be atrocious. 

But what nice work! 

The blue inserts are a shiny and slippery textile - the balance of it is a lovely boucle in shades of pink and purple. 

I tried it on. 

It's like I planned it! I tucked it into my skirt at the front. This will be cute with a pink skirt or my white jeans/jean skirt. 

This sweater is so intricate - that's a very complicated pattern. Her mother, my Gram S, knitted this. 

She was very skilled at knitting, crocheting and embroidery - she made this for Mom as a birthday present. 

It's black, pink and pale grey. 

What lovely work! 

And I love how it looks on. 

And again, it's like I dressed for it! I'm looking forward to wearing this. 

Then Mom pulled out this oil painting, which my Gram also did. Mom guided both her mom and mother-in-law through a few oil paintings - neither of them painted on their own.

I think she did a really good job! I asked Mom if I could have it. 

I love the castle? lighthouse? and I can practically hear the ocean crashing. 

"D.A.S." - that's my Gram. 

She signed it on the back: Dorothy Small. 

It's Sutherland Lighthouse in Scotland, and she painted it in May 1983. It's actually Stoer Head Lighthouse - and you can stay there! About it here (all links 'cause I love).

I remember sitting for the silhouette artist. Mom says we found her at a craft fair - she had to take my brother Dave to the artist's studio at a later time to have his done. 

These are made of black paper that's been cut out with a razor blade. 

The detail! 

I can see the lines she used to hand-calligraph my name. 

In the corner is a very tiny signature in pencil. 

It says, "Fran Day 1975." So I would have been 7 or 8 years old. 

And there she is. I found her obituary here - she lived from 1919 to 2015 (she had 4 husbands, the 2nd was where she got the Day surname). 

I have never heard of Aquarius Road - it's out in Sooke, a community to the west of Victoria. 

Mom also let me paw through her closet. Watch out if you invite me to your house, as I will want to see your closet! She had a bunch of scarves including this wonderful dark red one (it's folded in half here).

"You never wear scarves," I said, as I beheld her collection. She generously let me take three of them (all the best ones!). 

This one is a gorgeous woven shimmery fabric. I suspect viscose, although the label's been cut off. Some sections are velvety. 

Looks like an textile from India - I remember this type of woven fabric on a lot of clothes in the mid-80s. 

Oh, hello! A classy label! Pierre Cardin! 

That tracks for my 80s estimate. 

Ooh, blue! I love the fringe.

It was folded into a triangle, so I guess Mom wore it this way at least once. It still has the fold lines in it, though - I bet this was a gift. 

Vera scarves are plentiful and good quality. This one's made in Japan.

You can see the lovely woven textile there - it's very fine and delicate. 

When I saw this scarf I knew the maker immediately. 

"Holy crap, Mom, where did you get a Smoking Lily scarf?" This matches my bug scarf (this one), that I got as a wedding shower gift in 1997. 

She was given this by her friend Diane, who got if from her daughter Marie (Marie and I used to hang out when we were pre-teens), who obviously bought it in the late 90s. They retailed for $90.00, I recall - they were not cheap! 

This one is magenta/dark red with black bugs. I love it! Thank you, Mom! 

We had a lovely lunch and then I bused to town with my bags from raiding Mom's closet. 

This was such a nice way to spend the afternoon. I love you, Mom! 

As noted above, my cape Sweetums is named after our old VW bus. I just had to dig out my photo albums and digitize a few for Dad's birthday.

As these pics feature Mom and Dad (and our old dog Schultz), I am sure I took them myself. I got a camera for Christmas around 1974, when I was 6-7 years old - these are some of the earliest pictures in my personal albums. 

This is the house I grew up in, through elementary school, junior high and high school. And that's Mom in the rear, and Dad underneath, loading our red canoe on top of Sweetums. We're ready to go canoeing at Elk Lake! 

Sweetums had red vinyl seats - you can see the centre seat (a two-seater) and the back seat (sat 3 people). 

My Dad holding Schultz the schnauzer. Noting Dad's Converse sneakers, very stylin'! It must be early spring, probably around Marcg, as the daffodils are peeking through the mounds of pinks (not in bloom yet). 

The window above the bus was my parents' bedroom, and the small window beside the front door was David's room (my bedroom was on the opposite side). 

Taken from the front yard. We lived on a steep hill, so the driveway was on the lower level.

Mom, Dad and Schultz. The dog is probably recently adopted here. 

And then I found Dad's 30th birthday picture - this is 1975. I am 7 years old, and Dave is 5. 

Dave is wearing his Lee denim outfit, and I'm in one of my favourite dresses (it's blue with a red polka dot collar, and of course I'm wearing white tights). Dad's cake has gingerbread men that Dave and I helped decorate on top, along with fresh strawberries. Aw...Happy Birthday, Dad! 

I popped into the WIN Housewares store and was very taken with these welded steel...spiky things. 

They are heavy and very solid. 

I plan on hanging them on a wall and using them to display my silk scarves, which are in a shemozzle in a couple of shoeboxes. 

The smallest one was $3.95, the middle was $5.95 - the largest one was missing its tag. 

"How about $9.95?" I suggested. 

"How about $6.95?" said the very kind lady. Done! 

I went next door and scanned the Boutique to see what caught my eye. 

I love the Hardcase Crime reprint series - it's vintage and new crime fiction with new covers. This one contains "Snatched" and "Safekeeping" and was $2.95. The Vonnegut didn't ring a bell - L enjoys him - so for $1.95 I tossed it in my basket. It's a 1974 edition. 

I found L a Miami Dolphins Dri-Fit tee. 

"I can't believe you featured Rodney - a cat I DON'T EVEN KNOW - and not me."

It's going to be too big on L, but for $12.95, I couldn't NOT buy it. 

These cost $53.00 new! 

I really liked the magenta colour of this sleeveless turtleneck. 

And it's sparkly! 

It's by Jessica and was also $12.95.

Jessica is a Sears brand in Canada. This will be a good layering piece. 

I liked this steel grey velvet t-shirt. 

Do you see the message? 

Faux! 

I intend on deliberately mispronouncing it. I'm a silver velvet FOX. 

It's Forever 21, and was priced accordingly at $6.95

I might not wear it forever, but it's fun. 

This was my big find - the ladies in the boutique were so happy that I bought it. 

Yes, my friends, that is a gold leather trenchcoat! 

It is really beautifully made and so soft. 

I checked it carefully for any stains or rips. It is pristine.

I noticed that not only does it have an upper inside button to help it lay flat when closed...

...but it also has a LOWER button that keeps the bottom from opening up. I have never seen that!

Very nice faux tortoiseshell slide buckles on the sleeves and the belt. The buttons are also faux tortoiseshell. 

The belt is super long, and is meant to be tied, not threaded through the buckle. 

There's even a button up at the neck for securing it closed there. 

It's fully lined in matching gold satin. 

It's by Terry Lewis Classic Luxuries - never heard of this brand, but my sleuthing online reveals that she was one of the first African-American sellers on the Home Shopping Network (HSN) and was unceremoniously dumped when a new boss at HSN cleared house in 2010. Some juicy blog posts here and here.

More about her here. Her clothes weren't that expensive - and she did a LOT of leather and faux fur - but $64.95 seemed like a really good deal for such a well-made coat. This is likely from the first decade of the 00s - already 20 years old.

And it looks great on me! 

This is going straight into rotation! 

I saw this painted rock as I was walking home, laden with my finds. 

Love it. 

Have yourselves a wonderful weekend! It is Family Day long weekend here in BC, so Monday is a statutory holiday. I am very much looking forward to that extra day! 

Thanks so much for stopping by! See you on Monday!