Bigass Long Weekend Wrap-Up: Rainbow Brights; Blue Goldfish Shopping and Chill-Out; Accessory Swap-Over; Easter at Mom's; Black and Red Movie

I am back, feeling refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to go into spring with colour! Are you ready to join me? Grab a cuppa something tasty and settle in - I have four outfits to share, plus my accessory swap-over pics, and even a few photos of friends and family, including the furry variety. 

I was exhausted after my massive Spring-Summer Closet Swap-Over (click here if you missed it!), and after a quiet evening, L and I enjoyed a sleep in on Friday. We meandered downtown to meet up with friends for a drink and a social.

My first outfit of spring had to be something bold and bright - rainbow! 

• Sweater - Banana Republic, thrifted; last worn here in June 2022 for a Mom-Day Adventure at Heritage Acres
• Skirt - Banana Republic, consignment; last seen here (2nd outfit) in October 2022 with a band tee
• Shoes - Aubrey Go Groovy, Fluevog; last worn here with pink and orange in January
• Leather coat (below) - Danier, consignment; last seen here in April 2022

I wasn't quite ready to wear a new-to-me piece yet. Six months has elapsed since I last enjoyed these clothes and I reached for comfort. 

Besides, who doesn't love wearing a rainbow?

Especially a swooshy one! 

L and I spent a few fun hours hanging out with Greg, Nick (just returned from Japan) and Arnold at Craft Brewpub. 

We walked home, enjoying the sun and breeze. 

Of course, it always clouds up. 

I'm ready for anything. 

Lots of layers. 

I had a lot of comments from people as I walked around. 

People like colour! 

Accoutrements: 

I had forgotten about this lovely brocade purse, a rare retail buy of 6+ years ago from Aldo. 

• Purse - Aldo
• Scarf - Alexander McQueen, consignment
• Gloves - consignment

The stuff: 

These are great walking shoes - very comfortable. 

Bright bling: 

As I hadn't done my accessory swap-over yet, I had to dig through all my fall/winter jewelry for some bright colours. I ended up with a lot of red and blue. 

• Belt - Papillon, thrifted; purchased here for $5.95
• Cuff - thrifted
• Leather/steel cuff - Rimanchik
• Earrings - Tania Gleave, Granville Island
• Kyanite ring - consignment
• Silver/sodalite ring - Scotland, 1996
• Ear-cuffs - gift from Mom
• Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes

First wearing of this new-top-me wide yellow faux leather elastic belt. Loved it!

L and I spent the evening playing boardgames and listening to music - our favourite thing to do! - but I was up early to meet up with Yvonne for a wee shop down Oak Bay Avenue before meeting up with our gang at Christie's Pub afterwards for our long weekend hangout. 

I had earmarked this skirt-top combo almost immediately after unpacking from our trip to Vancouver the previous weekend. 

• Top - Marimekko, consignment; last worn here in October 2022 with emojis
• Skirt - Eva Franco, thrifted, Vancouver; purchased here for $26.00
• Shoes - Pilgrim Truths, Fluevog; last see here in March with triple pinstripes
• Leather coat (below) - Elizabeth & James, consignment; last worn here all weekend in Vancouver in March

I LOVE this colour mix. 

I had a quick peek in Good Things Consignment Vintage (too busy/packed for my comfort), then scouted at House of Savoy before Yvonne arrived. 

I had oodles of comments on my colours. 

I have a full vintage slip on under this. 

It was a good outfit for trying stuff on. 

The googly goldfish made me happy. 

I had to wear the same blue coat I was wearing when I bought the skirt. 

It matches so well! 

All done up and ready to shop. 

It rained a little bit, but otherwise, it was just a grey kind of day. 

Accoutrements: 

The ladies at House of Savoy enjoyed my vintage Halston scarf, and recognized the striped top and this purse, both purchases from there. 

• Purse - Bruno Magli, vintage 80s, consignment
• Gloves - Parkhurst
• Scarf - Halston, vintage 70s, thrifted

The stuff: 

These are excellent shopping shoes. Easy off, and good for lots of walking and standing. 

Minimal bling: 

Some of this was still out from the previous day's outfit. 

• Leather/steel cuff - Rimanchik
• Kyanite ring - consignment
• Silver/sodalite ring - Scotland, 1996
• Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes
• Earrings - local
• Crystal heart pendant - found on the street

Yvonne and I both did really well at House of Savoy - we spent so much time there, we had to race to get to Turnabout for a quick go-through. 

Here's what I found. Perfect Pink Shoes! As you can see, they are buy Sam Edelman.

The little studs totally sold them for me, as does the lovely shade of suede. 

I also like the wavy sides. 

And that they fit me perfectly - no heel slippage. 

They still have the original Nordstrom's price tag on the sole (seriously, who wears shoes without taking the stickers off? really!). 

They started at $174.95, then were marked down to $104.96. House of Savoy's original price was...I can't remember! The lovely people there gave me a "stylist" discount (I encourage their customers to buy things), plus they had an extra 10% off everything. I think they were around $65.00. 

I have been looking for a bright pink cross-body purse for a while - I used to have a vintage 80s leather purse several years ago that I got from the Patch, but it didn't work well so I passed it along (I think Alison has it). 

This one had everything: chains, colour, adjustable strap. 

Big interior, zip pocket for wallet, and a security clip for keys. 

I like the extra pocket opposite. The purse was missing a wrist strap (there's a loop on the exterior) for converting it to a clutch, as the long chain strap is removeable.

But it's in immaculate condition - no wear at all on the bottom corners. 

And the leather is lovely and soft. 

It's by Michael Kors, and it's an older purse, likely early 00s, as it has fabric credit card slots. 

Since the advent of iPhones, no one uses those anymore! This ended up $70.00 which felt like a fair price. 

This belt was marked down to $25.00 with all the deductions. 

It's orange and is all made of metal mesh. Cool, right? 

I loved these leopard trousers.

That stripe down the sides is everything! 

Pockets too! 

The bottom cuffs also have hidden zippers. 

They are Seductive Pants, which is actually a brand! 

Their pants run $198-320, so my $65.00 feels better. 

When we realized the time, we skedaddled to Turnabout for a quick look around. Yvonne got a couple of things, and I bought this skirt that I had skipped last time. 

It's a maxi, with a blue print on the sheer outer fabric. 

I see a dragonfly! 

The front of the skirt is actually quite dull. 

The back has ducts and waterlilies! I plan on wearing it backwards. 

"I approve, it's quite delicious."

Vizzini has been thrilled to have us around the house for 4-5 days straight. He's been very clingy. 

The skirt is by Hunkon, a Danish label. It's been well-loved, but I knew exactly why it had been consigned - and why I didn't buy it. The lining is too tight to take anything but small steps! 

It was marked all the way down to $17.99 from the original $49.99. It looks like their skirts start at $145.00 Canadian, so score on that! 

Yvonne and I met up with our gang at Christies, where the party was in full swing! 

Clockwise from front left: Vero,  Ross, Justin, Randall, Nick, L, Greg, Cat, me.

Thanks to Yvonne for these pics! 

Cat, me and Ali. 

Cat was hilariously "offended" that her Hoyne Pilsner was served to her in not one crappy Canadian beer glass (Sleeman)...

...but that they brought her refill in a Molson Canadian glass! It's the beer inside that counts, Cat! Ignore the crap-brand watery beer labels! Nick looks skeptical. 

L and I once again adjourned to the gaming table for more boardgames and music on Saturday evening, and on Sunday I embarked on my jewelry swap-over. 

This is the Before. No judging me on my dust...

And all clean and tidy...After. 

The low jewelry box is all my vintage jewelry, and the tall box holds most of my necklaces and contemporary jewelry. 

Except that my collections are getting more expansive, so I've had to resort to creative storage solutions so that I can see everything. I can't wear it if I don't see it! 

I've been using this vintage yellow glass two-tier dessert stand for my bangles for years. I spin it to see all of them. 

The silk bag atop the low jewelry box is full of my bulky necklaces. 

I like to dump this out on the bed and rummage through it. 

I bought this black velvet stand last year, and use it for more bracelets.

Mesh/link styles on top, Bakelite and Lucite on the bottom. 

A divided crystal tray holds my small/stud earrings. 

But I really am not much of a small-studs gal, so I converted one of the trio compartments to hold my really large rings. 

I even trade out my pendants. 

This is an old Fossil tin. 

An amber dish holds my large/bulky earrings. 

Now that mask-wearing has ended, I can wear all my ginormous earrings again, hooray! 

This iridescent amber glass dish is from the Indiana Glass Company and is in the "King's Crown" pattern (this is part of my collection). 

It holds my rigid bangle collection, plus a bracelet clamped around the stem. 

A small golden glass sorbet dish is for my long necklaces with big pendants. 

These take up too much room or clatter too much when they are in with my handing necklaces on the sides of the big jewelry box. 

Here's the redone insides of my Gram's jewelry box (Mom's mum). That's a good portion of my vintage spring-summer accessories.

Earrings in the tray (which fits on top), with brooches, bracelets and a few necklaces on the top tray. The bottom pull-out drawer is more of the same. Many of these belonged to my mom and my two grandmothers. I even have a piece from L's grandmother. 

In the afternoon on Easter Sunday, we drove out to Mom's house to have a visit. 

I went pretty casual - I haven't spent any time doing try-ons or making outfits with my new-to-me items yet. 

• Blazer - Danier Leather, vintage 80s, consignment; last worn here in March with a pouffy skirt
• Top - Republic of Vancouver Island, thrifted; purchased here for $6.95
• Jeans - Cambio; last seen here (2nd outfit) in January for groceries and boardgames
• Shoes - Homers; last worn here (2nd outfit) in October 2022 with my rainbow skirt

I was pretty sure that this yellow leather jacket would work with my white jeans. 

The tank-style top isn't going to be worn in public after this one outing. 

I'll be sleeping in it! 

My brother was wowed by all our colour. 

Yeah, this is how I dress. 

You can't miss me! 

All done up - it was rather rainy on Sunday. 

My poor bare ankles! 

Accoutrements: 

I like this colour combination. It's nautical without being too overtly "ahoy". 

Blue bling: 

I was happy to have my yellow suede shoes back in rotation. I adore these shoes. 

Studded bling: 

And there's my two bracelets, back in rotation. Good to see you again. 

• Belt - B-Low the Belt, thrifted
• Necklace - Stella & Dot, thrifted
• Blue eelskin cuff - vintage 80s, thrifted
• Silver/gold cuff - JPL, vintage fair
• Kyanite ring - consignment
• Lapis lazuli ring - Wendy Brandes
• Smoky topaz ring - Anneli Neuman, Sweden, vintage mall
• Earrings - Glee

We arrived at Mom's.

Her garden is full of daffodils, hyacinths and primroses. Very pretty! 

My brother Dave and his youngest daughter Sydney were there (she is 14? 15?). 

As you can see, I am the shrimp of the family at 5'4". 

Mom, you look lovely in your emerald green. 

The matching necklace is so pretty. 

Thanks for having us over! 

I love you! 

When I got home, as I prepped my table for my "Stuff" pictures, I felt a nudge at my foot. 

"Ahem."

Oh, hello, Vizzini, can I help you? 

"I'm feeling streeeettttccchhhhyyyyyyy...."

He seemed to think that it was dinner time. 

"You should definitely feed me, Woman."

He's become much more active now that the weather has warmed a half-dozen degrees. 

"I can stay this way as long as you like."

I gave in and fed him. 

I don't get Easter Monday as a holiday, so I took it as a vacation day so that I could spend it with L. 

We met up with Casey and Nick downtown and went to see the movie "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves", which I found delightfully silly and fun . 

• Jacket - Adidas x Fiorucci, 2019, consignment; last worn here in March with houndstooth
• Dress - InWear; last seen here in November 2022 with groovy boots
• Boots - Original Sabado, Fluevog; last worn here in February for tapas with Betty
• Poncho (below) - Bodybag By Jude, consignment, gift from L; last seen here in March

I played in-person D&D for a couple of decades with L and a group of friends (including Casey), so I loved all the references and how well it represented what a good-flowing game can feel like. 

I dressed for comfort (sitting for 2 hours, plus we walked both ways), and for warmth. 

This thermoplastic Adidas x Fiorucci jacket kept me warm and was there in case it started to rain on our walk (it didn't). 

I have my weekend tee, fleece-lined leggings and thick socks on under it. 

Just the dress, although I never took the plastic jacket off. 

I like the directional stripes. 

More black and red! 

I draped the poncho over myself and reclined way back. 

That's the way to enjoy a movie. 

What a lovely chill way to end the extra-long weekend! 

Accoutrements: 

A few extras for the walk. 

• Purse - Rebecca Minkoff, consignment
• Scarf - Elaine Gold, consignment
• Gloves - Parkhurst

The stuff: 

Comfy boots - these (and the blue ones) stay out all year. 

Black and red bling: 

Some of my silver collection returns. 

• Bakelite bangle - vintage, vintage mall, gift from L
• Silver/enamel bracelet - thrifted
• Earcuff - gift from Mom
• Silver/red enamel ring - antique shop, Sidney
• Chain silver ring - Mexican, consignment
• Silver earrings - consignment

I've been wearing these earcuffs now that they are out where I can see them all the time. 

And now, my friends, I'm off to grasp the last hours before I have to think about work again. 

"You should spend them cuddling me."

That's the best advice I've ever had from a cat! 

Thank you so much for joining me, my friends! I plan on catching up with all of your comments and blogs this week!