Purple Tigers, and Reader Roses Received!

I got a present in the mail today from dear reader Linda, all the way from Arizona, USA! 

We are in the presence of ART, my friends! More pics below. 

But first, the outfit - I wore one of my favourite blouses, the Purple Tiger.

Egg yolk yellow and purple RAR-ing tigers. I know, so cool.

• Blouse - Guess, consignment, Sidney; last worn here in July 2022 with a different purple skirt
• Skirt - The Limited, thrifted; first seen here in June 2022 with leather bookends
• Sandals - Lucky Brand; last worn here in May with red ruffles for Mom's birthday

Getting its once-a-year wearing - so many clothes, so little time! 

I usually wear this blouse with purple on the bottom, although I recall I wore it with jeans once (edited for Nancy - TWICE, here and here (3rd outfit)). 

This pretty pleated skirt is very swooshy. 

It was windy today, and I enjoyed watching the hem dance about (I have my little shorts on underneath). 

A sloppy hem. 

No time to retake the photo! This is it! 

Incognito. 

Love this colour combination. Purple and yellow forever! 

The stuff: 

Another pair of shoes that are shockingly comfortable for Toe. Once I settled on them, my mind went to more snakes. 

Snaky bling: 

The necklace is likely from the 80s or 90s, but the cuff is the read deal, from the 70s. 

• Snake necklace - vintage expo
• Snake coil bracelet - Whiting & Davis, vintage 70s, vintage fair
• Earrings - Kate Spade, consignment
• Silver/amethyst ring - vintage mall
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jewelers, c. 1965, Dad's

Reader Linda reached out to me in January 2022, asking if I'd be interested in one of her threadpainted pieces - I'd been doing a lot of my own artwork, drawing on leather (here), working on upcycling thrifted or no-longer-wanted garments, so we had that in common. 

I was honoured to be asked - just like with my own artwork, I completely get how much work goes into a massive project like embroidering on a skirt in this technique. An explanation of threadpainting here (link 'cause I love). 

We settled on this chambray denim tulip-style skirt, an all-time favourite shape of mine, and one that used to belong to her (well-loved and well-worn, as all the best things are). 

She spent around 40 HOURS per rose, can you imagine?

Just stunning. She worked in 1-3 hour sessions at a time, and of course Life Happens. Many months later, here it is! 

I can empathize with that, as I'm getting puppy-dog eyes from L over his Blue Oyster Cult Jacket which is somewhat stalled. I will get to it...

J. Jill, a quality label.

I like the weight of the skirt too. Not too heavy.

A sweet note, and first pics out of the box. I steamed it for the hanger pics.

Three roses on the front hem. 

Look at all that PANK shading! 

I so appreciate the time and attention to detail that goes into each tiny section of these roses. 

I had to take a picture of the back, so you can see how very neat it is. 

Wow. 

Each rose is from a picture that Linda took.

Based on real roses! 

This is the rose on the back, a delicate mix of pink, with just a touch of purple. 

If Toe ever behaves, I have a pair of boots that would go perfectly. 

A close-up of the wee bud. 

Incredible. 

Linda agreed to a picture. 

Fab outfit!! Love the boots! 

And she sent some of her work-in-progress pics. 

I love seeing how things get made. 

Look at all the colours in the holder in the background! Did you notice the yellow in the centre-front rose?

Just amazing. How leaves are made.

And here's Linda again, taking a picture of one of the roses. 

This is truly a gift of the heart and a work of art, thank you so much, Linda! 

I'm looking forward to wearing this...and it will be soon!