Made For Me Black, Red Nope, and a Flamingo Scarf

Two months until the change of the (closet) season, and I'm working my way through the as-yet-unworn things in my closet, while also trying to build outfits with everything that I buy within a reasonable time. 

Wearing this blazer again reminded me of what a gorgeous garment it is. Wearing these trousers again...not so much. 

• Blazer - Smythe, consignment; last worn here on a Snow Day in February 2023
• Top - J. Studio, thrifted; purchased here for $4.50
• Pants - Nanette Lepore, thrifted; last seen here in March 2023 with leopard and brown velvet
• Shoes - Marquess Swordfish, Fluevog; last seen here in December 2023 with red leopard
• Coat (below) - Denny Rose, consignment; last worn here in December 2023

The jacket fits like it was made for me.

The fabric is sumptuous wool, and I know some of you are swooning over how well the plaid lines up (I know I am). 

The longer flap at the bottom? I die. And the elbow patches are leather. 

These red pants are fun, but do nothing for me - they're a big ol' nope. I need an upgrade...hey, I have gorgeous cherry red bell-bottom cords (these). That's the same, right? 

The new-to-me item in today's ensemble is this scoop-necked sparkly black top. 

It's a useful piece, worth the $4.50 I paid.

One of my colleagues retired today and her besties surprised her at the office - they reminded me of my own wonderful women. Anyway, they loved my coat, and I gave them all blog cards, so hi, ladies! 

I always match my outerwear to my outfit, and was happy to give this lovely coat another outing. 

These pockets could be larger. Just sayin'.

It was very windy! I ended up tucking the scarf into my coat. 

Accoutrements: 

I could have used a beret - my hair was a wild nest by the time I got to work. 

• Scarf - Janie Besner, thrifted
• Gloves - Roeckl, consignment

The stuff: 

These shoes always elicit gasps of admiration. 

Red and black bling:

The speckled enamel set is more of my vintage copper collection, bought on vacation pre-pandemic. 

• Silver/enamel cuff - thrifted
• Copper/enamel bracelet/earrings - vintage 50s, vintage shop, Portland
• Silver/onyx ring - Tocara, vintage fair
• Silver/onyx ring - consignment
• Chain ring - Taxco, Mexican, consignment
• Silver/concrete ring - Raul Caballero, Oui Jewelry

I stopped in at Rich Rags on the way home to have a quick browse - there are new proprietors (the son of the owner, Julia) and they were so nice and chatty. I like getting to know the people who run the stores I shop at. 

"You bought me a present!"

Oh, Vizzini, get off there! 

You have to admit, the little paw is the cutest thing...

Back to the scarf! Isn't it a lovely pattern? Flamingos! 

A Banana Republic find - someone's cut the content tag off but I found the sold-out item on their site. It retailed for $110.00, and this pattern is called "Safari Green" - it sold out before it could be marked down! 

It is indeed 100% silk - it was $20.00. 

Walkin' on Sunshine With Jerry

I brought my own sunshine today with this bright yellow and orange combo. We've had a lack of the real thing - I need sun! 

Usually when I reach for yellow, it's because I'm feeling low, but this time it was to get some cheeriness from the colour. 

• Leather blazer - Danier Leather, vintage 80s, consignment; last worn here in September 2023
• Shirt - Eddie Bauer, consignment; last worn here in a Velvet Pirate outfit in October 2023
• Skirt - Max Mara, consignment; last seen here in April 2023 with a mod cocoon
• Shoes - Groovy Aubrey, Fluevog; last worn here in December 2023 with blue sequins

I'm walkin' on sunshine...you're welcome for the earworm, hee hee. 

The blazer is leather, a vintage Danier beauty - although her previous owner excised the shoulder pads, which has ruined the line of it a bit. 

Jackets and blazers just don't hang the same when you take out part of their structure. 

But I am willing to overlook it for this beautiful bright yellow butter-soft leather.

The skirt is an openwork texture which has a wonderful feel to it.

And the white shirt...is just a white shirt. It's not the first and won't be the last.

Done up and accoutrements added. 

In January! I hope February is just as mild. 

I wasn't even cold. I got sweaty on my walk both ways.

Love the big pockets. Good for filling up with keys, phone, mp3 player and work pass/keys. 

• Fur scarf - thrifted
• Gloves - consignment

I forgot to take the Accoutrements pic! Heavens! 

The stuff:

Fantastic shoes. I can wear these all day. 

Golden bling: 

I borrowed L's new Jerry Garcia tie - he'd already worn it once - and really liked how it worked with the orange and yellow. 

• Tie - Jerry Garcia, vintage, thrifted; purchased here for 50 cents
• Bracelet - thrifted
• Leather/chain wrist-wrap - local
• Earrings - Biko, consignment
• Amber ring - c. 1996
• Crystal ring - Uffizi Gallery gift shop, Florence, Italy
• Necklace - Givenchy, vintage 80s, vintage fair

Monday Jammy Dress - 1990 Princess

Another week, another Monday - the only way to tackle it is with a Jammy Dress. 

This floral "patchwork" design has not dated too badly over the past 30+ years. Some of those ditsy small-scale florals from the 90s just look so "of their time," and they also don't photograph well - I always favour a larger scale print because of that. 

• Dress - Decisions, vintage 90s, thrifted; last worn here in January 2023
• Shoes - Sumatra Coffee, Fluevog; last seen here in February 2023 with leather and roses
• Coat (below) - Auckie Sanft, vintage 60s, vintage fair; last worn here earlier this month

How do I know this dress is from 1990? An educated guess. 

I lived through that era, and I've always been interested in clothes, and I bought a very similar dress to this to wear to my Mom and Dad's 25th wedding anniversary celebration...which was in 1990. 

When rumours of the 90s coming back into fashion started circulating back in 2019ish, I began to see these dresses showing up in my favourite vintage stores. 

I kept my eyes peeled for one with a good shape and pattern - eventually, this one appeared at Flavour Upstairs and I snatched it up for $29.99. Today's outfit is the 6th time I've worn it - and the first time with these shoes. 

I'm wearing a camisole with built-in shoulder pads to help the shape look right on top. The previous owner cut the original pads out (we all did that!) when they fell out of fashion later in the 90s. I also have a black nylon half-slip underneath.

As I was waiting for a printer pick-up in the building lobby, a woman said to me, "You look like a princess!" 

I'm a pink princess, for sure. 

The weather's warm right now, so I took the opportunity to wear the Fuzzy Flamingo.

She's so snuggly, and all this pink and floral had me fondly thinking of spring.

I think I'll be able to do the stair pictures again in a couple of weeks! 

Accoutrements:

Wearing my washed new-to-me leather gloves with built-in haptic pads for the first time.

• Leather gloves - thrifted; purchased here for $3.50
• Scarf - Banana Republic, thrifted

I didn't use my phone while I had them on.

The stuff: 

I've had these shoes for 13 years - and don't they look good? Hooray for Fluevogs!

Black and gold bling:

Of course that's not a hair elastic on the belt - I would never! (hee)

• Belt - Sangiorgio, vintage, consignment
• Fang bangle - Alexis Bittar, consignment, Sidney
• Teeth bangle and matching earrings - Alexis Bittar, consignment, gifts from L
• Necklace - J. Crew, thrifted
• Amber ring - c. 1995
• Gold/amethyst ring - Frances Jewelers, c. 1965, Dad's

Bigass Weekend Wrap-Up: Friday Floral Denim and Green; Emoji Brunch and a Wee Shop

Welcome back, my friends! What a lovely weekend it's been - allow me to share some outfits with you. Grab a cuppa! 

My version of a Casual Friday look. 

I don't even own a standard pair of jeans, but I do own loads of other pieces in that fabric - this is a denim suit! 

• Denim suit - Kenzo, vintage 80s consignment; first worn here in August 2023 for Greg's birthday party
• Shoes - Half Truth Tanya, Fluevog; last seen here in July with my Greetje dress
• Leather trenchcoat (below) - Jeno de Paris, vintage 60s, thrifted; last worn here on Monday

I was looking forward to showing it off to my colleagues, but I ended up so slammed that I barely got to my lunch at 2:30pm. 

This time around, emerald green was the accent against the indigo-black print on reverse-side denim.

I wore the jacket open all day. 

It was all very comfortable, considering it has zero stretch (welcome to the 80s pre-Lycra era!). 

It softened up over the day, stretching out slightly from sitting, walking and doing stairs. 

It's very stiff denim but it's getting more broken in the more I wear it. 

Done up. I liked the band of colour in the middle.

The skirt is very high-waisted - it goes right up into the boobular region. 

I didn't take the jacket off, but I always plan my outfits for any possibility. This is doable!

I like that the pattern is mirrored on the skirt - a classy detail from the late great Kenzo. 

The rain has commenced - we're in for "atmospheric rivers" which they used to call "a lotta rain" when I was a kid. 

I got a few drops on me, but eh, it's just rain. 

Accoutrements: 

I prefer to do a real purse on Fridays - I carry a backpack most days, for ferrying my shoes. 

• Purse - Rebecca Minkoff, consignment
• Silk scarf - Bill Blass, vintage 80s, thrifted
• Leather gloves - Danier Leather

The stuff: 

I walked to work in these shoes - they've gone through every kind of weather.

Green and silver bling: 

Ooops, a bit blurry, sorry. 

• Silver/malachite bangle - Mexican, thrifted, Sidney
• Silver cuff - vintage, thrifted, Powell River
• Silver/aventurine ring - consignment
• Silver/malachite ring - consignment
• Poison ring - Karen's
• Silver/glass earrings - vintage 1920s, vintage fair
• Brooch - Pastelli, vintage 60s, Grandma S's 

I was distracted by...

A pirate monkey! More on that...in a week or so.

L and I hung out on Friday night and played board games, then were up early for brunch at John's Place. Nick was in Vancouver, visiting Spence and Kim, so it was just me and L.

Totally fine, of course - my favourite person in the world is L. 

• Mesh shirt - Renoma Sports, vintage 90s, consignment; last worn here in July 2023 with a pouf (and these boots)
• Skirt - Mexx, thrifted; last seen here in May 2023 with my Murder Mystery blouse
• Dress - Emoji X Peacebird, consignment; last worn here in July 2013 to the Art Gallery with Rosanna
• Boots - Doc Martens; last seen here (2nd outfit) for last weekend's brunch out and Winesday

I layered my short red-orange miniskirt under the very-short hemline, plus side slits. 

I enjoy the humour of this dress - the "Up" and arrow on one pocket, the little waving guy and skateboard inside the other. 

I like unusual pieces like this. 

A woman in John's said, "I love your outfit, you look beautiful!" 

Aw, thank you, kind stranger! 

More Emoji silliness on the back - it says, "The Best Friend --> Next."

Outerwear - ready for rain. 

I popped into the Beacon Ave thrift shop briefly, but we got seated too quickly for me to find anything - plus, visiting weekly means I've seen most of the stock a bunch of times. Nothing new!

Accoutrements:

I discovered that these gloves are constructed for use with phones - they have conducting pads on the fingertips. 

• Purse - Rebecca Minkoff
• Hat - Delux, Saanich Fair
• Silk scarf - fake Louis (Lewis!) Vuitton, thrifted
• Gloves - Echo, consignment

The stuff: 

It was pouring rain, so I didn't want to ruin any of my "good" shoes. Two weeks in a row wearing these at brunch - I'll lose my fashion cred if I keep that up! 

Bowie bling: 

My wooden David Bowie brooch got worn on the dress. 

• Brooch - vintage fair
• Ball earrings - vintage fair
• Kyanite/silver ring - consignment
• Silver/onyx ring - Tocara, vintage fair
• Silver/crystal ring - Soul Flower
• Silver/onyx ring - consignment

L wanted to pop over to Ditch Records for a quick look, so I walked up the block to the big WIN store - their stock turns over very quickly and I found a few treasures.

Ta-dah! 

I'll always take a new pack of nylons for $2.95.

Especially when they originally retailed for $13.00 - outrageous!

My coworker, Carol-Anne, loves William Morris' prints, so when I spotted this china creamer with a gold handle, I thought I'd pick it up as a little gift for her. 

Maybe she can keep pens in it or something? 

It's from the "Arts & Crafts Collection" and was $2.95. I see lots of these online advertising them as "vintage" but this is a transfer print, and it's definitely not vintage.

It's probably a mass-produced line even if it's sold through boutiques or high-end shops - the vintage stuff isn't made in China. I did spy a sugar/creamer set online for $75.00 used!

I snagged this cute little leather purse off a mannequin. 

I like the brass hardware and the cotton lining. 

And lots of pockets.

It's the perfect size for shopping. 

It's by Day & Mood and this is called the Hazel Crossbody.

It's made in India. Similar bags on their site retail for $148.00.

For me, only $19.95! 

Wow, bargain! 

We had Cat and Ross over and taught them how to play Ark Nova, and a hilarious and raucous evening was had by all. 

L and I were up for the NFL championships (the Super Bowl is in a couple of weeks), joined by our little furry kitty. 

"I love The Man."

Aw! My two favourite guys, Vizzini and L.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Thanks again for stopping by to visit my little corner of the blogsphere!