L and I went for brunch at John's Place on Saturday morning, braving the massive line full of tourists. "It's okay, they'll come and take your name," we assured many people. "It's worth the wait."
A line-up means the food is worth it! Plus, the service is super-fast. We only waited 15 minutes or so to get in, and were out a scant 30 minutes after that.
I based the outfit around this new-to-me suede fringed jacket.
I don't have a lot of brown in my spring/summer wardrobe, so this is isn't likely to appear for many of my warm-weather 'fits.
Isn't the suede magnificent?
I loved wearing it. A+! All good, no faults!
Without the jacket, which I had off for brunch, and later at Caro's while we worked on our craft projects.
The top is neutral enough to go with all the brown, and also to harmonize with the flouncy See By Chloe skirt.
All done up and ready to go.
The weather in the morning was windy (as you could tell from the Stair Pic), but bright.
Showing my fringe for you.
Rock on, Gentle Readers, rock on.
I'm in a fringe phase - I've been on the lookout for a good fringed purse for ages.
I stood in line at John's while L parked.
I lightly chatted with some Edmonton visitors about hockey (yes, Ally, the Bruins are out! Playoffs are over for us! Boo!).
Accoutrements:
This purse will do, but a brown/tan fringed one would be better. Just saying, Thrifting Gawds - maybe throw one my way? I've been so good!
- Gold purse - Banana Republic, consignment
- Silk scarf - Andre Courreges, consignment
- Python belt - Leather of the Sea, vintage, thrifted
The stuff:
- Eelskin bangle - fake Gucci, Italy, gift from Mom and Dad, c. 1986
- Eelskin/gold hinged bangle - thrifted
- Crystal ring - Uffizi Gallery gift shop, Florence, Italy
- Wooden ring - Dots
- Gold hoops - 5th anniversary gift from L
I had a couple of wee shops - one before brunch, and one after. I popped into the Beacon Ave Thrift Store next door to the diner, and found a two items for an upcoming theme party.
See if you can guess what the theme is, ha ha! This is a classic poufy pencil skirt with a zip in the back and a walking slit.
With pockets! Big ones, too.
I love the red and white stripes with ocean liners - how fun! For only $7.00, what a score!
It's a cotton/rayon blend and made in Canada, which always catches my eye.
I looked up the CA number (link here 'cause I love (it's a government link, totally safe)). You can look up the CA number of any garment ever sold in Canada to find out the parent company name, which is handy when people rip out the labels.
It came back with "Clothing by Mekito" out of Toronto, but I found exactly zero hits for this company online - it's likely pre-Internet, so from sometime in the 90s, most likely.
It's the biggest size 4 I've ever met, easily fitting me.
I told L that I'd found the perfect matching top, but was iffy about it. "Go back and get it!" he urged (what a good man). So I did!
Right? I don't think you can get any more nautical than these stripes and grommets!
Especially when I noticed the Princess Cruises label and "Escape Completely" on the tag.
This was totally bought on board "The Love Boat"! That's hilarious!
I also spotted these lovely leather sandals on a shelf. The Beacon Ave shop is a rather grotty little shop (I feel a bad saying that, but it's run by volunteers, and is a true thrift shop...not a boutique in any way), and 99% of their shoes are gross old ratty things, not even worth looking at.
Imagine my shock - these stood out! These are in brand-new condition!
Not even a scuff on the soles.
And I see a brand that I recognize.
Miz Mooz!
All of the pieces are leather, and it's butter-soft.
I recognize this style from the mid-to-late 00s.
Similar styles on their site retail for $235.00. For me? Only $12.00.
While L ran an errand after lunch, I popped into CSinos Vintage Collective on Yates Street, and found this amazing scarf.
How big do you think that is?
If you guessed 50 x 50 inches on a side, you're right!
It's massive! That's classified as shawl-sized in the world of scarves.
But let's take a look at this wild pattern - you don't see stuff like this every day...which is why it caught my eye.
Spiky shells, lots of seaweed, seahorses...and a nipple-less mermaid.
Another nipple-less mermaid, more fish and some jellyfish too.
It's very painter-y.
I adore the pirate ship!
It's pink and red with yellow sails. I'm sure that's historically accurate (tee hee).
Made in Italy - that's a nice bonus.
This poor tag is holding on by a thread, but I will point out these gorgeous hand-rolled edges here. I thought the red label seemed familiar...maybe this is Missoni? It felt familiar.
Fortunately, we have both a CA number and an RN number on the back of the label (confirming that it is 100% silk, although there was no doubt when I touched it). I looked up the CA number, which netted "V.F.G. Canada Inc." - not very helpful. That's likely the import company, which I confirmed with a bit more digging - they specifically imported handbags, clothing and other articles, mostly from Italy.
We also opened things up for a Crafternoon - I brought crochet supplies (wool/hooks) and Zentangle pens and paper for people to try out. Winesday gal Jen also brought supplies for painting on rocks, and Vero brought her crochet-in-progress, and we all got to try new crafts together. So fun!
Cat drove Yvonne and I out to Caro's place. Thank you, Cat! So appreciate you driving us.
A gloomy view of the water and the hills of up-Island (aka anything north of Victoria on Vancouver Island).
Since the CA number didn't give me too much info on the actual brand, I also looked up the RN number (the USA version of the CA number, link here) - between the two of these look-ups, I can usually suss out a brand name...and this time I discovered the brand this way! It's by Valentino! Imagine, I found a Valentino silk shawl for only $38.00! A 70 x 70cm (that 28 x 28 inches, much smaller than mine) silk scarf retails on their site for $740.00. You did not read that wrong!
When I got home, I quickly photographed my finds and finished up my packing for our Crafternoon/Winesday Sleepover. Caro lives in North Saanich, which is too long/expensive to cab there and back, so some of us stayed overnight, much like L and I did when Caro and Ron hosted New Year's Eve this past year.
Cat, Yvonne, Caro and me.
We had a rainstorm on the way out and it was rather grey while we first arrived.
But we were cozy inside, set up in Caro's kitchen on her massive island.
Caro in front, with (left to right, clockwise) her pal Jen, Vero, Yvonne, Alison, Cat, Me, and Winesday Jen.
Some of the gals also did some indigo dyeing. Caro's been jonesing to do this since the pandemic!
All un-elastic-ed and hanging up to dry. It got sunny out later.
Vero showing Jen how to get started on a crocheted dishcloth.
Admittedly, this was much easier for a beginner, with just row after row of double-crochet stitches.
Some of the gals also did some indigo dyeing. Caro's been jonesing to do this since the pandemic!
"Is it stinky, my love?"
"It is!"
Jen, Caro, Cat and another friend of Caro's (Colleen, no pics of her) had pre-elastic-ed a bunch of things, including underwear, dishcloths, napkins and other odds and ends.
Yvonne got annoyed at her curly worm bookmark, which was my crochet project, the first thing I ever crocheted when I was about 7 or 8 years old, and moved on to mucking about with some thicker wool.
Cat also got frustrated by the curly worm - I made one for Yvonne in about 10 minutes (you can see it in the upper corner here) - so she moved on to Vero's dishcloth pattern.
Cat worked on it all day Sunday and sent out a picture of it complete!
Amazing! Well done - the rows are so nice and even.
Jen also gave up on her curly worm.
You're right, we should move onto something else!
I showed her and Ali how to draw and colour tattoo roses (one of my specialties).
"I am going to cut this up into little tiny pieces and then drink lots of wine."
You're right, we should move onto something else!
The other Jen also did one, copying a design from one of my Zentangle books.
I did some Zentangle "dangles" on mine.
A mess of iPhones (watching the hockey game), wine and almonds, plus the wool Caro was playing with.
We also painted rocks!
As the evening went on, we realized we hadn't planned anything at all for dinner - all we had were snacks and desserts! Thank goodness for Cat's veggie plate - we wolfed down hummous, veggies and fruit, and gobbled up all the edamame, cheese and almonds for dinner. We had cupcakes, a rhubarb crumble (thank you, Vero) and chocolate for dessert.
Great job! You're a natural!
After I'd made a worm for Yvonne, I asked if Cat would like me to make her something. "A rose."
We were howling with laughter by then - Crafternoon is over!
Ali, Cat, Yvonne, Caro and I all slept on foamies and/or couches in one big room downstairs, just like the sleepovers of our childhoods. There was much whispering and giggling...so much fun.
We woke with the sun in the morning, and arrived in the kitchen to coffee and freshly-baked croissants (yum, thank you, Ali!) and fruit.
Ali deserves major kudos - she actually finished her curly worm. I see Cat is working on her dishcloth (the variegated ball).
Pose with your worm, Ali!
And that is one bigass rose! The centre of of it is a vintage sparkly thread/wool.
Wait, let me model it for you!
Caro, Ali and Cat.
Yawn, feeling a little more human now...
Caro's son Rowyn just turned 19 and had been sleeping off his birthday hangover in their camper (avoiding his Winesday Aunties and their giggly antics).
We trooped out to investigate the indigo-dyed items, which had been hanging to dry overnight.
They look fantastic! Thank you so much for hosting us, darling Caro!
We had a gorgeous morning, with the tide way out.
"I love the Man more because he fed me."
"So over that."
Cat drove us home in the bright sunshine.
It's practically spring out there!
What a fun adventure we had! I love all of my Winesday Women so much.
I also love my guys, and they love each other. Aw...
I got the silent treatment when I got home, despite rumours of him yowling and complaining about me being gone all night/morning.
L and I hung out and played boardgames all afternoon, into the wee hours of the evening. It was so good to have time together (Vizzini too!) and to have a day with nothing planned.
And speaking of...today/Monday is still a holiday, so I'm going to go do more of the same. I hope you enjoyed my crafty weekend - thanks so much for dropping by!
The fringed suede jacket is fabulous, and I'm loving your nautical themed buys. Well done on the Miz Mooz shoes, $ 12 is definitely a steal - although I'm still winning since I once found a pair for € 4 (sorry) :-)
ReplyDeleteYour Crafternoon/Winesday Sleepover sounds fun and isn't a long weekend wonderful? I could get used to those ... xxx
I'll celebrate your 4 Euro shoes with you, Ann! That's a bargain!
DeleteWhat a fun craft party!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great weekend! My book club does a weekend trip once a year where we rent a house and eat and drink and craft all weekend and it is just the best. I love that you all have talents and crafts to share with each other.
ReplyDeleteYour outfit is pure delight! It looks fabulous on your frame and I quite appreciate the textures and colors. Am eager to see what outfit you put together for the sailor themed event and just what the event is. The MizMooz shoes are a comfortable looking height and I’m a fan of (what looks like) wide elastic around the back of the ankle. I have a pair of shoes with a similar elastic but, alas, the shoes have a 3 inch heel so they are no longer worn but saved to admire for posterity.
ReplyDeleteYou and your cadre of friends are so lucky to have one another and to share in regular gatherings! What a super idea to gather for a crafting night and share skills with one another. Thanks for inviting me (and your readers) to tag along!
Love the first picture of L and Vizzini! I’ll bet Vizzini cuddled up to you soon enough. :)
Cheers, Laurie
PS This afternoon I did a massive final winter season clean out of my small closet, finally taking all of the holdovers from winter and putting them elsewhere. It took till this week to convince me heavier clothes will not be necessary for the next few months! Am psyched for the room, which will make it much easier to see what’s there!
Thanks so much, Laurie! No elastic on the shoes, but they are super-comfy - we'll see how they go once we have "bare-foot" weather. Good for you for doing your seasonal swap-over!
DeleteThat jacket looks fantastic, I love brown and blue together. What a cool outfit.
ReplyDeleteYour Crafternoon looked so much fun! I've visited the indigo dye village in Gujarat where entire families are involved in the production, it's absolutely fascinating. I'd love to have a go. Caro's results are fabulous!
Ronnie looks brilliant in his bargain blazer.
Oh, look at Vizzini ignoring you like that! Naughty boy! I expect we'll get similar treatment later today, William's off to the V.E.T for his boosters! xxx
PS I love that mahoosive scarf...I'm a big fan of mermaids!
DeleteGood luck at the V.E.T. with William, Vix! Ha, that's Rowyn, Caro and Ronnie's son, a mere lad of 19.
DeleteWhat a fabulous weekend! A crafty evening was such a clever idea. Your outfit was fab - we have a magnificent fringed bag in my Barnardo's at the moment. Loved your finds.
ReplyDeletexxx
Oooh, those sandals look SO soft and comfy! Might have to keep an eye out for some! The skirted outfit is really attractive.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to seeing the completed Nautical outfit (that or a Where's Wally? theme I'm guessing?)
Your Winesday meet up sounds so much fun! How lovely to share crafts with friends and have a sleepover!
I like the tie-dyed pieces and the Roses look great. Kezzie x
Loving the suede fringe jacket!
ReplyDeleteYour "crafternoon" sleepover sounds like such a fun time. Desserts and snacks, late nights and laughter - and in such a beautiful setting. Even with a sore head, that drive home must be sublime! The roses are gorgeous and your little rock has been elevated to true art! x
Thanks for the mention, pal, although I'm sorry it's on a sore subject. I was hoping your team would proceed further and defeat the thuggish NY Rangers. Now I have to root for Florida's Panthers to do that. Happy to see you re-embrace fringe. I believe we return to fashions, styles and culture of our youth as a way to re-vitalize ourselves with culture that works. Along with everyone else I was a big fringe fan in the Sixties.
ReplyDelete