A Fluevog A Day - Listen Ups Harlow

Well, this is it: my last day of the Daily Fluevog. I have now worn every single pair of Fluevogs that I own, which is 11. I go to eleven!

These are my oldest Fluevogs and I love them dearly. I hope they never, ever wear out. I got these about 5 years ago, when I was heavier than I am now (remember? I lost 50 lbs). They are one of the only things in my wardrobe that I still have from my "fat" days. Without further ado: I quite liked this outfit - usually I do these shoes with black and some other colour to pop off the black (like last time worn here), but this time I did more of a colour mix. This is the second wear of both the skirt (last seen here) and the cardigan (first worn here).

Doing the Wendy B pose:

The shoes make me think of gangsters' molls.

The stuff:

My purple skinny belt went perfectly.

The jewelry:

My black rose and my little white stone earrings.

Wow, over two weeks of Fluevogs - whatever will I wear tomorrow??

Cardigan (Plum), skirt (Dex, thrifted), belt (Plum), bracelet (Le Chateau), earrings (Plum), shoes (Listen Up Harlow, Fluevogs).

Weekend Outfit - WW Meeting

Went to my regular WW meeting for the first time in a couple of weeks. As always, I wore something nice and lightweight:
My new-ish teal cardi (last seen here, ha, with the same tights), my bright orange corduroy skirt (last seen here, scroll down - I am wearing that same necklace today, too), and flat shoes for walking.

I also wore my chartreuse jacket (last seen here) because it went so well with my new purse.

I also had long brown leather gloves on for the morning.

A shot of the purse:

The handles and the bottom of it are wood. It was on for 50% off, so I got it for $12.50.

Check out the cool pattern:

I think that green blob is supposed to be a dragon - rar!

Jacket (Alison Wonderland, consignment), cardigan (Kersh), skirt (Jacob Connexion, consignment) , shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction, swap from Cat), necklace (Lavishy), earrings (gift from L).

Well, my exciting news for this weekend was going to be that we got a new kitten companion for Inigo, but it was not meant to be: no kittens at the SPCA for another month. I'm disappointed, but we'll go next month and get a new family member.

In the meantime, as I type this, Mr. Drooly-pants is sitting on my lap. Here he is when we got home last weekend and unpacked our Fluevogs:

Kitties and tissue - an unbeatable combination.

Heh, he's digging for mice:

There must be one there somewhere, buddy!

St. Patty's Day Greens

I love having a holiday that begets dressing up right when starting a new job. It's my excuse to break out a little. Today, it was colour mixing and a touch of bigass: This is a new-to-me Talbot's shirt - it's 100% cotton and wrinkles if I even look at it, but I love the slightly olive tone to it and the tux details on the front. It was $10.50 thrifted.

I just now realized that the skirt is also a Talbot's item - I've had it for about 3 years and just love it (last seen here).

A close-up of the top half:

The collar of the shirt is actually mandarin - I folded it down to make a V to show off the (doubled up) necklace).

My bigass-ery is the rose and the shoes (naturally).

The stuff: You can see a bit more of the ribbon trim on the tux front of the shirt there. This is the second wear of the shoes (last seen here).

Close-up of the bling:

I did a mix of copper, orange and green. And isn't that a realistic-looking fabric rose?

Blouse (Talbot's, thrifted), vest (Vero Moda), skirt (Talbot's, consignment), shoes (Marc Fisher), rose (Roberta's Hats), necklace and earrings (Plum), jade ring (vintage, Mom's).

I miss being able to leisurely browse all your blogs - thank you so much for continuing to read and comment! - but I am back to minimal non-work computer time. And tonight, I have to dash off to Book Club.

I changed, since I'm walking there:

Of course, green boots are required!

Sweater (Max Studio), cami (Smart Set), jeans (Jackpot, swap from Caro), boots (Pegabo), same jewelry as above.

Come Walk With Me

I refuse to be sick, so even though I was exhausted when I dragged myself out of bed this morning, I put on my many layers of walking gear and left the house.

And it was raining. I deserve a medal or something!

It's grey and rainy on the West coast - that's just how it is this time of year. Could be worse: could be snow! I was really happy to see this forsythia trying valiantly to bloom:
And just to completely refute the myth that Canada is covered in snow, here's a palm tree:

I like the twisty gnarled tree in the foreground.

I have a thing for twisty trees and other foliage:

Isn't that awesome?

After I did a couple of kilometres through residential neighbourhoods, I finally hit the water:

That is the Pacific Ocean, baby! On clear days, that grey horizon line is the Olympic Mountains, and sometimes you can even see the US city at the base of them. Today, just a harbour plane coming in, and a big barge on the right.

I approach the coast with this on my right/back as I follow the shore turning left:

I love the weathered cliffs and inlets. The tide was really high today, but there's still lots of beach to walk on. I see at least one brave soul getting some exercise down there.

I took this shot looking down from the edge of one of the cliffs:

Oooh, that's a long way down. Back away, Danger-Prone Sheila!

This little point is popular for tourists:

It's also awesome for kite-flying and, when you're a teenager, "watching the submarine races". Heh, heh, which I know my mom and dad used to do. Sorry to break it to you, Mom, but I also parked down here a few times back in the day. Ah, memories.

Looking backwards:

Some days I head that way instead, but there's usually a lot of people out walking their dogs.

Way out in the straights, there's a small island with an unmanned lighthouse.

I would like to live in a lighthouse, maybe for a little while, like a year. Would you? I'd get caught up on all my reading.

This bay was really calm today. The last time I was out here, the waves were almost crashing over the road.

You can see how the driftwood gets pushed up.

The waves push it right up to the left side - there were lots of little bits of wood and kelp there.

Looking back to the point:

Waterlogged cedar and deep orange arbutus tree trunks. That large pebble texture is typical of a lot of beaches on the coast. Not exactly sand, but it's still nice on the feet in the summer.

I liked this long string of kelp:

Kelp's a type of seaweed, in case you didn't know.

Coming up on the deepest curve of the bay:

This is a hugely popular area for tour buses, people showing off our coastline, and exercisers. Not so many today - it was really pouring by now (about 1/2 an hour into my walk - this is the halfway point).

Check out this ginormous tree trunk:

That's a yellow double-decker tour bus coming around the bend. Even in January we have tourists.

Remember the graveyard I strolled through back in June? This is the view from the water:

One day, I'm sure the graveyard will start slipping into the sea - a few good storms should do it.

I watched these little black and white ducks going underwater for up to 20 seconds, looking for food:

Floating log for scale. When I was a kid, those logs were gold - so fun to ride on! But lots of splinters (cedar's terrible for that), and brrrr...this water is COLD.

I couldn't resist this cool driftwood "composition":

On the left is one of several rock berms that were constructed years ago to help keep the bay from eroding and causing coffin catastrope (as noted above).

Looking back at where I've come from:

Because that's always useful to do, literally and metaphorically.

I headed back home through more residential neighbourhoods (nothing exciting), cold and wet but at least I got in an hour's good exercise. Go, me!

We have a brief strata meeting tonight and I'm sure my patient husband is getting tired of seeing me in my robe or ratty jeans, so I dressed properly:

My corduroy skirt (last seen here), a simple top, a tweed jacket (last worn last February!) and tights - it looks deceptively dressy, but the soft shapes are actually very comfy. I did laundry in this (sans shoes).

Added a couple of accessories to amp up the excitement factor ("she's wearing real clothes!"):

It felt weird to be dressed. L was rather startled.

The stuff:

I distributed some of the shoes from my closet clean-out last week - not many of my friends have my size feet (size 9 to 9.5 to 10 or a Euro size 40), so whenever gals that size come over, I give away shoes that I've grown tired of. My friend Alison passed these ones along to thank me. They're Farylrobin (swoon, why can't I have unlimited shoes?). I like the little robin cutouts and the pale pink backing.

L bought me this cool necklace the other day while we were out:

"We'll always have Paris." The other side is a chandelier.

I added one of my new Plum belts to the outfit:

I think this was about $7 on clearance. I love the studs (they go all the way around). The belt's a bit long, so I knotted the long end.

Jacket and skirt (both Jacob Connexion, both consignment), top (RW & Co., swap from Ruth), shoes (Farylrobin, swap from Alison), belt (Plum), rose pin (Roberta's Hats), necklace (Lavishy).

Working on the Weekend

Whew! I am exhausted today. Do you think anyone would notice if I slept at my desk?

I did my WW training all weekend, and while it was fun, I'm glad it's over. I walked to and from the hotel, so I had to have functional walking outfits (the snow is completely gone, by the way! Wacky weather!).

This is my long denim skirt (first worn here):
I'm wearing my little ankle cowboy booties:

The blouse was last worn here.

Blouse (Vintage DCC Missy, consignment), sweater vest (Esprit), skirt (InWear, consignment), boots (Miz Mooz).

On Sunday, I had to do a mini-meeting presentation (with flip charts!), so I went a little brighter:
My lovely "painty" skirt, last worn here in July. I like that a lot of my skirts can easily translate from summer wear to autumn/winter wear by layering them with tights and adding boots.

Sweater (no label, consignment), skirt (Nine West), boots (Miz Mooz), belt (Le Chateau), necklace (Plum).

Fancy Outfit, a Casual Outfit and Book Blurbs

We went to a special event at the Art Gallery on Friday night. As usual, it was full of arty types (many being obnoxious twits) - I enjoy wandering through the Gallery and checking out the exhibits, but my favourite thing is checking out all the outfits. I spotted 12 pretentious hats and one hat worn non-ironically (our friend Ross, who wears his ball cap everywhere).

I decided to go with black, even though 90% of the women there also wear it. Last time, I wore a very bold outfit, but the time before I did black as well. This is my 3rd wearing of this dress in 3 years (last time here, with pants). That's pretty pathetic, but it's a tricky dress to wear. You can't do a necklace because of the funnel neckline, it's REALLY short, and its's 100% wool, so no stretch. Not exactly versatile.

I do regret walking the 3 blocks to and from the Gallery. My feet really hurt by the end of the night, and no amount of fancy cocktails numbed that.

Dress (Studio Holt Renfrew, consignment), shoes (JLo), earrings/ring (Lavishy).

What I wore to Weight Watchers yesterday: I also wore it out for lunch and for a wee shop around town with L (I bought my winter supply of tights). I wore my black leather jacket overtop.

Sweater (Press), skirt (Jacob Connexion, consignment), tights (Hue), shoes (Kenneth Cole Reaction, gift from Cat), scarf (Metrowear).

I finally finished my book yesterday, and read another comic: Magic Teeth Dailies #37 by Gareth Kyle Gaudin, and "Farewell Summer" by Ray Bradbury. Magic Teeth Dailies #37
I have been collecting Gareth's daily comics pretty much from the beginning (I bought issues 1-4 at the same time, and have been picking up the rest since they've been published). I am a big fan of the Perogy Cat, and of Gareth, who is a nice guy (as is his lovely wife and mum, both of whom I know, although I have not yet met his daughter, Enid). All of my copies are signed by Gareth when I buy them, and a few of them have personal inscriptions to me. Someday, they'll be worth something!

Stats: Read this in about 30 minutes November 7, 2010.

Blurb: Same as the other MTDs, the cartoons are typically one-offs. Hilariously foul, inappropriate and funny as heck. Love.

Farewell Summer
I have been a fan of Ray Bradbury since I was a kid. I have 25 of Mr. Bradbury's books and love most of them.

Stats: Hardcover, 210 pages. Started Oct 19th, finished Nov 7, 2010.

Blurb: This is the 50 years later sequel to "Dandelion Wine" the now-classic coming-of-age book that Bradbury is probably best known for. It's a pretty slim sequel (apparently it was originally part of "Dandelion Wine" and his publishers told him to drop this section), but as viewed as part of DW it makes more sense than if read alone. Although I love the feel of his books, this was not his best.

I fall into Bradbury's language and cadence very easily (he is a big influence on my own creative writing), and blasted through this in about an hour yesterday. The only reason it took me so long to finish is that I have been doing crossword puzzles before bed instead of reading.


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As I will be officially out of work next week, and not dressing up on a daily basis as much, I'm open for questions, suggestions and requests! Tell me what you'd like to see, throw some questions at me, and I'll do my best to create an outfit, answer your request or address your burning questions in a post!

Annie Hall-ish

I built today's outfit around this blouse that I got at the thrift store:
It's Banana Republic and was $19.99. The tag says it's "HOL 02" so it's nearly eight years old - and it still had a remnant of its original tag on it, so it's barely (if ever) worn. I gravitated to it because of the cuffs - something you can watch for when you shop thrift/consignment because they hang down lower than other long sleeves.

It also had a really nice feel to the fabric - soft, not rough or snaggy. It's machine wash and dry too. And it's really quite see-through! I was really happy that I decided to wear this floppy bow, ha!

The menswear-ish vibe reminds me, of course, of "Annie Hall" and Diane Keaton's signature style from that movie.

The vest is another workhorse item in my wardrobe - I've worn it tons of times (really, I have, it's amazing how many). I've only worn the skirt once, so about time I dragged it out again! It's a really thick ultra-suede.

The stuff:

I wore the boots a few times last winter (here, last Christmas' capsule wardrobe, and originally here). The scarf is actually the belt from one of my skirts.

A close-up of the bling:

Another pair of L's cufflinks - these ones are stamped "Gilt." I think L's mom found those ones.

Look who decided to hang out:

Kitty in a box!

Vest (Vero Moda), blouse (Banana Republic, thrifted), skirt (Liz Claiborne, thrifted), boots (Indigo by Clarke's, consignment), earrings (Plum), cufflinks (vintage 50s).