Age Appropriateness - A Miniskirt and Thigh-High Boots

Warning: this is a wordy post.

Every morning, while I chow down on my Fibre One and Shredded Wheat (with skim milk), I get caught up on my favourite blogs. I don't always comment, but if I follow you, I read!

This morning, this article on Age Appropriateness caught my eye over on Sal's "Already Pretty". I thought about the questions she asked us to ask ourselves about the choices we make. As I'm now an old bag of 43 (hee!) who still likes to wear so-called "age inappropriate" items, these questions hit home.

Because today I wore thigh-high boots and a mini-skirt:
Oh yes, I did!

Do your friends and peers wear it, and wear it well?
Mini and thigh-high boots. No to the boots, but yes to the mini. I'm a more daring dresser than most of my friends, and I'm okay with that. If I saw someone dressed like this today, walking down the street, I would admire her outfit, regardless of her age.

If it’s outside what your age group normally wears, why do you want to wear it yourself? The boots especially are outside my age group, I think, but the mini probably is as well. I wanted thigh-high boots in general because I just love the look. It's very "out there" and I enjoy being a little (or a lot) different! Wearing a mini is me being defiant in the face of "No Mini-Skirts after 35" (take that, Stacy London!). I think it's good to have general style guidelines for age, but I think by now I know how to style myself so that I don't look like I'm trying too hard, or look sleazy. I hope! Ha!

Does it make you feel fabulous about your body? Why, yes, it does! I love my body - and I worked hard to get it (maintaining my 50 lb weight loss for 3.5 years now). I like how my bum looks in this mini, and I like how my legs look really long in these boots.

Where will you be wearing it? I wore them to work! And although my coworkers went "whoa!" they did agree that they were neither slutty nor costumey (the Dread Duo of Daring Dressing). I have worn the skirt a few times before to work (here, here and here), always with a dark, opaque tight. I'll be wearing the boots again, for sure, probably with a dress or with some skinny jeans.

Who will be there, and whose judgment are you considering? Well, my coworkers (and I just showed them off to some guy friends who arrived). The judgment question is interesting. I know I like to create a stir with my outfits. I enjoy messing a bit with people's perceptions. Do I care what people think of how I look? Yes, of course. Do I care THAT much if people think I look a little nutty? Nah, not really. However, if someone said something nasty to my face, sure, I'd be hurt - I don't want to look BAD...just a little eccentric (like my friend, Steph, The Dashing Eccentric - yes, I'm just throwing that in there because she's given me a few shout-outs and I think she's marvellous).

Anyway, I felt good in this, and I felt ME in this. And that's what counts.
Okay, now I have to gush about the boots a bit. I spent my $300 birthday money on these ($250) and yesterday's shoes ($75) - plus a little bit of my own. It was hard to spend all that money on one item - but I felt I should get myself something I wouldn't buy on my own, something that maybe if I went shopping with my mom or mother-in-law, I might have wanted them to buy for me.

They're Pegabo which according to this site isn't made anymore, but I bought them at Feet First, which is owned by Aldo, who also acquired Pegabo. Looks like they are resurrecting the brand. Huzzah! And it's a Canadian company. Love it. They are suede uppers and leather inside, but I have to say: they stink! Whatever glue they've used on these is stinky-stinky. I'm going to have to stuff some dryer sheets in them and put them on the deck overnight to detox them.

I had two criteria for thigh-high boots:

1. No pirate boots. No fold-over flap at the top. No higher front than back. No laces at the back of the calf (a buckle would be okay, though). No pointy toe. I've had pirate boots before (c. 1989) and loved them. They were purple suede and they got ruined at a GWAR concert when I had some fake bodily fluids sprayed on them, but that's another story. *ahem*

2. No hooker boots. No "Pretty Woman" boots. No shiny. No uber-high heels or hidden platforms. No crazy colour, something neutral but not black.

After dragging my niece to most of the downtown shoe stores, I found these. My heart raced. They met all my criteria! Olive green goodness. I don't need the little zippers to get these on and off, so I leave 'em done up.

The other stuff:
I was pleased with the mix of pattern and tweed.

Blouse (Nicole Beniste for Point Zero), vest (Le Chateau, gift from Ruth), skirt (Jacob, consignment), boots (Pegabo), green necklace (Mom's, vintage), other necklace (Plum).

Skirt Creep - Zebra and New Shoes

This will be the last wear of this skirt for the season. I wore it with micro-fishnets today and had awful skirt creep all day. Most annoying.

I did like the outfit, though, and L gave this one an enthusiastic thumbs up:
How much do I love this zebra skirt? Wow, a lot! Last worn here.

I actually had a few issues with the hip region with this outfit. The skirt has pockets and pleats, and the cardi has pockets, so I had a lot of...blousing...going on there.

I was more excited about spending my birthday money this weekend...
...on my new shoes! I spotted these a couple of weeks ago and pined after them, but they were too pricey for me (funny how you get spoiled by $6 to $40 shoes when you shop consignment!). When I was scoping around the mall I saw that they had been marked down to $75.00, so that was that.

The stuff:

Well, hello there, classic hidden platform, super-comfy teal shoes. Aren't you a lovely soft suede? I think you're going to like living in my closet.

I wasn't familiar with this brand (Me Too), but these were amazingly soft and squishy inside. The sizing ran really big, so I bought an 8.5 instead of my usual 9-9.5/40.

A close-up of the non-shoe items:

The necklace Mom gave me for my birthday, a mess of jangly bangles.

I also got another pair of shoes (boots). Look who found the box:

Aw! Kitty in a box! What a pretty boy.

Cardigan (Express, thrifted), cami (Ricki's, gift from Ruth), skirt (Plum), belt (gift from Mom), shoes (Me Too), necklace (Marks & Spencer's, gift from mom), assorted bangles (made in India), earrings (Aldo Accessories).

Late Weekend Edition and a Book Blurb

I had a really busy weekend, following an exhausting week. I need another weekend!

Getting some catching up going on here, this is what I wore to Weight Watchers, brunch out, and to Winesday with my wonderful gals:
It was still a little chilly on the legs but not too bad. That's my corduroy skirt that I last wore here.

Long-sleeved top (Mexx), t-shirt (BCBG Max Azria, consignment), skirt (Jacob Connexion, consignment), socks (Hue), books (Aldo, consignment).

Yesterday I had "Day with Auntie Sheila" - I do this for my nieces (the two eldest ones) every year on their birthdays. I had my day with Hannah (8 years old) a couple of weeks ago, and yesterday was Zoe's turn (11 years old).

We did High Tea at a local swanky old hotel, so of course, Crazy Auntie had to get her funk on:
My fab Betsey Johnson dress getting a daytime workout (previously seen here, here and here).

I had fun adding the double-layered tights with it:

They were a little on the warm side later in the day, though.

Dress (Betsey Johnson), t-shirt (SportMart), belt (gift from Ruth), boots (Aldo, consignment), necklace (The Bay).

I finished another graphic novel a few weeks ago and forgot to write about it (I've been "off" reading the last little while and have been doing crossword puzzles to make myself dozy before bed. I go in cycles this way).

Kelly lent me this one (he's been reading my Sandmans) after he read my Jeff Loeb Batman titles. It's "Arkham Asylum: Living Hell" by Dan Slott and Ryan Sook:

I enjoy the newer Batman series (much like the new series of "Batman" movies, they are darker and not as campy as the originals). This one actually barely features the Caped Crusader.

Stats: Uh, it's a graphic novel, so about 4 comic books' worth of pages. Started around October 1st and finished a couple nights later.

Blurb: As I mentioned, this novel really doesn't feature Batman (he makes a token appearance near the end). It takes place almost entirely within the walls of the infamous Arkham Asylum, which is where all the psychotic bad guys in the Batman universe end up if they have good lawyers (if you saw "Batman Begins", the Scarecrow ends up in Arkham). The plot of this story revolves around a rich tycoon who decides that pretending to be insane is going to be easier on him than going to jail, after he's caught as a criminal. Bad idea. Very bad idea.

I found the story interesting and full of little twists and turns - but be warned, it's violent. The illustrations are very well done and evoke the minds of the madmen; slightly warped and askew versions of reality. If you enjoy the re-booted Batman, this is a fun side-story.

Casual Friday: Denim and Brocade

Back to my usual funkitude! The last two new-to-me items that I picked up on my shopping trip last weekend at the consignment shop are this top and skirt:
The top is a very bright red (what is up with my reds looking pink? Gah!). I am a sucker for Chinese brocades - I used to have a pair of blue brocade skinny pants once upon a time (I miss them). The shirt fastens by buttoning across the neck and body - and it's made in Canada, which I really like.

The top was sold as a two-piece set with a mini skirt in the same fabric, on sale for $19.50. However, the skirt was a Small and the top is a Medium. The skirt was teeny-weeny-itsy-squeaky-voice small - I couldn't even get it around my thigh. Seriously! But the top is a perfect fit - and go figure, this is a great example of how wacky sizing can be. I have bought XLs at Le Chateau and also XS - you have to just ignore the sizes and buy what fits.

Anyway, I would have bought the top on its own for $19.50, so I didn't mind getting the skirt - I figured I could consign it. My gal wasn't at the consignment shop that day, though (I usually visit her on Sundays), so I took it home...and when the lovely and very petite Kim was over for our party last weekend, I was showing her my recent acquisitions and - light bulb! - oh my gosh, take this skirt off my hands, honey! She was so excited.

I have been in love with long swooshy skirts for many years - I love seeing them come back into style:
Showing my boots off. I kept the shoes simple.

With a long skirt, I always look for an a-line shape like this one, for example - if you wear those long straight skirts that were big in the late 90s, your bottom half risks looking like a big rectangle. A-lines have nice movement when you walk.

This skirt was only $8.50 on the clearance rack! Score! InWear is a pretty expensive brand. I love that it's denim (it makes a nice sail-like sound when I walk) with a bit of stretch - it fits really good in the bum, hee hee.

A close-up of the top:
My "I am not amused" look - 7:30 in the morning is early!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Top (Le Chateau, consignment), skirt (InWear, consignment), boots (Miz Mooz), earrings (Plum), cuff (don't remember).

Interviews Done - and Found Pictures

The interviews are over - and holy moly, those were arduous! I had two interviews with two people in them each (this was what I wore to their Job Fair last month), then a writing test, a search online and get info test AND a typing test (60 wpm - woo! I still got it!).

And I know you've been dying to know what I wore:
It's pretty conservative for me - but since the job is at a casual-dress environment, I thought I'd punch up the standard suit (which would be inappropriately overdressed) with some colour and by doing a funky little jacket instead of black.

I ended up wearing the jacket open all day. Of course, this morning I didn't think to take a picture of that, but here's the look without the jacket:

I have very leaky 'pits so I didn't want to take the jacket off!

Anyway, I think the interview went well. I am doing it all by the book and have handwritten two little thank you cards (a yellow zebra pattern card and a blue celtic knot pattern card) to send to each of the interview pairs, thanking them for their time. I know they're interviewing a lot of people, so I want to make a positive impression.

The stuff:

I thought blue suede shoes would stand out and be memorable, without being too scary, like these or these! I'll save those for when/if I get hired!

I kept the jewelry to a bare minimum, just wearing my good luck rings:

The silver one is one I bought in Scotland before L and I got married, and the gold one is my dad's. I always wear it when I feel like I need him looking out for me.

Thank you everyone for all your good vibes, wishes of luck and your general support. Fashion Blog Nation is truly full of wonderful, generous people. I'll keep you posted if I hear back.

Jacket (Smart Set), blouse (Esprit, consignment), skirt (Kensie), shoes (Feet First), silver ring (handmade in Scotland, 90s), gold ring (Frances Jewellers, vintage 60s, Dad's).

Change of track...

L often needs to use our camera to take work pictures - he usually takes it to work and downloads the pics there. Last night I asked him to just take the memory card out so that I could use the camera to do my pics before work this morning...and we found some pictures on the camera's built-in memory. These were taken just before I started blogging in the spring of 2008.

Aw...our kitty, Othello. He's sitting on the back of the chair (L is playing X-Box, cropped out). He always liked to just hang out near us.

We called this "sneetching" - a kitty position that reminded us of Dr. Seuss' sneetches.

I got a little tear seeing those. I miss my cranky ol' kitty.

Because I Can Can Can!

Okay, another quick post! I've been out shopping (not for me, for Bo, who needed a dress...although I did buy a dress too), and I had a glass of wine. And now I'm really tired, and I have The Big Interview tomorrow.

I got this skirt on the weekend with birthday money from L:
I reminded me of can-can dancers at the Moulin Rouge. Of course, I had to go all in tones of red to go with it. It was $29.99 on consignment. It has big sections that are folded and stitched down, to give the hem an uneven edge. I love that detail.

The brand is MNG, which I'd never heard of, but apparently it's by Mango.

Looking somewhat normal:

I love these boots - I recall when I got them that I didn't think I'd ever wear them for "everyday". Heh. That was a few years ago.

The stuff:

I had blurring issues, and light issues (it's dark out), sorry. The colour are all wonky. Think blood red for the boots.

A close-up:

You can see that the skirt has this nice ribbon-y texture with stripes of red, burgundy, black and orange.

The necklace L bought me last year, Mom's vintage choker and my silver ring.

And look who was watching me while I did all this:

It's Inigo! That is classic Inigo posing.

Long-sleeved tee (Press), velvet vest (Surrey Classics, consignment), skirt (MNG, consignment), boots (Aldo outlet), choker (vintage 60s, Mom's), domino necklace (gift from L), ring (gift from Cindy).

Girly Florals

I spent some of my birthday money on the weekend at one of my favourite consignment shops. This skirt is one of my finds:
It's silk, and very thin (I have a full-length slip on underneath). I love the two patterns. It was $19.99.

It got a little chilly this afternoon in the office, so I wore my jacket off and on:

I felt very girly in this (without being too frou-frou). Sometimes you just have to wear pink! and bows! and angora!

The stuff:

You can see the two patterns better there. they are separated by a line of irridescent sequins.

A close-up of the accessories:

The earrings that Sherylyn gave me, my Audrey Scrabble tile (it's "A" on the back), and my "S".

Jacket (Club Monaco, consignment), sweater (Esprit, consignment), skirt (Kenzie, consignment), shoes (Kensie), earrings (Shi Studio, gift from Sherylyn), "S" pendant (gift from Mom and Dad in the 90s), Audrey tile (vacation).

Birthday Booty - and Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!

Whew! This lovely extra-long weekend is nearly over, sadly. But I packed as much into it (including the valued nap time) as I could.

Before I forget...I got a call-back from the phone interview! They were "so impressed" with my phone manner that they want to interview me in person for BOTH jobs that I applied for (hey, I give good phone, what can I say)! I will be doing multiple interviews AND a technology test all afternoon on Thursday. Woo hoo! I'm so excited!

Anyway, I was pretty much on cloud 9 for my actual birthday, as you can guess. I received $200 from my m-i-l (love her!), and L gave me his presents Saturday morning: How spoiled am I? Clockwise from top left: a handmade bracelet from India, a Tori Amos CD ("Little Earthquakes"), the next book in the "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" trilogy, and a new wallet (SwissGear) stuffed with $100.

We went out for lunch to our favourite diner, where the owner Peter treated us to lunch on the house. They also made me a card: Eggs, potatoes and bacon - it looks like a face! (I had an omelette, salad and toast).

We tidied up the house and I got ready for the party. Face:
I did gold eyeshadow and red, red lips. Fresh-dyed hair too! With my specs, and my little workhorse of a camera. I also did my nails - I rarely do them (I think I was channeling Hillary again). I got these new Sally Hansen nail pens, so I did both hands and toes, then drew designs on my left-hand nails:
Those are the boxes in the background - they were only $3.99 each at London Drugs. I did every nail different, just to play with designs.

And here's the whole package:
This is the second wearing of this dress (worn for New Year's Eve last year here). I found a tube-shaped body slimmer to take out some of lines (this fabric shows everything).

I felt like a disco queen!

The dress is a very bright true red - not the pinky or coral shade it looks like.

The stuff:
My classic gold sandals. I don't even know how long I've had these. The ring and earrings are new, both on sale (less than $10). I love the look of them.

A close-up:

The ring has no loose end - it's like a double set of springs.

Dress (Lori Ann Montreal, thrifted), shoes (Guess), earrings and ring (Aldo Accessories).

I got a couple of other gifts:
A very generous present of scotch from Spence and Kim.

And Mom gave me this awesome Marks & Spencers necklace she picked up while thrifting (way to go, Mom!), and this lovely brooch she found in London (you're so sneaky): She also gave me $100, so I think I'm going to have to go find that pair of over-the-knee boots that have been calling my name...

Happy Thanksgiving, my fellow Canadians! I hope you enjoy your turkey and pumpkin pie!

Happy Birthday to Us!

What do these people all have in common?

The one, the only, John Lennon:

Happy 70th, John! Wish you were here.

Scott Bakula (of "Quantum Leap" and "Star Trek: Enterprise"):

Okay, I'm a dork, so what?

The great NFL Hall of Famer Mike Singletary of the Chicago Bears:

I've been avidly watching the "Top 100 Players of All Time".

The awesome bassist for The Who, John Entwistle:

Who doesn't love "Boris the Spider"?

And...me! As drawn by the amazing Megan!

Anyway, you probably guessed it - we are all born today, on October 9th! Woo! I feel I am in good company.

Have a great weekend!

A Touch of Punk (and Another Gift!)

How much do I love my Winesday Women?
Our traditional Winners gift card! We all get them for our birthdays - the gift of shopping from my lovely gals is the best! Thank you, guys! I had to include the picture (I have that on my fridge), because we all look so great.

Today's outfit is actually yesterday's outfit. Today should be Casual Friday, but I'm at home (I'm taking a sick day to clean my house, hee hee, shhhhhhh). This was much more last-minute than I usually do - I actually pulled the dress and underslip out and shoved this dress in my backpack right before I left for work:

Since I don't try on my outfits the night before, I felt the outfit I had originally planned wasn't going to work (it was this dress with this red slip underneath). The length of the dress is very short, and the slip is quite long, and I had hemline anxiety. I'll try it on at some point and test it, but not today.

Instead, I went with this dress. It was a little safer and I still think it worked for the contrast between girly and punk.

Dress worn previously here and here.

I also chose this dress because of the industrial zipper down the back:

I liked the little cowboy boots with this (they were sure a nice change from heels!). I've worn them before here and here.

The stuff:

The usual punk accoutrements.

The tights are new (I got them last spring and have been saving them). I keep my tights rolled up in balls in my dresser drawer (socks on one side). I can tell most of them apart by colour or pattern, but black ones are always tricky. With these, I realized halfway through the day that not only do these ones have a shadow stripe, they have a shadow cable doing down the back of the leg!

Who knew? Well, I guess I did when I bought them, but I'd totally forgotten. They were a lot straighter at work - I didn't care so much when I got home and changed back into this outfit.

No outfit today, as I'll be in my cleaning junker clothes - but it's my birthday party tomorrow! I have a great outfit planned.

It's also my birthday tomorrow! Woo! I love my birthday. I am going to be 43, for those of you who keep track of those things.

Dress (Mac & Jac), boots (Miz Mooz), belt (Jacob), cuff (90s), earrings (Aldo Accessories), tights (don't remember).