Here There Be Dragons

Okay, I'm getting back to my old self again. It's almost the weekend and things are looking up! Like throwing on a dress when I'm feeling blah, there is some magical property of this skirt that makes me feel great.
It is the Best Tweed Ever, since it has all different colours in it, making it easy to accessorize. I always feel great in red, so badabing we do the red cardi and shoes. Chuck on the yellow cuff and the funkadelic earrings (because there's yellow and turquoise in the shoes AND the skirt, get out!), the ultra-skinny brown belt (also new, and only $10 for leather!) and I'm good to go.

The goods:

The yellow acrylic cuff is new to me. It was $3 in a thrift shop, and when I went to take their price sticker off last night, I found another sticker under that, with a handwritten sale price in red: $17.99! And underneath THAT...the original price: $38.99. I showed L, I was so excited. Holy Bargains, Batman!

Here be the dragons:

I love these shoes. They are one of the first pairs of shoes I ever paid full price for, about 4 years ago, if you can believe it. They were $89.99, which is still a lot of money! They also came in black and pale pink, but the red...it spoke to me. It said, "Sheila...take us home..."

What's a girl to do?

Cardigan (I.N.C.), skirt (Kenzie), shoes (Aldo), belt (Plum), earrings (Lucky Brand), cuff (thrifted), hosiery (Hue).

Purple and Pattern

I'm having an off week. I'm tired, not feeling creative with my clothes...I just want the weekend to be here, already!
I love this skirt, but it's going to have to be a "no hose" skirt. It's mostly cotton and it clings to my tights something awful. I had bunchy crotch all day. Other than that, I liked this outfit a lot: the soft purple sleeveless cashmere sweater, the pattern of the skirt, the purple tights, the funky flats and the soft blazer.

Shoes and earrings (and dig the pattern on the skirt - isn't that awesome?):

Forgot to include the brooch (new!) in my accessories shot:

Last time I wore these stripey tights, you couldn't see the colour or the pattern very well. This is accurate on both counts.

And most of it had faded by the time I got in the house, but check out the magnificent sunset!

"Red at night, sailor's delight" - should be a lovely day tomorrow.

Blazer (RW & Co.), sweater (Daniel Bishop), skirt (Le Chateau), tights (Hue), shoes (Wild Diva), brooch (Plum), earrings (Jones New York).

Feelin' a Little Benatar

Okay, so I was a child of the 80s (well, a teen of the 80s for most of that decade). So every so often I feel the need to get in touch with that funky dressing teen that I once was. Like today:
I found this dress for $9 at the Salvation Army - it's BCBG! Get out! Totally easy outfit to put together (hmmm...match the turtleneck to the the tights, the Stinky Boots, belt, hoop earring, aw yeah!).

The goods:

The dress is not as orangey-red; it's actually a very pinky brick red. It's that lovely faux suede material - and washable!

Gotta go...dinner's burning...

Dress (BCBG MaxAzria, thrift), turtleneck (Reitman's), tights (Hue), boots (some cheapass brand), belt (gift from Ruth), earrings (don't remember).

Brown...Playing with Textures and Patterns

Today just felt like a brown sort of day - well, it is Monday - so I mixed all sorts of shades and textures and patterns in this outfit.
I like the pattern of the shirt with the soft plaid of the vest. I had to use the bow to hide my er...cleavage, since I forgot to pack a cami to wear under this rather sheer shirt. Oops. I don't think anyone noticed!

I'm also wearing a fun pair of knee-highs (that is such a fuddy-duddy old lady name for such un-fuddy-duddy hose!). They left a cross-hatched pattern on my calves when I took them off.

Love the faux croc shoes - these are such a lovely classic shape. Here's a shot of all the patterns and accessories (I realized after I took the pictures that I'd forgotten to put my earrings back in in the first photo...oh, yes, it is Monday).

Blouse (Louben), vest (Vero Moda), pants (Mac & Jac), belt (Plum), shoes (Jessica Simpson), earrings (Oscar & Libby's).

Casual Friday - Denim Dress

It's been a while since I wore this:

I found this dress about a year and a half ago while on holiday visiting the in-laws. It was around $20 in one of those semi-cheapy stores (Ricki's/Bootlegger) on the clearance rack. I love the cut of it and it goes with tons of stuff, although looking back, I seem to wear it with brown a lot! Can it really be that I haven't worn this since May? Also, in April. Wow, I'm really surprised that it's been that long.

Boots and jewelry:

Mom's 70s choker, and my faux wood/metal necklace wrapped around my wrist 4 times as a bracelet. Love those boots, man!

Dress (Ricki's), cami (not visible, InWear), belt (Aldo), tights (Hue), boots (Miz Mooz), choker (Mom's, vintage), necklace (can't remember), big gold hoop earrings (gift from L).

It's Like It's My Birthday...But It's Not

Almost everything in today's outfit is a gift from someone:
Got this new-to-me suede jacket for $7 while on holiday, using my Christmas money from my mother-in-law. I think it might be a bit big to wear over a blouse - it feels like more of a light outdoor jacket for spring. I'll probably wear it as outwear once the weather gets better.

Second wear of the Heather Skirt, a gift from my lovely coworker.

And two Fluevogs in a row? Yes! My "Listen Up" (forgot the model name, some movie star) gladiators, my 41st birthday present to myself last year.
The earrings are a gift from my friend Elaine and the necklace was a handmade gift from my friend Cat.

I didn't even think of that when I picked out today's outfit. How weird is that? People must like me or something, ha!

Jacket (B.U.M. Equipment, thrift, $7.50), blouse (Do & Bee), cami (Esprit), skirt (Suzy Shier, gift from Heather), tights (Hue), shoes (Fluevog), earrings (H&M, gift from Elaine), necklace (handmade, gift from Cat).

Meeting Attire - Mrs. Business

I knew I had a 3+ hour meeting scheduled today with a couple of lawyers from another office. Since they've never met me before in person, I wanted to show a bit of personality but still look very professional and corporate.

Heh, this is my interpretation of business:
Black dress pants, tweedy jacket, pretty satin blouse, and cami. The jacket is new-to-me, picked up on my consignment shop with Mom a few weeks ago. It has purple satin lining!

My kickass shoes:

Are those not the most kickasstastic of shoes? Of course they are. They are my beloved Fluevog "Listen Up, Harlow" shoes, which I have had for about 3 years. They are super comfortable and tres chic.

The necklace is vintage (no marks, though) smoked crystals - a gift from L about 8 years ago.

Bonus picture! An Othello spotting in the corner of the photo pre-cropping:

Mr. Crankypants wants his dinner.

Jacket (Jacob, consignment), blouse (Tristan), sequined cami (Esprit), suit pants (Studio Max), shoes (Fluevog), necklace (gift from L), crystal stud earrings.

Rumpled-stiltskin

I may have mentioned before that I walk to and from work Monday to Thursday...this means that by the time I take my picture, I've had to change out of my work clothes, into my walking clothes, and then back into my work clothes for the photo. It's a bit of a pain - and I really look forward to Friday or special occasions when I have fresh hair and makeup!

If I look a little rumpled, especially in the winter when it's rainy/snowy/windy/freakin' cold, it's because this is what I look like mere minutes before:
Ah! It's Crazy Walking Lady! Believe me, no one messes with me when I'm in transit.

Toque to keep my ears warm, hooded child's snowboard parka with kazillions of pockets, lined weatherproof pants to keep the rain off my legs (and absorb splash from the cars), scarf, gloves, and hoodie and t-shirt underneath it all. Plus, my Zen Creative mp3 player for tunes, and of course, my backpack (complete with reflective stickers so I don't get hit by a car when it's dark out.). The strange bulge on my body is the container from my baby carrots - it is not my boob.

This is what's in the backpack (I've removed my Ginormous Lunch Bag):
Bag o' shoes and bag o' clothes:

The bags are waterproof in case it rains. This is why I try not to buy fabrics that wrinkle.

And here I am, all dressed in today's outfit:

Strangely, my coworker Nicole wore nearly the identical outfit to this yesterday. I don't love this look on me, but I like playing around with the menswear look. Plus, I adore these pants...hmmm, my legs look very muscly in these too.

The accessories & the boot:

I love this necklace, the unevenness of the two sides, the thick chain, the black suede half. I talked a friend into buying it because I loved it so much (and thought it would look great on her), but she never wore it and eventually gave it to me. So nice - thanks, Cindy!

I'm not listing my outerwear brands. If you want to know, ask.

Shirt (Bianca Nygard), vest (Oxmo), pants (Club Monaco, consignment), boots (eh, some cheapy brand), necklace (Nine West, gift from Cindy), crytal stud earrings.

Red and Plaid - Not Feeling It

I was just not feeling this outfit today. Maybe it's the blouse, which is kind of baggy in the midsection. Maybe it's the jacket - too short/too cropped? Maybe it's the skirt, which is sitting lower on the waist and is all wrinkled from sitting all day and looks like it's tight across my muscly (haha) thighs.
Could also be the hose, which snagged like a spiderweb on anything that I looked at. Or the shoes, which are a smidge too big, so I kept stepping out of them.

My Calvin Kleins:

Oooh, ahhhh. A lovely classic black suede pump. These are probably the most boring shoes I own, but I recognize the need to own a Plain Black Pump.

The skirt is new-to-me. I like the red stripe in it.

Jacket (Vero Moda), blouse (Vero Moda), skirt (Jacob, consignment), shoes (Calvin Klein), belt (Bianca Nygard), bracelet (Le Chateau), earrings (Plum), hose (Hue).

Special Occasion - Whisky Fest

Every year since it started, L and I have gone to the Whisky Fest. Dozens and dozens of whiskies from Scotland, Ireland, Canada, the US, and even India and France! And all there for the tasting - yum!

As I'm in the small percentage of women who attend this, I like to glam it up. Hell, why not?
This year, I decided to go with my leopard skirt. It's not really work appropriate, so I don't get the chance to wear it too often. I always keep it simple with a black turtleneck, but thought I'd add some interest with the red tights (to go with my bright red lipstick), brown boots and the faux fur stole, decorated with Grandma J's brooch, of course:

We walked down, so I knew I'd be freezing, and this lovely stole (and the matching faux fur-trimmed gloves) kept me nice and snuggly in the cold weather.

I had many drunken people petting me and purring at me. Haha!

Turtleneck (Smart Set), skirt (Le Chateau, consignment), boots (Roberto Vianni), stole (Parkhurst), tights (Hue), brooch (Grandma J, Pastelli (stamped)), crystal stud earrings.

Casual Friday - Dress & Jeans Virgin No More!

Okay, so I have been reading fashion blogs for a year now, and I've admired people like Jane who wear a dress with jeans. Until now, I've been chicken to do it myself.

I felt so...daring. I found this great dress in a thrift shop while visiting my in-laws a few weeks ago - I know it's a dress (as opposed to a tunic) because I actually used to own this same dress in purple! I bought it new about 10 years ago when I was heavier. I love the rich dark red and the cut and length just seemed right with these jeans.

I felt great in it this look all day and got lots of compliments.

No close-up of the accessories, since I kept them to a dull roar today. Just plain black ankle booties, the groovy necklace and plain white gold hoops.

A little surprise was hiding in the corner of my picture when I went to crop:

Aw! Kitty!

Have a great weekend!

Dress (Le Chateau, thrift, $7.50), jeans (Esprit), booties (Rinaldi), necklace (Caracol), earrings (gift from L).

Old Lady Sunshine

Whenever I wear yellow, I feel happy. After yesterday's dark, I really wanted to be lighter inside as well as outside.

This is such a nice outfit: I love the shape of the cardigan and the little kick-pleat at the back of the skirt. The skirt is a green silk and wood tweed - so warm! And after a long spell of heels, time for some flats:
Well, flats for me - they're a kitten heel. I really love all the details in this outfit: the glitzy shoes (zebra, green piping, crown badge, oh my!), the mink vintage brooch, the leaf-themed charm bracelet, and the vintage cocktail ring.

The ring and the brooch are new, from a consignment store and an antique shop, respectively. When I was about 8, my grandmother gave me an old brooch of hers - it was a mink poodle with a cream velvet body and little black beady eyes. I loved it, it was so soft. But it went through the wash by accident and it was gone. I've never seen another mink brooch since.

This is my noisy bracelet - it chimes and rattles while I walk around the office.

Cardigan (no label, consignment), cami (Esprit), skirt (Precis Petite), shoes (Hale Bob), bracelet (can't remember), earrings (Avon), brooch (vintage, $7.50) and ring (Sarah Coventry, vintage, $20).