Phew, it's almost like "olden times" around here, with placed to go and things going on! I feel so busy, but then I remember how non-stop our lives were a year+ ago, and I wonder how on earth I ever managed that pace.
I have three outfits for you today: one from my Wednesday work day, then our evening beach gathering to celebrate what would have been Karen's 60th birthday, and my rescheduled haircut (and a wee shop) on my Thursday day off.
Get ready for lots of pictures, so grab a beverage and kick off your shoes!
Wednesday's work outfit was built around this new-to-me linen embellished jacket that I'd picked up a while ago.
While the weather is rapidly going back to the usual rainy spring, it was still warm enough to wear it.
- Jacket - Boston Proper, consignment; purchased here for $53.99
- Top - Tatum & Olivia, consignment; last seen here in March with a striped frock coat
- Skirt - Andrea Jovine, thrifted; last worn here in September 2020 with a tasseled kimono
- Shoes - Big Presence Desmond, Fluevog, consignment; last seen here in March in a power outfit
I wore the jacket open thusly all day.
I had to flip the cuffs back as the sleeves were a bit too long on me.
As the day wore on, I realized that the jacket is just too big everywhere on me. And it's not "me," I'm not feeling it.
Into the giveaway pile it goes! Yvonne would look smashing in this.
I adore this skirt, however, which is also linen. Note the brooch placement near my hand on the right.
Despite being a semi-wrap skirt (it zips in the back), the wrap is well-anchored inside and does not open any further than you see in these pics (although it's a bit of a mini in the stair pic!).
Masked up.
I liked the jacket even less done up - it's too long on me. Nope nope nope.
Mask.
It sure is! I didn't wear a scarf or coat or anything else - it was a little chilly on the way home, as clouds started to roll in.
The stuff:
I love these shoes as a neutral.
Silver bling:
I wear my favourite pieces over and over. The brooch and shield ring are both over 20 years old and the crystal ring is around 15 years old now.
- Bangle - Lazy Susan's
- Silver cuff - vintage, thrifted, Powell River
- Silver/crystal ring - Soul Flower
- Shield ring - Nine West, Eaton's, c. 2000
- Earrings - thrifted
- Brooch - Eaton's, c. 1999
After work, I fed Vizzini and changed for a walk down to the waterfront to meet up with our friends on the beach and remember Karen on her 60th birthday. As many of you know, we lost our dear friend to cancer in June 2020 after being diagnosed only three months earlier in March (I wrote 3 big posts about it:
one,
two,
three).
It was not about me, so I toned it down (stop laughing, this is toned down!).
- T-shirt - Corey Hart tour, June 2019 (here, me and Ali!)
- Jeans - Smashed Lemon; last worn here (4th outfit) for a Zoom call with Greetje in February
- Boots - Ash; last seen here (4th outfit) in the same outfit as the jeans in February
- Coat - Sisley, consignment; last worn here in March
As I know it can be very cold near the water, I brought gloves and a silk scarf.
The heavy and hairy leather coat felt excessive at first, but I was happy to have it.
All bundled up.
I took the mask off when we were distanced outside.
Outerwear stuff:
I was doubly glad of the silk scarf, not just for warmth, but because the hairs on the coat are prickly!
- Scarf - thrifted
- Gloves - Roeckl, consignment
- Mask - by Mom
The stuff:
I feel like I've been resting from these boots for a while - I used to wear them a lot more. I still love them, and one of these days I'll get around to doing a Flashback. But not today.
- Belt - gift from Ruth
- Earrings - thrifted
I walked down to Ross Bay, near the cemetery on Dallas Road, which took about 20 minutes at a brisk clip.
This is the final round of blossoms, on the cherry trees, and they are my favourites.
The blossoms are so fat and soft.
Arriving at Dallas Road - I see my people down there in the cove!
The mountains in the distance are the United States, specifically, Washington state. That's the Pacific Ocean, baby.
Deep gratitude to Caro for organizing this. We considered the park or St. Ann's, but she and Nick decided that it should be somewhere Karen would be taking pictures. As you can see, we live in a very picturesque place.
Clover Point in the distance. This is part of my Mental Health Walk route.
We were all super-careful about not going over the 10-person limit.
As I arrived, Cat and Ross (in the blue shirt) were just leaving.
Aw, sorry I missed you, guys!
Caro and Ronnie (in the yellow) on the left; Justin and Vero and doggo Django on the right.
Cat and Ross took pics as they left.
There I am, taking pictures of my friends! Thank you so much for the pic, Cat!
Justin brought his camera too. The tide was really low - this is what many beaches look like on the west coast of Canada.
No sand there! We do have sandy beaches, but not here specifically.
Vero picked these flowers from her garden.
Karen would have artfully arranged them in a perfect vase. She loved tulips.
Nick brought a picture of them, circa 1997/8. Aw, look at those children!
Our friends Greg and Rosanna had been at the beach with him a couple of hours earlier, so we all took turns visiting with him.
He brought some of her ashes in one of her old pill bottles. We had a giggle over that!
I know for sure Karen would have been happy that he re-used the bottle. Happy Earth Day!
We gathered on the rocks near the edge of the water.
Amazing light. Picture by Ronnie, thank you.
Vero tossed the flowers into the water.
Karen was with us in the sparkle on the water.
In the clouds...
In the barnacles and the kelp...
In the sea anemones in the tidal pools.
In the lap of the water against the rocks. She'll never really be gone.
Clover Point is in the middle of construction (new sewage treatment plant).
But it's still the best place to parasail - see the little crescent?
I clambered around on the rocks for a bit, thinking of Karen.
Enjoying nature, remembering jumping around on the rocks as a kid.
Catching up with my gals - Yvonne was enamoured of my leather coat, which resembles their cowhide throw, Angus.
Yvonne, what were you thinking, girlfriend? Flip-flops at the beach? Tsk! So good to see her (rocking Randall's wool blazer) and Nancy. Nancy and I spotted fish, crabs and spider crabs in the tide pools. Caro's so jaunty in her cap - she broke her arm recently and had to have surgery (and a plate!), poor love.
L arrived after his haircut - he's in the orange/teal Dolphins hoodie.
It wasn't a bad haircut - he was just cold.
I was mesmerized by the light on the water.
The sun started getting lower.
Looking south again.
Seattle is way down that way.
It was tricky to get pictures without other people in them.
The beach was packed with people having little gatherings - there were dogs, kids, teens, oldsters.
L drove me home. Ronnie wanted to see Vlad the Jaguar.
Way to crop me out of the picture, Ron! Ha ha!
Happy Birthday, Karen - I miss you so much, honey.
Gratitude to Cat for this amazing picture of a crow on some driftwood from earlier. It's very much a "Karen" picture.
We promised Karen we'd take care of Nick for her.
He's doing better, but it gets harder as we approach and pass these milestones.
After a quick chill with L and Vizzini, L went over to Nick's to hang out with him for a few more hours.
"What? You're leaving me?"
Ooh, he looks very bitey there. Danger!
My haircut got rescheduled early on Thursday morning, so I had to get up at my usual work time (6:30am, groan) to ensure I had time to grocery shop before my appointment.
The Flirty Butcher appreciated this outfit, heh.
- Sweater - Banana Republic, thrifted; purchased here for $18.95
- Skirt - SP; last seen here in May 2020 with an orange sweater
- Shoes - Matisse; last worn here in June with a floral jumpsuit
- Coat (below) - Danier Leather, 2010; last seen here in September 2020
My view now includes the seagulls as well as the Castle - it's nesting season.
They are likely the same pair as last year, since couples stick together.
I've been writing a series for my company's provincial newsletter about the rooftop of seagulls visible from our office. I can't wait till there's a roof of fluffy little grey babies stumbling about. Did you know that seagulls can drink salt water? Fact!
I only had my jacket off while I was in the chair, swathed in my cover.
First wearing of this new-to-me silk and cashmere thin sweater (my favourite kind). It was light, but also warm. Loved it - it's a very useful and classic style/colour.
Mostly I had my leather jacket on. I bought this in 2010, new at Danier for $199.00. I'm at less than $20 a year on it!
I also have a bright coral vintage slip on under this ensemble for more warmth. It was cloudy in the morning and seemed like it might rain.
Masked up - yay for yellow!
This is how most folks saw me.
I am ready for some walking! It ended up being a bright and sunny by early afternoon.
The stuff:
I rely on my walking shoes - these ones have been workhorses for me.
Minimal bling:
I pinned the bee on my sweater.
- Belt - vintage 90s, consignment, Powell River
- Orange ring - Italian, vintage 60s, vintage mall
- Klimt ring - consignment
- Bee pin - gift from Megan Mae
- Earrings - vintage 70s, thrifted
I did some birthday shopping after my haircut, then popped into Flavour Upstairs for a quick browse.
This purse came home with me - I don't have a woven purse, and like the simple cross-body shape.
It has all leather trim/straps with brown cotton lining. It's handwoven in Bali from Ata grass!
It snaps shut - I like that the "lid" is a snug fit. I LOVE that the sides are filled in with the lining so that your stuff doesn't fall out when you open it. Thoughtful!
It's by Street Level, a company that specialized in vegan-friendly, cruelty-free handbags.
Ah, there we go - my purse is the Bunga (
here, link 'cause I love), and it's sold out.
It retailed for $48.00 which is more than double what I paid - $19.99.
I pawed through the scarf bin and came up with this.
Ooh, I like these colours! Black/white/grey leopard, red and purple and grey. Great pattern.
It's by Vera, aka Vera Neumann (about her
here) a prolific scarf designer back in the day. I've seen hundreds of Vera scarves in my shopping adventures.
This one has gold accents!
In addition to the centre of the white flower shape in the above pic, the purple medallion things also have gold.
It was $19.99, which is a little steep, but I know I will wear this scarf a lot. These are really useful colours in my wardrobe.
From scarves to...
Shorts! I remember the last time "dress shorts" or suit-shorts were a thing - it was the late 90s into the early 00s. We wore them with the matching suit jacket, possibly a short-sleeved jacket with some shoulder pad action going on, and a proper button-up shirt.
I'm willing to give long shorts a shot again - but I won't be styling these grey double-pleated (!!) babies the way I might have back then.
They're by David Brooks, a designer who has been lost to the sands of time. Made in the USA, though - that's always nice.
This line was sold at upscale department stores, like Nordstrom's and Lord & Taylor.
These shorts are fully-lined, with nice deep pockets.
And they are 100% worsted wool, which is used in high-end suiting. It's very thick and feels expensive.
They are the Cadillac of shorts! I'm excited to give them a spin. I paid $22.99, which felt like a good deal.
I popped into MONA consignment on the way home, as I haven't been in for a while.
Not much caught my eye (so much Zara and Aritzia!), but their shoe selection is really good - these lovely chunky-heeled leopard loafers came home with me.
They are "pony" hair (aka calf hide) with a leopard pattern.
The interior appears to be leather as well - they are super-comfy. That's a good heel for me.
$45.00 feels like a good deal. I spotted them on resale sites for $75-120, one selling noting that they were currently on sale at BR for $110.
I did not know Banana Republic sold shoes.
Vizzini, how are you holding up? Did you miss me today?
"I feel like I need to cuddle."
That can be arranged!
I assure you, it is very shiny and colourful in person! 
I loved wearing it (it didn't crease at all!) but I think it might be one of those "depths of summer" pieces where it only looks good worn on its own. How would you style it? 
Still waiting for my first vaccine appointment. Sigh. 
The scarf and gloves were a bit overkill by the time my day was done. 
I didn't need the scarf on the way home, but I did keep my gloves on. 
It's still chilly in the mornings - I was glad of the gloves and scarf then. 
I only wore these shoes once last year (!), but they are usually workhorses in the spring months. Must wear them more frequently this year! 
I layered up three vintage necklaces to help fill in the neckline of the dress. 
