Synthetic Love

Dress? Thrifted
Belt? Thrifted
Fringe Bag? ?, Filene's Basement
Shoes? Frye, Winners

I can be such a little snot about hating on synthetic fabrics... It seems I have to tone the hatoration down a bit because I pretty much lived in this cheap rayon dress all last week. I wore work clothes, a dress for my dad's birthday but I spent every other moment in this dress. I wore it when I went shopping with a friend to find her bridesmaids shoes. I wore it running errands to Ottawa Street (where all the fabric stores are). I wore it again to Ottawa Street a few days later when I screwed up and ran out of fusing and the exact same lady helped me again. I wore it working in the loft (unaffectionately known as The Sweatshop because it really is that hot) on the dresses that have deadlines looming close. I wore it working on dresses again, only this time we caved and bought an AC for the loft because my sanity was at stake . And finally, after a crazy work week I wore it for a Saturday night out on an Augusta Street patio. Threw a knot in the hem, put on heels and I went from a stressed little dressmaker/landscaper to party ready in two minutes.
The dress is cute, doesn't wrinkle, doesn't show panty lines (maybe TMI? but not really. Let's be honest, when it's hot outside, modesty is the first thing to go...) and I would probably be wearing it now, if I hadn't finally put it in the wash. It had to be washed because there was a wee accident on the patio involving sangria and a wobbly table. I was literally soaked from waist to hem (ha... I guess that's not that much) in sangria and I had all the fruit from my cup all over my lap. Nicely done... But the dress is red so it didn't stain and within an hour it was dry again. These are words I never thought I would type, but it seems that my rayon dress saved the day.

Gas Bar

Skirt? Vintage and thrifted
Tank? Majestic, Winners
Belt? Thrifted
Sandals? Marc Fisher
Bangle? Goodwill auction
Bag? Roots, thrifted

I like short skirts and I have made an executive decision to wear them for a very long time. I will wear them until my grand kids are too embarrassed to be seen in public with me... Because if I had to choose between getting a 'The World's Best Grandma' plaque (you know those hand-painted wooden ones, with hearts and ducks and aprons...) and short skirts, I would choose the plaque. But other than that, high hemlines are here to stay.
That is not to say that I can't have fun with different lengths though...
I'm pretty sure if I saw this skirt two years ago, I would have made a 'your mom's skirt' joke but now I feel all inspired. I imagined this vintage, jersey skirt with some super high heels, a blazer and a big scarf on a fall afternoon (ok, I didn't actually imagine what time of day it would be, it just finished off the sentence nicely). But fall is still a ways away, so I just paired it with a tank for a breezy summer look. I actually wore this on vacation last week ( I bought the skirt while thrifting on vacation too), so I'm glad I threw the striped tank in my travel bag at the last minute because the blue and the orange look smart together. The colour wheel never lies...

And there are a lot of pictures of full-on laughing (wildly inappropriate for a fashion blog) because apparently we were causing quite a scene. I thought an abandoned gas station backing off a two lane country road was a pretty low-key place for some outfit pictures, but I was wrong. Matt had his back to the traffic but I kept laughing because people were honking and waving. You would have thought there was a granny in a mini skirt with all the commotion going on...

Blog Rules

Dress? Diane von Furstenberg, Off 5th
Clogs? Stella McCartney, Holt's Last Call
Belt? Thrifted
Bangles? Goodwill auction

I have packed this dress and taken it with me many places. Yet I have never worn it. It is silk jersey and can easily be thrown in a suitcase, so I inevitably take it along with me travelling because visions of summer dates in a pretty dress dance in my head. But the weather has never co-operated. It has to be really hot to wear such a dress. If there is one thing I learned in university, it's that no one sympathizes with the shivering girl in the backless dress.

The shoes I have also had for a while and never yet worn. I got them back in February and I posted about them then. I was quite excited for some good weather so I could bust out and show-off my clog trendiness. But these shoes scare me... they sit on my shelf and mock me. I'm good in high heels but the balance part of these clogs is way under my foot instead of at the back and I feel like Bambi when I put them on. So many outfits would have been great with the clogs, they are quite pretty in an architectural way, but the real fear of a tumble from a great height has kept the Stellas on the shelf.

When I started this blog over a year ago, I had no idea of the scope of fashion blogging. Followers, comments, fashion communities, sponsorships.... It's a lot of pressure sometimes. To keep myself on track, I really try to keep it real, like Jennifer Lopez, the artist formerly known as J.Lo., does. My personal blog rule* is to only post an outfit if I wore it out in public. Someone besides Matt or the cats (it appears I just referred to my cats as people...), must see my outfit. So, if it's on my blog, it's because I wore it out. I've wanted to cheat on my own stupid rule so often and sneak the clogs on outfit pictures but I resisted until their official debut this weekend. We had a barbecue with friends, and while I ran errands in the dress and some flats, I graciously entertained our guests in these scary heels on the relative safety of our patio. I do hope that, like Bambi, I grow more surefooted one day... because spending money on shoes that can only be enjoyed from the safety of a seat is pure foolishness.
You know what else is foolish? Paying full price. This name dropping outfit came in at just over $100. Yes, I bought the DvF for $16.50 and it's not even thrifted!


* I say personal because you can do what you want... that's the joy of blogging.

Water Baby

When I started this blog, I would never have imagined that I would be doing this post. No, surprisingly, I have not been chosen to be part of a national F21 campaign. It's much more exciting than that.... it's a bathing suit post.

Bathing suit? Beachlife, Winners
Hat? Thrifted
Sunglasses? Vintage Steffi Graf, gifted

OK, hardly scandalous. In fact, I would think this bathing suit is quite demure, and that was the appeal of it. I did the math (because I'm all about effort like that) and I haven't worn a one piece bathing suit since 1996. In Grade 8 my mom let me get a two-piece (I say two-piece, not bikini because it was pretty much shorts and a sports bra) and that was a huge deal. I grew up in a pretty conservative family, so getting a two-piece was as exciting as being allowed to stay out until 9 p.m..

I never thought I would want a one-piece again but a few years back some vintage-inspired suits came out and I was intrigued by the glamour. But since the last time I had worn a one-piece, I had probably grown 8 inches taller and so now, nothing fit. Either I couldn't get the straps over my shoulders or the bathing suit was... well, all up in my grill (I'm trying to be polite). I saw this suit at Winners with European sizing and I thought maybe it would fit because I know some tall Europeans... Clearly, with my wild hypothesizing, I shouldn't be a scientist but the bathing suit did fit. And it's kinda perfect, with flattering stripes that go in a v at the bust and are vertical below the waist. Oh ya, and some waist cinching action with a sweet belt. Best of all, the European tag said 100 Euros but the Winners tag said $24.99.

I felt quite glamourous lounging at Sauble Beach, surrounded by Corona bikinis and tiny undone denim cut-offs. Somebody fetch me a beverage, I'm a lady dammit...