Mom Tells It Like It Is

 Received an e-mail from ielgirl this am, horrendously disturbing upon first glance. My groggy eyes immediately leapt to a few phrases which jumped off the screen: ".....i had him shoot me.....i beheaded....."  - - -  What!?!?? My mind barely grasped the meaning of these phrases, leaving my heart paralyzed as my eyes automatically continued skimming along: "....and i posted it to my blog." Aaah! Someone's posted her first outfit of the day!  Whew! I did pause to wonder how she was managing to send an e-mail after all that brutality. Ya got me on that one, P!

Continuing with my 'e-mailbag' theme, mom had some remarks on my recent tule fog post. Mom was born and reared in Fresno, CA, smack dab in the center of the California Central Valley, birthplace of tule fog. Take it away, mom!


"Hahahahahaha! I know why you used the tule fog picture you did, but THAT's not REAL tule fog (see, old lady here).  This is tule fog:

(i can't find the pic she attached to her e-mail - it's just a bunch of fog anyway with one foot of road visible in the foreground)

and it's not real bad in this photo.  Pictures of real tule fog have to have a 'no fog' before picture and the tule fog picture as a referent because in real tule fog you see nothing but the grey.  In this picture, you can actually see the line in the road and some other object(s); in really bad tule fog, you have to drive with the passenger car door OPEN, not just the window, and have the passenger keep their eye on the side of the road as you creep along at 5 mph.  And when the road intersects - oh, hell, that's why I love living outside the Central Valley.  Of course, if you don't stay out late and drive home before 2 am, then it's not such a problem - more cars on the road, however.  Like most of life, it's a crapshoot. 8-)"

We stand corrected!

(Note to Readers: looks like the text formatting went haywire around this point and i can't figure how to fix it. Please accept my apologies! It seems to be just this post.)

I was getting into the top half of these outfits there for a while. Looks like Gracey has been into this dolman sleeve thing too - check out how great she looks when she's "not putting in any effort".  I guess yard-long legs make any outfit pop!!  Anyways, I liked the shape the wrap cardi made over slim-sleeved tees or light sweaters, and played it out with two different skirts, both with dramatic lines. I kept the accessories and other styling to a minimum in order to accent the silhouettes.  I think that the denim skirt look would've been better with a bit of a heel and my hair up or in a low ponytail. Next time.

I've taken so much inspiration from Elsita's blog The Hidden Seed. It seems she no longer posts there, but the archives are up and completely worth your time. I tried duplicating one of her trademark poses with this outfit, seeing as the skirt design was sparked by one she wore, but i've got a ways to go. Elsita's slips don't show unless she wants them to.

Wrap Cardi: Nine West

Grey and Black Sweaters: Target Merona
Denim Skirt: repurposed from J. Peterman wide-legged denim trousers
Beige Skirt: own design, inspired by The Hidden Seed

Slip: own design
Legwear: Sock Dreams
Shoes: Maine Woods
Belt: ???
Bracelet: Justina Leigh

Thises and Thats

 I grabbed Mr. E a couple of nights ago when he got home from work to take these pictures. It's a great outfit, but he sure doesn't like to get his picture taken!  However, i think you can see why i wanted to get his looks on this site - he's not headed anywhere special, just off to work, and boy he looks sharp.

(Sharp? I look like I've just been embalmed for god's sake....A face lift, a face lift...my kingdom for a face lift! Oh, and by the way I don't have a beer belly, that's just the un-tucked shirt, hanging a tad too jauntily. No seriously, it's true. And just for the record, I loved the shirt pattern when it was merely a piece of fabric, but as an actual item of clothing I think it may be a little "busy". In all honesty, I don't think I'm very good with fashion. Johnny Depp on the other hand....)--Mr E.

The shirt is his own design, which i sewed up. It's a Japanese cotton print he spotted at Stone Mountain and Daughter. I drafted a pattern based on a couple of his ready to wear shirts which fitted well, and then modified the muslin based on fittings. His hat showcases one of my ideas about trends. The 'slim-brimmed-fedora' is a big trend in hats right now, and as a rule i'm not big at all on snapping up much in the way of trends.  But occasionally, a trend shows up which fits quite neatly into your own personal style, and if it's hard to find it makes sense to stock up while you can. Mr. E isn't tall and he has a slight build, so a lot of hats made for 'regular people' look oversized on him. These sleeker hats work well with his build, and he's wisely acquired some really nice ones.

The main highlight of this outfit is that i'm wearing the dupes i made of these pants, which were plumb worn out.  I'm making decent progress on my 'resolution', and it's fun to have a public venue in which to engage in a wee bit of auto-horn-tootage. The light was not cooperating, so you have these weird photos which look really strange but actually show off the salient outfit details. I'm wearing my Justina Leigh bracelet as a necklace (by clipping it into a 16" snake chain). I liked it as a necklace just as much as a bracelet. I generally like to wear super-drapey looks with a higher, chunky heel. But i was walking around a lot, and staying around the house, and my feet preferred these lower heels. So.

I've written before about my preference for air-drying most of my clothes - i think they last longer, and look better, than when they're tumble dried. Most of the drying takes place on this collapsible, portable air-dryer. It folds up accordion-style to 29" x 5", where it lives in my closet.

I ended up discussing this in the comments on one of Terri's posts, and she'd not heard of these type of dryers before. Behold, photographic proof! I like to dry most of my blouses, shirts, and structured knit tops on appropriate hangers, in order to keep them 'on grain'. Kind of a mini-blocking. on edit: these dryers more commonly are made of wood, which works very well and holds slippery items well.

Here's a paradox - the cat loves to sleep underneath this dryer when it's full of clothes outside. But if he sees it changing shape (un- or folding), it terrifies him and he runs away to hide. It's possible to really load up these dryers - my mom is amazing at it, loading up queen-sized sheet sets, bath sheets, socks, tees, and on and on. I leave mine out on the deck when it's warm and or sunny, and when it's cold i put it in the computer room next to a heater vent. Make sure to angle the dryer so that no large articles are blocking the flow of air, and your house-heater will do double duty and dry your clothes. Don't put the dryer ON TOP of a heater vent, no one wants fried clothes or a burned-up house!

 Hat: Goorin Bros.
Shirt: Mr. E's design, made by me
Trousers: ?
Jacket: Alfani
Shoes: Sandro Moscoloni

Tunic: Converse One for Target
Wrap Cardi: Nine West
Tee: Merona Target
Belt: vintage Coach
Pants: dupe of Carushka Posh Pants, made by me
Shoes: Bass Lacey oxfords
Bracelet Worn as Necklace: Justina Leigh on etsy
Earrings: Benitez Jewelers

Wardrobe Resolution

 (cue sound of angels singing) Yesterday we broke 50 degrees F! I was able to take a walk and remove my gloves by the end of it!It's been about a week and a half since we climbed out of the 40's, so you can imagine my excitement. Mr. E took my picture in Carmel, CA last Saturday - we drove down a couple of hours the coast to see if we could escape the cold, wind, and rain. Many weather systems that come down from the north blow out by the time you get to Monterey Bay, so it's a strategy that's paid off for us in the past. But not this time. We wimped out and came back Saturday nite, instead of finding a cheap room and staying over. But i did get a nice remark from a lady winding up her day on Cannery Row who deemed my outfit 'the best i've seen all day!' (I'm wearing my grey ruffle skirt and Bass Lamont Boots).

Sunday had important wardrobe ramifications. I put my resolutions from this post into action, and bought material for three new bottoms at Joann's. They're having a great sale until January 26, if at all possible i plan to stock up on some more linen and linen blends before it ends (60% off). I'm halfway through a black linen/rayon blend full knee-length skirt, and have material for a slim silhouette tobacco linen skirt, and some cotton/poly interlock to copy these pants.

In the comments to my 'resolution' post Terri shared with us that she has dupes for four of her wardrobe basics: "You are absolutely right about the mainstays--which is why I have two black pencil skirts, two pair of black slacks, two pair of greys, two denim skirts." I appreciated her being so specific. It helps me to see a general idea along with a concrete plan someone uses to put that plan into action. I could juggle her selections around in my mind to see how they would work in my wardrobe and typical week, what would be involved in acquiring these items (or my equivalents), and how much of a 'buffer' they would offer me in terms of flexibility - for different types of occasions, in case of accidents, those busy times where it's hard to keep up with laundry, etc. I'm working on coming up with a similar list for my own use. Thank you Terri!

Just a knock-around-the-house, layer 'em up so you can stay warm, throw some stuff on kind of outfit. The beauty of this outfit for me is how easy it was to put together, because of the thought i've put into what gets into my wardrobe to begin with. It's comfy, warm, me, and has a certain amount of funk and style. It's days like this one, where i've made it so much easier for myself to dress how i want and like to, that give me the inspiration to make my mainstay's list and create the clothes on the list.

And you know where i get so many of the ideas for how to make my clothes work better for me - the finger's pointing right back at you! I hope i return the favor at least every now and then. Thank you!

No Repeats W & W: Days Seventeen & Eighteen

Not much to say about this outfit other than sometimes the pictures look a lot cuter than you felt when you were wearing the clothes.  I'm pretty sure i'm still stuck on 'too comfy = sloppy looking'. But that equation is false.

Here you can get a glimpse of some aquamarine beads i bought on Telegraph for six bucks. Everytime i string beads, the string stretches out after i wear them a few times and it looks bad. So i'm trying wearing these ones before i finish the necklace with findings, clasp, etc. to see if i can avoid the problem. Any input/feedback on this issue is avidly anticipated!

I wouldn't consider this outfit completely successful as an outfit - but it has some elements i'm very glad i stumbled upon. Angie at fashion me blog, Serene at The Elegant Bohemian, Katie of Interrobangs Anonymous, and others i can't recall at the moment have all been really rockin' the 'scarf as blouse' trick.  I've been attempting it myself a few times recently, and this time i finally got the hang of it!

I also really like lacey anklets with these boots.  With skirts, with skinny cargoes, or with fishnets in nude or brown......it really expands the range of these booties.  And using just a couple of lacey touches (scarf and socks) on a neutral base to lend a romantic air to the whole outfit is a nice strategy. But those black leggings under the skirt got under my skin as well.  It's too blunt. But i was too busy, too cold  and too tender to change them out for, say, nude fishnets or my gray lace Betsey Johnson tights. 

That's the beauty of a daily outfit blog - you can stash these elements away for future use.  In real life, i'd remember how much i liked these details but most likely forget precisely how i pulled them off....

I've had this rutilated quartz bead for three or four years now. I tried wearing it a number of ways, but none really felt right. Terri has featured acorns in a number of her DIY projects, and it finally occurred to me to go see if i could find one for this bead. I found one and burnt a hole in it for the wire. I also bought a couple of strings of iolite beads on Telegraph from the same vendor as the aquamarine ones. That's an iolite bead at the base of the 'acorn', and i've strung iolite beads to make a necklace for this 'acorn' pendant. Here i used a black ribbon, as the iolite string is in 'the stretching process'.

I can see the end of the workaday capsule challenge!  I'm doing my best to 'go out with a bang', but the weather and random evil stains conspire against me.  Wish me luck!

No Repeats W & W: Day Twelve

talking to mom's dog

 I wore this look last Sunday, the day after Christmas. We went up to Napa to spend the day with my mother and take her out to dinner. Mr. E came up with the idea of going out for the holiday dinner on the day AFTER the holiday.  It worked out pretty brilliantly, too - no crowds, no need for reservations, no weird 'holiday fare'. We went to Grace's Table in downtown Napa (a few doors down from Pleasures Unlimited, the adult supplies store). A wee bit pricey, but not outrageous. Delicious food. My only regret is that mom and i shared a piece of Devil's Food cake, instead of getting two pieces.

here's Jack!

The belt is an amazing hand-embroidered Central American piece. I found it about a year ago at a private sale up in Mendocino which we stumbled upon while staying in town for our tenth anniversary. I'd been on the lookout for a similar belt for years. This one is almost 1/4" thick, it's got that much work on it, and was $35.00. I've never seen anything remotely similar for under $100.00. The sale is run by an older lady who's been living/traveling in Mayan country since the 1960's, and importing various handwoven articles.

The only trouble with this belt, as far as wearing it goes, is the pink dye. It's not fast at all and wears off on whatever comes into prolonged contact with it (jeans, purse, etc.). So i've been wearing it with black. It really looks stunning with jeans. I haven't worn it with jeans that much because of the dye trouble - but frankly it washes out very easily.  Looks like i've just shot down that reason - prepare to see more of this belt in future!

In this close up you can get a better look at the jewelry. The beautiful garnet and marcasite necklace is from my mother, who i think bought it at an antique shop. The garnets have a really nice color, and are set high to catch plenty of light. The earring is the Thomas Mann piece my mom and i discussed a couple of days ago, in the post and the comments. Both the arrow and the striped piece are moveable.

And here's my outfit from Monday. I realized sometime over the weekend that i've been keeping track of my No Repeats Workdays and Weekends outfits in a misleading manner - i've only been 'numbering' the workday outfits. So this last outfit in this post is 'Day Twelve', while the first outfit is kind of a 'bonus' look. Well, folks, i suppose it would be possible to go back and re-count, re-number, and re-name all this to make it make sense. But with this brain, it would take a ridiculous amount of blood, sweat and tears. Those posts are going to stand as they are - i'll be numbering outfits #1-20 in my 'workaday capsule' as part of the No Repeats challenge, and i'll be showing the weekend outfits without numbers.

 Just goes to show what happens when you try to organize the human brain.

Boxing Day Outfit:
Hat: The Berkeley Hat Co.
Tunic: Converse One for Target
Skirt: gift
Over The Knees: Target
Boots: Bass Lamont

Day Twelve Outfit:
Black Wrap Cardi: Nine West
Henley: Aeropostale
Skirt: own design
Belt: Betsey Johnson
Wool Blend Tights: Hanna Andersson
Shoes: Maine Woods

No Repeats W & W: Day One

my ubiquitous cuppa. i average 5 a day.

Last Saturday, sitting on BART on the way to the KPFA crafts fair, i drew up a little 'workaday' capsule, including accessory sets.  I have many days where i have a lot to do around the house, and i tend to put off getting dressed until late morning or early afternoon, by which time i'm all frazzled and it ends up taking even longer to get dressed.......basically, it's just a bad start to the day. It sets a bumbley tone.

So i figured i'd draw up a little capsule to focus my morning dressing, and make it 'idiot proof'. I set some parameters: all the clothes would be appropriate for working around the house, all the items would be comfy (my leg hurts worse in the morning and i just can't bring myself to put on certain items, like jeans, until the meds kick in), and they'd all be 'guaranteed to match'. Kind of like Garanimals.

I wasn't even thinking about Cynthia and Anne's challenge when i drew up my notes. But the challenge is about wearing your neglected pieces. And i do neglect my more casual or basic clothing items, and i've always tended to dress 'dressier'. Tackling the more casual end of my 'style spectrum' (Paula's term) has always been the real challenge for me. So during this challenge i'll dress exclusively from my 'workaday' capsule on Mondays through Fridays, with no repeat outfits (all remixed). This will make it more of a challenge for me, and should be interesting for people who are wondering about wardrobe capsules and how they 'work'. It's a bit of a 'challenge within a challenge', i guess.


My 'reserves': I reserve the right to draw from outside the 'workaday' capsule on holidays, Mr. E's days off, seasonally-specific activities, etc. I reserve the right to add additional items to the capsule if they obviously should be in (but i just forgot - thank you Lyme disease) and/or if i can manage to find the 2-3 waffle/henleys i've been shopping for the past month.

Tomorrow i'll set out my 'workaday capsule' (it's about 20 pieces). The outfit in this post i wore yesterday, drawing from the workaday capsule. The skunk skirt is a little on the fancy end, but it's cotton and a completely comfy piece. The color and pattern cancel out most staining worries. The top is a promotional polo from my mom's former workplace in size XL - too big for anyone i know! It comes down to my mid-thigh point without stretching. I've worn it a couple of times to see if i could pull it off with artful styling, but at this point i've decided to slice and dice it into some species of ruffled tee or tank. Like this - or maybe this? Either way, it stays in the 'workaday world'.

How many of you are also participating in the No Repeats Workdays and Weekends challenge?

Wrap Sweater: Nine West
Polo: gift
Skirt: own design
Shoes: Bass Lacey Oxfords

p.s. it's very foggy and rainy here lately - & it's really bringing out my natural curl!