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

No Repeats W & W: Day Four

EEEEK! a pair of black, knit, non-sweat pants are a great idea as part of my 'workaday' capsule.
But these particular black, knit, non-sweat pants are just too old and worn out - faded 'off' color, droopy hand.  They need to be cut up and used as a pattern for a nice, new pair.

So, how to spice up a plain black 'base'? One way is to showcase a fun jacket and a few related accessories. The subtle color and pattern of this jacket and the delicate necklace and earrings are easily lost when combined with a lot of bright color and vivid patterns, but with a 'blank' background even subtle pieces like these can take center stage.

I'm wearing the scoop necked Mossimo sweater with the black lace necked tank underneath - the lace neckline peeks out from underneath and gives a different neckline to the sweater, continuing the 'lacey flowers' theme. I also layered my cashmere cardigan underneath the jacket for warmth (you can see it underneath the bust). Since all three pieces are black they kind of 'meld together' and read more as one piece than as three. The top of the three earrings is a garnet heart, the middle is a silver rose from Benitez Jewelers. I somehow lost the other of this pair, i hope i can buy another pair (with pearls in the middle?) at the Dickens Fair this weekend.

Another approach is to use the black to 'soak up' the many brilliant colors of one outstanding, outrageous piece. Go even further by choosing gloves in the opposing color (lavender lives across the color wheel from yellow), and choose an unexpected, old-fashioned piece to showcase your fashion cred (lorgnette, opera glasses, or long handled wooden spoon). (It was bread baking day.)

I've set up the accessories shoot and the test photos seem fine (not wonderfully artistic, but fine). So i'm off to the shoot!

Jacket: own design
Cardigan: L. L. Bean
Sweater: Mossimo from Target
Lace Tank: Jockey
Pants: Carushka
Earrings & Necklace: liliswan from etsy
Rose Earring: Benitez Jewelers
Belt: Betsey Johnson
Shoes: Bass Lacey
Apron: gift from Shackford's