How Did You Spend YOUR Weekend?

This last weekend, we got a bunch of rain. Buckets, all over the place. Which is great, we can always use it here in the Meditarranean climate of the Bay Area. So i spent all Saturday in bed, after which i felt re-invigorated and refreshed.

As you may guess from these photos, Mr. E has succumbed to a friend's pleas for him to join his Fantasy Football league this season.  So all day Sundays and on Monday nights the computer is reserved for Fantasy Football use exclusively.  A similar situation pertains next door - i was joking with D. that we are a new variety of 'Football Widows' (widowed from computer access).  Between the deluge outdoors and someone being glued to the computer, my options for outfit photos on Sunday were limited.  (You can see how enthralled my husband is with my self-portraiture.  I'm guessing over-exposure. And his fantasy team is doing much better than his expression would suggest.)

I had to venture out in the rain to do the weekly grocery shopping.  After the 'Can Clothes Be Too Comfy?' discussion, that grey ruffled skirt was on my brain.  I wanted to try this skirt at a shorter length and see how i liked it.....but without taking the irreversible step of chopping it up. I took a clue from Audi's penchant for hiking skirts up to below (and sometimes over) her bust.  I safety-pinned the skirt's waistband to the bottom elastic band of my bra at four places -  et voila! a perfect just below the knee length skirt!

These shenanigans yielded an unexpected benefit - my bra stayed perfectly in place all day. The weight of the skirt balanced out the weight of the bust, so no hourly pulling down the back of the bra. Funny how something that seems so fussy to put together ends up being much less fuss to wear. Counter-intuitive.

At this point my thinking is to just keep the skirt as is, and pin it up when i want to wear it shorter.  Let us bow down to the goddess that is the safety pin!  According to this site, Penelope received over a dozen safety pins from those pesky suitors when her man Odysseus was lashing himself to the mast, blinding Cyclops, and generally remaining AWOL.  Penelope has always been held up as an example of stunning faithfulness, spending sleepless nights unpicking her own work, but if all those suitors could come up with was a bunch of safety pins....well.  Sometimes life just isn't chock-full of tempting options.

In other outfit news, i have pictures of a

*** NEW SKIRT *** 

to post tomorrow.  Don't Touch That Dial!

Jacket: made by me, McCall's Pattern #5594
Top, OTK Socks: Target
Skirt: own design
Shoes: antique Maine Woods
Scarf: Echo

Short & Sweet

 Busy couple of days starting today, so i'll be terse - here's something new for you to look at anyways.

(if you want something to read, just scroll around the archives, there's plenty available.........once i start typing, i can't stop!)

Those turkeys (13!) had been 'cultivating' this spot a couple of days before and i had a devil of a time keeping my balance. The air was mighty blue by the end of this shoot....

Blouse: own pattern, inspired by Style Underdog
Skirt: own design, inspired by The Hidden Seed
Petticoat: own design
Socks: Little Miss Matched
Earrings: Liliswan on etsy
Necklace: gift (the chain on the rose necklace is very delicate - for this look i wore it entwined with a gold rope chain for a different look)
Shoes: archaeologically ancient Maine Woods
Hat: The Berkeley Hat Company

The People Who Open Your Eyes

I threw a tantrum on the blog a couple of weeks ago.  (Just so you know, i'll do my best to limit them to an annual occurrence). I was feeling crappy, sure, but the main reason i was so mad was because i couldn't find Luis Baptista on the web.  It frustrated me now end, and bothered me all nite. Luckily, i found him on my first search the next morning.

 Who the heck is Luis Baptista? Dr. Baptista was a bird scientist who made wonderful discoveries about how birds learn their songs, how birdsong is like human music, how the songs vary geographically. Which is wonderful enough....but Dr. Baptista didn't stop there.  He was known for haunting Golden Gate Park, watching and feeding birds at all hours, and engaging any people who stopped by.  He pointed out different types of birds, knew many birds personally, could and did imitate the dozens of different white crowned sparrow neighborhood songs for scientists, children, birdwatchers, and the occasional TV reporter.  He discovered all types of wonderful things about birds but he never kept them to himself.  He constantly shared his discoveries and enthusiasm with others.  Here he is talking about a lady white crowned sparrow of his acquaintance:

"''This is where a white crowned sparrow I used to know once lived,'' Dr. Baptista said, pointing to an ornamental African aloe tree. ''She was very dominant to her husband, whom she beat up on all the time. However, one day, she divorced him, moved to a different tree a few hundred feet away and married another guy who then beat up on her. I couldn't understand what she saw in him. But they raised more white crowned babies than anyone else in the park. She must have realized there was something special about the new guy, in terms of evolution.''" 
 from A Conversation With Luis F. Baptista; 'Revolutionary Etude,' Rendered by a Wren by Claudia Dreifus, The New York Times, May 16, 2000

 Dr. Baptista died at age 59 in June, 2000. He was tending a barn owl who'd decided to roost at his home in Sebastapol when he collapsed.  I never got to meet him.  But i've known other generous birders. Dr. Bill studied the Wilson's Warblers at Jewel Lake. He always beat me there, no matter how early it got going, and was easy to spot with his hand-held parabolic dish, tape recorder, and earphones. He taught me to identify kinglets, and told me so much about how to spot orange crowned warbler nests that i was able to point a nest out to my husband before i'd ever seen one myself.





orange crowned warbler on nest by robbbinestridge. visit robbinestridge's flickr photostream to see more of robbin's wonderful photographs

Some birders just tally up the birds they've seen, competing with others for huge life or year lists.  You can't help but be amazed by their skill and dedication.  But you can't learn anything from them - they don't share. How to tell a Bufflehead from a Goldeneye by how the way they land in a pond, or a Sharpie from a Cooper's hawk by wing beats, where's the best places to see a Least Tern - they keep it all to themselves.  But other people open your eyes to a whole new world. Suddenly you divide your neighborhood up into towhee territories, and you can tell if a mockingbird is squawking about a cat or a hawk by call alone. You take your mom to a spot in the bug-ridden, swampy brush and say, 'Okay. Within ten minutes a Swainson's Thrush will show up there, worm in mouth.'  About seven minutes later, bird and bug appear.  Mom is amazed.

Some people are amazing. Some people show others amazing things. Other people show you how you can be amazing, too. Those last people are the ones who knock my socks off, the people who change how you see the world around you and even how you see yourself.  For me, that's the big difference between traditional 'style media' and bloggers. Vogue, etc. are full of pretty illusions and lovely pictures - but half the time they don't even reference the makeup or accessories in a shoot (not that the average person could afford it). 

 But bloggers!  Every item is lovingly sourced. Sheila shows you how to pin, use belts as bracelets, layer, and double up your stockings so you can incorporate these ideas into your own great looks. She also answers every single reader question.  And Sheila is far from alone in her generosity.  Academichic has a great variety of series on color theory, proportion, layering, and pattern mixing (among others). They go way beyond 'Here's a cute outfit, mow try to copy it' - they give you the concepts you can use to create your own original looks. V of Grit and Glamour just did a reader survey and came up with some very interesting results on what reader's look for and appreciate in style blogs.  Did she just keep all that juicy information to herself, so she could stomp on the competition? No! She went to the trouble to analyze it, summarize it, and publish it all on the web so everyone who wanted to could read it and benefit from all of her work and thought.

on edit: And of course Mrs. Underdog has been incredibly generous in providing me with information on clothing details. In addition to scoping out some truly hardcore jewelry resources previously unknown to us mere plebes.

I could go on and on. I'm sure all of you have been stunned at the generosity of style bloggers, not just with one-off or trifling questions, but with the effort they will put into big projects addressing key concepts and style secrets. I haven't seen any 'Here's my trademark recipe (except i secretly left out the key ingredient)' around this part of the web.


So today, if you have a minute, think about the people in your life who've opened your eyes. If they're still around, let them know you appreciate them! And if you're feeling particularly bold, allow yourself to contemplate how you might open someone else's eyes.....


Blouse: Merona at Target
Skirt: own design, inspired by The Hidden Seed


p.s. as many of you know, i take my own pics using a camera with a timer.  the bouch showed up for this shoot, and posed patiently while i walked back and forth to the camera, setting the timer for each of six shots....i especially like the one where we are both lying down. very Isadora Duncan. it's fun to have someone to photograph besides myself!

Can Clothes Be Too Comfortable?

Everyone loves comfortable clothes. But can clothes be TOO comfortable?  In fact, most of my readers (except mom : ) will agree that today's emphasis on comfort above all else isn't doing much for the looks of the public at large.  But i'm not talking about dressing for comfort alone in bagged out, stained and faded sweats and cracked Crocs. I'm talking about clothes that look stylish, flattering and appropriate. They just feel much more soft, unconfining, and unconstricting than those we are used to wearing.

I wore this outfit without the jacket (with the belt) for most of the day.  I liked the look - a long column of grey with textural details at hem and neckline, waist defined in the middle - but it just felt like i was wearing pajamas or a floppy nightgown all day. It never felt like i actually 'got dressed', though i was demonstrably not naked. It was all just too floppy and 'comfy'. There's no way i would have worn this outfit without the jacket out of the house. I just couldn't convince myself i was actually 'dressed', no matter what i saw in the mirror.

I tried to figure it out.  I know that i tend towards a degree of structure in my clothes - woven materials, leather belts, waist and shoulder definition, stiff-brimmed hats and skirts with bulk.  I was born in 1962 and graduated high school in 1980, and i've seen many purely technological changes in clothing materials since then. I cast back to what clothes were like growing up - the only knits were bulky polyester double knits (which i think i never wore, i found them that hideous from the beginning) or stiff, scratchy men's underwear (tee shirts and waffleweave long johns).  No fabrics approached the sheer buttery deliciousness of today's rayon/lycra blends, for example, until i was in my late twenties.  The only fabrics which had that wonderful soft, smooth feel were my flannel nightgowns that i wore until the shoulders busted through.

the fairy thorn bush along the walking trail by our house

Well, i never thought my outfit blog would take such a Freudian turn!  But what do you think? Can clothes be TOO comfortable, just on feel alone? Or is this another of my personal eccentricities?

Top: Aeropostale (from the Petaluma Outlet store)
Skirt: own design
Jacket: Issey Miyake for Vogue Patterns
Shoes: Dansko Marcelle

sapsucker holes on the fairy thorn bush. sapsucker drill holes in this characteristic pattern of lines, which is a good thing - sapsuckers are notoriously shy birds and otherwise i'd never know they are around! this tree is covered in sapsucker holes, with fresh ones all the time. but i've only seen the sapsucker once.

A Quiet Day

 I was trying to call our local turkeys in this pic. We have a group of a baker's dozen scratching up and down the road, leaving cultivated areas in their wake. I've had the most fun watching them settle down to roost at nite, about 18-20' tall in a grove of eucalyptus up the street. Apparently they have a lot to take care of last thing!  Maybe they also believe in the old axiom, 'Don't go to bed mad'. It's fun to listen to the ruckus and watch those big birds flopping around in the branches.

 Well, i've never had much luck calling birds, and i didn't have any this nite, either - this turkey feather is a present from my brother and husband. Talking to critters is more Mr. E's department - he has a wonderful voice, i love to listen to him sing, and animals always come when he talks to them (mostly about the prospect of feeding them. It's not all talk, either).

I was having a 'blah' day, partly because of the migraine cluster i was going through. Now that i'm having less periods, i'm having migraines only 2-3 times a year - hooray! I thought i didn't show it much, but when i looked at the pics i took i could see it on my face. Thankfully, the headaches are on the wane. And the blog helped, too - i didn't need to think about this outfit, just switched the ivory tunic for black, and bob's your uncle. The idea of using an outfit blog as a 'dressing resource' was part of my original motivation for this blog, but i've only begun using this blog that way very recently.  Do any of you find yourselves using your blog this way?

Making the small switch from the previous look to this one, it was brought home to me again that color has such an impact! The ivory look is so ethereal, but this one seems so earthy to me.  I was also tickled at the 'turkey influence' on this outfit.  The colors, the patterns, the 'fancy tail feathers', even the naja, created by the southwestern native peoples.

So if anyone asks what you did this weekend, you can respond, 'I read this lady's blog who dresses like a turkey'.  Have a great weekend, everybody!

Tunic: Converse One Star for Target
Skirt: own design, inspired by The Hidden Seed
Petticoat: own design, inspired by Alisa Burke
Belt: Betsey Johnson
Earrings: very very old (Madonna had just hit the scene!)
Necklaces: own design
Naja: Gathering Tribes

Be Still My Heart.....

I'm on someone's blogroll!  It's the first i've run across.  Thank you Kelly!

There's a bit of kismet to this - i posted my first blog post on The Dashing Eccentric, then of course called my mom.  Both of my folks are MUCH more computer savvy than i, and i was finally doing 'a computer thing' before mom had. Mom navigated to my page, and said, 'Oh, you have a comment!'  I just about fell off my chair - i hadn't told a soul, and i know how long it takes any blog to get traffic.  It was Kelly, who'd followed me over from the comments at Already Pretty.  That was quick!  Have a great Friday Kelly and everybody else!

I Been Holdin' Out On You All!

I been holdin' out on you all!  I was immediately taken with this silk blouse, worn as a vest, on Style Underdog a couple of months ago. I love Bev's style - it's the style i aspire to when i grow up.  (I'm pretty sure i'm older than Ms. Underdog, but she has kids and i don't. On the other hand, we do both have husbands, and.....hmm. In case mine reads this, best to stop now!)  I kept my eye out for suitable fabric, pounced on this coral peacock cotton lawn the minute i had cash in hand, and got to work.  I finished the blouse a couple of weeks ago and have worn it happily a few times since - but no blog pictures until now!!  Bad, bad blogger!

I wore this outfit for a day of dental fillings and errands (after a nap - that medicine just knocked me out!)

I got a little cotton lawn blouse at Target a few months ago, and it's reminded me of how much i love blouses, and how useful they are in my wardrobe. A flattering blouse brightens your face and can make a whole outfit - all the rest, the hair, makeup, jewelry, etc. can be simple while the style of the blouse kicks everything up a level.  It also provides a 'finish' that i generally rely on a jacket to provide.  But even a lightweight jacket can be too hot or fussy on some days, so a blouse fits the bill.

I had some really beautiful blouses in my early twenties that i made myself.  But when we opened trade with China, the wonderful cottons and silks from Egypt, Italy, and France were no longer 'working' from the finanacial angle.  Chinese fabrics, while nowhere as nice, were much much cheaper. Home apparel sewing fell out of fashion for a while there as well, and it was next to impossible to find any nice blouse fabrics.  Jackets, skirts, and pants can all be 'pulled off' when using quilting or decorating fabrics....but nice cotton blouses really only blossom when made of specific fabrics intended for that purpose.

 Thankfully, the past couple of years, and even more so this season, manufacturers are responding to the increasing popularity of home apparel sewing by producing some gorgeous blouse materials. I 

found this out by talking to the lady who helped me at Stone Mountain and Daughter when i was buying this fabric.I had noticed the difference in what was available, and i was very excited to learn manufacturers are focusing more on products for home apparel sewing. I guess it turns out i owe something of my style to Project Runway!

This pose reminded me so much of Sal at Already Pretty that i had to throw it in. The outfit with the capris was just a knocking around the house kind of day. I've had the sweater for years and loved the color and texture too much to throw it out, yet i never wore it. Then, i ran across a blogger (unfortunately i've forgotten who) who made a cardigan by just slicing up the front of a pullover.  I did the same thing and ta-da! I wear it open or belted, it's a lot of fun either way and nice and warm in the chilly days of winter.....if we ever have winter again.

So, my fellow bloggers, what are YOU holding out on us?

Blouse: own pattern, inspired by Style Underdog
Skirt: own design, inspired by some girls wander
Petticoat, Jacket, Ribbon Flower: own design
Earrings: liliswan on etsy
Necklace: Tail of the Yak, Berkeley, CA
Shoes: Ancient Maine Woods

sorry about the weird spaces - they've improved blogger again and it takes me a while to adjust....