LHR: Moving Day

Hello Readers!

Yes, I'm talking to all 5 of you. We're moving house. You can now find us over here (www.fashionisdanger.wordpress.com) at our new home which is still undergoing some renovations but hope you like it better.

See you on Wordpress!

LHR and YYZ

YYZ: Summer Lovin'

Today was the last day of the 2008-2009 school year.

Finally.

Hello, SUMMER!

Long meeting, followed by the always-lovely Garden Party (where I ate 4 fried shrimp and they were goooooooood!), then a series of errands, then haircut, then out for a date with my honey at the Royal Ontario Museum, then a stop in Kensington Market to pick up "Big Fat Burritos" (more on that in a future post...) = a very long day. 

My feet were tired and achy, but it was a good test for my shoes!  

A test that resulted in my buying a comfier pair....

I hate this dress: because it is cheap, it GROWS; by lunchtime it no longer fits and I just feel frumpy and wrinkled in it. 

But, once again, I needed to wear the shoes, so.....

Shoes: Liz Claiborne

Full-skirted shirt dress: Smart Set

Vintage brooch and belt: Mum and Grama, respectively

Shades: Ardene

YYZ: Dante's Inferno

I considered not posting this outfit, as it is not at all attractive or interesting, but then I remembered LHR giving me heck for not posting when I wore something blah. 

"This blog is about the good, the bad and the ugly," she said. 

Or something like that. 

So, although LHR is not posting 

AT ALL, 

I have been brow-beaten into posting anyway.  

Ahem.

Today, I sat in the world's most boring meetings (hence the nod to Dante) all day, 

so I needed to be comfy.

 I also needed to wear these shoes again. 

I remembered these trousers and thought they might work (right length) with the shoes. 

The rest of the look had to tie in the black and gold of the shoes, thus the gold accessories.

The best part of the outfit is the Paris reference in the earrings which I wore because I had to wear gold to go with the shoes I am working in for Paris.

It is totally hokey to wear Paris earrings, I realize, but these are sooooo tiny that only I know I am wearing them, as they are hidden by my hair. 

I love their teeniness and their delicate little scraps of silk ribbon. 

As I say, aside from the sweet earrings, I do not like the outfit; I did not feel good in it. 

But, it's a blah, rainy day so this blah outfit is, actually, perfectly appropriate.

Shoes:  Liz Claiborne

Trousers & Cuff:  H&M

Belt: Ardene

T-shirt: Smart Set

Cardigan: (because it's freezing!) Jacob

Earrings: Anthropologie 

(a gift from my mummy! Thanks, Mum!)

YYZ: It's Raining, It's Pouring...

...but these are my new shoes for Paris and I need to work them in and I am not allowed to wear jeans 

(the only cozy thing with which I could wear them) 

to work..... 

So, I had to wear the outfit I planned last night, even though the weather today called for something snugglier. 

Working these shoes in is critical, as we are at P-minus-10-days at the moment.

Staff meeting this morning in chilly cafeteria, grade group meeting, Staff Appreciation Lunch, then our departmental get-together at my boss' gorgeous Rosedale mansion called for something girly, but with a layer for warmth. 

Plus, I just really wanted to wear this, my new favourite dress. 

Which cost me all of 

NINE DOLLARS AND NINETY CENTS!  

Yeah, baby.

I felt cute all day in this outfit. 

(So please don't disabuse me if I am wrong!)

I am hoping that these shoes will work out for Paris; they are a bit loosey-goosey because there is no support in the heel area. 

But I luuuuuuuuuurrrrrve them 

(despite their gold accent-- not usually my thang...), 

so I will work hard over the next ten days to make them comfortable. 

Shoes: Liz Claiborne, on sale for $35 at The Shoe Company

Dress: H&M 

(Did I mention that it cost NINE DOLLARS & NINETY CENTS?!)

Shrug: Smart Set

Cuff: H&M

Earrings: Meg

YYZ: Pomp & Circumstance

Graduation ceremony today. 

Which required the wearing of something suitably formal, but also cool: we wear academic robes (with a heavy polyester component!) and hoods and sit inside a huge plastic tent on plastic chairs for three very long hours. 

No one sees our clothes, so we COULD just wear our 'jammies, but for some reason, we wear appropriately graduation-y clothes. 

The latter need to be cool enough to keep us from expiring in the suffocating and claustrophobic environment, so I try to wear a sundress so that I can take off my cardigan (a la Jennifer Beals, under my academic gown-- luckily NO ONE is looking at the teachers and I can do this unnoticed....).  

I also try to wear wedge heels, as they are better for walking across the grass than are stilettos.

The sunglasses are in case I get seated in a spot where the sun is shining in my eyes, under the sides of the tent.  

Also, one could have a snooze behind her glasses if she wanted ... I have never done so, but I know several of my colleagues wear sunnies for just that purpose!

Shoes: Target

Dress: Gap 

(It stretched oddly in the wash-- I am NOT amused by the poochy thing it is now doing as a result. Will dry it in the dryer next time to see if that helps...)

Shrug: Smart Set

Cuff: H&M

Earrings & Shades: Ardene

Purse: Suzy Shier

YYZ: The Least Wonderful Day of the Year

Exam Take-Up Day. 

(Interestingly,-- well, okay, I think it's interesting!-- as part of my CBC habit, I was listening to Rex Murphy talking about linguistics and it turns out that "taking up a test/exam" is an Ontario thing. People in other parts of the country, apparently, do not know what that means. Rex certainly didn't. It means, in case you are in the dark with Rex {THERE'S a thought!} to go over the test with the class and to find out what the right answers were.)

Anyway, Exam Take-Up Day is not my favourite day. Thus, I needed to be comfortable. 

The outfit I ended up in was cobbled together at the last second because the one I had planned involved the same trousers, shoes and belt, but the top I had chosen was too short and just looked wrong.

This is not my favourite outfit (appropriate, then, that I wore it on not-my-favourite-day), but it got me through the Exam Take-Up portion of the festivities as well as a marathon 3 1/2 hour sewing club final session in the afternoon.

Shoes: 9 West

Trousers & long silk shirt: H&M

T-shirt: Smart Set

Belt: Um, Winners? 

Earrings: Sirens

YYZ: Hippy-Hippie Shake

Running errands on a Sunday. 

Love these jeans and liked this top when I bought it, but have since changed my mind... 

Sadly, I had removed the tags prior to deciding that the top is unflattering. 

Oh, well-- it works for a run to the garden centre.

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU, Jackie O: giant sunglasses make going out wearing no more make-up than just a slick of lipgloss much more glamourous than it would otherwise be.

Also, they take a bit of the hippie out of this outfit (though they can't take the hippy out of it!).

Glasses: Ardene (2 fer $5!)

Top: Jacob

Jeans: Macy's, Boston (no idea what brand)

Shoes: DSW, San Francisco (the very best DSW ever!)

Cuff: H&M

YYZ: Working for the Weekend

On Friday, we had our inaugural back yard BBQ and the weather cooperated by being just warm enough. These two lovelies showed up looking summery and fresh.

I admire the style of both these women. 

G has two of the most amazing collections and I am green with envy about both of them: she has stunning necklaces and she also has the most interesting, versatile and chic t-shirts I have ever seen. The necklace thing I get: G is a Brit and there are so many cool sources of funky, artisanal jewelry in the UK that it only makes sense that she has so many great pieces. Necklaces are her signature and they always make a statement. The other collection is more mystifying to me. G's tops are incredible because they are a magical combination of simple and clean-lined but they always feature some really great detail like the incredible pleating around the neckline of the one she is wearing above. Every time I ask her where her wonderful top is from, she invariably says, "Oh, I got it at Target," or, "It's a Mossimo," or something similar. In other words, she has a knack for finding the cutest tops (I am completely unskilled in this area) but she does not get them anywhere mysterious at all. She just has an eye for spotting the truly cool t-shirt.... Again, this skill means that G is always truly effortlessly stylish.

[Aside: one day, I promise to get a photo of G's turquoise silk pumps. To. Die. For.]

I also admire J's style. She has a ton of cool vintage stuff and is the queen of shopping at thrift stores and turning up designer gems. The outfit above is typical of her polished, put-together look. Her clothes always have a great story behind them (J, I never did get the story of that sweet dress!); the shoes she is wearing above are very cool and, of course, she got them at some crazy sale of Italian footwear. They are so unusual and interesting and they just really work well with the dress, I think. From what I can tell, J's mum taught her to be stylish and to love beautiful, well-made things. J and I share a birthday and, weirdly, we also both love old stuff, particularly fashion and homewares. We love the history and the craftsmanship. I love that J finds ways to work amazing vintage pieces into pretty much every single outfit I have ever seen her wear in the three years I've known her.

What I admire about these women's approach to fashion is that neither is a slave to fashion, but they are among the most stylish people I know. Their styles, while very different from each other, are confident and suit their personalities completely. I think that is the key to being chic: be confident and know who you are. 

I always feel like I am trying way too hard, but these girls always look effortlessly great.

Blank-ing Blogger cuts off the right-hand side of the photo.

 AGAIN. 

Grr.

YYZ: Longing for a Time Machine. Again.

If I were The Doctor's Companion (a dream of mine, as you know-- well, okay, only if The Doctor were still David Tennant. But seriously, if they picked Catherine Tate, why not me? I'm not as funny as she is--no one is!-- but still....Le sigh.)... anyway, if I were The Doctor's Companion, I would insist that the TARDIS take us to 1950s Earth. 

Because, of course, of the clothes. 

In my teens, I was all about the mid-60s:  does anyone remember my white lipstick phase? My black cigarette pants? Or the fantastic pink ones with the amazing little floral blouse, both of which I purchased for a total of $6.00 in a general store somewhere near Minden while on a day off  work with my visiting dad? 

(They still had their original price tags on them from the 60s-- the pants were $3.00 and the top was $1.47 or something crazy. WHY did I get rid of them???)

Anyway, now that I am une femme d'un certaine age, I prefer the looks of the 50s and all their accompanying structure (and their longer skirts-- I do not have LHR's legs!). I was always a fan of the big, crinoline-filled skirts and tiny waists, but it is only recently, in viewing old footage & new on youtube that I realize that, in part, the secret to those tiny waists WAS the crinoline! (The other part of the secret was, of course, the armour-like undergarments. Oh, I long for the days of corsetry and girdles, girls!)

 I also love the wiggle dress and can't believe I ever got rid of the black and orange silk one I used to wear under a gigantic, black men's sweater.... Oh, dear.

Two more (the final two) of my vintage 50s sewing patterns arrived on Friday, care of my wonderful Pattern Mule (who is not amused when girly-looking packages arrive on his desk at work-- the mailroom is beginning to wonder about him...).  I had forgotten there were still two to come; I had thought there was only one more, so I was delighted to see two!  I had, upon ordering the patterns, grand designs to mix and match bodices and skirts, but I will first have to make each dress on its own to be sure I  know what I am doing. 

This time, I will make notes about any alterations I make. 

One of the patterns is not a printed pattern. This means that, instead of nice, easy-to-follow printed outlines of each pattern piece, there is a complicated series of holes punched in the paper and I will have to learn to read those holes before I do anything else. Thankfully, the kind woman who sold me the pattern also sent me a link to some instructions for using unprinted patterns. 

Still, it's all a bit nerve-wracking.

I will, of course, post about the process, but in the meantime, enjoy

 (despite the malapostrophication in "1950's"--- WHY do people DO that? ) 

this little number I found in the sidebar over at Queens of Vintage.

YYZ: Eating my Words

Pretty much immediately following my (contentious and controversial) diatribe against the public wearing of sweats, what do I encounter on one of my favourite French blogs? See below for English translation of the funky and glamourous  and Parisienne (!) Garance Dore's blog entry about SWEATPANTS.  

dIy dAy !

It all started because of my Marant jogging pants which have now become an international catastrophe. From Paris to New York, seven hours on Air France’s seat 456A stuck between two babies slobbering all over me, I still haven’t taken them off, and all my friends are saying I look cooler than cool and so I’m really never going to take them off.  I’m blissful in my comfort and the cool attitude that comes with ‘em.  And what was my life goal?  Be cool, not a fool!

This was a miracle that I just needed to keep on giving, and then the most ingenious idea popped into my head one morning.  Without a second wasted, not at all awake yet, on the way to go get a coffee, I took a quick detour into AmApp where I found the perfect grey jogging pants, nice and tight.  Then I got back home in double time and right in front of the aghast faces of Scott and Tracy, I cut my new pants right straight across, just above the knee, no pomp and circumstance.

I cuffed ‘em, and right away tossed on a pair of orange heels, a stripped t-shirt, a blazer and waited for my thunderous applause, arms up in the air with a V for victory.

30 seconds flat.  My coffee was still hot.

And then I was off to do my own parade of “I’m the greatest” : I went to the Alexander Wang resort show where Kate told me that I was supercuuute in my sweatpants, and I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw that Alex had anticipated me doing this and copied me ahead of time.  A few days later, Tracy, who had asked beforehand for authorization to copy the idea in due form (I gave her the green light with pride), she arrived with what she was calling the G-sweatpants, a pair of heals and a checkered shirt.

This was too much: I was struck by the most furious lighting strike of pride.  The same way Gaultier must have felt when he saw his cone-shaped bras,  even if it was out there, for God’s sake, it worked!

I know.  In a few months, I’ll wonder what possessed me to wear these.  They’ll become part of my collection of pajamas to be ashamed of, the ones you only wear on Sundays to go get magazines you’re ashamed to be reading with a hairstyle sticking up every which way that you’re ashamed to have.  In the meantime, and already now, I beseech you, I give you all the green light to go out and copy.  And don’t just say “Merci,” noooon.  Say: Merci G!

Apparently the look is already catching on in NYC, where Garance committed her act of sweatpant audacity. The cute-as-a-twenty-something-button Jessica Schroeder posted the blurb below on her blog, What I Wore.

On the Lookout:

What I Wore: I’m on the look out for a pair of chic heather gray sweatpants. On Tuesday, one of the Lucky Editors was wearing a pair with a black tee and black high heels. She was tres chic. I mean, tres tres chic. So I’m looking for something a little more harem than yoga pant. Any advice?

Right, so I have to go now--  even though Garance acknowledges that this whole phenomenon will only end in grief and shame, I have some words to eat. :) (And some age-appropriate experiments to do with my own American Apparel so-comfy-they-are-basically-pyjamas sweats...)

YYZ: Don't You Forget About Me

Today's post is about the shoot some colleagues and I were asked to do for the "clubs" page of this year's yearbook, the theme of which was Hollywood. One of the things the girls did was to re-create iconic movie posters (some from as far back as the 80s--talk about ANTIQUE!) using teachers as the subjects.  This is the one for which BMad, our pal T and I were tapped.

Initially, the girls had wanted to do a different pose, one involving leaning on lockers, but the four of us who are of Breakfast Club vintage convinced them that THIS

is the iconic pose and should be the one we recreated.

Talk about Simple Minds:

What is odd is that we were each chosen either for our persona (as perceived by teenaged girls) or for (as in my case and that of the Ally Sheedy stand-in, L) our hair colour/style. But the photo is in black and white, so you cannot see our hair colour or appreciate all the work we  put in to getting our costumes right. I was all worried because Molly Ringwald's skirt was actually a paisely wrap and I was in a brown suede A-line. I must say, the rest of  my outfit was PERFECT, as was everyone's.  When we all caught sight of each other in full costume, we burst out laughing because we were such total geeks about the whole procedure and had made sure to recreate our character's looks as closely as possible.

The girls were WILDLY impressed. 

Anyway, it is too bad that we are not in colour, because the only thing Molly and I share (other than our birth year) is hair colour; in the yearbook photo, I just look like an angry convict, rather than like someone pretending to be Ms. Ringwald.

Viewer discretion is advised: the following is a gratuitous youtube video, totally unnecessary for the content of this post, but included here for LHR's viewing pleasure.

LHR: Fashion in 2000 AD

A few weeks back, I attended the Stephen Jones Hat exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum. I plan on writing an entire post dedicated to that exhibit. (I bought a book so I have some content as cameras were not permitted).

At the exhibit, which was amazingly curated and artfully displayed, there were little snippets of the Fashion Television of the 1930s and 1940s. It was called Pathetone Weekly. I loved the old footage, the announcer with the voice (eat your heart out Jeanne Beker) and of course the hats. Then, by coincidence my sister-in-law, sent me this video from the same producer and vintage. I knew it was perfect for our YYZ-LHR. In fact, so did she that's why she sent it. Thanks J!.

This video takes the bold step and asks fashion designers back in the day what fashion will look like in 2000. Now that we are 9 years in to the naughties, what do you think? I love the cantilevered shoes. I also like the absurdity of a mesh top -- it'll never happen!

YYZ: Channeling Jordan Baker

Doesn't THIS look like fun?

If I am ever in the neighbourhood, I will be sure to be at the Governor's Island Jazz Age Lawn Party!

(more photos at The Sartorialist link in our sidebar, to the right.)

YYZ: Catatonic

So, after several MONTHS of not going to the Sufferin' Mall, last week I had to venture over in a) a fit of exam-marking procrastination,

b) search of a cheap white cardi-type item to take with me to Paris.

First stop? 

Well, of course it was my go-to source for cheap cardis: 

Smart Set.

IT WAS

  GONE.

You read correctly: 

GONE!

In fact, the entire mall has been made over into an ever-so-slightly upscale version of itself. Read: younger. 

Much younger. 

Even I , with my propensity for mutton-dressed-as-lamb, cheap mall fare, was shocked and stricken. 

What will I wear????

I am still in virtually catatonic mourning for my old pal, Smart Set.  

Hilariously (and disturbingly), several of the tackier stores seem to have proliferated in my absence. 

For example, there are now TWO Ardenes and a regular Costa Blanca, plus a SALE outlet Costa Blanca? 

Why do we need a sale outlet for a store that sells nothing costing more than $30?

 In a bizarre anti-recessionary twist, I also noticed that all the great sale racks 

(for instance, the Le Chateau sale accessories section, home of the $3 belt and $2 earrings) have disappeared.

I may have to start shopping and dressing like a grown-up, Interweb. 

I am not sure I am ready for all this responsibility.

YYZ: A Dress So Nice I made It TWICE!

My friend S turned 30 on Saturday. 

She planned and organized a fun party, complete with live band. 

I planned and organized 

(not very well, as it turns out) 

a new/old dress.

This is the second dress I have made from one of my vintage patterns; 

this time I made it with the circle skirt, in some lovely oldey-timey fabric my wonderful mum bought for me.

I forgot, however, that the first time I made the dress, I altered the bodice because those 50s girls were wearing armour-style underwear that gave them 

TEENY waists 

and 

ENORMOUS boobs, 

proportions that are completely reversed on me.

The dress turned out great. 

The zipper, if I say so myself, looked completely professional, 

as did the lining in the bodice 

(the fabric is very fine and sheer, so I had to line the bodice-- essentially, that meant sewing the bodice twice).

I tried it on.

The boob section was ENORMOUS. 

I had to do it all over again. 

Luckily, my clever mum pointed out that I had plenty of fabric, so rather than taking apart the bodice, I could just make  new one. 

Which I did.

But not before I very very very carefully removed the first one from the skirt-- delicate fabric made for dicey work!

I reattached the new bodice, but the zipper doesn't look 1/100th as good as the first version did. 

Of course.

Now all I need is a fabulous crinoline to really make this dress work! 

(and to make my waist look smaller!)

Here I am, on my way out to S's Birthday Bash:

Dress: Vintage Butterick Pattern

Belt: Grama

Earrings: Meg

Cuff: H&M

 Shoes: (surprise!) 9 West

Clutch: Danier

Thanks, Mum!

LHR: Think Pink

A few weeks back J and I went to a Cowboy-themed party. It was so themed because a friend of mine was moving to Austin, Texas. Thus the theme. I had a hat but had to visit the local Oxfam for the rest of the outfit. My goal was to find a shirt that worked for the cowgirl look. I succeeded and in fact I kept that shirt and gave it a whirl yesterday for my Think Pink Look.

Once again, this outfit (similar to Seasons in the Sun) consists of nothing new except my tank top (vintage 2009). The rest of the get-up spans back a number of summers. I find with summer clothes that I'm rarely true to trends as I have a real issue purging. You'll notice that in my outfits over the next few weeks.

Here goes my Think Pink theme:

I love the pink racing stripe on the trousers.

Details:
Shirt: Pink Gingham Shirt (Oxfam, Dalston High Street, London)
Tank: White Tank (Forever21, New York)
Trousers: TBD, Queen Street West, Toronto (at least 6 years old)
Brooch: Vintage Flower Brooch -- again from the Gramma/Aunt Ruth Salon
Shoes: Silver Ballet Slippers, Venise, London
Ring: square silver band - can not remember where I got it.

YYZ: Test Anxiety

Another glamourous and soignee exam-marking look today.

(Note the evolving horror that is my bed-head... Stylin'!)

 This one involves a sports bra, a Joe Fresh $9 t-shirt and faux-yoga pants from Smart Set.   

I also went for a walk this morning, thus the multi-purpose get-up.

Which brings me to the IMPORTANT topic of sweats and yoga wear. 

These items, as is cleverly denoted in their monikers, are to be worn in public 

ONLY 

for sweating and/or doing yoga 

(or otherwise exercising).

(What we do at home in them is our own business, right?)

The following is a list of inappropriate public places or occasions for wearing sweats or yoga wear:

EVERYWHERE AND EVERYTHING ELSE.

If you are leaving the house, for purposes that are other than sweating or doing yoga, 

please wear proper clothes. 

NOT with flip-flops. 

Don't get me started on flip-flops.

Ever wonder why French women are known for their style and chicness?

Ever seen one out in public in sweats or flip-flops?

I rest my case.

I mean, really, ladies, let's all just have a little self-respect. 

LHR: These Boots Were Made For Walkin'

I am going to apologize for my poor photography right up front because this outfit and Emilie were smokin'. My shots just don't do it justice.

First off Emilie is French which explains how she easily paired a funky colourful dress, hip-slung belt and white cowboy boots. As you can see, she looked fabulous.



Emilie tells me that the dress was designed and sewn by a friend of hers. Now that makes it even more interesting. In particular, I love the combination of the streety dress and the cowboy boots with leopard skin detail on the boots. As YYZ often says the French just throw it together and make it work. Emilie is a perfect example of that style.

YYZ: Glamourati

Marking exams is, truly, glamourous work.

A word of caution:

this look only works when it involves paint-spattered sweats 

(acquired years ago in ill-advised 2-fer purchase at COSTCO. Ew.)

and, of course,

bed-head.

Not for the faint of heart, ladies.

LHR: Seasons in the Sun

Seasons in the Sun? Yes, all these babies have seen at least 2, 3 and in some cases 6 or more Seasons in the Sun.


The dress is extremely comfortable and acts as a perfect "throw it on quickly" number. I believe most of this outfit is from New York and as I'm off to New York this weekend, let's call it a tip to weekends in NYC past .

The dress was bought while on a girls weekend with Val and the Commerce 92 chix at least 6 years ago. I don't recall where it was bought it but I do remember there was matching thigh-length jacket that I left behind. I believe I felt the that the dress and jacket were too trendy to last more than a season or two. Little did I know that I would keep wearing the dress year in and year out quite comfortably.

The Details:
Earrings: Vintage (originally, from one of the Rodwell - Gramma or Aunt Ruth probably)
Dress: Baby Blue Line, NYC
Bracelet: Plastic Majong Bracelet, NYC Street Vendor
Shoes: Muxart Mules, London

YYZ:Gobsmacked!

This woman, whose blog is linked to this one, BOUGHT MY SHOES!

The NERVE.

I am gutted.

And beyond jealous.

Wear them well, Homerunballerina, you lucky, lucky girl.