I think I said this before, but my coat game went to a whole different level once I started thrifting extensively. Coats are pricey at retail, so I never used to have more than a few. With thrifting, it’s easy to find many different styles for under $30 a piece, so I have been slowly accumulating a very (ahem) large collection. In my defence, in Edmonton, one definitely needs 4 season’s worth of coats. Not in my defence, I probably have enough for 8. And yet, I keep buying more. But also, how could I resist this Elena Wong number? It’s so unique and fun. I paid $13. It’s the perfect weight for transitional/early fall weather, and the colours are also perfect for this season.
Forever Mad For Plaid
I love how the traditional plaid of this vintage Saint Laurent skirt mixes with the more avante-garde plaid of the Clover Canyon top. It’s giving me some Alexander McQueen vibes. Just a fun fall outfit.
When Avatars Unite
I feel like this is a mix of the Artist and the High Priestess avatars in colour palette and silhouette, and I am quite pleased with the overall effect. It’s one of those outfits that doesn’t meet any of the traditional “figure flattery” check points, but I appreciate as a kind of abstract art installation — because it’s visually interesting and has intriguing movement and angles. I was reminded recently of how amazing Michele Lamy’s style is, and I am inspired to double down on doing a (very watered down!) version of her “marching to one’s own drumbeat” thing going on.
Monochrome Sublime
I really wanted to call this Monochrome Epitome but English is a weird language and those two words don’t rhyme. Anyway, this outfit is one of my favourite new ways of doing black-and-white — this Lida Baday dress is a trompe l’oeil delight. It has some medieval allusions with the heavier jacquard-like faux overlay and the ruched black fabric insert. Layered over black culottes, it looks almost like I’m wearing a fun coat. Because the dress is a bit of a shorter length that I prefer these days, I am looking at clever ways of layering it over longer pieces.
Rather than talk about all of the things I bought recently — since we don’t have all day — I thought I would focus on recent vintage finds. I mentioned in my last post that I am much more interested lately in vintage than ever before. Part of that has to do with quality, certainly, but mostly it has to do with the fact that I finally know what to look for.
In the past, I felt a bit overwhelmed by vintage. I don’t have a “vintage” aesthetic per se (think, say, 70s California girl or 60s Mad Men bombshell, etc.) so I used to worry about feeling costume-y whenever I wore vintage pieces. Basically, I didn’t really know how to wear vintage pieces my way, and not having them wear me. Now, I feel much more confident in knowing my own style, and knowing how to pick things that will work with my style and update it in way that still feel authentic to me.
(Sidebar: I feel like the last 5 years of intense thrifting have been great practice for this. When I used to shop at malls, I was much more prone to the influence of the manner in which retailers merchandized their clothing — the way it would be displayed, the way stores were laid out, the very content of their collections. It’s not a coincidence that 2010-2016ish were style eras strongly marked by various stores; I had a J. Crew era, an Anthro era, and so on. My style was basically synonymous with those corporate aesthetics. Going into a thrift store was a process of learning how to ignore external distractions. The first few years, I used to buy pretty indiscriminately — anything that was cute, caught my eye, etc. Eventually, over time, I learned to leave things behind. Cute things. Designer things. This is a critical stage in the life of the dedicated thrifter. These days, people sometimes wonder at the things I leave behind (when I posted my Spotted Not Thrifted stories), but it’s because I am much better at knowing when something, while great, won’t work for me.)
Anyway, back to vintage.
Here are some recent thrifted picks.
I love duster-style coats these days; they work well with the long-over-lean and columnar silhouettes that I love. This coat is vintage Le Chateau, likely from the late 90s. It’s not amazing quality or anything, but the cut is really really good. And it’s long! Perfect for a dramatic outfit.
In a similar vein, but higher quality, is this Ralph Lauren double breasted wool coat. It’s not as long as the Le Chateau one, but it’s longer than other similar styles I’ve seen (knee-length). I like that there is a bit of a military vibe, but not super pronounced; again, I can wear this without feeling costume-y (I don’t usually dabble in the military trend). [A button fell off and I need to sew it back on.]
This Escada blazer was an automatic buy because it’s 100% cashmere and I am a sucker for that. But I am also intrigued by its oversized/relaxed cut, which I think has a lot of potential for my Historian/Luxe Academician avatar.
In a more Bohemian vein, I could not resist this Algo cropped jacket. The cut is fabulous, the fit is fabulous, the print and colours are fabulous. What is not to love. I feel like this is a wonderful mid-winter piece (to wear indoors, of course) so I am biding my time.
Similar cut, but a more Prince-ly vibe, for this Louis Feraud velvet cropped jacket. It is truly stunning IRL — photos don’t do it justice. It fits like a glove. While my Prince avatar has evolved, I think this jacket has tons of potential for both the Crone and the Artist. I can’t wait to wear it.
This large ring (right, ring finger) is one of my favourite jewelry finds of the year. Value Village had it priced at $40 (!!) so you know I mean that … I would NEVER spend that much money on jewelry at a thrift store on sheer principle. Plus, I didn’t have my magnifying glass app with me, so I couldn’t even tell the brand; I just knew it was silver. Long story short, it’s a 1978 Lapponia ring designed by Poul Havgaard. For a lover of modernist jewelry, this is like hitting a jackpot — a wonderful piece of design history. Perhaps my favourite thing about it is its name: Isolation. How fitting. Honestly, photos don’t do it justice — it’s a ring I haven’t stopped wearing, and I love looking at it from different angles. It’s so unusual (and surprisingly comfortable to wear).
Lastly, I found something that made me decide to dress up for Halloween again:
As soon as I spotted this vintage Brian Bailey jacket, I simply knew what I had to be for Halloween this year. Stay tuned …
Apologies for the radio silence last week, I have been struggling lately. I was going to write something else (a vague covering statement) but eff that — let’s normalize acknowledging when we are not okay. I have also been working on being kinder to myself when I am struggling, and imposing less demands of the non-critical variety on myself when I am beyond peak capacity. That being said, I’m back to tell you about what I’ve been wearing. As you know, getting dressed is one of my favourite forms of self-expression, which is almost another way of saying self-care; you’ll know things are really really really bad when I don’t feel like dressing up.
Anywhoo, this outfit was one of my recent faves. I’ve been saving this skirt since … I can’t even remember (what is time?!), but at least several months. Its time has come! This is my preferred skirt silhouette these days (long column, like an elongated, relaxed pencil skirt fit) and I love the colour of this plaid. It’s a vintage-ish Tabi skirt, of all things. I’ve been buying more and more vintage than ever before, because I finally feel more confident about knowing my style; now, I know how to pick and choose vintage pieces that will fit into my aesthetic without overwhelming it and making me feel like I’m wearing a costume.
Plaid Szn, part 2
Oh boy, this MaxMara sweater! Such an impulse buy (Poshmark, of course) but one of the best. It does not have the aesthetic that I normally associate with this brand but this entire collection (called Chatmise, I believe) was actually incredible. This hits the sweet spot of my love for kitsch. And cats. I didn’t know it was a thing until I randomly ran across this sweater, but now I am actively hunting for a few other pieces from the collection.
Another great impulse buy (for which I blame my best friend who enabled me) are these beaded earrings from a local Edmonton artist. They were a splurge but so beautiful. And they have inspired me to get back into beading myself. I don’t use this technique of beading, but I want to explore how I can make more beaded jewelry myself using my own technique.
Something New
Gorman is a brand I recently discovered thanks to my amazing Aussie followers on IG. Of course, I fell in love with its amazing prints immediately, and proceeded to hunt down some on Poshmark. This dress was the first thing that jumped out at me — it reminded me of an old Marni runway dress that I have been lusting over for years. This is like a more wearable/everyday version of that. It has its own self-tie at the waist, but I decided to add my peplum belt for a bit of extra drama. My verdict on this dress: gorgeous print, fits true to size, material is meh (it’s organic cotton, kinda on the thinner side).
Grey Mist
This turned into one of my favourite outfits for this Saint Laurent blazer and this Rick Owens tunic; two statement pieces that were brought together with help from these palazzo-style pants. Who would have guessed that white pants would be so versatile? I love layering them under shorter dresses and tunics; the light colour makes outfits feel fresher and more unexpected. Of course, I have to be extra careful about spillage but … c’est la vie (fashion is work, hahaha!)
Back to Black (and White)
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve done a monochrome outfit (with a pop of red!) but I feel like it won’t be as long now that I found this incredible Kenzo top at a local consignment store. I loooove the trompe l’oeil bustier effect. So clever and so fun. I’m all about mixing prints (see above) so of course I had to pair it with another black and white graphic pattern, but I think it would also look killer with solid colours. Or jeans. Or … the possibilities are endless, really.
