Month: August 2016

Tales From the Thrift: Low Key Thrift

I was going to call this the “slim pickings” edition, but that might be a bit unfair. Even during a slow period, thrift stores can deliver. I haven’t come across any truly major finds in the last few weeks, but I still picked up quite a few fun pieces. And I spotted plenty more that didn’t quite make the cut.

Italian brand shoes
Italian brand shoes

Like, say, these Italian made shoes. Would have bought them in a heartbeat if they had been my size.

Cole Haan kitten heels
Cole Haan kitten heels

I almost bought these, but they were too similar to another pair I thrifted just before (see below).

vintage Ferragamo
vintage Ferragamo

Not all vintage Ferragamos are exciting.

mystery shoes?
mystery shoes?
Stuart Weitzman!
Stuart Weitzman!

The patent tortoiseshell looked familiar, but the previous owner of these shoes had added an insert which obscured the label. I turned them over out of curiosity and, sure enough, they were Stuart Weitzman. I love SW shoes and I love tortoishell, but these were sadly too small.

lucky size 8s!
lucky size 8s!

More cute shoes for the tinier of foot.

Ramon Tenza pumps
Ramon Tenza pumps

Very Dynasty-esque, non? These look too new to be vintage, but do people still make poofy pom-pom shoes in the 21st century?

John Lewis Collection pumps
John Lewis Collection pumps

Red pumps are always a good wardrobe addition. I don’t know much about John Lewis — UK peeps, care to weigh in? This pair was too small for me, but I’m sure they found a good home.

Rebecca Taylor dress
Rebecca Taylor dress

I think this was the first time I’ve seen Rebecca Taylor at a local thrift store, but it was sadly a few sizes too large. I thought about getting this for a friend, but I didn’t think it was special enough. The dark plum/black combo was a little blah.

eShakti dress
eShakti dress

My second spotted-not-thrifted eShakti dress. Too big for me, but very cute.

cute sweatshirt dress
cute sweatshirt dress

I so wish I was young enough or hip enough to wear this. How freaking cute is it?

Cinder+Smoke dress
Cinder+Smoke dress

This was another super adorable dress, which I *almost* got but ultimately decided to leave behind. The style was ok — not too twee, but my hesitation was two-fold. One, the fabric was a bit sheer (I would have needed to wear the dress with leggings) and two, it was pricey ($18). I hesitated, so I passed. See, I’m getting better.

Vince Camuto top
Vince Camuto top

I want to wear green more. I really do. I just don’t feel wowed when I put it on. Too bad, because this Vince Camuto top was pretty cute.

H&M T-shirt
H&M T-shirt

Another almost-buy. I would love to add a cool graphic tee to my closet, but this one was a little too worn and a little too expensive. ($10 for used H&M? No thanks.) I also felt like I’d be a bit of a fraud if I bought this — can’t say I’m particularly into the Ramones.

Pink Tartan jacket
Pink Tartan jacket

Oof, look at those sleeves! The rest of the jacket was super cute and fit great but, man, those mutton sleeves were rough.

Ted Baker shirt
Ted Baker shirt

I got excited for a minute when I spotted this Ted Baker men’s shirt, but quickly realized I’d never sell my husband on it. It had a lot more, ahem, flair than he’s looking for.

Ted Baker top
Ted Baker top

But don’t worry … I did manage to find a few keepers. Like this Ted Baker top for myself. Love the print, and I think I can dress it down enough to count as minimalist-adjacent.

Made in China, 100% polyester (and not the good kind of poly either — tsk tsk, Ted Baker).

Tabitha cropped blazer
Tabitha cropped blazer

This blazer was a great find — I’m very excited about its remixing possibilities.

Made in China, 53% linen + 47% cotton (100% acetate lining).

B. Makowsky bag
B. Makowsky bag

I rarely find good bags when I thrift, but this was an exception. Since I already have a burgundy bag I love, I picked this up for a friend.

Oscar (by Oscar de la Renta) pumps
Oscar (by Oscar de la Renta) pumps

Here are the black kitten heels I mentioned earlier. I like the chain detail — very witchy. I think they’re made in China, 100% leather.

Stuart Weitzman wedges
Stuart Weitzman wedges

I did end up finding a pair of tortoishell Stuart Weitzmans, and even though they’re peep toes, I’m pretty happy. They’ve proven to be quite comfy.

Made in Spain, 100% leather.

Suzi Chin for Maggy Boutique dress
Suzi Chin for Maggy Boutique dress

With this dress, I fell for the beautiful orchid purple colour and the draping. I think it looks better/more intentionally slouchy in real life. “Made in” tag is missing, but I assume China, 95% polyester + 5% spandex.

Maggy London dress
Maggy London dress

Impulse buy. I like the other Maggy London dress I bought recently, so I thought I’d take a chance on this one. Made in Sri Lanka, 97% cotton + 3% spandex (lace overlay is 100% nylon, lining is 100% acetate).

Eliza J dress
Eliza J dress

I had every intention of leaving this dress behind, until I tried it on. The fabric is *so* soft, comfortable and figure-flattering — it’s like wearing pyjamas in dress form. It probably won’t be a closet staple for me, but it’s the sort of dress I can see coming in handy during certain times of the month, ahem.

Made in China, 95% polyester + 5% spandex (100% poly lining).

IMG_7274

This was utterly ridiculous, and for $10, I had to have it. No regrets. Made in Indonesia, 100% polyester.

My Summer Vacation, Part 1

Canmore, Alberta
Canmore, Alberta

It was a long time coming this year, but because July was such a hectic month for me, work-wise, our annual family vacation was very much an impromptu affair. For the first part of it, we went to Calgary to visit family for an extra long weekend, and used the opportunity to see a few sights along the way, including Canmore and Drumheller.

I’m not kidding about the lack of planning involved, and that includes my packing. I didn’t get around to it until the night before we left (at 8 am in the morning), and I didn’t have a lot of time to think about it. For probably undoubtedly the first time in my life, I under-packed — underestimating how long (and dirty) days on the road with the kids can be. A few extra outfit changes would have come in handy, and not for any style-related reasons. Luckily, inspired by my minimalist experiment (which finds its fullest expression in my casual wear), I ended up packing mostly dark, easily interchangeably pieces.

day 1
day 1
Jacket, J. Crew (via consignment); top, J. Crew Factory; pants, Pilcro (thrifted); shoes, Kelsi Dagger (thrifted); bag, MbMJ
Jacket, J. Crew (via consignment); top, J. Crew Factory; pants, Pilcro (thrifted); shoes, Kelsi Dagger (thrifted); bag, MbMJ

For the record, here’s what I packed: 3 tops, 2 pairs of pants, 1 sweater, 3 jackets — because the weather was forecast to be erratic — and 2 pairs of shoes. I also packed a maxi dress, but then forgot to pack sandals, which ruled it out as a wearable option. Oops.

day 2
day 2
Jacket, Joe Fresh (thrifted); sweater, Joe Fresh; pants, Joe's Jeans; scarf, 14th & Union (thrifted)
Jacket, Joe Fresh (thrifted); sweater, Joe Fresh; pants, Joe’s Jeans; scarf, 14th & Union (thrifted)

I don’t have a photo of my outfit from day 3, but it involved a striped top, the same black pants as Day 2, the olive jacket from Day 4, and my trusty Chucks. That day happened to be my birthday, and we spent it in the mountains, enjoying the sunshine, beautiful scenery, and some seriously amazing fudge (see below).

day 4
day 4
Jacket, Club Monaco (thrifted); top, Gap (thrifted); pants, Pilcro; hat, Aritzia
Jacket, Club Monaco (thrifted); top, Gap (thrifted); pants, Pilcro; hat, Aritzia

Here’s a picture of my birthday fudge — simply delicious. I’m already planning my return to Canmore, to stock up.

the best fudge in the world
the best fudge in the world

Of course, I did a little thrifting:

Cartonnier blazer // Helmut Lang dress
Cartonnier blazer // Helmut Lang dress
Tory Burch "skylar" flats
Tory Burch “skylar” flats

The Calgary thrift stores I was able to check out had decent selection, but the prices were slightly-to-significantly higher. Unexpectedly, Goodwill (rather than VV) was the biggest culprit in that respect. I also dropped into Vespucci (consignment) but was disappointed once again by the prices. I was somewhat surprised by that experience; a while ago, the newspapers were full of reports of Calgary c-stores brimming with hugely discounted designer goods as a result of the recession. Clearly, bargains are relative.

On our way back to Edmonton, we made a detour to Drumheller to visit the dinosaur fossils and exhibits at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The drive there was unexciting, to put it as diplomatically as I can — most of it crossed the flatest of flat lands I have ever seen. We did enjoy taking in the sights in Drumheller, and especially the museum. We’re planning to go back once the kids are a bit older and have more stamina (and appetite) for a good hike around the “badlands”.

Royal Tyrrell museum
Royal Tyrrell museum
Stegosaurus!
Stegosaurus!
b-b-b-bones
b-b-b-bones
the mammoth and his friends
the mammoth and his friends
the badlands (Drumheller)
the badlands (Drumheller)

Part two of my summer vacation was more of a staycation, but I did use the opportunity to continue my experiment with minimalist dressing so stay tuned for that recap coming up on Wednesday.

What I Wore: July 2016

Not gonna lie, I’m glad that July is over, mostly because it means that the time for my summer vacation has finally arrived. The latter part of August (and into the fall) will be insanely busy at work once more, but I’m focusing on the short term for now. I’m still hopeful I’ll be in a position to start the weekly serial-ing of my new book soon, but it may not happen as soon as I had originally planned. Life happens, you know.

As far as last month went, for all its challenges, it was a success on the sartorial front. I enjoyed exploring my evolution towards a more minimalist aesthetic, and I enjoyed the results. Let’s take a look, shall we?

one, two, three
one, two, three
four, five, six
four, five, six
seven, eight, nine
seven, eight, nine
ten, eleven, twelve
ten, eleven, twelve
thirteen, fourteen, fifteen
thirteen, fourteen, fifteen
sixteen, seventeen, eighteen
sixteen, seventeen, eighteen
nineteen, twenty
nineteen, twenty

One thing I noticed right away is that these outfits looked much more cohesive, if that makes sense — both individually and together. At times, I worried that practicing the “before leaving the house, take one thing off” exercise would result in really boring outfits. It’s one of the weird side-effects of blogging. I’ve never really dressed “for the blog” per se, but I do occasionally worry about what people will think of an outfit — which I rarely do IRL with friends or co-workers. Most of the time, the blog is a very abstract thing to me — like an extension of my online friendships, and then every so often, it hits me that there are probably quite a few people who read it who are not friends or acquaintances. I don’t know what they like, or why they read the blog. It can become unnerving if I let myself dwell on it. Thankfully, my bubble of oblivion is usually pretty resilient.

Anyway, long tangent aside, I like the way this month looked, and I’m hoping to move into August with a similar vibe.