Last month, I attended my first craft/art show and sale with a small group of local artists at a pop-up venue in downtown Edmonton. It was a low-key event, which felt like a safe environment both in relation to the pandemic and my general state of mind; everyone involved in the event and those who attended were friendly, kind, and supportive, which made the whole thing a fun experience. I was able to sell quite a few of my jewelry and embroidery pieces, and met some truly wonderful folks in the process — I am so honoured that they chose to take my art into their homes/lives. I remain constantly in doubt over the quality/worth of my work, but this experience did help me to see that there is something there which others may appreciate.

In general, however, the last couple of months have been very difficult for me which has impacted my creative output. I try to make space and time for art, in some measure, every day because it helps my mental health even at its lowest ebb. I have lots of ideas, and have been replenishing my supplies, but progress has been slow. That’s okay. I’m working on being easier on myself in all areas of life, including this.

Here are a few recent and not so recent pieces.

I am continuing to explore abstract patterns via embroidery:

I also completed an embroidery commission — a necklace bib for someone who loves irises and the colour purple:

For upcycled jewelry, I made a few new pieces — some for myself, some for sale. I was able to sort out my clay supply and build up a small inventory of good quality stones, but now I am struggling a bit with my supply of jewelry findings, as the thrift stores seemed to have dried up lately.

These last three pieces were all made from bits of this same Stella & Dot necklace:

I’ve been toying with the idea of organizing some kind of “stitch and bitch” club — having a small group of folks gather together (in my backyard or a similar outdoor venue) to work on craft projects, exchange ideas and tips, host “how to” sessions (taking turns to demonstrate our specialties to each other), and socialize a bit. It may be getting late in the season for outdoor gatherings, but I think it might be a fun thing to try to do as long as the weather permits. If this is something you’ve done before, I would love to hear your thoughts, tips and general ideas.

Birthday Girl

I had big plans for my 40th birthday party last year, which of course fell victim to the Big Pandemonium. I was looking forward to a chance at a do-over in 2021, but it wasn’t meant to be. This year, my birthday came and went largely uncelebrated; depression and grief do not make for a festive mood. I had planned to wear the outfit above, even if for nothing more extravagant than a simple backyard family do; I am a big believer, after all, in the magic of clothes — their ability to create the right atmosphere, to cheer up, to fire the imagination, no matter the surroundings. But when the day came, I couldn’t muster the energy. I couldn’t do it. Instead, I eventually talked myself into something simpler, keeping only the one special item I had been saving for the occasion: the vintage embellished bustier top. It didn’t bring me the joy I had hoped it would, but I am glad that I wore it because it deserves to be seen. Some day soon, I hope I’ll get to wear it again, with my whole heart behind it.

Rainbow Parade

One of my favourite ways to get extra mileage out of dresses is by wearing them as skirts. This particular dress lends itself to many layering possibilities, and this was only my first attempt. I kept it summery (by necessity, it’s still quite hot here) with a light cotton top, but just wait until I can bring my full arsenal to the table. The game will be properly on!

Mom Jeans, Circa 2021

I’ve been looking for a pair of “mom jeans” for a while, and my search wasn’t made easier by the lack of changing rooms in thrift stores these days. It’s hard to gauge how pants/jeans will fit, beyond the sizing itself, without trying them on. Luckily, these Oak & Fort jeans are pretty darn good. They’ve got the pegged leg that I wanted, plus some subtle pleating in the front, plus a sufficiently high rise (that still accommodates my bum). Because I am petite-sized (on my bottom half) and a pear shape, mom jeans can be tricky to style in ways that are conventionally “flattering” aka don’t make me look stumpy; I find that emphasizing the waist and wearing some sort of small heel helps. That’s what I tried to do here (plus added some contrast patterns on top for visual interest). That being said, I am not too worried about figure flattery in general, and I like playing with proportions and silhouettes, so these pants should be a fun addition to my closet.

Letting the Inner Weirdo Out

I mean … sometimes you just gotta wear things that make you smile, even if no one else is amused. My brain is tickled by the fact that all these pieces are random except for being monochromatic yet somehow they all work together in a Lydia Deetz kind of way; it’s chaotic but with some method in the madness. Would that make it “lawful chaotic”? Anyway, my favourite part may be all the different textures happening here on top of the pattern play. I’ve been missing all my sweaters, so I took advantage of a cooler morning to sneak in a cardigan, and it was a solid choice.

Funnily enough, after writing my last State of the Wardrobe post, a few people on IG asked me to talk about style curation. It seemed like a sign to finally sit down and organize my thoughts on a topic I haven’t thought much about since 2019. And once I did that, well, it only made sense to write about it here as well.

First, for the benefit of any new readers, let’s rehash some history. Yes, you can search through my archives for this, but if you’re like me, you won’t. It’s so much easier when it’s all on one page, amirite? Never fear, I got you.

Back in 2018, I was really feeling the need to “figure out” my personal style. I had cycled through some predictable styles in the previous decade (J. Crew preppy, Anthro whimsy, etc) that were driven by brands accessible to me at the time rather than a self-determined concept. I needed to find some kind of unifying idea or framework. 

And I found it (thanks to a r/FemaleFashionAdvice post) in the “style avatar” concept. 

What I wanted to find was a way to express the various sides of my personality through my clothes. But rather than trying to come up with some jumbo descriptor like “witchy boho ballerina disco princess”, I started to break it down by characteristics or traits or moods. 

I wrote down all the things I wanted to feel or to project by or through wearing my clothes. I wrote them all down (don’t overthink this part), and then looked at the list with an analytical eye. Those words coalesced into personalities, and eventually avatars. Each “character” representing some facet of my personality, or who I wanted to present as (at different times, and in different situations). 

I ended up with 4 avatars. For me, it felt like the right number. Enough to capture some of the contradictions and different parts of myself, but not too many that they would begin to blur. I had a very clear idea of who each avatar was. And, in turn, I knew what each one would wear. I could see each one so very clearly in my head. 

My 4 original avatars were:

I developed a “style board” for each one. 

This exercise helped me to easily visualize my style in all its variety. Any time I would see a piece of clothing that appealed to me, I would ask myself: who would wear this? If I couldn’t see one of my avatars wearing it, I wouldn’t buy it. Or at least, I would try to talk myself out of buying it … which, as a thrifter, is a hard enough task. It worked really well, actually. My wardrobe began to feel much more cohesive, and my own satisfaction with outfits increased. 

One thing to note: I’ve never “worn” the avatars in equal measure. For example, 2018/2019 were years when I wore a lot of Prince and Artist outfits. Starting in 2020, I began to shift more towards the Bohemian. The Adventurer has always been more of a fringe character. Because I see these avatars as extensions of different parts of my personality, it makes sense that their influence over my style choices would fluctuate over time. People are not static entities. We are ever evolving. 

Every 6 months or so, I would refresh my style boards for each avatar by looking at the most recent runway collections. The goal of this exercise wasn’t to try to copy exact outfits, nor to change the “who” of my avatars, nor to rebuild my entire wardrobe from scratch. Rather, it was to get new inspiration or ideas for how to express the essence of each avatar. The language of fashion is evolving, and it’s helpful to learn new tricks from time to time. So, I would be looking for ideas on new proportions, new colour combinations, and perhaps a few new pieces to add to and update my existing wardrobe. 

Sidebar: I not the best person to speak to this because I like to experiment A LOT with different pieces so there is quite a bit of turnover in my closet at all times. (Circular economy for the win!) But! I will say that the “core” of my closet hasn’t changed that much since 2018. Like, at least 2/3 of it is the same. Even as the way my avatars express themselves has evolved, the building blocks are very much the same. 

Again, it helps my analogy to think of clothing items as words, and outfits as stories. My avatars are genres, if you like. Sometimes, I write a ghost story. Sometimes, I write a love story. I will often use the same words, just combined in different ways. And sometimes, I will learn new words, or give up old ones that I don’t like anymore. 

Makes sense? 

Here was the most recent style board update for each of my avatars (from late 2019):

2020 was a sh*tshow so I didn’t spend much time thinking about my style. In fact, the last 18 months or so have been a period of intense stress and also growth/evolution for me. I am not entirely moved on from it, but with the benefit of a small measure of perspective, I can truly say that I am not the same person today that I was in the fall of 2019. My life, coincidentally or not, also looks very different. 

Which means that it’s probably time to revisit my style avatars. So, finally, that’s what I did. I sat down and thought about my avatars systematically. Which ones still “spoke” to me? Which ones didn’t? And why? 

And I came to some interesting conclusions. 

First and most obviously, the Bohemian is still a big influence in my life. I am all about colour, boldness, following one’s artistic instincts and making life one’s canvas – naysayers be damned. 

Second, I am still in tune with the Artist. The name may be a little misleading because there is little overlap with the Bohemian. They are both creative/artistic characters, but the Bohemian is exuberant and loud, where the Artist is cool and maybe a little aloof. The Bohemian is Impressionist painting (maximalist all the way), the Artist is neo-classical architecture. 

The other two avatars felt like they needed some reworking. 

The masculine, cerebral vibe of the Prince didn’t feel right anymore. I’m feeling much more drawn toward a feminine, intuitive energy. I have not fully explored this yet, but my gut is pulling me towards a High Priestess/The Crone type of avatar. The Prince was the avatar that I used when I wanted to feel confident and powerful, and the way I experience that now has changed. I have to sit with this avatar a bit longer, but this is the direction I think I’m going with it. 

The Adventurer also doesn’t feel quite right anymore. There was a bit of an Indiana Jones flavour to this avatar, which doesn’t fit as well now that I have fully embraced my homebodiness. The adventures I go on these days are all literary in nature. And strangely enough, the character that sprang to mind as soon as I started thinking about it was another fictional professor with an exciting secret life: Diana Bishop, from A Discovery of Witches. Historian extraordinaire, and powerful witch (and, okay, lover of sexy vampire Matthew Clairmont).

Now, I know what you’re thinking and Dark Academia is NOT where this is going. 

To me, Diana’s vibe is Ralph Lauren with a dash of Phoebe Philo-era Celine. 

Luxe Academia, if you will 🤣

By the way, here is what Diana wears on the show. It’s not the direction I would pick if I were in charge of wardrobe decisions on the set, but it does have a bit of that vibe. 

As I have done in the past, I looked through the S/S 2021 runways collections to find inspiration for my new avatar style boards. 

Here are some ideas:

The High Priestess/Crone gave me such trouble (still haven’t landed on a name, for one) because I didn’t see anything on the 2021 runways that spoke to this. I had to dig back a bit but here’s a tentative idea for it:

Kinda similar story for the Diana avatar (name TBD), although I’m still digging the 2019 Adventurer inspo from above. Here are a couple of other ideas:

I also thought it might be helpful to show you how some of this stuff translates to my real life outfits because, of course, I don’t have access to haute couture on a regular basis (I wish!).

The High Priestess/Crone:

The Artist:

The Diana (?!)

The Bohemian:

That’s it! Whew. What a long post! If you managed to stick it out to the end, and are using the avatar approach as well, I would love to hear about whether and how the pandemic has impacted your avatars or the way you approach your style in general. And if you have another style curation approach, please share!