Friday Fun: Fall Flowers

I'm still feeling under the weather and it's overcast and cool here today, which means that I'm planning not to leave the property all day.  In order to bring a little fun into my day, I cut some fall flowers to adorn my kitchen.  The zinnias are in their prime right now, but we're bound to get a frost soon, so I figured I'd better cut some before it's too late.  The red spikes are from the pineapple sage.  Edible leaves and great fall flowers?  Plant some soon!  This bouquet, along with comforting leftovers made my lunch as fun as possible.

In keeping with the floral theme, I bought this blue floral cape on Wednesday at Savers.  I kind of love it, even though capes are difficult to wear.  Take it from Garance Doré, she recently wrote about her cape dilemma.  

So yeah, like it in theory, but in practice capes are a bit awkward for arms and bags.  And this upholstery fabric in a shapeless cut?  Probably not the most flattering.  Overall I really like it, but what could one wear with it?  I'm thinking this dress underneath would be perfect, if I had a wedding to attend soon.  I don't.

Matilija velvet burnout dress, $188.

And those J.Crew red shoes that I've posted about before could look awesome with skinny jeans, this cape, and red lipstick, right?

J.Crew Coddington suede platform pump in Dusk Red, $228.

Anyway, for the rest of the day I'm going to stay inside, drink lots of tea, and deconstruct some other vintage finds that have been awaiting my attention.  Have a good weekend!

Friday Fun: Part One

This is starting to look formulaic with me posting another thrifting expedition on Friday Fun. Except I'm cheating a little because my planned post isn't finished. So I'm posting images from my thrifting trip on Tuesday, which I didn't post on Wednesday due to Blogger not wanting to upload any photos for me. That hasn't changed, I'm still having to cheat that too.  Anyway, on Tuesday I had lunch and went thrifting with a friend and her lovely daughter, who came down from Santa Fe. Her daughter is six months old already and this is the first time I've seen her. She is baby that I made this little rabbit toy for, and she had it with her during the visit. As expected she is an adorable baby, and very calm and good natured. It was a good thrifting expedition. Here's what I found.

Brass bracelets, $3.50 for all four.

Suede bomber, $7.

Nubby burgundy/brown sweater coat.  Has a nice 70s vibe. $7.

My friend made out handily as well, scoring two Harris tweed blazers for her husband, several antique muslin baby shifts in perfect condition, a gorgeous Etienne Aiger trench coat in perfect condition (which I let her have even though it had the coolest lapels because I thought it was just a bit too narrow through the shoulders for me-- it was one of those thrift finds that are so great that you contemplate going on a crash diet just to be able to fit into), among other things.  It was a fun afternoon, even if it happened on Tuesday, not Friday.

Project Updates

I have a tendency to start a project and then get distracted and leave it unfinished for a long time or forever.  I also have a tendency to buy vintage clothes or an old piece of furniture because I see their potential for modification, and then never get around to modifying them.  There are many reasons for this, such as a big storage shed and my low-end sewing skills, or just the fact that I'm interested in a lot of things and something new is generally more stimulating.  However, I don't want to be a person who leaves things unfinished, and so I've been making more of an effort.  During the last month I've blogged about planned DIY projects at least twice, first some vintage re-working and then some furniture painting.  While I haven't finished either, I have been consistently plugging away at them both and here are a couple of photos to prove it! 

First, I've been taking the floral silk 80s dress from a drop-waist-shoulder-padded monstrosity to a loose hip-length tunic blouse with a belt at my real waist.  It's not ready for a full reveal, but that placket above is all new.  It's been shortened and reworked along the bottom edge.  Next up I have to tackle the shoulders, always a trick.  Once the shoulder pads were removed the shoulders are too wide-set for me.  I'm worried that I'm going to make a mess of it, BUT I'm soldiering on.

I've been painting too.  One shelving unit is almost white.  It is taking a ridiculous amount of spray paint.  I always think spray paint will be the easiest way to a nice quick glossy finish.  It's not!  Ugh, hate spray paint!  It aggravates my carpal tunnel, stinks to high heaven, drips if you don't apply meticulously thin coats and takes FOREVER!   (That's my future office-current garage used only for storage.  Its currently dilapidated like everything else).

Retail Therapy: Wear in Good Health

On Friday morning I stopped at a couple of thrift stores and had one of those bountiful days where everything was in excellent condition and fit well.  A couple of pieces are perfect just as they are, but the others will need a little modification.  

This black dress is a too long for it's super conservative neckline, so my plan is to shorten it.  Or perhaps remove the slip and replace it with something that has a deeper scoop neck.  

This blue and white embroidered tunic is amazing.  Perfect for summer, it's making me want a Mediterranean Island vacation asap.

This silk dress needs some modification for sure!  80's shoulder pads are out of control, but the sash around the drop waist and the rich colors are saying it can be modified into a blouse pretty easily.

This is polyester, not silk, but the fabric hangs nicely and the robe has a swooshy drama that has made me reconsider my first instinct to shorten it.  It has pockets too, which is always a plus.

Last but not least, this classic trench coat has allowed me to check off an item that has been on my thrift list for a few years.  I have other vintage trenches, but they had more of a 60s feel that was never quite what I was looking for.  This one has the epaulets, reasonable collar size, intact belt and knee length that I've been looking for, and it fits perfectly through the shoulders.  Best $5.00 I've spent in a long time!

Now if only the thrifting spirits could smile my way and send along a mid-century round coffee table...