Thursday, July 31, 2008

Red Gypsy

Red cashmere blend sweater (Tobias, Plum), gypsy skirt (consignment, vacation), blue wedge shoes (Seychelles, Winners), gold earrings (boutique, vacation), gold/cream bangles (boutique, vacation).
I am really slacking in the creativity department this week. Skirt + sweater + shoes + basic accessories = okay outfit. Oh well. I still look better than 90% of the people I see out on the street, haha.

It's been rainy and cold for a couple of days, so I broke out a sweater...and I was still cold! Damn. And I've closed all the windows. I even put on my Ewok sweater last night. No, it's not a sweater with an Ewok on it, it's a gigantic long wool sweater - L says I look like a bag lady in it.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Brown and More Brown

Brown patterned wrap dress (Plum), brown lace-trimed cami (Esprit), two-tone brown wedge peep-toes (Unlisted, Winners), hammered gold cuff (Oscar & Libby's), hammered gold disc earrings (Plum).

I'm tired and uninspired. I have not put much effort into my outfits this week. As always, a dress to the rescue! This is so comfortable and easy to wear.

I need dinner.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Casual Tuesday - Black and White

White striped blouse (Vero Moda, The Bay), black pinstriped vest (Oxmo, Plum), jeans (Esprit), black and white shoes (Fluevog), white gold hoop earrings.

I had planned a black pencil skirt with this last night, but this morning when I went to pack it up, I changed my mind and grabbed my jeans instead. It was raining and I always feel cold when it rains, even in summer.

My hair looks like ass today - it poured rain on our noon walk. Gah. And of course, now it's sunny.

I love these Fluevogs. Can't resist showing them off again:
Total granny chic:
And so comfortable!

Monday, July 28, 2008

Pinwheels

Red cropped jacket (Vero Moda), multi-coloured silk blouse (Nine West, The Bay), grey plaid trousers (Vero Moda, The Bay), black patent/wood platforms (Expressions, The Bay), triple hoop silver earrings, black leather belt.
The Bay had extra 40% off on all sale prices this past weekend, so I headed down on Sunday to see what I could find on the sale racks. Got this blouse (it reminds me of those pinwheel toys from when I was a kid, with all those colours) for only $17.49!! Regular something ridiculous like $119. Over $100, anyway. And it was the last one - hee!

The pants were also on sale - they also ended up being under $18. I found two more blouses (I have a tough time finding ones that fit me well), and a fabulous, no, make that a FABULOUS purple satin London Fog rain coat for only $55! Regular $235.

I felt very daring, mixing my patterns like this. But the plaid of the pants is really a tone on tone grey mix, so it works as a solid with the bolder print of the blouse. A shot with the jacket off: Why is the camera cutting the top of my head off? Damn...

That's Inigo coming in for a visit again. That cat loves the camera.

I don't think I've ever worn these shoes to work before. I got them in Fall 2006, long before they were in every store known to man. Still a killer shoe.

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Casual Friday - Sunny Yellow

Yellow satin blouse (Do & Be), cream cami with lace trim (Plum), jeans (Esprit), taupe jacket (Armor Jeans, Le Chateau), necklace & earrings (Plum), gold t-strap shoes (Aerosoles).
As always, I'm looking half asleep on Friday morning. I had to go to a training session right after work, then planned to go out for a beer afterwards - I knew I'd be doing some walking around - so I dressed for comfort. A shot of jacket, although it was warm enough I didn't need it.
Plum is having a big clearance - 50% off jewelry and 50-70% off clothing. I didn't find anything good in the clothes, but I did find some pretty jewelry, including this Victorian-looking necklace and real crystal earrings ($8 for the necklace and $9 for the earrings).
"Who's that?" some lady asked me at the training session. I was seriously tempted to say, "Me."

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Pyjama Dress - Or, I'm Too Tired to Plan an Outfit

Green/black dress (I.N.C., The Bay), black patent Mary Janes (Wild Diva, vacation), silver spiral necklace, silver triple hoop earrings.
Look! A kitty!

Everyone at work knows that when I wear this dress, I am tired/cranky/feeling fat. Today, I am tired. The concert was awesome! But we got home late and I forgot to plan today's outfit.

A close-up of my spiral necklace and one of my numerous pairs of hoops and variations thereof:
One more day till the weekend...

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

And Now For Something Completely Unexpected...What I Wore to Judas Priest

Jean jacket (Ann Taylor Loft, NYC), grey t-shirt (Plum), black skinny jeans (Jacob), Vans (some surfer shop in Vancouver), grommet black leather belt (gift from Ruth - rock on!), leather/stud cuff (Claire's), silver hoop earrings.
I've been a fan of metal for years. Back in the day, I was a thrash metal chick (my boyfriend was in a thrash metal band - I once hung out with the guys from Alice in Chains). I've been a fan of the classic 80s metal for...well, since the 80s. So when Judas Priest announced a date here, L and I were all over that. We're meeting up with Cat and Ross shortly.

I know my thrash moves, but believe me, I will be staying far away from the mosh pit. I'm too old for that stuff. I'll be on the floor, with my earplugs in, grooving away. Wooo!

Bonne Bell - Blue and Brown

Blue patterned silk blouse (I.N.C., consignment), pale blue sequined cami (Esprit), brown suit skirt (Kenzie, Dots), straw and croc peep-toe shoes (Roberto Vianni, The Bay), cream/gold bangles (ethnic imports store, vacation), gold multi-ring earrings.
When I was in Grade 8, I was finally allowed to wear make-up to school - I got 2 Bonne Bell eyeshadows in my stocking for Christmas...oh, 1980, that would have been. This is the exact shade of blue that one of them was, and the other was this very shade of brown. They didn't look very good on me - it was another year or so until I got instruction on how to apply make-up properly.

I felt very pretty all day, very girly. I normally wouldn't wear this without a jacket to work (I don't like sleeveless tops for work - I think they're too casual), but since it's casual month and the weather is still warm, here I am, jacketless.

A shot of the lovely bow on the back:
"Bonne" means "good", and "Bell(e)" means "pretty". Good pretty!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Preppy Pedal Pushers

Red cotton blouse (H&M, NYC), black knit vest (Esprit), black w/blue & red pinstripe pedal pushers (Vero Moda, The Bay), black kitten heels (gift from Cat, Kenneth Cole Reaction), silver double hoop earrings.

I was all set to take the picture when Mr. Lovey got in the way:
Hello, Inigo, yes, I'm home.

Try again:

He is rolling around on the carpet in front of me.

These are the pants from a suit that I found last year on clearance at the Bay - I just love this Vero Moda line! It's not very expensive at regular price, and nearly every piece is machine washable, including this suit (yes, even the jacket, although it says to handwash, likely due to the lining). The blue/red pinstripe on this make it look navy from a distance.

Not a terribly creative outfit - I know I've done the red shirt and black vest combo before. Some days you just don't want to get that elaborate.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Casual Monday - Grey and Yet More Grey

Grey top with embelishment (Reitman's), black cami (Inwear, Dots), grey cords (Esprit), black t-strap sandals (Jones NY, consignment), silver spiral earrings.

My work has instituted "optional denim" until the end of the summer. In the spirit of Mondays (that is, they are evil and horrible), I will give in to this corporate "dumbing down" of the dress code.
They aren't really denim, but they are a lot more casual than I normally wear.

Yes, Carollyne, I wore this same outfit to scotch club last night. How do you like being the testing ground for my Monday outfits?

L Figure - Druid - Obafemi

I'm not the only one who finished a figure yesterday - L finished his new piece. This guy's name is Obafemi, and he is a druid, so he has lots of natural colours and nature motifs.

Excellent colour combinations. The crow's name is Jimmy.
A shot of the back. Good fur on the cloak and a nice looking base. I think L did a fantastic job of the ivy design on the cloak - I showed him how to do it.
A very good figure!

Sheila Figs - Finished Evil Elf (Drow) Fighter Chick

A single small figure is such a relief after that bloody Pit Fiend. This is a female evil elf (called a Drow).

I forgot to take a picture of her unprimered, but here she is with just primer and skin painted.
Base black colour for her hair (which will be silver) and the 3 tones of blue for her armour and clothing.
And *voila!* like magic, after 6 hours, she's done. Highlighting done on everything: skin, armour, clothing. Eyes done, and details finished (note the spider on the base).
I gave her armour a bit of a sparkle - I decided it was magical. A shot of the back and her long silvery hair.
Not so practical for fighting, but it means I don't have to paint much on her back which is fine by me!

SL Garrity is the name of the person who created the original figure. She (her name is Susan, I believe) does a lot of female figures, which are my favourite.

Hope you enjoyed the new figs!

Sheila Figs - Finished Pit Fiend

I painted for about 6 hours yesterday and finished two figures! I really got hung up on this Pit Fiend - he was a devil (pun intended) to do!

Larger figures are a lot more complicated than small ones. For one thing, there's a bunch of pieces involved. This is the Pit Fiend just how he came out of the box: no head, wings or tail attached. The fire ball is also a separate piece:

I decided to paint him assembled. With some figs, you have to paint them in sections - sometimes you can't paint an area if it's completely glued together first, but I was lucky with this guy. Here he is glued together:

All the flash and rough casting lines have been filed down. Because of the amount of gluing, I needed to fill in the gaps with putty. We use modelling putty - it's really smelly. I push it into the crevices then smooth it out with my fingers, then sand it when it dries. Here's the back of the head, the wing joins and the tail seam:
My least favourite part: primering. I always use white primer so that I can see all the details property before I start putting paint on.

The first paint is applied! Pit Fiends are primarily red, but we already have two really red ones that L did. I started with a burgundy wash base and bright yellow for the wing membranes, teeth/eyes and fireball.
A shot of the back. There are a couple of layers of orange on over top of the yellow here.
Progress: several more layers of red and orange added to the burgundy base, and more layers of successively darker orange on the wings, toning to red.
And in a long session, he's finished! Top brush coats of dark orange, ivory on the teeth and claws. The base was painted, then I glued a black hobby sand to it.
Some extra ivory was added to the creases on the wings to make them stand out more. It's also been fully black-lines to emphasize the muscles and to add definition and depth.
A close up of the arms and the fireball. You can also see his eyes - I gave him slit pupils.
A close-up of the head. He's a nasty piece of business.
Grrr!

Friday, July 18, 2008

Casual Friday - Skinnies and Hooker Shoes

Patterned blouse/dress (Vero Moda, Plum), black skinny jeans (Jacob), silver/wood shoes (Jessica Simpson, DSW, NYC), silver earrings & ring (Guess), white cropped jacket (Jacob), leopard/stud bag (Betsyville, MetroWear, San Francisco), silver slingbacks (Nicole, Century 21, NYC).
I am exhausted and it shows on my face in the morning (I also look like I have a mouthful of water or something). However, my motto is "Fake it till you feel it!" so I will coffee myself up when I get to work and fake it until I'm cheery and match my blouse.

I have actually worn this silk blouse as a dress, but now I look at the length and wonder what the hell I was thinking.

This is another pair of shoes from my NYC trip with mom: The wooden platform is extremely uncomfortable. Numbs my toes. Hence, Dr. Scholl's to the rescue!
Now I can wear them all day at work. Of course, I won't actually be WALKING anywhere in them; that would be foolish.
Jacket in case I get chilled, my beloved Betsey Johnson bag (all the pockets inside have burst into the lining, but I won't give it up!), and my silver flats. And of course, Inigo, who is somehow jealous of my picture-taking.

I love Betsey Johnson - I have a leopard bra and thong by her from Lord and Taylor in NYC.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Black and Red with Vintage

Red cropped jacket (Vero Moda, Bryan's), black dress with square beads (Kensie, Dots), grey and white wedges (Qutie, vacation), red/grey scarf (The Bay), vintage silver and black stone bracelet and earrings (Grandma J, made in Mexico).
Okay, so I was just a little overdressed for work - so sue me! I've been wanting to wear this dress since I got it - it's an empire waist with X back straps and square beading at the neckline. It has X back straps, so a jacket was needed...and that led to my lovely red jacket, and then because I didn't want to do black shoes, the grey ones looked cool. Then I needed to tie them all together and voila! this scarf (which I've never yet worn) worked perfectly.

I monkeyed with the scarf at the neck (it's a long rectangle), but it felt chokey and didn't look right, so I did it as a headscarf, over my newly dyed hair.

A close-up of the scarf and jewelry:
Grandma J gave me this set when I was about 18-19 years old. I used to visit her on the way home from University; we'd sit and chat and every so often she'd pull out a set or piece of jewelry she thought I'd like. She told me she got this set in Mexico on vacation with Grandpa J (he died when I was 12). I've seen bracelets like this in antique stores, but they aren't as nicely done. None of the little faces has their earrings (which are loose pieces) on the ones I've seen, and I've never seen the matching earrings. The bracelets in the shops are about $75, so I think my set is probably $100-125. A better shot of the earrings:
You can also see the shimmer in the black stone on the bracelet. I did some research and it's likely golden obsidian, which is mined in Mexico. It's very noticeably gold on some of the sections.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Last Minute Aqua

Aqua cardigan (I.N.C., The Bay), black and white beaded skirt (Tommy Hillfiger, Winners), black leather belt (Plum), black pumps (Aerosoles, The Cobbler), rhinestone studs, vintage jet and crystal necklace (Grandma J's).
I was up late last night and totally forgot about picking an outfit for today, so this is what I put together in about 3 minutes this morning. I thought about it briefly before I fell asleep (that's my version of counting sheep, mentally putting together outfits...ah...so pleasant). Not bad!

My second wear of this skirt - lovely for this time of year. I quite like these shoes with it. It has a nice 40s/50s vibe, I think.

This necklace is one of my treasures from Grandma J:This was left in her jewelry box after she died - it was just filthy, covered in gunk. I gave it a good scrub with a toothbrush and soap and water, and have had many years of wear out of it. It broke last year (it was threaded on string), and I re-strung it with supplies from the local bead shop (I took it in with me and they sold me everything I needed for about $3).

I gave my Aunt Lois my blog link - hi, Lois! Do you remember Grandma wearing this necklace?

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Just Call Me June Cleaver!

Turquoise cotton dress (Le Chateau), black satin tie belt (from one of my skirts), cream/black slingbacks (Miz Mooz, The Cobbler), black wood/cream capiz shell necklace, black earrings.
I love the 50s look of this dress, and oh, it is so comfy! I don't like repeating outfits so I switched up the shoes and the belt from last time I wore this (back in May). I wanted a black belt, but wanted to be softer so I went with this sash tie belt.

I have a hatbox in my closet full of all the belts, ties and scarves that come with clothes (that I rarely wear with the item they are supposed to go with). You never know when you might need a headband or a belt for something else and you just need that pop of colour.

*sigh* Very tired...more overtime at work tonight.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Yellow, Green and Brown

Yellow cardigan (Jacob), green lace-trimmed cami (Esprit), brown suit skirt (Kenzie, Dots), crazy shoes (Hale Bob, Winners), brown leather belt with jeweled buckle (Plum), crystal "vintage" earrings and necklace (Avon, gift from mom).
Jacob is starting to mark down all their summer stuff - this sweater is right up my alley. Great for layering (it came with a self-belt), great for an air conditioned office! I love the mustard/acid yellow - it looked chartreuse green in some of the light at work, but the pic above is pretty accurate.

On the other hand, this picture does not even look like the same sweater! A nice close-up of the belt and jewelry.
This belt was only about $19 on sale at Plum last year. I'm down to the last notch when I wear it snug around my waist. I like the jewelry because of the vintage-y look, but it doesn't really stand up to close examination...good from afar.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Sunday Brunch - Repeat Plaid

Brown wool felt hat (Le Chateau), plaid cowboy shirt (Streetwear Society, consignment), brown lace-trimmed cami (Esprit), white denim skirt (Club Monaco, consignment), brown leather belt (Plum), brown/white wedge shoes (Aerosoles), straw/brown wood handle bag (Plum), wood square earrings (Oscar & Libby's), wood bead necklace (LA Express).

Okay, before I even get into the outfit, welcome new commenters! Kasmira, it's an honour - you're like a celebrity! Jane, thanks for your comments - loved your "magic" skirt! And you, you anonymous person - if you don't have a Blogger name, please at least sign your name at the end of your comment. Spence and Kim were over from Van to visit, so we met up for lunch today - Nick and Karen too. I wanted to be casual, but still look nice. And my calf is still injured, so comfy shoes were the order of the day, especially since we walked to town to meet up with them.

I have quite a collection of hats, but don't really wear them all that often - just wait until we get into the Christmas party season! I've got some fabulous Sex-and-the-City-esque hats that need to be recorded for posterity!

A shot of the bag:
I love the shape - it also has lots of pockets inside.

I've added a poll - I can't figure out how to add it to the actual post, so it'll hopefully stay at the top of the page until I delete it in a week.