The Girls of Dries

Images via Garance Dore and style.com

Yesterday I eyed a pair of Dries van Noten heels and couldn't tear myself away. I find his laid-back but graphic collections very inspiring. It seems like I'm not the only one. These women rock Dries like nobody's business.

Hopefully I can get a longer post in tomorrow. I have very little computer time to spend today unfortunately. But it will be Canada day so... here's hoping!

June 29, 2009

I felt a bit claustrophobic looking at my own blog this morning. Hence the rapid layout change. The old theme was starting to look a little too haphazard. I hadn't even updated it to be compatible with blogger's new (now, old) features yet! So I redesigned everything and painstakingly added all of the links back in. Things are looking much more organized now, don't you think?



Yesterday I decided to go for a boyish 1950's look. I wore a thrifted blouse that very much reminds me of something Izzy from the Dandy Project would wear. I really dig his stylish self designed shirts. The sunglasses I'm sporting are also second hand. They are my absolute favorite pair and I wear them with everything. They have a bad habit of going missing for a few weeks during which I miss them immensely. But they've reappeared! The belt and bracelet are also thrifted and the jeans are from Zara.




Check out this awesome powder blue car! It matches my retro-themed outfit perfectly. It seems like all the vintage car collectors only pull their beauties out of hiding when summer comes along. I've never seen so many amazing cars in one week!

Changes

Time for a layout change! Don't freak out if things look off for the next few hours.

What I'm Wearing 27.06.09

My brain refuses to work so I apologize for this very brief post. I thrifted this lovely pink sheer blouse a few days ago. I like it best layered over another bright pink top, but I'm open to other suggestions!

Fashion Bloggers Take Over Holts Windows

Yesterday I stopped by Holts again to take photos of their ode to the blogosphere. I couldn't help but chuckle as not all the windows really capture the essence of the blogger they are supposed to represent. Apparently the bloggers themselves had no say in it. Sorry for the reflections in the windows, I didn't have my polarizer on me at the time. Darn. Also, check out Anita Clarke's window from the Bloor Street, Toronto location. I think it's much more snazzy than Vancouver's.

Tommy from Jak and Jil




Garance Dore



Scott Schuman from The Sartorialist


Anita Clarke from I Want - I Got


Bryan Boy



Jane from Sea of Shoes

Tokyo Boys

Both Jane of Sea of Shoes and my boy's best friend are in Tokyo right about now. I have to say, I'm extremely jealous. I'd be a kid in a candy store people watching in that city! Here are a few of my favorite looks from dropsnap.jp from the last few months. The first boy is wearing Pelican Avenue! I recognized the rainbow print instantly, having blogged about them before. Isn't it just amazing worn so casually?

What I'm Wearing 26.06.2009

Today I stopped by Holts in the morning to check out their blogger window display that I mentioned a couple of posts ago. They hadn't actually finished it when I got there around 11. Or when I returned at noon after browsing through the store and Pacific Center mall. Drats. I will be back in the area tomorrow to take another look. I did, however, see a miniature Tour Eiffel, a stack of magazines, and snapshots of various fashionistas including Kate Lanphear peeking out from the bottom of a white curtain.

I also ventured inside to see what sort of pieces they're stocking. I rarely venture to Holts because I know I'm never going to buy anything (maybe in a few years). But I was surprised to find a gorgeous printed Jean-Pierre Braganza dress there, because from snooping around online I thought the collection would only be sold in Toronto stores. I also asked the nearest sales lady if they carried Mark Fast, but she had never heard of him, and neither did another sales associate she asked. Way to go guys! He's even featured in your catalogue! I guess his pieces are only stocked in Toronto then. It's too bad, I was just itching to have a close-up look for myself.

I was wearing a newly thrifted bright-pink tank underneath my current favourite blazer (that I wear far too much these days) with Topshop trousers. The shoes are inconsequential. Brown sandals. I felt the need for comfort.

Out and About

Yesterday I met up with my friend Andra for a early morning stroll through Vancouver's Chinatown. She wanted to document the Main St/Chinatown area. I brought my camera around to take photos as well. It's been ages since I've used it for anything else besides the blog. As a warning, if you're squeamish, or vegetarian, two pictures towards the bottom show dried lizards and dead fish. Just warnin.



The forecast called for rain, and it was drizzling a bit when I left the house, so I put on my rainboots expecting to splash in some puddles. But the rain never came, and I felt like a bit of an idiot walking around with heavy duty rainboots and a tweedy blazer. Am I still living in Vancouver? Where has all the rain gone? I changed later on in the day and put on a pair of brown booties. I called this look great depression chic version 2.0, because the Federal Reserve is between a rock and a hard place right now. Seemed fitting.

I don't know what my friend saw in a discarded can of beer, but I was into her matching tights and shoes contrasted against the blue wall.



The photo directly below reminds me of something my boyfriend would take.





I was fascinated with the dried lizards. Does anyone know what they're called? And what their purpose is? And how they're used?

What I Was Wearing 24.06.09

I was a little worried for a couple of days when I couldn't find my USB cord to upload photos, hence the lack of outfit posts. But huzzah, it has been found! Don't you hate it when other people clean up your stuff and hide it away where you have trouble finding it? Maybe I should just stop leaving my things around the house... Anyways, a while back ago I made a post about my sort-of Doc Martens, but just a week after that I found these babies at my favorite thrift store. I think someone gave them away because one of the laces snapped, making them shorter, but I really don't mind leaving them partly undone at all. Well, what do you think?



I'm off to go thrifting again before my shift. I found some nice things last night that I'm hoping are still in store...

I think I'll also be checking out the blogger expo going on at Holts tomorrow. If I do, I'll be reporting back!

Alexander McQueen Men's Spring '10

I am blown away by this man's ability to churn out a great print. The first couple of outfits actually look like reflective molten metal! I'm seeing many designers turn to digital and photographic prints these days, with spectacular results. The possibilities are endless! You can turn a dress into just about anything these days. Abstract perfume bottle? An atomic explosion? You name it, someone will be trying it. I am also happy to see geometric patchwork appearing again. If that isn't another print it must be super time consuming!




Images via alexandermcqueen.com

RIP Kodachrome

After 74 amazing years of rich color photography, Eastman Kodak has finally called it kaput on the oldest brand of color film in existence. Kodachrome has a special place in my heart because it's my boyfriend's favorite color film and I've dabbled with it myself a few times on my trip to Prague and Romania last summer (too few! *sniff*). I was kind of expecting the death knoll after learning that only one place in the world still processes k-chrome slides. It's all the way in bloody Kansas. My boy would have all of his rolls shipped out there and we would wait a few weeks for their return. Most of you may not know about the slide film, but you might recognize certain famous photographs taken with it, such as the Afghan Girl captured by Steve McCurry. Would her eyes have shone as brightly on any other film? Digital photography has come a long way, but even though I mostly do digital myself, the quality just doesn't compare to film. Unless you're willing to shell out a few thousand for top of the line equipment, that is. Remember the end of Polaroid film just a while ago? How many more photography greats must we part with in the future? Darn you, declining demand!


Images via National Geographic, Labby Road, Neatorama, PentaxUser, Historic Photo Archive, Adorama

And below, photos of me taken with Kodachrome by my boy Kevin. What speed is this by the way Kev?

Away for the Weekend

Hey guys, just as a heads up, I'll be away on a trip to Galiano Island until Sunday evening and I didn't have the time yesterday or today to prep a few posts. Ack! See you all soon though!

A Recipe for Glamour

You take a party, throw in some Bowie, a touch of Boy George and a smattering of Steve Strange and you have this Vogue Italia editorial. It's such a refined and perfected homage to the Blitz Kids. I will go sulk now because this level of coolness just doesn't exist in real life anymore.







Images scanned by Diciassette (17) from tfs.com

I refrained from adding in my carrots this time. The editorial is just too pretty.

By the way, I've slowly started to sneak in larger and larger images in the blog. If they're loading too slowly for you, please don't hesitate to tell me. I'll go back to smaller sizes if I get enough comments about it.

Resort 2010 Faves

I've been looking forward to a weekend spent at a cabin on Galiano Island (for the Vancouverites who know where that is) all week, only to find out today that it will be raining! Wonderful. So I think resort collections should incorporate rain, don't you? Well, here are my top three anyways. I love the soft palettes at Prada and MiuMiu and Christopher Kane's venture into more photographic prints. I probably shouldn't like the atomic bomb print as much as I do, considering I'm a hardlined pacifist but, there you go. As long as it stays a vision of the past, right? Apparently the shoes are one-offs that were quickly thrown together in the studio. Mr. Kane, would you like to create a diy tutorial on that? Please?




Images via style.com and wwd.com

And I've been playing around with a few colorful resort-style outfits of my own. Here's my favourite. Please excuse the awkward vacant zombie stare. I'm wearing a tie-dye shirt from Shop Nap, thrifted blazer, skirt, necklace, and Aldo heels. It kind of reminds me of a parrot.

Reality Check

Ok, we all know there is nothing realistic about reality TV. But this sort of takes the cake for me. I just couldn't believe the outcome of episode 6 of The Fashion Show. Couldn't believe it! Can you guess which of the above outfits was the winner? The overwrought pink monstrosity or the sleek reinterpretation of athletic wear? Well, obviously I'm ranting because the former won best design of the week. Apparently 83% of the audience (supposedly filled with industry types) said they would buy that outfit, as opposed to the 90% that claimed they wouldn't buy Johnny's, which put his creation in the bottom two. Doesn't anyone else think that Johnny's outfit is a perfectly on-trend right now? I mean, fringed biker leggings? Yes! I think Susie Bubble and Queen Michelle would certainly agree. I can definitely see this outfit selling out at a place like Topshop. And then I remember briefly seeing designer Yigal Azrouël (love!) make a discreet appearance in one episode, I think it was the previous one. At the time I thought maybe the show had a bit of potential, since it managed to attract a guest appearance buy a designer that's very current. But now... Well at least I'll still be watching it to see what Johnny and James-Paul come up with next!

Yikes! Time to Catch Up

For those of you who may have been reading my blog for a long while, you might be familiar with my sudden unexplainable long absences. So, what have I been up to this time? Umm... Reading sci-fi novels, watching the entire first season of True Blood, becoming completely addicted to the Sims 3, and so on. I am just a champion at wasting time doing not very much at all... but fashionably so!

Here's a run through of some outfits I've worn the past couple of weeks. I love stepping it up a notch when I'm going out, but sadly most of the time I've been sporting jeans and tees because all I do is read at home and then go off to work, where sneakers are a necessity for the many hours spent walking and standing.



Today I'm wearing a beautiful blue thrifted blazer that I'd love to pair with orange, had I anything in the colour in my closet. So while I think of a more interesting way to do this rich colour justice, I'm wearing it with simple greys and blacks. The jeans are from Zara, the shoes are Aldo, the hat is thrifted and the shirt is from Old Navy.



I wore this dress when it was much hotter a couple weeks back. You may recognize it from my banner at the top! I sketched the look of the dress and my grandmother drafted the pattern and whipped it up herself. The dress is a few years old, and we haven't really collaborated since. I'm feeling a bit neglected now that she's too busy looking after my uncle's nutty German shepherd puppy!



Why would anyone need two different pairs of tie-dye leggings and shirts in their closet? I don't know, but I can't keep myself away from the pattern. This leather jacket is my favourite thrift find of the month. It's a gorgeous buttery suede, a nice alternative to the cropped black leather jackets that everyone has been sporting for ages now.



And lastly, a little number I've hidden for too long in my closet which I decided to wear out for a Patrick Wolf concert a couple of weekends ago. Sadly, I didn't make the concert because the bums running the club decided to have the show end early so they could open up the club for the rest of the night. I was just getting off of work and wouldn't be there in time to catch his performance. Did anyone go to the concert? I know it wasn't even sold out. Man, Vancouver sure is slow on the uptake. But anyways, I ended up attending another party, a masquerade, where my dress blended in perfectly. I received a discount on the ticket because I showed them my "costume" which really wasn't my intention with the dress at all. Heh.

I'm off to catch up on e-mails now. I feel guilty, whenever I don't blog for a while I completely shut myself off from anything fashion related, including e-mails, news, other blogs... Does anyone else do this?