NEW Challenge - Pink and Pleated

Sometimes I buy things solely because they feel so good. Tiny pleats are one of those features; so swishy and body-skimming. Fancy without being formal. I tried this silky top on at the Talbot's store and nearly paid full price for it, it felt so good. But I held firm, and now it is 50% off online (in pink, black and white), and was part of the box o' pink that recently arrived at my door. I also bought a pair of ankle zip pants at Talbot's this weekend in a similar shade.

Clearly, a good "feel" doesn't always translate into a good picture. This was the best of five! It has a pretty split neckline that you can't really see in this overlit picture.

Cool enough to wear pants!

But I got lots of compliments at work, so that's all right.

Battle of the Bands - July 6

We're having our third annual Battle of the Bands tonight at the library, so I wore my Rock and Roll Hall of Fame t-shirt and a Talbot's floral skirt. Nothin' new here, move along.

I grew up in the Cleveland/Akron area, and every time I go back I devote a day to this amazing-in-every-way museum.

NEW Challenge - Kohl's Red Top

I have clever thoughts in the middle of the night, but I don't write them down, and this is the result (the post, not the outfit). Fire bad, tree pretty.

 

Kohl's cherful red and purple Dana Buchman top, Athleta purple skirt, Miz Mooz red pumps.

My mild brain fog is likely the result of walking in the 4th of July parade when it was over 100 degrees. We all got a touch of heat stroke. I'm just very grateful I didn't have to wear any sort of costume.

NEW Challenge - Ivory Swing Jacket

As I've said, I struggled with an ivory jacket that I bought last year. I thought it was a little big, I thought I should have bought it in another color, but it was final sale so I felt stuck with it. When I looked at it again yesterday, the solution came to me: neutrals. I'd pair this elegant fabric with tones of brown and ivory, head to toe. So I wore my leopard chiffon tee, brown silk pants and brown sandals.

The tee looks like a scarf, doesn't it? It has a drapey neckline. The jacket really needs to be taken in a bit on the sides; there is a bit of gather on the back waist, but not enough to truly tip in the jacket.  It is made of cotton, but I suspect mercerized cotton, because it has a slight sheen.

The details on this jacket are amazing. Covered buttons of course, but also covered buttonholes.

And check out the angled buttonhole on the bracelet sleeves. Swoon. 

The body of the jacket is lined with cotton, so it is fully breathable, but the sleeves are lined with acetate, so you can slip it on easily.

I asked my mother about her clothing tastes, or fabrics in general, and I must quote her response in full:

"I remember ordering my sheets from Macy's, NYC. As for clothes. They were a minor concern. You took the most expensive skirt I ever bought, saying it was too young for me.  You were right. But at least I didn't get liposuction to maintain illusions."

I know, she should be blogging. The truth is, getting sheets from Macy's was a BIG DEAL if you lived in Akron in the sixties. And apparently I was a mean and ungrateful teenager as well. But I remember that skirt, I stole it because it felt so good on me. It was the first skirt I'd ever seen that was lined, and that was the beginning of my affection for "good" clothes. Interestingly, this led to me dressing older than I was for many years. Imagine that ivory jacket on a 30 year old. I kind of regret that now, but I also understand why I did it.

I'm going home to have a bowl of strawberries and a piece of cake for dinner. Tomorrow I "march" (probably more like slouching in this heat) in the 4th of July parade with my library pals.

Have a great holiday! 


 
 

Boy, It's Hot

The air conditioning failed at the library Sunday afternoon, and by 9 a.m. this Monday it was BEASTLY. Therefore, I won't be blogging about the new navy pique jacket which I tried to wear that morning, but which hung on the back of my chair most of the day. Our valiant building manager got the HVAC people out lickety-split, but it was still sticky in the building until I went home at six. Below is the jacket; it is partially lined, with the sleeves and seams finished in a ticking stripe - very snappy!
 

Now wildly on sale, other pretty colors!

Sleeve lining and Talbot's bracelet.

The pockets (all four) were also lined with the striped rayon. I wore it with a print tank and olive green linen wide-leg pants. The pants, though linen, were lined, so also pretty sticky in the heat. They have a really long rise, so if I tuck anything in I look like Todd Loopner.

I discovered that haul videos are old news according to ABC back in March, 2010. 

Haul Videos Turn Tech Savvy Shoppers into Web Stars

I also wrote to my mother, email being her favored method of communication, to ask her if she used to love clothes as much as I remembered. Now 89, she doesn't particularly care, but I remember her clothes always looking and feeling really nice. My stuff seemed sticky or scratchy, and her dresses and blouses felt cool and smooth. She's always been a fan of natural fibers; maybe that was the difference. She also had long, slim hands and feet, and used to have boxes of Pappagallos in her closet, because those fit the best. Anyway, I hope she comments back to me.

Box O' Pink

So, this happened.

 Pants, sweater and blouse, all in "soft rose."

NEW Challenge - Voile!

This is my yellow voile skirt from Talbot's. I love saying voile. Voooiiiiillllllle. So French.

I bought it last fall, admired it, and put it away. Because it is voooiiiiilllle, and too light for fall and winter.

Standing on tiptoes to look taller.

Floofy!

  I'm also wearing a J. Jill top from the previous century.

Notice the fairly scruffy Me Too flats for walking to work, whereupon I changed into these:

Earthies Sienna, available on eBay

These shoes are still in the audition phase, although it might be too late to return them at this point. I think I've had them nearly two months. They have a high arch, which is great for me, but it's not quite in the sweet spot, and I don't know if they will be wearable all day. (P. S. I wore these to the Relay for Life and did four laps on the track!!!)

Have you heard of "haul" videos? Where cheerful young women collect their inexpensive purchases from Forever XXI and H & M and then film themselves showing off their loot? It's not about what they spent, but about what they didn't spend. I'd never heard of such a thing, but I'm reading Overdressed, by Elizabeth Cline, and I'm learning both new things and things I already knew in my heart.

Cheap clothes are crap - this part I already knew. They don't lay well, they disintegrate quickly, they're inconsistent in color and construction. They are disposable. But they are surprisingly fashionable, as they knock off trends and runway styles at lightning speed. And - they're cheap, so you can buy the trend without sweating the cost. If a skirt is under $20 EVERY TIME, I'd be tempted too. The young women who buy these things are not stupid, and they're working for their money. When I was 20 and working at K-Mart, I shopped there.

But I was a big girl, and not much off the rack fit properly, so I started sewing my own clothes. (There is a wonderful chapter on the history and rebirth of home sewing in Overdressed.) In this way I got to know fabrics, and tailoring, and garment construction, and dye lots, and what selvedge means. When I was in my twenties, even cheap clothes were made fairly well, it was just that the fabrics weren't very nice. In my thirties I was working part-time, and had time to shop at Vogue Fabrics and spend my miniscule budget on fabric instead of finished products. I was always thinking, "I could MAKE that for ten bucks." 

These days, I aim to buy good clothes on sale. The voile skirt (sigh) is a fine example. Look at this lining and hem. The voile outerlayer has a hem that is actually a separate piece with a French seam and is closely topstitched top and bottom. Note also that it is anchored with a thread chain to the lining so it won't shift. The lining also has a fine flat hem, very even and straight. 

This is why this skirt  was originally $128, and why I waited until it was under $40 to buy it. Talbot's, like a host of other clothiers, got in righteous trouble in the 90s for making its clothes in sweatshops in Saipan, a territory of the U. S., so it could claim to be "made in the United States."  Now they're made in Indonesia or Viet Nam, though I know it is a comforting myth that the conditions in modern factories are much better.

They're still made well, though, and that's why fear clutches my heart at the thought of Talbot's going under, or sacrificing their quality. Where else would I shop?