Grandma's Closet

What shaped your idea of beauty and style?

2008-07-10T10:16:00.003-06:00

Inspired by Fops and Dandies post about her favorite kids' book, style-wise (http://fopsanddandies.blogspot.com/2008/07/happily-ever-after.html): My two main children's books (that I got out from the local library hundreds of times, and recently hunted down to add to my own collection) that shaped my ideas of style were the Big Golden Book of Fairy Tales, published in the 50s, translated by Marie Ponsot and illustrated by Adrienne Segur, and the Eroll Le Cain illustrated version of Twelve Dancing Princesses, published in the 70s. Both are out of print - although Golden a few years ago did a reissue of the Segur book, but on shiny paper rather than heavy, matte, rag paper (totally changed the quality of the illutrations). Take a look at these sites - http://errollecain.com/twelve_dancing.htm and http://segur.artpassions.net/ - for some deliciousness. Segur's illustration for Bluecrest is why I have so much costume jewelry today (couldn't copy it, so it's linked below)! If you get obsessed with huntign any of these books down now, don't blame me. It took me about 5 years of on-and-off searching to find a pristine but affordable copy of the Segur book - even the copy at my childhood library had beed scribbled on (someone really hated Thumbkin). http://www.artpassions.net/cgi-bin/show_image.pl?../galleries/segur/ftbluecrest.jpg

Obama lexicon generator, via Slate

2008-02-15T13:04:00.001-07:00

Vote, caucaus, campaign, read! Go, already! Give a shit! Gah!

2008-02-07T10:33:00.001-07:00

So, one more quickie - it's Fashion Week for Fall 08, and I know I should, I do, care about what's being shown. Rodarte is v. pretty, Halston is better than I expected, I'm keeping both my skinny and wide-legged jeans and ankle boots and dip-dying some sheer tights... but I get impatient with every collection slide show, stop reading halfway through every article, and I just want to grab all the people on NY Mag's Video Look Book talking about the deep and the superfical ramifications of the new designs and shake them and ask "don't you know the most exciting election of the last 50 years is being fought out right now?!?"

Obama takes Colorado

2008-02-06T15:02:00.001-07:00

Ok, a quick post for my tens of readers... posts have been thin, and will be through at least the week of Feb 15th, as I have two major deadlines at work that mean the last thing I want to do in the evenings is write more. However, I will note that I caucused for the first time evah yesterday (back east we just vote) and it was messy, but an interesting and highly entertaining lesson in civics. Oh, and I'm a delegate for Obama!

Handbag Tag

2008-01-23T15:26:00.001-07:00

OK, so to all my readers out there (mom), I have been crazy busy at work, and all I want to do when I get home is take off my clothes and put on pajamas, not describe what I'm wearing or set up a tripod to take pictures of it! But having a moment to sip some tea and spin through my blog list, I saw that the lovely and creative dreamecho has given me my very fist tag! She wants to know six things that are in my bag - and isn't she lucky she just asked for six - although I realize I'm cheating a bit by combining some items. I tend to carry a biggish bag during the day as I have to tote some minor medical supplies and accouterments. Currently, I'm using a Hayden-Harnett Pastis frame bag in brandy leather. It looks like a cartoon of a proper old ladies bag, as it shaped like a reticule, but huge, with a giant brass kiss-lock closure. And it has lots of pockets, which are a must in any bag I carry (I can't believe that you can get a wait-listed, multi-thousand dollar bag like an Hermes Birkin, and it has not a single pocket! You need to spend an extra 20 bucks to get one of those pocket thingies you can stick in cavernous purses). So, six items:

Glucose meter kit - this includes test strips, lancets, insulin vial and syringes (I used to use an insulin pen - much easier, one piece - but my new insurance won't cover them, pheh), alcohol wipes, and glucose gel - I like CarbBoom as they actually taste like fruit instead of syrup - in case I have a blood sugar crash. All of this matches the Diabetic Sweater, obviously.
Sennheiser foldable headphones with Ipod Shuffle - for my bus commute. The headphones are very high quality and fold up into a little, flat case that is perfect for purses, which is why I liberated them from my husband (hey, he took my noise cancelling headphones, a Hanukkah gift from my dad, so it's fair). The Shuffle is also a gift from my dad, with my name engraved on it, and my husband loads it with fresh music for me every month or so - just like a high tech high school mix tape (an art form in danger of being lost - http://coilhouse.net/2008/01/08/mix-it-mix-it-good/)
Cell phone - although I often forget to charge it!
Lippie collection - in dry Colorado winters, I usually ditch my makeup bag because I can't be bothered with more than moisturizer and lib balm, as anything else just cakes up on my peeling lips oh-so-attractively. The three balms I have in constant use are chai rose Badger Balm (no color), Aveda SPF 15 lip tint in spice (sheer silvery-beige), and Hemp Organics lip moisturizer in Kiss (pinky-brown that my husband says makes my lips look like Angelina Jolie's, so I go though two tubes every winter. Available at Whole Foods and Wild Oats - I know, I know, they're the same now -and Vitamin Cottage, ladies. Looks good on almost all skin tones.).
Packet of RTD bus schedules
Reading material - changes every few days (I'm a fast and multi-booked reader), currently Away by Amy Bloom. Being able to fit a hard-back book is another day bag requirement.

Black and Brown & Black and Navy

2008-01-07T11:51:00.000-07:00

***These are this past weekend's outfits, and I did not get my photo-posting tutorial until Sunday night. Susequent outfit posts should have shots, taken each evening by my indulgent husband***

Two traditionally derided color combos that I happen to like. So long as there is texture contrast and your navy, especially, isn't too too dark (so that in harsh office light it just looks like you pulled on the wrong pants), it looks very sophisticated. I also like black with dark fir green, or black plum - the "blackened" colors provide some interest (I'm not much for all black outfits), as well as looking better if you want a noir aesthetic than having un-matching blacks - because black does not automatically go with black.

Saturday, Jan. 5

Long sleeved, scoop neck black cotton T, ages ago from the Gap;
Matte black tights, old from Gracile (I think they were sold at The Limited, a store I have not been into - does it even still exist? - for about a decade! At least they apparently sold high quality tights);
Black cotton high waist, knee-length pencil skirt form American Apparel, with the waist folded over to shorten the skirt;
Low-calf, dark brown, suede, flat boots with a molded rubber sole and side zips, from Fish Kids, a shop on Comm Ave in Brookline, MA that sells European kids clothes and shoes at ridiculous prices for small people who will outgrow them in 6 months or less, but perfect for small people who are going to stay that way;
Espresso-brown, crocheted, wool and angora sweater styled like a Victorian bed jacket, waist length, with cropped wide bell sleeves, and fastening with a tea-dyed silk ribbon threaded through the neckline. It was a Hanukkah gift from my sister this year;
Vintage screw-back gold earrings, could be any decade from 1890's to 1940's, given to me with a jumble of old jewelry by a cousin from Toronto when we travelled to Hungary together on a sort of family-reunion trip six years ago. They are dangling ovals with bead-border, inscribed in scrolling script with the initials "BS", but I don't know what ancestor they originally belonged to.

Sunday, Jan. 6

Matte black lame American Apparel leggings - I love these, but as Wende B and so many others pointed out, they have a staying-up problem. I realize if the waist was tighter you might not be able to get them on, but I am seriously considering wearing mine with suspenders! AA recently came out with the lame leggings in a high waist style that looks like it will stay up much better, but, alas, not until after I had worn and washed mine and so couldn't exchange them;
Sweatshirt-grey, bateau neck, raw-edged, cotton jumper by 12th St. Cynthia Vincent, with a slight empire waist but a straight skirt so avoids pregnancy look. I bought this last spring on the 80% sale rack at new-ish Boulder store Besos. It is one of those shops that is unable to inspire me to pay full (and high) price for it's very nice but not earth-shatteringly imaginative clothes, but which always has great sales offerings;
Pale peachy-pink T, Luella for Target;
Navy blue zip hoodie by amazing Berlin line Hazelnut, whose line is sold in the US through great indie design site, http://www.starsandinfintedarkness.com/. The front pockets are formed by panels that run up the front, form epaulets over the shoulders and continue into a large hood. It has a mandarin collar, and an oversized dark pewter zip;
Black stretch leather ankle boots from Nine West about five years ago. They have a rounded almond toe and a sculpted mini-platform wedge. Because the stretch leather (which actually hits low calf) is so fitted to the leg, they look contiguous with the black lame leggings;
Brooch of low grade silver with dusky blue enamel, of an Indian dancer with scroll work frame, part of a set (including a necklace and earrings) belonging to the original GlamaRuth, and made for the tourist trade, worn at the center neckline of the jumper.

Custom wall unit - with photo!

2008-01-06T22:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, so (and this is for Tammy), my first picture post. Not the most artistic or well-composed shot, but I snapped it this evening as a test. It is the wall between our living room and bedroom in our little 1952 ranch house. My husband designed and built the wall unit (before it was completed, out TV sat on the floor in the corner - it is still rather prominent, but is no longer the focal point of the room - sinking it into the wall helped). It is maple wood, and the base is a re-purposed kitchen cabinet with a baseboard added.

Diabetic Sweater

2008-01-04T15:13:00.000-07:00

Also known as the Green Man Sweater, and requiring some explanation: When I was 23, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. This is a longer story that I will be happy to expand on if anyone is interested. Suffice it to say, I was duly hospitalized when the diagnoses was confirmed, at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton, MA (it happened to be across the street from my apartment at the time). My mom, an amazing nurse (she still gets holiday cards from patients she treated decades ago), came down from New Hampshire, and my dad, an amazing photographer, came up from Philly to be with me during my hospital stay and transition back to an altered "normal" life. Now, my dad is constitutionally incapable of not bringing lottery cards to any celebratory or comforting family gathering of more than two people, and even in my weakened state I could hold a penny to scratch them off. At the time, my favorite Boston area shop was Leila, on Comm Ave. in Brookline (now sadly gone), and they had a sweater I had fallen in love with that, at $180, was far out of range for my out-of-college job self. Well, I won exactly $180 from the lottery cards, so once I was out of the hospital, I bought myself that sweater. I still have it and love it, and every time I wear it I'm reminded how lucky I am to have the family I've got to support me through whatever crap life throws my way. Friday, Jan. 4

Diabetic/Green Man sweater coat - it is a wool and acrylic nubby knit, mostly moss and fir green with shades of teal and greeny-gold. It falls to mid-thigh on me, has two big patch pockets in front, and five large, pearly, dark green buttons. The shawl collar and cuffs are dense with long, fringe-y loops of the nubby yarn. Green is traditionally the color of magic, and this sweater certainly is. And if I button it up over brown pants, I look like a small tree!
Dark blue trouser-cut Trina Turk jeans;
Brown cotton tweed socks from Target kids;
Burgundy/brown Indigo by Clarks shoes with an odd squashed-Louis heel, whip-stitched seams and ankle straps. For years I only bought boots or sandals, as I have very small feet with very narrow heels, so shoes that are both grown-up looking and stay on my feet are hard to find. If the back isn't open, or my foot secured by a boot shaft, I pretty much need an ankle or mary-jane strap to keep heels on my feet!
Self-made ammonite necklace on silver-clasped, copper leather cord and 40's brass jewelry chain - this got almost constant wear this summer and I feel another round of wear coming on;
Silver ring set with large oval cabochon of blue labradorite, bought at a silver shop in Rome during my second semester abroad in Italy (thank you, Temple University!)

Back to work-a-day outfits

2008-01-04T13:50:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, Jan. 2

Black and cream herringbone wide-legged wool trousers from Anthropologie a few years ago - the only thing I have ever paid full price for at Anthro, but they have been my mainstay worky-but-quirky pants for three winters now. The left leg has sky blue piping down the side seam, and the waistband is made of cotton printed with circles and swirls in turquiose, green, yellow, pink, orange and cream on black. The front half-moon pockets (so the lining is visible) are lined in cotton with the same colorway but different pattern. Even the most conservatively dressed women I've worked with want to know where I got them;
Sky blue, fine gauge, merino sweater with drapey, baby-cable knit turtleneck from Talbots. This was a gift about four years ago from my Grandmother-in-law, who is very Talbots while I am not, but I liked the color, it is warm but dressy, so I decided to work with it. It is neither body-skimming nor slouchy, but an indeterminate boxy shape that frumpifies me no matter how svelte I'm feeling otherwise, so I tend to wear it under a jacket for warmth and a pop of color;
Vintage late 50's/early 60's wool jacket, boxy but with intent, collarless, straight 3/4 sleeves, in a divine sulphur yellow (you need a turtleneck or scarf to keep it from direct contact with your face, as the color can drain even my olive complexion to a pallor), with three saucer-like beige plastic buttons. This jacket was purchased in a set on EBay, that includes a full skirt and a slim, self-buckled belt in the sulphur wool, and a cream silk twill sheath printed with pink, teal and blue butterflies (the same silk lines the jacket) - you see, this was a spring wool! - which always remind me of my grandmother, the origianl GlamaRuth, whose signature motif was butterflies;
Flat black Reiker ankle boots, recently re-discovered from storage, chic again and supremely comfortable;
No jewelry. That jacket stands alone.

Thursday, Jan. 3

This was a clean-up day at work, which meant we could go casual (an odd notion in an office that has no dress code but common sense, and clothing runs the gamut from suits to jeans depending on the person and what sort of meetings they have that day).
Grey Mossimo for Target skinny jeans;
Ochre American Apparel camisole (grey and yellow, in all of their various shades, is one of my favorite color combos)
Robin's egg blue, slouchy, v-neck cashmere sweater, one of two (the other is slimmer and charcoal) I have from my aunt that she purchased in London in the 70's, and one of the best aruments for spending more on quality rather than succumbing to fast-fix fashion.
Cream crocheted lace socks from sockdreams.com (I think they're called Zurich trouser socks),
Rubber-soled pumpkin orange ballet flats (bound in orange and cream twill) from Royal Elastics;
Wide silver ring belonging to my husband's great aunt, with a silver heart dangling from a rivet in the center;
Self-made ammonite necklace hung from copper leather cord with 40's brass jewelry chain.

New Year's Undress

2008-01-03T13:41:00.001-07:00

Not as exciting as it sounds. Merely indicates that my outfit for New Year's Day was more along the lines of pajamas than clothes. We had breakfast at our friends' house in Denver (breakfast pizzas using the dough leftover from grilled flatbreads the night before - you crack an egg on top a couple of minutes before they finish baking, and then you have a sunny-side up egg on your pizza, which we had made with Muenster cheese and crumbled bacon). I wore:

Heather grey scoop neck ribbed cotton T with lace cap sleeves, from Gap Body ages ago;
Chunky knit, asymmetric zip, pale blue sweater from Wrap London, a gift from my Grandmother-in-law two years ago;
My recently reclaimed favorite sweatpants from Anthropologie, several years old. They are caramel colored with a thin black stripe down the outside of each leg, slim through the hips and very wide-legged. They'd been spotted by a red shirt in the wash last year, but I couldn't bear to part with them and figured they'd be knock-around pants. I pulled them out of storage last week (finally got around to switching my summer and winter pants) and washed them in our new washing machine - they came out pristine, all traces of the red stains gone. I really can't say enough about front loading washers - besides being more energy and water usage efficient, they actually clean clothes better and more gently. And they gave me back my pants!

I put on real clothes for my Mother-in-law's New Year's Day dinner:

Pale grey cashmere and angora sweater dress with a fold over bateau neck, long sleeves, loose-ish straight fit, and tea-length hem, from Filene's Basement designer room in Boston, a few years ago;
Smoke grey tights, CK from Filene's Basement in Boston, also several years old;
Black boots with cream topstitching from a Clark's outlet in New Hampshire - I think the style was called Kyoto, they have a high, square heel, almond toe, and asymmetric shaft that is almost knee high on the outside of the leg, and mid calf inside. My Mom got them for me because it was impossible to pass up size 5 boots for $10!
Black ribbon necklace strung with matte black leaf-shaped beads and torn black tulle.

New Year's Dress

2008-01-03T13:09:00.000-07:00

To work on Monday, December 31st (yes, we government workers toil for you even on the eve of major holidays), I wore:

Dark ochre Prada wide-legged twill trousers from Buffalo Exchange;
Fir-green melange, scoop neck, long sleeve, cotton T from Banana Republic, bought at the outlet center between Boulder and Vail (can't remember the name) last spring;
Short sleeved wool shrug by Preloved, bought at Cali & Mo in Denver. It is in tones of fir green, rust, and grey, and constructed from recycled pieces of old sweaters - so the sleeves are a chunkier knit in a Fair-Isle pattern, while the bodice has a zigzag pattern and the cleverly folded collar is ribbed. Cali & Mo, more on which later, is an oasis of well-edited vintage and small designer goods in the middle of the most chain-store centric shopping in Denver, the 16th St. Mall. Preloved is a Canadian company that uses recycled fabrics in most of their lines - the line carried by Cali & Mo is Handcut by Preloved, their higher-end line. I also used to find pieces from their regular line at Urban Outfitters on Newbury St. in Boston, but only sporadically.
Gold heart pendant on gold ball-chain necklace (one of the few heart-motif pieces I own, and one of the few fine jewelry pieces as well - I - and my pocketbook- prefer vintage costume and modern art jewelry), given to me by family friends for my 18th birthday/high school graduation;
Large faux-tortoise ring with dark green plastic cabochon from Forever 21. Whatever their other shortcomings, I think they have some great, unusual, cheaply priced cocktail rings if you are willing to dig through the dreck;
Uggs to work, rubber-soled, pumpkin-orange flats from Royal Elastics (Australian sneaker company that makes size 5, online) at work.

Then I took the bus to our friends' house, where my husband was already ensconced in the kitchen preparing our New Year's Eve feast, and I changed into:

Sweater dress by Preloved, from Cali & Mo (well, when I discovered that they carried the line, they happened to be having a sale!). It is sleeveless, with a deep v-neck (actually, too deep - as with most dresses, I have to take it up a the shoulder for it to fit properly), and a pencil skirt, classic 50's wiggle-dress silouette, but comfy! The bodice is ochre, pale blue, pale gold, grey and tan stripes, while the skirt is all dark chocolate brown, but pieced from parts of different sweaters with various ribbed textures, so that it highlights and contours curves very subtly. I wore the above-mentioned Preloved shrug over top, both to keep my shoulders warm and to cover up the part that needs to be altered, so all you could see of the dress was the dark brown;
Dark brown tights, I think from my Mom;
Tan Fluevog Rubini boots;
Olive and moss green Bakelite clamper bracelet, the original GlamaRuth's;
Vintage earrings - tear drop shaped hanging hoops of Japanned metal (blackened), setting off orange, tomato red, and olive green rhinestones, from EBay.

New Years Dressing

2007-12-31T15:06:00.001-07:00

Going out on New Year's Eve is almost always a let-down - you pay a lot of money for a pre-fixe meal at an acclaimed restaurant which will be much better on almost any other night of the year, or you pay an inflated ticket price for a concert or club where you'll be sardined in (not a pleasant prospect when you are 5'2" on a good day), and then you have to cart your carcass home with everyone else who's drunk too much, and it likely to either boot on you on the bus, or hit your car on the highway despite the best defensive maneuvering of your designated driver (and some poor sap must be the designated driver - you have got one for tonight, or a hotel room or friend's couch, haven't you?). So we are pooling our efforts with a few other friends, and spending what we would have on watered cocktails on spectacular ingredients and really good wine and champagne (Roederer Estate in the Anderson Valley, American branch of the French champagne house, is definitively the best bubbly for the buck under $50, and better than many over that mark as well, though my step-mother makes a convincing argument in favor of Gloria Ferrer, also a well-priced American counterpart to a French label, which is a bit sweeter) instead.

We are doing a New England Clam Bake and Lobster Boil (though our lobsters will actually be pan roasted in clarified butter, a la Boston chef Jasper White, which Julia Child said was the best lobster preparation she'd ever had, and who are we to argue with her?). The shell fish (the main reason I can not keep Kosher) are being procured as I type from Pacific Ocean Market, which has a really astonishing variety of fresh and frozen sea food, with once again, far better pricing than Whole Foods, and their lobsters are live, for goodness sake! Whole Foods, at least in Boulder, will only carry them frozen as of last year and they. are. not. the. same. If you think it's too cruel, don't eat them. We slit their backs first so they don't get boiled alive, but my god, they are giant sea cockroaches who will outlast the human race, so we should take advantage of our higher evolutionary status before we wipe ourselves out. Then the world lobster population will be free from my predations, but until that day, we have higher brain function, and they taste so good with butter. Pfft.
Pacific Ocean Market also has steamers, which I have never seen before outside the Eastern Seaboard, so I am quite excited to have them tonight. They are clams that, as the name suggests, are steamed. Then you prise them out of their shells, and holding the black "foot" attached to the clam, dunk them first in salt water (to wash off any grit) and then in melted butter (because it is tasty), and then you suck down the whole clam, including the foot, which slides out of it's gritty skin as you clasp it. It takes a certain level of comfort with your food to do this, I'll allow, but if you can handle it (and seafood comes in more science-fiction-seeming guises than other food stuffs), it is a sublime clam-eating experience.
These delicacies will be prepared by my Dearest Darling (his culinary skill is not why I married him, at least, not the only reason) along with:
Meatball lollipops - tiny lamb or beef meat balls on skewers with a variety of sauces;
Assorted salads, including my favorite - shaved fennel simply dressed with shaved Parmesano Reggiano, sea salt, and balsamic vinegar (here, Whole Foods house brand, 365, is actually the best bang for the buck, being both cheap and deep). This salad is a wonderfully refreshing dish in summer (he first presented it to me at a birthday dinner one June), but when better to have your favorites than at the New Year?
Dessert will come from two shops in the Highland neighborhood of Denver, where the evening's host's live, and will consist of aromatic cheeses and sweet cupcakes, and probably Tokaij and port as well - we are all sleeping over, after all!

Post-Holidays Lazy Weekend

2007-12-31T13:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, so my posting's been abysmal for the second half of December. In my defense, it was a very busy time both at work and at home - but I don't need to tell you that, as it likely was for you as well! I did jot down each day's outfit(s) on a notepad, and I'll post them soon, but as the list grew ever lengthier, I decided to jump ahead to current day posting to get back on track. We had a rather lazy weekend at home after the holiday rounds, with lots of time at the dog park, Pacific Ocean Market (a brilliant Asian market in nearby Longmont - every week for the past month, I have been buying huge bags of fuyu persimmons, one of my favorite fruits - they taste like cinnamon - on sale for 69 cents a pound! At Whole Foods they are $1.99 each!), and desultory wardrobe organizing, with divestment via EBay as a goal. I suspect the winnowing will proceed apace when my younger sister comes to visit. To wit, outfits for being comfy and warm while romping in the snow with dogs:

Saturday:
Dark blue Mossimo for Target skinny jeans, purchased fall 06, snugly tucked into
Tall, golden tan lug-soled Uggs (shut up), traction further enhanced by Dry Guy over-the-shoe orange stretchy rubber things with metal crampons on the bottom - seriously, as ass-saver in snow and ice;
Ruched olive Target t-shirt peeping out below the hem of
American Apparel indigo, tri-blend, raglan long-sleeve shirt, which is, as its reviews say, short waisted, but so am I - yet even I need a longer T or cami under it. It recently came out in dark green, which I would like to get but in a medium for the extra length;
Banana Republic petites (alas, only available online or in a handful of stores, but one of the best petite lines out there it you don't want to resort to Petite un-Sophisticate for sleeves you don't have to roll, pants you don't have to hem, and jackets that fall as they should, with narrower shoulders and higher waist curve) chunky camel wool sweater, with slightly belled sleeves and massive cowl neck, yet slim through body and hitting at high hip (yay, petites!), completely covering the above-mentioned layers.

Sunday:
Grey Mossimo for Target skinny jeans, purchased fall 06, snugly tucked into the Uggs-with-orange-rubber-add-on (obviously, I like these jeans since I bought both available colors - the style was only stocked for one season, but they are the best fitting skinnies I've encountered for under $150 - way under!);
Dark red, long sleeve, cotton T with cross-over v-neck by Royal Robbins from REI a few years ago;
Pale blue, chunky knit cardigan with oversized, asymmetrical two-way zip and foldover convertible turtle neck, a gift two Christmases ago from my husband's grandmother, from a random catalog she had called something of London - She also got me a thinner , dressier knit plum wool cardigan with zip front and ribbed waist, both of which I've worn to death - they had lovely, slightly quirky basics, but even if I could remember the name, the dollar-to-pound conversion has made them far too pricey for further sweater perusal.
To both of these similar ensembles, I added
Soft mustard yellow quilted nylon vest from REI, which I bought last winter after a long search for the perfect down vest (if you don't acquire one within two winters of moving to Boulder, your citizenship is put on probationary status), which luckily coincided with the winter sales;
Tangerine orange cashmere scarf, a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law purchased on her recent trip to Italy (she went with a a recently re-discovered grade-school friend and had a blast), toastily but non-bulkily twisted around my turtlenecks;
Floppy, cream colored hat alternating stripes of knit wool and fluffy angora, that, snood-like, fits over my long hair perpetually twisted into a chignon, and covers my ears to boot, from the original GlamaRuth;
Multi-colored, striped, stretchy cotton arm warmers by Cronert, sadly for you no longer available from www.sockdreams.com (a friend at my old job would beg them off me every time I wore them last winter, so she received a pair for her birthday just before they were discontinued - although I think they still have them in solid black).

Moderne

2007-12-13T12:04:00.000-07:00

Thursday, Dec 13, 2007

Slim, 60's knit sheath dress from Regal Vintage. It is emerald green, probably a poly-blend, and textured in what is sort or a mini-cable knit. It has fitted bracelet sleeves, a short funnel neck, and a seam above the bust. It is fitted but not tight, skimming the body, and un-waisted. The hem hits me just below the knee.

I scattered bright, pressed tin insect pins from Japan across the right shoulder (with one stray one pinned at the left neckline). I bought them ages ago form a shop that used to be in Univ. of Pennsylvania's International student housing building (for all I know, it might still be there), that was a splendid resource for tchotchkes and small, interesting gifts form around the world.
Shiny ribbed grey tights form Simply Vera

Russet Fluevog Rubini boot
1950's faceted tangerine glass button clip on earrings from a haberdasher's-slash-vintage jewelry shop in Albuquerque. I can't think of the name, and they are not online, but they are delightful - on the main shopping strip in the hippest neighborhood (again, blanking on name but anyone in ABQ should know the area from that). They are right next to a bead shop, across the street and about a block up from Buffalo Exchange.

1950's two tone, faux wood clamper bracelet, the original GlamaRuth's. This gets a lot of wear as it can go with almost anything

Carved purple plastic ring from Boston South End weekly, seasonal neighborhood craft market.

Snowy-day outfits

2007-12-11T15:35:00.000-07:00

These all center around Uggs. I don't care if they are no longer considered fashionable. I never wore mine with bare legs and minis anyway. Mine are tall, lug soled Uggs (rather than the normal, relatively thin crepe sole) because I got them to wear in actual snow on actual cold days, and so I do. Winter came late to Colorado this year - not that I'm complaining, mind you. Last winter's Hoth-like conditions made me feel I'd been sold a bill of goods by husband and friends regarding our supposedly mild winters, with a few snow storms interspersed with days that would crack 60F in February. I accessorize my Uggs with crampons - bright orange rubber thingies with metal nubs on the bottom that stretch over your shoes or boots for traction - and they have saved me on numerous occasions while walking to work over ice-sheet streets. People stop me all the time to ask about them - I think they actually helped get me my new job, my interviewer was so fascinated by them (I interviewed last Feb, in between days when Boulder was completely shut down - not kidding - the city and county governments were actually closed due to road conditions). Anyway, our first snow this year was on Saturday. I wore pajamas, adding my boots and a down jacket only to go play snowballs in the back yard with my dog. That would have been my outfit for Sunday as well, except I had a birthday dinner to go to. Luckily, it was a last-minute, casual affair, because the most I could muster was skinny navy trousers (Erin Fetherston for Target) and a pumpkin orange hoodie. With lovely apple green wool socks to pad around in, as I left my Uggs at the door. We were somewhat melted by Monday morning, so I made a bit more effort for work: Monday, Dec. 10, 2007

60's grey and tan wool herringbone a-line jumper from Regal Vintage. It has a shirt collar and a placket that buttons down about halfway. It has cap-sleeve/epaulet/winged bits over the shoulders, and a somewhat mini hemline.
Underneath, one of the original GlamaRuth's sweaters, this one a dark brown, thin wool Pendelton crew neck from the 40's.
Chartreuse EG Smith tights from http://www.sockdreams.com/.
Russet Fluevog Rubini boots.
Acid green resin and gold metal ring from Forever 21.
Necklace of a drilled fossilized shell hung from 40's gold-colored jewelry chain and bronze leather, that I made this summer.

Tuesday, Dec. 11

Polka-dotted red t-shirt from Target last summer, not really visible under;
60's marigold mohair cardigan from stellar Ebay seller Richtig, last winter. It has a ribbed portrait collar, a smooth knit bodice, and flares out from the waist to a sort of skater-skirt bottom, also ribbed, or rather knit in stripes of contrasting stitches. It hits upper-thigh. The buttons are carved, square yellow plastic.
Inky dark trouser-cut denim jeans with a tabbed waist and stitched down crease down the center-front leg, by Trina Turk, purchased on sale last fall at Knit Wit, and finally hemmed thanks to my mother-in-law. I'm 5'2" on a really good-posture day, and rarely meet a pair of pants that aren't miles too long.
Uggs to and from work, but changed into Clark's heeled, tan, elf-toed sling back clogs for the office.

Wednesday, Dec. 12

Pristine Prada pants purchased this fall form Buffalo Exchange, recently hemmed courtesy of mother-in-law. They are menswear styled with a tap waist and side seam pockets, but widen from slim hips to a very full hem. The color is what caught my eye on the thrift racks - they are an orange-y ochre, dark gold, maple-leaves-turning color cotton twill.
Plum stretch cotton American Apparel camisole, under;
Charcoal grey thin crewneck merino sweater by Donnybrook, original GalmaRuth's from the 50's
Long necklace (I believe originally meant as a wasp-waisted belt) by Trifari from the 40's, purchased this fall at Decades Vintage in Salt Lake City. It is comprised of oversized, double-linked burgundy plastic curb chain, fastened with one split link in gold (I wear the it asymmetrically with the gold link falling on the right side)
Enameled brass bracelet made by my Great Aunt Selma
Carved, translucent purple plastic ring purchased two summers ago at a seasonal weekly craft fair held in Boston's South End
Uggs to and from work, but changed into Clark's heeled, tan, elf-toed sling back clogs for the office.

Potential Fashions - Daily Outfit - Thurdsay, December 6, 2007

2007-12-06T09:07:00.000-07:00

This evening, I am supposed to go to Frock Out Denver, a show of local designer fashions being held at the main branch of the Denver library, and sponsored in part by the Fabric Lab, http://www.thefabriclab.com/, a great supporter/incubator/collective of small (but growing), local designers. I am wearing a Tulip Button skirt by one of the Frock Out designers, Potential Fashions by Tricia Hoke and Kymberly Robertson, http://www.potentialfashions.com/. Their design ethos is similar, if a bit wilder, to my favorite designer, Amy Grubel of Sampleline, based out of Brooklyn. But I love Potential Fashions because they are sustainably-based (all recycled farbic and buttons) and local! We do have style in the Denver/Boulder area beyond cowboy boots and Crocs. The line is carried at the Fabric Lab as well as other retailers around Colorado, including already-mentioned favorites Buffalo Exchange and Regal (nee Rare Bird) Vintage.

Potential Fashions Tulip Button skirt - the skirt is made from recycled men’s suit pants (recycled, repurposed clothing is one of the loveliest things about Potential Fashions), in shades of khaki, greige, and dark brown. It has a cotton jersey waist band in cocoa brown, made from a recycled t-shirt. The waist band folds over so the lining hangs from the inside of it - my skirt's lining is cream colored rayon with black pin dots, it's handkerchief hem serged in yellow thread, that peeks out below the skirt hem. Each color panel of the overskirt is bustled and sewn with vintage buttons, in a pearly beige. It is dramatic yet super-comfortable (thanks to that waist band), and the subdued colors bring it into every-day life wearability (even to the office so long as I haven't got an outside meeting). I couldn't get a picture of it, but you can see it, in various color combos, in the gallery section of their website.
Shiny brown dance tights from American Apparel
Russet Fluevog Rubini boots
Dark Brown, fitted (and cut for a petite!), short sleeved with turn-back cuffs, button down shirt from Ann Taylor Loft, fall 07
50's Coro two-strand short necklace of large, textured, green plastic beads in various finishes, from Decades Vintage in Salt Lake City (not the same as the Oscar-dress resource in LA - for one thing, it's been around longer, for another, I can afford it), bar-none one of the best vintage shops I have ever been in, and that's counting vintage shops in New York, San Francisco, London, Paris, and Rome!
Acid green resin and gold metal ring from Forever 21.
40's gold metal, curb chain, wide bracelet by Monet, from the original GlamaRuth

Daily outfit - a thousand words is worth a picture

2007-12-05T11:43:00.000-07:00

Until I can get snapping, I'm going to post descriptions of outfits - this will act as a memory aid for me - I have favorite pieces, but I rarely wear the exact combination twice, the exception being when I hit on a stellar outfit to take on a trip, and then tend to use it for trips to different places in the same time/weather period. Hopefully, I will be able to re-create these outfits for the camera, editing a thousand words down to one picture. I will also occasionally post reviews of items mentioned, if they are available for purchase (not a one-off or vintage bit), or of places where purchase was made, so you can unearth similar second-hand or bargain finds! Thursday, November 29, 2007 I had book club this evening, hosted at my house (we read The Attack by Yasmina Khadra). It's really an excuse for four women who used to work together to stay in touch, and I like to wear an occasion-appropriate outfit (not fancy, just not ho-hum). This time, I wore an outfit that I'd worn and loved while visiting my dad's over Thanksgiving weekend, which was in turn inspired by an outfit, with striped tights peeking out between a dress and high boots, that a friend had worn to the office. It reminded me that I too, had striped tights hanging out in my over-flowing hosiery drawer. I wasn't a socks and tights lover - like Huck Finn, I was the first to cast them off in summer and the last to put them back on in the fall (though his might have been shoes, too, of which I most definitely am a lover) - until I discovered http://www.sockdreams.com/, more on which, I'm sure, later. Anyway, the outfit:

Ivory Victorian-nightdress-ish dress from Libertine for Target
Camel-colored, wool, buttonless, collared cardigan, knit by one grandmother for the other in the 70's
Brown/tan/ivory/olive/pine green striped tights from Target, fall 06
Russet boots with purple-buttoned ankle on a modified Louis heel from John Fluevog (they are Rubinis from the Operetta family, current season i.e. still on their website)
Long green/black knit tube necklace with aventurine balls spaced throughout, by a RISD artist, purchased by my husband Steve at Stel's on Newbury St. in Boston last summer
Flexible faux tortoise wrap around head band from Ann Taylor Loft, this fall
Bracelet of enameled copper panels, made by my great aunt Selma (more on whom later) in the late 50's at an artists' colony in upstate NY

Friday, November 30, 2007

I honestly can't remember. See why I need this?

Saturday, December 1, 2007

Day: for doing errands, puttering about the house, and meeting my lovely friend Barbara so she could give me and Steve pressure point massages as part of her massage school practicum. Imagine, she was thanking us for helping her out! As soon as she has her license I'll post her info so anyone reading from the Denver area can feel as good as we did!

Chocolate brown slim (but ever so slightly boot cut - hey, it still looks good) cotton pants by Susanna Monaco from Bluefly, fall 05
Lime green, brown, and turquoise argyle socks from a shop on Newbury in Boston, ages ago
Orange suede, rubber-soled ballet flats from Australian sneaker company Royal Elastics, ordered this fall from their website (no shops in Denver or Boulder carry the brand in a size 5 US, which, bless them, Royal Elastics makes)
Dark turquoise, v-neck, dolman-sleeved medium weight knit sweater, the real GlamaRuth' from the early 80's

Evening: for dinner with Steve at a new-ish Boulder restaurant, Alba, opened by the good folks who used to run Blue Moon Grill. Boulder has an exploding food scene, I'll post restaurant reviews as well, soon , soon...

Same sweater, as above, tucked into a 60's Irish wool tweed skirt form Lord and Taylor, purchased at one of Denver's best vintage spots, Regal Vintage - used to be Rare Bird Vintage Clothing, but has the same sweet owner, James Eliott, fair prices, and chock-a-block selection, at 1215 E. 13th Ave. And I can't believe I just revealed a favorite source! Ah well, they deserve your business. The skirt is tweed woven in a basket weave pattern, mainly burnt orange with flecks of blue, cream, brown, and fir green, full a-line with an ingenious wide box pleat at center front that conceals a kangaroo pocket or the same orange rayon lining the skirt.
Cinched with a 40's Coro belt of dark green leather with a wide gold metal buckle that mimics a corset front
Shiny forest green dance tights from American Apparel
Russet Fluevog Rubini boots
Acid green resin and gold metal ring from Forever 21
Large wood domed button clip on earrings, my mom's from the 80's

Also, the food in Boulder does not actually explode, although I'm sure it would make a scene if it did.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Day: for brunch with friends. When Steve and I moved back to Boulder (he's a native, I'm an east coast city girl who came skeptically and fell in love), one of our friends organized a brunch celebration, as so many of their crowd from high school have in recent years moved back from New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, and other scattered locales to settle in the place where they misspent their youth. We decided to meet on the first Sunday of each month, and we've kept it up for over two years. Realizing that the breakfast offerings of the area are ripe for chronicling, we are belatedly starting a blog, the Boulder Breakfast Club, to post reviews.

Royal blue EG Smith tights from http://www.sockdreams.com/
Black stretch cotton pencil skirt from American Apparel
Plum stretch cotton camisole from American Apparel
Indigo tri-blend raglan long sleeve top from American Apparel - newish item in the shop, new color - and I love it
Blue-and-white ceramic piece pendant on oxidised silver chain necklace I made in college
Cobalt blue, carved celluloid rose dangle earrings from the 20's, given to me by a vintage dealer in Philly whom I knew in high school
Shiny black leather high heeled oxfords from the 80's, on EBay (do you have any idea how hard it is to find modern high heels in a size 4 1/2 or 5?)

I know, this outfit is almost entirely American Apparel, and yes, Dov Charney is completely skeevy, but, damn it, they make such comfy stuff in such great colors for a reasonable price yet ethically produced! And styled properly, you can be above drinking age and still wear it. Just maybe not the shiny lame hotpants, at least not to my office.

Evening: for my sister-in-law's annual holiday tea party, at which she provides (homemade) a full English spread; tea sandwiches, scones, clotted cream and all, using the Savoy's cookbook, but for much less than the Savoy's current price of 80 pounds (that would be about $165) for tea. Tea!

Cobalt blue, silk velvet, bias cut 30's dinner dress. Tea length, capped sleeves and scoop neck (sleeves bound in and inset v at neck of gold metal and blue cloth), probably homemade. I found it a couple of months ago at the Buffalo Exchange that lurks dangerously near my office, in pristine condition, perfectly fitted, and $23! It has become one of my go-to going out dresses for the season.
Blue tights, necklace, and earrings, as above (or would have been, if one of the earrings hadn't fallen off at my house and not been noticed until I got to the party - luckily I had a pair of silver and gold Italian wire-work earrings made for the tourist trade, my grandmother GlamaRuth's from the 50's, stashed in my purse from earlier in the week).
Russet Fluevog Rubini boot
And the finishing touch - a dark red velvet sash with multi-colored embroidery, bought in the main market of Budapest when my family went to visit our great grandfather's old home several years ago, tied below the bust.

Monday, December 3, 2007

Grey, bishop-sleeved turtleneck, from Erin Fetherston for Target
Black knit jumper with pink, brown and grey petal motif, from Alice Temperley for Target
Shiny grey tights, from Simply Vera at Kohl's
Fluevog Rubini boots

I do like to pick up the occasional bit at the knock-off shops (we all need candy as well as filling, satisfying greens and whole grains, you know), but I think Target, especially in the GO collections, is more original - or at least the designers are knocking off themselves. There has been some tat in each offering, but the judicious shopper can almost always find some nice pieces of good design at a reasonable price - especially if you don't style it as in the promo shots!

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Grass green cable knit cardigan by Pendelton, the real GlamaRuth's from the 40's or 50's
Lilac cotton, asymmetric t-shirt tunic from Complex Geometries, a small Canadian designer I found through http://www.starsandinfintidarkeness.com/, one of my favorite sites for DIY, small, and unusual designer wares.
Dark navy skinny twill pants from Erin Fetherston for Target - in my opinion one of the most versatile and wearable-in-real-life pieces in that collection, as well as being the perfect length if you're short (I always have to hem or fold in my skinnies - not these!)
Dark purple, navy and grey striped socks, I think they're by Ozone, from a now out of business shoe store in Boulder (they never had 5's anyway)
Caramel colored, sling back, high heeled, elf-toed clogs from Clark's - a new love, as they recently opened in Boulder, make funky yet comfortable shoes, and carry almost everything in a 5! Luckily most are under $100, or I'd really be in trouble.

Photographically challenged

2007-12-05T11:04:00.000-07:00

My dad is a photographer. He teaches photography, film making and video at a local college. I spent my childhood being thoroughly photographically documented, even playing kid parts in his students' films. My brother went into movie production. I have two digital cameras in my house, one small n'sleek, one big n'complex, even unto a fish-eye lens. My husband is nimble with both. So why don't I even know how to upload photos? Clearly, if I am to be a blogger and not just a diarist (and finally post parts of my vast vintage trove to EBay like I've been saying for ages, natch), this situation will have to be remedied. I've long read and admired style blogs wherein the author posts daily or weekly wardrobe shots - I've even let most of my fashion magazine subscriptions lapse, because, let's face it, style is more interesting than fashion, and the web has it in spades, as the links I will shortly be posting to my favorite style contemplators amply demonstrate. Plus, I just love clothes and all forms of self-adornment, I like my own style, and I have a selective memory, so keeping my own record will hopefully be self-illuminating (as well as giving my sister an easy way to shop my closet from across the country). I've been collecting vintage clothes, jewelry and textiles since I was twelve, when my grandmother, the real GlamaRuth, opened up her closets to me. She was classic movie star gorgeous, petite like me (though some of her wasp-waisted pieces fit me in high school and never will again, without the aid of some serious vintage corsetry and girdling!), had stellar taste, and never, I emphasize, never threw anything away. This is, I am afraid, genetic. I have shoes and even some clothes from as far back as eighth grade and high school (no pants or anything too tailored though - I didn't get hips until mid-way through college), the first time grunge came around. I do still on occasion pull out my bottle green Na-na boots and I. Goldberg overdyed military finery, and every trend that has come down the pike in the last decade or so has found it's analog already in my closet, where most of the items are older than I am, needing only a bit of restyling to look better than whatever the knock-off shops have. Which would work to justify my clothing pack-rat tendencies (I prefer "archiving") if I didn't also adore the thrill of the new! I assuage my conscience by mostly buying second hand or vintage, and bargain hunting, as well as by running a sartorial lending library for mom, sister, and friends, and, as soon as I figure out how to actually use a digital camera, the aforementioned EBaying.