My first semester is DONE and I’ve got myself a 3.26 GPA.  Some definite room for improvement there, but on account of being out of school for nearly a decade then jumping into the end of year 2 of university, not to mention not really knowing how to write a proper research essay (I wrote 4 but still don’t get it), the stress of being apart from my handsome man and not really knowing when we’ll be living in the same province again, I would say I did pretty well!

So I had a four day weekend to celebrate my accomplishment before jumping into a new semester today on my 32nd birthday.  I spent 2 of the days desperately running errands that had been neglected, making phone calls to realtors and phone companies and charity organizations, getting a police background check for my next volunteer position and working.  The two days after that were spent at the tulip festival in Laconner with my parents and family friends, at hot yoga, the sugarlime jewelry show and brunch following at Hart House in Burnaby and a little family party at home.  The weekend was lovely!

This morning, my actual birthday, I woke up to drizzling rain but didn’t care because for the next 3 weeks I have a (fairly) early morning statistics class for about 4 hours a day.  The class is supposed to be brutal, and I’m excited for the challenge.  We wasted no time getting into it, and I have homework already!  I also started my (somewhat) online human kinetics class.  We have a lab once a week, and I’m crossing my fingers for a dodgeball game!!!  This afternoon my mom took me to our nail place to get pedicures.  Mine is coral, which should please my sister in law who swears it’s my fave colour.  Maybe she’s right, THIS season

It was a good birthday all in all, and if my dreamboat could have been here it would have been darn near perfect!!!  Here’s to 32, I know it’s going to be a fabulous year!

This is a post written in my other blog dated  May 14, 2011…hope you like it!

My advintage

I found this picture at an antique mall over a year ago, and recently it’s been inspiring my wardrobe and accessory choices.

Love the Miss Havisham look!

I’m very interested in vests lately, this one I just ordered from Esprit online.  It’s stretchy, and I love the collar on it.  It’s called a waistcoat vest, reminiscent of Edwardian menswear.  I love the looks below worn by Hallie Berry, JLo and Fergie, and the one  where she’s dressed it down with skinny pants and boots.  This is a great look for those of us who are a bit busty; it feminizes an otherwise masculine look.

I got a set of 4 headbands from Shoppers Drug Mart of all places, they’re basically elastic on either side of a same-coloured gauzy fabric.  They look really old to me, and are functional and beautiful at the same time!  Decorating your hair is definitely old-world, and I’m loving it!

I pick dresses out that make my Mom cringe.  She’s very simple and elegant, and think that to her I sometimes dress crazy.  I don’t mind.  There’s something about a patterned, colourful  dress that makes my pulse race.  It’s never safe, but when you get it right, a loud dress makes you shine brighter than any black dress will.  Sometimes literally.  Check out this green and brown polyester sheath I found.  The beige leather jacket and brown boots add just the right amount of class.

The first book I remember reading by myself was Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carol.  I was in grade one in an elementary school in Vancouver that was built in the early 1900′s, and it had a big glorious library in the basement where I would go and sit and read for what seemed like hours and days.  It was absolute heaven!  Ever since then, I’ve had a soft spot for all things Alice in Wonderland.  And yes, I did appreciate Tim Burton’s latest interpretation.  I’ve put together some of my favourite Alice inspired items, and I have to tell you: I am seriously considering wearing a short blue organza dress and mary janes to school on a day when I need a little more fantasy and adventure.

Whimsical necklace from etsy.

Great teacup ring from etsy.

Vintage Alice dress, also etsy.

Patent mary janes.

Wonderland Birthday Party!

Vintage pop-up book, I need this!

This is my neice Odessa.  She just turned 5, and she’s awesome.  I’m noticing how her sense of style is developing, and am really enjoying the outfits she puts together.  It’s funny how we develop our own esthetic so young, it makes me think it’s innate.  To be fair, she has a pretty stylish Mom, not to mention her awesome auntie Anna!!!

A few of the things I think about lately when I’m supposed to be working.

This is a black coral necklace I just bought from etsy.  When I went to Cuba a few years ago, I brought back some black coral jewelry and wore it allllll the time.  Then one day, I lost all my best jewelry while travelling.  So sad   I’ve basically replaced most of it, except for this.  I’m going to wear this necklace with girly floral dresses and soft blouses to offset the feminine vibe with something hard and black, but still natural: black coral.  So excited!!!

These are Miz Mooz Solis boots.  I bought these the other day.  I was looking for Caramel-coloured boots (an obsession of mine for years), but found these instead.  I love the lace-ups (not real), the heel, and the Edwardian vibe.  These will be good with pants and a cape and thicker skirts and dresses, especially on days where I have to stand or walk a lot because they’re heaven inside.

Confession time: I’m short, but have big hands and feet.  Not big compared to NBA players, but big for my stature.  I don’t think about my feet too much (except when I wish I could fit into tiny adorable vintage shoes, sigh!), but my hands make me self-conscious.  They’re nicely shaped, but…large.  It occured to me recently that what nude heels do for my leg length, nude nail colour could do for my hands.  So I asked my nail tech to get some nude gel, and by my next appointment she should have it.  In the meantime, I’ve painted my mid-length rounded-pointy nails with a nude polish and am LOVING it.  Also, they go with everything!

I love going to Europe and seeing so many people on bikes.  The cool thing is, women don’t dress sporty there so it’s dresses or chic pants and even heels: on bicycles!  I love it, it’s so inspiring for my own aesthetic.  The following are some of my pictures from my trip to Italy.  You can find as much inspiration in the bicycles themselves as the people who ride them.

Black and caramel coloured; a classic colour combination for clothes as well as a bike!  This one was chained up next to a club.

Me with an adorable pink bike chained to a street sign.  I love that objects there are beautiful even when they’re rusty, old and used.

This mint green is so delicious…and the seat really lends to the shabby look

Florence, Italy: picking up the kids from school.  Note her nude heels and the boys’ uniforms.

Now that Thanksgiving and Halloween are over, my thoughts have turned to Christmas parties.  My brain works like that: the year is broken down into events where fantastic outfits are required.  What I wear to a given event is a combination of a little planning and a lot of of the moment inspirations from the books I’m reading (right now it’s I <3 your style), what I’m watching (a lot of period and stylized movied like Miss Petigrew Lives for a Day, DeLovely, and Penelope), and what I’m seeing around me in stores and on people.  I had a hair appointment last night, and my salon is right next to Anthropologie…oh boy.  I went in for a peek not really expecting to find anything (that’s when I find something, every time), and spotted the most amazing and lovely shrug.  Now Anthropologie is not the cheapest store, so I left it and went and got my hair done.  I spent the almost 3 hour hair appointment thinking about the shrug and mentally pairing it with work essentials and party wear.  By the time my hair was done, I knew I had to have it!  Since a lot of my dresses and other pieces cost $20 or less, I thought it made total sense to get a pricier piece to pair with those things.  I still do, actually.  So here’s the shrug, and some outfits I think I’ll be pairing it with this season.  Happy work bonus to ME!

Christmas Party Dazzler:

 This bolero…

 on top of this perfect satin Audrey Hepburn dress

 finished with THE most glorious pair of 40′s shoes!

Or for work:

  The magic bolero…

topping off a simple yet perfect work look.  Bring some style to the office!

And finally, for the weekend:

 Our friendly bolero…

 paired with basic jeans (skinny don’t work on me, I need a flare) and t-shirt or sweater.  Laid-back chic perfect for shopping, brunching, or anything cool and laid back not at the home depot.

I haven’t written a blog in far too long, and for that I apologize.  I was in Italy for 2 weeks on vacation (a sort of honeymoon I guess, only my parents were there as well so not really), and before that I was on a business trip for a week in Fort McMurray, it was the oil and gas trade show and there were wayyyyy too many people there that week so our internet connection was terrible.  Before that I was getting ready for the biz trip and Europe, and this past week I’ve been recovering.  We tore apart our hideous kitchen before we left so that my brother in law could come in and put up the cabinets while we were gone.  It’s on it’s way to looking good, but we still have no countertops or sink, and linoleum was ripped up so the floor is bare and kind of gluey.  The only appliances we have now are a microwave and a blender, which are doing the trick so far but I can see us getting tired of this situation pretty quickly.  I give it to the end of the month

And so, while vintage has been heavily on my mind, it has not been in the tips of my fingers for a little while, so no blogs have appeared.  I’m unsure of where to begin now, there’s so much to discuss.  Italian style would be great to blog about; I always come back from Europe with a new spin on my own style.  This trip made me think of flats in a whole new way, and also enticed me to be a little bit more experimental with shapes in my wardrobe.  The women there were typically very slim and frowned a lot, and dressed very femininely, even while riding their bikes and vespas, which I loved.

I could blog about the recent amazing coats I’ve found while on the prowl in my local vintage and second-hand haunts.  I’m not sure if I’m on a lucky streak or just living in a place where people don’t know what they’re giving away, but I’ve found some amazing cold-weather fashions in the past 2 months that make me want it to start snowing a lot sooner that I normally would.

I could also write about the home fashions I’m loving right now; we’re coming into the cold part of the year where we typically spend more time cozied up at home; what beter time to add special touches to your rooms that’ll make you smile as you settle down in your favourite chair with a good book?

I will blog about all these things, to be sure.  For now though, let me simply wish you and yours a very happy thanksgiving.  I am thankful for you, dear reader, and for everyone who designs, makes, and appreciates beautiful things.  Whithout you, the world would be a cold and colourless place.  Happy feasting!