O.O.T.D: His and Hers, Welcome Home Edition

Sometimes, you're walking around and the light is just right.  Sometimes, your boyfriend has dressed up super cute and you just really want an excuse to take his picture a few dozen times.  Sometimes, the light being just right is... just the right excuse.  So it was this day, just after I moved home to Toronto.  Ephraim and I were taking a stroll around a couple neighbourhoods we don't check out often (turns out that Mondays are the worst day for the Junction and Roncesvalles... all the cool shops are closed!), enjoying the weather and the warm glow as the sun descended.  We popped into an alley to take these photos, because Ephraim's outfit was so snazzy.  

Really, I think I happily could have stayed out of the model portion that time around, but I do suppose y'all might like my sweet vintage blouse and a super casual outfit.  

The Deets

His

Hat: "I found it under my bed.  So, uhm, vintage I guess?"

Shirt: Levi's

Vest: J Crew

Cardigan: Thrifted

Pants: J Crew

Shoes: Thrifted

Watch: Vintage, family heirloom

Belt Buckle: Paradigm Designs
Bag: One of a Kind Show

Hers

Cardigan: J Crew (Ephraims...haha!)

Blouse: Vintage

Pants: Anthropologie

Booties: Vintage.  Toronto Clothing Show.

Personally, I just want more chances to photograph Ephraim looking so dapper.  I suppose that's one of the perks of living with him, now.  Model time is all the time. I can't WAIT for Decembeard!

--Erin

O.O.T.D: Drive Your Chevy to the Levee

With the classic car show being in town, I couldn't resist dressing up a bit for the occasion.  Add into the mix the crinoline I scored from The Lover, and you have some real swing capability! I used the crinoline to dress up an old H&M dress I've had around for ages.  Ephraim couldn't believe how much the extra floof transformed the silhouette, and people who came up to me to comment on my outfit totally thought it was vintage.  Not bad for a cheap mall find from high school days! I had originally put together the outfit with my cropped denim jacket, but it had become quite warm and we'd been walking around for a while by this time, so I ditched it.  To make up for it, I posed next to a gorgeous car.  A gorgeous car I couldn't touch.  Turns out that makes for some awkward posing, haha! This was the first time I confidantly posed for pictures in public.  By this time I had spoken to a couple sweet old ladies about my dress, and been asked if I was returning from a dance, and had been stared at by so many menonite children that it just didn't seem to matter anymore. 

The Deets:

Dress: H&M, approximately 1,000,000 years old

Crinoline: Vintage

Sandals: Saltwater Sandals

Good boyfriend thinks to get a shot of the sweet button up back.  Less-good boyfriend doesn't tell me my tag is poking out...

Bonus Boyfriend Shots!! His shirt is covered in bear heads, and I think it's amazing (and really hilarious!!)

To the lady who asked me to "do a 50's dance", I'm really sorry that I don't have any sweet moves....yet.  Here's a twirl for your trouble.

--Erin

OOTD: Silk Pants, Denim Jacket, and Rain.

The Deets:

Sandals: Saltwater Sandals in Tan

Silk Pants: Anthropologie

T-Shirt: Target

Denim Jacket: Levi's

Belt: Hand-me-down, Suzi Roher

Scarab Ring: St.Lawrence Antique Market

Necklace: Gift

Do you ever decide you want to take some outfit photos, only to find that it's started to rain? Yeah.  Well, luckily, one of my favourite places to take photos in town is actually on the covered porch of a church! It was just a spattering of rain anyhow, nothing strong enough to stop us from going out.  

In other news, I quickly went from someone who didn't own a pair of sandals (for several years.  Nearly a a point of pride) to being totally obsessed with my saltwater sandals.  I want to wear them all the time.  They're so comfy, and PLAIN!! I can't tell you how sick of gladiator sandals and rhinestones and spikes and everything I am.  I wanted plain shoes I could wear with most of my summer dresses, and I think I did very well.  Now, to wait for those hot sunny skies...

--Erin

OOTD: His and Hers - Green Duds and Fancy Wheels

These photos were something of a spur of the moment type happy accident.  It was the first really warm and sunny day this year, and Ephraim and I spent the afternoon running errands in St. Kitts, with the plan of finishing up with going to see the new Evil Dead movie.  But wouldn't you know it, we ran out of things to do a good hour before the movie started, and so we hunted for a coffee shop to wait in.  In our search we ended up trying to turn around in this parking lot, and found this SUPER SWEET old car!! And well, when you come across a beaut like that, no matter how windy it is (and oh, was it ever!!) you take some photos! So here we are showing off how much green the two of us can wear.  This was unplanned, but dammit, neither of us was changing, that might be dumber than coordinating our clothes to begin with!

I can tell it's going to take some getting used to and maybe a bit of problem solving to deal with just how incredibly crazy the wind makes my hair now that it's so much shorter.  It looks like I'm going to need to invest in a few more hats! Which is a solution I can really get behind :). 

The skirt I'm wearing came from my grandmother.  At first I wasn't so sure about the skirt, as the style of pleating and the (albeit faux) front buttoned flap is very 1910's; which, when it's a time period you typically work in, can get a little too costumey for my taste.  Digging through my closet to find something to pair it with, I realized this 1960's top matches the colour perfectly, and happens to be just long enough to tuck into a high waisted skirt! it really was meant to be, I think!  And wouldn't you know it, the folks at work quite liked how Shavian I look in this outfit.

THE DEETS

(hers)

Striped Shirt: Vintage, free from work

Cropped Denim Jacket: Charlotte Russe

Green Pleated Skirt: Vintage, inherited from my grandmother

Scarf: Thrifted

Matryoshka Lapel Pin: Cry Wolf

Belt: Church Sale

Tights: ??

Brown Booties: Vintage, Toronto Clothing Show

(his)

Sweater: Gift

Jeans: Levi's

Shoes: Converse

I hope your week is off to a great start!
--Erin

OOTD: Leather Satchel and Nautical Stripe Boat Shoes

THE DEETS:

Floral Button Up: Vintage, free

Navy Painter Tee: J Crew

Mustard Cropped Pants: Anthropologie

Striped Boat Shoes: Target

Watch Necklace: Antique, gift from Ephraim

"Hive Mind" Brooch: Premonitory Dreams

Leather Satchel: Aude Bags

Ephraim gave me this necklace for my birthday last year.  Though I've never been big into gold coloured jewelry, this necklace made me reconsider that bias.  Though I still lean heavily toward silver as a preference, the gold colour of this necklace (not to speak of the enamel flower detail on the back) goes so nicely with some other things in my closet.  Of course, the piece is beautiful on its own: I love that it looks like a locket, but is in fact a watch! It's so nice to hear it ticking away when you wear it.  

This leather bag is actually Ephraim's, but he was nice enough to let me borrow it to walk around the One of a Kind Show.  When it comes time to finally buy myself a nice camera bag, the cross body strap is going to be a very important feature for me.  I simply can't lug around a camera for hours in a shoulder bag, yet I keep only packing a shoulder bag for Toronto! It'll click in my brain eventually, and until then, there's this sweet little messenger bag for me to borrow (by force).  I even told Ephraim, when he picked up the bag at the One of a Kind Show last year, that if he didn't buy the bag, I would! But then, I was the one shopping for a bow tie for themselves at the show :p.  I didn't pick one up, but Handsome & Lace had the most amazing spread of ties, bow ties, pocket squares; and I have a weakness for men's accessories! A sweet bow tie may make its way to my birthday list, yet.

--Erin

OOTD: Floral and Mint

This week, after inheriting a bunch of new clothes, I took the time to go through everything in my closet.  I set aside the clothes I was prepared to donate, the clothes that needed some TLC (most notably stain removal - my Bubba had great taste but sloppy eating habits) and the clothes I hadn't gotten around to laundering yet.  Among that last pile was a heap of floral vintage I had scored from work (along with the pieces featured here and here and plenty of others), including this jacket and dress.  Though the pieces aren't a set, the mint in the dress is so similar to the mint in the jacket, that they simply had to be worn together.  I'm fairly certain that the dress was a bridesmaid's dress (the donor had mentioned many of the items were from special occasions and only worn once), and hell, if she couldn't get more wear out of the items, I sure will!

 The Deets:

Floral Jacket: Vintage, Free

Mint Dress: Vintage, Free

Tights: Anthropologie ($5.  Sale room, you my best fraaaan)

Black Riding Boots: Value Village 

Black Snakeskin Belt: Hand-Me-Down

The "Grayed Jade" (14-6011), "African Violet" (16-3520) and "Tender Shoots" (14-0446) in jacket are three of Pantone's colours of the season, so for 45 year old items I scored for free, I sure am looking on trend! On a sidenote, I went shopping for paint chips this weekend, and paint colour names are just the most ridiculous thing ever.  "Tender Shoots"? Seriously? But I digress, back to the outfit!!  Paired with a black snakeskin belt I inherited from my grandmother, and my favourite black riding boots, I balanced that springy feeling with the warmth I need for these not-quite-springy feeling days.  I definitely look forward to busting this combo out as the days warm up, though the polyester is going to limit that somewhat!! I just can't abide by feeling like I am wearing a plastic bag.  Even if it's floral.

--Erin

OOTD: Green Horn-Knit (Sweater)

I am terrible about forgetting things.  Clothing items are the worst.  I forget them at Ephraim's house, or perhaps more often, forget them at my own house... when I need them for a weekend in Toronto.  So goes the story of how I came to borrow this sweater of Ephraim's (and kinda fell in love with it).  Last weekend turned out to be a lot colder than I expected, and I managed not to pack anything nice and cozy for going out at night.  I asked Ephraim for a sweater to borrow, not thinking that his stuff was bound to be very manly, or very large (except for his awesome new J Crew cardigan which fits me perfectly, but it was his birthday, and he was wearing it, and I can't steal the cardi off his back even if it's so comfy), so when he handed me this sweater, I was skeptical to say the least.  It wasn't until I had it on with a bit of red lipstick that I decided I was just going to rock that oversized sweater, Keiko Lynn style.  I mean, shit, homegirl would look great in a paper bag, but she does know how to wear her boyfriend's clothes.  I mean it doesn't hurt that this sweater went great with the vintage shirt I has brought with me.  Clothing Kismet.  

Speaking of the shirt, this was another sweet find from that big donation the theatre couldn't use.  The shirt was made by an offshoot of Lady Manhattan, based in Toronto.  I know this not just from the label, but from the fact that the shirt was still in its plastic sleeve.  That bad boy still had the pins and a sheet of tissue paper in it.  I almost felt bad to unwrap it, but clothes are made to be worn.  And I will wear the everloving crap out of this shirt until it dies.

So say we all.

THE DEETS:

Sweater: Ephraim's, handmade by his Mother (aaawwww!!)

Shirt: Vintage, Lady Manhattan (free.  booyah)

Pants: Anthropologie

Ankle Boots: Vintage. (remixed)

Ring: Vintage, Forum Antiques

Do you have any clothing items you can't wait to get the "chance" to "borrow" (see: short term theft) from a loved one? 

--Erin

OOTD: Scallops and Head Scarves, plus an eShakti special offer!

Let me introduce you all to my new favourite dress.  When eShakti asked me if I'd be interested in reviewing an item from their spring line, I knew I wanted to get something versatile enough to wear to work, or out for a date if I so desired.  When I saw this dress, with it's darling off-white scalloped cuffs and details, I knew it had to be.   I "test drove" the dress to work last week, paired with plaid tights and boots, and wanted to see how I could dress it up for a totally different feel for this review.  And let me tell you, I am so pleased with the results!!

If you weren't already aware, I am kind of a fabric snob.  I have very sensitive skin, and  wear as little polyester as possible, to keep comfortable.  Basically, true vintage is the only time I'll succumb to wearing polyester if I can at all avoid it!! This makes buying from companies like Modcloth difficult for me, as the cost of the dresses, cute as they are (and they are!), stays low by manufacturing with synthetic fibres, which just don't jive with me.  This sweet little frock not only has vintage accents to spare, pockets that come standard, customized hem length and sleeve length to my specifications, it's also 100% cotton.  And that, my friends, makes me 100% happy! The cotton poplin is nice and crisp, with neat little pleats at the waist that make the bust line flatter and the full skirt sit beautifully.  The seams are all neatly sewn, properly finished, and look very professional.  I can't wait to wear this dress in warmer weather, I think the weight of it will lend itself beautifully to all seasons!

 

Since the dress itself is quite simple, I challenged myself to bring in a bit of colour and pattern with my accessories.  My blue pumps and one of my favourite vintage scarves fit the bill quite perfectly! Plus, I managed to cover up my overgrown bangs, haha.  Fashion and function, hand in hand. 

You may recall my previous review and outfit featuring the marigold silk dress I picked up.  Obviously, I am a sucker for the front button detail, and just had to get it again!  I had a bit of fun customizing my dress this time around, and I really enjoyed the process and how very simple it was.  I am a big fan of elbow length sleeves, which I think has a nice vintage appeal, and thought it would suit me better than the short sleeve style the dress automatically comes with.  As well, the dress normally comes quite long, hitting below the knee.  Given the visual weight of the dark colour, I thought that a knee length hem would help give the dress more flexibility as far as what times of the year I can wear it, and I would say after wearing this dress twice that I made the right choice.  I am SO thrilled with my new dress, and I think you'll agree it's very "me"!!

THE DEETS:

Dress: Contrast Bow-Tied Trim Dress c/o eShakti

Tights: Topshop

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell (Remixed)

Headscarf: Vintage, Cabaret

Glasses: Vintage, Kingpin's Hideaway

If you've been thinking about purchasing a garment from eShakti but are nervous about taking the plunge, they have generously offered a special discount exclusively for my readers: take 20% off your purchase with the code PREDCTNSPS, through March 10 20!! Simply enter the code in the promotional code box to enjoy 20% off your entire order, not including overstock items.  Plus, for new customers, they're offering a $25 gift card for your first purchase.  Hells yeah.

How do you feel that tailoring options, and the reemergence of home sewing, is changing the way we shop for clothes?

--Erin