Hat ‘n’ Boots: Big shoes to fill

These boots, together with a giant cowboy hat, make up the Hat ‘n’ Boots attraction at Oxbow park in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood.

boots

The Hat ‘n’ Boots were built in 1954 as part of a Western-themed gas station. The gas station is long gone. Fortunately the City of Seattle relocated the buildings/sculptures to the park to preserve them. They are the largest hat and cowboy boots in America.

Sometimes you don’t need to travel far to find interesting things. I like exploring Seattle and discovering Americana from a bygone era. On this day, we wandered though Georgetown. Georgetown is a bit gritty. It’s industrial and residential. It has a thriving artist community and good bars and restaurants. It has a blue-collar feel and is really down-to-earth. Until you see the size of their boots!

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Filed under Architecture, Art

Street Style: Black and Brown

I like to break fashion rules so when I see others doing the same thing, I run up and take their picture to show the world that rules are meant to be broken. Fortunately Suzanne is a friend and didn’t mind the photo-op.

black and brown

I love how she has on a black coat and brown pants. The coat is part of the outfit, not just a warm layer thrown carelessly over her clothes. She has black shoes and brown gloves, showing that black and brown look great together.

I especially love how the scarf serves as both a warm item and a pop of color. The shade looks great with both brown and black, further tying the outfit together.

Suzanne’s best accessory, though, is her mega-watt smile. She’s always wearing it. I’d like to find out her secret. It could have something to do with the fact that she’s a yoga instructor. She knows how to nourish her soul—especially when things get hectic as they tend to do around the holidays.

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Green, Gray, and Grundahl

When I went to Etsy Rain a few weeks ago, I wrote about how I bought a slew of green things. Today, I wore the lime green earrings by Phoenix Beadwork, the kelly green ring by One-eyed Collie, and an avocado green necklace my mom gave me.

accessories

To the mix, I added neon green socks and a forest green tote bag.

grundahl

There are over 400 shades of green. I’m probably not supposed to mix this many shades in the same outfit, but I couldn’t resist. Green isn’t often used as an accent color but I thought I’d give it a try. I kept everything else neutral and went with a statement skirt. My Ivan Grundahl.

green acessories

Jacket: Express via swapped
Top and tank: Target
Skirt: Ivan Grundahl
Socks: Joann Fabric
Boots: Guess
Earrings: Phoenix Beadwork
Ring: One-eyed Collie
Necklace: Gifted
Tote bag: Crystalyn Kae

During my photo-taking, a curious squirrel stopped by to check things out. I told him to stay still so I could take his picture and sure enough, he did! A chance encounter with this squirrel totally made my day. He put a big smile on my face. Look at how cute and chubby he is.

squirrel

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Dress Up, Dress Down: Black Velvet

About the same time as the movie Blue Velvet came out, this dress was made. It was an amazing film: dark, disturbing, and fantastic. I was 15 when I saw it and it opened up my eyes to a world of movies I’d never heard of. I have been a fan of David Lynch ever since.

I didn’t buy my frock back then; I bid on it a few weeks ago on eBay. I made a video about how to buy vintage on eBay. This was one of those finds. It’s a Diane von Furstenberg. Unlike her signature wrap dresses, which I’m always outbid on, people don’t look for her other pieces as often, it seems.

I thought I could dress this up for dinner and a show. Something like this.

DVF dressed up

Dress: Diane von Furstenberg via eBay
Tights: Betsey Johnson
Shoes: Manolo Blahniks via consignment
Vegan purse: Vamp Bags
Necklace: Forever 21
Cuff: Claire’s

I can also dress it down too, for dinner and dancing.

black velvet and pink tights

Dress: DVF via eBay
Tights: Target
Shoes: Swapped
Scarf: Labels Consignment
Earrings: Sears
Jelly bracelets: eBay

I wore this last night when I went dancing for part two of my 40th birthday bash. I had on blue tights and flats. (Dancing in heels on Thursday was tough. I can’t do that twice a week!) I’ll post pictures of the dancing outfit soon.

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Filed under Dress Up Dress Down, Fashion, Thrifty

My Electric Blue Jumpsuit

I made a video a few weeks ago to help people learn how to find vintage deals on eBay. One of the items I talked about was this 1980s-era jumpsuit. I mentioned that jumpsuits are really on-trend right now and that I don’t want to pay a couple of hundred dollars for one. This one was $3.99 and does the trick. Here are two ways to wear it:

First, I accessorized with a statement necklace, funky belt, and killer heels. I like the look and I’d wear it to dinner or dancing.

jumpsuit with gray heels

Jumpsuit: eBay
Belt: From of a dress I got at Express
Necklace: Macy’s
Shoes: Badgley Mischka

I thought the jumpsuit would look great with tall boots too. I can tuck the pant legs in or roll and cuff them and wear them over the boots. This is what I wore to my 40th birthday party last night. My birthday is today and I’m celebrating for three days straight!

jumpsuit with black boots

Belt: From a jacket I got at Wish
Necklace: Premier Jewelry
Boots: Mia

It’s kind of space-age, don’t you think? If a one-piece look is too intense for you, try wearing a blazer over a jumpsuit to break up the color. Have you tried the jumpsuit trend? Would you dare?

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Thrifty Thursday: Earthtones and Animal Prints

Look at the size of that maple leaf! Can you believe it? I found this in the woods near my house when I was walking my dog and just had to carry it home with me. I thought it would make a nice prop. It matches the neutral tones I played with.

maple leaf and red coat

sweater dress

Coat: Kenneth Cole via Thrifted
Dress: Thrifted
Cardigan: Thrifted
ScarfTasha’s Accessories
Tights: Fred Meyer’s
Boots: Bass
Purse: Frye via thrifted

I started with a rust-colored sweater-dress and chocolate-brown cardigan and tights. I wore matching boots and a giraffe-patterned scarf. I tied the ends of the scarf together to turn it into an infinity scarf. It’s cold and wet, so I wore a red raincoat. My bag matches my dress. I think the coat and scarf break up the two-tone “matchiness” of the outfit.

I put this outfit together because it’s very comfortable yet presentable. I wore it to the office and also to meet friends after work. It worked for both situations and I didn’t have to change into something else.

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Rebel for a Good Cause

I’d been looking for a non-leather, James-Dean-style motorcycle jacket for a while and I hadn’t had any luck. Until now.

biker jacket

Jacket: Forever 21
Sweater: Papaya
Shorts: H&M
Tights: Target
Purse: Nine West via thrifted
Shoes: Mea Shadow
Cuff: Lauren Harkness
Necklace: Gifted

I found this brown velvet biker-style jacket at Forever 21. Not only is it vegan, it was a great price. I’ll be wearing this with jeans, dresses, and yes, shorts. I’m wearing shorts and tights a lot this fall. It’s a great way to extend my summer wardrobe (even though I didn’t actually wear shorts much in the summer).

My shoes were almost $200 originally but I got them for $30 online. I wore them yesterday with jeans, but they were hard to see.

cross necklace

I’ve had this cross necklace for ages and it has a special significance to me, but not in a way you might expect: My dad made this in the 60s. It’s this cool, carved wood, hippy cross and I love it! But it’s so in-your-face that I rarely wear it.

neutrals for fall

Until now. Now I see it as an artistic piece with personal, sentimental value, not an overtly pious statement.

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Filed under Ethical, Fashion, Thrifty

Dusty Rose Jacket and a DIY Scarf

I’m wearing my dusty rose pleather jacket again. This was an amazing find at Penneys. I wore it with gray in the spring and I’m wearing it with jeans today. It’s super soft and looks luxe.

pink pleather

DIY scarf

pink and blue

Jacket: JC Penneys
T-shirt: Target
Jeans: GLO via thrifted
Shoes: Mea Shadow

My DIY t-shirt scarf sort of matches the denim. It’s a really simple project. If you haven’t tried making one, have a look at my earlier post that explains how.

The shoes are new. They were hugely discounted online so I had to snap them up. The original price was almost $200 but I got them for $30. Yes, I’m wearing them with socks. It’s not a faux pas anymore, as long as the heel is chunky. [Update: I’m wearing these with shorts in another post and you can see more of them.]

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Dress Up, Dress Down: Leopard and Sparkle

With leopard and sparkle on the agenda you might wonder how I could dress my outfit down. I should put this in perspective. A couple of weeks ago I was invited to a wine tasting at ROAD Apparel. So both my outfit ideas were for a Saturday evening event. I do think they’d both work for day too, with a couple of minor adjustments.

I knew for certain that I’d be wearing my silky cowl-neck top with a sparkly cardigan. The sparkles say fancy but the cut of the sweater says casual. Seattle is known as a casual city but for a Saturday night event, I didn’t want to under dress. This was my compromise.

First, I tried on wide-legged pants and leopard ballet flats.

gold and brown

Cardigan: Old Navy
Top: Express
Pants: People Love Frank via thrifted
Shoes: Payless
Necklace: Mary Kay
Cuff: Lauren Harkness

Just to mix things up, I swapped the pants for a denim pencil skirt and traded the flats for heels.

gold and blue

Skirt: Sofada
Shoes: Two Lips

Which outfit do you prefer? I ended up going with: The skirt!

The shape (pencil) was dressy and the fabric (denim) was casual. I felt like I was ready for any occasion in this outfit. I love this brand too. It’s a line of handmade clothing by Alice Dobson, a Portland designer. I try to support small businesses whenever I can. The gorgeous hammered copper cuff by Lauren Harkness is another example of an independent designer. I bought both items recently at an event called Thread.

I threw on a jacket I’d thrifted at Goodwill and I was set.

The final look

Jacket: Tahari via Goodwill
Clutch: Shiraleah

Tahari jacket and Shiraleah clutch

To dress these items down more, I’d change the skirt for dark jeans and keep the heels. These looks are probably fine for day, but a simple white t-shirt would be a good substitute for the silky blouse.

I’mentering this post in the Everybody, Everywear challenge since it meets this month’s requirements: sequins and sparkles.

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Urban Knitters Strike Again

This really made my day: A few weeks ago, in an otherwise unsightly park in downtown Seattle, where drug use is prominent and no one really visits to enjoy the park, I found knitted trees.

knitted trees

Urban knitting is the textile art version of graffiti, but it’s soft, gentle, and harmless. I’ve heard about groups like “Knittahs,” “Urban Knitters,” and “Guerilla Knitters” but I don’t know much about them. And that’s the point. Under the cover of darkness, these crafty artists cover trees, lamp posts, bike racks, even entire telephone booths with pretty rows of yarn.

knit one

It’s incredible how much work must go into this. As a non-knitter (who’s tried and failed) I really appreciate the effort it takes.

perl one

The park was a happy place for a while. I will check to see if the installation lasted. It was up for several days. My husband saw it first and brought me back a few days later. People walked by and marvelled. It’s usually the type of place I avoid, but the common thread of admiring the trees, brought people out.

warm trees

It’s entirely possible that this was a city-sanctioned art installation, but I didn’t see a plaque or sign, so I suspect it’s guerilla art at work. The best kind, if you ask me. There’s something about the unexpectedness of it that makes me smile.

Have you seen urban knitting in your city?

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