Sunday, February 22, 2015

Thrift Store Pre Raphaelite

Some days (particularly the cold ones we've been experiencing) demand luxe fabrics. Let's face it, if you're going to the bother of flowing silks, you might as well abandon restraint and go crazy with the necklaces and bangles. By the time I was dressed, I must have added fifteen pounds (or more) in accessories.

Excuse the squinting. You'd think will all that sun it would warm things up a bit-but no such luck I'm afraid. Oh well, no reason to let it ruin an exciting afternoon in...

...the supermarket. I bought some gorgeous artichokes, so it was worth the bother. I'll take any reference to spring I can get. I should have bought some of those fennel bulbs, they looked beautiful. Pro-tip: trim the tops of the fennel bulb, and save them to lay beneath fish fillets when you bake them.

So off topic-they just ran an ad on television for some sort of hormonal injection that's supposed to make middle aged women fancy their partners again recover their desire for sex. A woman in a lab coat makes an announcement at the end, "Call us to get back the old Jew."
My hearing isn't what it used to be, but even after I realised she said, "Old you" I couldn't get the image of Dr. Ruth out of my head. "I vant you to have good sex!"

I'm going blind, I thought my hearing was supposed to compensate or something.

Back to the clothes.
I couldn't make a trip to Council Bluffs and not stop at the Goodwill, could I? I wasn't disappointed. Goodness, I love early 70's prom dresses! The crystal pleats, the angel-flutter sleeves, the polyester! I came home with three-one pink, one blue, and one green. .99 cents each. Then, I found not one, but a pair of pure silk vintage jumpsuits (one purple, one teal) original belts intact. Oh, I adore Iowa. Iowa, Iowa, your thrift stores are divine, like a treasure chest of long forgotten time.

I always wish this coat could have been a wee bit longer, but I know I'd never wear a full length coat. How do people drive in full length coats anyway?

I know you're wondering..."What is she going to do with all those artichokes?" Artichoke pesto (probably) stay tuned.

Outfit Particulars:

Late 80's Guess dress-Thrift World
Saree Silk-Goodwill
Boots-Hand-Me-Ups
Coat-Evans, early 90's
Museum Company purse (80's, I think) Thrift World
Necklaces (and the one in my hair) all over, mostly Goodwill
Bangles-everywhere
Rings-Assorted places
Earrings-K Mart
Fragrance-(Very) vintage Coty Chypre (which is lovely, but fades oh so quick due to age. I would have loved to smell this fifty years ago, before the top notes all faded. Still, it is easy to see why it defined the genre. I'm going to try and locate a better preserved sample before doing a review).

 Standing before a wall of vitamins makes me look healthier, no?
Off camera-people watching and laughing because they don't want to step in front of us taking photos, but I'm holding semolina flour and posing in a supermarket, so the whole thing borders on absurdity anyway. Yay, organic semolina flour!

So are you watching the Oscars tonight?

I hope you have a great week.

12 comments:

Curtise said...

Nope, didn't watch the Oscars - why bother, I've got you to admire in all your Pre-Raphaelite glory?! Gorgeous colours, you look elegant and expensive. But I am secretly seething with jealousy over those 99 cent angel sleeved 70s dresses and the silk jumpsuits... I want!
Ha, the advert story made me chuckle. I mishear stuff all the time too. And while we're on the subject of medicalising non-medical issues - given the state of some middle-aged men, no pill's gonna cure THAT ill.
You're a supermarket supermodel! xxx

Beth Waltz said...

Gorgeous color combination in this ensemble, Goody! As Curtise so aptly adjectivises: "You look elegant and expensive." Is the coat a mouton? I wore a full-length black mouton back in the day. It was the first 'fur' I ever bought and I was as proud of those skins as though they were sables.

What do you do with fennel bulbs besides boil them? Carnivore that I am, I do like them with pork.

Goody said...

@Beth Waltz

No, it is a sheared mink, which is sort of a patchwork of smaller pieces of pelts put together to form a pattern, and then sheared to keep it all the same depth (if that makes any sense). It really is made from bits that would otherwise be discarded in the process of making more expensive coats.

I usually roast fennel bulbs, but they're also good camerlised in butter and sugar as a savoury/sweet sort of side dish. Fennel can also be sliced and thrown into a salad.

Jayne H said...

Goody you are looking particularly gorgeous and glamorous recently. Your coats are divine xx

Goody said...

@Jayne

Thank you, that means a lot to me as I've been feeling anything but glam lately.

Bibi said...

Watched the Oscars, I found it a bit bland except for Lady Gaga's tribute to the Sound of Music.
Looking very boho fab or with the mink perhaps 'Notting Hillbilly'?
I was wondering when they'd try to sell hormone replacement therapy to American women again. So now the pitch is that hormones are going to make us feel sexy like we used to. I wonder if America will ever get over the HORMONES = CANCER scare with the Premarin debacle?

Goody said...

I dunno, I sort of feel like Pharma ought to develop a drug that makes middle aged men bother to wash. Women would buy *that*. Imagine the ads:

"Nothin' says, "Sexy" like a freshly scrubbed sack! Chicks dig it, and you will too with our new tablets! Just one a day will have you racing to the shower. "Darling, your scrotum is so...fresh." That's right fellas, the family jewels will sparkle like new when you take our drugs. Try some today!"

Seems easier than expecting women to bother with hormones ;)

Sue said...

Jeez you are a babe in those earthy colours, layers of gorgeousness and warmth. I love your supermarket modelling, peeps probably think you are merchandising products.

Joanna said...

You look so warm and snuggled in your fur coat. It's been so cold here I can't motivate myself to get out and about but I have to tomorrow for a favorite visit to the dentist:P I also had the weirdest thing happen to me today my middle toe nail cracked right in the middle because of the cold and dry weather. My toes can't take it any longer! This has never happened to me and I honestly don't want to imagine 4-6 months without my toe nail so now I've been watching Youtube videos about tea bags and nail glue. My husband told me it's no big deal no one will see my poor toe but I really don't want to loose the nail completely. This sounds like a Dear Abby (except not relationship) entry lol. This comment has absolutely nothing to do with your outfit but for some reason I thought my toe nail should be brought into the conversation lol. You see all topics are open for discussion on your blog from women's hormones to toe nails :)

Goody said...

@Joanna

I've lost so many toenails over the years I feel like some sort of expert-so here goes:

If the nail falls off, the skin beneath it will start to harden (this is good), so don't keep it too tightly wrapped in a bandage-air is good for it.

Once it starts to grow back, it will grow out from the bottom, so keep stretching the cuticle around the toe back so the nail will grow in straight (ish).

After the skin toughens-up, you can get away with painting the skin with polish (!). Yes, you'll feel like a 90 year old woman doing it, but no one will notice when you're wearing sandals.

Hope that helps. Stay warm.

Dorothea said...

O.M.G.

i am sitting here ULLSing in the afternoon ... (UnLadyLikeSnorting) on your shower-tablet-thoughts for the middle-aged male ...

by chance, found your blog by googling for a photo of my new purple raw-silk coat by "windsor" which should spare me the efforts of digging out my digicam from my electronic device drawer and shoot a pic for some of my digital girlfriends. uhhh yes, these little gems that can be found in the vast universe of the interwebs are precious.

just added you to my feed-reader. :-)

Goody said...

@Dorothea

Welcome!
Glad I could give you a laugh. Your coat sounds fab.