Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Look Out Summer, Here I Come!























This bag is about forty years too late in my life (where were you in the late 70's when I desperately wanted one?) but I bought it anyway as it was in excellent condition, and I'm sure I'll eventually find an occasion to wear it. The thing is heavy -literally, not in the sense of, "Whoa dude, that's heavy."

I completed the syllabus and paperwork for next year's classes and posted them off to the Board of Education for approval. If all is well, I should have my certificate back in a couple weeks. When I was putting together the second semester history course on the Roman Empire, I tried to include some popular movies for fun. Spartacus, Ben Hur, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, all made the cut, but I knew I'd never get away with Life of Brian. Overhearing me complaining that I needed more Roman farces, Mr. ETB went ahead and ordered something for me as a surprise. Well! That certainly was a surprise. I can't use it for class (I don't think some of the jokes would play well in 2016) but it will be fun to watch. I have no idea where in the world he found it.





















I've been promising to show some more of my Collins-style bags. There's one more in my collection that didn't make the photo. I recently bought a large bucket of assorted plastic gems, so I am prepared to do the repairs required.



















As we approach the Fourth of July, I've been getting wear out of my favourite pieces of Americana. This skirt, hand-sewn by a quilter in Texas is one of my all-time favourite pieces. I'm not a huge fan of flag motifs, but give me an eagle, or Washington crossing the Delaware, and I'm all over it! This skirt has a bit of the "Stars and Stripes", but in a way that's more historical than in-your-face, nationalistic. I get a bit fed-up with our symbols being hijacked by people that wish to use them in an exclusionary way. 
Outfit Particulars:
Texas-made skirt-Goodwill
Cotton peasant blouse-K Mart
Vintage Hand-Tooled shoulder bag-New Life Thrift
Vintage tooled belt-Hand-Me-Ups
Bracelet-Goodwill
Necklace-Yard sale
Earrings-K Mart
Sandals-Goodwill
Fragrance-Taylor Swift Incredible Things (Not terrible, in an air-freshener sort of way)

 The garden is coming along nicely.

I was a bit disappointed with the cone flowers as they were expected to be pink and green (they're neither). They haven't really taken on the cone-flower shape either. Oh well, sometimes you don't get what you expect in gardening. 



































I dug this beaded, lacy skirt out for one last wear to decide if I'm keeping it, or moving it out. Not much goes with a black lace skirt (except black, of course)but I gave it my best effort layering a waistcoat (or is it a "sleeveless jacket?") over a sleeveless blouse. In the end, I feel the skirt has potential-for someone else. My wardrobe rarely includes something this delicate, and black. I'm sure there's a Goth teenager out there that will wear the skirt much better than I ever will. That belt is really a necklace but shhhhh, don't tell anyone!

Outfit Particulars:
90's silk/lace/beaded skirt-Goodwill
Necklace worn as a belt-Garage sale
Shoes-K mart a few years ago
Blouse-K Mart
Waistcoat-New Life Thrift
Earrings-Had them since University!
Necklace-"                                         "
Faience and silver bracelet-Goodwill
Handbag-New Life Thrift
Prisim ring-Nordstrom's, 90's
Fragrance-Vintage formulation Cabochard





I'm going to take the next few weeks easy before State Fair preparations begin in earnest. I'm entering pies and breads this year (though not in any divisions Danny is entering because I don't want to compete with him-he'd kick my ass!). Danny will be entering jams, chutney, pickles, baked goods, and possibly some nature photography. I have a quilt to finish, and I might finally get to my repair basket (maybe). Still, all of that is on hold until I get my time relaxing at the pool. We have the July 4th holiday coming up which means a picnic, and watching fireworks from the parking lot of the college next door (they're at a much higher elevation above the tree-line and there's a magnificent 360 degree view of the city). In previous years we were able to watch the local fireworks as well as those across the river in Iowa from our excellent location. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate as it has the last couple years. July can be murderously hot in Nebraska, but I think we've managed to get that out of the way in June! We're still in the heatwave, but I think I've become acclimated to it. I went outside wearing a cardigan, and my young neighbour just looked at me like Id lost my mind. Perhaps I have.

Last one in the pool is a rotten egg!













14 comments:

Bibi Maizoon said...

Loving that 70's lion head bag!
You do the 70's so accurately & well, that patchwork skirt and peasant blouse are so typical of what I recall "real people" wearing in the 70's.
i'm guessing that not so pink coneflower is "Glowing Dream" which is supposed to have watermelon pink petals? For some reason that watermelon pink color doesn't stay true genetically. I bought some zinnia seeds called "Zahara" that were supposed to have a watermelon pink star in their centers but were a disappointing pale pink tinged light green.That gladiolus is glorious though.

Vronni's Style Meanderings said...

Love your patchwork skirt and peasant blouse. Tres elegant. Those Collins bags are just simply gorgeous. I've never seen anything similar in the charity shops but I'll keep looking. I also love the tooled leather accessories.

That does look like a difficult to match anything with skirt. I had one of those. I bought it for a posh New Year's do, paid £50.00 actual pounds for it and wore it once and once with a denim shirt; everything was wrong with it - crinkle pleats, mid calf, bunchy waist - God only knows what I was thinking of when I bought it. I put it in the charity shop bag about 14 years after I bought it!

Good luck to you and Danny at the State Fair. What a kid Danny is!!

xxx

ThriftyParka said...

OMG!!! It's a good thing I don't live close by, otherwise I would be annoying you to no end about the wonderful purses and skirts!!!

I can't decide what I love the most, the patchwork skirt, the lion's head or the bejewelled purses. You must have shrieked with joy when you found them.

Happy July 4th!!

ThriftyParka said...

Also wanted to mention I'm a big Carry On fan. I've never seen Cleo though, wow, and it's PG too.

Happy thrifting ;)

Mim said...

Isn't it Cleo that's got the line 'Infamy, infamy, they've all got it on for me'? If you want more smutty British goings-on with Romans, see if Mr ETB can find some Up Pompeii, all about slave Lurcio, and his owners Ludicrous Sextus and Ammonia.

I really enjoy a couple of Roman murder mystery series - one by Lindsey Davies set during the rule of Vespasian, and the other by Steven Saylor set in the last years of the Republic/early years of the Caesars. They're obviously fiction, but stick close to fact. (Avoid Conn Iggulden, he changes major historical events.)

Your historical patchwork skirt is ace. And that's a good collection of Collins-style bags. I like the one with the tram on.

Beth Waltz said...

Don't overlook the *ahem* historical content of "The Supersizers Eat...Ancient Rome". If Danny can handle "A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum", he can manage Sue Perkins' Vestal Virgin.

The lion's head bag is magnificent! What's the word for a metal bag, a minaudiere? This one reminds me of a bag carried by the Duchess of Windsor. Methinks she was wearing a fuzzy Chanel dinner-theatah suit with chains for the outing.

Goody said...

@Bibi
I think I do the 70's so well because I was old enough to wear it the first time around. I can't quite do the 60's as I was too little to have had a style of my own, (and had to wear my sister's 50's hand-me downs). By the 80's, I was working and no one wants to revisit those ugly suits and, "Female ties". Blech!

@Veronica
It can be hard to part with things purchased retail even if they never get worn. I recently had to give up a white eyelet skirt that never fit right, but I bought it at Saks Fifth Avenue and felt obligated to keep it.

@Thrifty Parka
Net time you visit the US, drive through Nebraska (we're conveniently located in the middle of the country)and I'll take you shopping.

I can't believe a Carry On movie got a PG rating-that wouldn't happen today!

@Mim
Thank you for the murder mystery recommendations-never heard of either.

@Beth
I wasn't aware of The Supersizers. No vomitorium though?

Beth Waltz said...

Goody, Sue and Giles are, respectively a writer/performer and a food critic. "The Supersizers Eat..." is a big budget BBC series in which they eat their way through a week in a different era, e.g. the 20s, WWII, Renaissance, etc. My personal favorite is the Edwardian episode, in which Sue appears obviously elated on the fruit of the vine. They inhabit a period dwelling in costume; however, each episode features a guest chef. Fun and fascinating! It's on YouTube.

Sue said...

Just look at all of your flowering plants, I LOVE IT!!! My fave would be the post of Violets??? Love the purple and the perfume. So many gorgeous outfits! The patchwork skirt and peasant top looks wicked and then you rock out the all black and lace look. Yummy mummy of Nebraska!!

Vix said...

Will you leave me your patchwork skirt and bastard massive jewellery in your will, pretty please?
My Mum would have killed for that lion bag - anything blingy, crazy and cat or snake related was totally up her street. a fab find. xxx

Goody said...

@Sue
Last year I candied the violets to save and use them to decorate a cake at Valentine's. I'm not sure I'll bother this year as they're also nice in ice cubes and on salads. I have borage, sweet woodruff, and nasturtiums as well-all edible flowers. The bees have been very happy in the garden this year.

@Vix
That's funny, my mother loved that sort of thing too. The older I get the more I'm starting to understand why-"tasteful" is boring!

Goody said...

@Vix
Of course you can have first at my collection-so long as you get the rest of it out of here to sell!

My son is terrified I'm going to die and leave him all these clothes to get rid of. I have been putting notes on some of the better pieces in the collection-but he's going to need professional help (Not, "Professional help" in that sense, though maybe that too!)selling it.

Polyester Princess said...

I've never see a bag like that lion head one, it's fabulous! xxx

Goody said...

@Ann
I have no idea when or how I will wear it!