Thursday, July 21, 2016

Heatwave Style

No point owning gold lurex shorts if you don't wear them.

 How is everyone? We're smack-dab in the middle of another heat wave with excessive heat warnings, high humidity and all the rest that goes with it. By this point in the season, I'm better acclimated to it, but honestly-I'm dreading the next few days. Our air quality has been perfectly shit, so I couldn't spend much time outside if I wanted to, which I don't.

SK&Co. Shorts-Goodwill
Shoes-Goodwill
Purse-Goodwill
Top-K Mart
Gold Bangles-Various shops
Fragrance-Love 2 Love peach and rose-Meh. Five bucks at Marshalls, smells like air freshener.

I heard an interesting idea today if you're suffering in the heat and your children are going stir-crazy. You can crush up sidewalk chalk and freeze it in cups with water to make, "Ice chalk". Sure, it will be a mess as it melts in their hands, but it sounds like great fun to me! Danny wasn't interested.


 The Boden sundress got worn, but as no one was handy to help photograph it, this was the best I could do. Yeah well, my hair looked shit anyway, so just enjoy the great pattern on my .49 cent Boden. I swear, some camera-shy clothes just refuse to be photographed properly, though I wear them all the time. It is maddening really, because I end up snapping a photo like this at the end of the day. So yay, here's a photo of my geriatric tits. You're welcome.

Boden sundress-Goodwill
Bamboo bangles-Hand-Me-Ups
Bakelite bangles-all over
Fragrance-Laura Ashley No. 1 (I imagine my fragrance choice as a sort of bitch-fight between the Boden "Yummy Mummy" set and Princess Di-wanabees in frocks with mutton sleeves. No, you really don't want to know how my brain works sometimes).

 In other news, I bought yet another dotted polyester dress. Yeah, I'm hopeless but I swear this one is different from the others. Ahem. What does that make, six? Seven? Why they're all blue (save for a single one in pink) I don't know. Didn't anyone wear red in the 70's? Or perhaps a nice earth tone like avocado? I know they're out there, it just means I need to spend more time in the shops.
These shoes have kitten heels that catch on everything, so I typically only wear them around the house, or to take out the rubbish. Last week, I was wearing a housedress that had seen too many washes, a badly stained pinny,  my hair was in rollers, and I was trudging along in these shoes with an overly-filled bin bag when a new neighbour stopped to introduce herself. I'm guessing she was dazzled by the shoes and didn't notice the rest. Nice shoes can work miracles.

Sears 1970's polyester dress-Goodwill
Shoes-Goodwill
Bag-Etsy
Earrings-New Life Thrift
Flower-Tiff and Tam
Fragrance-Jovan Woman (Still the best bargain chypre I know of still being made)

Nothing says, "Summer" like a barkcloth wrap skirt, and a brightly coloured linen blazer. I went ahead and threw caution to the wind because, 111 degrees F! I still needed the blazer though, because we're crazy for our air-conditioning in Nebraska. I did manage to get out for a walk this evening, but it was like breathing through a hot sponge (sea sponge, not the cake variety though I've baked a few that would withstand use in the tub). I have to be careful in this sort of weather as I don't really sweat much anymore, and my body isn't able to cool as easily as it did when I was younger. 

Vintage barkcloth skirt-Thrift store in Boston
Handbag-Jenerations in the Crossroads Mall
Necklace-Goodwill(?)
Earrings-Hand-Me-Ups
Linen-blend blazer (part of a suit)-New Life Thrift
Shirt-K Mart
Fragrance-Ombre Rose (I only wear it when I feel contempt for the world and want to subject people to the olfactory version of their behaviour)
Lucite bangle-Goodwill
Green bakelite bangle-Goodwill

I simply had to wear this skirt one more time before moving it along. I adore the frog, but the skirt really is (and has always been) too large for me. I have a similar skirt in a wrap with a frog on the back pocket, so I'll keep that and re-home this great piece of 70's casual wear. We stopped by the abandoned/feral mall on Dodge Street to see the Douglas County Fair. It was basically a quilt show, and a few 4-H projects. It took all of ten minutes to see, but the quilts on display were magnificent. Our county is largely urban, and though they've been trying in recent years to make the whole thing more attractive to participants and visitors, it just isn't getting the momentum it needs. Moving it from downtown to a centrally located mall was a good plan though, and the parking is free. The winning pie was rhubarb, without a lattice crust which is encouraging as I'm planning to do rhubarb/blueberry for the State Fair, and I suck at lattice crusts! I'll cut attractive shapes for vents and hope for the best. I might also do a treacle tart because that's the sort of thing fair judges like (though the thought of eating it sets my teeth on edge-and I like sweets). 

1970's novelty skirt-Goodwill
Cardigan-Goodwill
Sleeveless tee shirt-K mart
Ostrich handbag-Goodwill
Bangles-all over
Earrings-Hand-Me-Ups
Necklace and brooch-Hand-Me-Ups
Fragrance-Arpege (Yeah, not great in hot weather, but I'm still feeling contempt for my fellow human beings and as I can't go about expressing it verbally, I let the perfume do the talking(shouting). 

I just checked the weather station-we're at 114 degrees F. That's about 45 degrees C. and our dew-point is 78. Remind me of this around February when I'm again complaining that it is cold and snowing. 
What a difference six months makes!


















11 comments:

Sue said...

We are odd really, people that is, not you and me, we are so close to perfect it frightens me. Anyway getting back to people, and weather, we want warm when it is cold and cold when it is warm. Keep up Goodie you know what I am talking about, and again not us. LOVING all your outfits, how can I choose a favourite with so much on offer. Is your wardrobe the size of a small bedroom? If not, why not, it would be fabulous.

Bibi Maizoon said...

Loving those bejeweled kitten heels! Sadly, heels of any sort are hazardous in largely unpaved Nepal.
Coral & jade green look fab on you! Rocking those ponytails too!
It's actually a pleasant but drizzly 72F here. Sure beats 97F
& steamy in Delhi last week!
Stay cool & blast that AC.

Polyester Princess said...

We're in a heatwave here too (yes, it sometimes happens in Belgium) and I crave cotton dresses which I don't have too many of ... There's so many things I like in your post: the lurex shorts, your spotty dress and your frog skirt, and oh, your hair in pigtails too. xxx

Propagatrix said...

The concept of "revenge scent" is brilliant. If I could wear Obsession without getting a whanging headache, that's the one I'd choose for my "get stuffed, passersby" strategy. Vanilla Fields would be my second choice.

I had a dream that I was poking around an old carriage house and discovered you lived next door. Then we went out for coffee and you told me about the creeps who lived in the neighborhood and what kind of stuff they had. Oh, and you were wearing a green turban. It was a hilarious dream and I woke myself giggling.

Vronni's Style Meanderings said...

Some smashing outfits, Goody. I love the spotted dress, the green linen blazer ensemble and the green frog skirt ensemble. The Boden dress looks great (49c - bargain!) and I really like your white peasant top. All your accessories are fabulous as always. You look tres chic despite your heatwave!

Talking about Arpege - I used to really like it back in the day;I came across another Lanvin perfume called 'Rumeur' yesterday - it is on sale for £19.99 and I'm tempted. Do you know it? If so, what's your opinion?

I bought some Vera Wang perfume called 'True Pink' (I think) and it has a floral scent which I like and I think it has longevity. Can't find any more 'Violet Eyes' so have to try the internet...

Hope your weekend is bearable!

Veronica
vronni60s.blogspot.com

Goody said...

@Sue
YOU are too fab for words!
I once really did have an extra bedroom converted to a walk-in closet when I lived in Boston. It was a three bedroom place, and it was just the two of us, so Mr. ETB put up rails and shelves. I miss that place! My storage is okay here, so long as the boys don't get ideas about using their own closets/cupboards.

@Bibi
How nice to see your face in a profile picture-you're waaay prettier than your avatar!

I could handle the heat if I got a nice holiday out of the ordeal...but sweating it out in Omaha is about as boring as it sounds.

@Ann
You finally got summer! Your beautiful garden must be enjoying it.

@Propagatrix
Was the turban more Little Edie, or Karnak the Magnificent?
You know, nothing in that dream sounds all that out of character for me. I should probably be concerned.

@Veronica
Oooh, I don't know Rumeur-now I have something new to investigate. Some of the Vera Wang fragrances are quite nice. She has an iris and periwinkle that I'll stop and spray myself with if there's a tester. Haven't run across True Pink though-but I'll keep an eye out.

Violet eyes should be easy to find on the internet-all our discount stores here sell it. You might be lucky and find a set with body lotion and shower gel left from Christmas.

Beth Waltz said...

Vintage film fan that I am...I'm humming Ann Miller's fabulous tap song "It's too damn hot" (the legs on that woman!) while typing my admiration of your lurex shorts ensemble. "Hooray for Hollywood" might also work for your entrance chez upscale hotel staging a "ladies' summer fashion luncheon" poolside. Remember those? Some early female radio personalities built secondary careers hosting them.

Dunno about the rhubarb blueberry combo. We pie traditionalists favor rhubarb strawberry with heart cutouts in the top crust. But then I just encountered my first strawberry mango pie and *wow*!

Connie said...

I always judge people by their shoes. Don't you? Therefore I am certain that you have been crowned Queen of the neighborhood. And a queen cannot have too many polka dots. So you go, your royal highness. How do you stay so absolutely cool and gorgeous in all that heat? It must be the pigtails.

Vix said...

Don't you just love freaking out the neighbours with inappropriate clothes? Kitten heels are the most impractical shoe ever designed but perfect for trotting out to the bin spearing errant slugs along the way.
As always a fab selection of outfits. The frog is gorgeous, can't you snip him off and sew him to something else?
Love your hair in bunches. Mine's been in an assortment of updos this week - the UK finally has a heatwave - cue every Brit I know who constantly moans on social media bout never having a summer now moaning they're too hot. xxx

Mim said...

I love those outfits. That frog skirt is so cute, and the polkadot dress really smart (if you love them, why not have lots?). My favourite was the barkcloth skirt and linen jacket, though. Scrolling down was "Ooh, cute bunches, and great coral/green...Pow! Tropical skirt!" It was something I didn't expect at all but looks so perfect.

A Bandit/Shocking layering is my FU world combo. It's truly obnoxious, but I can tolerate it.

I'm always amazed by how many Americans eat rhubarb because i'd always thought of it as a very British thing, like parsnips. Though you chaps do put strawberries with your rhubarb, which never used to be a thing over here (though it is now creeping in).

Goody said...

@Beth
You're probably right-"Bluebarb" might be too radical for the midwest!

I prefer to go "Full-Ethel" and sing, "There's No Business Like Show-Business". I do a very convincing Ethel, by the way.

@Connie
You're a sweetie.

I have been known to wear a tiara over a rain bonnet-but I think that makes me bonkers, not regal.

@Vix
I'm glad you finally got summer! I heard people are complaining about office workers stripping off to their undies to sunbathe in the park. You definitely would get arrested for that in the US!

@Mim
I think the rhubarb/strawberry thing is because they come into season around the same time here-but I'm not in love with the combination. Rhubarb and rice pudding on the other hand...

I do love parsnips but they are outrageously expensive here (as are turnips, swedes, etc.). The only root vegetables that sell well in the American Midwest are beets and carrots.

Bandit and Shocking doesn't sound all that terrible to me, but I love a bit of skankiness in my perfumes.