At this point, late February it is feeling like the snow will be with us for some time. There's so much of the stuff in Omaha at the moment that the city is running out of places to pile it up. Another 6 inches last night, more on the way Friday-it is getting downright exhausting planning my life around being trapped indoors. We've been so lucky in recent years with freezing cold, but relatively little snow that we've become spoiled. Thank goodness I have a teenager to dig out my car for meš.
As tomato season is a very long way off, I thought perhaps donning a cheerful print as a reminder that the snow will eventually melt might help. I spent some quality time with the seed catalogues as well, planning this year's garden. I need to replace one of my raised beds as the wood is severely decayed. I'm viewing it as an opportunity to start over in an area I've been unhappy with. I like perennials, as I'm more of a once-and-done sort of woman. Anyway, between the dress and catalogues there's something to look forward to at the end of the season. I should mention for local readers that the Omaha public library has a seed share library where you can benefit from donated seeds. And of course, if you need gardening books, they have those as well!
Amusingly, I was recently in Hand-Me-Ups buying an equally fun 70s print dress and the new-ish volunteer mentioned that they "Had a crazy tomato dress I would have liked" a few weeks back. Of course I pulled out my phone, showed her the photo on Instagram, and had a good laugh.
Of course I bought it-is there anyone else in Omaha that would dress like this?!
Outfit Particulars:
Vintage 70s nylon dress with original hippo belt-Hand-Me-Ups
Vintage 80s jacket-Goodwill
Vintage 80s shoes-Thrift World
Vintage handbag-Hand-Me-Ups
Vintage 70s lucite necklaces-Mum's
Earrings-Target
Vintage expansion bracelet-Goodwill
Fragrance-Coriandre because it has a tomato leaf note. Subtle reference, but eh, it works for me.
The eagle-eyed reader might wonder why my thermostat is set so high. If it were anywhere near 71 F in the house I'd be dying, but being an old house, that temperature is skewed. Upstairs we are lucky if it reaches 55F. It also doesn't help that the thermostat is next to the kitchen and a sunny window.
This outfit consists of pieces I've owned for years but never thought to wear together. At some point, the jacket had matching flares, but I have no idea what became of them. The belt is something I've owned since the late 70s, having bought it at The Limited. I wasn't wild about their clothes, but of all the shops in American malls at the time, they had the very best accessories. I still have many of the belts, scarves, and earrings purchased there in my youth. I regret not keeping a hideous Western-inspired outfit of bright yellow shirt and trousers festooned with white silky fringe. It was so horrible, it was a work of art. The Urban Cowboy fad was short lived, but the memory of that outfit will stay with me forever in a, "What was I thinking" sort of way. Mercifully, there aren't any photographs of me wearing it! Now, the white felt cowboy hat is another story...
Outfit Particulars:
70s polyester jacket-can't remember
80's blouse-Goodwill
80s (possibly 90s) skirt-Goodwill (I think)
Belt-The Limited, 70s
Bangles-all over
Earrings-K Mart (I think?)
Brooch-can't remember
Boots-Hand-Me-Ups
Sometimes, it seems like there are pieces in my collection just patiently waiting for their perfect match. This 80s silk dress was always a favourite, but I never could find the right jacket to wear with it. I have a red and black kimono, and sometimes I'd wear them together, but it always felt to me that something else would be better. Enter this hooded 50s coat purchased last summer at an otherwise uninteresting thrift shop in Lincoln, Nebraska. I bought it thinking it *might* match, but it wasn't until I'd unpacked the dress in autumn that I realised just how perfectly. It doesn't happen often, but when it does-magic!
Outfit Particulars:
80s silk dress-Hand-Me-Ups
50s coat-Salvation Army
Brooch-Goodwill
Bracelet-Goodwill
Earrings-Goodwill
Boots-Goodwill
Handbag-Antique mall
Sometimes I like to try clothes that aren't my style, not my best colour, but seem worth a gamble because of nice fabrics. This 80s rayon shift dress is just such a piece. It is too big, too long, too mauve...but the fabric is so very lovely. I'm not sure I pulled it off, but it was worth my .49 cents to try.
Belted and not. Better with a coat?
Probably not destined to be a favourite, so likely to be passed along to someone taller that can do it justice. On someone statuesque, this could be elegant. I could shorten it, but the top wasn't quite right either.
Outfit Particulars:
Dress-Goodwill
40s coat-costume shop
Handbag-Goodwill
Boots-Hand-Me-Ups
70s silk scarf-Borrowed from Danny's collection
Brooch-Yard sale-Earrings-K Mart
Hello, tiger.
The same day I bought the tomato print dress, I found this 70s 3 piece polyester dream ensemble waiting for the right person to bring it home. *
It MEEEEEE!*
I rarely use terms like "Amazing": but that's honestly the best way to describe how I felt in this outfit. I made the clasp for the jacket by combining a sweater clip and a large brooch. An outfit this 70s demanded equally retro jewellery. This is a good example of, "boring on the hanger, incredible on the body". I'm so glad I gave it a chance. I mean, that print is nuts up close, but from a distance it just looks like a beige abstract.
Outfit Particulars:
1970s skirt, top, and jacket-Goodwill
Machine age bracelet-Yard sale
Cazal eyeglass frames-Mum's
I'll leave you with the new patch I bought for my motorcycle jacket. It is quite large. Didn't think in 2019 it would be necessary, but here we are.
12 comments:
A lady in red!
The tomato ensemble and scarlet hooded 50's coat stole the show until I saw the taupe-y leopard outfit- the wacky print is divine but the cut of that suit = AMAZING! What a find! Looks tailored to fit you. Loving your carefree curls!
you´r right into spring with your fabulous looks!!!
do LOOOOve the tomato dress - especially for that belt - so sweet. the pattern mix one is gorgeously whimsical too and of the red one i thought that it is a "complet" how we call it here - dress and coat made from the same fabric.
but the pink glittering cheetas top it all - wow!!!
have to have a look at the seeds too, yet the garden is still a glacier.
the patch is something we need to wear here.....
xxxxx
Lots of red color around here!, love your tomato dress with fab accessories (the hippo belt is so cute!), love the red jacket and fab print skirt outfit (and pink blouse!) and love your 'flowers in flames' ensemble. Totally agree that some pieces are waiting for a perfect companion in our wardrobes and when it happens it feels like 'woww, awesome moment of wardrobe perfection!'. Love that hooded coat!
And that polyester dream of an outfit Is Amazing!, tiger print Is Amazing!, you look particularly Fabulous in it!. Gorgeous!!
Besos
The bottom outfit is incredible!
Demeter Fragrance Library’s “Tomato” smells like the leaves, not the fruit. I wear it in summertime and my cats go wild for it. Husband, less so.
Ye gods, that 1970s polyester two piece is magnificent you you and finding it on the same day as the insane tomato dress? The chazza goddess was certainly smiling you on you! xxx
Indeed, who else would have bought that tomato dress? That's slightly insane but fabulous at the same time, especially the way you are wearing it. You really do suit red, Goody! And how crazy is it that the dress came with the hippo belt? Aren't you wondering about its original owner? That 70s polyester two-piece is also very you, maybe it came from the same owner? But my favourite must be your second outfit. Love the pattern mixing, and the individual items are pretty fabulous too. I used to have the same brooch you're wearing with it. I had it pinned to a jacket and when I took it out of my closet it had cleanly broken in two pieces! xxx
You have gone for bold prints in a big way in this post! I love them all and I am loving your curly hair; it's so pretty, Goody.
I cannot get over how beautifully matched your red dress, red coat AND your bag are. I would have thought it was an original three piece ensemble. Loved the first amazing tomato dress and the lovely red accessories. You may be experiencing deep snow but you're dressing like Spring! I loved your 40s coat, too. As for the final outfit; what a fabulous find and how lovely you look in it. Loved the clasp you made - very clever.
What a brilliant idea to have a seed library - in a library!
Have a great and hopefully, snow free weekend.
All those outfits are lovely! And of course, the tomato outfit is SO you!
I really admire what you did with the sweater clip and brooch. It's the perfect touch for that gorgeous outfit.
If you're into tomato leaf, the original DKNY fragrance (the one with the clear liquid in the long, slim parallelogram-shaped bottle) also has that note in it. It also has a note of wet cobblestones, which sounds a bit weird, but then I think another way of expressing that would be "petrichor," a note that had a brief burst of fame in a episode of "Doctor Who," in which Amy Pond appears as a model in an ad for a perfume with a petrichor note.
One of the few good ideas from the 80s career wear collections was the silk dress -- and yours is a prime specimen. Huzzah for finding exactly the right coat to make it totally wearable today! This is what I'd wear to an afternoon performance at a downtown theatre IF I thought there was a chance of going backstage to meet and greet. (Such occasions require more than my basic black topped with a flashy jacket.)
About the seed library: Look for Gillyfeather turnips. Good enough to eat raw!
@Bibi
Thank you. I have been finding the strangest stuff in the thrifts lately-this week it was crazy 60s shoes in acid green, bright blue, orange-makes me wonder what's next?
@Beate
In the US we call it an "Ensemble" but that doesn't quite define matching pieces either. English is such a maddening language to begin with and then being American, we have to use our own version that makes sense to no one else!
I bought spinach and peas for the esarly garden but the ground is still frozen dsolid so no idea when it will get planted.
@Senora Allnut
Thank you! I'm wondering if the hippo on the belt was a brand logo? I'll have to do some research. It seems a strange animal to randomly put on a belt.
@Propagatrix
They do some very interesting fragrances. I'm not sure about straight tomato leaves for me, but it could be amazing layered with something like Ma Griffe.
@Vix
Three piece-the shirt is the same print in reverse colours. I am so thrilled with it-I'd wear it every day if I could.
@Ann
isn't that amazing we would both have the same big brooch?! Maybe you can get it repaired? I'm guessing the clothes must be from the same person-same size, era, etc. This shop doesn't do a lot of vintage, typically.
@Veronica
Thank you! I am still trying to get used to my hair, and learning all the things that help it look better (leaving it alone, mostly). The seeds library is a wonderful resource. Some local groups have been doing seed-swaps where you can trade for thing you might like to try. I'm lucky to have such an avid gardening community in our city. We've since had another 12 inches of snow! It has to end sometime?
@Emily
I'm not sure I've ever smelled DKNY. I'll look for it-that sounds like my sort of thing (on paper anyway).
@Beth
I adore turnips. A turnip you can eat raw? That's my idea of a miracle.
I love your tomato dress, and it's fantastic that your local thrift stores know what you'll like - hopefully they can put aside the good stuff for you. The tiger suit is also splendid. RAWR!
The tomato dress is really something - & I get the volunteers / shop assistants in my local secondhand shops telling me that they knew a certain piece was for me, too.
I really love the perfect colour combo of the pink polka-dot blouse and the red-orange jacket.
Your serendipitous twin-set is truly stunning, & reminds me that I have a similar coincidence (only in blue & green) in my wardrobe, which I might wear quite soon.
I think I've told you before that I like long dresses on people who are not of great height (my mother was tiny, and loved wearing long dresses, which doubtless influenced me in this matter) - anyway, I think it looks wonderful on you, though of course if the top doesn't feel right that's another story. I think the colour is good, too, at least how it appears on my screen, as if a brown with some pink mixed in to soften it. I love the tiny floral with the striped scarf, and also admire the outfit with the addition of the jacket.
And of course the three-piece pink leopards is a bolt of lightning.
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