Natalia of In The Writer's Closet, Seattle, is #34 with the Freakish Yellow Skirt from the The Travelling Yellow Skirt Freak Show. GO, GO NOW!! Witness the magic she has wrought with this fine garment. Get ready to dance Russian-style. The full Gallery is HERE. You will be amaaazed. Thank you, Natalia, for this awesome addition to the FYS show!
I got my new business cards. Which means - I've ARRIVED! It's like being a debutante but older and better, although I still haven't reached my age of maturity.
When my cards arrived, I danced around my home doing 3D effects like those 1970s Saturday Night Live skits "in 3D" where the actors zoomed in and out of the camera with echoey voices. I must have said to O umpteen billion times, "Look at my new card! LOOK! Bwahahaha. In 3D!" Poor man. I gave him one. It still left me with 199.
Left front; right back; there is no middle
I know it's just printing on paper (although I ordered the slightly thicker card stock) but somehow I regard this little card as a mini passport to my dreams. No more scrumply, scratchy, ripped napkins with ink blots and coffee drips! People will see me and say, "Now there's a woman with a card!" And then, "Double-sided? That's one classy dame."
Blooper. Ruffle slap.
I'm practising:
"Oh, if you like this outfit, you might like my blog. Here's my card."
"On your TV show? I'll check my schedule. Here's my card."
"My fan club? Come to think of it, I could use a chapter in Fargo. Here's my card."
"I agree. Your people and my, uh, person should talk. Here's my card."
"O, where did I put my feckity-frickin' cards!!"
In the photo above, I'm practising how to walk in New York. On my IG, I demonstrate how I would hail a taxi in major cities around the world. I must be prepared for, you know, whenever. Now that I have cards.
So next, I just have to: a) remember to bring my cards with me, and; b) remember where I'm carrying them - pocket, purse, hair? Funny thing is, after being out card-armed twice already, I haven't given any away, nor have I sold any - that would be tacky. So what's the problem? Then it hit me:
I have to be fabulous to engage in card exchange, not shamefacedly lacklustre. So now there is pressure to live up to my card! It's not difficult to achieve that werewolf face on a daily basis, but that composed gown look? For feck's sake, I was posing in an ideal world completely cut off from reality. (The gown is from Pao, Project Minima. It was her Mum's.)
I should have featured stained stretched-out yoga pants and a threadbare sweatshirt, but they would have cost a fortune at a high-end designer store, and after buying these cards who can afford that? Maybe chewing gum hanging out of my mouth, or chips, would have been better. Less pressure. Live and learn, folks. Live and learn. Speaking of chips, I finally updated my About Me page.
The security guard asked me what I was doing in the parking lot above. He was worried I was taking photos of the wall. When he found out I was taking photos of myself, he felt better and we shook hands. If I had my cards then, I would have given him one. Top and flocked pants from Talize, vintage wonder coat from Super Thrift Sister Su!!
Below is the tartan jacket I farked in May 2015 here, my ruffled blouse, and pants that used to belong to Mr. Sanchez. They have a billion buttons on the front.
There was a gap in the barricades to this alley and naturally I took advantage - they weren't done painting yet. But I asked, and the painters recognized me for the debutante I am and graciously agreed to let me take some photos but to mind the wet paint. I did. I'd have given them cards but I forgot them at home.
Even if I don't use these cards, I can smile and smirk knowing I have them, my own mini passport to a world of possibilities. Bwahahaha. Do you have a card? Does it make you feel wonderful? If not, what are you waiting for? Go make another one!! I always used to feel like a dweeb telling people I have a style blog - I'm over it.
And now -
A FREAKISH YELLOW SKIRT UPDATE!
Iris eyed Frida's flowerheadband
"Hm, I could use a headband like that," she mused.
"Not to mention that SKIRT!! That FREAKISHWONDER."
What a fantastical journey brought to you by Anja and the Yellow Skirt in Singapore. With a surprise Special Guest whom many of you know. Bwhahaha!!! So. Much. Fun.
Believe it or not, I've given you a somewhat accurate picture of events in this little blurb. The imagination! The creativity! And you should see what she added to FYS. You can't miss this. Thank you so much, Anja!
That's all for this week.
I'm linking up to Patti at Not Dead Yet Style for Visible Monday, and Catherine at Not Dressed as Lamb for #iwillwearwhatilike. See you there maybe?
Edit: I also linked up to Midlife Fun: Pattern Mix, at Tinaspinkfriday. HERE.
So I wanted to wear a power suit yesterday. This one is by Vancouver-based designer Jacqueline Conoir. I loved the subtle circle pattern in the fabric, which is more visible in the third photo. It was cool when I went out, but by the time I got home my belt was in my bag and the jacket was flapping open - an in-between season.
Such a fun, fun styling of the Freakish Yellow Skirt!! Anna, skirt, ocean - a perfect storm of joy, especially knowing how Anna is a strong woman of art, style, and the sea. Thanks to her husband for his stunning photography. Plus, blogger Kezzie also dropped by to join in the celebration later on and her mum took the best photo. You can see it all on Anna's blog here. Thank you, Anna!
AND...
An arty video. Like most fellow bloggers, I wonder from time to time why I keep blogging. So I made a video. If you come here expecting just style or a chuckle, now you'll be even more confused. My world. I filmed most of this last November, by myself, somewhat awkwardly.
AND some upcycling...
I did a post a while ago here about a men's tuxedo shirt I was given and upcycled with basic downsizing and a little redesigning, and thought I may not be done with it; I wasn't. It was missing a monster truck. I cherish this shirt now. The horizontal flaps under the truck transfer are double layers of fabric removed from the side seams.
And these are my upcycled overalls worn with my gold spangles and Fluevog booties. This was a fun project.
PLUS, I met up with Vancouver Barbara and posted her photo on my street style blog here.
If you find me doing DIY lipo, licking a champagne bottle, and eating buttons off my pyjamas thinking they're pills, I've been worshipping again at the altar of lifestyle gurus Patsy and Edina of Ab Fab. (read about them here)
I went to see their new movie, "Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie," two nights ago, which was very timely considering how lately I've been contemplating measures to glam up my life.
This is what I wore to the movie. I also had on my vintage gigantor red and mustard paisley palazzo pants.
Still from the movie review video. Barbara shot this part. Thanks, Barbara!
But more about the movie later...
Project Glamourization. Last week I read a magazine article about a woman who had a very long, impressive name and an expensive villa in Florence, disguised to look rustic. Hey, I thought, that could be me if I changed my name to (drum roll, please):
Melanie von Harumph de Schnackenloafer del Petunia
In the article, they wrote the full family name every single time. Well, I think that's a bit much - I'd definitely let them shorten my name to, say, HRH Mel after the first ten mentions at full length. Oooh, I feel more successful already.
Below, the seersuckiest seersucker you ever did see. Vintage. Home-sewn. With pockets. I wore this last week. Glam? Yes, I think so!
And my sky-high Steve Madden sandals go perfectly.
But I suspect it's not just the name. One needs to glamourize one's life in general. For example, why inhale air, which is so utterly boring, when you can sniff it? Also, now I drink my water from a cute little shot glass. I down several shots in the morning like a big-time bad-ass.
Shot glasses make hydration glamourous.
Write that down!
But I'm afraid nothing I do can live up to the standards set by Patsy and Edina.
However, before I tell you more about Ab Fab, I have some breaking news!! Well, not so breaking now because I've been slacking on the blogger front, but -
Nearly breaking news!!!
The Freakish Yellow Skirt is back in ACTION, high-impact action, with Trina of Tea Time with Trina!
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Stompin' Dancin' Flower Pickin'
QUEENandBohemian
andCow-woman - okay that sounds bad - Cowgirl to boot
I'm thrilled that Trina has joined the Yellow Skirt show. I was fortunate to meet her last summer and know that she must have packed a humongous helping of positive energy in FYS. Thank you, Trina, for joining and adding your magic to this curious garment.
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Now I'll tell you about Ab Fab...
Vancouver Barbara and I attended the Absolutely Fabulous movie together. We ended up in the bar at the Sylvia Hotel afterwards - how surprising!
I made a little movie review video with Barbara. I hope you like it.
MOVIE REVIEW
ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS: THE MOVIE
Special Guest: Vancouver Barbara (who also helped with filming)
I ran into lots of cool women at the theatre. In particular I was happy to see Frances of Materfamilias Writes seated near me. Her take on the movie is HERE. It turns out we are neighbours! Hurrah!
Frances was wearing a spectacular outfit featuring the silkiest oyster grey skirt with two daring slits right up the front which showed off her fantastic gams. Definitely NOT a wardrobe malfunction! She proved that you don't have to dress outrageously to be fabulous. She wore her new blue specs too. They look fantastic. (I also put this photo on my street style blog, here.)
Also there was Denice, whom I met at that swanky event when Shelley was in town, accompanied by two of her very stylish friends, Roxana and April (I hope I got their names right). And Colleen of the blog Clothes Line Finds, and Lynn and Diana, both of whom I know from My Sister's Closet. Colleen and Lynn are in the final scene in the video.
Below: Lynn, Colleen, and Barbara before the show. They look incredible! It's hard to see here but Lynn's sandals are paved with rhinestones. Barbara made that outfit - spectacular! And Colleen scored the glittery shawl from My Sister's Closet.
Finally, a BIG THANK YOU to Lynne Spreen, Any Shiny Thing - Life After 50 for mentioning Bag and a Beret in her post "Grief about Turning 50," here, as a source of style ideas over 50.
And, someone else has linked to this blog but I don't know who you are or where you come from but Thank you!!(unless you are sending people to ridicule me - you never know, right?)
And to finish off this rambling post, one more shot of my seersucker. Mmm. I used to detest seersucker; now it is precious to me. Heh. That's a good view of my shoes.
Did you make it to the end? This is what happens when I miss posting for a week. Everything piles up. I hope you are all well. I have been on a blogger break and getting lots of farking done. Feels so good.
Stay cool, whether it's summer or winter. But I don't have to tell you that, do I?
Are you Ab Fab fans? I thought I would hate that movie because there were so many celebrity cameos in it, which I've found usually means the script sucks. How happy I was to be WRONG!!! Jennifer Saunders is a brilliant comedic writer. Lots of laughs. It turns out there was a character with a huuuge long name, which just proves my theory!
Oh, and because of Suzanne's comment I'm wondering what your long glamour names would be.
I'll link this up with stuff but, really, I can't think about that now. I'll add it later.
Yours Sincerely,
Ms. von Harumph de Schnackenloafer del Petunia
Edit: Okay, I'm back, ready to do some linking.
1) Patti at Visible Monday: Not Dead Yet Style
2) Catherine at #iwillwearwhatilike: Not Dressed as Lamb
Anne has a great linkup at SpyGirl - The Fashion Rosebud Linkup: "Write about a powerful memory from your youth, one that shaped your core, one in which fashion was involved." I love this prompt - maybe I can think of something later...
When you can't decide what colour or pattern to wear, of course you wear them all.
And below, just so you don't think I've gone all soft and happy and positive - the look I throw on 1) if I sense some style-rule 'tude coming my way, my withering regal glare or 2) to convince gawkers in the surrounding highrises that I know exactly what I'm doing in the alley. Bwhahaha!
Who needs Mr. Bean when you've got me bungling around with my bag and the tripod and my alcohol spray, flappy pants, and my remote, and that stupid thing there, and, geez, what is that?, my purse, thinking all the while, DON'T LET IT TOUCH THE GROUND!! Oof, arf, ack - it's my distinctive cry.
Oh yes, everything under control here. Yes-sireedy-deedy (no meaning there, Greetje).
Wearing: hip-slung oversized palazzo pants from Used House of Vintage, top from Value Village long ago, corset belt from I-forget-where, shoes from the reject sale pile at Topshop a couple of years ago, earrings from My Sister's Closet. I tucked in the top and decided I also needed the belt.
I have lots of photos but, puh, enough of that. NEXT!!! she screamed (like that screamy Frau Farbissina in Austin Powers. You can see her true magic here). But first -
I knew Sally was a madly-skilled sewist and stylist with a wonderful sense of humour, but this FYS project blew me away. Hahaha! You must see her post here, well, all her posts - so worth it. Soon she'll also put up a "Making of the Yellow Skirt" post as well. You'll see why.
Thanks, Sally!! And thanks also to your artistic director, photographer, the villa custodians, and of course your gifted son, Umbi. Your joyful styling made my day! The skirt is now winging its way to the USA.
Refreshed from that interlude, are you? You must be ready for NEXT OUTFIT!!
Yes, a little off center, cut off, with a crooked horizon. Just like my life. My superb thrifted vintage jumpsuit from Used House of Vintage, which features a persnickety rear metal zip, worn with my vintage leather belt and thrifted Miu Miu boots. Earrings from My Sister's Closet. Hair from my head.
Another quickie blankie photo with a scrap piece of black fleece as a backdrop and disinfected soles.
And one more photo for the road because I have it and I like it and I risked my humility once again to take it in a new location. It seems everywhere I turn these days I run into another great wall. Oof.
That's all from here. I have been a failure at visiting everyone. I'll try to catch up.
Shopping as therapy? Best medicine around for a silly week of highs, lows, and loop-de-loops. Hm, what do we have here? Mega-jumbo pills, jumbo pills... Weeny pills? Pfft - not unless they have enough carats in them to fill my sick appetite.
First dose: vintage faux suede animal print fringed jacket with zip-outable faux fur lining. Grrrr! BAAA!Chomp chomp chomp - animal print eats lamb. Oh, did I say I only paid $20? Bwahaha!! Belch. That mega-jumbo pill went down real nice. Especially with a couple mixed metaphor chasers. Mmm. Sweeet.
But no! Oh no! The mega-jumbo effect is wavering! Quick, more meds!
In the nick of time, heavens almighty - it's a new thrifted faux brocade gothy jacket with silky purple lining, lace-up back, and tails. For the low, low price of $32. Why, that's a whole wheelbarrow of feel-good therapy! If I don't put a stop to this mega-dose madness there's a good chance I'll be cured. Noooo!
Barefoot photos are best. Especially on a super-soft blankie. Lipstick and big hair, yup, that'll do. Plus, going shoeless on my snowy blanket means I don't have to disinfect my dark soul soles first.
Speaking of CURES, it's time for a Travelling Yellow Skirt Freak Show message.
Thank you, Ghislana, for joining this travelling show! Her photos and addition to the skirt are magic. And, if you haven't seen it yet, previous FYS stylist Beate has posted all the artworks that have been added to the skirt as of March 2016. You can see them here. Thank you, Beate!
Now that you're refreshed, let me drag you back to the pit of Healing through Debauchery. It's the title of my latest book.
Leaping lizards! I'm definitely hopped up just thinking about that removable faux fur zippered lining. Ooooh, yeeeeah. Nyom nyom nyom.
As for the flouncy jacket, I'm not particularly gothy style-wise, but when that psychedelic angle hit me, s-w-i-p-e, MINE! Trippy! Minuet and rock 'n' rock. Dual impossible! Like how the same vitamin can come in coin-sized chewables and guinea-pig sized missiles. Choke on that, you grammarists! Who made that stupid mixed metaphor rule? I smash it joyously.
Speaking of minuets and rock 'n' roll, such sad news that Patty Duke passed away, right?
I bought that ruffled blouse at a thrift shop a few years ago and the green corduroy bell bottoms this year. The jacket sleeves have long slits and often the ruffled blouse sticks out to create a marvelous dunk-in-my-coffee, wipe-the-table-unintentionally, unpaid-cafe-helper effect.
Yes, both of the jackets are physically ample. But they fit. Just fine. These mega-jumbo pills perfectly play out the adage that one must buy quality pieces, like these, that fit well.
You may notice that a few fringes are missing, no doubt lost valiantly in battle, but that's why I love this piece even more. Quality comes in countless levels of perfection.
Well, I'll say, this therapy is working just fine. Pills and lambs and drinks and wheelbarrows and dish rags and guinea pigs and missiles. AND Ghislana in the Freakish Yellow Skirt here. Did I miss anything? I'm sure I did, so I'll have to go buy something else again next week right away.
Tah-tah. Back to normal(ish) life. Aaaah.
Thank you for your comments about my Model Life. Hahaha!! So much fun. Claire, Katrin, Vanessa, all of them are superstars! But I'm happiest in the alley.
My silk Donna Karan pyjama top, low-rise trousers, big fat '70s Pierre Cardin tie. On top I wore my burgundy faux fur maxi coat. Here's the feedback I got from strangers: "Kick a hole in the sky!" "Annie Lennox" "Diane Keaton" "Yalie" "Katherine Hepburn". Hahaha! And I was already in a stellar mood - I mean, who doesn't like to wear pyjamas with a tie to coffee?
I probably paid less than $40 for the whole outfit, minus the coat, but I felt like a million bucks, no, 10 million with inflation. Even the marble-sized dollop of hair paste was worth its weight in gold.
And (almost) breaking news, a Travelling Yellow Skirt Freak Show update:
Number 28?! How did that happen? We just saw Sacramento at Mis Papelicos. Beate wanted snow for her shoot and the day she received the Skirt she got it. So if you weren't a believer in the magic before, are you now?! Hahaha.
Thanks, Beate, for joining the show. So happy to have your energy in the Skirt now. Link to her blog post above. The whole gallery is HERE.
My toe continues to persnick so these runners are a frequent go-to shoe. I wore this lovely linen Calvin Klein dress for a meetup today (Sat) - you'll find out with whom soon enough. I love the long cuffs, the way the collar stands up, and the attached narrow fabric belt that wraps around and around; plus, it feels chic and expensive. This was purchased a couple of years ago at a Value Village free-for-all with Sandra (her IG is here).
I ran into a friend in the coffee shop when I went casual a few days ago, below, hair down. He thought I looked like a teenage boy. Yay. For bundling, I wore my maxi denim coat with faux fur trim and a beret, which added a feminine snap.
I got those divine brown velvet pants from Anna of Anna's Island Style, along with a few other goodies. These pants are now favourites, so soft and dreamy. Thank you, Anna!
And the last photo, just so you know I haven't gone all conservative/monochrome on you. Well, I'm still kind of monochrome here, but you know what I mean, right? Hahaha.
I'm trying to keep up with blogging with mixed results. For now, I'll link up to:
Patti at Visible Monday, Not Dead Yet Style and
Catherine at #iwillwearwhatilike, Not Dressed as Lamb.
That's all. Make sure you go see Beate if you haven't already!! Connie of snow in the air is looking like a Hot Harridan in her latest post. And Forest City Fashionista flashes some skin, here. There's so much misbehaving going on! Hurrah.
I was thinking the other day that some women would probably like to build a wall around me so they don't have to deal with my style. Heh.
I say this because I recently heard a few 50+ women disparage non-conformist style, which I can usually laugh off - and a little friendly back-and-forth can be a catalyst for growth - but this time they also threw in some armchair psychologizing, saying women who dress in "advanced style" are: desperate, trying too hard, insecure, loud, hurting inside, not serious, and (my personal favourite) not intelligent or smart.
Girls running in the wind with skirts hoisted, ready to fly. Acrylic on canvas paper. I painted it a couple of years ago.
Well, actually, they said "the messages the clothes are conveying are...blah blah blah." Fine line, folks, fine line. Apparently, they don't have style rules, but if you don't dress to their narrow specifications of joy and confidence, you need help. Hahaha! Too bad it's so much fun breaking those non-existent rules! I'm hoping they were just carried away. You know that never happens to me. Never! Hahaha.
Imagine if everything looked like this, except sometimes the lines are squiggy instead of straight.
So imagine how happy I was to see the Freakish Yellow Skirt fly again. Hoist them yellow sails!!! Arrrrg. And on whom?
After the style lambasting incident, which took me by surprise, I was feeling very down about blogging in general and, to my shame, about the Freakish Yellow Skirt, no joke - I thought my faux fur gave me thicker skin than that - but as I was updating the Freakish Gallery of
27 WOMEN!!!
from all over the world
that bitter taste in my mouth turned minty fresh, the air suddenly smelled like spring flowers with a whiff of pine trees, bluebirds started nesting in my hair, a fuzzy dice pendant appeared around my neck, and a baby deer tried to sit on my lap. It was magical, wonderful pastoral mayhem.
OOM means, "This crab hand position sucks!"
In the nick of time the Freakish Yellow Skirt and Sacramento leapt in and saved the day!
So let me pass on this wisdom: when someone interprets your joyful style as a seething mass of desperation and unhappiness, it's time to start handing out those rose-tinted glasses from the dollar store. Emergency!! Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and there's some really weird stuff going on out there.
It's called the Travelling Yellow Skirt Freak Show because joy wins over freak labels every time - I hope. As the original skirt post from 2012 says, the skirt represents "positivity and solidarity" among everyone who dresses with happiness, whatever your definition. We celebrate style in all its forms. Right? RIGHT?!
Let's be clear: no walls.
The skirt will soon be winging its way to Beate in Germany. Her awesome blog is HERE. She's a fierce art woman.
And more news...
I was on a photo shoot today, a real one with a photographer and a stylist, a prelude to a professional gig coming up next month. Bwahaha! I don't like all the baggage that comes with the word model so I shall say I was a clothing host for some garments designed and made by uber-talented Claire Cormeau, who saw my blog and asked if I would showcase her designs. You can find her HERE.
The turtleneck has merino wool and the asymmetrical tailored jacket felt like an expensive dream. Claire even designed the bracelet, which her partner manufactured with 3D printing. Amazing. The pants/shoes belong to the clothing host. The shoot was only for the waist up; these are fun out-takes.
I should have slathered on some hand cream last night. Auch - hopefully, everyone is looking at the bracelet.
That's all. I hope you have a great week everyone. I'm linking up to:
Patti: Visible Monday, Not Dead Yet Style, and;
Catherine: #iwillwearwhatilike, Not Dressed as Lamb. Thank you, Patti and Catherine, for these style refuges just when I need them most.
