I'm wearing my fave velvet blazer by Triple Five Soul, featuring raw edges, satin tuxedo striping down the arms, and surgeon's cuffs, which means the cuffs have functioning buttons so you can turn them up for, uh, surgery, so you don't gore up your sleeves. Excellent!
This means I can fearlessly deep-dive into barbeque chips and bar snackies, and not worry about reckless dragging through ketchup and coffee.
I tied my vintage tie in a Full Windsor knot (instructions here if needed), which is fatter than a regular knot, and made the front stubby and the tail long enough to hang below my buttoned blazer. And that's a men's wrinkled white shirt.
The men's belt is thrifted, the kind of soft leather hard to find in retail stores these days. The brand is Josef, made in Canada, mint condition. The silver medallion buckle is what caught my eye (closer view here).
TIP: Always check out the men's belt section in thrift shops. Not usually as elaborate as women's belts, men's belts can easily be resized with a leather punch.
And my button-fly, low-rider jeans by Bardot of Australia, purchased a few years ago at a sample sale. The legs are super skinny.
Below, detail of the subtle asymmetrical embroidery on the back of the jacket.
I know I said that my hair reminded me of a Brit actor/poet, but I also got a strong rockstar vibe with this outfit. The heeled ankle boots added a sense of being in control, literally "on top of it." And I layered my Poe almost-black lipstick over my standard red.
On my Instagram I also said that this outfit makes me feel like a low-rider car with flames painted on it. At each red traffic light I would start hopping, loudly and awkwardly, startling all the pedestrians.
So there you have it: school boy/gentleman/poet, rock star, low rider. Which vibe do you see here? Or something completely different perhaps? I like that there is no one feeling but a whole playhouse of characters.
And just so you know I haven't gone all dark in my clothing, I wore this outfit below, with slicked back hair, which I have previously referred to as "tidy Kim Novak hair" but not for this outfit. And I piled on the jewels.
I like wearing many necklaces at a time, but dislike: 1) the bother of fiddly clasps, and 2) the jangling sound they make.
To fix the first problem I got two pieces of blue ribbon and tied on the smaller necklaces, threading one ribbon through the jump rings and the other ribbon through the clasps, transforming the whole mess into a single longer necklace easily thrown over my head. I tie it at the back so I can adjust the overall length.
To address the second jangling problem, clearly I have to become a Russian folk dancer, like HERE.
Finally, all five my interview episodes with Margaret Manning of Sixty and Me are open. I wrote about it in the previous post but when I published only one was up. Today, because my main outfit features black and white, I thought I'd highlight this one.
Fashion Over 50: Exploring the Power of Simple Black, White and Grey
Mel Kobayashi
Plus, I want to get the most mileage from the clothing explosion that happened while setting up my demo pieces. O was very stoic about the whole thing. In the end, I only had time to use about 20% of what I had out. And I forgot to say my most important points - I got carried away. What a surprise! Hahaha.
The links to the other episodes are here:
- I Love Floral Tights! Why Fashion After 60 is About Wearing What Makes You Happy
- Forget What Other People Think and Express Your Eccentricities
- The Art of Walking Like a Movie Star
- Vintage Clothing is Back for Women Over 50: Embrace the Past and Create Amazing Style
And I can't end this post without saying I'm linking up with Patti at Visible Monday, Not Dead Yet Style - I have been worrying about her family in Florida all week. And I'm linking up with Catherine at #iwillwearwhatilike at Not Dressed as Lamb.
That's it for now. I hope you are all safe!! - my thought for the week. The autumn chill is coming here and I like it.
