Picture book Monday, redemption

 My picture book for Monday.

Patti is in New York so Visible Monday is all in my head. And in a cage of wood and wire.

Details: Marni sundress, thrifted; teal tights, sample sale; wood/leather platform sandals, Michael Kors, thrifted; graphic turtleneck, thrifted; magic pendant and magic loupe, made for me by O; wool shawl, retail long ago. 

I hope you are all having a Monday that makes you feel visible too.

Just as a reminder, only four days until the VOGOFF submission deadline...

Yellow Skirt Freak Show Update!! and more...

Temptress Amber  of  Butane Anvil

has had her way with

the Travelling Yellow Skirt HERE,

and so has her HEN!!? 

See her twirl, mysterious in the cracking light

DO NOT MISS THE

Freakishly Wonderful Styling of this World Wonder

Go! GO NOW!!

_________________________________________________________

In more mundane news, I have finished my stretchy-boot upcycling project. (What a let-down topic after Temptress Amber and her Alpha Hen...)

BEFORE (as seen in post of May 13, Lurex in the alley)

AFTER

Groovalicious boots of blue and aqua MADNESS. I am very satisfied, I am.

Here's the process.

NOTE: I do not recommend painting stretchy fabric but desperate boots require desperate measures.

HOW TO:

1. Cleaning/Mending. I scraped and picked the remaining vinyl stretchy bits off the boot uppers to the extent possible with a wire brush and toothbrush and thoroughly cleaned and sandpapered the smooth surfaces. I sewed up a rip in the rear seam of the upper too.
2. Masking. I taped the boot soles and zippers with painters' tape and masked my calves with paper towel because I had to wear the boots during painting to reduce paint-cracking later.
3. Base coat. While wearing the boots, I applied two coats of gesso as a primer using my fingers to avoid brush marks. I wore rubber gloves for this. Although gesso is more brittle than regular acrylic paint, I wanted super coverage and adhesion on the stretchy black substrate, especially on the fleece-like areas where the adhesive wouldn't come off.
4. Painting. I applied coloured acrylic paint with rubber-gloved fingers. I wanted colour variation so one boot is noticeably more greenish than the other. For a clean line, I hand-brushed areas along the zipper and sole.
5. Finishing. I applied a coat of clear acrylic for protection and added shine.
6. Decoration. I hot-glued a fabric stripe down the front of the boots and added daisy zipper pulls that I bought at Dressew fabric shop for $3.00. I had to buy a glue-gun for this step.
7. DONE. But these can only be worn in fine weather. Do I care? NON!

This project took a couple of days with all the fiddly scraping, masking, and multiple coats of paint (while I was wearing the boots), but the time was worth it. Depending on how gingerly I wear these (not very I imagine) these boots will last a little longer, and when they start to deteriorate more, I'll love going crazy with more paint AND safety pins. The good thing about working on something I would otherwise junk is there is no risk of screw-up; that's true freedom.

I owe this project's success to Pao at Project Minima where I first learnt about shoe-painting. Hugs to you, Pao and all the other bloggers I have seen since in their upcycled footwear.

AND - 

Over at blog taibhsearachd (Gaelic for second sight), Janet of Yellowknife in the Yukon was needing an emergency yellow skirt fix so she upcycled a big sundress into her own version of it.  

Very cool - the perfect outfit for this beautiful indoor garden. Thanks, Janet. Gorgeous.

That's all from here. Hope you're having a swell week, everyone!

How to wear a place of mind dingle-ball style

Often I travel to a place in time and personality when I don a vintage piece I love, but this striped two-piece was leading me strongly to a geographical place. While that occurs with other pieces as well, early 20th century Paris being a recurring destination, this little top and skirt longed for the tropics.

I can imagine that the bricks beside me are my leather suitcases plastered with stickers of exotic locales, now packed and ready for a new equatorial adventure. I hope they don't exceed my luggage allowance limit. Any second now my chauffeur will pull up in my new Bugatti to whisk me off to the airport.
"Porter, oh, Porter! Can you please see to my bags?" Being a good tipper is essential in precarious situations. Maybe I'm on my way to visit Frida and Diego.

The skirt fits perfectly around the waist but the top is rather large and shapeless, despite the darts designed for a bigger bust than mine, hence the belt. There is a full zipper in the back like a jacket would have.

A couple of dingle-balls were missing on the skirt so I had to carefully transplant two from the top near the zipper to fill the vacancies. Thankfully, the operation was a success, but this piece still requires delicacy when worn; although it longs for the seaside and lush tropics, the lack of any slit in the skirt requires that I walk with carefully-measured steps. I also had to replace the skirt zipper and hand restitch most of the hems and some seams, which, while time-consuming, also meant a significantly reduced sales price.

Details

• vintage dingle-ball top and maxi skirt, thrifted, $15?, due to missing balls and other required repairs
• Steven Madden orange platform sandals, thrifted
• chain belt, thrifted
• black T, thrifted, worn against the chill
• magic loupe, made for me by O
• vintage mechanical wristwatch with jewels, gift from O

And I like this last photo with my eyes partially closed, the better to see the cabana, the fruity drinks with umbrellas, the intriguing shadowy characters in colourful places, the romance, the rumbas...

Reality Check: That's my reusable shopping bag in my hand. I carry my tripod in there as well. I first wore this outfit here, to Sheila of Ephemera's e-birthday party, before it was mended.

It's strange how the passage of time bathes other eras in misty romance. I wonder if in the future anyone will write of being whisked away to early 21st century Vancouver. Will I ever hear, "Oh, she dresses like a Vancouverite," as a compliment on the level of, "Oh, she is so Parisienne." Doubtful, HIGHLY doubtful. But I can at least create my own warp in time/style/personality/mind.

I'm going to Patti's grand Party of the Undead at Not Dead Yet Style, Visible Monday.

How do you warp reality into a lightness of being?

Other News

Bella at The Citizen Rosebud has posted Part 1 of an interview that Rosalind of Clothes, Cameras and Coffee and I did of each other a while ago as part of Bella's new series, "20 on +40." I felt very privileged and delighted to have carte blanche to find out more about Roz and her incredible art and style. I am simply in awe of her. So...

Thank you, Bella, for initiating this interview. It was a treat to connect and I am humbled to be profiled on The Citizen Rosebud where I am inspired not only by your own style but the style and positive life attitudes of the many women there, especially those over 40.

PS - If you have missed the May 19 VOGOFF submission deadline, don't fret. You can have until May 31. This is your last chance to get out there with your cameras for the upcoming issue.