hats

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Daily outfit 28/3/2014

Lately I’ve been dabbling in a bit of androgyny.  I love man-meets-woman styles of dressing.  I feel so powerful when I add a slightly masculine vibe to my outfits.  I like to draw inspiration from women like Katharine Hepburn, by keeping my silhouette feminine while wearing my androgynous ensembles.

I am wearing:

– White button-down shirt (thrifted)

– Black pencil skirt from Veronika Maine

– Nude stockings from Target

– Trilby hat from Sportsgirl

– Black patent leather heels (thrifted)

– Diamante studs (inherited from my Nana)

I love mixing masculine and feminine elements in my outfits.  The buttoned-to-the-neck shirt, the loafers and the felt hat are all quite masculine.  But the pencil skirt, the heel on my shoes and the slightly twinkling stud earrings keep a feminine vibe running through the outfit.

I wore this outfit to have dinner with my parents.  When I arrived, my dad nicked my hat and tried it on.  It suited him very well!

One thing I love about this shirt is that it tapers up and inwards at the waist, to highlight the curve of the waistline.  I tend to wear this shirt untucked because it draws the eye to my waist without needing to be tucked in.

This week I’m linking up with Dapper Dolly for Fancy Friday.  On Fridays we dress up to send off the week in style.  You can join in by sharing a link to your own Fancy Friday outfit on Dolly’s website.

I like to keep my hair and makeup very simple when I’m rocking an androgynous look.  Just a hint of mascara and lipbalm to highlight the lips and eyes. I use a bronzer to contour my cheeks and I also shaded in my brows to give them some dramatic definition.

Do you ever like to gender-bend with your outfits?  How do you mix masculine and feminine elements in your own wardrobe?

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Fancy Friday outfit 31/1/2014

Today I’m joining in with Dolly of Substance and Style’s Fancy Friday series. The idea is to encourage people to dress up on a Friday, rather than dressing down.  It flies in the face of the idea of “casual Friday” and is all about kicking up your heels at the end of the week.

 

Each week, I’ll be sharing an outfit on Fridays that’s a little bit fancy.  If you’d like to join in, that would be awesome.  You don’t have to get all gussied up in a ball gown each Friday, just wear something that’s special to you.  Feel free to interpret the concept of Fancy Fridays in a way that works with your style.

 

DSCF9357My first Fancy Fridays outfit is special for a few reasons.  Firstly, it’s features a lot of new-to-me items that I’ve never worn before.  Secondly, it’s almost entirely comprised of vintage items.  Thirdly, all those items come from one of my favourite decades to steal inspiration from: the 1960’s.

 

DSCF9358I am wearing:

– 1960s vintage dress from Threadsville

– 1960’s vintage hat (thrifted)

– Vintage gloves (thrifted)

– Black ballet flats from Rubi

– Turquoise vintage earrings (Nana’s)

 

This dress has been kicking about in my wardrobe since June.  It was a birthday present from my parents and I was so excited to unwrap this.  I’ve been wishing for a 1960’s shift dress forever, and this one was perfect.  It’s very short, but I’m perfectly happy to show off my legs in this lace beauty.

The only thing that worried me a bit about it is that it only just fits me.  Although I love 1960’s styles, my slightly hippy figure means that I don’t always fit into them.  These straight-up-and-down shift dresses were designed for more boyish figures, which is part of the reason that I’ve struggled in the past to find one that will fit me.  This one clings quite tightly to my hips, but not uncomfortably so.  When I was trying it on, I realised that if I gained ANY weight in the future, then this dress wouldn’t fit anymore, so I debated whether or not to get it. I didn’t want to ask for an item that I might only be able to wear for a year or so.  But then I noticed that at some stage, the previous owner had taken the dress in quite a lot, and didn’t cut off the excess material.  This means that in the future, if I do gain weight then I’ll be able to let the seams out with ease and the dress will still fit.  Awesome.

 

DSCF9359My pillbox hat was an op-shop find.  Again, I’ve been after a vintage pillbox hat for years and I was ecstatic to find this one for just $7.  The gloves turned up in a different op-shop three weeks later, for $2.  They match the hat perfectly and I couldn’t wait to wear them together.

 

What are you wearing this Friday?

 

 

 

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Daily outfit 21/10/2013

Today is one of those days where my outfit just worked out brilliantly.  I started pulling a couple of things out of the wardrobe, and before I knew it all the pieces were just falling into place to create one awesome outfit.

DSCF8991To begin with, I knew that I wanted to wear this brooch that I bought at the antiques and collectables fair last weekend.  I decided it would look cute pinned to my favourite beret.

DSCF8992Then I added this lovely pussy-bow blouse I got at the second-hand shop a few weeks ago.  I hadn’t worn it yet because I had to do a few minor alterations to make it fit a little better.  But I had a little sewing session during the week, so this baby was all ready to go.  I paired the blouse with my favourite pin-striped trousers and this fantastic pair of patent-leather high-heeled loafers.

DSCF8993I am wearing:

– Flower brooch (antiques and collectables fair)

– Black beret (Target)

– Cream pussy-bow blouse (thrifted)

– Black pinstripe pants (thrifted)

– Black patent leather shoes (thrifted)

– Brown resin ring (thrifted)

DSCF8995I wore this out to visit my nana, who said that I reminded her of Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde.  She’s such a peach!

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Daily outfit 20/9/2013

Do you remember last year when I dressed up in full 1920’s regalia for the Murder on the Puffing Billy Express party?  No?  Well here’s a picture to refresh your memory:

DSCF6716When I arrived in my outfit, my friend Katherine said, “You look exactly like Miss Fisher!” to which I replied, “Who?”

I now realise that there’s an awesome Aussie television show called Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries.  I began watching it last week and I’m smitten.  The show is lots of fun, but to me the best part is the costumes.  It’s set in the 1920’s in Melbourne and the costumes are to die for. In particular, Miss Fisher has an incredible collection of hats that I can’t get enough of.  Ever since I began watching I’ve developed a slight obsession with cloche hats.

Then, on Wednesday I was at the local department store when I came across a whole rack of clearance felt hats, which included several cloches.  The one I bought had been $50 but it was marked down to $28.  I couldn’t resist.

DSCF8842I am wearing:

– Cloche hat by Jendi

– Argyle sweater from Fashion Fair

– Pink floral skirt (thrifted)

– Black tights from Target

– Black boots (thrifted)

– Silver ring (gift from primary school bestie)

– Cubic zirconia necklace (gift from my cousin)

DSCF8843I had never really liked the way that cloches looked when I had long hair.  Now that my hair’s shorter, I felt that the time was right to give one a shot.  Last night I decided to curl my hair so that it would have a bit of bounce and shape under the hat.  I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out.

DSCF8844I’m now really eager to try this hat with a sleeker hairstyle, perhaps some finger-waves and a 20’s inspired bob.  I think it would also look great with the wig I wore for the Murder on the Puffing Billy Express party.

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DSCF8857I wore this outfit to visit my Nana.  As soon as I walked through the door she said, “I love your hat, you remind me of Miss Fisher!”  I guess Nan and I are one the same page, sartorially speaking.

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Daily outfit 24/7/2013

It’s funny how timing works when you’re a blogger.  Sometimes I’ll put on a really great outfit, and I’ll decide to photograph it to use in a Daily Outfit post.  Then I get waylaid and distracted and the pictures sit on my computer for a while.  By the time I get around to using them on my blog, something else has happened which renders the pictures slightly out-of-sequence.  It’s a little like watching a film where somebody has fucked up the continuity.

 

So I’m going to be straight with you.  These pictures were taken a full week and half before this post.  And you’ll notice that I still have long hair in the pictures.  This was a little less than a week before my massive haircut, and it makes me a little nostalgic to look back at myself with all that hair.  

 

DSCF8592I am wearing:

– Red snood (handmade by me)

– Black wool jumper from Target

– Vintage gold and pearl brooch

– Red leather pencil skirt from Threadsville Vintage

– Black and grey “Wicked” tights from Sportsgirl

– Red and black satin stilettos (thrifted)

-Red leopard print ring from Diva

 

DSCF8593I can’t believe that I haven’t worn this skirt in an outfit post yet.  It was a birthday gift from my parents and I adore it.  This outfit is very similar to what I wore on my actual birthday.  The only differences are that I wore nude tights and a red and white striped jumper instead of the black one.

 

DSCF8597The tights were from the last time Ross and I went to Melbourne together.  Sportsgirl had 50% off all their clearance stock, so they wound up being about $6.  They are really thick and warm, and they’re quite fun as well.

 

DSCF8594I wore this outfit to visit my parents and watch Would I Lie To You? with my brother. It’s becoming a “thing” we do every time he comes home to visit.  I’m a crap liar and I always find it difficult to tell when other people are lying, so I always lose when we play along at home.

 

DSCF8595So there you have it: a very out-of-synch post that will probably be the last outfit post that features my long hair.  That is unless I dig up some other photos that I’ve taken and not used yet.

 

 

 

 

 

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Daily outfit 19/6/2013

We’re really getting into winter now!  This is the outfit I wore to go to the Violet Town market last weekend.  It was a frosty morning, so I knew that I was going to need plenty of cosy layers.  We’d had a lot of rain in the days leading up to the market, so I needed to wear boots because the ground at the market tends to get quite muddy.

DSCF8350Rather than sticking to boring browns and greys for winter, I like to mix up my outfits with pops of colour and fun accessories.  I’m a firm believer in using clothing to make cold weather more bearable!

DSCF8351I am wearing:

– Pink Tank Girl hat from a random stall at Northland

– Skull scarf from Sportsgirl

– Queens hoodie from Cotton On Body

– Purple jeans from Jay Jays

– Biker boots from Big W

– Black and white armwarmers from Cotton On

– Lucite sunglasses from Jay Jays

DSCF8357I also piled on the thermals underneath this ensemble.

DSCF8352I had a lot of fun at the market.  I saw loads of gorgeous crafts, but I didn’t buy any. I’ve made a pact not to buy anything that I could make for myself, and now that I’m becoming a dab hand at crocheting, a lot of cute crafts are within my abilities.  I did come home with a big bag of vegetables and a couple of blocks of cheese.  Delicious.

DSCF8355

DSCF8358All in all, it was a super-fun trip.  I stayed pretty warm and really enjoyed browsing through all the stalls.

What do you wear to put a spring in your step in winter?

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Daily outfit 22/5/2013

Howdy-do to you, fair reader!  I am in such a brilliant mood today. I’d like to say that it’s because of some profound and noble reason, but in truth it’s mostly because I’ve got a brand new hat.

DSCF8239Truth be told, this isn’t really a brand new hat.  Rather, it’s a new-to-me hat.  It’s actually vintage.  I bought it from Bess Georgette at the Truly Vintage market a couple of weeks back and I love it.  I’ve worn it so many times and it makes me smile every time I squish it onto my noggin.

DSCF8233While it’s fun to wear vintage with vintage, I also like mixing my vintage pieces with more modern clothes to give them a more updated look.  Sometimes when I dress in head-to-toe vintage it can feel a bit like I’m wearing a costume.  So I like to mix and match to create a look that reflects my style.

DSCF8234I am wearing:

– Black cossack hat from Bess Georgette Vintage

– Black bodysuit from Remember me

– White lace top from Ladakh

– Brown flares from Living Doll

– Brown Zu platform shoes (thrifted)

– Silver bead necklace (used to belong to my auntie)

– Giant gold-tone bangle (used to belong to my auntie)

– Assorted silver rings

DSCF8232

I only just realised that most of my jewellery today came from my aunties’ jewellery box.  I own loads of things that were either handmade by my aunt or else used to be part of her jewellery collection.  She had a very hippie/ rock chick aesthetic in her youth, and when she saw how similar my style was to her she kindly donated a massive bag of jewellery to me.  She’s also kind enough to give me gorgeous hand-made jewellery from time to time.  She loves beading, and I’m very grateful to be the test-dummy for most of her designs.

DSCF8236Do you have a relative that hands down clothes to you?