What I Actually Wore #114

Serial #: 0114
Date: 05/04/2013
Weather: 25°C / 77°F
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

I chuckle every time I open up the folder of one of these archival fashion shoots and see some outlandish outfit like this one. It’s so OTT! But I should reiterate at the time I was on a real Ballet Russes kick that year. That ballet company was famous for its extravagant and wildly colourful costumes, many of which featured a multitude of patterns.

I remember buying that Anthropologie cardigan new on eBay (and we still don’t have a brick-and-mortar store here in Australia). I deliberated for a long time because it was quite expensive, but I did love it. I’ve teamed it with a classic black and white striped t-shirt from Zara (bought in Portugal while on holiday to replace a previous iteration that just became too worn), and a vintage 1920s navy straw hat that has a striped effect by way of the velvet piping. There are pearls scattered over the hat too, and two little velvet bows at the back. I bought it on Etsy from an American seller.

Black patent T-bar heels (by Scooter, a brand that no longer seems to exist) and bag (vintage 60s), grey over-the-knee socks, and sterling silver and enamel earrings complete my accessories. I made the earrings myself, from small sterling silver ridged beads, and larger beads that are enamelled in blue with silver stars. The design is a variation on my favourite simple style of a dangling single round bead – I call them bauble earrings.

The effect of the whole outfit is quite doll-like, and far too cute for me to wear anything remotely resembling that these days. The cardigan has since been donated to charity, the linen skirt as well I think (or it may only have made it as far as a bag of prospective donations, in storage) and the shoes also wore out and were trashed. The other items I still own – a 50% retention rate is not too bad, I suppose.

Items:

T-Shirt: Zara
Skirt: Kokomarina
Cardigan: Anthropologie
Hat: vintage 20s
Earrings: hand-made by me
Bag: vintage 60s
Socks: ASOS
Shoes: Scooter

Photos: April 2013

What I Actually Wore #113

Serial #: 0113
Date: 02/04/2013
Weather: 19°C / 61°F
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

Still inspired by the costumes of the Ballet Russes, prints were a big part of my wardrobe back in winter 2013. I used to pair prints with neutral items and colourful and quirky accessories.

I adored this silk blouse that I bought second hand in a Red Cross op shop, especially for its dramatic lantern sleeves with the gathered cuffs. I did love the print and colour too. For most of my life I hated purple (because my dear mother, whose favourite colour it is, foisted it on me at too early an age), and only started wearing in the last few years. Lilac with red is a particularly lovely and startling combination to wear.

The only sad thing is that the blouse has torn away from the back seam – I put too much strain on it one day stretching perhaps. It is repairable, but it will make the blouse a little narrower.

Interestingly, this vintage 1920s velvet cap that I bought on eBay from an English seller a few years ago is actually supposed to be worn sticking straight up, like a garden gnome. When I first received it, I was doubtful, assuming surely it wasn’t worn that way, but I have since found contemporary photographic references of hats in similar styles indicating that indeed they were! Not a hat for a wallflower …

Apart from the blouse tragedy, all the items are still in my closet – shoes, bag, jewellery – all have been stayers. The earrings have remained particular favourites. The vintage 60s coat I still like, though I have not worn for one or two winters (I own so many coats they all go in and out of regular wear). This one is a velvet designed to imitate sealskin, but the fur collar is real.

As fun as it is, I am unlikely to wear this ensemble in its entirety these days however; my outfits are a little more minimal. If I thought about it, I’d probably split this outfit into three different ones, which would be an interesting exercise in itself – perhaps for another time.

Items:

Coat: vintage 1960s
Skirt: Veronika Maine
Blouse: Target Limited Edition
Hat: vintage 1920s
Bag: vintage 1960s
Earrings: vintage
Bracelet & Ring: souvenirs (Barcelona and Vietnam)
Watch: Kenneth Cole
Shoes: Wittner

Photos: April 2013

What I Actually Wore #112

Serial #: 0112
Date: 29/03/2013
Weather: 17°C / 62.6°F
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

This afternoon I was going to visit my friend at her home on the other side of the city from me. It was a cool day, and quite a long journey, and I knew I would probably be heading home in the early evening, so I should be prepared for a chill. I took my favourite coat of the moment, a vintage 1960s plush black velvet pile that has been treated to emulate sealskin. The fur collar is real however (although I’m not sure what kind of fur it is).

I wear a rather quirky outfit, based around the gold velvet polka dot skirt by Anthropologie and an ethnic-looking wooden bead necklace I had bought in Lisbon a couple of years earlier. The blue ruched top is a nice contrast against the yellow, and the neutral grey socks complement them both.

I decide black mary-janes would be too obviously matchy, so I wear a pair of taupe suede and patent shoes instead. They are quite comfortable to walk in, but when I arrive at my friend’s, she suggests going for a walk, and insists I must borrow a pair of her shoes so I don’t wreck my new patent mary-janes. She wants me to wear her heeled boots so I don’t ruin my outfit (which is gorgeous of her), but I settle on a pair of comfortably worn-in ballet flats.

The outfit makes me smile now because it is so whimsical.

The outfit makes me smile now because it is so whimsical. There are no Anthropologie stores in Australia (still!), and I had bought both pieces on eBay; the skirt was new, but the top second hand; both have since been culled from my wardrobe. I have never been definite about my feelings for ruching, but I think that top finally convinced me it was not for me, and while I still admire the skirt because it’s amusing, it just didn’t fit with my current 70s-influenced minimalist leanings, so out it also went.

I’ve just noticed I forgot to photograph a bag, but I suspect I may have carried my old standby, a little 60s black patent bag which I have owned for years. The earrings, which were a birthday gift from the friend I was visiting in fact, are Moyou, a label by designer Amy Kerr-Menz who now seems to have moved into textile design. A few of her earrings are still available in her Etsy shop.

Items:

Top: Anthropologie
Camisole: Diesel
Skirt: Anthropologie
Coat: vintage 60s, from Salvos
Beret: vintage 90s, Melbourne boutique
Socks: ASOS
Necklace: Portuguese souvenir
Earrings: Moyou, from Design a Space (a gift)
Ring: NGV Gallery giftshop (another gift)
Watch: Kenneth Cole
Shoes: John Lewis Women

Photos: April 2013

What I Actually Wore #111

Serial #: 0111
Date: 27/03/2013
Weather: 30°C / 86°F
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

It’s a hot day, and I dress for work knowing I’ll be going out at midday for a lunch date with a couple of friends. This summer, one of my favourite skirts has been a navy linen midi, and I wear it with another beloved item, a tomato-red top. (The summer of 2013 was their heydey, for both of these were culled a few months ago when I realised I hadn’t worn them for such a long time.)

My accessories include a vintage 1940s hat, and a pair of dramatic nude Finsk wedges, my 60s black patent bag (not pictured), my usual sterling silver ring and chain watch, and a pair of iolite earrings on a rare outing. I love the colour of iolite – a dark blue with a violet tinge: “A cube cut from iolite will look a more or less violet blue, almost like sapphire, from one side, clear as water from the other, and a honey yellow from on top. In the past, this property led some people to call iolite ‘water sapphire’, though the name is now obsolete.” [ICGA]

It’s funny, although the outfit is still quite minimalist in shape (apart from the quirky hat), I would never wear it today, unless I swapped the red top for something more neutral. A bright tomato hue like that I’d wear now perhaps with grey. I think it’s because that shade of red competes with the hat that has such a huge personality. Style evolves!

Photos: April 2013

Items:

Top: Veronika Maine
Skirt: Kokomarina
Hat: vintage 1940s
Earrings: Portobello Lane (now defunct)
Ring: Roun (now defunct)
Watch: Kenneth Cole
Shoes: Finsk

What I Actually Wore #110

Serial #: 0111
Date: 26/03/2013
Weather: 31°C / 88°F
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

What a colourful outfit I wore on this day nearly three years ago! Only the jewellery and hat are in occasional circulation still. The espadrilles died an honest death. I wore them a lot, and remember once attending a recital and an elderly lady asked me in admiration how on earth I managed to walk in them! (They were very comfortable in fact.) The skirt was retired a couple of years ago, and somehow, though it is still hanging in my closet, I never pick up that top to wear anymore – I’m not sure why. (It may not survive the cull at the end of this season.)

I was in a hurry to meet a friend in the city for a drink and a quick gallery visit to view another friend’s exhibition that was about to close. Quickly I picked out a vintage 1980s polka dot skirt and a modern plain red top.

Three colours are certainly enough, and the navy and white espadrilles toned in with the bright tomato red and Delft blue skirt. I decided I needed to add a little extra pizzazz, and because it was probably one of the last hot days of autumn, I wanted to wear a summer hat.

Sometimes I forget I am wearing an unusual vintage hat and wonder why people stare!

I was pleased to use a new app that collates one’s wardrobe a little like Cher’s closet in the film Clueless. I’ve only catalogued my hats, as they are spread out and stored in a lot of hatboxes, so I was able to quickly choose and locate one: the peaked navy and white 1940s straw. It was a little breezy outside, so I had to speedily add in a strap to hold it onto my head.

My jewellery includes a grey mabé pearl ring an old boyfriend bought me years ago, and a pair of earrings I made myself from sterling silver balls with larger blue and silver star enamelled beads – they are very fun.

The hat (no surprise) attracts some attention as I walk into the city. Sometimes I forget I am wearing an unusual vintage hat and wonder why people stare!

Photo: April, 2013

Items:

Top: Veronika Maine
Skirt: Clio, vintage 1980s
Hat: vintage 1940s
Earrings: hand made
Ring: National Gallery of Victoria gift shop
Watch: Kenneth Cole
Shoes: Free People