Greens and browns

I'm having such a hard time adapting to cooler weather. Luckily today was quite mild compared to the chill, rainy days we've been having. Not to mention that yesterday was unseasonably warm. But anyhow... to the outfit!

Top - Fairweather for $5

Skirt - Thrifted from the Salvation Army for $4

Shoes - Dr. Scholl's, Thrifted from the Salvation Army for $5

I was so thrilled when I spotted these, and even more thrilled when I realized they fit! They're comfy (hello Dr. Scholl's gel insoles!), easy to walk around or drive in, and they go with a lot of my clothes, so wee!

Greens, tans and oranges are my favourites colours and this skirt has them all. It's cute and feminine without being loud about it. I actually bought this skirt months and months ago but I've barely worn it, and I can't for the life of me figure out why now! Cheers!

Animals everywhere!

This post is going to be fashion-lite and critter-heavy. And I'll warn ya now, if you don't like spiders, there are two photos of tarantulas further down!

Skirt - Vintage from Ragtime Vintage

Shirt - Who knows?

Crested Gecko - Mother Nature

That little critter climbing my chest in the photo is a Crested Gecko, a Rhacodactylus ciliatus. I have three of these little darlings as pets, this adult (a lovely 4 year old lady named Azalea) and two yearlings named Stickers and Lavender.

This is Stickers.

Geckos, they can be cheeky too ;)

I have many more pets, who will likely make cameos in the blog as things happen. Today seems to be a day for tarantulas though, and I got some very good photos of two of the ten tarantulas I own.

Pumpkin the Paphobeteus sp. "platyomma" aka Pink Birdeater

As the common name says, Pumpkin's species has been known to devour birds. This is rare, of course, and mostly due to the fact that they grow up to the size of dinner plates. Pumpkin isn't full grown yet though (that'll take another 4 years) but to give you an idea of his size, that white dish is actually the lid from a spice jar.

Nyx the Nhandu coloratovillosus aka Brazilian Black and White

Almost unbelievably, when I first acquired Nyx, he was barely the size of my pinky fingernail. Now, as you can see by comparing to the blue pop bottle cap, he's grown quite a lot in the last year! And for the extremely curious... here's a video I took tonight, feeding the little guy and another of Thor afterward. :)





Cheers! (P.S. I've apparently gone over my bandwidth allowance on Flickr so it'll be a few days before I post anything new... darn! Photobucket to the rescue!)

Here Comes the Sun

Well, not really. It's still cloudy and rainy out. But my dress is sunny! It's the one I picked up at the Value Village this week.

Dress - Thrifted from the Value Village

Shirt - Thrifted from the Value Village

Leg Warmers - Ardene's, 3 for $10

My mom saw me this morning and just exclaimed "That's just too cute!" Apparently she approves, hah.

This dress is comfortable and light, definitely something I'm likely going to wear pretty often. And it's just the right length that come winter, it won't get soggy from snow and slush! Cheers!

No Colour Too Bright

The clothes I wear seem to either be so bland I resemble oatmeal, or they're so bright they could burn your eyes out. Today was a "bright" day. Ever so bright. I had bought several pairs of different fluorescent coloured leggings to wear out to parties... and I sort of started incorporating them with my daily wardrobe. *cough* My justification is that there's some green in my top.

Shirt - Purhcased at Siren's

Skirt - Purchased while still in high school, Saan's

Leggings - Ardene's, 3 for $10

Leg Warmers - Ardene's, 3 for $10

Okay so this outfit is neither vintage, nor thrifted. But it's just so fun and bright!

I don't know how well you can see them, but my earings are actually made with real butterfly wings. They're encased in clear plastic. It's really nifty because the wings are from butterflies that died naturally in butterfly reserves, and all the proceeds of the sales go to protecting jungles and rain forests. Pretty earings, and eco-friendly!

I hope you had a good Friday! Cheers!

In Your Face

Today I wore the dress that I purchased at Vintage Wear/Ware, which I showed a quick photo of in a previous post.

Dress - Purchased at Vintage Wear/Wear in Almonte.

I'm still not too sure how I feel about the 80's shoulder pads (I usually avoid those like the plague) but they shall stay for now. This is definitely a very loud, very NOTICE ME kind of dress for sure.



I really dig the pattern of the fabric though, it has so many little details once you get up close to it. I'm convinced that some of those are supposed to be really elaborate peacocks.

It always amuses me when people first meet me with my hair up, and then see me again with it down, and how shocked they are at the actual length of my hair. It's just really thin so I can curl it up tight without it looking long. Which is good because in the summer... long hair is hell on toast in the heat!

This is definitely not a dress that's going to get tons of casual wear - although it will likely make the occasional appearance at work - and it'll be handy in cooler weather with some thick nylons.

I'm a fashion oddball, but that's okay! Cheers!

Like Stars in the Sky

That's what the pattern on this dress always makes me think of; the cosmos, stars in the sky. It's really little flowers and geometric shapes, but hey! I see what I see! The weather has been topsy turvy, calling for sunshine one minute, but yet raining the next. I think I may have to start finding new indoor places to take photos, otherwise they'll always be the awkward blah ones taken in my own home.

Dress - Purchased from Sally Jane Vintage on Etsy.

Originally the sleeves were longer, with elastics at the wrists (as you can see in the original listing photos) but I shortened them. They were too hot, and itchy, and they were an awkward length on my arms. It made everything feel just a bit too costume-y and now I'm much happier.



I went to a Value Village yesterday, and was happy to see that they at least still had huge racks of dresses available. I didn't take many photos - I was busy trying on something around 20-something dresses - and it slipped my mind most of the time there.

See, I wasn't kidding about the 20-odd dresses!

So many dresses, and each with some sort of problem!

Dress after dress, it was either too big, too small, did not fit my bust, did not look good, had holes or stains... I was actually beginning to despair that I had tried on all those dresses and would still leave empty handed. Finally the before-last dress yielded itself to being "just right" and I took it home. It is a summer dress, so not quite what I'd been looking for, but I purchased a light long sleeved shirt in a matching colour to wear beneath it this winter.

Not the best photo, but it's a cute dress and it'll likely be in outfit shots in the future.

I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately, not being able to muster the effort to take outfit photos I could be happy with yesterday. (You didn't miss much anyway, I dressed for the weather and something easy to change in and out of at the store.) I'm spending a lot of time reading, and playing old N64 games, trying to relax and rest. It just seems like a lot of people are ill lately. It's that time of year!

I hope the sun is shining where you are! Cheers!

The Leg Warmers Strike Back

I'm discovering that my wardrobe - in regards to dresses and skirts - is only really fit for warm weather. This creates a problem for me as winter is coming. So I have a feeling that leggings and leg warmers are going to become my bests friends.

Dress - Purchased from Sally Jane Vintage on Etsy.

Leggings - Ardene's 3 for $10

Leg Warmers - Ardene's 3 for $10

It has these slits at the front that allow for just a little playful peak at the thigh as you walk. The only downside is that even in a small breeze, you run the risk of flashing someone haha... So I'll usually wear thin leggings beneath it even in summer if I know I'll be spending much time at all outside.

I'm quite taken with the whole grunge look and that's what this dress is all about. The fact that grunge seems to be coming back into style certainly makes me happy because it means new lines of grunge-styled clothes. It however also means that thrift stores and the like will be picked extra clean of the awesome grunge pieces unless you practically live at the thrift store. You win some, you lose some, right?

I was at the mall the other day and walked by a Spring Shoes store, and spotted a display touting grungy boots. If my pocket book were fatter, I'd likely have run off with a pair of these.

But for now, it must wait!

I'd meant to go out to Mud Lake today, but due to some mechanical issues with my father's truck, I had to be around to give him a ride to the garage and then rush hour rolled around and... well, then it got dark after, hah. I'll try again tomorrow and hopefully my day doesn't get high-jacked again.

Anyhow, I'm going to settle down and read more from PiHKAL, goodnight!

New Edinburgh Park

Today's little photographic adventure brought me out to New Edinburgh Park. It's situated on the north end of the Rideau River, and most of it is lawn since it functions as dog park. The riverside itself is left woodsy and free however, and it's quite pretty. You can see the city skyline to the West and it's a wonderful view.

There were lots of people around, so I wandered out onto Maple Island to get a bit of privacy for some outfit photos. There's nothing more awkward than being by yourself and taking your own photo... a lot of them, with other people around to see you haha...

Dress - Vintage, purchased from Heather's Etsy Shop Moonshine Junkyard.

There was this fantastic large tree growing on the island. Maybe I just have a thing for big trees but I thought it was wonderful, and chose it as my spot for photo taking.

This weather is perfect for this dress, not to hot, not too cold. I'd wear it during the thick of summer sometimes and even its light material seemed stifling but now it's just right. And come winter, I can wear it with a turtle neck and leggings and keep the cold at bay! Speaking of which, this maple tree was already in the fall swing of things compared to the other trees.

So it begins!

And I may or may not have climbed into a willow tree to take photos. *cough*

I hope you all had a relaxing Sunday, and a good weekend. Cheers!

St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store

I visited the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store today, at 1273 Wellington Street West, in Ottawa. It's along the lines of the Salvation Army thrift stores, although this place seemed to have better quality items in terms of furniture and jewelery etc.

This beautiful wedding dress was in the window.

I am sad to see that most thrift stores have put away their dresses for the season - or not yet taken out their cold weather dresses perhaps - and I can no longer find any anywhere. Which is bad, since I absolutely hate wearing pants. I spent all of last winter in sweater dresses and leggings and managed without pants quite well. However, most of those are far too large now as I lost quite a bit of weight this year.



Anyhow, since I saw no dresses, I decided to check out their jackets and coats. They don't have a huge selection, but what's there is of good quality, and very well priced. The whole store has very reasonable prices. I myself purchased a nice long trench coat for just $10, which I'm very happy about.

 

My new-to-me trench coat, $10.

There were some very interesting items tucked away here and there. I was rather impressed with some of the art they had for sale, as some of it was of very good quality (as much a someone who knows nothing about art can say!) My father found a portfolio full of sketches of places in Kingston, Ontario, drawn during the 1960's.

And then there was this thing, in one of the glass cases...

It's a seal, made out of real seal fur!

They do charge $0.05 for plastic bags, so if you're the kind of person who refuses to pay for your bags, either bring your own or go without. They also only had one change room (that I or my mother could see) and apparently the door did not even lock properly. I can't say for certain since I didn't have to use it, but I overheard someone who'd been walked in on say so.

All in all, it's a nice little thrift store. Not too much selection in terms of clothes, but what was there was reasonably priced, clean and of good quality. And if you like buying any other household item thrift, then it's a good place to check.

And now to finish off with today's outfit photo...

Top - Fairweather for $5

Skirt - Thrifted at the Salvation Army for $6

Anyhow, I have to go feed the tarantulas. I hope you all have a good Saturday!

Sunlight is the best light

This is my conclusion. All the best photos of me are taken in bright sunlight. It's like the minute the sun shines on you, BAM, instantly attractive! And since it was gorgeously sunny and warm today, you can imagine that I am very happy with the photos I took.

I drove out to a little scenic area off the River Parkway, along the Ottawa River. I'd gone there previously with my parents and we'd spotted all this crazy rock art, put up by just one man. I had neglected to bring my camera that time, but it didn't much matter since it was cloudy and raining anyway. I decided to come back, but I needed the right day for it! And that was today!

These stones all stand here, perfectly balanced. Nothing holds them there, it's so crazy to see! The first time I came by, the water was lower and you could walk around them. I think it looks even cooler with the water surrounding them like this though.

Top - Vintage, bought from A Cup Full of Sunshine on Etsy.

Skirt - Purchased at Ragtime Vintage in Ottawa.

Ducks and geese swam around the rocks everywhere.

That opposite shore is actually Quebec. The Ottawa River acts like the border between provinces here.

I absolutely adore this skirt, I would live in it if possible!

I had my tripod with me this time, and boy did it make a world of a difference!

 

I was about ready to pack up and head home when I spotted this tree and it just screamed "Come take photos with me!" So of course I did. I love big trees, climbing them, sitting in their old branches. This tree is likely four or five times as old as I am, at least, which is pretty mind blowing. 

I spent something around two and a half hours just in this small area, wandering about and taking photos, but I spent most of that time smiling. I nearly stepped on a duck that had been sitting on the riverside and only noticed it when it jumped into the water. I'm not looking forward to the coming winter, I won't be able to do things like this anymore!

I hope you all have a great Friday, and an even better weekend! Cheers!

Sunless Silliness and Leg Warmers

Once again there are clouds and rain today, and I'm trapped in gloom. Oh summer, why did you leave us so abruptly? Ah well, at least I can look forward to thrifting some nice long and warm winter dresses and skirts sometime soon!

Today's outfit photos are pretty horrible, but I just couldn't seem to get the shots I wanted. I'd either cut off my head, or my feet, or an arm... or they were blurry... always something! So here they are, in all their horrible glory!

This is pretty much the only good photo that came out of the 50 or so I took.

Shirt - Thrifted from the Salvation Army

Jean Skirt - Thrifted from Value Village

Leg Warmers - Ardene's 3 pairs for $10

I know it's blurry, but I liked the pose!

I accidentally used the 2 second timer and not the 10 second timer, and so instead of wasting a shot... I made a silly, and this is what happened haha...

I really dig the crazy pattern on the shirt, and it's just so bright and cheery. It's actually just long enough that I could wear it with some good leggings, but I had the strongest desire to wear leg warmers and that's what won over today. I own several shirts with the faux wrap around the bust, it's a cut that really suits me so I tend to pounce whenever I see one I really like.

Now... in the spirit of oncoming cold weather and my sudden desire for leg warmers... here are some shots from Flickr of people rocking the leg warmers and looking great!

I hope the sun comes out soon... There are places I want to go see that don't do well being seen in the rain... I'm thinking of dropping in on a new thrift store sometime soon, too, so look forward to another shop post. Cheers!