All the Frills: Heavenly Bodies

So the Met’s Heavenly Bodies exhibition book is beyond stunning. I’ve perused it twice now and it’s just breathtaking. And some of the essays penned to accompany it (mainly about the role of fashion and clothing in religion) are equally compelling. It really is a great book, and I have a pretty notable weakness for those types of large coffee table style books.

Weekend Reading:

• Lord knows I love me some Vanderpump Rules.
  
• You know I deeply appreciate old books.
  
• This is an interesting piece, but the headline alone makes it worth a read.
  
• I’m not sure how I feel about this trove of cat mummies.

Streetfight Anyone?

You have no idea how proud of myself I am for actually managing to sneak in photos outdoors. Eleanor did not appreciate being made to wait in the car for that extra 4 minutes but that’s besides the point. I mean she needs to learn patience at some point, right? Just I like need to learn to stop flashing a face that screams "I will cut you" and a physical stance that confirms it. I am really dubious that I will ever learn that lesson though...

dress: Calvin Klein / blazer: Simons / boots: Franco Sarto / necklace: Saks Off 5th

If I Could Only Drape Myself In It

Anyone out there a Seinfeld fan? There was episode where George Costanza talked about how, if it were only socially episode, he’d drape himself in velour every day. So that about sums it up for me.

dress: Simons / shoes: ASOS / necklace: Groove Stone

Don't Worry, I've Taken the Decorations Down Now

As I noted in my last post, I very much miss Halloween so I was pretty happy to find these photos from a few weeks back when I still had all my decorations up on my camera. I’ll ignore the fact that getting decent indoor photos seems basically impossible for me because the presence of the decorations offsets that challenge for me.

pants: Simons / top: Vero Moda / blazer: F21 / shoes: ASOS / necklace: Stella and Dot

All the Frills: Halloween Round 2

Halloween may have been a couple of weeks ago, but I’m still revelling in it (my absolute favourite time of year). And here’s some photos of my second costume, worn to work (we hosted a Halloween event this year for grad students with kids) and then to take Eleanor out in the evening. I’m so happy with how this Maleficent costume came out – and also with the fact that I managed to pick up Eleanor after work, get her home and feed her dinner, tidy the house and feed the cats, get her and me into costumes, drive 15 minutes to a neighbourhood near us with incredible house decorations and like 800 kids out, walk around for 30 minutes, and get home, all between 5 and 8 pm. Halloween was seriously a well-oiled machine this year. Sure, I ate take out for dinner at 10 pm in a state of sheer exhaustion, but it was a well-oiled machine nonetheless.

Weekend Reading:

• Do you, like every proper woman, yearn for a husband? This very special 1958 set of instructions will help you out.
  
• This just tickles me.
  
• This is a potentially fascinating find for early modernists. And fans of olde timey executions.
  
• Marie Antoinette’s jewelry - not surprisingly, there's some gorgeous pieces here!
  
• Sure, Halloween is behind us now, but spooky houses are always interesting.

Can It Be Halloween Again?

I very much miss Halloween …

leggings: Simons / shirt: Simons / shawl: ModCloth / necklace: Stella and Dot

Falling for a Pattern

I’m usually pretty adverse to patterns (it has to be something pretty special for me to usher it into my closet – there have been a few such pieces over the years, but they are few and far between). But this high necked, long sleeved dress felt so baroque, so rich, so decadently seasonal that I just had to get it. I’m reduced, with the shorter day light hours, to taking photos in the morning on my way out the door with Eleanor before the sun has fully risen and so I haven’t totally worked out the best lighting scenarios for that (I’m working on it) but, when I do, I’ll make sure to get some better shots of this dress and without the jacket. It truly might be my new favourite thing…

dress: Simons / jacket: Joseph Ribkoff / shoes: ASOS

Frizz Woes

For some reason the early winter here has made my hair very, very frizzy. And my hair is not prone to frizziness, nor does winter typically have that effect on it. It’s a real mystery. And sort of a crappy one.

boots: ASOS / dress: Calvin Klein / jacket: found at Winners / necklace: Stella and Dot

Han Solo Style

So I got some flashy Han Solo pants (as one of my office mates termed them). And I couldn’t be happier. I'm putting in this in the "excellent life choice" column.

pants: ASOS / jacket: Century 21 / booties: Primark

All the Frills: Happy Halloween

After not really doing too much for Halloween last year aside from a last minute cat costume to take Eleanor to a kid’s event in (I dressed her up as a cat too and it was pretty adorable), I went all out this year. This was my first of two costumes, worn on Saturday, October 27 to go to a party at an art gallery. As it turned out, I caught an awful head cold a few days before the weekend so I felt absolutely awful and only went out for a couple of hours. Even with the cold I still had a great time – it was a beautiful venue (the Alberta Art Gallery is really a stunning building) and it was great to dress up and spend the night with friends and a group of strangers who were equally as into Halloween as I am and all turned up in elaborate and amazing costumes. I’ll get some photos of my second costume, worn on Halloween proper for a work party and to take Eleanor out in, shortly.

Weekend Reading:

• I think it’s so adorable that Sarah Jessica Parker does this.
  
• Let’s look at some stunning library spaces.
  
• I will never look at the music for the Real Housewives the same again.
  
• This piece on one of the biggest rifts within the royal family is really interesting. I didn’t know there were such hurt feelings over this.
  
• This is a long read about one of the tragedies of the sex trade, but it’s well worth it.

Now Winter Is Stressing Me Out?

Another day, another chance both to look slightly surly and wear this jacket that, in about a week I’m sure, it will be far too cold to wear. I am in full on bracing for winter mode. Now ordinarily I love the cold weather (seriously) and I am sure I will this year as well but it is definitely a bit harder to appreciate winter when you have a small child that you have to keep safe and warm. So now I’m extra paranoid about winter driving, about slipping on ice when I’m carrying Eleanor, about keeping her bundled up when we’re outdoors but also balancing that against not being able to fit her safely and securely in the car seat when she’s wearing a giant puffy coat and oh, hey, we’re back to stressing about winter driving. I really need to chill out about all this (see what I did there?)….

dress: Simons / coat: Joe Fresh / shoes: Cole Haan