Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Subtle Embellishments

  This is my old uniform: some sort of unique/graphic tee and some cool pants or jeans. I wore this style every day for decades. I love my skirts and my other clothes, but I find this the most comfortable. I thought I'd share it with you. What is your go-to or zero point outfit?
Top: Foreign Exchange (thrifted)
Ryan Bootcut Pants: S by Sanctuary (thrifted, sz 8 in denim on eBay)
Boots: Two Lips (thrifted)
Necklace: defunct etsy shop
  This is not a unified theme! The pants are detailed like cowgirl chaps -brass snaps at the bottom of bootcut legs and decorative seams curving up the sides to the back- and the shirt is detailed like a princess gown, with slightly puffed sleeves and a twisty collar. I love them both very much.
  These fake chaps pants are the most complicated trousers I have had to shorten yet. They have a series of brass snaps at the bottom that I fell in love with, but the legs were the usual 5" too long. What to do? I ended up measuring the angle of the decorative line across the thigh in the back, tracing out the same angle with a protractor, and cutting the inches out partway up the leg and doing a diagonal pseudo-top stitch to imitate the style of the pants, then reinforcing the edges so they wouldn't fray. It took two evenings and I made a Facebook life event in commemoration after I was done fixing these and a pair of Cop Copine pants with a convoluted cuff/invisible hem.

  I never want to sew pants on a diagonal again. You can't just turn them inside out and sew two edges together unless you cut open the seams on the side, because the two pieces are set at an angle to one another so they can't lie flat at the ends. And they are different widths because the legs are bootcut. These had better last a while, because I'm burnt out on alterations for now. They are mega-sweet, though.

  I wish I could find out more about the brand, but they appear to have zero 'net presence. I *think* the brand is "s by Sanctuary" (the tags are just leather strips with 's' embroidered on them, so this took some digging!) the same company that makes my beloved thrifted hoodie. Isn't it a bummer when you can't track brands down?  Maybe rich people don't shop online. :D

4 comments:

  1. Rich people have personal shoppers who scour what exists in the world, sort through those offerings, and bring back the best stuff for approval. Regarding this outfit, it's a sign of something very positive when someone's simplest, basic look is attractive.

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    1. This both sounds appealing, and like it would take half the fun out of thrift shopping. :D

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  2. Really glad you were able to take them up!! I often give up if alterations take too much effort. I'm not a fantastic seamstress though. I LOVE the details in your shirt and trousers. Just too cool.

    I tend to take my thrifted finds that I can't find info on as being something special. Sometimes, they're even defunct brands, which makes them more special to me!

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  3. You are so good with your alterations, if something doesn't fit right I never buy it, cause I am so bad at sewing.

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