Pinky Dinky Do

Happy Friday, everyone. MOAR PINK. Here are Favourite Joe (thanks for the title, Curtise!) and I after the Fillmore Jazz Festival:

Aya: 

Hoodie tank top: Skinny Minnie (defunct online shop)

Skirt: KOMMOTiON NY (eBay)

Blazer: Heart Moon Star (thrifted)

Joe:

Flatcap: Goorin Bros. (sample sale)

Mr. Bump t-shirt: UNIQLO (retail)

Green skinny jeans: UNIQLO (retail)

It was above 80F in Millbrae that day with full sunshine, so when we prepared to go to the jazz festival in San Francisco, I foolishly assumed it would be okay to wear light summer clothing.

Tee hee, I'm dumb. It was windy, overcast, and after a few hours it started raining. I guiltily announced I knew of a nearby thrift store and shuffled in there to buy another jacket. (It's gotten a little out of control. The closet is full, so I have a double jacket rack in my bedroom, now. And I love them aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllll)

I found this lovely pink velour blazer by Heart Moon Star, the same brand that makes my beloved sundress! I really like it. It has a little princess sleeve puffing on the shoulders, it fits beautifully (might move the top button over a quarter inch) and somehow, the sleeves are the correct length.

This brand's fit model is my build. I am definitely keeping an eye out for it, now.

FJ found this t-shirt during a UNIQLO trip to find green jeans. (He live calls soccer games, and the school's colors are green and white.) They only had the shirt in Large, so I finally plugged in my sewing machine and took it in. I was grateful for the impetus! I've also taken to calling him Dr. Bump.

We had a great time at the jazz festival. There were 3 stages set up with various musicians going on all day. They taped sheets of astroturf to the street for picnic style seating. :D

We watched the most awesome elderly frontwoman singing and interacting with the crowd.With a fraction of her confidence and powerful attitude, I feel I could get so far in life. Maybe I can grow up to be like her.

The ethnic breakdown of the attendees interested me. Black folks there looked to be in their 60s-70s, Asian Americans in the 40s and 50s, and white folks of 20s-30s. I wondered if it reflected the changing demographic of the Fillmore neighborhood, because 1) there was a changeover of the Japantown area when the Japanese Americans were interned during WWII, and again when they got out, 2) the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake prompted demolition of a section of freeway that used to divide the Hayes Valley neighborhood from the Van Ness/Civic Center neighborhood, and 3) the large numbers of people moving into the city who are young and in tech. SF is changing so fast.

My brother thinks the attendance reflects the demographics of who listens to jazz music in each age group. Maybe we're both right.

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Thank you for your lovely comments after the last post. I thought this place would be empty after I'd been gone for so long. Instead I got welcoming comments and helpful commentary! (I really do appreciate it, by the way. No worries about being rude; we're all friends here and if you think something doesn't work, I love hearing about it.)

Shades of Gravender

I backed the camera up in an attempt to avoid the lens flare and backlighting. MISSION FAIL.

I made this outfit for Spygirl's 52 Pick-Me-Up challenge: layers. Also because it is freezing in my room. Man, I look so proportional when sleeves are the correct length. Japanese clothing all the way.

All the dangly pointy bits of cloth made me feel like curtsying.
I hope I did patron saint of masterful layering Shawna proud.

Where to begin?

Purple heattech undershirt: UNIQLO (gift from Mom, Japan)

Grey bamboo dress: Natural Life (Purre at The CAMP)

Double layer vest: MOUTH valley (thrifted, Japan)

Outermost long vest: LUX (clothing swap)

Wide belt: pellemelle (thrifted)

Jodhpurs as leggings: Ariat (thrifted)

Boots: ALDO (thrifted)

Cloisonne necklace and enamel earrings: unknown (thrifted)

If you haven't seen these before, that's right, jodhpurs! (Thanks, Excelsior Goodwill!) They are by the company Ariat and so comfortable and warm. They also have deep front pockets. Rich people really know how to live!

The wide leather belt is one I thrifted a few weeks ago in SF, by pellemelle. The end has a tendency to start slipping out of the buckle, but otherwise I am really happy with it. It's comfortable, the right size, and the soft leather has enough stretch that I don't garrote myself in the midsection when I sit down.

The outfit was so neutral that I tried to add a little color with the cloisonne jewelry, but overall I think it's still pretty "Look, ma! I'm greyscale!" That isn't to say I don't like it; purple and grey is one of my favorite combinations*! I'm just obsessed with trying to up my color game recently and I don't want to feel like I was backsliding.

* In fact, know what I'm gonna call it? Gravender. Shut up. Clever! ᕦ(ಠ_ಠ)ᕤ

Hat Attack with a twist!

  I think I've figured out layering knits! At least, for San Francisco's comparatively mild winters. I am linking to Style Crone's Hat Attack #5 because Judith is glorious and, of course, hats. Who needs more reason?

Dark red floral sweater: Nordstrom (thrifted)

Brown corduroy skirt: H&M (eBay)

Tights: UNIQLO (Japan)

Boots: Two Lips (thrifted)

Long cloak hoodie: Prairie Underground (old)

Hat: milsa (ARTH, defunct ): )

  This lovely sweater is made in Italy! Another one of those lucky wonderful thrift finds. Clearly you should come here on vacation and go thrifting with me.

  The twist part comes in because the gorgeous off the shoulder/cowl neck is really wide. Normally I have difficulty getting things over my broad shoulders. This one was in danger of slipping over them entirely! So I twisted one side inside-out to give it stability and an asymmetrical look, and put my DIY collar clips on for security:

  Then I twisted my bangs before pinning them up. Then I twisted my (made in Japan) hat! I thought it looked less like a beanie and more like a cloche that way. I am enjoying my Axis powers clothing today.

  The sweater is more tunic-length and the skirt is detailed and natural-waisted, so next time I might try wide leg trousers or something more fitted and low-slung on the bottom half, because it's a bit bulky looking here. Learning!

  What are some off-the-cuff adjustments you make to your clothing? Do you like wearing things a little differently than intended?

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  Speaking of garments' countries of origin, I've had this article by Mother Jones on my mind. It's about sumangali girls in India -young girls who go to work in garment factories to try to earn money for their dowries. It's well-written and as sad and horrifying as you would imagine.

  It also touches briefly on a topic that's not often mentioned when talking about these: it's really hard to monitor everything along a supply chain. In an ideal world I want large fashion companies to take initiative in securing living wages, safe conditions, and all sorts of protections for garment workers. In reality, there's a soup of emergent behavior, long supply chains and lack of individual accountability, subcontracting, and of course manufacturers working very hard to hide their human rights abuses. It's one of those puzzles that involves finding out how to reward the right behaviors so all can benefit, and it sucks me into a dissonant navel-gazing void every time I walk through a mall, which is why I avoid them now. (And I'm not claiming I am not part of the chain, here. I thrift a heck of a lot of my things, but I do own many things made in China. It is really damn hard to find things that aren't.)

  I'd love to hear your thoughts. I am curious where the trend of the next generation will turn, fashion-wise. It feels like things went mass-produced around the 1950s and 1960s, and we're hitting an apex of that. I wonder if the pendulum is due to start swinging another way.

Entrenched Meanders

  The other day was pouring rain and I was meeting a friend downtown, so I took a break from my Style or Die! challenge to wear my beloved trench coat:

Trench coat: J. Gallery (thrifted)

Purple knit top: Elie Tahari (thrifted)

Grey wool skirt: Express (eBay)

Necklace: unknown (thrifted)

Heattech leggings: UNIQLO (gift)

Lark boots: Naya (eBay)

  I thrifted this J. Gallery trench coat not long ago. It's made in Korea and has quickly become one of my favorite garments of all time. When it is buttoned up, I feel like a military commander princess (the protect-the-innocent hero kind, not the parasite-off-the-people kind.) I think this all ties back to my fantasy of dressing like an airship captain.

  It may be difficult to tell, but it's light grey lined with a lavender. Lavender and grey is one of my favorite color combinations of all time. I went with the same combo for my outfit, pairing a purple knit Tahari top with grey wool miniskirt and some black leggings and boots.

  It's a bit madness here at Couturgatory HQ (hah!) with two research projects and finals going off, but it's fulfilling and I am notably not stressed the hell out and losing vast amounts of weight. I wanted to thank you all again for reading this blog because it's so much fun to write. :D

-Aya

Cranky Nopants

  Hey guys! I missed blogging. :D  I also missed the sun. Here's a picture I took Thursday to celebrate the first time it came out in over a week.

Sweatshirt dress: Mossimo (thrifted)

Vest: Forever 21 (thrifted)

Tights: UNIQLO (gift from Mom)

Over-the-knee boots: unknown (clothing swap)

Hat: eBay (similar)

  This whole 'personal style' thing is still pretty new to me. The outfits I posted this past warm season are partly because I have 1 pair of ratty denim shorts, and since I didn't think that would do for a style blog, I experimented with putting together other fun things.

  Cold weather's different. I hate the cold. I hate this sudden seasonal change. I hate wind and damp and numb feet and blue fingertips. Hate is a strong word, but it takes me months to shake off a dull, stuffy vaguely anxious feeling when the sun doesn't show up for weeks at a time. Happens every year, and my priorities this season, as with many Asian women, shift from "what fun to wear today?" to "protect myself from the elements, nevermind how ridiculous I look."

  This year I am going to try to shake myself out of it by risking a stupendous gas bill and trying to heat this place. There is no weatherproofing in our apartment (the balcony door doesn't even close all the way,) it's very damp, and the thermostat doesn't register, and you have to manually switch it on every 15 minutes if you want heat, but I can't take being cold indoors and outdoors all of the time. It does not snow, and it very rarely drops below freezing in the Bay Area, but this means that shopkeepers and restaurants also don't see fit to heat anything, and people leave the doors to the tiny cafe and retail spaces OPEN all the time, so you never get away from the winter weather. It means the only times I am warm are when I am driving my car and when I'm taking a shower. It drives me insane.

  I've heard older Chinese people say that white people are more resistant to the cold than Asians are. The whole special sweat gene means this might be more true than I thought. Either way, that is my rant. I will do my best to add more visual interest to my outfits, because otherwise you all are going to get an endless procession of dark neutral sweat/er/shirt dresses, long pants, and peacoats.

  Today I tried adding a long vest to this teal sweatshirt dress. I wasn't sure how the proportions would work out, but it was warm. I see now in the photo it looks like I forgot to don pants, which still puts me one up on my leggings-only-clad classmates, who, thank god, are now being forced to actually wear some. Gosh, I'm really cranky. I just realized this. This is therapeutic. :D

  Since I've been running out the door without taking outfit photos and coming back after dark, here are some photos of what I have been up to:

I made some new fabric-covered buttons for my thrifted Sanctuary hoodie! I am wearing it with some thrifted bling jeans here.

  I love this thing. It's so soft, has gorgeous piping on the inside, has interesting lines, good construction, and came to me in like-new condition! It was just missing one button on the left pocket, which you can see above.

  I picked up a fabric button kit at my local DAISO, a Japanese dollar (and a half) store. I took a piece of jersey fabric and placed it around the metal button head, and put it in the clear plastic holder. You can't use too many layers of cloth, but if you want added fullness/softness on the head of the button, you can cut a round piece of fabric and place it between the button head and the cloth you're wrapping around it, which is what I did.

  I photographed the instructions on the back of the package. (: You trim the cloth, fold it in around the button head, place a button backing on top, push down on the round green plastic presser, and you have a new button!

   The buttons on my hoodie were between sizes of the kits available, so I made two buttons and replaced the remaining one, as well:

  Pretty good match, I think!  What are some DIY repairs you have done?

Class Structure

  Trying out the adjustments on the harness from Megan Mae. If I let the back strap all the way out, I can get it to my lower ribs for a different suspender-like look. :D

Harness: AudraJean (etsy, from Megan Mae)

Blouse: contempo (thrifted)

Jeans: UNIQLO (Japan)

Boots: Fitzwell (6pm.com)
Necklace: Foxy Originals Sage Bracelet (foxyoriginals.com)

  This is one of my hybrid school outfits, hopefully combining freedom of movement for labs with some visual interest and structured style.

  ... did you know that black shows *everything*? There are tiny lint hairs everywhere! Augh!

Dressed for cleaning, take 2

  Another day indoors organizing my apartment. I'm trying to finish as much of my spring cleaning as possible before I leave for a week to visit family.

  Does this vest look kind of steampunk-y? This is my first foray into orange territory. I never thought I'd wear anything remotely orange! I feel very adventurous.

  The dress is my favorite color of blue-grey. While I'm still very partial to it, I'm doing my best to add other colors to my daily wear. My wardrobe used to be mostly blue shirts and blue jeans plus running shoes (an example). Totally serious. Even branching out into black, a neutral, was strange for me at first.

  The vest is fake leather, and was very inexpensive. I was surprised considering the unique detailing, the functional (!) buttoned pockets in the front, and the back:

  I guess I should shop at cheap junior clothing stores when they are closing more often!

  I can't think of a terrible/good 'vest' pun, or any other name for this outfit. Suggestions welcome.

Vest: Last Kiss (Styles For Less)

Dress: Old Navy (thrifted)

Leggings: UNIQLO

Boots: Kensiegirl Roper boots (thrifted)