Style or Die! challenge: Triple Five Soul vest

  Outfit 1 is everyday steampunk using the Triple Five Soul pinstripe vest:

Vest: Triple Five Soul (clothing swap)

Skirt: Ann Taylor (Megan Mae)
Aristocrat coat: CAbi (thrifted)

Lightning boots: Naya (gift, old) 8.5W on eBay

Rhinestone locket: Express (very old)

Grey shirt: Gap maternity (thrifted)

  I like this one so much I will link to Patti's next Visible Monday at Not Dead Yet style. :D

  I don't know much about the brand CAbi, save it's probably not Japanese, because kabi in the Japanese language means mold. I found out from Google images that this is called the Aristocrat coat. It's 100% merino wool and a teal color. I love it already.

  The skirt is brand new to me, having just received it in the post from Megan Mae! It's just the color I like, fits me at the waist (fantastic since I outshrank most of my skirts while in school) and has layers of ruffles that can be bustled up. Here I used a safety pin to take up the front. I think it's going to become a wardrobe staple really fast. :D

  If you've followed my blog for any amount of time, you'll notice I have a lot of vests. Most are thin and meant to layer under jackets. This one's is thick and double-layered, as well as longer and wider at the shoulders. It has to be worn as a top layer because jackets over it make me look like a fullback. Thin overcoats seem ok. I think it needs mid-length skirts at or near the natural waist so as not to look like office wear. Time will tell if this is too narrow a set of constraints.

  Tried this outfit with other vests and the proportions don't work as well. And it's *warm*. I ended up sweating while writing in my apartment, which is a good sign. For now, I think this one is a keep.

Repurposed

  I hate mornings.

Prairie hoodie: Prairie Underground (thrifted)

Dress: Liz Lange) maternity for Target (thrifted)

Harness: Audra Jean (Megan Mae)

Jodhpurs-as-leggings: Ariat Pro (thrifted)

Boots: Fitzwell (6pm.com, old)

  Trivia: my mother has a stuffed cat with the same facial expression I am wearing above. She was scooting through an airport in Japan to catch a flight when she saw it in a gift store window and couldn't stop laughing. She brought it home and showed me, and sometimes when I wake up with this expression while I'm visiting, she runs and gets it and holds it up next to my face.

  I'm convinced modern scheduling was invented by psychopaths who ran around changing everything while the rest of us were sleeping until a reasonable hour. I spend the first two hours of each day hating everyone on earth (not personal) and not being able to open my eyes all the way.

  Maternity wear: yes! Pregnant: no! I think it drapes very nicely as a tunic/dress.

  As much as I hate mornings, I like socializing with my friends more, so after a late night of a housewarming party and going to see my friend's band play, I got up early to go to dim sum, another housewarming party, and wushu class. It is more socializing than I've probably done in the rest of 2013.

  These pinstripe Ariat jodhpurs (mentioned in my thrifting post here) are so comfortable. They stretch very well and the pockets are reasonably roomy and accessible.

  As I was going out the door, I added this hat by San Diego hat company, since I seemed to have an overall 'riding' theme going on, with repurposed jodhpurs, riding-style boots, and a Western-inspired hoodie. Sorry I didn't get a photo of it, but I've used my brilliant photoshop skills to bring the full outfit to you:

  I'm still low on sleep, so this is a short post, but when the week slows down, I hope to have more up. Have you ever worn clothes that weren't as intended?