My first cowboy boots ever! Two reasons why I bought them, they're FRYE boots and they don't have the diamond shape toe. They're more rounded. That is a $5.00 top. Cheap! The leather belt is vintage and thrifted from Goodwill. I love that blazer. I've been meaning to have it copied by my seamstress, Thuy because it's such a perfect fit! I've had it for uhmmm...10 years. I still have clothes from a decade ago and thank god they still fit.
This shot is taken on our front porch, on nice days, that's where Thad and I have our coffee and pancakes.
Friday finally. I've been waiting for this day since Monday. I really need to feel better already. I'm sorry if all I've ever talked about is my malady. I really can't wait to feel 100% better. There are so many things I want to do! Lately, when I get home all I do is watch documentaries till I pass out from Tylenol PM.
I look so sad in this photo, the moribund hues is helping me look so. But I'm not sad, just a bit sickly. I've had that vest since I was in college in Cebu, Philippines, where there really is no need for layering. I bought that from a thrift store where I used to buy my used books. The place was called Music House. I'm pretty sure people back home still remember that place.
The booties you can barely see because they are swallowed in the chiaroscuro display is a pair I got from ASOSlast year. I love them because when I wear them with black leggings, they make my legs look longer. That's hobbit magic.
My yellow flower filled dress and lacy vest all scream "spring", my ring isn't saying otherwise either. I guess I have just been feeling so cruddy and sick that I need some sort of sunshininess. Yes, I made up that word. The blazer, the legwear and the booties are sombre colors anyway so I'm still dressed in season. Dressing according to seasons was never an issue back in the tropical islands of my home. The weather never changes and the people never age ;-)
Back to the salt mines...I'm really still not feeling good but I'm getting a little bit depressed staying at home. I'm not sure if it was change of routine for just those two days that threw my mental balance off or if it was the meds but my psyche sure took me to a nebulous place. That being said, I couldn't really be a full blown anti-social recluse because I still missed being around people especially my girls at work. I guess I'm just so used to them. Nine years will do that to ya. Hehe.
Anyway, *waves depression away* I did have a perfect little weekend with Thad. We watched silent era Hitchcock films that I didn't enjoy as much as Thad did. He took care of me in my convalescence and made sure I took my meds. My Prince Valium has impeccable bedside manners, too. Heh. Also, I got me a pair of new boots (See above). They're a pair of dark chocolate brown campus style boots from European Club. I wanted a pair of brown boots for a long time. This one is a bit too dark almost black but I love the style. I'll find that elusive pair soon. In the meantime, I'll be rockin' these.
I got this too cute pumpkin carriage from ebay.com for a steal.
Well, since I am convalescent today, I might as well post Thad's academe style unless you guys want to see me in my chamois pyjamas. It's Veterans Day, so he opted to wear a little bit of red, white and blue. He explained something about the tiger tie since it's a Thursday but the medicine is slowly taking over my senses and I didn't understand anything. One thing I love about Thad is that he is not afraid to dress somewhat out of the ordinary like say a kelly green jacket over pepto pink shirt. We both get that "only Thad/Xio can get away with that!" comments when it comes to fashion. Of course, he tones it down for work since he teaches at a college. He is quite unlike anybody I've met. He's super cool, social, intelligent (pending MENSA member :D) , talented, introspective and he's so positive about everything in life that you can charge a dead car battery off of him. He is by far, the nicest person I have ever met in my lifetime. It also doesn't hurt that he is an attractive guy. He works a noble job, teaching Computer Forensics by day and occasionally playing music at night. I always tell people he's my little Hannah Montana. :-P
I hope everyone has a better Thursday than me. Food normally cures the achies but my throat feels like I drank Drano cocktail...and my lucidity is ebbing.
Foggy mornings always remind me of English countrysides that I've seen in Catherine Cookson TV novels. Any minute now, some gentleman with a top hat on a magnificent steed would come galloping by asking for the nearest inn where he can get some cold collation and tea. Of course, I would just stare incredulously at him, wondering how on earth he ended up in our backyard.
I'm wearing two stockings :-) a lacy one over a red one. It kinda has some brothel flair to it. When I got ready this morning, I asked Thad for $250 for making me stay the night to which he guffawed and said, "you owe me more than that for putting up with you" or something like that. That was my interpretation to his morning mouthwash mumbling.
Here's my beloved kelpie giving me sweet kisses. Looking at this photo, I just realized that Gotham is a huge dog. He always seems like a puppy to me. And yes, I have a dollhouse in the carport. It's a future project but as of the moment, fairies can squat in it.
This is one of my obsessions...Blythe Dolls! Here's one of them from my horde. She is a Cinema Princess Blythe whom I named Cerise Pixielane. This is not her stock outfit. She got my star quality style treatment :-) Teehee. I sometimes make my dolls dresses when I am inspired but the pieces on her ensemble are bits from my other Blythe dolls: plaid skirt from Bow Wow Trad and the striped socks from Gentle River. That fabulous military jacket was actually from a short lived series of dolls called Ali and AJ. I made the red lace overlay on her skirt and attached chains for toughness and then a bear button for kawaii purposes (kawaii is "cute" in Japanese). The red army boots I got from etsy.com
I made that tophat from scratch. I thrifted an ash tray shaped like a tophat and made my pattern from it. I think it came out awesome. I'm extremely proud of my handiwork. I didn't personally pluck the peacock feather though because, well, I value my eyesight. Peacocks are vicious fowls.
Alright, that's it from Xanadu for now. Stay tuned for some other stufferoos...
Snick Wedge by Jeffrey Campbell, the most comfortable footwear I have second only to my Frye Boots.
Thad and I have only have two identical articles of clothing. One is a Threadless shirt of a Balinese God shooting an arrow and the arrow ending up on the back of the shirt and the second is our The Decemberist shirt. We really don't listen to the same type of music but we both agree on The Decemberists. I guess it appeals to our predilection to rarely used words. Colin Meloy, lead songwriter of the band weaves his musical storytelling so beautifully as if you're reading excerpts from a Booker Prize winner novel. The Decemberists is also reminiscent of a UK band called XTC who were around in 80s and whose song Then She Appeared was our 2004 wedding song. Had to put a year since we got married twice ^_^
XTC's sample lyrics from Then She Appeared:
...Then she appeared, as the giggling crew of Marie Celeste Then she appeared, pale Atlantis rising out of the west I was a little dazzled Catherine wheeled and senses frazzled Know it sounds weird Then she appeared...
I perceive Mr. Andy Partridge (XTC lead songwriter) to be well versed on the arcane knowledge of mysterious tales and conjecture. He includes things in his lyrics that I have read about in supernatural-themed books. In Then She Appeared, he mentioned the crew of Marie Celeste, the ship whose crew vanished while at sea and left no clues in December 1872. It is still one of the most baffling maritime unsolved mysteries. But in the song, he made the crew look as if they were just playing a joke, hence "giggling". Nobody writes lyrics like Mr. Partridge well, except Colin Meloy who I realized after briefly talking to his bandmate that they were huge fans of XTC and he considered it an honor to be compared to them.
I love this song. Mr. Partridge is singing about how dumb he is when in fact, the lyrics here are so freakin' brilliant...see below.
If depth of feeling is a currency, (please be upstanding for the Mayor of Simpleton), Then I'm the man who grew the money tree, (no Chain of Office and no hope of getting one). Some of your friends are too brainy to see, That they're paupers and that's how they'll stay.
Well I don't know how many pounds make up a ton, Of all the Nobel prizes that I've never won, And I may be the Mayor of Simpleton, But I know one thing, And that's I love you.
The Decemberists sample lyrics from Legionnaire's Lament
Medicating in the sun pinched doses of laudanum longing for the old fecundity of my homeland Curses to this mirage! A bottle of ancient Shiraz a smattering of distant applause is ringing in my poor ears
On the old left bank my baby in a charabanc riding up the width and length of the Champs de Elysee...
Cover art on The Decemberists Castaway and Cutouts (shown below on video link) even reminds me of the Crew of Marie Celeste...
You should check both of them out. You will learn new words. Here's a funny saying that was going around for a while in London that XTC brought literacy to Britain :-)
Monday, November 8, 2010
This is not what I am wearing today. I wore this outfit one day last week. That lovely russian doll (matryoshka) printed dress is Anna Sui ^_^ That dress is the cherry on top of my-anything-matryoshka themed collection. Vintage mink fur hat is actually my mom's that we bought when we were living in New York circa 2000. She's back in the Philippines now, a very tropical country so there's no need for fur hats. Thus, I inherited it.
Wonderfully Nestled: vintage Orphan matryoshka doll thrifted for $0.25! ornaments from K-mart circa 2008 from Martha Stewart Collection, metal and enamel necklaces, Fred's nesting doll glasses from Urban Outfitters, purse from Forever 21 $7 or something like that. Flat coinpurse from Claire's. Re-ment miniature pot holder and spoon and fork caddy and LeSportsac satchel that holds my Japanese books :-) I'm a struggling multi-culturalist
I am totally charmed by this Japanese techno-pop girl group called Perfume and inspired myself to dress like them on this video. I don't really listen to techno but hey, they're Japanese and I have a predilection to all things Japanese. I love how their choreography is so easy, it's like dancing for a PE class. Inspiration comes in all forms so why not? Chocole-ito Disuko! Let's dance!
Responsibility dictates that I should crawl out of my bed to go to work instead of curling up with a book and letting this dismal weather mentally take me to somewhere in Ireland. Why can't this weather be on a Saturday morning...
