In Living Monochrome Color

Restyle 2014 l Day 15: Monochrome

mickey mouse sweatshirt / hand me downs

pastel blue jeans / h&m / thrifted

diamond floral necklace / joe fresh

In an attempt to get out of the blue jeans mold, I have been putting colored bottoms on my thrift list. Yes, this h&m jeans is still blue but it's pastel blue so that's ok. I also liked that it had a higher rise (though I'd prefer it to be a true high-waisted jean). Again, I'm digging into my son's drawers and am wearing a hand me down mickey mouse sweatshirt (which little Luu loved). I quite like it so it may stay in my closet for a bit =P. 

xo,

K

Girls + Boys

Restyle 2014 l Day 12: Tomboy

 fake "chanel" tank/ diy

 high waisted skinny jeans / diesel

 plaid fleece hoodie / borrowed

 diamond drop earrings / joe fresh 

 suspenders / thrifted

 heather grey sneakers / sears

I love mixing boy style with a little girly glam. I don't usually buy clothes from the opposite sex when thrifting unless I'm shopping for my son so it was a bit hard to find something but I remembered I picked up this pair of suspenders for him. LOL...the plaid fleece hoodie is also his. As he gets older, he's going to have to stop me from raiding his closet for "boyfriend" style clothes.

xo,
K

p.s.-Here's the Girls + Boys music video from Blur. Enjoy!

Sneaky Little Snake

Restyle 2014 l Day 11: Arm Candy

Don't you just love this vintage snakeskin purse? It had straps but it was all bent out of shape so I hacked it off and made it a clutch. I'm thinking about adding a chain strap to this someday.

xo,
K

No Dots, No Glory

Restyle 2014 l Day 10: Spots + Dots

 green + blue dotted dress / karin stevens petite / thrifted

 oatmeal linen cardigan / no label / from milan

 gold metal belt / thrifted

I love this green + blue dotted vintage 1980's Karin Stevens dress. I was a bit apprehensive when I picked it up because the colors and pattern was bold. I thought it was borderline ugly...which meant it's perfect in my books =P. It's a bit big for me so I'll have to do some modification. I was tempted to hack the top to be a cropped style but I'm resisting because even though it's trendy now, I don't know how I'll feel about crop tops next year…but I do know that I love this pattern and want to wear it forever. So today I had cut off the sleeves and in the future will take in the sides. Simple but classic! I did save the sleeves and am thinking of making a super sexy bustier...what'd ya think about that?

xo,

K

A Sunset Showdown

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 7: Tailored

sheer button-up shirt / thrifted
neon pink bra / la senza
pleated high-waisted pants / american apparel / thrifted
leather belt / thrifted
michael kors heels / thrifted

Isn't it awesome to discover a new favorite look while playing dress up? Well that's what happened with today's "tailored" prompt. 

At first, I was frustrated because most of the tailored things I had felt too heavy for summer (and they were wooly). I tried to work with a thrifted black Hugo Boss jacket but I wasn't in a blazer mood. Then after shifting thru the hangers for the zillionth time, I pulled out this sheer tangerine shirt and knew it would be perfect with this linen high-waisted pant from American Apparel. All items in this look were thrifted. The pants were brand new with the  price tag still attached! The only exception is the neon pink bra...but that was a steal for $5 at La Senza. I love that this shirt is sheer but has pockets at the bust so if I wore just a bra with it, it's still pretty discreet. This outfit is going to be filed under easy, go-to, "grown-up" outfit. 

xo,

K

The Outerwear Remixed

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 6: Outerwear

silk windbreaker jacket / silk land / thrifted

vintage 1940's swimsuit / etsy

Mixing my outerwear with some swimwear today. I probably wouldn't actually wear this windbreaker jacket by the poolside because it's 100% silk however I'm loving the look with this vintage 1940's bombshell swimsuit I bought off etsy a few years ago. I had to do some boobage reduction as it was quite "coney" and I'm... well, flat.

Sorry for the annoyed glare on the first shot. My camera has been acting up lately so I had to do a run & shoot with the self timer.

xo,

K

The Pastel Way Of Life

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 5: Pastel

soft pastel pants / thrifted
gold metal belt / thrifted

Tie Me Up! Button Me Down!

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 4: Button Down

white button down shirt / diane von furstenberg / thrifted

silk scarf / thrifted

Today I'm paying homage to Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar and the first film of his that I saw called "Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down" starring Antonio Banderas. I watched this film when I was in my teen...which was eons ago. You could imagine my amazement to see a film with all that grown up nudity that wasn't a porno...and it was funny! It was only a few years ago that I've started to watch more of his films and I haven't been disappointed since. Below photo is inspired by the movie poster (...I know, it could be better in photoshop but it's the best I can do on my phone).

xo,

K

The Collar Of Magic

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 3: Collar

 peach pleated blouse / simon chang / thrifted

 white zipper jacket / zara

 gold sequin shorts / stylestalker / thrifted

 leopard heels / f21

I am posting two outfits today because I realized that I looked a day behind due to the difference in time zone in Australia. Looking thru the photos, I could tell that I was so done playing dress up...it was hot and my lips didn't want to smile anymore.

Anyways, this lovely peach pleated blouse is by Canadian designer Simon Chang (who is from Vancouver...yeah!). Unfortunately, it is a dated style from the 80's/90's so the sleeves are very puffy and it's a bit too big for me hence why I've got the white jacket to hide all that from sight. The top has been sitting in my "to-alter" pile for a long time (and at the rate that I'm fixing clothes, it may be there for a while longer).

xo,

K

I've Told You A Hundred Dimes

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 2: Less Than $10

 vintage 80's co-ordinate (skirt) / dorothy perkins

 silk and lace slip / victoria's secret

 gold sandals / dolce vita

 silk scarf

 leather clutch

* all thrifted*

Last week, I just picked up this vintage 1980's Dorothy Perkins two-piece co-ordinate. I'm familiar with the label from shopping in London but I didn't realize that the company is over 90 years old. Wow, I can't even imagine how big their archive of styles must be.

Instead of wearing the matching top, I decided to pair it solo with a peach lingere slip. I love the colors together and it makes it feel fresher for summer. I'm planning on chopping a few inches off the skirt so it'll be below my knee. I kinda like how it looks as is...looks like culottes in the photo (a trend I'm loving right now). 

I tied a silk scarf into a bow on my head just for fun. Here's a tip I discovered to keep the bow from flipping and flopping...I used bobby pins (just two) on the inside of the bow.

Each item worn was thrifted for under $10. Actually, most of my thrifted finds are usually under $10 as I like to take advantage of 50% sale days.  I'm wondering if I could do a whole outfit (head to toe) for under $10? Now that's tough! Anyone done that?

xo,

K

A Glitter Of Hope

TPFF Restyle 2014 l Day 1: Glitter

Ok...so I'm not an Aussie but I'm participating in the Telstra Perth Fashion Festival's Restyle 2014 Challenge so I can try out my styling chops on my thrifted finds. I found out about this thru an invitation by Australian Instagrammer missjanetyang. I'm wondering if there are any other Canadian fashion bloggers joining this challenge?

 Today is the start of the challenge and Day 1's prompt is Glitter and so below is my outfit. I thrifted the gold glitter skirt at Value Village and those suede booties in New York. 

military vest /  kersh

"chanel" tank / diy

gold glitter skirt / h&m / thrifted

suede booties / steve madden / thrifted

my little monkey

I'm not sure if I'll be able to keep up with posting everyday as already it's a lot of work trying to post a couple of times a week but I must admit that it was a lot of fun planning outfit ideas. 

Xo,

K

ps - Here's the calender showing each day's prompt.

By The Grace Of Lace

 lace cardigan / kersh

 onesie / cotton club

 embellished slip on shoes / vki / thrifted

Here we are at the baseball diamond doing a little shoot. There were some other families nearby at the playground but I thought I was being pretty incognito since it was hard for me to see them thru the baseball wires. Little did I realize that I was very much visible from the playground. It's like the situation where you walk around in your underwear at night because since you can't see outside your window you think no one can see you but we all now know how visible everything is! 

 Well it was all worth it because I got some great shots with the girls. I love the evening sun behind us. 

 xo,

 K

Summertime Sadness

blue floral vintage 90's dress/ sheri martin / thrifted

red folio / thrifted

strappy heels /  michael kors / thrifted

The rain is back =(. If that's not a reason to be sad, then how about the sudden realization that you've shrunk your new favorite thrift purchase because of your defiance against following care label instructions? 

I knew that I was taking a risk by throwing this beautiful 90's floral RAYON dress in the wash but I was too lazy at the time to hand wash it and too cheap to take it to the drycleaners. I was betting that I could get away with throwing it in the wash like I have many times previously with other garments. Well...when I pulled it out to inspect, it had shrunk about 4" in length and 2" in width and it felt crinkly and crunchy. Oh dear…

Luckily, I remembered a  pin on Pinterest that mentioned a method of unshrinking your clothes. It's really simple! All you'll need is a bucket of water and 1 tablespoon of baby shampoo or conditioner (I used conditioner). I also did some online searches specific to rayon since the fabric is very unstable when wet. You'll need to take extra caution when working with it. To get rid of the crunchy texture, iron it after and it'll get back it's nice smooth drape.

Below is a few links with further instructions and photos:

• www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com
• www.ehow.com
• http://carsonandlindsaybay.blogspot.ca

Hope this will help you in your time of need!

Xo,

K

It's Not Summer Without You

vintage crochet dress / nipa hut / thrifted

vintage leather purse / no label / thrifted

beige platform heels / prediction [payless shoes]

It's not summer without you -- my darling crochet dress. I'm wearing a vintage 70's crochet dress from the label Nipa Hut. If you google nipa hut, you'll see images of stilt houses iconic of Filipino rural life. It makes sense that the label is called Nipa Hut since the dress was made in the Philippines.

I find the waist a bit low for me so I may adjust the waist tie a few inches higher for future wear. What I noticed about the dress is the crochet has a nice thickness, a good sign of quality and workmanship. It's not flimsy like today's wear one summer and throw away crochet dresses. I also like the finishing touch of the embroidered hem.

xo,

K

Ps- Oh, and I was super excited to take this shoot outside and not in the vicinity of my home.

  

Too Legit To Quit!

 too legit to quit graphic tee / aritzia

white leather skirt / chia / thrifted

leopard heels / f21 

Gosh, this fashion blogging thing is work...fun work. In the beginning, I was taking photos with my iphone which makes the process easy (snap/ upload/ filter/ comment) but sometimes, I have to resort to a tripod. Anyone who does this knows the running back and forth you have to do to make sure you're in the frame, composed and in focus. I have to shift thru a gazillion photos to find a few good gems. Also, I like shooting in raw and editing after in DPP or photoshop so that alone can be time consuming. Sometimes, I go a little crazy in photoshop and I find that I end up not looking like myself anymore (ie: plastic barbie face)...those end up in the "no" or "just for laughs" pile. Big props to all you fashion girls that do this for a living!

With the nice weather now, I'd love to try to take more photos outside and in cooler locations. That'll be depend on how well I manage dragging the 3 kiddos with me. I'm still trying to get used to striking a pose in public. It doesn't make for good photos when you're uncomfortable. Your face and body language shows it. I definitely like the power of being behind the lens.

Xo,

K

p.s. - I know you wanted to hear it =P

Lemonade & Lace

I love lace tops and couldn't pass up this simple one I found thrifting last month. I actually own the dress version from f21.

lace top / f21 / thrifted

cutout shorts / bcbgeneration /thrifted 

Love the cutout detail on the pockets!

O Italia!

vintage striped blouse / errenuo / thrifted

cardigan / thrifted

high-waisted jeans / BDG (urban outfitters)

tan t-strap maryjanes / primark

 






This beautiful vintage red and green striped silk top reminds me of the iconic Gucci stripes (which wasn't why I bought it). I found the stripe color combo striking and I like the way they change directions on the yoke and especially on the cuffs...oh and it's silk! I have a hard time resisting silk when thrifting. I just noticed though one side looks slightly faded (particularly on the shoulder) like it had been exposed to the light while hanging in my closet waiting for me to wear it. A warning to all to take care when storing silks!

xo,
K