Harvest Time

It's that time of year in the Mid West and perhaps the entire country when we harvest festivals abound and every time I turn around some surrounding small town is celebrating.  I love them all from apples to sugar cane, though I do tend to alternate years on a few of them so we don't spend every single weekend festival-ing.

In case you're wondering, I don't have an outfit for every festival, (wheat and sugar cane themed dresses are rather hard to come by as it turns out) but if it involves fruit, then yes, I do have a dress for those occasions, and this dress was my apple harvest dress for this year.

There are several local orchards on park grounds that are open to the public and a friend of mine is trying to start an apple-picking tradition as part of our celebration.  I love the idea and think it's just another great excuse to wear this dress which I purchased during a recent sale from Unique Vintage in anticipation of the harvest season.

 I'm ready to celebrate our agrarian triumphs in whatever form they take and I'm ready to do it in style, so bring on the harvest festivals!

Outfit info:  Apple Dress from Unique-Vintage, Apple Purse from SheIn is old, Bettie Page Heels, Leg Avenue Petticoat.

Simple Style

I think sometimes I come-off as a little snobby about my tastes in clothes.  I'm not a fan of wearing yoga pants unless you're physically at the gym.  Same goes for sweatpants.  And T-shirts and jeans have their place in the world as well, it's just not at a fancy wedding.  Saying all that doesn't mean that I don't like casual wear, but I don't think that casual wear can't be stylish as well.

The typical reasons for choosing something casual are: that it takes too much time to put on something nice/cute,  or stylish clothes are just not as comfortable.  Both are completely inaccurate statements and to prove my point, I thought I'd show you one of my favorite little casual Sunday morning dresses.  This dress is basically just a long T-shirt and is super comfortable.  But, it also has a fitted waist and has an eye-catching printed belt to make it a look a little extra.

Check out that bow on the back!  These are the little things that make a piece of clothing, and by extension an outfit, interesting.  

Floopy loopy earrings?  Why not.  They're a little heavy, and I probably wouldn't wear them all day, but for a daring accessory that I'll wear just to grab breakfast at a little cafe, they're kind of awesome.

As far as footwear goes, I've always felt that a pair of flats feel just as comfortable and look far nicer than any pair of sneakers or flip-flops on the planet.  Add some details to the flats, like these rows of straps, and suddenly they're more visually interesting too.  Seriously, these flats are more comfortable than any pair of Chuck Taylors I've ever worn.  

The best part of all is that this outfit took me less time to assemble and put on than stretchy pants with a baggy sweatshirt and a ponytail under a baseball cap.  Seriously, it takes more time to wiggle into those stretchy pants than it does to just slip on a dress like this.  I think I should also add that this T shirt dress was thrifted from ThredUp, so it cost about $15 before shipping.

As far as ease and comfort goes this outfit checks all the boxes, plus looks far more put together and (I'm sorry to say this:) far more appropriate for going out to breakfast or really to do anything than does the afore mentioned stretchy pant ensemble.  Yes, I am aware of how snobby that sounds, but our world has gone off the rails on comfort and someone has to be the voice of dissent.

Comfortable can look nice as well, and looking nice doesn't take nearly as much time, effort, or $$ as many people think.  It's not only possible to feel comfortable and look great, it's worth it.  I'll step off my soap box now.

Outfit:  Fervour dress is from Thredup, bag is Betsey Johnson

 

Lucca Vudor: Comfort Shoes with Vintage Flare

Although I have been a lover of all things vintage for ever so long, I've recently been really leaning in on aspects besides just dresses.  To that end, I've been using an antique housekeeping book to help guide some of my daily routine, and I recently opted for a horse shoe hair cut and have begun learning to wet-set roll and style it like those glamorous ladies of a bygone era once did.

I've also been looking for more practical and stylish footwear that goes well with my vintage dresses.  I was excited when Lucca Vudor reached out for a collaboration.  In addition to offering lots of modern footwear as well as purses and accessories, Lucca Vudor offers a lot of styles that look like they've stepped right out of the past.

These Fenella shoes have great tread, lots of cushion, and so much detailing in the oxford style edges.  I am in love!  I can't wait to wear these shoes will all my fall dresses.  And if they've stolen your heart as well, you can save 15% off your purchase with my promo code at the end of the post.  Also check out my Youtube review, which is posted below.

 

Outfit Info:  Alexis Dress from Unique-Vintage, 

Fenella Shoes from Lucca Vudor   Get 15% off with code GESAJZJWKE

Fall Sunflowers

If certain internet comments are to be believed, people get really tired of me talking in general but especially about "how busy you are all the time!"  Even though I am, I won't talk about it today. That's right, this one's for the haters.  Minimum words; maximum style pics.  

It's all about perspective

This morning I went out to take some photos in this beautiful dress, (which by the way needed to be taken in at the front and back of the straps otherwise I'd be showing navel) and had an interesting little experiement in perspective.  All the photos below were taken while I was standing in the exact same spot.  However, in the first photo I am facing the sun and in the others, the sun is behind me.  The effect is completely different.  Ultimately I chose the misty, ethereal, backlit photos over the easy to see version.  I regret it a little, but it was a lesson in the way things look different not just in photography but in all aspects of life when seen from a different viewpoint.  It all depends on how you look at things.  And I'll just leave it at that today. 

 

Outfit Info:  Selkie Penny Lane Butterfly Botanics dress

Goodbye, Collectif

One of my favorite, possibly my most favorite, vintage brand has closed its doors forever.  Yes, my dear fellow vintage lovers, I am sad to share that Collectif has given up the ghost and while fashion heaven has gained an angel here on earth we are certainly feeling the loss.

There are a lot of reasons why businesses close.  It seems like Collectif truly tried to continue making beautiful clothes using mostly Cotton.  Have you noticed that everything is becoming fully to at least partially cheap synthetic fabric?  Ugh it's awful!  Which is why I really hate to see the loss of brands like this that carried so many beautiful pieces in natural fibers.

Yes, their clothes were pricey, but the quality matched and not only that, but Collectif would bring back their best styles and prints year after year, so I could get one pair of high waist jeans and wear them for a year or so and then go back and get another when I needed to instead of having to stock up on a certain style and spend a fortune all at once.

 And now, they're gone.  I'll admit to a few weeks of panic in which I was desperately scouring the internet for any new or resale pieces still out there, trying to hold on to them all.  It was a frenzied panic and I had to break myself out of it by reminding myself that if I loved it, I already owned it.  I pretty much found a way to get the things from Collectif that I really and truly wanted if at all possible or made my peace with letting them go when the store was still open.  I just needed to grieve and let go.

I'm so very grateful for all the years of wonderful styles that made me feel beautiful and I am sad so see Collectif go, but I am also excited to see who comes along next to try to fill those vintage shoes.  There are a few brands I'm keeping my eye on and I'll keep you posted, of course.  In the mean time I've also decided to go back to making my own dresses in vintage styles with whimsical novelty prints.  I've let my sewing machine rest for far too long.

So, for today's post, as we bid a fond farewell to Collectif, I thought I'd share some pics from last autumn in one of my favorite prints of theirs, and remember the good times.  Here's to you, Collectif.  You were truly one of a kind.

Outfit Info:  Collectif Pencil dress, Qupid heels