Wink

Dinner at Wink last night. Amazingly, it's the first time I've ever been there, which is ridiculous considering what a terrific restaurant it is. The food was wonderful and the service was amazing. I'll definitely be going back.



Not an especially fashion forward outfit, but it felt good. I started with the shoes -- I haven't worn these lovelies in quite a long time and needed to bring them out.



They are a dark aubergine velvet and as seems usual for YSLs, incredibly stable & easy to get around in. I have really good luck with YSL shoes, they really seem to suit my feet. (Which I take to signify that I really do need a pair of Tribute sandals. And Tribute pumps.)

The skirt is Valentino, more about which here. Oh, I love this silly thing. It's one of those items that every time I put it on I like it more. I need to wear it while it's cold, because it's wool and once it warms up here in Austin it will have to come out of the rotation.

The cardigan is one of those things I bought two of. It's a tissue-thin lurex knit, and it snags very easily, unfortunately. On the other hand, it's kinda perfect. It has worked with pretty much everything I've ever put it with. After I'd had it for a couple of weeks and had already worn it several times I realized that I was going to wear it to shreds, so I bought a backup. So far I'm still on the first one, I've managed to catch & repair any sangs and the backup is still in its plastic wrap in the drawer. Is that crazy? I don't care -- I love this cardigan.

silk chiffon blouse: Diane von Furstenberg
lurex cardigan: Twelfth Street Cynthia Vincent
wool matelassé skirt: Valentino
velvet platform ankle strap pumps: YSL
tights: Pierre Mantoux (best tights on the planet, people)
faux gem collier: Fallon
black leather cuff: Adrienne Vittadini
gold knuckle ring: Kenneth Jay Lane
faux croc clutch: Valerie Stevens
fragrance: Chanel No. 22

Was banging on about evening bags on my other blog last week, so I made sure to show this one.




It's just some random cheapie faux thing I picked up at Macy's, I think. I love this Wedgewood blue color and it's such a nice, neat shape.

Holy cow. Just realized I managed an entire evening outfit without a vintage piece. Is that good? I'm not sure...

Mom's Night

Miss A's mom is in town visiting, so we had a Moms' Night dinner tonight: 4 pals, 2 moms, 1 mother-in-law, and the most ridiculously expensive appetizer Bess Bistro had to offer. (Note: always ask the price of the daily special before you order it. Because if you don't you might wind up with 2 fist-sized fried balls of risotto stuffed with goat cheese that cost $28.00. Yes. Twenty-eight dollars for cheesy rice balls. The weird thing was, they were an entrée special, although we ordered them as an appetizer. Who eats two big fat cheesy rice balls for dinner, and who wants to pay 28 bucks for that? Jeez, Miss A had pork chops that were less than that!)

But enough kvetching about the dinner -- on to the fashion.




I've had this gorgeous paisley vintage dress for a while, and it winds up tucked back in the corner & I forget about it. So I busted it out today. It's a great dress, in a really unusual fabric for the period -- a bright paisley rayon crepe. (I think it's rayon crepe, there's no fabric tag, of course.)


I think this dress is probably 50's. It's a shirtwaist with an inverted pleat in the front of the skirt, which has a fair amount of fabric in it. Based on the fullness of the skirt and the colors in the fabric, I think it's later than 40's, but I could be wrong. Whenever it's from it's pretty great -- you can just see the little blue rhinestone buttons in the photos above.

But I wasn't feeling the sweet little shirtwaist vibe completely, so I wanted to toughen it up a bit

paisley-print dress: vintage
sequined vest: Golde (via Intermix)
leather belt: Harold's
boots: Stuart Weitzman Goliath
hot pink nets: DKNY
crinoline: vintage
fragrance: Chanel Cuir de Russie

I put the crinoline on for the halibut, even though you can't see it. But it definitely led me to conclude that I should get the dress hemmed. I'm tall enough (especially in these boots!) that the length isn't tragic, but it'd be better and more versatile a few inches shorter.




I love this vest, the cut of the back and the way it hangs. It's especially good with something with a collar, because those sequins can be a wee bit scratchy around the neck.

The cuff is a plastic redwood-brown faux tortoise vintage find that I think I spent five bucks on. Redhead does love a good cuff. This one is particularly small & light and doesn't slide around on my skinny little wrist, so it's become a favorite pretty quickly.




I'm also excited about this ring, which is new-ish.



It's Kenneth Jay Lane. I love it because it's big & statement-y, but it also lays pretty flat against my finger, so I can get gloves on over it. This is important in the cold weather.

I'm saving for my trip to London & Paris this spring, so I'm all about shopping the closet. I had a little burst of shopping last month, but I'm back on the wagon again. It's good for me. And I stay focused on dinner here when I start to waver.

Curried Mussels

Dinner with a friend at the Clay Pit, one of my very favorite restaurants. The food there is so amazing -- Indian is my favorite, I could live on it. If you ever go make sure you have a cocktail made of my buddy Dred the bartender's mango and ginger-infused vodka. Nummy. Have it after the meal -- you'll need the digestif.

wool striped jacket (part of a suit): Jovovich-Hawk
ivory cashmere cable v-neck: Saks store brand
bandage skirt: BCBG
tights: found 'em at Marshall's for 7 bucks, some Italian name I can't remember
shoes: Donald J. Pliner
pearls: vintage
lucite paisley ring: Kenneth Jay Lane

I started off like this


because I got the tights last week and was dying to wear them. The bandage skirt, I think, works best with something loose & a little slouchy on top because the skirt is so snug. (I should have bought two of these -- I'm wearing it a LOT.) I was going to top it off with my dark red velvet McQueen blazer, but then I decided the stripes would be more fun.



Advanced Fashion: stripes & plaid. I love this sort of thing. It raises eyebrows, but I thought was fun.




This jacket fits me like it was made for me, it's perfect. (Well, it's perfect after I had the sleeves shortened, of course.) I was sorry they closed Jovovich-Hawk, I thought they made nice clothes with a specific sensibility; but it's so hard to run a small house like that without some gigantic fashion mega-corp behind you.

What do we think of the stripes/plaid combo? Too much? Or just right?

October 3

hat: Zara men
t-shirt: another Marshall's cheapie. It's silly, but I love it.
cotton cable v-neck: Old Navy. I need several more of these in various colors. Excellent layering piece.
wool/silk matelassé skirt: Valentino
patent boots: Stuart Weitzman
enamel flower ball necklace: Kenneth Jay Lane
blue fishnets: random

I went out looking for an above-the-knee black skirt not long ago and succeeded beyond my wildest dreams:


I found this Valentino number in the couture section of my local Neiman Marcus outlet. Staggeringly, it was marked down from $690 to $85, and was on sale for another 30% off. I discovered why when I got it into the dressing room: the zipper is broken and only goes down about two inches. I refused to be deterred and pulled the dingdong thing on over my head. no sweat. Another moment when I was grateful for my small bustline. For all those who were unwilling to think outside the fitting room box, too danged bad. Grand total on the skirt: $61.18. Shopping triumph.

It's a tiny bit big, a size 42 (Valentino sizes are extremely generous -- often I can barely squeeze into a D&G 42) and I may have it taken in a little bit when I get the zipper replaced. On the other hand, the skirt is kind of stiff and a little bit structured, not supposed to fit too closely to begin with, so I may just leave it. Short as it is, too snug wouldn't be good anyway.

Here's a close-up. I've dinked with the photo so you can see the texture in the fabric, which is why the color is weird.







Gorgeous thing. I love it very much.

I've started calling this necklace my Magic Friend-Maker. Everywhere I go when I wear it, people comment on it and compliment it. It makes people smile, which is a nice effect to have on strangers.




A birthday gift from a dear friend, one of the best presents I've gotten in quite a while.

September 30

Blast from the past, just to cheer myself up on a dreary day...




Inspired by the last Dior couture show, I got & modified a vintage long-line bra.

blouse: Robert Rodriguez
black tulle skirt: vintage
bustier: vintage
shoes: Michael Kors
black feathered hat: vintage
gold pearls: (one of my most dead useful accessories of all time) Carolee
enamel & crystal cuff: Kenneth Jay Lane

Don't know that I'll ever wear this out, because it does border on costume, but it was certainly fun to put on & play around with.

September 23

Navy blue cotton v-neck: Gap
Silk skirt: YSL
Sandals: Brian Atwood
Belt: Target, I think
Necklace: Agatha (40th birthday present to myself, bought on my first trip to Paris)
Giant lucite paisley ring: Kenneth Jay Lane