Mexi Can Can (Yes I Can Can)

(Before you read any further  I have a recommended soundtrack for the full aural experience of this post. It can be located here. I don't care if you choose to listen or not, I just think you should have the choice... )

One of my more commonly used phrases seems to have become "If you are going to do something- you may as well do it properly". It  really is a great all purpose philosophy and I catch myself applying this to numerous situations on a daily basis. In the context of outfit creation it means total commitment. None of this hesitant dipping one toe in the water. Oh no. Pick a theme/ colour/ obscure inspiration and run with it. As far as you can. I've fine tuned my own sense of when I think I'm over doing it by intentionally taking it way too far and then working my way backwards . Over co-ordinate on purpose and then stripping it back slowly is a great way to find the right balance, and definitely the most fun.  I  do try to toe the line and stop right before an outfit gets too obvious, cliche or ridiculous- but let's face it. Even my conservatively dressed days are bound to be deemed pretty weird by more conventional standards.

I do like dressing with a theme in mind. I like a goal and I like the challenge of finding the perfect combination of items to interpret my concept through. I know that the time and effort I invest is likely to be lost on most people as I realise that 99% of the population just don't care. But that's ok. I also know that it is totally worth it for the rare times I come across one of the 1% that get it. There may not be many of them out there- but the ones that understand REALLY understand. I don't like to think I'm the sort of person that needs my fashion choices validated- but I do get quite the kick when someone picks up on the finer details. (without me having to point them out anyway.) It's not the same when you have to explain the levels of  nerdy matching theme continuance to someone. Seriously. If I have to explain it to you, it kinda takes away all of the "clever" out of it. I have a scarf that is a perfect example of this in fact. The pattern on it is knitted bacon and eggs- and it was the very first thing I noticed about it. I swear I have worn that damned thing at least 50 times and not one single person has noticed it's breakfasty goodness. Sigh.

 Sometimes the theme develops organically while other times it's conscious and predetermined by a single item. Like when you find a super rad brightly coloured Mexican circle skirt from the 50's. When a theme is that awesome why wouldn't you run with a it? An off the shoulder white top not only fits with the theme- but is also subdued enough that it lets the skirt do all the talking. A red flower in my hair is pretty standard most days- but this outfit could also work with yellow. Actually you know what would be perfect? A green cactus clip.
(Note to self- make that happen....)

The dark navy of the fabric perfectly sets off the bright yellows, greens, reds and whites against it. Bold contrasting colours are always a winner in my opinion- and something about the striped detailing is particularly pleasing to the eye too.

I feel like I have given the right amount of attention to detail to stay on the right side of MexiCAN before it slides into Mexican't or even the wrong end of Mexicarnage.. (I stopped short of a sombrero, fake moustache, poncho, Freida unibrow and burrito but all these went through my mind I can assure you) The only other addition I would consider is a bottle of corona in my hand and some more of THIS in my ear holes.

I made it through this whole post without incorporating any great Mexican puns.. not a single Juan!

And Again...

This dress is the same dress as my previous post. And the one referenced within that as well. I was going to wait and space them out a little but decided I would go for immediate continuity instead.

A "Revival" brand little number from Dangerfield- this one was purchased at full price right before I found the factory shop. C'est la vie.

I have worn it with a red crinoline which sits quite low but gives it a nice red band at the bottom that way.

The fabric reminds me a little bit of a 50's tablecloth or tea towel. A great cross hatch background with posies (or are they tree's?) in vibrant red, green and navy on a white background. Gives me options for co-ordinating later I think,

Out(fit) Of This World

I like stars. I think I may have already mentioned- but they are my favourite shape. (lets disregard the fact that I am obviously waaay too old to even have a favourite shape!) While these stars may not be the typical star shapes- they are still stars nonetheless.

This strapless number has a lot going for it other than the whole universe on the fabric. It is a satin tiered piece of fabulousness with a bow on top of a sweetheart neckline. The dress is mainly classed as black I guess- but it has a nice amount of dark blue to give it a bit of texture too. Twinkletastic!

It came from an amazing store on Brunswick St (Melbourne again!).It was in fact the factory shop for Dangerfield, Princess Highway and Alannah Hill. Swooooon! Needless to say- they got a great deal of my money in the 2 separate trips I took there. More on that later...

This particular dress cost me $40.00. Technically I suppose it cost me closer to $65.00 if I convert it to NZ dollars but to be honest I didn't do a lot of that on my trip. It was far easier just to pretend everything was in NZ dollars. And that ladies and gentlemen is one of the many reasons I will never be an accountant....

Red White And Blue

What a patriotic colour combo...


In the vain of my last few posts- here is a dress that I have not actually worn yet. Turns out I have a lot of these hiding on the racks! I bought this one in Adelaide a few months back on an epic shopping afternoon with a handful of like minded derby girls. We were over there to skate in an Australasian tournament- but managed to set aside a decent couple of hours to hit the shops the way we hit our opponents. HARD.








I actually found this dress in "Valley Girl" which we have in NZ as well. This store really knows how to put on a good sale! There have been many occasions where I have flicked through racks of $10, $15 and $20 specials. It is a great way to run a sale really. I spend a lot more money when I can get multiple items. Its easy when there is a perception if getting more value for your money. (and obviously money aside- I like leaving a store with full bags of new clothes!) This dress was on a $20 and under rack. It cost me $14.95AU.

Red ,white and blue still has a really nautical feel to it. To me anyway. I like that I can match this dress with a red or a white crinoline petticoat (the white one pictured here to balance out the white detail at the top of the dress) and then push with the red accessories to lift it a little more. It came with the red belt- so I have run with that as an option this time but I can see there are possibilities to swap out the red and go for green or yellow belt, shoes and hair piece or necklace too!

Stars On My Jacket

This jacket may not be the greatest jacket in the whole universe- but it is the only one I have with the whole universe on it. Well. A decent representation of parts of the Milky Way at least.

I may be a teeny bit old for such confessions- but stars are my favourite shape. I draw them on stuff. I buy things that have stars on them. I even wear them on my head in roller derby. (not me in the pic- but you get the idea) Typically such stars look like this- but this jacket takes them to a whole new level.

This jacket is a newish addition to the wardoom and hasn't had a great deal of wear time under it's belt yet. I predict that it has a lot more coming before this Winter is done with us. I think the colour scheme of navy blue, black, white and shades of grey will mean I have a lot or versatility in what I can wear it with. While that may be the case- I imagine it will probably still only be worn with the outfit shown. Staple dark denim mini, black tights and silver reebok high tops.

Sailor (Again)

The Sailor P.O.F is one of my favourites. I like nautical stripes. I like the sailor colour scheme (often Navy blue, red and white) but most of all I love the Sailor "Back Flap".


(As previously mentioned I do not know exactly what this feature is called- so it shall be forever known by me as a back flap)






I have been obsessed with these since I saw Kylie Minogue play in Auckland a few years back. She had the most incredible sequined sailor pantsuit complete with back flap. SWOOON.


This particular sailor top hailed from Trademe. Not only does it have the obligatory back flap- but I really like the tie on the front as well. It cost me a cool $8.00. I bought it to make a derby training outfit around- so have teamed it with black short shorts, Chuck Taylors and black leg warmers. I have also teamed it with pasty "Winter White" legs. Roll on Summertime....

Green and Navy 70s Flowers

I am really good at holding onto things. Especially when it comes to clothing. I have a hoarding gene that has been passed down the generations of my Mother's side of the family. (How else do you think a girl manages to accumulate enough to have a Wardroom??) This is coupled with a deep seated fear that the second I throw something away I will want it back again. This has sadly happened before and I'm not prepared to go through that feeling again if I can help it. It does mean that every now and then I "rediscover" an article that has long been forgotten about. I must admit I really like when that happens. It's like getting something new all over again- and being able to put a different spin on a frock years after it's initial purchase can be a fun and fruitful adventure.

This dress has been in my possession for a very long time now. So long I can't even remember where it is from. (I am usually pretty good at holding onto that kind of information too!)
It has seen me through many Summers now and has always been worn with bare legs and green jandals until today where I decided to try something a bit different.


(The fabric on this dress is fantastic too. Bright green with white and navy in a typical 70's floral print. )


It is actually amazing how much difference a cinched black belt, tights and stiletto's can make to an outfit. After this "trial run" with the aforementioned today- I was left wondering why I had never thought to try that combination before. I think that I will be a little more open to experimentation with some of my old favourite dresses after today. I may have just opened up a whole new world of possibilities. Yay!

Yellow Featured Asian Top

Usually when I buy a new item of clothing I am so excited about it- I want to incorporate this into an outfit as soon as possible. Sometimes the item will get lost in a pile of new things. (like my swag from the Cornwall park school fair!). Sometimes I won't have quite the right outfit to fit it into- so will need to source more items. I have been known occasionally to own an item for quite some time before it gets its "maiden voyage" wearing. Like this top. It has been kicking around in my possession for about 6 months and technically has still not even had it's maiden voyage wearing!





I love this satin top. I really do. The Asian style detailing. The floral pattern. The bright yellow. It has a lot going for it. What I have found out the hard way is that navy blue is a very difficult colour to co-ordinate in a top. The easy option is to go as I have done with black. The trouble with pairing navy and black together is that while they are different colours they are still very close on the spectrum. They don't feel like they are different enough to be worn together I think. On the other end of the scale- wearing it with a dark denim is too similar in colours and also not different enough. This theory has made working an outfit around this top a long and painful process.


I think that I finally have settled on an outfit that works. The saving grace to me is the flower and the shoes. By making yellow more of a feature - then the navy/ black combo doesn't feel quite so out of place. (although the black tights make it make a little more sense)





Now that I have an option of how to wear this outfit-typically it is too cold to work it into my rotation this week. Go figure. At least it will be ready to go in that brief seasonal time where it is still cold enough to wear tights- yet warm enough to have short sleeves. This window of opportunity is estimated to make an appearance in early October- and with my luck will last for approximately 3 days.

(NB- Something about this Asian style on tops or dresses always makes me feel obliged to wear my hair up for some reason. It always looks better. )

Hello Sailor

Seems like I have a lot of 50's Sailor themed outfits coming out of the closet (Wardroom) these days... I guess it's easy to be nautical with a colour combo of red, white and navy blue with a few stripes in for good measure!

This was the dress that broke my self imposed dress buying ban over Christmas. I purchased 2 new crinoline petticoats thinking that I had a lot that I could wear them under. Sadly when they arrived I realised that this wasn't strictly true so suddenly had a need to find a few more outfits to wear with the petticoats. (It is scarily easy to justify such purchases in my brain I can assure you!)

Swing dresses are a great addition to any wardrobe I think. They can be worn with a huge petticoat underneath to give the shape of something between an wedding cake or an upside down tea cup- but have an equally awesome shape without the flounce.

It is really comfortable to wear. I would liken it to wearing a big glamorous t-shirt! The cotton is really soft and I just love the white lace frill along the bottom of the skirt.

This particular one had it's maiden voyage today with a red petticoat. I have matched that with a red flower and red skinny belt and balances out the stripes and frill on the dress with some white peep toed sandals.

While I didn't wear this ensemble with the short white gloves today-I'm thinking that I will incorporate them next time. (I didnt' want to get them dirty by wearing them to work you see!)

NB- When I first bought the belt I was a lot bigger than I am now. In fact I bought the belt to wear wrapped around as a necklace! Lets hope it doesn't get relegated back to neck wear anytime soon....