Let The Sunshine In

Not being the type to shy away from bright colours and bold patterns I am somewhat used to people commenting on my use of them. This year in particular I have found more strangers than ever before approaching me in the street, office, cafes to let me know that they are picking up what I am putting down. While I don't need the reassurance of strangers as such, it is still nice to know that someone appreciates what I am doing enough to tell me. Apart from one lady who yelled at me out of her car before chasing me down the street and cornering me in a shop. It took away from the compliment itself and left the whole situation quite firmly in the "creepy" zone. The intense look in her eyes combined with the sense that she was the stereotypical type of woman to own 30 cats sure added to the experience. I think the part that scared me the most was knowing that there is a very real possibility that I will be the same when I get to her age. Maybe if I am brutally honest it could be closer to my outright destiny. I will almost surely be terrifying younger women by chasing them down streets to talk about their clothes when I am old enough to be classed as properly eccentric. I may have a bit more room yet to grow into this impending phase of my life but truth be told it probably isn't even that far away.....

But I digress.

Todays featured outfit certainly isn't one that blends into the background by any stretch. I have been using it to force my own sunshine into Auckland's grey days this Winter and it sure has freaked people out with it's migraine inducing brightness. People just cannot help but comment. Most of these are based around "Gosh that's a bright dress" (which can portray admiration or terror depending on the tone)  or a variation of "You are your own little ray of Summer". (usually from the older end of the age spectrum). Whatever the comment. Whatever the intent behind it. I am well aware that there is a degree of "balls" required  to wear this dress with the confidence it deserves- and on the right day I'm pretty sure I can.

As is often the case the dress found me. I had left the house to get a key cut in St Kevins Arcade and this little number was part of the window display in K Rd's infamous "Vixen". It had me transfixed instantly but I managed to break free of the spell and carried on my errands. It's one thing to walk away from a moment like this. It is something completely different when it comes to obsessing over it afterwards. Once that initial "I love it" seed is planted in my head it can be very difficult to move on. In this instance I recognised early that it was already quite far under my skin and could prove to be very distracting. Instead of letting it dominate my thoughts over the next few weeks I went back an hour later to try it on. I had to be prepared for the outcome either way. If it fit me I was ready to commit to the purchase. If it didn't, at least I could stop dwelling on it and move on. Either way it was the first step to breaking the spell I was under and getting control of my own thoughts again.

 (I feel like I need to acknowledge those last few sentence. Yes. This is an accurate depiction of how such things play out in my head. I realise that not many people obsess over such things the way I do but then not many people have an entire room full of clothes boasting a similar history either.  Instead of being vaguely embarrassed of myself when I catch myself deep in the "over thinking" zone I now choose to look at is as "deliberate and well thought out". At this point in my life I am not just comfortable with my passion being much closer to an obsession. I am outright embracing it. )

I did feel a little bad at making Mikey behind the counter take apart his window display for me to try it on- but only for a split second. As soon as I had it over my head it just felt right. I was already sold but if I needed another sign to push my decision it was the reaction I got when I stepped out of the fitting room. The reaction of an audible gasp followed up with a "You cannot leave here without that dress" was made all the better by the fact that it came from a complete stranger who was just browsing in the store. Someone who had no way to benefit from giving me an empty compliment. There was no turning back. It was definitely coming home with me.

The style of the dress itself has elements of a few different era's. It has the full pleated circle skirt of the 50's while still managing to convey the 70's with it's exaggerated collar and extreme polyester fabric. Not a common mix of decades influence but one that works quite well in this instance. 

Yellow may not come across as particularly neutral but block colours in frocks can prove to be very versatile. There are many options in the colour palette to compliment and set it off when picking accessories and shoes-  but some certainly work better than others. Red with yellow can feel very "McDonald's". Green with yellow can feel a bit like "Australian sports team". It didn't take me long to realise that pairing it with a deep cobalt blue was the best way to get the most out of both colours with the perfect balance of neither toning it down too far or over intensifying an already bold base. I had the basic concept ready but wanted to give this outfit a special occasion in which to unveil it in. As luck would have it there was a friends 40th a few weeks later so I decided to wait till then to bust it out officially. The ensemble was mapped out and complete. I didn't need anything else to realise the vision. Or so I thought....

A week or so later I walked past the window of Vixen again on my way to our local bar. Not only was my eye just caught by the window display it stopped me in my tracks completely. I literally ground to such a halt that my long suffering man (whose hand I was holding at the time) came close to girlfriend induced whiplash. I could feel myself being physically pulled in closer to the window in the same way that cartoon characters float on the smell of a hot baked pie. There in front of me was the most perfect pair of statement shoes to compliment my dress. I don't think I ever could have imagined them better. Yellow vintage pumps from the 70's with a splash of cobalt blue detailing and a smattering of black polka dots. The shop was closed so I took a photo on my phone. I spent the entire next day not just thinking about them but actually dribbling over the picture. Needless to say I ran back there as soon as I could to try them on and they fit. They were now forever cemented as the perfect finishing touch to an ensemble I was already very excited about.

When you put the shoes directly next to the dress there is a subtle but noticeable difference in shades of yellow. The shoes have a warm orange undertone while the dress is definitely has more of a cooler lemon shining through. As I am almost guaranteed to be not just the only person to notice, but the only person to care I can let this minor fact go. The block colour of the dress is offset by the blue leopard cardi to give it some texture (a plain blue cardi was just too flat) and the black tights pick up the black in the pattern while providing the contrast to make both the yellow pop and to further tie the blue in. The shoes work like a dream to pull the entire context together and work just the right amount of each colour to give it balance. Plain yellow, blue or even stock standard black shoes just aren't enough. It isn't just that these shoes match the palette I have chosen here. They actually lift everything to the next level. They give an impression of everything else being carefully chosen to work with all of their elements rather than the complete opposite.


I am yet to even try to get these shoes into another outfit or consider replacing them in this one. Even if this frock and shoes only ever get worn with each other I am still happy. What they may eventually lack in versatility they certainly make up for it by complimenting each other so well. Like Bert goes with Ernie or Lucy goes with Desi. Pretty cool on their own but the dynamic they create together is undeniable. At some point I may well stumble on different wearing options for both pieces but I also get the feeling that I have already tapped into some weird next level clothing nerd chemistry and one that could not be topped. It doesn't often get better than this. I have plenty of other items and ensembles that I can put my energies into fine tuning and testing new ideas. This one is perfect already.

Green and Yellow Tulips

I do love splashing colour around on a cold day. I know that I have already touched on this subject a BUNCH of times now- but why oh why do New Zealand women insist on wearing such dark colours in Winter? After a quick "previous post" check I can see I touched on this just a few posts ago. So I will save you my drawn out diatribe on it again. This time. This dress is a timely reminder for me of how well other people can react to a stranger wearing bright colours when so many.... just don't.

It was a bout a month or so back now. My lovely man and myself decided that we would get up early on a Sunday morning and go and make a day of it. Armed with coffee and cameras we went on a mission to get some good early morning sunrise shots out over Auckland harbour. It was a beautiful day. Crisp air with just enough sunshine to warm our bones. After our first stretch of adventures- we went to the Takapuna markets for a look around and to get some more coffee.

These markets are great and I would love to get over to them more often. It is a very eclectic mix of stalls full of plastic toys, fresh produce and flowers, faux designer sunglasses, home made crafts and the odd "garage sale" looking spot full of bric a brac and curio's. There really is a little bit of something for everyone.

I think my man must have seen the bargain crazed glint in my eye when I saw the possibilities of a good rummage- so made a plan to go have a coffee and read of the paper while I did so. I was more than happy to have a wander and meet him afterwards. Half the fun of markets like this is not knowing what you are looking for exactly, but knowing when you see it. I came out  with a beautiful vintage crystal bowl, a cake stand, some freshly cut white proteas and an Ella Fitzgerald record. As I was on my own at this point I was more than happy to do a slow meander through the stalls checking out everyones wares. I swear that I have never had so many strangers come up to me in such a short space of time to tell me how much they liked my dress. It wasn't even just the little old ladies either. I managed to get a pretty good spread of people in the range.

This story finally ties in with the point of the post as the dress is question is the one I am writing about! (Insert B Grade horror stabbing organ music here while pulling a shocked face)

This dress hails from Smoove on Little High St. I have a pretty good track record of loving the dresses I have bought from there in the past- so I am happy to spend a little bit more on them than I would usually be prepared to on a frock. (Around $80.00 a dress but they do deals on 2 for $140.00). The day I bought it I accidentally (no.. really) caught them on a day they were having a 50% off sale. A smarter person may have relished in the money they saved on their purchase. I did not. I just bought 2 of them. And I regret NOTHING.

The tulips on the fabric are in gorgeous bright shades of marigold yellow and orange. This is nicely off set by the kelly and kermit greens of the leaves- and set against a black background for optimal effect. I haven't had this dress over the Summer months yet, but it has provided me much wearing mileage over Winter teamed with black tights and boots (or green heels) and a perfectly matching marigold yellow cardigan.

Thanks to the strangers that told me how lovely I looked that Sunday morning (*BLUSH*) I now have a very positive pairing associated with this outfit these days!

Tropical Orange 70's

I may not know what the weather is doing where you are dear reader- but I can tell you that here in Auckland it's starting to feel very Spring-y. We had that first really sunshiney day that pops up at the end of a dreary and wet Winter earlier this week and suddenly there is a better mood all over the city.  The office workers were out in force exercising in Victoria Park and I was there too. I wasn't so much exercising as appreciating their energy from a safer distance. (Basically translated as sitting on my arse in the grass with a sandwich and juice) I was enjoying the first signs of warmer weather in my own way however. I took my cardi off to give my bare arms some sun time- and I ate my first strawberries of the season too. They were delicious. Thanks for asking.

With the warmer weather coming so does the increased outfit options coming up with the seasonal rotation in the wardroom. I will always be a sucker for a good "out of season" bargain so there is often a stash of new things ready to be tested out once the seasons start to change over.  I am quite skilled in squirreling things away so now I get to rediscover Summer frocks that found me on rainier days.  It is always an exciting time I can assure you.!

This particular 70's maxi was another trademe find. When I originally purchased it I swear it was a red dress. To this day I do not know if it was my poor old eyes starting to fail- or the resolution of the computer I was sitting at. Either way it matters little. Turns out I like this dress even more as an orange frock anyway.

I know I have said it before- but there is something about migraine inducing bright colours on a polyester fabric that just get me every time. This particular maxi certainly has some notes of Hawaii coming through too, So much in fact I wore it to a luau party we had recently. Next time I will be mindful of having a tropical themed dress up party in the middle of August. It was a good idea in theory- but the older I get the more I find myself being genuinely concerned about people being cold. It is usually in the context of my inner monologue and often comes with a mental finger waggle. You know the type. The "I bet your mother doesn't know you're out in public dressed like that young lady. You will catch your death of cold" kind of a deal. Anyway. I digress.

I have teamed this bright orange piece with yellow heels and matching hair flower for this picture but it also lends itself nicely to a pair of orange cork platforms I have kicking around too. With the fabric showing tones of green, yellow, and white- it gives me a few colour options to play around with when it comes to my footwear and hair accessories anyway.

Wearing a yellow lei seems to give the dress a certain somethin' somethin' too. Pictured above standing in front of our party art installation. "Stair Lei To Heaven". Seriously. Don't ask....

Versatile Khaki

It will have been mentioned somewhere in this blog I am sure-(GAWD forbid I repeat myself!)  but I never grew out of my childhood favourite colour when most others did. Green will always be a fixture in the wardroom- but I do still run into people occasionally that are genuinely surprised if I am wearing another colour. Green will always be my first colour love- but it hasn't been a monogamous relationship lately.

"It's not you green... it's me. I just think I need to experience other colours for a while. Red is looking damned attractive these days and I don't know how much longer I can fight the pull towards yellow. We can still be close though. I promise I won't let things won't get weird between us..."

I'm not elitist towards different shades of green but they do seem to have their set times and places. A bight kermit green will make me think of more Summery ensembles whereas a nice deep khaki seems to be a more Wintery shade. That little theory fell over somewhat with this dress. A light a floaty khaki Summer dress with a subtle floral print in yellow, blue and orange.

Khaki is a good base colour for any outfit because as far as greens go it is still quite neutral. I have a few khaki and red combos I like to pull out from time to time- and I really like that this dress has it's own in built colour co-ordination options. It is just a matter of choosing one now.

Ok. I tried. I couldn't choose. What a great excuse to showcase the versatility of this khaki frock and its accessorizing options! I have set myself a rule in this showcase. I will only be using 2 forms of matching accessories. There will be no hair flower/ belt/ shoes/ handbag over matching here today. I will be interested to see which one works out the best.

First up is a great deep shade of turquoise. The belt I am wearing in this shot is actually a genuine 70's cummerbund. (I have the matching bow tie and 'kercheif too) I have paired it with a cute pair of turquoise wedge slingbacks with a bow detailing.

Second off the block is a nice bright yellow. I have matched the dress with a pair of yellow pumps and hair flower.

Last but by no means least- is the lesser utilised orange. Nothing rhymes with orange. Did you know that? I have gone with orange hair flower and (the bordering on ridiculous) 70's strappy cork platforms.

I think I would feel comfortable to wear any of these 3 colour combo's when it comes to this dress. I love how the fabric of the frock itself seems to change when you put different colours next to it. It pulls out the colours in the floral print and can really make them pop. 

So.. which is the best combo dear reader? This little trial has taught me a couple of things. It has taught me that I am in dire need of a skinny orange and yellow belt! You didn't really think I would start imposing limits to my colour coordinating did you? That was a total accident and only because I didnt have the right belts to go with the orange and yellow options... By the time it comes to wearing this frock again I'm sure that little speed bump in my "ensembling" (new word) will have been obliterated.

White With Rainbow Spots

Wow. 2012 already. 2010 and 2011 seemed to disappear in a bit of a blur. I'm hoping this year slows down a little but I don't think that's how it works sadly. I'm at that age where this one will whiz by possibly even faster than the last couple!


Last year was a bit average in places for me- so this year I have a few plans in place. And not like last years great plans  that never really came into fruition. Moving to Melbourne didn't end up panning out. I left my roller derby league after 4 (INTENSE!) years of involvement and decided to utilise my new found spare time with more music, learning to sew, more Frockstarring, starting yoga classes and generally being proactive and motivated. How much of all of that did I achieve? Heh. basically none of it... ! I did however spend a great deal of time enjoying doing sweet F.A after years of an overly busy daily schedule. I enjoyed my routine of going to the gym on my way home from work, coming home to put on my pajama's, make a delicious dinner and then watch hours of really bad (so bad it's good again..) tv on the couch with my wonderful man. Now when I read that back it sure doesn't sound like much but to be honest I loved every second of it. I needed a year of stepping back and reassessing some of my priorities. Admittedly I may have stepped back a little too far at times- but I think the overall outcome at the end has been a positive one. I'm not going to tell you about any resolutions I have for the new year. That would be a definite jinx on my best intentions but let's just say I am now ready to hit 2012 with a better balance of 2010's ridiculous busy- and 2011's slothful ambling. Let's hit it!

My first Frockstar post for the year has been kicking around the wardroom  for quite sometime now. 15 months in fact. It still hasn't even been worn out of the house yet- but I will be changing that within the next 5 days. Promise.

This 80's does 50's wiggle dress hailed from a great little vintage store on Smith St in Melbourne. I could see the potential when I tried it on- but it was a little tight in places. While I should know better than to buy things out of size in the hopes of getting smaller-I turned a blind eye to logic here and bought it anyway. I have certainly made smarter decisions. Now I had a dress that was almost awesome on- but couldn't wear it.

Flash forward a year and then some- and it finally fits. To be totally honest I had kind of forgotten about this dress. It turned into one of those items that you see so often that you stop seeing it completely. The ol' "I've been in front of your face for so long that I have effectively turned invisible". I try not to let this happen in the wardroom but when there is that much packed into a room it is inevitable. The up side is that in my moments of clarity when I have a proper rummage- it's like Christmas rediscovering outfits I forgot I had and breathing a new lease of life into them. But I digress...

Wiggle dresses aren't my usual forte shall we say. My body type doesn't really lend itself to this style generally. Going out on a limb and getting a WHITE one was a brave decision- but I couldn't resist the multitude of  80's-esque rainbow spots with the black outlines. It gives me many many options for accessorizing which in my mind makes an outfit quite versatile. The different combo's of green, blue, yellow and red will basically mean I will never have to wear the same combination twice. (That doesn't necessarily mean I won't- just that I don't have to...)

For the sake of this posts photo I have gone with the good old McDonalds colour combo. Red belt and lipstick to tie in the buttons down the front (some of which are fake which was briefly confusing!)  - and yellow hair flower and shoes to give it a bit of contrast. I am already planning some of the other possibilities. These are including (but certainly not limited to) a short sleeved kermit green cardigan with blue cummerbund belt and shoes. I could even dive into the rainbow P.O.F completely and do the green cardi, blue belt, yellow hair flower and red shoes.... Too much? Maybe. Will I wear it anyway? Almost definitely.

Sadly the light used in the pic didn't really do the dress justice. There may be blow out in the full shot- but I figure I have suitably compensated for this by adding not one but 2 arty closeups of said fabric...

Floaty Floral Strapless

It is entirely too easy to justify cute circle skirted dresses. I feel like I am getting double the value of a frock if it means I can fit a crinoline underneath it. It makes the petticoats seem like a reasonable investment and it usually makes me celebrate my smart investment by purchasing something else to be worn with them. (and so the cycle continues....Is it any wonder I need a whole room to hold all this stuff?)

This one was on an entire rack of similar styled frocks. (warehouse factory store on Brunswick St in Fitzroy- Melbourne in case you were wondering...)  Funny - but if they were spread out around the store I might have even bought more than one of them. Because they were all bunched in together I almost got bored of looking through them all. I chose my favourite fabric based on colours featured and what I will be able to wear with it. I was attracted by the light denim blue feel to the base colour. I also like the pen drawn quality of the paisley in the background. Just when you think that is enough to warrant picking the garment from the rack- it hits you straight in the eyeballs with the vintagey roses in shades of coral, burgundy and a buttercup yellow. Sweet.

For this photo I have gone with a white crinoline, black peep toed wedges and a small yellow and white lily in my hair.  I seem to be in this weird gravitational pull towards yellow at the moment so I think I will be focusing more on the beautiful buttercup when accessorising for real.  I can wear it with yellow heels for a night out- or a pale yellow cardi and brown boots for day wear. I think I have justified it enough as a smart purchase now. Almost didn't even mention it was only $25!

Silky Party Dress

One of life's finest joys has to be accidentally finding the occasional genuine op shop. They sadly seem to be a dying breed these days with hoards of people trawling fro quality vintage and then re-selling for a huge profit. Don't get me wrong. I think it is a great business model I just miss having a larger selection of op shops to trawl myself. I found a great little hospice op shop in the back streets of St Kilda while on a bit of an exploratory stroll. It was certainly in the afternoons highlights. Right above the tropical fish store that we spent about 45 minutes in- but that's another story...

I was very restrained in this store. Possibly due to the fact that I remembered anything I purchased would have to be lugged around with me for a week before it got home again. This is a very good thing to remember when starting to get excited about vintage crockery and vases. I left the brick a brack section and headed straight back to the rack of frocks.

.

I found this cute little silk number and it made my day. I estimate it as early to mid 70's. A silk party dress with sweetheart neck line. Almost off the shoulder- and  puff sleeves. Slightly flared skirt and all in a great mix of buttery cream background, orange and yellow flowers, the occasional stone fruit (maybe peaches?) and teal squares with a semblance of vertical stripes for good measure. Whoever designed the fabric may have been having some acid flashbacks of some description. It is a pretty odd combo of things to have all happening at once really.

All of this in one frock and for the fantastic price of $10.00. This was still ok even after I mentally calculated the exchange rate. (I was much better at doing that this trip!)

I have chosen to accessorise to pick up the teal squares. This is mainly as it is the easiest way to lift the whole colour scheme to take away the fact that my complexion is possibly too fair to be wearing a colour this pale right next to my face. Also- I feel like I should be carrying an elaborately wrapped present to a birthday party. Now the only thing this dress is missing is a party hat and goody bag to take home for afters.

The gig to end all gigs...

Now anyone who has spent more than 5 minutes near me could probably tell you that I'm not a T-shirt kindofa girl. Given my penchant for a great frock it is hard to fit a T-shirt into an outfit. I do however like to buy the occasional band/artist T-shirt to commemorate a great gig. I have spent the last 6 months counting down to what could have been the highlight of my live music existence. Now that is a mighty big call and I intend to stick by it....

Back in the early months of 1997 I was working in a Frockshop in a West Auckland mall. I was 18 years old and driving around town in my very first car (a mini). I was introduced to an artist that would change the way I looked at music and the style that I play the piano from here on in. That artist was Ben Folds and my ears had just been aurally caressed by him and his band- Ben Folds Five. Over the next 14 years I would follow his musical progression closely. I would buy another 12 of his albums. I would lap up every note. Every lyric. I would also learn that he seems to be friends and musical guest to a great number of my other musical heroes. I would get myself a laminated Ben Folds fan club card with my name on it- and keep it in my wallet. (I do realise I am waaay too old for that kind of carry on but hey. When you're passionate right...) I learnt that he was married for some time to an Australian woman and even lived in Adelaide. Not so far from my corner of the world but alas. He has never ever come to play his nerdy piano music in my country.

I love a good live gig. In fact most of my disposal income not going towards the continued extension of the Wardroom is almost exclusively reserved for good food and live shows. In December of 2010 I learnt that my piano hero was going to play in Melbourne so I bit the bullet and bought tickets. I swear I have spent every day since then counting down the days and allowing my expectations to fly sky high.

The danger of over thinking this kind of thing is that it sets the show up to disappoint if it is anything less than amazing. Thankfully seeing Ben play live was even better than my wildest dreams. He played an amazing 2 and a half hour set and I now have a VERY high bar set fro any future live piano performances!

Oh yeah. This is a fashion blog. Ha.

Even though T-shirts are not a staple in my wardroom I couldn't NOT commemorate this very special show. Especially when I saw they were selling a yellow one. (I have a strange leaning towards yellow at the moment that I just can't seem to escape...) While I may only really wear them to bed I will never be able to put this on without a surge of reliving this show running through my head. It is still fresh in my head after only a week- but I get the feeling I will always be able to get a smile on my face just thinking about the night that I finally got to watch Ben Folds live.

I don't think I will be making a point of featuring my sleep wear choices on Frockstar in the future- but never say never I guess. Just in case it never happens again this is what I look like when I go to bed. Complete with Ben Folds induced smile....

NB - This post is also the precursor to a bunch of exciting Melbourne purchases... YAY!

In case any of you out there happen to already be a fan of Ben I have exciting news! I heard straight from the horses mouth that he has 2 albums of previously unreleased material that will be coming out in a special triple cd set of B-sides, rareities and live tracks in the next few months. Even more exciting is that he used me and the rest of the Melbourne shows audience to sing backing vocals on "Not The Same" for a live version coming out on the same album! I GET TO BE ON THE NEXT BEN FOLDS ALBUM! Be still my beating heart.....

Last last last note about Ben. I promise. Those of you not already a fan may at least enjoy this fantastic Henry Rollins speel about Ben getting him along to guest on the William Shatner album he was producing. The fact the Ben Folds, Henry Rollins and William Shatner have even been in the same room together blows my mind!!

RRREEEEEDDDD

Wow. It has taken me 7 whole days to get this post out. I have had the pic uploaded to the blog and just waiting in cyberspace for me to add some words. In my defense- it is Summer and I have a tendency to be lazy with these sorts of things from time to time. Stop judging me!

I have been very pro red in the last few years. It was historically a colour I stayed away from .Mainly due to my skin tone and having gone many years with my hair being red too. Red on red= not so win. (in my own opinion) Now that my hair is darker I have been letting red into my daily wear a LOT in the last 18 months or so. This has proved to be an exciting foray into new colours and options for me- and my only regret is not having done it sooner!

Now to the untrained eye (but trained enough to see me in my usual frocks out and about) I have one similar to this one. Located here. Not the best photo- in fact I could maybe update that.... Tangents aside- I'm sure you can see why I have paired these frocks together. Red with yellow and blue floral. Check and check. I may be grasping at straws here but the redeeming and tipping point that I have clung to in my decision to purchase this one is that this dress is a much brighter shade of tomato red. The flowers are bigger therefore making the contrasting colours more defined. The dress shape itself is different being a shirt dress with puff sleeves. (I do love those!) And last of all it has a subtle check in said tomato red background of the dress. See?

I love the options that this dress gives me. The last time I wore it I accesorised with a 1970's tuxedo cummerbund as a belt in a beautiful shade of turquoise then paired it with matching shoes. The dress works just as well with or without a belt. I can go for yellow or green accessories in shoes, handbags or hair flowers. It may be very similar to another frock currently hanging in the wardroom- but I have succesfully justified the shared existence to myself. Even if the rest of you aren't buying it for a second!

Yellow Fever

I thought I would start 2011 off with something nice and bright. In saying that - you don't get much brighter than this extreme shade of yellow.. Right? Didn't think so.

I pretty much love everything about this dress. I love the colour. I love that it's strapless. I love that it has an extremley high side split,. I love the flamenco ruffles. I love that it has a train. (assuming that isn't just because I'm too short for it!) I love that I already had the right shade of shoes and hairflower to accessorize with. I love that it has a vaguely "Love Boat" feel to it. I love it's overall ridiculousness. I love that it has all of these qualities in the one dress- and it only cost me $30!

Now I am in a familiar conundrum. That is where on earth am I going to be able to wear this? Usually I have a theory about not waiting for a reason to wear something. Wear it for the hell of it. While that may work for brightly coloured 70's summer dresses- full length flamenco styled ball gowns are a little bit different. I doubt very much that I could rock on up to work un-noticed in this little beauty. I'm sure I would raise a few eyebrows popping down to the supermarket too. That leaves me to attempt to be patient in awaiting the right time to bust this baby out. I'm not a patient person at all- so if I get sick of waiting I may yet host a dress up party where I can come as this guy or one of these. Whatever the reason for it's first official wearing - rest assured I will be damn excited about it!

Tropical

One of the things I was most looking froward to on my Melbourne trip was going back to Retrostar. This is one of the most amazing vintage clothing stores I have ever been to. EVER. It is one of those stores that you need to mentally prepare yourself for. There are so many colours and patterns to trawl through! I would never ever go to a store like this with a hangover that's for sure....

A particularly cool part about going back to this store on this trip- was that I got to take a friend of mine who had not yet experienced the joys of Retrostar. I got to relive the initial amazement through her when we walked in- and that was just as exciting for me too.

I knew there was going to be a lot I liked here- and it didn't disappoint. As I was walking around with my hangers of items to take into the changing room getting heavier- I stopped in my tracks when I saw this on the rack. Like actually stopped. I think my jaw may have even dropped just a little. I knew that this was the one. Of all the things I was carrying to try on- I hoped with all my might that this was going to be the dress that fit me perfectly.

A bright electric blue based ra-ra dress with 3 tiers of ruffles along the bottom. Pretty cool in itself. Then you throw in the tropical flower pattern in shades of bright yellow, orange, red and green. just when you think it can't get any better- you realise that hiding among the flower pattern are even a couple of parrots! Yes.That was the  moment that tipped me over the edge. (Maybe I should get out more...)

The only moment in this whole experience that made my heart heavy- was realising the zip was broken. Like proper bung. I quickly weighed up the options in my mind and swiftly went for the one that involved getting the zip re[placed when I got it home. I wouldn't go as far as saying that this made the dress a bargain per se- but it definitely was one of my favourite frocks from this shopping expedition.

Among many many great things about this frock is the accessorising options. With all those colours to contrast the bright blue there is no shortage of possibilities for hair flowers and shoes. In this photo I have gone for yellow- but it could just as easily been red, orange or green.

The only other thing this dress needs now is a large cocktail with a little paper umbrella in it.

Long Blue and Yellow

In the last week of posts- I have spoken about some long Summer dresses I am thinking of taking up. I thought it was time I mentioned a long Summer dress that I have no intention of altering.

This is a retro reproduction number. A 70's feel to it- but I think it is circa 2003. Ankle length and halter necked- this dress also boasts a keyhole feature on the front. I think it is a nice touch.

The colour scheme is a mix of blue and yellow dots and flowers with a faint white detailing to bring the petals out. A yellow hair flower is the perfect finishing touch although I am now thinking that a pair of yellow jandals will be a must have for Summer too...

This will be my last post for the next week or so as tomorrow morning I GO TO MELBOURNE! I am very much looking forward to 4 days of intensive shopping.,great food, awesome company and a mariachi show. (yes- really!)  From my last trip there last September I have a couple of shops that have made my "must go to again" list- and also looking forward to discovering a few more. In preparation I have been on a strict budget for the last 3 months or so and am already feeling the pre-purchase shudder of excitement thinking about blowing all my hard saved dollars! I am pretty much taking over an empty suitcase (inside a mostly empty suitcase) and the clothes on my back.

Stay tuned for lots of excited post Melbourne shopping Frockstar posts next week!

Green and Yellow

This cute little green dress is yet another that has not seen the light of day since being added to the Wardroom. It was a gift from a friend who bought it for me mainly for 2 reasons.

1. It was green
2. It was in a $2 bin in an op shop
   

I tried it on when she first gave it to me and while I like the fabric it wasn't a very flattering fit. I hung it up and left it there.

Fast forward 18 months or so and I pulled it out to give it another go. (Essentially for this post!) I decided that the cut could be altered slightly with pulling it in under the bust with a belt. Now with the colours in the fabric the obvious option to me was to match the red. I added read belt and peep toes and took a good hard look. It was ok- but it didn't "pop". You know?

I decided to change tact slightly and opted to accessorise with yellow instead. The colour change made such a huge difference to the overall look- that there is no way I will ever put red on this outfit again! Yellow and green together have always felt... well. A little Australian. I will overlook that thought in this instance and roll with it anyway.

The shoes were a trademe bargain at $4.00, the belt from a sale rack in an Asian store fro $5 and the flower from trademe at $14. These accessories alone could potentially be added to a lot of outfits to change the feel drastically!

I like that the pattern on the fabric has an almost batik quality to it. When you look closely- there are a lot of very detailed swirls going on underneath the floral motifs.

I have managed to fit an ever present crinoline petticoat underneath to lift it slightly too.

Rainbow Ski jacket

This is a jacket that I always want to work into more outfits. It is actually my ski jacket. Not having made many trips to the mountain in the last few years has meant it hasn't made it's way out of the far corners of the wardroom for some time now.

The 80's had some great ski and apres ski wear. So great in fact that some friends of mine used to hold an annual event that was essentially a very well organised, weekend long, 80's ski wear dress up party held at a lodge in Ohakune. "Snow Glam". Awesome concept and very well executed. The weekend included a welcome night disco, snow activities during the day (races, jumps, toboggan's etc) then on the Saturday night- the fashion show. This group of friends have turned the average dress up party into an art form. 1 outfit per party just will not do. No- to really do a dress up party right you need to have multiple costume changes over the evening.

Sadly - Snow Glam has been shelved for the last few years as the organisers are no longer in NZ to put them together. I am holding out for a reunion weekend at some point in the future though.
Snow Glam 2007 may have even been the last time I got to wear this jacket!




80's red puffer jacket with rainbow detailing features in blue, yellow and orange. when actually wearing it on the mountain I have some electric blue pants to complete the look. If I was to actually wear it in the city I would probably wear it with the denim skirt and blue hightops shown in the photo.

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. )

Gold Shoes

All outfits have to start somewhere. Often it begins with a big piece like a dress or jacket. Sometimes it starts with a colour or theme concept. It has been known to start with a particular hairclip- but this outfit started from the ground up. With the shoes.



I am blessed with size 8 feet. My shoe size is everywhere and I am extra grateful for this coming from a family with small feet. My Mother has tootsies that are around the size 5 mark. Not quite so bad these days with the inception of the Number 1 Shoe Warehouse and other such stores- but back when I was in school my poor mum couldn't get shoes to fit her anywhere. She literally had to buy her shoes in the kids sections! I can almost pinpoint the moment that my personal shoe infatuation began in fact because of my Mum and her own lack of footwear options. We went on a family holiday that included a week in Hong Kong when I was 9. My mother suddenly had Asian shoes sizes and actual grown up shoes at her fingertips so obviously she needed to stock up while she had the chance. I roughly calculate that 20 pairs of heels came home with us after that trip....

But I digress.


This pair of shoes that started my outfit were another great buy from The Paper Bag Princess. ($14.00) There is a reasonable amount going on in them- and they were quite hard to really do justice in a photograph. First of all they are gold. Bright and shining in fact. They are also peep toes with a slight wedge heel. They have white detailing around the toe and heel- and if all that wasn't enough- they have a slight shot of colour running through them that includes reds, blues and even yellows. (not a common combo with gold)

Now given that these are obviously a statement pair of shoes- you need to be careful they don't get over powered by the rest of the outfit. Keep. It. Simple.

In this instance I have played it especially safe and gone for a plain black halter neck with a slightly flared skirt. To lift it enough to keep up with my feet- I added a feature belt that has a faux snakeskin finish and an irregular shape.

I think it's enough to be interesting without taking away from my toes....

Flowers And Polka Dots

It's no surprise to you all I'm sure- that a new dress will make for one very happy Fliss. New dress excitement is hard to compare to anything else and will usually eventuate in the need to wear said new dress straight away.

This particular new dress caused the same excitement of course. Especially since it was purchased in Wellington in a flurry of other purchases on my Regina Spektor road trip a few weeks back. It was in a high end second hand clothing store called "Missy's Wardrobe" (or something to that affect anyways) on Cuba St. I was hesitant as the price tag told me it was $92.00- but after a quick scan around the store all the dresses were on sale. I tried it on and decided that I would have to get it if was $40.00 or less. I was happy to find when I got it to the counter that it was down to a remarkable $25.00. Quite stoked about that!



I am drawn to bright colours- with green , red and yellow combinations being among my favourites. This dress has all of those sorted AND even throws in some black and white polka dots for good measure. Heh.

This dress was obviously homemade at some point. I know this as it doesn't have a tag- and secondly as they have inserted a baby pink zip. An odd choice given that there is no pink in the dress anywhere. I was happy to find that it is crinoline capable too. I did try out the red petticoat first as it picks up on the fabric so well- but I couldn't escape the thought that I looked like a christmas tree.



I have noticed lately that I have a lot less frocks in this shade of green than initially thought. This is possibly the most represented colour in the entire wardrooom- but not so many frocks in it strangely enough.

I managed to save the first wear of this dress for an astounding 3 whole weeks! I saved it specifically for the after party of my derby teams season debut. We are the green team after all- so it seemed like an apt occasion for the first wear.

Rainbow Plaid

My Monday was VERY Monday this week. I wasn't particularly inspired all round really- and the "meh" kind of stretched throughout the day. I partly blame this one the hangover I was sporting on Sunday. I'm getting too old to assume I will only feel bad one the day after such frivolities sadly...



I decided to combat my "meh Monday" by stopping in for a quick look around the rainbow op shop on K rd on my lunch break. I'm glad I did- as I found this gem of a pencil skirt for $3!! I have a rule that anything that costs less than a cup of coffee is a no brainer purchase.

The plaid in the fabric is extra cool given that is is rainbow coloured on a black background. This makes the accessorising options for this skirt pretty much limitless. Yusssss....



I have decided to go fro a sunny yellow approach this time round with yellow stilettos (also $3 from trademe) and a yellow hair clip to tie it all in together. This co-ordination can also be achieved with red, green or bright blue. How very versatile!