Real clothes, Real stuff......

One of the greatest pleasures of life is to wear fine clothes that feel good, wear well, look great on you and have that touch of quality.
This is but one reason I love vintage.
Utilitarian. Filson. this one is vintage.


Clothes and most of everything else used to be made of "real ingredients" as I like to exclaim....
I had a yell-fest the other day when I had to buy some dungaree buttons from the fabric store to repair a pair of jeans that had lost the waist button. This is the kind that's metal and is whacked in, instead of a buttonhole and a sewn button......
I don't have any vintage ones on hand...made in Taiwan in the 70s and 80s, and before that, in the US. The ones I bought were Made In China they were shit!
I whacked the first one and it broke!
The second one bent!
First I despise crap made in 3rd world countries because it is usually done by children and exploited workers. This issue is well-know now, so I won't bother with links here (just Google!)
and second, I only want to buy and use Honest to Goodness Good Stuff.
This Filson cruiser jacket will last a half-lifetime of use. And work well. And made in Seattle.



So...I buy a lot of utilitarian, military, fair-trade and local-grown and made, and commercial stuff...and vintage of course!

Military is always made for serious adventures.
Functional. A-2 with a fur edged hood.


Vintage Banana Republic......a fashion line that is excellent quality.




I love linen and silk. Where do they come from? It's hard being me...
Here's some super quality vintage I've just listed.......
a gorgeous full skirt vintage SPRING dress in an XL...




a knock out fabulous vintage Escada suit....so Amazing in the detail, the quality, and the style is classic, military-influenced and so steampunk!
and...so classy for some Old Lady Chic!



A charming turn of the century (last one) style blouse in a sheer soft polyester from the 70s that is 100 times better made than dreck made today...

Here's a gorgeous vintage 60s cocktail dress......the quality and workmanship, and the silk chiffon....fabulous !

and...from remnants of other projects, I made these romantic spats....



when I return next week from my teeny weeny vacay.....I'm starting in on spring coats, spring dresses, denim fables, more men's wear.....tote bags.....
and a line of ultra romantic needs for the steampunk woman......

Yeeks, I can't wait !

the garden...Spring is coming!

What Inspires me today/What I'm working on...

I don't think I will ever tire of dresses/skirts with boots...and really cute sandals.....especially if they have buckles and straps........

A Blue dress for the Alice in you.......on etsy....







A tailcoat of ivory with toile, crochet and shells....and lots of lace......with a blue silk party dress.......
fairytale.........






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and this song was playing last night in the "new" Thriftway...as I was shopping for pie and lotion kleenex for my husband......I sometimes forget that I love Christine McVie

It Is All About Karl !!

Who is Karl?
we'll get to that in a minute..


Remember when my car had it's inner guts tampered with? Yes. good.
While it was being repaired at the Mechanic it developed this horrific putrefying baby-Bambi-and-a-herd-of-lemurs-killing... odor inside the car ! Yes. bad.

Big Lebowski reference #1...
[after recovering his car from the Auto circus]
The Dude: Oh, Jesus, what's that smell, man?
Auto Circus Cop: Yes, probably a vagrant slept in the car. Or maybe just used it as a toilet and moved on.



Mark and I traced it down to the front passenger floor mats and long story short....they are now buried in the Tacoma Dump for some future digger to discover...(sorry.) But the carpet held on to the stink...like a baby grips your lips and won't let go until you break/unwrap his fat little fingers from your mouth......



We sprayed it with that Cat Puke digester stuff you buy at the Fred Meyer, the one you mix with warm water just Seconds Before You Need To Use It...
weird.
Nope.
Still STANK.

Then we tried Forest Flowers of Mars scent Lysol Spray in a can........
That helped. I hate Lysol. It smells like a decaying stomach operation and a demented grandpa TV chair......
So I like to avoid Lysol.
Mark and I even had a bit of a "dust up" over my sensible/crazy hatred of Lysol.



But while perusing the line up of Products To Make You Impressive To Others (aka...Scent Products For Your Home and Car) at the Albertsons...
I found this pretty can of spray Lysol that doesn't smell like Lysol, or a surgical procedure from the 1920s or a dog urine chair/potty.

So I sprayed my carpet ...again and again....and again.
The smell was quite masked. But. Still. There.

I just gave up for 2 weeks and decided I was just gonna have to pretend my life was going just fine despite having a Toxic Bomb for a car.

Mark had a secret weapon....Why did he save the Best for Last?


A couple of years ago he took possession of a "used car" and in the back seat was forgotten bottle of
KARL LAGERFELD men's cologne.
So. f'n. Trashy. But, hey it smelled good !



I mean, it's Karl f'n Lagerfeld ....(you can buy it at Sears)...
Every once in awhile we'd squirt a bit in the bathroom for "those special occasions"..
Hey, it smelled good !



The other night Mark and I decided to drive my car to get some viddles Jethro, and he carried a small black vial of some mystery substance with him........
He showed me the KARL...


...and said this was a last ditch effort before we pay Mr. Bueno a small sum to steal the car and light it on fire.



I told Mark that KARL was superspecialchilipeppercoagulated, and to please, only splash a drop or 2 on the carpet for fear of burning the carpet right then and there, without the benefit of Mr. Bueno "stealing" the car for "show business"
At first my eyes burned and my nose dripped, and my ears rang as the KARL seeped into the putrifying carpet....


Big Lebowski reference #2...
We started joking about "Karl"...and since my car sports at least 2 Big Lebowski bumper stickers, our jokes also included "Karl" the man who comes to fix the cobble.
[Maude shows the porn video starring Bunny to the Dude]
Sherry in 'Logjammin': [on video] You must be here to fix the cable.
Maude Lebowski: Lord. You can imagine where it goes from here.
The Dude: He fixes the cable?
Maude Lebowski: Don't be fatuous, Jeffrey.


It's all about Karl !
Even A Dress A Day bows to the greatness that is KARL !!


We rolled our windows down as we drove my hooptie to North Compton to have a nice dinner of Harbor Lights martinis.


On the way home, a tidy little jaunt of just a mile or 2 down Ruston Way to Pacific Ave, and to home......a Miracle Occured.




The stench has Left The Carpet !!!!
yes.
Good.
Well, that and the sunshine in the last few days, I'm sure.

PRAISE KARL LAGERFELD !!
He's a f'n GENIUS.

I think his marketing department needs this story.

I Got A Freaky Old Lady Name Cocaine Katy

who does embroideries on my jeans.......

the ol' Shel Silverstein song.....by Dr. Hook....(vid below)

I have sold many things to famous or not so famous very talented people...when I was in High School (2 1/2 years) I made tons of things that I sold at a Head Shop (name escapes...) on Jefferson Street near the Liquor Store, Lawlers, if you must know....

and I met lots of "Rock Stars".....ha ...and I got a lot of commissions to embroider groovi things on their jeans......
I also made a tidy little lump of cash cutting up jeans and making tuxedo morning coats for fancy boys and girls.....
Well, that's the kind of thing that happens to a girl that lives near a world class city......

Recently I sold this blouse.......
to Lynne Adele of The Victor Mourning...


Lynne plays the banjo and is pretty and she sings. I feel so lazy!
Well, I'm really happy to do my part to help performers, The Real Talented People of the Planet ..look good...
Because when you look good ...You feel good...and when you feel good, You Look and Sound FABULOUS on stage......


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Here's a mess ...of Dr. Hook etc......

Neil Gaiman + Seattle + Jason Webley = 2 degrees near Tacoma

Neil Gaiman is singing (he says) on this new album EvelynEvelyn with Jason Webley & Amanda Palmer and more.......according to this blog post by Neil's lovely lady friend.....Amanda Palmer...of Dresden Dolls.....

Jason is this cool guy...who ...along with......Andru Bemis........made this right-on song about Tacoma....

Shot on Super 8 in Tacoma by Oliver White and Jason Webley.....

A boat ride.....

Boating Seafaring and the men and women who take to the seas.. ...is always on my mind...
Here's at least 2 versions of the melancholy classic about sailing... Sloop John B...
Johnny Cash, and Okkervil River.
Then the 1953 1st film of a series of 3 by Stanley Kubrick about the Seafarers International Unions. You remember. Organizations of working people who banded together for safer working conditions and fair pay from The Man, for the privilege of making The Man rich.





If you watch closely at the beginning you can see the KALAKALA at .20.......
then links to the 2nd & 3rd in the series.



part 2.........and part 3

Right now on etsy...some of my faves..Navy pants !!
I have Tacoma Vice Mayor (not the mayor of vice), Jake Fey...'s Uncles WWII navy felted wool pants.....

But This pair is on etsy......for you !



Here's my latest find......is this a WAVES jacket ?
more research needs to be done......meanwhile.ain't she pretty?

oh dear, the travel bug gave me a bite

Mark has about 4 months of vacation time saved up.....paid. We are planning our time away from Tacoma.


the Merkle....you might stay here....if you visit...







Not that Tacoma isn't a swell place to visit...what with the MOG, the Point Defiance, the water....all.that.water.

mountain and bridge...Glen on the roof of old City Hall.


But I like to travel a tiny bit. Mark hates all travel. He drives for a living. Ha ha.

I think we should pack it in.....
Ralph Lauren...I got your prop right here buddy...

But what to pack? Where am I going?

Some good walking shoes... that will go with jeans and skirts...

a pretty skirt.....perfect at the park or out to dinner...

always pack a good pair of leather boots....you may want to walk thru the forest or a pretty park for a picnic....


a sensible dress that has pockets, that looks good pressed or wrinkled....good cotton khaki will do........
a suit is a great idea, if it's in excellent fabric, like wool, for instance......it packs, it's versatile and easy to care for.....wrinkles fall out.....and it classes up a simple skirt or a pair of jeans......





take plenty of money......send postcards.......

Lullabies for a Saturday evening....

Shifted Into Neutral

Why am I in a cabin kind of mood? I need a vacation, that's why.
and that's why I made a cabin display in the shop......I want to sit in a cozy living room with a fireplace, I want to drink a boozy cinnamon hot tea, I want to have a stack of books sitting beside me.



I want to hear the chickadees sing, I want to hear a wooden rocker creak, and I want to bake some bran muffins......




I want to wear leather boots, I want to wrap myself in a warm wool blanket, I want to watch the evergreens sway in the breeze.

Well, tough luck on that...at least for awhile...;-)

So, I found a Cynthia Steffe corset dress...in black.

and a leather briefcase banged up just the way I like it.





some crumpled vanilla wrapping paper, many copies of The Stranger Genius issue...
a very vintage Irish hotel laundry basket



my wood Nordstrom hanger, old wood yardsticks, leather brouges, fringe moccasins and a leather tote bag.





Some of these will be listed on etsy in the next few days.....
And some wool camp blankets, and an Indian print blanket. Some safari dresses and linen.
What got me going was this man-selection I'm sure.

These are up at etsy right now!
30s - 40s A-2 leather jacket...



Red and Black plaid Woolrich vintage jacket.



Red Wing leather vintage work boots.



Air Force N 2B vintage hooded jacket with real fur.