Sequins!

 

 

 

Dress: LOFT/ Christmas gift from Mr. CP

Tights: Hue/Macy's

Boots: Enzo Angiolini/Nordstrom Rack

Necklace: DIY/Birthday gift from Mama CP

Hair Clip: Thea Starr/Christmas gift from Mr. CP (here)

Sequins and I have a love/hate relationship. On the one hand, as a connoisseur of all things sparkly and shiny, I feel obliged to love them. I mean, they're basically giant pieces of glitter affixed to articles of clothing. And while I'm no Ke$ha (really? A dollar sign? ::shakes head::), I do love me some glitter. That being said, I tend to see a lot of be-sequined (um, yes, that's a word... why do you ask?) items of clothing that lead me to think, "That would look SO cute on someone else. It's just a bit much for me." I just don't feel comfortable in overtly sparkly things Yes. I know. I'm an enigma.

So, when I spotted this sweater dress at LOFT a month-ish ago, I was immediately smitten. It certainly has sequins, they're just subtle and understated. I dragged Mr. CP into LOFT, to only mild protests, and made him sit patiently (with my purse, of course... dur!) while I tried the dress on. Mr. CP's reaction when I walked out of the dressing room was both flattering and hilarious. His mouth dropped open, and he uttered those six little words that every woman longs to hear: that dress was made for you. In keeping with my self-imposed shopping ban in the lead-up to Christmas, however, I bid farewell to this beautiful dress and moseyed on out of the store, a lone tear trickling down my face. I may or may not have gone back and pawed sadly at the window on several different occasions. Maybe. Possibly. Perhaps.

Because we're going to be traveling to Kansas for Christmas, we decided to celebrate Fake Christmas today in order to avoid packing up our gifts to one another. Imagine my delight when I opened up one of my presents only to find this dress! Mr. CP insists that it's actually a gift for him (aw, shucks!), but I'm megalomaniacal and greedy. IT'S MINE!

In honor of Fake Christmas, and because I think it's hilarious, I thought I'd share with you all a photo of me "shaking it off," ostensibly before Mr. CP started taking pictures. Traitor.

In Which I Go to an Exhibit Opening

Top: LOFT

Cardigan: Halogen/Nordstrom (similar)

Skirt: Banana Republic

Head band: Nordstrom

Bracelet: Kohl's (no longer available, but you can find other amazing jewelry here)

Tights: Target

Shoes: Naya/Nordstrom Rack (here)

One of my very best friends from college is a historian for the National Park Service, and is in town for an exhibit opening at a local museum. Her girlfriend was unable to make the trip out here with her, so she invited me to be her "plus one" at the event. Hooray! The exhibit focused on the experiences of a local Japanese/Nisei/Sansei family that weathered the many ups and downs of the pre- and post-WWII racial economy in the United States. The museum is easily one of my favorites in Seattle -- the Wing Luke is famous for its exquisite collection, and artful and intelligent displays -- so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to wander around the nearly empty space, and ruminate on some of the darker moments in America's past. I'll try not to geek out too much; suffice to say that in the many years I have been a student of history, I have never seen such a beautiful display of community. The Japanese American community in Seattle is very, very close knit, and so it was a truly touching experience to witness a group of people come together to celebrate an exhibit that many of them had contributed to in one way or another.

After the exhibit opening, we met up with Mr. CP and went to a wine bar downtown where he got to hear some of the more colorful stories about my college years. I don't remember the last time I laughed so much, or so hard. It was a lovely end to an even more lovely evening. =)

"Kelsey and Her New P&E Skirt Sittin' in a Tree..."

Sweater: LOFT

Skirt: Pearl and Elspeth

Belt: Target

Tights: Hue (Macy's)

Boots: Fitzwell (6pm.com)

Necklace: Marc Jacobs (gift from Mama CP!)

Head Band: Target

I ordered this Pearl & Elspeth skirt after seeing this one on Lilli over at Frocks and Frou Frou. The moment I received my skirt in the mail, I swooned. If woman and skirt could wed, I would be Mrs. Australian Bird Skirt.  My experience corresponding with Annie was so wonderful that I decided I wanted to do a post on her and P&E. 

Each of Annie's items is one-of-a-kind and tailored to you and your tastes. She asked me to describe for her some of my likes and dislikes, and what sorts of details I tend to favor on items of clothing. I'm fairly certain that I provided her with a series of unhelpful, and thoroughly vague answers that essentially amounted to, "I like everything, everywhere, for all of history." Believe me when I say that Annie really does have an uncanny knack for picking out fabrics that are ideally suited to her customers. I don't recall ever telling her about my long-standing love of polka dots, so I was delighted -- and shocked! -- when I received the skirt and saw that she had sewn a piece of polka-dot fabric around the top of the skirt that ties into an adorable little bow in the back. I think she must have magical powers... 

At any rate, I've been trying really hard to buy more handmade items, and I would encourage all of you to do the same. Sure, sometimes handmade items are more expensive. However, I would rather have one beautiful skirt tailor-made to my exact measurements, specifications, and tastes than 10 so-so pieces of clothing. I think it's important to reward creativity, and to support people like Annie who create unique and beautiful pieces that simply can't be purchased in a chain store. Annie is the first person I have purchased a handmade item of clothing from, and I will most certainly be a return customer! If you have a minute, head over to Pearl and Elspeth and show her some love. I've attached a few photos of my favorite P&E creations at the end of this post for your viewing pleasure! 

In addition to being a wonderful seamstress with a terrific eye for detail, Annie also happens to be a wonderfully friendly person. She was kind enough to answer a few questions for all of us over here at CP!

Tell us a bit about you and/or P&E's philosophy.

I believe in using every resource as many times as possible, so all of Pearl & Elspeth's clothes are made from reclaimed and/or recycled materials. Also, vintage is beautiful and unique. I am also passionate about making individual clothes for individual tastes and needs, and I especially love catering for women who find it difficult to get unique, beautiful clothes that fit them well.

How did you first get into sewing?

I have been sewing forever! My mum taught me to sew when I was very young, and I have always loved it because I'm forever coveting clothes that are 'a bit out of the ordinary' -- i.e. impossible to find in shops. The only option, I find, is to make them yourself. Or, if you can't sew, get P&E to make them for you.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

I seem to have a very uncanny knack for picking out fabrics that are perfectly suited to the lady I'm sewing for. Because each piece I sew is one-of-a-kind, it means I can really just sew according to what the fabric suggests -- the size, the colours, and even the style.

What is your favorite thing about what you do?

Meeting people and sewing clothes that they love to wear!

Seeing Spots

Tank top: Loft
Cardigan: Banana Republic
Skirt: Thrifted
Tights: Macy's
Shoes: Sanuk (via REI)
Bag: Coach (thrifted)
Bracelet: Made by Mama CP
Earrings: Gifted (vintage)
Head band: Target

Imagine my absolute pleasure when, after parting ways for a brief period in Las Vegas, I returned to our room to find that Mr. CP had bought me this Banana Republic polka dot cardigan that I had been drooling over for quite some time. In fact, you might recall that it featured prominently in this post. While it was a bit too warm today for khakis, I fully intend to create that particular outfit once the weather gets a bit cooler. To be honest, I'm not sold on the outfit with these particular tights; I think it would look better with un-cropped (is that a word?) tights, and cute flats. But I desperately need to do laundry in our spider-infested, unfinished, creepier-than-words-can-possibly-convey basement (which is a story for a whoooooole other time), so all my tights are waiting patiently to be washed. It was too cold to go without tights today (at least for me), though, so I donned my only clean pair of tights, and off I went.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I visited some local consignment stores with a girlfriend today. I was woefully underwhelmed. I think I might have been more impressed had I been a more petite woman (read: sizes 2 - 6), but there were literally no clothes at all in my size. Added to that, most of the items were horribly overpriced, which is attributable more to the stores' locations than the actual quality of the items they were selling. We did, however, decide to stop at a local Goodwill, and thank goodness we did! I hit the jackpot! I picked up a chunky cable-knit Michael Kors cardigan that hits about an inch above the knee -- perfect with my shorter dresses for winter -- for a whopping $8, and I nabbed two striped Banana Republic sweaters for $2 a piece.