Love Take Me Down (to the Streets)

Here are my other favorites from Liza Rietz's newest collection: the Colorblock Winged Dress, a lovely art deco inspired piece with an attached bolero; and the Fan Dress, which merges the collection's recurrent 'winged' dress style with the tuxedo pleat detailing seen in the jacket below and one of the earlier posted pieces of the collection. Of course, these two are two of the more expensive pieces of the collection. Sigh. If you're counting your pennies like me, I would highly suggest the incredibly lovely Butterfly Tunic or, for an 80s flashback, the Sandwashed Tunic. The latter is particularly well-suited for a backpacking trip to Amsterdam. True story.

One, please.

I've been expecting the new Liza Rietz collection to be posted soon, but I was not expecting this jacket. It's perfect. A hybrid between a cocoon/kimono shape and a tuxedo. In a medium-weight cotton/linen blend. My birthday is September 1st.

In the key of Ursa Minor

Without a real income and a very disciplined approach to buying clothes, shipping and customs charges hurt much more deeply than I remember. So I am quite happy to have recently become obsessed with a Canadian designer, as I can then buy fantastic pieces that do not bring an unpleasant surprise when they arrive at my doorstep. I had bought and posted about the Ursa Minor Victorine blouse a bit back (also seen in the photo above), and, after it proved itself to be a most invaluable layer not only for the classroom but also on our European excursion, I came back home wanting a second one. And, lo and behold, the black one was on for half price. The problem now is that I just found out about a (dangerous) Seattle-based website called craft & culture that curates and sells artisan pieces from a great crop of designers including Ursa Minor. Which is great in and of itself (as everyone should own at least one Ursa Minor piece, even non-Canadians), but they have an Ursa Minor piece on sale that Elizabeth has never posted in the Ursa Minor Etsy shop. And 'Seattle-based' means customs fees and increased shipping rates, which means I can't have it. I never even knew I'd want a cream-colored silk duster, but now that I do, I can't. Sigh.

MORPH

Ever wonder what the baby of Ovate and a pair of knitting needles would look like? The answer is this, the S/S 13 collection from Angela Thornton's Portland-based knitwear label, MORPH. That cotton one-shoulder dress and one-shoulder knit bustier (see below) are absolutely spectacular. Pity that, aside from the price (decent for handknit, just out of my budget), I don't think I could pull it off without long black hair and fringe. Goodness, that model's hair and Vulcan eyebrows are gorgeous. 

Ah, who am I kidding. I need some MORPH, sans black hair or not. I can reallocate the funds once used to dye my hair black to get black-hair worthy clothes...This is my new favorite collection.

Parabola

As I've said before, I hate the recent/ridiculously persistent trend of hi/low skirts and dresses. But, as you probably have guessed, I'm not against an asymmetrical hem that has a longer length in the back, per se. It just has to be done right. Like the mydearthing F/W 10 wool panel skirt, and this, the hier apparel Parabola bamboo jersey skirt. This is one of the coolest skirts I've seen actually, and I think I shall get it once I'm settled at our new mailing address. We'll say it's in celebration of my first (successful!) in-person conference presentation. 

sublimi feriam sidera vertice

I'm in love with this Urbandon coat, made of a recycled tent (and in my size, I think!). In the next week or so, I will be getting rid of the majority of my clothes (i.e. the ones I don't wear) in an attempt to reduce the amount of things off-gassing in my apartment. Also, it's quite likely that I'll have to be highly selective with buying any new clothes from now on, and am told that used clothing is the safest for people sensitive to chemicals. However, I've never been a fan of used clothing (apart from vintage McQueen and Westwood), but recycled I can do! And, in the likely event that the safest place for me will be a secluded field beside a sea, I'll need a portable tent anyway...

Vietto

I have a favorite voluminous jacket I bought from a local store many Boxing Days ago that I just realized I haven't worn for a long time. And the reason is that I have a lot of voluminous clothing and, when coupled with a voluminous jacket, that's simply too much volume. Also, it's either summer or winter here, and this jacket is more like a dressed up hoodie, so I have to wear something really really warm under it (or some things) if I can wear it at all. 'Really really warm', of course, meaning voluminous. So I was quite happy to see an email in my inbox this morning from Minna Kaartinen, the designer behind Finnish eco-conscious label Vietto. Vietto's been on my radar for quite some time, as Jaana, the writer of the now-defunct Finnish blog The door in my wardrobe had worked with the label and featured it a few times. It seems Jaana is still working with Vietto as a photographer, and Vietto has just posted some new pieces! This one in particular, informed by my sad tale of the neglected spring hoodie/jacket, is what has caught my eye. Made of surplus Finnish military wool, the lower section of this lovely winter coat can zip off (see below), allowing me to both stay warm and not to have a silhouette resembling Grimace. Which is always a good thing, being vegetarian and all.

Edit: Since posting this post, I can't get enough of early Björk (including, I have to say it, Post). I think I was subconsciously affected by the model's hairstyle. And now, posthaste, I shan't say 'post' anymore today...

Totes Magotes*

So, as it turns out, Hurricane Sandy did not keep me from New York (and my hosts got their power back last weekend!), but instead that short Nor'easter and a freak snowstorm here (which actually hasn't stopped) made me stay put in snowy Canada. Sigh. Thankfully, the conference organizers allowed me to Skype in to still present my paper and, after the gods tried one last time to keep me silent, I finally got my ideas out into the world outside of my advisor's office. I feel like a real scholar now! 

Anyway, suffice to say, I should be in New York right now, and am imagining myself walking through the holiday shops in Bryant Park right now, wearing this jacket. The only thing that could ever make me regret buying my ArtLab Revolutionary Jacket is a hooded version of the same! Patricia, this is now in a tie with your Artisanal wool coat for my favorite piece from you ever.

And speaking of perfect jackets, check this beauty out. This is from my favorite Aussie label, Sadotna (photo via their Facebook). If I score another scholarship, I might just have to treat myself with this. But for now, it'll have to do to give it a place of honour in My Top 3 Want List (see sidebar, near bottom).

*I was supposed to see Paul Rudd in Grace tomorrow. Sigh. Patricia, enjoy the show for me!

Academic integrity...and stuff

Yesterday my required 'Research Methods' course was a lecture about academic integrity and what happens if you cheat/steal another's work. I kind of think that if you don't know what you shouldn't do, you probably shouldn't be in grad school, but whatever. Anyway, the talk, while kind of scary, made me really want to stay in this academic game for a while. It somehow gave me warm fuzzies, for lack of a better term, to think about how the academia is so serious about honesty and integrity, two things that are sorely lacking in most other professions. And it can't really be any other way, as its a profession completely based on reputation; without that reputation and the subsequent trust of the public, scholarship would be completely useless. So, as long as the rules (of being honest and having integrity) remain, academia can't/shouldn't go down the drain like everything else. Like I said: warm fuzzies. Of course, I was brought back down to earth when I overheard the following in a campus coffee shop: (friend coaching friend on how to fill up space on a course paper) "Just make your periods bigger. That's a little trick I learned in grade 5." Sigh.

Anyway, while I would in no way advocate uniforms for post-secondary students, I definitely think it helps your overall mindset to make an effort in having your appearance show that you respect your role as a scholar. Two recent additions to my wardrobe (courtesy of an unexpected fellowship) are making me sit up a bit straighter (metaphorically speaking). First up is my beloved new Moop bag, The Backpack (above left, and in sidebar on right). I have had Moop's The Letter Bag (above right) for a couple years now but, due to a shoulder issue from a previous injury, I knew that I'd need to spring for a bag that both balanced me out and protected my laptop on the walk to and from campus. Lo and behold, just in time for school to start, Moop came out with the coolest backpack on the block, in the waxed canvas I love. It somehow makes me excited to leave home in the morning just by carrying it. Seriously. And, when coupled with my very first Ursa Minor piece (and new favorite basic!), the Victorine Blouse (below), I'm a raring scholar machine. Kind of. Here's hoping both will help me when I present in 28 days in NY!

P.S. Moop is having a 12% of sale today only, just because it's 10-11-12. In Moop's online shop (not their Etsy), enter this code at checkout: 101112

Update (Oct 26th): The Victorine blouse is now available in black and in cream in the Ursa Minor Etsy shop and online shop! Don't be surprised if I get the black one too. I love this top.

No Poetic Device (...again*)

New favorite alert! I actually discovered this talented New Zealander yesterday, but I seem to have become allergic to my own apartment (and/or the construction site next door) and felt like I, like in the video for this collection, was in a fever hospital. I.e. the bajillion Latin poems I was to translate this weekend did not get translated, and the 800-1000 word report that was due by 7PM tonight was submitted at 6:48PM today. Sigh. 

In any event, you must know about Brooke Barrett and her A/W 12 collection, entitled 'Lucid Existence'. Personally, I'm particularly drawn to Brooke's Pleated Singlet Dress (seen in the top two photos of this post). I'm sure you're tired of me harping on the hi-lo/mullet trend, but this is the only way it should be done. In a Marc le Bihan-meets-Patricia Ayres sort of way. That is, the Brooke Barrett way. The tricky thing is that all the pieces in this collection not only look very wearable, but also look like they were meant to be worn together (as seen on the runway, below). Tricky because, I can't buy them all. Well, I 'can' in the sense that most of the pieces are available on Etsy (where I found Brooke, via a Treasury that 1/2 Ration added to their favorites). But, let me tell you, good air purifiers are gorram expensive.

(Runway photos via Brooke's Facebook)

*This AFI song title totally fits this post, but apparently I had used it on a post two years back. Silly me.

Piacere

Oh goodness. It's more beautiful than I had imagined. 

Svefn-G-Englar

This photo is very comforting to me. I believe this is still a work in progress (based on the pins present in another photo, hidden here by the belt), but, even so, seeing new creations from Patricia Ayres makes me feel that all is right in the world. Makes sense that it's fall, both my favorite season of the year and the time when my ArtLab pieces get worn the most. September, welcome.

And since we're on the topic of photos, this may be the greatest photo ever (aside from the fact that it's an Instagram, if that's even the right way to say it): Sigur Rós playing at Castello Scaligero in Verona (via Sigur Rós' Facebook). I can even hear the music just by looking at it. Fantastic.

no. 306

One trend both me and my man noticed in NY was the high/low skirt. I had originally thought this was a good idea when I saw the style in 2D photos. However, I must say it looks pretty ridiculous in the ultra-3D winds of Manhattan, particularly when the winds are created by the subway grates below the skirt's wearer. It may seem similar on paper, but a windblown asymmetrical skirt hem does not have the same romantic effect as windblown model-ly hair or a floating plastic bag. Unless we're talking about a mullet, or a shredded black garbage bag caught on barbed wire.

Having said that though, I have absolutely nothing against dresses with (2D or 3D) trains, such as on my mono Scarf Dress, and this, Genevieve Savard's no. 306 Silk bag dress. Indeed, this convertible beauty has just made My Top 3 Want List. Been a while since something squeezed in there!

Howling for answers no wolf can know*

My day "job" is so boring, last week I yawned so big that for the rest of this week, I'm going to have to drink my meals from a straw.

This weekend we planted a herb garden on our balcony, and today a strawberry died.

I used to read a particular blog all the time, thinking it was the brilliant musings of an ironic and well-aging man. But last week I found out its written by a girl younger than me, and now it seems neither ironic nor something that will age well.

AFP's Kickstarter passed $1 million today, and I watched it happen.

Cilantro grown on your balcony smells better than store-bought.

I'd rather read Don Quixote than a blog any day.

*Title from mewithoutYou's "Fox's Dream of the Log Flume"; dresses from Norwegian Wood, both of which will keep me cool and comfy whether counting down the seconds at work, or watching the trees whip by on the Vermonter.

In My Mind

Before I get to what has been occupying my mind for the last week and a half, let me first say this: chromat now has swimwear in stock and available to order from the chromat online shop! How can I not get a bathing suit with a hood? It's pretty much a match made in heaven (and not just because it's named the 'habit suit'). I'm also loving the back coverage for the top - quite unexpected for a bikini top, and would shield at least the trunk portion of my tattoo (...it's a tree). I'm not ashamed to say that I will likely wear this as a bra as well. Would go well with the TwinSyndrome bathingsuit bottoms I have been known to wear as underwear. Becca - genius!

Anyway, for the last week and a half, I've been aggravating my tennis elbow by constantly hitting refresh on Amanda (F'ing) Palmer's Kickstarter page. If you haven't heard all the hullaballoo on the Internets about AFP's brilliant success in raising enough money to produce and tour her upcoming album from her very own fans, I suggest you start by going to her Kickstarter page, and then perhaps Googling 'Amanda Palmer Kickstarter'. And if you're not familiar with Amanda Palmer, let me start by saying that I wasn't really either. In fact, I didn't bother trying to become familiar with her before, because: a) her eyebrows, or lack thereof, scare me (I've very particular about eyebrows); b) I can't relate to her brazenness (I have trouble being myself at work); and, most importantly, c) I'm jealous she gets to hear Neil Gaiman's voice whenever she wants. I honestly can't even say I had heard any music from her (and/or the Dresden Dolls) until I watched her Kickstarter video. Which was when I realized that she's really quite good at what she does and is to be admired for leaving her label (for very good reasons - Google that too) and for giving her very loyal fans a chance to be (even more) involved with her work. Without waxing noneloquently about the evils of the big music industry, etc., let's just say I backed Amanda's project (when it had reached about 4X what the goal was and only a few thousand backers) because I could get behind the idea of it, and now (when it has reached over 6X what the goal was and over 11,500 backers) I'm very much looking forward to seeing her in Brooklyn and hearing what I expect to be great music. I wonder if she could've predicted gaining a crapload of new fans because she asked for money...

Anyway, this Violitionist session was posted in the deluge of tweets* surrounding Amanda's Kickstarter. I think it's a very darling song, and Neil Gaiman as puppeteer amuses me to no end.

*P.S. An added bonus about said deluge of tweets was that I learned from a tweet/retweet of AFP that Five Iron Frenzy is alive again! Sad I missed that Kickstarter campaign - my wallet opens freely for those who hand me a big heap of nostalgia in exchange!

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After tearing myself away from staring at this minimalist tee by St. Anderswo (found via mydearthing's Etsy Favorites list), I promptly came upon the lovely architectural work of Belgian designer Margaux Bolle (see below; found/photos via NJAL). Is the universe trying to tell me something? And if so, does it have anything to do with pushing a button every 108 minutes? I feel like there's a trigonometric message in the clothes I'm drawn to this evening. But if I attempt to decipher it, can I ever go back?