I'm not aware of too many things.

big old thrifted patch work shirt

Madewell jeans

straw bucket hat from Target

Reef flip flops
resting bitch face

Not so long ago, the always amazing and insightful Suzanne Carillo published a little worksheet to help us identify our personal Style Statement.

You can check it out HERE.
I filled in the worksheet but I was soooooo confused.

The results made absolutely zero sense to me.
My list of style attributes sounded like the names of Snow White's little men:
Sleepy, Grumpy, Frumpy, Dumpy, Tipsy, Schlumpy and Bored

You see, I have spent the better half (and I use the term "better" loosely) of the past five years somewhat out of commission.
It didn't seem like I'd gotten dressed in real clothes for a very long time. Though I do have to admit that there is somewhat of a deconstructed chic to hospital gowns.  

Alas, I had lost my style mojo.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So.....

For a week I photographed every outfit, every day to try to figure out my "Style Statement."

I think I've figured it out:

It's big old shirts, jeans and sensible shoes.

big old linen shirt and little old cardigan from The Gap Outlet circa 1990

Levi's 501 jeans

beat up old Born ballet flats

big old made-by-me fabric remnant dress

Lucky jeans

Ecco sandals
1930's amber bead necklace from my very stylish mother-in-law

big old men's shirt from Target

big old hideous Eileen Fisher jeans - purchased with my employee discount

bandana borrowed from Pancake (my dog)

Merrill clogs

big old shirt and big old bib overalls circa 1980's

shocking pink kinesio tape on my ankle courtesy of my physical therapist ~ thanks Oly

fresh haircut

big old flannel shirt that used to be a dress until I cut it off

ridiculous elastic waist jeggings - that's right - jeggings

Warby Parker spectacles

Vionic clogs

big old thrifted Chinese housecoat

Lucky jeans

Hush Puppy sandals

LIPSTICK!!

big old rayon boho tunic I have had, like, forever

Lucky jeans

Reef flip flops

Seriously. I want to Thank Suzanne for her Style Worksheet. This has been most enlightening. I honestly had no idea that I was such a blue jean baby.
Did you take Suzanne's quiz?
What is your Style Statement?

And like the good little blogger that I try to be, I am linking up with the Always Stylish Patti.
Also, for the very first time ever I am joining Judith's Hat Attack!!!

Kickin' It Grandma Style

The Granny Alphabet by Lawrence Mynott

The Granny Alphabet by Tim Walker and Kit Hesketh-Harvey



PLUS A GIVEAWAY!!

HEY! You are all so wonderful! I just LOVED reading your comments about your first fashion memories. If you haven't had a chance to read them yet you really should go to my last blog post and check them out. Interestingly most of them had to do with either denim or hand-me-downs.

The beautiful Rosemary of Miss Cellany talked on her blog about her adorable Smocked Dress and how this style has followed her throughout  her life.

And of course there is Curtise's famous Chicken Dress!!

So....let us now flip to the other end of the calendar of life.

I am not a Grandma. But at 62 I am certainly old enough to be one. I get the senior citizen discount at the pharmacy and the movie theatre. I buy purple shampoo. And cute young guys approach me not to flirt but to help me carry heavy packages. 

But I don't mind...much.

Maybe because I was fortunate enough to know my grandmothers and they were both pretty great, I have always adored good old fashioned Granny Style. I've kind of been dressing like a grandma ever since I was a teenager.

*my friends and family are all rolling their eyes and nodding their heads YES right now*

 I love orthopedic shoes with socks. I love flowered rayon dresses. I love pilled cardigan sweaters with wadded up Kleenex in the pockets. I love purses stuffed with almost-used-up tubes of  lipstick, tins of mints, torn ticket stubs and battered pet photos. I like chipped nail polish and too much rouge and bobby pins and reading glasses on chains.

And NOW I'm finally old enough to rock this style Authentically.

flowered rayon dress I've owned since the 1980's
gray cashmere sweater ~  also mine since the 1980's
piles of bead bracelets from various decades
brand new! ankle socks
super comfy orthopedic sandals ~ Naturalizer
tea cup and saucer ~ a gift from my Grandma Worthington
grey hair ~ Mother Nature

And now the GIVEAWAY part.



THE GRANNY ALPHABET is the most adorable two part book.

It is one of my very favorite picture books and I want to share it with you.

One book is full of photographs of Grannies by the Amazing Tim Walker.

The other book is full of charming Grandma drawings by the equally Amazing Lawrence Mynott.

 My one and only criticism is that it is lacking in diversity. But Tim Walker has said that this book was an homage to "the little old ladies who live down the lane" and I honestly believe that just about everybody will recognize a favorite Nana in these books.

Here's a teeny weeny sample:



#hot harridan reading ~ Thanks for that, Melanie :-)

So.... if you would like to have these books for your very own let me know in the Comments section and in mid-April I will pick one name out of my old straw granny hat.

Good Luck, Kids!!!!

I'll be kickin' it at Patti's Visible Monday. Meet me there.



overalls

Do you Recall your Very First Personal Fashion Moment???

My first Memory is of Overalls.

I must have been about three years old. At least I hope I was only three! I was wearing the type of Toddler Overalls that snap on the inside of the legs for quick emergency trips to the potty. The snaps were unsnapped, the pant legs were flapping around and I started twirling around singing, "I'm wearing a dress." My First Fashion Moment. Tra La.

Well, the fashion neurons in my brain must have imprinted on those overalls because I have owned and worn some form of bib overalls practically every decade of my life.

Meanwhile it is finally RAINING in SoCal!!!

El Nino ha llegado. YIPPEE!!!!

We're hunkered down doing inside rainy day things like

packing up holiday ornaments

baking cookies

and searching for new knitting projects

How gorgeous is Daphne Selfe in this Rowan knitting book?

striped turtleneck ~ Anthro
overalls ~ vintage 1990's from enidandedgar Etsy shop
Calgary slip on clogs ~ Vionic

Soooo....My Friends. What was YOUR Very First Fashion Memory?????

Do Tell.

meanwhile I'm linking up with the Super Smart Patti at Visible Monday

 Ooooohhhh.

This post is just perfect for Spy Girl's

Fashion Rosebud.

Check out the other Rosebuds HERE 



my dottie angel frock

 



You know who dottie angel is, don't you? She lives over at mossy shed and has the most beautiful crafty life. Here's a little video to introduce you: Click HERE Please

THE Tif Fussell

 

I've admired Tif Fussell for an awfully long time. You can find her on Instagram @dottieangel. So when I found out that she had created a pattern of her famous dottie angel frock for Simplicity Patterns, I was first in line. In fact, this may be one of the few sewing patterns that I've bought lately for which I actually paid full price. That is how much I love this girl!

the frock

 



the pattern



a  classic dottie angel pose
dress ~ made by me
neck-hiding turtle neck ~ J Crew
leggings ~ Capezio
orthopedic clogs ~ Yes!!! Effing ORTHOPEDIC CLOGS! ~ Merrell

This project was lots of fun and very easy to make. I used some plaid that I found in the discount bin. I think it may have been school uniform fabric which makes me very happy.

And I recycled the plaid for the pockets and tie from THIS dress.

I raised the neckline both front and back and replaced dottie angel's adorable apron pockets with plain old square connie snow pockets.

That's what I like about this pattern, it is super simple to personalize.

my ever increasing backside all tied up with a bow!
ah..the joys of middle age

 

THANK YOU SO MUCH TIF. I LOOOOOVE MY FROCK!!!!

And speaking of things that I Love,

because I subscribe to the New York Times,

I received a Google Cardboard NYT/VR.

Virtual Reality. My Favorite Kind of Reality These Days. Click HERE for the details.

I am completely Bonkers over this thing. It is Exquisitely Trippy.

 In fact, sometimes I actually trip while looking at it.

 Wish I could let you in on it but you'll just have to either come over to my house or get your own.

Thank you New York Times and Google.



Well....I think that is Quite Enough of moi en plaid for one day.

Therefore.....

 

I'm heading over to Patti's Visible Monday to see what the kids are up to over there.

~~~~~~~~~~

And even though this has nothing to do with Anne's 52 Pick-me-up prompt of green acorn I'm going to visit her as well just cuz I like her so darn much.

Carrots

Ahhh... October in Southern California. Warm during the day and cool at night. Most of the tourists have returned to their leaf strewn inland homes. The beach and the streets and the taco shops are ours once again.

While the rest of the world is enjoying pumpkin spice this and that and boots and sweaters, we're still wearing tee shirts and flip flops and eating guacamole.

bonus points if you can spot my canine taste tester

 

It was a perfect Fall day today. I discovered some frozen Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies in the back of the freezer, which is almost as good as finding a forgotten $20 bill in the pocket of your jeans. So I brewed up some Detox tea to hopefully counteract the sugar. Yeah..right...

 

I was reading through the blogs like you do and I noticed that Anne's prompt for this week's

 52 Pick-Me-Up is Carrot / Perseverance.

Heck. I can do that. In fact I am actually doing that right now. It was meant to be. That Anne is not only talented but she is psychic. 

 Check out these crazy carrots! So beautiful. 

 

And I'm wearing a carrot colored dress with my face on it! 

 

So. Perseverance.

As you know (because I blather on about it endlessly. blah blah blah) I have had my share of health issues. Even though I have had more than one Debbie Downer of a doctor tell me that I need to suck it up and just accept my current situation, je refuse d'accepter!

 Oh Hell No!!!

I am sticking with my recovery plan, which of course includes frozen Thin Mints. And one day very soon I will be jumping around doing Cartwheels.

YES I WILL. So There!!

Carrots and Perseverance. 

carrot colored Mexican or Guatemalan dress, I'm not sure which ~ rock street vintage via Etsy
colored glass bead necklace ~ I've had it for so long I don't remember where I got it
black flip flops ~ Reef

 

 

Join me as I make a psychic connection at Anne's 52-Pick-Me-Up.

And I'm bringing the carrots to Patti's Visible Monday.

See you There!

 

 

 

 

 

Sugar Fiends

 Out in the Wild West where I grew up, there were no Hummingbirds.

Perhaps they are scared away by the Grizzly Bears and the Rattlesnakes and the Extreme Temperatures.

Heck. Most Humans can hardly stand it

But where I live now there is actually a Road named after them.

Fuzzy Baby Hummingbird. Isn't it Cute? In My Backyard, Yo!

 

We are, as you may have heard, in the midst of an historic drought here in Southern California.

Not a lotta flowers this year.

And it is hard out here for a Hummingbird.

So I decided to put my Degree in Pastry Making to use and Cook up a little Hummingbird Food.

Here is my Recipe.

Just in case the Hummingbirds in your neighborhood need a little extra grub:

ONE PART SUGAR

I like to use Organic Sugar.

TO FOUR PARTS WATER.

I like to use Spring Water.

HEAT UP THE MIXTURE WHILE STIRRING UNTIL THE SUGAR IS DISSOLVED.

THEN LET IT COOL.

baggy linen pants ~ hand me up from my daughter
rayon kimono ~ purchased over 2 years ago at the Encinitas Seaside Bazaar
stripedy tee ~ Gap
sunglasses ~ Raen
flippety flops ~ Reef - toujours les Reefs
 

ET VOILA!!! 

Le Food for ze Hummingbirds.

I've always thought that Hummingbirds were sweet little polite fairy-like birds.

But, Man, they are so jacked up on sugar that they fight over this stuff like it's the Last Pair of Uggs at the Nordstrom Half  Yearly Sale!!!

Total Sugar Fiends!

 

Flying over to Patti's Party at Visible Monday.

See you there!