Far And Beyond Better

A few weeks ago when I was in Qualicum Beach, I bought a black and white, checked suit at a second hand shop. Fully lined and a designer name, it was a REALLY good deal at $39.00. When I tried it on, the saleslady said, "Several people have tried that on. You should buy it." That made me feel really good as did the smaller size label inside. AND THEN, yesterday, when I was trying to figure out why the zipper wouldn't slide smoothly, I noticed that the skirt is a size smaller than the jacket. What fun. Perhaps they neglected to put a one in front of that number but I'll take it.




There were two things I didn't like about the suit. The first was the buttons. There must be a garment on which these glitzy things would look fabulous but I'm not sure what it could be and I know for sure that it's not a black and white check. The wrong buttons cheapen an expensive outfit and the right buttons can upgrade a less expensive one.

Since I am avoiding Fabricland - LOL - I went through my stash looking for two buttons that would work. First, I dumped out the jar of black buttons and then I looked through the carded ones. I have lots of buttons. You would think I could find two the same that would do the trick. NOT.





I did find five sets that wouldn't work. Laying them against the fabric showed which size was better but none looked exactly right.




These two below were the only real possibilities however, one is too simple and the other too glitzy which meant - DARN - off to Fabricland.




When I got there, buttons were on sale 50% off. Perfect. I bought two cards of two. I did NOT buy any extra buttons. The one on the left was not glitzy but was still too fancy for the fabric. The one on the right had enough texture to make it interesting without taking over.




Here's a detail shot of the ones I used so you can see what I mean. They're quite nice. Hmm... perhaps I should have bought more. NO - I have enough. I have enough. I have enough. I'll just keep repeating this mantra.




The original buttons were not only the wrong flavour, they were too small and spaced too far apart to make any kind of statement. In the image below, I put the black ones along side. You can see how vastly different this looks.

And here they are sewn on. While you might not agree, - and you're fully entitled to your opinion - I think the black ones look far and beyond better. It could be because I'm just not a glitzy girl. I prefer my shine to be the diamonds on my fingers rather than buttons on my breast.




Problem number two was the fur cuffs. If you have wide hips like I do, then the last thing you need is additional inches right at hip level which is exactly where the cuffs were when my arms were down.




Luckily, the fur was basted in place with large stitches and easily removed. Here's the cuff before and then after. Again - IMHO - much better.

I woke the boys up fifteen minutes early yesterday morning so they could take pictures of me in the outfit before I left for church (They go to a later services) only they were too sleepy to wait until I was smiling and ready. Excuse the grumpy looks AND the red face. I accidentally had gluten last week - several times. It was not labelled on a spice mix that I bought, mixed into a dish, and ate repeatedly with the left overs. It took me a bit to figure out what the problem was. One of the symptoms I get is a red face and a rash and the longer I'm away from eating gluten, the redder my skin gets when I do have some. It should settle down by mid week. It takes a few days for the gluten to work out of my system.

Below is the skirt with a knit top and the necklace I bought on holidays. This is the length of short skirt that works for my body shape because it hits at a point where my leg narrows. I'm comfortable wearing a short skirt at this body weight which is three sizes smaller than the last time I tried this style on. When I gain weight, it goes on my hips. When I'm heavier, I look like a ball on stilts in a short skirt.

Here's the jacket unbuttoned. Done up, it's just a little bit snug - a few more pounds and it'll look even better. Maybe next winter. Maybe never. This is a fun garment. Inexpensive and something that is "in" right now and mostly likely "out" next year, at least the coat. I've always liked black and white checked fabric so I'd probably still wear the skirt if it fits ALTHOUGH...




... on my figure type, a dark bottom and a lighter top is a much better look. I have some dark green lace left from the outfit that I made for my daughter's wedding. I've been thinking about a short skirt made from it.

Today, I need to take pictures of the pieces for my exhibit and get them to the curator for an upcoming newsletter. They don't have to be professional shots - just good ones. Thank goodness. Then, there is some tax information to fill out for the previous quarter. I only have one more of these to do for the end of the year to finalize closing the business UNLESS I come up with another brainy idea but so far, nothing.

I thought about Susan Being Snippy's suggestion to write a book. It intrigues me but I've done that already. It's not a money maker. I did ponder a title - Fashion After Forty: From Frumpy to Fabulous. Sounds fine. Completely subjective though.

After the photos and paperwork, I want to tidy up the studio and work on finishing either the bra or the t-shirt. I'm ready to start something new but can't do that until I finish the work in progress. I did a lot of knitting on the weekend and finished the main part of the capelet. Before the meetings tomorrow, I want to pick up the stitches for the collar band, hopefully. I think my list is longer than the time allotted.

Talk soon - Myrna

Grateful - second hand shopping, a fun find at a great price