My Latest Post for Vintage Maya

I've started a three-part series on shops that propagate vontage lifestyles in St-Henri: Part one.

Photo source: tonpetitlook.com

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Ten of My Favourite: Capes

For as long as I can remember, I have loved to wear capes. I've worn them in different ways throughout my life, starting with when I wore them to play dress-up as a child. I later wore them both ironically and then with all of the seriousness I could muster, when I was a Goth. The first winter coat I ever made myself was a cape made from Italian wool and lined with fleece. It had a hood and wee bells dangling from the ends of  its cordon.

Years ago I noticed that people in a lot of European countries also wore capes. In NYC capes were huge during the sixties and seventies, going from shorter mod versions to longer, peace-and-love and flared pants-covering ones. Then, around 2010, they made a comeback and have been holding steady since. Here in Montreal, I only began seeing capes on racks last fall and it's only this year that they could qualify as trendy, although I have barely seen any on actual people. the lack of a garment's popularity in Montréal has never swayed me before and it certainly won't now.

My criteria this time is simply that it looks good. You can easily style a cape with what you have on your arms or legs and feet and by changing what you do with your hair.

...Onward to ten of my favourite capes!

1. The Michael Kors pea coat cape for $295.00 USD.

2. ZARA's checkered studio cape for $269.00 CAD.

3. Banana Republic's monogram colorblock wool cape for $225.00 USD.

4, 5, 6. The next three are all from asos.com.

The Jarlo Kerry Check Cape for $85.43 USD.

The Cooper and Strollbrand Cape for $104.12 USD.

The Mango Wool Cape Coat for $177.96 USD.

7. As much as I would love to point you to stores that have several of the same thing in stock, I'm afraid this is where my mainstream retail list runs dry. That said, I have acquired most of my favourite capes and coats from the thrift store. Along the same vein, I will show you four gorgeous, vintage capes currently listed on Etsy. It's also a safe bet seeing as most capes will fit most sizes.

This Irish wool cape is $94.99 CAD.

8. This 1960's Betty Rose cape is $84.32 CAD.

9. This reversible cape from the 60's is $307.40 CAD.

10. This argyle cape is currently on sale for $40.56 CAD.

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Scores From My November Clothing Exchange

almost two weeks ago, i hosted my annual winter clothing swap. everyone scored several great pieces and, as usual, we all had so much fun, laughing, drinking wine, trying on clothing and catching up. anything we didn't want was donated to a verdun family that recently lost everything in a fire. 

this year, a few of the girls stuck around afterward so that i could photograph them wearing their favourite acquisitions. we picked up some chinese food, drank more wine, touched up make-up and then shot away. 

this is my chum, jessie, who fell in love with a vintage, blue velvet jacket (you'll see more of this jacket in a it):

and here she is in a lovely, ankle-length, zebra print dress by b starlet. we lacked room to shoot the whole dress but i'm sure you can tell by this bodice that this dress looks fantastic on her!

jasmin, a new friend and the latest addition to our swap crew got her hands on this military-style dress by toska that i had thrown into the pile:

she and this dress compliment each other so well!

jasmin also found this h & m jacket that looks like it was made just for her:

here are jessie and jasmin in their gorgeous finds:

this is sophie, who has been with our little group for a couple of years, now:

she fell for this cute blouse from collectif, a french rocka/psychobilly clothing company:

being a horror fan, she was also quite happy to come across and claim this diy, friday the 13th top:

my daughter, as usual, left the living room, giggling and exclaiming "yes!" and "score!", with a huge pile of clothing in her arms. unfortunately, being that she is twelve and neck-deep in her oh-my-god-ew-don't-take-a-picture-i-hate-it phase, you'll just have to imagine the band t-shirts, skinny jeans and hoodies that she acquired.

given that i was hosting and photographing, i did not give myself time to prepare for being on the other side of the camera but two of my favourite items are this lovely, silk, floor-length holt renfrew night dress:

and an only slightly-faded version of the spy dress, which i'd had my eye on for the longest time. here it is worn by bernie dexter for pinupgirlclothing.com:

i've already packed away at least ten items for the next exchange, which will take place in february!

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My Spring and Fall Jacket Collection (And How The Whole Thing Cost Me $131).

as temperature lows have been holding steady below the zero mark, with the exception of that one, freakishly warm day last week, i've been once more hit with the sad realization that it's time to put away all of my lighter jackets until march. every year, when i store my jackets and again, when i take them out, i get rid of a few pieces. i'm happy to note that, in the last two years, i've been feeling the need to purge diminish, as i have been building quite the little collection and i am very pleased with it.   the best part is, the grand total spent on these pieces was $131 plus tax. 

i bought this lovely houndstooth jacket a few months ago at the friperie renaissance, in verdun, for all of $6. it's still a bit tight around the shoulders but, given how my weight has been fluctuating, i've decided to keep it. 

i'm getting tired of animal print, in general, thanks to it having exploded in mainstream fashion over the last few years and that's too bad because a lot of my rockabilly and psychobilly clothing is now this close to actually annoying me. anyhow, i've decided to keep two of my animal print jackets (i got rid of the other three, last spring).

i got this jacket as part of a trade made at a craft fair, last fall. i met a really good friend of mine there and i believe i got this jacket in exchange for a vintage, art deco necklace i was selling. it may have been two autumns ago. (it's one of those friendships that feels like it's been a part of my life for much longer than it has and so i'm losing track of time). 

the other animal print jacket i'm keeping (although i haven't worn it in over a year and i've only worn it two or three times in all so i should reconsider this, next spring) is this one that i bought at the le chateau warehouse for $25, about 5 years ago. a part of the reason i like it so much is the detailing in the fabric, seen in the second photo. it's such a fun texture, even if i have to be careful to not hook it onto anything sharp or protruding:

i, of course, have my harrington. i keep it out all winter, though, because i sometimes wear it indoors. 

i had three aviator jackets but gave a matte, leather one to my daughter. i'm keeping this one, that i bought on sale for $15, about three or four years ago:

this warmer one, on the other hand, i will be selling as soon as i find the clearly detachable, faux lamb collar that came with it. i bought it on sale for $30 and wore it once. 

i have one blue jacket and i bought it in a large store downtown that sells a lot of hideous things and plays their techno music way too loudly. they stuck the rack in the entrance, by the sidewalk and it caught my eye as i was walking down ste-catherine west, last spring. i bought it for $15. it needs a little love (and some buttons) but i'll deal with that when i pull it out again.

i love both of my red jackets but i must admit that i have not worn this first one in a long time. i bought it a few years ago, on sale, for $15 and i put it on once or twice, last spring. this will pain me to share but i bought this one at the same store as that blue one. what?! they sell cute, $15 jackets! 

(i have the exact same on in black and that one is staying my closet for the odd, warmer day). 

this other red one i scored in july, at the "take off your clothes" swap team event i mentioned here so, i got it for free. it appears to be vintage and comes with a great little sash that always slips out, hence why it is not in the photo. (i'm going to have to find it before i store these or it will nag at me!). the sleeve length and large buttons are great for pulling off the perfect, early 60's look. it's light and pretty and i feel great in it!

my absolute favourite spring/fall jacket score of the year was bought just two weeks ago, for all of $10 at la friperie renaissance, in verdun. i can barely express how thrilled i am to have found this. it fits perfectly and i feel beautiful and confidant in it. i'm only sad that i found it so late in the season and i can't wait to wear it with some elbow-length, leather or crocheted gloves in the spring. the photo doesn't show you just how awesome it is so i'll post a photo of me wearing it, in the spring. 

my prized cape:

i want to mention two more coats in this post. firstly, a moment of silence, if you will, for what was my favourite spring/fall coat (that looks much better when on an actual person than it does on an emaciated mannequin). i wore it for years and now it is frayed, missing buttons, ripped in the shoulder... it's a mess. i will give myself one more week to decide whether or not i love it enough to unsew it and use the pieces to draft myself a pattern for a new one. a reincarnation of sorts... *sigh*

and, finally, a sneak look at a coat that deserves its own post. it's vintage (the only time i wear fur) and was given to me. this one needs to be shot outside, on me and with a fresh blanket of snow on the ground. 

i will create a similar post when it is time to put away my winter coats, in april, but for now, this is it. 

...i do also have two prefectos or leather, motorcycle jackets but i'll be painting those over the course of the next few months and i'll share the results with you when i'm done. 

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