Wednesday, January 2, 2013

The Clothes Off My Back: Holiday Edition

Good morning!

Well, we made it folks! Christmas? DONE. New Year's? DONE. And yet there were still a few Christmas glad tidings peeking around the corner from 2012! Yesterday, Chad McClarnon (of McClarnon.com and, in concert with his wife, Trista, party-thrower par excellence) posted photos from the "McClarnon Midwinter Manifestation of Merriment & Mirth 2012", which took place last weekend. I was clinging to life the next day from an overindulgence in the lethally alcohol-laced Artillery Punch (simply put, I was a "bombing" victim), but somehow, through the fog, Chad is such a brilliant photographer that instead of looking like Phyllis Diller in the snaps taken in his self-manned photo booth, Matthew and I actually look pretty good, if I do say so myself! 


The shining bird's nest atop my head is my very best beehive-- what do you think? I took my hair in two pigtails to either side of my head, carefully wrapped them around two hair rats, and sprayed and pinned and sprayed and pinned until it smoothed out enough to look like something. Then I pinned a star-shaped brooch to one side and the whole thing came tumbling down from the weight, and I started over. AGAIN. Twice the hive was built, and twice it fell, but the third one somehow managed to stay atop my head. I've started using some of those old fashioned, long, viciously sharp tipped u-shaped pins (some came in a vanity set I bought a dog's age ago, and I've finally figured out the trick to securing them in one's hair!) and I think they lend to the structural integrity overall.




Also, regarding outfits, that is a whole lotta dress. The invitation suggested "holiday finery", so I pulled this frothy gold concoction out of the attic (I actually have one box labelled "BIG DRESSES", meaning impact more than size, and this is one of the choicest of that box's contents). It was hanging on a shower rail at an estate sale seven plus years ago in a dry cleaning bag, and was definitely less than $10 (though its real worth is its weight in rubies!). Despite then and now presenting itself as the answer to my honky tonk angel prayers, it really begs a BIG occasion to be worn. This was it! Matthew and I have both lost some serious inches in our initial foray into vegetarian/veganism/not eating 39 steaks a day, so both his Adam Ant pants from October and my own slim waisted dresses are fitting with far less effort than before.

This one might be my favorite, though I wish I'd held the handbag so that you could see the front of it-- it's a faux Enid Collins I gifted myself last weekend, and boy, if it isn't a pip! I'll have to snap a picture to show you soon. The compact (which, if you look closely, you can see is actually falling apart) is a Niagara Falls souvenir from the forties'-- swank! I am shamelessly impressed with myself.


Last but not least, here's a bonus photo of me and the half beehive from a wedding Matthew and I went to last Friday night. It was at Belmont Mansion, and was it bee-yoo-tiful? You'd better believe it! Congrats, Emily and Orion! This dress is a) tiny (I couldn't get it to zip when I bought it at the same sale with the gold and black sequin dresses, but meatlessness has whittled me down to a mere shadow of myself!) and b) an even more beautiful aquamarine in real life, owing to the fact that the chiffon overlay is a bright blue, and the rayon lining is a dark blue, making the whole thing look a little like the depths of an aquarium. I love it! I want to wear it every day of my life!


Did you break out any particularly gorgeous, struttin' clothes for the holidays? What of your wardrobe just screams "special occasion" to you? Have you made any resolutions for the new year yet? Let's talk!

Have a great second day of 2013, and I'll see you tomorrow!

16 comments:

  1. Love, love, LOVE these photos! Adorable! And you KNOW how I feel about that gold dress. The blue one is a dream too. And hello, you totally aced your beehive. I have a ton of those pins too but have never been able to figure out how to make them work. Pfft. Hey, I haven't eaten meat in years and don't have your figure. Unfair, universe! Unfair! I have to get props to Matthew's outfit too. It's fantastic.

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    1. Re: gold dress: I stitched up the coming-undone left shoulder of it and went-- it's time to break this one out! I felt like Loretta Lynn all night (the highest compliment I can pay an outfit). Re: blue one: that's from that same sale you, Rae, and I all went to...at the time, I felt bad for buying too many dresses; now I think I didn't buy enough!

      Thanks for the beehive encouragement! IT'S TAKING OVER! hahaha

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  2. I never get to dress up anymore. I went to a holiday party at the end of November and got to dress up. That was fun. My daughter thinks she needs to be dressed to the nines on a daily basis, though. We're going to the grocery? Clearly the occasion calls for her Easter dress even if she does pair it with splatter-paint snow boots.
    I love your bee hive and these pictures.

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    1. I always go "Eh, should I do it? Should I wear the dress?" and then I always do. Your little girl has the right idea; she's an early fashion adopter! :)

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  3. Girl, you are lookin' SKINNY! My problem is not so much meat consumption but waffle fry consumption. I love both dresses but especially the blue one. And the beehive turned out fantastic, no wiglet required! Also, I demand faux Enid pictures. I have been looking for an Enid-esque bag in a dark color for winter with no luck for months and so I am green with envy at your find! And that Bab is one dapper guy...the weird/evil-looking Santa doll complements the colors in his outfit perfectly. Happy New Year!!

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    1. Thanks! I did the Enid bag on today's post as per request-- warning, it is seriously cute. You'll find yours out there before winter's over, without a doubt--when you've got "the eye" like you do, it's sure to turn up!

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  4. Oh my, that gold dress is AMAZING!

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    1. Thanks! I'm seriously going to start wearing it once a week, it's my new favorite.

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  5. These pics are *amazing*!!!! My fave is where you're applying lipstick. FAB!

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    1. That was the photographer (Chad's) idea! He's really good.

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  6. I saw these on Chad's FB page. They are outstanding...all of them! Looked like a fun time and that ballyhoo ensued.

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    1. Haha, weren't all of the holiday pictures cute? Freakin Trista and Kate's red ballgowns...NOT TO BE BELIEVED. Adorable!

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  7. How come you get to be tall, with a normal sized head you can put hats on? NOT FAIR. Hey! I know where there is an Enid Collins bag in perfect condition. It has a horse and carriage on the front, gaudily embellished, of course. Thirty dollah.

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    1. No ma'am! My head is in no way normal sized! I just buy little hats and pin them all cockeyed to my head, or buy oversized hats that just barely fit it. As for tall, guilty. I'm trying to curb my Enid habit or I would take you up on that horse and carriage bag. UGH. WHY ARE THEY ALL SO ALLURING.

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  8. oh i love those photos! its like you guys dressed to compliment that background and chair. matthew's red pants especially look good! i don't remember that blue dress, maybe i was too dazzled by those incredible sequins! someday i will find a cute vintage dress that fits me, i just know it! and by them maybe i'll have long hair to sweep up in a cut beehive.

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  9. How much FUN you have! I love your photos, and even more, I love the idea that someone hikes up to the attic to find a treasure vintage dress for a Christmas Party! You too look like you are having a BALL! Happy New Year to you both!

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