Lumpy Friends: Adding Fun Finishing Touches to Some Looks!

While I don't often add too much embellishments to my outfits, I do love the extra finishing touches a cute brooch or sweater clip can make to a look!

So when one of my all time favorite shops, Cats Like Us, asked me if I would be interested in checking out their newest addition to their accessories, super cute felt brooches by Lumpy Buttons, I jumped at the chance! All it took was a quick browse through Lumpy Buttons designs to know these cute little brooches were right up my alley! These super cute brooches are all made in the US, are thick and sturdy, and are not only beautifully embellished with embroidery but many also feature beading!

One of the brooches I picked out was this Cute Pineapple Pin Brooch! I love the Hawaiian and tiki allusion a pop of pineapple conjures in my mind! But I also love pineapples because they always remind me of the song "It Couldn't Please Me More (A Pineapple)" from the musical Cabaret where the guy gives his lady love a pineapple as a token of his love and admiration.

For a matchy matchy look I paired my pineapple with my Collectif Tullulah Tropical Toucan print dress. This sarong style dress is such a perfect match with the pineapple brooch not only because of the tropical theme evident throughout the print and sarong style of the dress, but also because there are pineapples in the print of the dress! So much fun to do it up super matchy matchy!

Cute Pineapple Pin Brooch by Lumpy Buttons from Cats Like Us

For another look I paired the pineapple brooch with my Trashy Diva Zebra Bows Varga dress. What I love about pairing it with this dress is that the pineapple really becomes front and center being the pop of color in the dress! It gives the dress a completely tropical look that's super summery and fun!

When I saw that Cats Like Us were carrying Lumpy Button cat brooches I couldn't resist picking one of these kitties up! Though honestly, I wouldn't have expected anything less of my cat loving friends at Cats Like Us than to ensure there would be some kitties in the mix! <3

While it was a no brainer for me to pick up a kitty brooch, just which one to pick out was a harder decision. These kitties came in lots of color combos and to make it even harder, some had closed eyes with embroidered flowers and some where open eyed with beaded eyes. I ultimately picked the black and red combo (my husband's choice actually ;)) and got the kitty with the closed eyes and embroidered flowers, the Kitty Pin in Girly Red.

In another matchy matchy pairing I paired my kitty brooch with my black and red Retro Dita Dress by Folter. While the colors were a spot on match with this dress, I love that the brooch gives this dress a whimsical kitty element. As the saying goes, put a cat on it! And I don't mind if I do, thank you! <3

Kitty Pin in Girly Red by Lumpy Button from Cats Like Us

Because I was having so much fun playing around with all the pairing options with these brooches, I made up another look, a two in one if you will, with my Trashy Diva Smoked Leopard Cage dress. The smoked leopard dress already has the definite kitty theme going on with the leopard print so I thought it was an obviously adorable pairing to pair the kitty brooch with this dress!

In one look I wore the brooch and dress together with a red vintage bolero. I love how the black and grey of the dress and red of the bolero are glued together by the black and red in the cat brooch. I feel this look has a well-balanced appearance with the grey and black in the dress tied well together with the big pop of red of the red bolero by the addition of this brooch.

 

In another look I wore the brooch with dress alone without the bolero. When worn together, just the dress and brooch, this brooch adds a perfect pop of color to the dress! Subtle, yet sweet, and all kitty!

More Modcloth Finds: 50% Off Sale!

During the last couple of weeks Modcloth was having an awesome 50% off sale!

During this sale I snagged a few things ;)

The Chic Companion Skirt in Chat by Bea and Dot is a fun modern take on the 1950's poodle skirt. This is a essentially a poodle skirt with a cat! The material of the skirt is a flowly, heavier weight polyester/spandex blend and has a good drape to it. I think this skirt would be perfect with a petticoat to really show off the silky white cat which is stitched onto the front lower corner of the skirt. It has a shape without a petticoat but the cat does get a little lost in the folds of the skirt when it is worn as is.

I paired this skirt here with a vintage white 1950's blouse from Etsy and B.A.I.T. Ida black and white kitten heels... a perfect pairing for this 50's style skirt!

Also, for those who are unfamiliar with the brand, it seems that Bea and Dot is Modcloth's house brand and are their own in-house designs. Apparently Bea and Dot was named after Modcloth's Founder, Susan Koger's two grandmothers. Myrtlewood is another house brand of Modcloth's. At least this is what I read on blogger's Cathey with an E's blog. Makes since as the label for the Bea and Dot skirt read: Bea and Dot By Modcloth. ;)

Bea and Dot Chic Companion Skirt- Front View

Bea and Dot Chic Companion Skirt- Front View

Bea and Dot Chic Companion Skirt- Side View

Bea and Dot Chic Companion Skirt- Back View

Bea and Dot Chic Companion Skirt- Cat Close Up

Another great find which I was especially excited about is the Off Tropic Dress by Collectif A.K.A. Collectif's Tullulah Tropical Toucan print dress.

The Tullulah Tropical Toucan print dress is a sarong style dress (the first in my dress collection!). This dress has wider shoulder straps, a ruched fitted bustline, a back zip, and a self fabric belt with a bamboo buckle! The fabric is a thickly woven cotton print which has fun pink flamingos, blue and teal leaves, pink, yellow, and white plumaria, black and white toucans, white and blue birds, and yellow pineapples! The thickly woven texture of the fabric gives this dress a true vintage look!

While I absolutely love the print, the material, and the design of this sarong style dress, the fit of it is extremely weird. I chatted with a Modcloth stylist about what size I should get since on the Modcloth website it says to order a size down but also that there is no stretch in the fabric. She advised that my best bet would be to go with my usual size large since a medium might be too tight around the waist. Once this dress arrived I was dismayed to find that the top was extremely big and the waist was also a little big. Also, a strange thing about this dress is that the back zip is able to zip a good distance down the length of the dress but the opening of the liner on the inside of the dress actually stops a good distance from the end of the zipper, restricting the opening for wiggling into the dress. While size-wise I might actually have been able to order a size down, the weird lining closing the back before the end of the zipper would have completely prevented me from getting into the dress.

In any case, I pulled some seams in on the sides of the dress (thank goodness there were no side zippers!) and on the waist darts. I made these alterations as just a quick fix without doing a super professional job and without undoing the lining first, but because of the super busy pattern on the dress it is completely unnoticeable!

I probably wouldn't have put as much effort into this dress if it wasn't such a steal and if it didn't have the flamingos and the super cool thickly woven true vintage looking fabric. After the sale price discount and after a $20 credit from their refer a friend program (!!!! :D People I know are awesome for trying them out. You know who you are ;)) I ended up getting this dress for only $30!

Tullulah Tropical Toucan Print Dress, Collectif- Front View

Tullulah Tropical Toucan Print Dress, Collectif- Side View

Tullulah Tropical Toucan Print Dress, Collectif- Back View

Tullulah Tropical Toucan Print Dress, Collectif- Close Up

Collectif is a U.K. based vintage reproduction company which features awesome designs. One thing I really love about their clothing is that they don't only focus on dresses as most vintage repro brands seem to do but also have an extensive collection of tops, blouses, cardigans, and even pants! I often hesitate on ordering their stuff though since shipping from the UK is rather high and I cringe at the thought of having to ship back clothes and loose out on both shipping to me and shipping back to them if the items I order don't fit. Enter Modcloth who often stock some of Collectif's items and offers free shipping on orders over $50 and only $5 shipping back to them if the items don't work out. :)

Overall, it was a great shopping day on Modcloth :D

Also, for sizing purposes, the Bea and Dot skirt I got in large which fit my 39-31-38, 5'3" frame well! And as mentioned, I ordered the Collectif dress in size large (UK 14)... my usual size from Collectif, which fit me not so well.