Silver Cat Tea Party

Friday, July 18, 2014

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- 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.

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Leisurely Sunday Afternoon

Leisurely Sunday afternoons are the best.

Especially when the sun is shining, the weather's great, and you get to spend some time outdoors.

This past Sunday my husband and I went out to the park to play a round of bocce ball then went out for Italian ice and frozen custard. Too bad every day can't be a Sunday!

Outfit of the Day:

For this easy-going day I wore a green plaid sundress by Ixia which I bought from Ebay and some oversized woven-looking white and gold earrings I picked up from Modcloth during their recent 50% off sale.

Plaid Sundress By Ixia- Front View

Plaid Sundress By Ixia- Side View

Woven-Looking White and Gold Earrings, Modcloth- Close Up

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Picnic In The Park: Betty's Baby Shower

Hello Kittens!

Last weekend I went out with my girls to Santa Clara to celebrate a friend's baby shower. The weather was perfect, we had a nice comfortable seat in the shade, the food was great, and you really couldn't ask for better company! Congratulations to the happy couple on their new edition!

Cake!

Lovely Cake Table At Betty and Brady's Baby Shower

The Happy Couple Celebrating Their New Edition

Outfit of the Day:

For this day's festivities I wore the Bettie Page Paradise Dress and a straw cloche hat. For convience and comfort, I paired this with blue flats from Blowfish.

Bettie Page Paradise Dress- Front View

Bettie Page Paradise Dress- Side View

The dress comes with a matching bolero which I brought with me but didn't end up wearing... the weather was perfect for a sundress!

Bettie Page Paradise Dress With Matching Bolero- Front View

Bettie Page Paradise Dress With Matching Bolero- Side View

With Straw Cloche Hat

Monday, July 14, 2014

Dress Reviews: The Ruche Semi Annual Sale!

A couple of weeks ago Ruche launched their semi-annual sale.

There were a couple of things I had my eye on on their site and had just previously missed their $30 off $100 or more sale so I was happy to see that this new sale brought my items down to an even lower price. During their sale they had several items marked down to 30-50% and were offering an additional 20% off everything on their site!

At bargain prices I picked up their Estate House Floral Dress (about $30)... a dress I previously blogged about on the post Matching Your Dress To Your Teaware and I also picked up the Parisian Cafes Drop Waist Dress (about $20).

The Estate House Floral dress by Under Skies is a shorter style, fit and flair, chiffon dress in a dark turquoise blue with pink, yellow, and white flowers and blue leaves. I love the combination of the vivid yet calming colors, the flowiness of the light and airy chiffon fabric, and the classic fit and flair shape! This dress comes fully lined, has a hidden back zipper, and a cute little metal button in the back at the nap of the neck. On me this dress falls a couple of inches above the knees which is a little shorter than I usually like to wear but will suit me well for when I feel like having a more modern look. And just as expected, this dress goes just darling with my Grace Tea Ware tea for one set which is something I really love about this dress!

Estate House Floral Dress By Under Skies From Ruche- Front View

Estate House Floral Dress By Under Skies From Ruche- Side View

Estate House Floral Dress By Under Skies From Ruche- Back View

Estate House Floral Dress By Under Skies From Ruche- Back Button Detail

Estate House Floral Dress By Under Skies From Ruche With Grace Tea Ware Tea For One

The Parisian Cafes Drop Waist dress by Hem and Thread is a two piece dress. The first part is an under dress, a mauve dress that has a sheer perforated pleated skirt attached to a super soft stretchy mauve tank top. The straps on the under dress are adjustable and the sheer skirt is lined with a silky material in the same color as the skirt. The second part of this dress is a white lace tank top that goes over the dress. The white lace tank top is loose fitting with a back zip and button closure at the nap of the neck. I love loose fitting drop waist dresses! They have such a fun look and feel. Usually these style of dresses screams 1960's to me but because of the lace and the soft feminine mauve color of the sheer skirt I feel like this dress definitely has more of a early 1930's feel to it. This dress is so comfortable and adorable at the same time! I love it!

Parisian Cafes Drop Waist Dress By Hem and Thread From Ruche- Front View

Parisian Cafes Drop Waist Dress By Hem and Thread From Ruche- Side View

Parisian Cafes Drop Waist Dress By Hem and Thread From Ruche- Back View

Parisian Cafes Drop Waist Dress By Hem and Thread From Ruche- Close Up Of Lace

I will definitely be looking forward to more finds from Ruche and will definitely look forward to their next semi-annual sale!

In both dresses I ordered a size large which fit my 39-31-38, 5'3" frame perfectly!

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Outfit of the Day: 6th of July

Sunday was the last day of a very nice three day holiday weekend.

Tim and I decided to go out that day and enjoy the sun and play in the water! For the last day of our holiday weekend we went to Crown Memorial State Beach in Alameda and rented some standup paddle boards. I've been dying to try this out! Since Tim already knew how to do this we forewent the lessons and just went for it. Tim didn't think I would fall in the water but I did... three times! But it was a blast anyway and the water, being in the bay and pretty shallow, was pretty warm and pleasant on the warm sunny day. A bit of advice that I got which was absolutely true was keep your head looking in the direction you want to go... if you look down, you are going to go down! Overall, SUPing was great! Once I got the hang of it it was so serene looking out into the horizon with the water and waves around me gently paddling awhile being gently rocked by the waves. It was a very zen feeling. I can't wait to try it again!

Outfit of the Day:

I was so excited to finally get to wear a navy and white pin dot 50's-style romper/swim suit and skirt set I had special made from Etsy seller, Time Machine Vintage. I ordered this as a swim suit which I could take in the water but which came with a matching skirt to be able to easily go from town to beach without having to stop to change. I first saw this style when watching the 1961 Elvis Presley movie, Blue Hawaii. I was mesmerized by the scene where Elvis meets up with his girlfriend Maile Duval, played by Joan Blackman, at the beach. His girlfriend, who is impeccably dressed, simply takes off her detachable skirt and goes for swim! How awesome is that!? I love the idea of being dressed up and going about your day, and then just being able to go for a swim whenever it catches your fancy without even thinking twice about it! After falling in a couple times, at least I know this romper fares well in the surf ;)

Vintage Time Machine Custom Romper and Skirt Set- Front View

Vintage Time Machine Custom Romper and Skirt Set- Side View

Beach Ready! Vintage Time Machine Custom Romper and Skirt Set- Front View

Action Shot! SUPing at Crown Memorial State Beach

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Outfit of the Day: 5th of July

The day after the 4th of July was a low key day for my husband and myself.

After spending the day partying and BBQing it up the day before, it was nice to have a quiet calm day just the two of us.

My husband was in a generous mood that day and spend the day with me shopping at the outlet mall in Livermore where I scored some awesome 60's-style oval over-sized black Coach sunglasses! Just the shape I've been looking for for only $30. After the outlet mall, we went and got lunch at California Pizza Kitchen at the Stoneridge Mall in Pleasanton. We stopped by at home for just a quick refresh, then went to the movies to see How To Train Your Dragon 2 with our friend Nick. It was an awesome movie and an awesome day.

Outfit of the Day:

I felt like getting a little fancy and wore a silky blue Bettie Page Cruiser dress. I chose the Bettie Page Cruiser dress for the day because I wanted something easy to wear that would be light and airy, yet which had a fancier feel. I love the bright happy blue tone of the fabric with the fun yellow and orange wheels in the pattern. Also, the top details at the shoulders are so lovely! I paired this with a white belt, white B.A.I.T. Emma T-strap flats, and a pair of white cat eye sunglasses with rhinestone and white floral embellishments. I finished it all up by popping a blue flower in my hair to give it an extra fancy and extra fun finishing touch!

Bettie Page/Tatyana Cruiser Dress- Front View

Bettie Page/Tatyana Cruiser Dress- Side View

Bettie Page/Tatyana Cruiser Dress- Close Up

With White Floral Embellished Cat Eye Sunglasses

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Outfit of the Day: 4th of July!

4th of July Weekend was a blast!

This past weekend was a nice three day weekend for my hubby and myself and boy did we take full advantage of the long warm sunny weekend! This will be the first of three Outfit of the Day posts from this holiday weekend! :D

For the 4th of July we had some friends over for a good old regular American BBQ! We chowed down on ribs, chicken, sausages, roasted zucchini, roasted bell peppers, pesto pasta salad, and chips and dips! And don't forget the wine coolers! We had fun with water balloons and playing hot potato. Then, when it started getting dark, we headed out to the waterfront at Jack London square in Oakland to see the firework display. Unfortunately, there was no fireworks show so we came back, put a fire on the firepit (Northern California gets cold at night!) and had some of our own fireworks. It was a great day.

Outfit of the Day:

For this day's festivities I wore a black and white striped Hell Bunny dress, the Gabriel dress, which has buttons down the entire length of the back. I paired this with some Me Too red patent leather peep toe wedges, to give it a pop of color, along with a red cardigan for when it started to get cold. As a finishing touch I added some red animal print cat eye glasses!