Stolen Goods

Though I'm not quite as late as last time, I'm once again leaving it to the last minute to join Bella's Second Hand First link-up over at Citizen Rosebud.  

The photo is last-minute too. I rushed away to work right after it was snapped. That's probably why my photographer, aka Hubby, didn't mention the shirt.

Of this outfit, three pieces are new to me. The skirt and belt are thrifted. The chambray shirt was lifted.

Last year many style bloggers praised the versatility of chambray shirts. (Or maybe it was the year before. I really don't keep up.) You could dress it up. You could dress it down. Fashionable women were seen wearing chambray with leather, and chambray with tulle. The really brave wore chambray shirts with jeans and risked being accused of wearing a Canadian tuxedo. 

Though I've never paired them with leather, tulle or (yikes!) denim*, I've had chambray shirts in the past and quite liked them, so I happily leapt for that bandwagon... and almost missed it. 

In spite of reassurances that they'd be easy to find second-hand, I didn't find one. I searched everywhere. I eventually expanded my search to include new items and experienced a different kind of failure. They were all more fitted than the chambray shirts of my youth. None of them buttoned over my chest. 

I had given up on my chambray dreams until one day, while peering into our closet, I spotted one. On Hubby's side. Search complete. 

Stolen from your husband's side of the closet counts as second hand, right?

Hope you'll head over to Citizen Rosebud to check out the stylish and resourceful women sharing Second Hand First. 

*OK, maybe I wore it with denim. I had permed hair too. Whatever.

Really People!

The last time you saw my red-and-white-polka-dot skirt I had paired it with black. Black tank, black blazer, black bracelet, black shoes.  Given that Minnie Mouse is traditionally black and white and red all over, I had expected to get a few Disney-esque comments when I left the house that day. Surprisingly, if anyone noticed my similarities to Ms. Mouse, they didn't mention it. I thought had safely passed the mouse test.

This time I went a little wild with my outfit choices. White, bright blue, denim and gold were brought into the mix. Bright blue and red is a bold combo for me, but I was really pleased with how it went together. (A few days later I saw that Sally McGraw of Already Pretty had outfits featuring red and turquoise and red and cobalt on her colour pairing inspiration board on Pinterest. I felt a little less bold, but much more confident about my colour choices after that.)

I felt so good about my appearance that I tucked in my tank. When wearing this pencilish skirt previously I had left my shirt loose in a vain attempt to disguise my belly.  

Yep, I felt pretty darn good about my outfit. 

I fielded Minnie Mouse comments all day.

Really people. Minnie Mouse wishes she looked so good. Or she would if she wasn't, you know, fictional.

I'm linking up with Patti and the not-at-all-mousey crew for Visible Monday over at Not Dead Yet Style. Head on over and check it out! 

Rockabilly Pin-up Mouse?

My first impulse was to walk away when I saw this skirt at the thrift shop. The label says it's a size 6, and I am not. Still, I found a few other things I wanted to try on, so I went back and grabbed it on my way to the fitting room. It was the only item I took home that day. 

In my excitement at fitting into a size 6, I didn't consider what I would wear with a red-and-white-polka-dot skirt. My closet didn't offer any ideas, so I hit the interwebs. Google brought me images of pin-up-girls and rockabilly style and Minnie Mouse. There is a disturbing number of scantily-clad Minnie Mouse impersonators on the internet. 

I decided to go with black and white and red all over. My choices must have kept my polka dots professional. I didn't get mistaken for Minnie Mouse once all day.

Linking up with Patti and the Stylistas over at Not Dead Yet Style for Visible Monday.