Second-hand Kenzo & Tom Ford

OUTFIT ENTIRELY THRIFTED/SECOND-HAND (Ok, tights were new):
Kenzo skirt: a euro at an Annecy vide grenier
Etienne Aigner boots: Ebay
Bally bag: consignment shop swap
J. Crew wool blazer: thrifted in Canada
Black sweater: thrifted in Canada
Vintage scarf: gift
Vintage Cadoro necklaces: bought online
Tom Ford sunglasses: consignment shop swap.

I don't really think of myself as a label slut - ie: I don't buy items for the sake of their being "by" someone - and I quite abhor the idea of picking up a lower-tier collection of a designer at a mass market retailer like H&M or Target - though if that's other people's bag, go for it. But that's not to say that I don't appreciate good quality labels, and labels with a neat history or story. And having lived in France for over a year, I've found many a French designer to love.

I've been a Kenzo fan ever since my twis sis thrifted a gorg red floral velvet jacket in Toronto a few years ago. Vintage Kenzo pieces have great colour and texture. Take this lined, wool a-line mustard yellow Kenzo skirt I found at a summer vide grenier for A EURO. LOVE! I never thought the yellow and black bumblebee look would work, but I'm groovin on this outfit (snapped outside the grocery store - yes, us ladies of leisure live exciting lives!).

Then last week, when I took more bling to my consignment shop, I spied these Tom Ford sunglasses. I know Tom Ford more for the fab flick he directed, A Single Man, than for his fashions and famed business sense. But I loved the way these looked on me. They were rather beat up - scratched on the lenses and the frames - so the owner knocked 20 euros off. Since I had sold a few items in her shop recently, I essentially got them for free rather than pocketing the cash I made.

I've mentioned Cadoro jewellery before, but haven't explained my obsession with it. Cadoro was a high-end jewellery company founded in the 1950s in Manhattan. It's known for its handmade haute hippie pieces made out of unusual materials. The jewellery is quite collectible now as the company ceased to exist in the 1980s. Cadoro pieces are so arty that some can be found in New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art.

I'm now a happy Cadoro addict (some of their tassel necklaces rock). I found these two yellow corded necklaces with sliding gold bits online. They're really more summer pieces but as you can see I've managed to work them into my fall look. I have many more Cadoro pieces to share with you! I've stopped buying them but have a nice little collection - my first really meaningful vintage jewellery collection (which explains why there's been a mass exodus of my lower tier vintage costume jewellery to the consignment shop). Guess that means I'm a grown-up now!

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More missing vintage bags

My blogging pals, we have been traveling this week so I've been unable to snap pics of my outfits. Now that we're home I shall put together some juicy ensembles to show you.

In the meantime, I'll do a part deux of the vintage handbags that have somehow gone MIA during my move from Toronto to Ottawa in Canada, and then overseas to the UK. This was my FAVE carpet bag, Missoni-esque in look, in perfect condition, 1960s or 70s- bought for $60 (not a Grunge Queen price) a few years ago at the Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club's show & sale. It is just such a beaut.

A great 1970s clutch and another member of the missing handbag club. I bought this for less than $20 CAD, if memory serves, in Toronto a few years ago.

I snagged this super soft leather bag last fall at a vintage store in Toronto, and I wore it a lot. It is also in the missing box. I think that's it for the missing handbags, but it's amazing how quickly you forget. Every time I see an old pic on this blog or in my files, I think, "Ahha! That one is missing too!". Hopefully they're residing safely in my Mom's basement. Will keep you posted.

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My stuff & me

I had an emotional reunion with my clothing, jewellery and small bric-a-brac yesterday as my boxes arrived from Canada - yay!! I have been living without all my stuff for months now, and even though I got rid of 80 percent of my stash when I left Toronto, I still have a substantial bling collection, as you can see. And this pic represents only part of it! Maybe I should consider selling some, perhaps on Etsy, or having a big 'ole garage sale in the front yard (wouldn't hubby die). It's amazing how such baubles define us. I've been living sans music, sans cell phone, sans "my" fashion, with only a few sweaters and jeans, for months now, and memories of my former life in TO came flooding back as I sifted through everything ... in a way, I have ME back!

The sad thing is, because I'm not working, I don't really have much need to wear all these pretty dresses and bling-bling - that is, unless hubby takes me to dinner at The Grand Hotel in St Annes every night there's an idea! I bought some super sexy sandles at a local pop-up shop recently, which I will model with some of my new dresses (charity and from pop-up shop) once my toe heals and I can get hubby to snap some artful pics of moi. Alas, busted my foot for the umpteenth time the other day so I can't even really exert much effort unpacking my boxes. So I'll just sit on my butt for a while longer and let my man wait on me, hand and foot, tee hee.

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Cheapest bling yet!!

This is the cheapest piece of costume bling I've thrifted yet. It was 99 cents at Canadian Thrift - but wait! It was 50 percent off! I have NEVER thrifted ANYTHING for 49.5 cents! Did I buy it because it was so cheap? Well, yes. But I kind liked the ethnic feel crossed with a Rubik's Cube primary colour plastic square thing. Incongruity and paradox, as you know, is something I'm really attracted to.

And it's reversible! How cool is that??

This pretty boho silver tone bracelt? A $1.99 - make that 99.5 cents with the discount.

Total haul: $1.49. Plus taxes. Ahem. When great deals go on mega sale, the thrifting Karma, it kicks in!

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What the heck are they?

Hanging ashtrays? Planters? 1970s bird feeders? Pure decorative kitsch?

One of the items I've seen in vintage and collectible shops that I haven't been able to figure out, but have intrigued me nevertheless.

Any guesses?

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Sarah Coventry pin & yet another coat from my collection

When I can't cajole people in my life to take pics of me for this blog, I end up posting these delightful (read: scary close up) shots of moi. Here the flash makes my wrinkles bearable - and actually showcases part of the reason for this post, the nautical Sarah Coventry pin I picked up for, like, a buck. It made me think summer, which is helpful for the spirit as the sleet and snow and rain you see behind me has been the norm this past week or so, ug.

Unforch, I can't show you the whole of the 3/4 coat I'm wearing with it - a chic boxy style with mega shoulder pads that looks good with skinny jeans. Hopefully what you see here will give you a bit of an idea. It's a colour that looks pretty crap on me but I never let that get in my way: I simply don a scarf in a shade that rocks on me (in this case, royal blue).

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I simply remember my favourite rings ....

I've been feeling crummy all weekend and cranky as a result - so in an effort to cheer myself up and hopefully provide some interesting content to you, I'm going to show you something that pretty much always makes me happy. Readers, these are some of my favourite rings:

I bought this arty one from an antique dealer. I think it's 1970s. There was a pendant too but I didn't have enough money! Oh well. I love how the rock/stone looks like a yummy piece of caramel toffee or something. Good thing it's entwined in goldish wire or I may try to pop it into my mouth!

Ditto for this Sarah Coventry ring - it just looks like candy, doesn't it? It has an opalescent quality to it but it's costume all the way. I think the look or technique is called foiling.

This flower one is Sarah Coventry too - the top glass piece is a bit off kilter but I love it nevertheless.

You can see how the 'jewels' are tiered to look like the layers of a petal. So sweet. Sarah Coventry, btw, is collectible but not expensive to buy. Each of these rings were $15 or under.

Not sure if this one is vintage but I thrifted it for a couple of bucks a few years back and I really think it's pretty - it reminds me of something semi-Medieval or Tudor or something! The filigre does look rather regal, actually, like it is twisting into crowns. There are five amber-hued stones around one side and five gold-toned balls on the other.

This sterling silver one isn't vintage but I thrifted it for a few dollars and I love the big ball on top set with all the tiny blue and clear glass pieces. It reminds me of the 'millennium ball' pendant I bought by Carolee just before the year 2000. And gee, doesn't this look like an engagement ring or something??

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Vintage costume brooches I've had for 20 (or so) years

Finding that old-style pendant at VV the other day made me think of the older-style brooches I have that I never really wear as they aren't quite my style. But just because they sit in a drawer doesn't make them any less special.

I remember picking up this cameo brooch when I was about 19 - can't recall exactly where but I used to do a lot of church sales with my fam around this time (thanks to my Dad), so I have a feeling a church was the source. It's not an expensive cameo that I can tell. I have seen more intricate and ornate ones, with finer detailing, that are more collectible - plus the cameo part looks plastic and the really valuable ones are made of shell and sometimes even coral, if memory serves. Still, I'm sentimental about this gal - reminds me of my youth, tee hee.

Vintage can sometimes be a nebulous term, with no hard and fast dates (I consider the 1980s vintage but not the 1990s, but perhaps it depends on your vantage point in time!). Still, I would hazard a guess this shell stick pin is antique, meaning over 100 years old.

My Mom gave it to me for my 19th Birthday. I love it, but in truth I am not certain how to wear it (back in the day it would have been worn in the yoke of a high collared dress, I suspect), and it is a wee old-fashioned. And the back clasp is so crude I am scared it will fall off and be lost forever if I wear it. But of course, I love it and will never let it go.

This must surely qualify as antique too. It was another gift I received when a teen, from an aunt. It was apparently from a collection she had amassed in LA. I have worn it only a couple of times - many, many moons ago -  but have a renewed appreciation for it. The style is a wee bit old fashioned, true (I can just picture some prim Victorian lady in it). But I love the black lacy effect and the polished glass piece - purple to boot! - how could I not dig that?

I'm a little out of my element in describing these last two pieces as I'm not familiar with the styles and conventions of eras before the 1940s, maybe 1930s. Regardless, maybe I'll see if I can integrate them into my wardrobe. Even if I don't they make me happy sitting in my little drawer for special things.

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It's ok to wear a vintage pin with one outfit

I'm back to showing you my brooch collection. I love this pin I found at Value Village a few years ago for a couple bucks. It has an Art Deco look to it (but guessing it's 1940s? thoughts?), and the electric yellow glass stone is just so fab, isn't it?

It's so special that I wear it rarely. But when I do I make sure it packs a style wallop: I wear it with this teal pashmina scarf and thrifted yellow Bill Blass swing coat. If you want to make a pin pop, pair it with a contrasting colour. Mmm, with a huge snow storm brewing, maybe I'll don this ensemble today to brighten up the dreary day!

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Horseshoe pin on my hat

Ok, this is the most obvious way to wear a pin, aside from a coat or a lapel. Never really done it except for my mini-photo shoot in my apartment tonight, but I love this blue horseshoe pin I bought a decade ago at a flea market. It looks pretty jaunty on my thrifted wool beret and a recently thrifted wool trench, n'est pas?. Perhaps I should find un airplane and fly ma butt to le grand Paris pour un cafe in my little Frenchie getup!

If you are of a different fashionista temperament, you may enjoy more pins on your hat. Tonight on my way home I saw a lady with a tiny cluster of what looked like earrings or buttons on the ribbed part of her toque - tres chic!!

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Got the blues?

In honour of the winter blues, and the snow that's falling down tonight, I am happy to bring you this vintage blue snowflake pin I thritfed for two bucks. It is signed Coro. The New York jewellery company, Coro, I know, made various levels of costume jewellery in its 80-year history starting in the early 1900s. There were budget collections for the masses, so to speak, and higher-end collections that are worth more and more collectible today.

Judging by the signature and my still growing knowledge of vintage costume jewellery and the myriad of ways signatures changed in companies of this elk, I'm guessing this pin is anywhere between 1940-50 and not really high-end, but decent enough. The 'stones' (which have this lovely iridescent quality to them) are prong-set and the back is sturdy and there's even a hole to string a necklace through if you want to make it into a pendant.

I know I promised to experiment with ways to use brooches but this pin is too new for me to do anything more than snap a pic of it. I am a bit blue with all this cold and greyness of late, but I have a feeling this pin's sparkly prettiness may help to cheer me a wee bit, even if it's just sitting on my bedside table gleaming at me through the gloom.

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I got me some vintage bling afterall

Do I look like that cat that ate the canary here? (and like I have a lamp sprouting out of my head? oops).

I must confess: I didn't just spend a buck at the jewellery club the other night. I also came home with this 1980s chunky Lucite necklace I've been eye-balling for some time now (you'll see it featured a few posts below), from a seller and collector with impeccable goods.

I'm very happy with it. It's a lovely piece for my collection and just perfect with turtlenecks. And all the shiny colourful bits make me want to smile. It's quite amazing how sparkly, shiny, clear things never fail to transfix!

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Grungy chic Christmas table

Hope every one has had a fab holiday so far. Yesterday's Christmas table was fit for a Queen - make that a Grunge Queen! Our lovely hostess for the day dressed her table in a way the Grunge Queen entirely approves of - by using pieces from around the home. Think practical, yet creative and pretty - and inexpensive!!

A host of darling teacups from our hostess' personal collection adorned the table and held wee Christmas-y floral arrangements.The look was chic yet practical - no cumbersome centrepieces to impede viewing pleasure - and added a personal touch to an already pretty table. Remember that you can always use the pieces you love from around your home, perhaps from a collection, to inject your own personality into your decorating!

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This is the time to hit thrift shops

A few days ago I featured a lovely patent purse I found at Goodwill for about $4.99. Last night, as I was running around looking for gifties for my mannie, I happened upon a Goodwill shop.

You could almost hear the crickets in there. It was, needless to say, super quiet, save for some dealer types who were rummaging through things with the subtlety of charging rhinos.

Everyone is so preoccupied with the holiday mall shop that the thrift shops are blissfully quiet.

This patent clutch - which almost looks like real leather if you look at the crinkles on the thin little flap that goes through the hardware - was only $3.99. I bought it as I loved the shape and the hardware - which is super heavy.

Just look at the screws on the inside of the purse!! Four of 'em to hold the gold hardware that runs along the bottom flap of the upper part of the clutch.

Another purse to add to my collection.

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Patently gorgeous

I've been meaning to show you this patent (not sure if it's real) purse I thrifted at Goodwill for $4.99 a while ago. I just love it. It's in mint condition and is just the greatest shape, with the coolest detailing.

What I love about retro purses is that they are so sculptural. And check out the hardware on this baby - don't you just love it? This is my new fave purse. Maybe I'll wear it to a holiday-ish event.

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Carpet bags: my wee collection

As you may know, I have a definite thing for retro and vintage handbags and purses, invariably picked up at the thrift shop.

One subcategory within this group: vintage carpet bags.

We're not talking old-fashioned Victorian carpetbags - but rather ones from the 1950s to 70s. This was my first purchase and if memory serves it was $40. I'm guessing the era is 1970s (bought at The Bead Goes on in Toronto - a great place to pick up a vintage croc bag in wonderful shape).

True, I do pay more for my carpet bags than I do my other vintage purses - namely because they're hard to find in vintage and thrift stores. I never would have found this Missoni-esque purse in mint condition at the thrift shop.

Instead I found it last year at the Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club Show & Sale for about $60. That's the most I've ever paid for a bag, but it was worth it.

I found this 1950s/60s one at a subsequent TVCJC Show & Sale, for only $15 or $20, but it's not in as good condition. The leather is peeling back on one of the handles and it's a wee bit stinky.

My most recent acquisition: a smaller purse in lovely bright hues, no smell, $19.99 at Canadian Thrift Stores (CTS) on Queen St. West.

Do I ever wear these purses? Rarely. Like my other vintage bags they adorn the walls of my apartment. Does that make me a true collector?

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Books, books, books, in and out of my apartment

Books. In my apartment.

More books. In my apartment.

And yet more books, in my apartment. But these are the ones I'm keeping.

These are the ones I'm donating, six bag full, as part of the biggest Grunge Queen apartment re-org to date.

Yes, I am decluttering massively. A former English major, I amassed a whack of books in the past - books which I have hung onto and faithfully moved from apartment to apartment, but books which I've never opened since completing schooling a decade ago.

So bye-bye 18th century novels, Canadian Confederation poetry volumes, and good books I've read once but will never read again.

This is only the beginning.

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Tabula Rasa clothing in Toronto and my new skinny jeans

Fellow grungers, I know this is going to be hard to believe ... but ... sometimes I buy new.

This is a RARE Grunge Queen moment: my entire outfit here is new! Crazy eh?

I finally took the plunge and bought my first NEW pair of skinny jeans. Now I'm an addict. I bought 'em at a hip new boutique on Broadview Ave. in T.O. that I'll share more info in in a sec.

The top, bought from Eight Clothing on Pape Ave. in Pape Village. The granny crochet top, from an old-lady shop in Pape Village. The sandals, from some shoe shop, and the bling, from Gay Isber at the Royal Ontario Museum
in Toronto.

The jeans were from this new hipster vintage-esque shop on Broadview Ave. right at Danforth in Toronto.

Tabula Rasa
owner Jennifer Park has created a nicely edited yet creative collection of new and vintage women's clothing and accessories in her recently opened shop.

A former fashion student and Ryerson who designed for Le Chateau in Montreal, Park moved back to the 'hood she grew up in to open her store.



As Park explained to me, she could have opened on Ossignton but she wanted to support her neighbourhood. And if the media attentionshe's been getting is any indication, I'd say the Ossington crown may have already made its way over the Bloor St. bridge to her.

In store you can find new skinny jeans for about $100 alongside carefully selected vintage pieces that complement them.

I mean what I say about her collections, though she is not designing or selling her own clothing - yet.

But both vintage and new pieces are carefully selected to form their own collections in store. As you can see here by the "Midsummer Night's Dream" collection (I love it that she names them), a mix of new and old beauties complement eachother in colour and style to indeed form a collection of sorts.

Park is artful yet slightly minimalist in her use of the all-white space, a design ethic the clutter bug in me admires.

Everything is carefully thought and and presented - with an eye for showing the merch off rather than obscuring it ... as is often the case in vintage shops.

I like that Park interprets "vintage" through her own lens, opting for pieces with styling that is applicable today.

Many of the looks are contemporary but are crossed with a 1980s preppy look I don't like for myself, but adore on others.

Look for new and reworked vintage jewellery, along with new and vintage handbags, shoes, and clothing.






I may go back for the bamboo and recycled polyester Flashdance sweatshirt or hoodie, super soft and in pretty blue and lavender hues, only $42 for the sweatshirt and $50 or so for the hoodie.

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