• Violet millinery flowers pinned in hair – vintage shop in Seattle
• Teal earrings – urban outfitters
• 1940s? floral dress with flower baskets and purple ric rac – buffalo exchange
• purple plastic flats – Melissa, from my trip to Brazil

What a lovely little frock I’ve found! At first, I was drawn to it because it looks like a pinafore apron, especially because of the ruffly shoulders. It has little purple and teal flowers ribbon trailing out of baskets. And ric rac! I’m such a sucker for ric rack. Unfortunately, we were hit by a giant thunderstorm this evening, and as I was running to my bus stop with my bike in a downpour, I slipped and fell with my bike on top of me. I suffered a scraped shoulder and arm, and my dress was crushed with dirt and blood. I also had my millinery violets in my front pocket, and they bled a huge purple stain down the front of the dress. As soon as I got home, I soaked the stain in my own personal savior, Biz Laundry Stain Fighter and the stain has nearly disappeared! I first found out about Biz when I worked at the Antique Expo in Portland, during a conversation with a woman whose hobby was to restore Edwardian linens. She swore by it, and now that I’ve been using it for two years – I do too!
My tattoo is now two years old, and I’m still smitten by the design. My friend Grace drew the bunny and the hand is based off of Victorian mourning jewelry. Annie Mess is my artist for this piece and my Valentine leg pieces, and if you’re in the Austin area I highly recommend her. She likes to brought cupcakes to tattoo appointments

Bellewether wears…

I had seen these overalls last month at Buffalo Exchange, and when I went back yesterday they were still there! They are from ReVamp Vintage in LA, which I have always ADORED but everything is too $$$ for my meager salary. These were only $28 (they retail for $150) and I knew someone who had to have them. I drug Bellewether over there on her lunch break and insisted that she buy them. Doesn’t she look fetching? We sang “It’s a Jolly Holiday with Mary!” while pricing Japanese erasers at work. We are moving in together next month into a 1940s house with a little shady porch that will be made into our own beauty parlor. There is also a detached garage so’s I can practice my tap dancing without disturbing anyone. Speaking of practicing, I need to get some tap dance practice records. Where do I find them? You know the ones I’m referring to? There is a recorded voice that says “falap ball change, falap ball change, turn shuffle step, buffalo, buffalo” over the music. I used to listen to them when I was very young.

• 1940s blouse with vegetable print – Amelia’s Retro Vogue, ATX
• 1950s sheer dress (worn as skirt) – Buffalo Exchange, ATX
• Sheer stockings with cuban heels and stripe
• Green bead earrings – made by me
• Remix Vintage Shoes in Avocado

My curl is looking specifically geometric this morning.
This is the face of staying up dancing until 3 am at Azz Everywhere.
I nearly passed up this blouse when I first tried it on… because although I do like novelty prints, I feel kind of corny when I wear them. This blouse is so darling, and it matches my avocado-colored shoes in an uncanny way. Speaking of novelty prints, I have one dress with perfume bottle print and one with rooster print that I wear on heavy rotation. Other prints I have include:

• Renaissance men and women holding pitchforks
• Kittens lapping creme from tea cups
• Patio furniture and flower pots
• Smiling clovers

As fitting, I ate a whole tub of guacamole from Torchy’s for my breakfast and lunch. I love bein’ fat with some avocados and coconuts! Oh, and the best news to happen this month is that my corner co-op grocery started carrying Daiya cheese so now I can have cheeze sprinkles on everything. I <3 cheese as a garnish and it’s so wonderful to have it back in my life (in facsimile) on pizzas, chilis and toast.
This outfit reminds me of Mrs. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus series:

I think I’ve subconsciously adopted Mrs. Frizzle’s attitude toward teaching in my own teaching philosophies. Of course, I won’t have a flying talking school bus, but I know how to make history more alive. Last week I worked on a lesson plan that involved listening to Woody Guthrie and Rudy Vallee tunes from the Great Depression and defending their importance for a new (fictional) CD box set put out by the Smithsonian Museum.

• Lace bolero that goes to a 1940s gown
• Brown pleated dress with tiny polka dots – thrifted
• Seamed stockings
• Brown thrifted shoes

My cuban heels seem to go up a lot further than they’re meant to. A few years ago, before I figured out that seamed stockings could be bought for $4 at most sex stores, I used to soak in the bathtub with a few tea bags and then draw the seam with either a brown or black Sharpie marker before I went out. I may still do that this summer – it’s too hot in Texas for stockings once it hits 104F!

• Vintage lipstick red beret – Nobody’s Baby, Eugene, OR
• Adorable blouse from Jitterbuggin on Etsy – www.etsy.com/shop/jitterbuggin
• 1940s skirt that goes to a suit set
• Green Remix Wedges
• 1920s Harold LLoyd style glasses

The blouse I’m wearing is from Jitterbuggin’ on etsy. It’s so cute! All handmade and they come in bigger sizes, too. I ordered one more just like it (it has kittens on it).
I’ve been needing some more blouses that don’t button up the front. My buttons have a habit of unloosening themselves. Can’t have that! When I saw Drew Barrymore in Grey Gardens last week I knew what I wanted the basic shape to be.
I got these glasses a few years ago when I first moved to Austin, on my first trip to Uncommon Objects. They were a bit crooked, but I took them to an eyeglasses shop and they heated them up and put them right. However, they told me it would be a $70 charge to simply put glass in the frames, so I just wear them plain and hope that no one thinks it strange.

Today I had to fight off Harry Potter references at work. They’re more like Harold Lloyd, anyways!

• Vintage creme beret
• Earrings my cousin made
• Headband (worn around neck) by etsy.com/shop/louiseblack
• Vintage creme cardigan with pinwheel ribbons and pearls, Buffalo Exchange
• Green belt – Decades Vintage, PDX
• Fancy pink striped dress – resale shop in Providence, RI
• Striped stockings from www.sockdreams.com
• Mary janes

I don’t mind overloading on stripes.
Tonight I’m going on a date to see a live-action silent movie.
I think this is an okay second date outfit? I never know what to wear!

• Cotton collar with embroidery I did
• Vintage navy sweater with rhinestones
• Bow belt – lost from another dress
• 1950s printed floral skirt
• Remix vintage shoes

It’s raining! I know you can’t really tell from these photos. That’s why I have my hair in such a tight set in these photos. It reminds me of of octopus tentacles or curly fern leafs. I didn’t want the rain to ruin it before I went to see the Pretty Things Peepshow tonight!



This collar is listed on etsy!

One must wear an apron to protect oneself from the chill from the ice box!

I have the most aprons of any human being. If you go into ebay and type in “Vintage Apron Lots” you can buy 50+ aprons for $20 or less. When I went to Kansas for the first time I found a thrift store with an enormous stash of aprons priced at just $1 each, I knew I needed to start collecting them to spice up my outfits. Since I am a vegan ice cream maker/barista by trade, I wear the aprons to protect my clothes from coffee and sugar spills. Here I am battling an enormous cockroach!

Pink and white gingham

Full apron with little blue flowers

Pleated apron from Julia!

Pink Gingham with flowers

Faded purple and white

Lots of yellow flowers

This is about as casual as I get! I’m wearing a t shirt (NO!) from my Tattoo Artist, Annie Mess.

Gold with geometric shapes

Sheer with floral panels

Sometimes it can really tie an outfit together.
As an art teacher, I like wearing aprons when I teach. In so many of my dresses, there are no functional pockets, so it’s nice to always have the option of having an apron pocket to stash pens or remote controls and whatnot. Once, my students were really into Rubix cubes and they would solve them under their desks while I was lecturing/demonstrating about silkscreening. I walked around and collected them into my apron pockets (to remove the distraction) and my apron soon grew into strange geometric bulge!

What do you think, dear readers?
Can you confidently wear the apron out and about or is an oppressive symbol of servitude?

• Red Bandana
• Necklace from Kelly L Judd of Swan Bones Theatre
• 1950s sheer red dress – Cheap Thrills, Fay. Arkansas
• Vintage scarf around waist – Estate sale I think?
• Brown knee socks
• Brown/tan shoes from Secyhelles

Sorry, no close-up today. I was up late late late working on issue #5 of Doublespeak, which is SO long over due it’s not even funny. I drank loads of coffee and ate too much sugar and ended up not letting up until around 3am. I tell you all this because I didn’t wash my hair, hence the teased nest+bandana combination. While I was biking to work this morning a homeless man yelled “I LOVE LUCY!” and also one of my customers asked me if I liked “I Love Lucy.”
Okay, I see that we both have blue eyes, red lipstick and red hair, but there are more subtle differences: my eyes are more teal, my hair is less carroty (and floofy, usually), my lips have a different silhouette.

Here is Belleweather again. I think we are going to craft and watch bits of Carnivale, Season 2 tonight. I love the production design of this show and I love the The Dreifuss family: their style, their story, everything.
This is from Wikipedia:
To give a sense of the dry and dusty environment of the Dust Bowl, smoke and dirt were constantly blown through tubes onto the set. The actors’ clothes were ragged and drenched in dirt, and Carnivàle had an estimated 5,000 people costumed in the show’s first season alone. The creative team listened to 1930s music and radio and read old Hollywood magazines to get the period’s sound, language, and slang right. The art department had an extensive research library of old catalogs, among them an original 1934 Sears Catalog, which were purchased at flea markets and antique stores. The East European background of some characters and Asian themes in Brother Justin’s story were incorporated into the show. Except for the show’s supernatural elements, a historical consultant deemed Carnivàle’s historic accuracy to be excellent in regard to the characters’ lives and clothes, their food and accommodations, their cars and all the material culture.
8 million USD were the budget for each of the episodes! No wonder they look so amazing!

• Green knit beret – I literally found this in the trash.
• 1960s rust dress with attached striped collar – Big Bertha’s Bargain Basement, Austin, TX
• Green belt – Decades Vintage, PDX
• Black knee socks – Target
• Green Greta Shoes – Remix Vintage Shoes
• Black fingernails

It’s the end of the week! Hello! I made it! It’s the last day of my pincurl set so my dirty hair is hiding under this hat!
I very nearly typed “July” instead of January in my header. It is 76F outside and I was lucky enough to get my daily outfit taken when it was somewhat cloudy this morning! I don’t understand Texas, one month it’s bitterly cold, and a few weeks later it’s cotton dress weather again. I’ll be sleeping with just a sheet and the Arkansas Air Conditioning (peppermint and water in a spritzer) on before you know it!
These Remix Shoes have been on my wishlist now for ages! I have been searching for green shoes of any sort for much, much longer. When Fleur posted about them as being on sale last week, I hi-tailed it to Amazon and ordered me some. I really like them so far, although I’ve only worn them with socks. When it gets hot enough to go with out stockings (let’s say, in a week, Austin time, har har) I will let you know how they feel. After this shoot, I re-laced all the way down the front and I like them better… they look less like grandma SAS shoes.

Oh, and hello again to Miss Belleweather. Despite not feeling well today, she looks pretty cute all in pink.
Ladies, this is how one wears a hat AND has a crown of pincurls going at the same time!