The vintage 70's maxi dress finally finds its way out of my closet...

While I do enjoy wearing all-black (as I did yesterday, and the day before that, and the one before that one as well...you get the point), it's nonetheless really fun to sometimes go in the entirely opposite direction of that and just pile on the colour. This is particularly the case when the days are getting right into the heart of a thoroughly dark, grey and depressing Toronto winter, and a little pick-me-up in the form of an amazing psychedelic print dress is much needed.
This is one of the dresses that I briefly alluded to acquiring last week, and of which the only slightly problematic thing is the length; it skims my ankles but does not quite cover them, making shoe choices, at least in terms of the shoes I own, extremely difficult for the time being. I feel like a pair of brown leather riding boots would work semi well, but since I don't own anything even remotely akin to riding boots as it stands, I merely have my imagination (and potentially really useless and bad sketches of what I'm visualizing) to count on when attempting to make such decisions.

I'm currently reading Patti Boyd's autobiography, which is not only insanely inspiring on the fashion end of things (between her, Anita and Marianne, it's impossible to decide who had the best wardrobe), but it's also the stuff that rock n' roll fantasy is made of and for that reason alone I love it. I will admit that I was not a normal child in the sense of having had posters of boy bands on my bedroom walls...I was far more into cut-out photos of young Eric Clapton from magazines.

This unfortunately did not do wonders for my early social life, but regardless, my long-standing crush on Cream-era Clapton has stood the test of time, and the fact that Patti married both George Harrison and E.C. is a fact that I have always, always been insanely jealous of in a weird, nostalgic kind of way. Naturally I missed the boat on pretty much everything I am jealous of Patti for having...so if I can't live it, I can live through it vicariously, right? And this is the reason this book of hers is perhaps my new favourite thing ever.

Wearing

The dress is vintage, acquired at the St. Lawrence Market a couple of weekends ago and finally worn for the first time last night.

The little gold flats are from Forever 21, and are unfortunately the most uncomfortable shoe in the entire world.

The brown whip-stitched leather purse is vintage.

My lapis lazuli and gold necklace was give to me by my mom, and is without a doubt one of the most beautiful pieces of jewelry I own.

Windy winter weather and wide-legged jeans

I've concluded that the high-waisted and wide-legged J Brands I purchased during my weekend spending binge are the most perfect pair of pants in the world, and moreover they're seriously making me re-consider my bias towards dresses and tights in the colder months. Could this be a first in the realm of trousers for me? Only time will tell...
Speaking of this weekend, I also attended a Toronto Blogger's Brunch set up by the lovely Anthea of Clothes Line Finds. It was definitely one of the coolest events that blogging has brought me to thus far, and I thoroughly enjoyed conversing in 'real-time' with Anthea, Ashleigh, Danielle and Marta. I very much hope to have similar events set up in the future to continue the informative and interesting discussions we had!
G and I have quite a bit to get accomplished today, though I will admit that I am feeling ever-so-slightly under the weather and am currently daydreaming of laying in bed surrounded by a pile of magazines with a cup of chai tea in hand. Nonetheless, I'm going to pull myself up by my figurative boot straps (as I'm not actually wearing boots right now) and get on with what should be a properly productive day. Plus I'm pretty pleased that I get to wear all of my furry little parkas and long-sleeved 1960's blouses again, which cheers me up enough to get out the door and do what needs to be done.

Wearing
Blouse, shoes, bag: vintage
Jeans: J Brand
Parka: Aritzia

The vintage furs are finally coming out of hiding...

It feels like forever since we here at Modern-Guilt have done a 'normal' post. And while it's obviously only been since last Thursday, there is nonetheless a part of me which has missed our daily outfit photos in that interim period of time. That being said, I cannot express how thrilled G and I are at the overwhelmingly positive response to yesterday's mini-documentary post. We are considering doing more videos in the future, and will definitely keep everyone posted as to when another may rear its head onto the site.
Speaking of Modern-Guilt: The Video, today's photos are naturally the photos taken during such video's 'photo shoot' section, which is without a doubt my favourite bit. It's rare that I get to see G and I as we actually are, and as such it was a huge joy for me to bear witness to what is for all intensive purposes an outsider's perspective on us.
In other news, I will fully admit to the fact that I have somehow slipped into a state of complete and utter disregard for my spending ban…as a matter of [shameful] fact, I spent four hours in Holt Renfrew on Sunday afternoon purchasing everything from jeans to jewelry to a new jacket for G. I've no idea what came over me, but I did for a moment feel as though I had gotten the need to spend, spend, spend out of my system...
That is, until I happened to pass by a Coach on my walk home, noticing this beauty in the window. I can state with no hesitation that I have rarely, if ever, been a big fan of Coach bags, but if this one isn't my own personal version handbag perfection then I really don't know what is. While it's understandable that it may not be everyone's cup of tea, I can assert beyond any reasonable doubt that it my entire pot of tea and scones and everything else that makes tea worth having. Seriously, how amazing would this look with my winter furs?! Argh. I know, I know….I'll stop now.
Beyond the above little consumerist rant of mine, life is going swimmingly well (however, just in case there are any benevolently wealthy benefactor readers out there: please, please, please send the bag to me? Please?). Prior to my Holt Renfrew spendthrift binge on Sunday I did indeed attend a lovely Toronto Blogger's Brunch, of which I plan on giving a detailed recounting in tomorrow morning's post, as this one is already getting super long-winded, even for me…remember what I said about having missed 'regular' posting?
Once again, huge thanks to each and every one of you that left us a lovely comment on the video which we worked so hard on. Your support and love is appreciated more than either G or I are capable of expressing (which is saying a lot, particularly in my case).

Wearing
Coat, shirt, boots, bag: vintage
Jeans: Urban Planet

It's time to vote...

And no, I'm not talking about politics...the federal election in Canada is already over, of course!
I'm referring to Lucky's Denim Transformation Challenge, which I have entered with one of my favourite looks ever (as seen above) with which I am really, really hoping to win! You can find my contest entry here, and it would mean the world to me if all of you wonderful people who read Modern-Guilt regularly (and I know you're out there...) would take a quick second out of your day to vote for our photo.

We truly do adore you guys, and are so appreciative of all of the support and love thrown our way on a daily basis...it's astounding.

Wishing all of you the best Thursday ever!

Gold and Silver and Sunshine

I've deemed this dress my 70's secretary dress, because that's who I imagine wore it before I got my hands on it. Mind you I doubt she was quite as cool as my checkered Vans wearing Nor Cal jacket dude, but nonetheless probably smoked menthol 100's at her desk while reading Vreeland-edited Vogue and lazily flipping through a Rolodex of fabulous contacts, so I don't think she was lame by any standards.

Furthermore, I've determined that I want a billion more dresses exactly like this one but in different patterns and prints. As many of you may know by now, I dislike wearing pants for the most part and, in consideration of the fact that winter is coming whether I like it or not, I feel as though this dress is absolutely perfect to wear under my recently acquired vintage fur coat for a proper, warm and stylish winter look.
I generally go a little bit grunge in this autumn and winter months and leave my boho-ness in summer, but I think I've conclusively decided that this is the year that I'm going to give luxe-bohemian a try...only if I can track down more dresses like this one though. Speaking of which, I am on the hunt for a great pair high-waisted, wide-legged jeans that are flattering as opposed to fattening and suggestions are welcome! Goodness knows I will have to wear pants at some point, and I'd rather have a pair that doesn't make me look like the Jolly Green Giant.
The upcoming weekend plan consists of equal parts fun and relaxation, making for what I believe will be a fantastic one. There are, as usual, a couple of parties to attend (no good concerts though...WTF is with you lately, Toronto?), coffee dates with a friend, and hopefully a bit more shopping, which isn't to say that I should shop, just that I probably will. I hope all of you have respectively spectacular weekends, and look out for a potential post this Sunday which looks to be pretty different than anything Modern-Guilt has done before!

Wearing
Dress: vintage
Tights: Hue
Shoes: F21
Bag: Chanel, vintage
Sunnies: vintage

Golden Frost

I finally figured out how to make use of this shirt-thing that I'm wearing in today's photos. If you have been reading Modern-Guilt for a while now you will know what I'm referring to when I say that this is the 'dress' which the horrible and evil dry cleaners 'accidentally' cut up into a weird, ill-fitting shirt (or, if you haven't, you could always just click on the links and find out). The 'shirt' is really not as bad when paired with something over top of it though, so perhaps keeping as per my perpetual pack-rat ways was justified in some regard.
Speaking of holding onto things long past their expiration: last night G and I finally did something about the volcanic mess which is technically referred to as our shoe closet. It was surprisingly difficult for me to part with many of the shoes I've accumulated (and destroyed) over the years, regardless of their often ratty condition and hopelessness of repair potential. In my skewed perception of the world, however, expunging the old from my life and/or shoe closet is merely an excuse to bring in the new, and goodness knows there's a lot of new out there that I am lusting over right now.
It's imperative that I come to a place of acceptance with the fact that I'm not going to be back in jean shorts and my beloved gladiator sandals in what basically amounts to another eight months. This morning I had to pull my winter wool pea coat out of the depths of my closet...while this isn't so bad today, I trust that it will become endlessly annoying as the biting cold wears on.
Thankfully I have a wonderful weekend planned to cheer me out of any kind of pre-winter misery I may be experiencing: a sushi lunch with my best girlfriend in the world, independent thrift shop wandering, and perhaps even the acquisition of some furniture for the annoyingly bare bones apartment in which G and I currently reside. It's the little things like this which make me happy and, while it may be trite, there's truth in cliche sometimes, isn't there?
Wearing

Shirt: vintage

Vest: vintage

Jeans: Urban Planet

Shoes: Hermes

Bag: vintage

Jewelry: various

No words, only melody comes...

Last night consisted of activities that are quickly becoming typical events in my life: G and I visited some friends, had some beers with such friends, listened to music and took some pictures. It was one of those days, however, where I had worn something so unimpressively boring and 'conservative' to work that I felt the need to pile on the awesomest anti-desk job clothing within reach and give my Anita Pallenberg hat a warm welcome into my daily wardrobe, which happily resulted in an immediate sense of self-love on my part....moments like this one remind me why I love clothing as much as I do!
On to the stunningly exciting news I've vaguely alluded to for a little while and finally promised yesterday to divulge: G and I will be going to New York Fashion Week! Or rather, will be in NYC throughout New York Fashion Week...god knows if we'll actually be able to get into any of the shows, but I definitely plan on trying. However, even if we don't, can you imagine how amazing just sitting outside the tents and watching the street style is going to be? Ahhh it's all too much excitement, I have so many plans and very little direction...luckily for me that's usually where the wonderful reasonable, rational and logical G comes in and saves the day though! So yes, it's being planned and booked and we're actually going. As you can probably imagine I nearly squeal every time I go type that.
One thing I DO know we will be doing in NYC for sure is attending Spirit Animal House, a party being thrown at Pianos by the wicked hot ladies of NoGoodForMe.com which promises to be entirely off the hook. So if any of you, my gorgeous and dear readers, are in the 'hood (or do they call them bourghs [sp?] in NYC? There is so much to learn!) and want to swing by on the evening of September 9, you can bet your bottom dollar that I will be there, wearing what I hope turns out to be the most fabulous thing on the face of the planet. I'm going to a very specifically out-of-this-world-super-fabulous vintage shop here in Toronto either this weekend or early next week to begin looking for such ensemble - wish me luck!
I have a ridiculously busy couple of days ahead of me (such 'busyness' being wholly inclusive of enjoying what is technically one of the last weeks of summer), and consequently won't be updating here until bright and early on Monday morning. Lastly, this has been one of our best weeks EVER; mucho, mucho thanks to each and every single one of you and have a fantastic weekend everyone!
Wearing

Skirt: Levi's

Everything else: vintage

13 O'Clock

Yesterday evening was not quite as eventful as the one prior to it, but it was nonetheless enjoyable in a really subdued, laid-back way. G and I made some dinner, did some laundry, organized finances and did all of that other stuff which unfortunately has a tendency towards reminding you that you are not even close to being a child anymore and that you are, for all intensive purposes, a proper adult.
I certainly don't feel like an adult most of the time, but I suppose that it is reasonably comforting to know that I am and that it's really not as bad as I thought it might be. I feel as though I'm really coming to understand the whole 'you're only as old as you feel' adage on some intrinsic level...at the same time, I'm considering purchasing this Lancome nonsense because I'm pretty sure I'll have a change of heart about the whole matter at the onset of my first fine line.
At a certain point last night I grew a bit tired of the grown-up activities and responsibilities and as such cajoled G into coming to the park with me to sit on the expansive grass lawn, drink iced teas and basically do nothing but enjoy sitting and drinking iced teas. It's not as though we have year-round summer here, so why stay in the apartment and let any moment of the nice weather pass us by, right? Mind you I didn't even notice that the pattern of the dress I donned nearly blended in with the actual scenery until we sat down and G started to click away. Silliness on my part ensued, as per the photograph above. Here's to hoping that all of you are having as nice of a week as we are!

Wearing

Dress: H&M

Belt: vintage

Shoes: Nine West

Bag: vintage

Dead Flowers

As I became increasingly conscious of my recent monochromatic 'rut', last night I decided to shake things up drastically by dressing in direct opposition to the way I have been for the past few days...fur, florals, a bejewelled fascinator, and shiny shoes just felt right for a change, though it's pretty rare even on my zaniest of days to find me wearing all of these pieces at once. So I arrived home from work, did a mental "to hell with it!" in front of my closet and piled my favourite things onto my body. This is my first time wearing the faux fur vest, which I have deemed July 2008's Most Awesome Goodwill Find - not only is it in spectacular condition and the kind of piece I have dreamed of having for years, it was also $5...does it really get better than that?
This decision of mine seemed to warrant staring and slack-jawed gawking everywhere G and I went, which I don't get at all...really, it's just clothing. Don't get me wrong, I obviously love fashion and think that clothing and style are much more indicative of a person's psychological make-up than most give them credit for being; at the same time, it's mostly all fun and games, isn't it? The very fact that $40,000 handbags and their $40 knockoff counterparts co-exist on the same planet must prove that on some level. It's not that I actually care what the Sketchers-wearing masses (yes, I have an inexplicable hate on for Sketchers which I can't even think about attempting to make sense of) think of me or the way I look, though - bottom line, I just don't understand why they care to begin with.
Anyways. I'm kind of in love with the way last night's photos turned out. Particularly the ones with the blue-ish light in the background, which I maintain looks almost like a spaceship landing if one doesn't focus on the actual object too much...

Wearing

Vest: vintage

Dress: H&M

Shoes: Juicy Couture

Bag: Kathy Van Zeeland

Hairpiece: yet another piece of memorabilia from my figure skating days...my love for sequins, all things shiny and hence figure skating was borne after seeing Kristi Yamaguchi in a yellow sequined dress on TV - I find it highly unsurprising that my glitterbug ways have continued long past my activity in the sport.

See how they fly like Lucy in the sky, see how they run

Whenever I am confronted with a large, open space with hardwood flooring I develop a powerful and imminent urge to dance, jump, leap, lay down, run, somersault, and so on. Perhaps spending hours upon hours in a dance studio throughout one's formative years is the cause of this odd quirk, but regardless of its antecedent, it is above all else super, super FUN. In fact, this was probably the most fun photo shoot ever...and by ever I mean that I don't think anyone who has ever lived has had this much fun on a photo shoot in the history of the world. Pretty intense, no?
Entirely impromptu, I jumped about and G captured an entire album's worth of pictures ranging from impressive to downright silly. It was suffocatingly hot at this point in the day, so naturally I chose to wear comfortable, loose clothing that I could move around in (which for me, 9 times out of 10, means a sheath dress). But perhaps I had some type of psychic prescient brainwave yesterday, because I chose jean shorts, a top made of basically a semi-sheer nothingness printed fabric, and my favourite headscarf (which my mother informed me yesterday she purchased when she was the exact same age as I currently am), which was much more conducive to jumping about than a sheath dress could have ever been.
Surprisingly (in the best possible way), the rest of the day that followed this photo shoot actually lived up to the awesomeness that the photo shoot had set the bar for. Lots of stuff happened, including: ground round burritos, finding the most perfect pair of jeans to ever grace my body at the most unlikely of stores, more frustration towards American Apparel employees, balcony fun, Coors Light in a downtown park in fancy dress, Frisata-filled conversation and so on. Some of these events will undoubtedly be expanded upon in future diatribes, but for the time being I do not have pictorial evidence at hand and it is therefore best left a mystery for the time being.

Wearing
Top: F21
Shorts: Moto
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell
Headscarf: vintage

Head full of tricks and treats, it leads me through the night time streets.

Last night we somehow ended up in Yorkville for the second time within as many days...I promise that I am not turning into a yuppie, it's merely that I was fervently craving a properly delicious cone of ice cream (which I generally don't even like, so that's an oddity to begin with) and, as it so happens, Dessert Lady on Cumberland Street was the ice cream parlour which was the least hassle to get to. G took some pictures for le blog while we were in the area - because as much as I may knock on it, it is quite scenic - but unfortunately for us all of the mid-life crisis sportscars self-importantly circling the block asserting their drivers' wealth and virility kind of ruined that photo op...so we moseyed along to where we're most comfortable: empty parking lots and courtyards of vacant office towers.G refers to this dress which I wore last night as the "Hallowe'en dress with spooky eyes on it", which I suppose makes sense given the colour scheme and pattern. Personally I prefer to think that it's more of a tribal print than it is Hallowe'en eyes, but it's really all mere semantics because, regardless of the what the colours or patterns signify, it is one of my favourite vintage finds ever.

You know those pieces you have in your closet that you can go to any time (provided it's summer in this case), put on and think to yourself 'this is exactly what I want to be wearing right now'? Well that's what this Hallowe'en/tribal print sheath thing is for me. Which is quite the achievement for any article of clothing in my closet because I've been increasingly turning into one of those people who gets changed at minimum thrice per day...I just grow so bored with what I have on after a couple of hours, or feel as though I can outsmart myself in some significant way by coming up with minute and probably inconsequential 'improvements' upon what I am wearing.Lastly, it turns out that I may in fact be on my way to bonafide yuppiedom, because Dessert Lady's Zingy Candied Ginger was more delicious than I can even express in writing, and as such I will probably definitely be going back the next time an out-of-character ice cream craving arises.

Wearing
Dress: vintage
Belt: The Bay (children's clearance section)
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell
Bag: vintage

Helium Heels

The majority of yesterday was spent lounging around my apartment building's pool, and consequently giving myself mild sunstroke. Midnight pizza ensued, but somewhere in between those activities G and I managed to get some photos in after discovering this strange, amazing wooded area right in the heart of downtown. For a good five minutes I felt as though I was actually turning into a total hippie - being around so much greenery and, most signficantly, on a dirt path is not something which I am accustomed to.

Wearing:

Dress: H&M sale rack

Shoes: Winners I think? They're old, I don't know.

Purse: from a flea market

Feeling so bohemian like you.

Today is yet another beautiful, gorgeous, sunny day in the city. G and I perused the St Lawrence Market this morning for clothing/trinkets/etc, but there was nothing to be found other than a horrible woman with a vintage camera stand who asked me to "please look and not touch" because I didn't seem to know how to "handle a camera".

Otherwise it's been a fantastic lazy Sunday though. This perpetual balcony lounging is really suiting me lately.

Shirt: Zara

Shorts: No idea - they're entirely beaten up and the labels fell off ages ago

Scarf: vintage

Shoes:vintage