Outfit - All black texture play

Lots of textures in this outfit! Wool, leather, suede, the raw silk-like texture of the shirt and even some forged iron jewelry. Shirt and coat are thrifted, pants and gloves are from H&M.

Do you ever wear all black? Do you like playing with textures in your outfits?

Btw, I just wrote a bit about my personal style, kind of a profile. You can have a look at that in the tab at the top of the blog marked My Style Profile. It has a nifty diagram and everything! :)

Autumn Outfit + Rambling

I have noticed that my default style for autumn seems to be quite steampunk inspired... I just delight in digging out my vests and my pocket watches when summer is at an end! This is an outfit I wore the other day. Kind of steampunk, kind of contemporary, very practical. I feel very stylish and elegant wearing this! I love the different textures and the different shades of dark grey/black! It's quite androgynous too, which is always a plus! Scent of the day was Jeke by Slumberhouse. I stand by my words, Jeke is a steampunk kind of perfume!

The hat, shirt, vest and pants are all wardrobe staples that have been seen on this blog before. The jacket/blazer is one of my best finds ever! I bought it at a flea market for 30 swedish crowns, which is about 3.5-4 €... virtually nothing! And it fits as if it was tailor-made for me!

My new brooch suits this outfit very well imho!

My favorite gunmetal pocket watch, mechanical with the movement visible both in the front and in the back! It keeps time reliably (some of these cheap pocket watches really don't) and only needs winding about once every 36 hours.

Quirky view of my outfit! ;)

My best pair of shoes! I love how elegant they are while still being practical! I like the pointier than normal toe (for this type of shoe) and my feet look smaller than they actually are in these! They seem to be quite good quality too, I've had them several years and worn them a lot and still they look no different from the day I bought them! The shoelaces are a bit too long though...

In other news the history society in my home village is organizing a class about tule weaving/plaiting that I am taking part in. Tule is a type of sedge that has traditionally been used here to make mats, shoe insoles and various other practial or decorative items. So far I have only made a couple of bracelets and a new handle for one of my teapots. Next time I am making insoles, wish me luck!

I found this teapot in the garbage room of my appartment complex in Uppsala. It was pretty but lacked a handle. Now it has a handle again! I am rather proud of it! I also really like the matching but mismatched cup and saucer combo! Am I strange when I feel like my tea cup has to match my teapot?

My tiny village has a very active community life. We have a youth society, a history society, a historical motor society and a kind of community center where the latter two of these societíes are based (the youth society has its own house). My father is active in some way in all of these societies and I am getting more and more into it too, mostly in the history society. The word history society is a bit misleading actually but I couldn't find a english word for hembygdsförening. The swedish word more literally means home region society or even roots society. I feel strongly about my village and my roots here (my family has ben here as long as this village has existed, literally since the land rose from the sea) so being part of the history society and learning/conservating the traditions of my village feels important!

A very nice day + outfit!

Last night I sent my almost finished Bachelor's paper to my supervisor so I took the day off today and ventured outside for the first time in almost two weeks... It seems that spring has arrived while I was working on my paper. I finally got to use something else than my winter coat. Don't get me wrong, I love my coat, but it gets a bit boring with only one option. But when it comes to jackets I have a multitude of options! This is what I wore today. It is an outfit that you have pretty much seen before, but I'm posting new pictures anyway. I do love this outfit!! It is such a shocker, this jacket! Oh, and the perfume of choice today was The Voice of Reason by Lush.

(Note to self: DUST THAT MIRROR!! Or even better, get a new, wider, mirror!)

The weather was gorgeous today, warm and sunny! I had a few things to take care of in town first but then I took the time to enjoy some things I usually do every spring. I had an ice cream by the river that runs through  Uppsala. One scoop of licorice and one of pecan ice cream. Then I walked through the beautiful old parts of town up to the university to return a book to the library. On the way back I took a stroll through the cemetary. I love cemetaries, they are so... gothic I guess! After that I visited the huge Uppsala cathedral. I'm not christian, but I enjoy the beautiful architecture and the wonderful feeling of history in this beautiful cathedral! Google it, it is a wonderful place! Lots of old kings and queens of Sweden are buried there along with other famous people, like Carl Linnaeus and Emanuel Swedenborg.

Back in the center of town I bought a salad and some strawberries, just for that luxurious spring feeling! On the way back to my bike I was accosted by a few people from one of the national TV networks.  I saw one of the TV people point me out to the others when I was still a fair distance from them, I guess they though I would look interesting on camera. You would be surprised how often that kind of thing happens when you dress like me. Anyway, they wanted to film me while they asked a few questions... Guess what the questions where about! They where about sex! I was happy to answer their questions just to spread the word about asexuality! So, apparently I'll be on Swedish television this autumn, on a show about sex. Oh the irony!

Oh, and I just have to say some words about my bike! It is such a piece of junk! It has no reflectors anymore, no handbrakes, no working bell, one of the baskets is fastened with a shoelace, a hairband and a piece of metal wire...  But I love my bike! It looks, and sounds, like junk but works like a charm! And this last weekend it finally got its just rewards for seven years of loyal service. My friend Blomma, who is an artist and an art teacher, painted it! It now looks like pretty junk instead of ugly junk! Here it is!

Now I'm going to just relax, watch something on netflix, eat my salad and my strawberries... Later I'll prepare those packages of perfume that I want to send to some fine people! Perhaps I'll write some perfume reviews too...

Outfit - Basic black semi-steampunk!

The last Tuesday of every month I meet up with a gang of geeks at a student pub. These guys (yes, mostly guys) are originally members of a fantasy community, but that community is mostly dead, and these meet-ups have nothing to do with fantasy nowadays. These guys also share a passion for beer, and they have infected me with it. I´m not a geek yet, but I have definitely aquired a taste for strong Belgian beers, especially Trappist beers! (Though a new favorite, that I tried this Tuesday, is a Dutch beer, Bommen & Granaten by Brouwerij De Molen! It instantly replaced the La Trappe Quadruple that has been my favorite for a while.) I used to hate beer. I still hate most beer but I now know that beer can be so many things, some awesome, some awful... Beer is rather like perfume actually!

Anyway, geekery aside, I wore this outfit! Mostly previously featured staples from my wardrobe. I don´t think I have raved about these fake leather pants though! They fit like they were painted on, but are still comfortable! I feel kind of sexy when I wear them! The black shirt is the only clothing item I found during the weekend's Beyond Retro raid. It is a rather simple black shirt but beautifully pleated. And the sleeves are    huge, just like I want them. The knee high boots are also a new addition to my wardrobe. I bought them this autumn, when I realised that last winter's boots are falling to pieces... I loved those boots so it was rather sad. These boots were the best I could find for less than 50€, which was my budget at the time.  I would have a better picture of them, but my camera battery died... Suffice to say thay have a two inch heel, a decorative sipper down the outside and a couple of decorative buttons. I wanted them as simple as possible and they just don´t make any nice plain boots anymore, they all have all kinds of frills and buckles and whatnot... The necklace is one I have made myself from a key that I bought cheaply at a flea market.

This look is very me as some of you might note. I have made the vest and the large sleeves my trademark... and the hat of course. I feel very comfortable in this kind of semi-steampunk everyday outfit! What kind of outfits do you feel most comfortable in? What are your trademarks? (Any beer geeks out there?)

Price tag: about 80€, excluding the hat.

Wish list: same old, same old!

P.S. Maybe I should move my Egon Schiele prints around a bit so I don´t have that (admittedly nice-looking) butt in every outfit picture... Just a thought.

Awful or Awesome - Case #2 The Brocade Jacket

Oh yes, this one definitely deserves the capital letters! I think this is awesome! But I know many people who cringe at the sight of it. I love brocade, and I love jackets, this one has brocade in just the right colors and such an awesome cut! It is a VERY powerful piece though, it cannot be ignored! When the sun shines, this one shines too! A lot! I feel like a second sun when I wear it in sunlight. And my do people stare!

I found this one at a second hand shop called Beyond Retro, they have a chain of shops both in Sweden (three of them in Stockholm, just a 40 minute train ride from here!!) and in the UK. They also have an online shop. I love that place, it is definitely my go to place for absolutely unique items of good quality! Not too expensive either, but expensive enough that I only shop there about twice a year as I tend to get carried away... My dear top hat is also from Beyond Retro, but it is not second hand.

This brocade jacket is completely anonymous, no lable or any signs that there has ever been a lable. It seems tailored to me and it might have been made as part of a theater production or something like that. It has some details that have been lovingly hand stitched but it still gives a decidely proffessional impression. The patterns align perfectly and it is just so stunning that I get chills!! Oh, I could just go on and on about this one, it is hands down the best find I have ever made! It cost me just 35 €! It´s a little bit big on me, but who cares!!

But, for the awful part of it, it might just be too extreme for most people in the known universe! Shoulder pads, gold brocade, strange cut... I love it, but most people wouldn't! My mother exclaimed "WHAT is THAT?" the first time she saw it!

So my mind might be made up, but what do you think? Could you handle wearing it? Is it cringeworthy? Is it awful or is it awesome?

Outfit - Feeling dandy!

Wore this outfit today. Very basic really, and nothing new except for the bright red ruffle shirt. I rediscovered this one today when I was looking for something to wear. It was hiding underneath a jacket that I seldom use. I have way too few hangers so they usually hold one shirt and one jacket each. 

Bright red is a bit too bright a color for me but otherwise this shirt is perfect! I love ruffle shirts or cravats, especially worn with a vest! Looks quite dandy doesn´t it?

Price tag: Heck if I know... maybe around 40 €, excluding the hat...

Wish list: A white ruffle shirt! I have one, but it is way to big on me... A black ruffle shirt, or perhaps a black lace ruffle cravat, that would be awesome!

Need list: More black pants, I only have three good pairs now! *panics*

Outfit - Gothic Aristocrat?

Wore this the other day to a birthday party. The pictures are quite terrible, now that I really look at them... The outfit looks better than that, but you can get an idea. In my mind this looks a bit gothic aristocrat. The large sleeves and the long vest make me think of 18th century men's fashion. With a wig, breeches and stockings it would almost be spot on! ;)

I love the blouse I´m wearing here! The sleeves are gigantic! I love blouses and shirts with wide sleeves! You might not be able to see it but this blouse also has huge shoulder pads, I love them too! I found the blouse at some charity shop or other, probably cost me next to nothing. I didn´t use it for quite a while because it was too big for me, but after moving a few buttons it looks good, at least with a vest or something over it. 

The vest type garment here has a rather interesting story. It came to me in a very strange way. A former employer of my father (my father is in the construction business) owned a large apartment. A woman and her adult son were supposed to move in, they were moving from Abu Dhabi or Dubai or somewhere like that. All their stuff arrived, but they never did. My father stored these items for his former employer and as the owners never showed up and could not be tracked down they split the stuff between them (I guess that is allowed after a few years have passed). The woman had the same size shoes and clothes as I have, so I ended up with some of those, a handbag and a few odds and ends, among them this vest. She had quite expensive tastes too, the shoes and handbag are italian, the clothing mostly french, no mainstream brands here! Sometimes I wonder what happened to the woman and her son, where they disappeared to...

Price tag: About 40 € for the lot, excluding the hat.

Wish list: More wide sleeved shirts and blouses! More vests! I can never get enough! 

Outfit - Military Jacket and Bowler Hat

A pick of old things in my wardrobe combined in a new way... I really like the bowler hat but I think it makes my allready round face even rounder so I don´t really use it as much as I should. The jacket is a brilliant old sale find, as is the blouse underneath. I like to mix and match contrasting thinks, new things/old things, masculine/feminine, simple/elaborate...

With a different shirt underneath the jacket this outfit would be more androgynous. I usually aim towards androgynity in my style, but sometimes i fall for the ultra feminine, like a cute frilly blouse in pastell colours... (I don´t know what´s wrong with me sometimes.) I look quite feminine so wearing edgy ultra masculine clothing is a nice contrast while wearing retro/vintage ultra feminine clothing makes me look like a stay at home wife of bygone eras... (No offence all you stay at home wifes but I´d rather go for a more androgyne look.)

On a monetary note, this outfit was another quite cheap one, 30 € for the lot...

Muse - Marlene Dietrich

Speaking of 30s glamour I came to think about Marlene Dietrich... Amazing style! The suit in the first pic makes her wonderfully androgynous. In the orher pics she is darkly elegant and never vulgar! I love the black veil in the middle and the white lace in the last pic. Dietrich is a truly elegant muse! An outfit does not have to be comlicated, simple is just as, if not more, elegant. People nowadays have a tendency to overcomplicate their outfits, sometimes making outfits messy and uncoordinated. Simplicity without minimalism is definitely undervalued today!

I find it funny that Dietrich smokes in nearly every picture. You never see that nowadays, people are to concerned with being politically correct. But damn, smoking is elegant. I could start smoking just for the elegance and flair of it...

Wish list: cigarette holder!

Outfit - Ouji/Dandy

A little ouji/dandy-inspired outfit. My top hat, grey suit, grey and black-striped stockings, my new and astoundingly versatile blouse/shirt with cravat and, to top it all off, my lace gloves! I felt very dandy indeed! I adore japanese style. I would never wear lolita, too cute, but I like gothic aristocrat, ouji, dandy...

Wish list: black suit, frilly white lace jabot, black vest, red vest... I would love an outfit like this but in black and red...

For a "gothic" outfit this was a cheap one, excluding the hat (that hat cost me about 60 €) the total cost was under 20 €. Cheap is good!