Gettin’ Cozy With It.
A little music to get you going, one of my fave throwbacks:
Hello Portlanders! We are deep into the middle of a rainy Portland winter and this kind of weather requires extra preparation while getting ready in order to stay dry and toasty roasty.
Like many women, I am in a constant battle with my hair during the rainy season. The weird mist that seems to follow me everywhere is out to get me and make my hair resemble that of a Wookie. In the years that I have lived here I have discovered that one of the best winter/rainy day accessories to wear is a snood (think if a scarf and a hood had a baby).
Wouldn’t it just be easier to wear a big ole coat? No.
Sometimes you have an awesome coat without a hood, rendering it useless in the rain. Or maybe you have a delightful dress on and it is just not worth it to whip out your puffy, bulky winter coat because it would obviously ruin the outfit. But UH OH, your head is still going to get wet and the rain will ruin your lovely hairstyle! But I have a great solution for everyone with a cold and wet head:
HOODED SCARVES! or Capes or Shrugs! They’ll keep you warm and dry, they keep your hair frizz and wet-dog-smell free, and they are cozy and adorable!
Here’s a peek at a few of the cozy covers we have in stock, and each can be worn at least two ways:
Maybe you think that an umbrella might be a practical option, but I can tell you from experience that it is not. Umbrellas are awkward and get in the way, as well as block your view. I have been hit in the face with someone’s umbrella in the street and I did not consider it a good time, at all. Another thing about Umbrellas which I learned when I moved here, people look at you weird. People that live here have learned how to brave the rain, but that doesn’t mean we can’t look cute doing it with a saucy little hood. :)
Stay cozy, Portland!
- Marika
are you muff enough?
Calm down everyone! We’re talking about Muff muffs- the classic hand warmer. You might not have given muffs a lot of thought, since it’s not the 17th century and stuff. I know I wasn’t sitting around dreaming about a fresh way to keep my frozen hands warm- that is, I wasn’t until we got a shipment of faux fur muffs from Wooden Ships! I love how ladylike they are. They hearken back to a more conservative time, sure, but it was a pretty good time for fashion, if you can forget about all the pointy shoes and corset thing. And, as Marika demonstrates below, they work perfectly with a vintage coat, especially since they often have teeny sleeves that require you to seek warmth elsewhere.
Exhibit A: Freezing hand Marika turns into muff-happy, warm n’ toasty Marika.
Here’s Marika herself with some info on the history of the muff! She’s our resident history buff. Muff buff? Too far? Anyway, back to Marika:
Muffs have been in fashion for centuries. The Ancient Romans even used them when their hands got cold. After the Romans were warm, the muff became quite the popular item in Europe through the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. That is just how great they are; three centuries! Classy ladies and even men wore muffs, some with fur and some without. Personally I prefer the fur, it makes me feel regal. Muffs came in many different shapes and sizes, some really little that went just up to the wrist and others big enough for a cute little pocket puppy*!
Muffs are coming back in fashion (not like they ever left) and you should be a part of the trend! I know I am. So when in Rome, do as the Romans do: get a muff! Not only will you be on trend but you will also be warm and toasty. They stand the test of time and prove that some things just never go out of fashion!
Exhibit B: Venetian noblewoman circa 1598 classes it up with a muff.
This has been a history lesson with Marika. Stay tuned for more!
*The tiny dogs that can be taken everywhere you go.
Tuesday Tip: Be a Knitwit!
When the temperatures drop, and the sky turns, gray, it’s easy to get a little blue. But hey, just because the sky is dark doesn’t mean your wardrobe has to! It is so easy to default to black coat-scarf-hat-umbrella, but there’s no reason to dress like you’re headed to summer’s funeral. In fact, it’s been scientifically proven* that wearing happy colors will cheer you right up! So try throwing on some colorful knit accessories on your way out the door on these cold mornings (okay, afternoons) and see if you don’t feel a little better about the rain this year!
xoxo,
Sally
no. 1: Shiraleah gloves
no. 2:Goorin Bros. hat
no. 3: Wooden Ships flower ear warmers/headbands
no. 4: Wooden Ships Ikat print mittens
no. 5: Wooden Ships flapper cap
no. 6: Wooden Ships knit button shawl
(Seriously though, Wooden Ships is amazing— soft, colorful, affordable!)
*By me, just now.
Style Icon: Little Edie
The following is a conversation I had with a dear friend recently:
Friend: “Hi!”
Me: “Hey you!”
Friend: “You look great! Like… like a rich old lady who doesn’t care!”
Me: “Uh… what?”
Anyway, other than the rich, old, and lady part, my friend couldn’t have been more correct (except that I care. But whatever.) I was, after all, wearing a pleated cotton skirt down to the ground, an oversized sweater, platform sandals with argyle socks, a turban, and approximately one million rings.
There’s something about fall, it’s so dreary out, that I feel the need to, shall we say, overcompensate with fabulousness? Yeah, I think that’s it. The colors get brighter and multiply, as does the jewelry and the textures (Soft! Fluffy! Wooly! Oh my…) I end up (unapologetically, I might add) channeling Little Edie, cousin to Jackie O, made famous in the 1975 documentary Grey Gardens.
I mean, right?
So it makes sense that when we got in a whole ton of new stuff from Wooden Ships recently, I plotzed! Turban style beanies, knit shawls, and fuzzy things galore! Very Little Edie indeed. Here’s the Wooden Ships knit ear warmer I am getting (total turban vibes!) and how I would wear it:
The oh-so quirky Cydwoq Gemini boot with my new favorite outfit (the purse is Cydwoq too,) big ole’ earrings, and tons of brooches would surely make L.E. proud- and warm too!
xoxo,
Sally
NUCLEAR WINTER?!
I think we can all agree by now that we’re better off listening to the voices in our heads than the weatherman on TV these days, but Portland is allegedly going to get between 0 inches and 1 foot of snow “sometime” this week “maybe”, so why not be prepared?
pedX and Manifesto both have some goodies in stock necessary to your survival (whether it snows or not.)
(Clockwise from top left: Mocaroon Slippers, SmartWool; Pom pom hat, Coal; Knit headband, Wooden Ships; Tights, SmartWool; Socks, Happy Socks; Cranbrook boot, Groundhog; Fan boot, Fly London; Mittens, DeLux; Earflap hat, Coal; 500 boot, Blundstone; Socks, SmartWool; Pampa Tactical boot, Palladium.)
Check with us for weatherproofing tips and supplies, too!
12 Days of Christmas: Day 3
Baby, it’s cold outside!
The only way I would want to get three French hens for Christmas is if they were for dinner. I’d much rather get a cozy knit set. These knit pieces are by Wooden Ships. They make some of the softest and must luxurious-feeling scarves, gloves and hats I have ever seen… er, felt.
Black is always a good bet when you aren’t sure what to pick, but Wooden Ships accessories come in all kinds of fun colors. Come check them out for yourself, and keep an eye out for the fourth installment of our 12 Days of Christmas gift guide!
