Shop Local: Beats + Bohos in Ballard

Still, one of my favorite spots to shop Seattle vintage is Beats + Bohos in Ballard. Tucked up and away from the busy street bustle of 15th Avenue NW, Beats + Bohos Vintage and Vinyl is chock full of amazing things! Last time I was there, I pulled out the trusty iPhone and snapped shots of some my personal favorites- Pendleton plaids, 50's cocktail dresses, a houndstooth hat, a rare beaded tribal belt. All the while listening to some great old vinyl records being spun over the stereo. Some classical music rubbed elbows with a spaghetti western movie soundtrack which went to town on some great classic garage bands. I'm mixing my music metaphors, I know, but the effect was heady. 

 

You can get a taste of this effect if you're in the 'hood, this Saturday- Beats and Bohos is putting on a party which entails a big sale on the vintage and the vinyl AND some DJ's spinning you like a merry-go-round from 5 pm to late night. You can get the deets HERE.

You Are Beautiful

You are beautiful.

Don't let anyone tell you different. Unless it's "You are beautiful AND wildly intelligent. -Bella Q

I made my first ecard in the name of the creative + feel good. Feel free to share it!

Linking up to Lakota for Ta-dah Tuesday

Vanity VS Sanity: This is NOT a Fashion Post

This is NOT a Fashion Post: Bella Heart-to-Hearts about Feeling Over Forty

Let's talk, friends. Not about BEING over forty years old. About FEELING over forty years old. 

I AM feeling it- and I'm going to be blunt with you- sometimes it doesn't feel so good. Or empowering, or the awesome-est. Sometimes, on some days it feels shitty. My body aches, and my joints hurt, and I can visibly see signs of aging: sagging skin, baggy eyes, age spots, grey hairs, and the ever constant thickening middle. I'm no Madonna, Demi Moore or Helen Mirren. Nobody is saying wowzahs at my bathing suit pictures, well, at least in polite company.

That said, I've got a good point to make in all this gripe talk. So bear with me a bit. I am of that certain age, where one doesn't have the shine or glamor of one's youth- I am banged up, dented and my history shows its marks. My age shows. Perhaps I should distract myself, and you by showing you all the new things I bought, my newest boots, or purse, or coat. But under the new bags, or boot, are the same tell-tale signs of grey hairs, crow's feet and other signs of gravity that betray my membership into the +40 club.

But here's the good thing: regardless of my age or my looks, I am still ME. The me who likes stripes and plaids and polka dots, who loves the pairing of brown boots with a grey dress, who prefers odd accessories and quirky styles. Who cuts her own hair, in spite of the fact that she's been saying that she's growing it out, FOR OVER TEN YEARS NOW, and has recently hacked it to its near last breath. The "I" who rocked her all black micro mini/crop top with docs (and big pull-back hair and Sade red lipstick) in the eighties is still alive and well, but thankfully has grown a sense of modesty. My crooked smile, my now chubby cheeked grin still expresses "me." And while I struggle with the hardball fact of aging, I still want to celebrate me in all my decades, all my phases. 

So I'm not going to pretend my outfits worn are ones like those worn by fashion plates, or that I could double as a model off-duty. Nobody does a double take at me or my outfits when I enter a room. No big brand is a calling for me to collab with their next blogger/brand campaign. I would even venture to say, that me, and this blog are nowhere near "fashion relevant." Maybe it is at this point where I could stop taking pictures of myself and stop posting online.

But I'm not going to stop. Because all of me, the ageless self, and the ageing body both agree: Style is eternal- and you don't need to be a born beauty to celebrate it. What you do need is the urge to express, and to dress accordingly. So I celebrate my chubby little face, full of its inevitable age spots and full jaw line, I'm going to celebrate the wrinkly hands, the thickening ankles and the double hourglass. 

I want to share with you MY style, not that my style is particularly note worthy, but by doing so, I'd like to give you permission to share YOUR style. With yourself. With me. With your friends, your family, your community. You don't need a blog,  you just need to dress how you'd like, and share it by going out, with your favorite purse, your loveliest shoes, and your best dress. Whatever you like. Just how you like it.

Just have fun. And be yourself. At whatever your age.

The sum is greater than its parts: 80% Thrifted. 100% Rosebud

Now Wearing: 

• vintage 60s cardigan, gifted
• the Carolyn c/o Karina Dresses
• vintage leather/brass belt, thrifted
• thrifted rings
• tights, similar HERE
  
• brown leather boots, thrifted

#SHOPSECONDHANDFIRST

Linking to the fabulous Patti for Visible Monday

The +40 Blog Roll: Here, and Back Again

The +40 Blog Roll is now nearing the 300 mark- that would be a considerable increase over the original 20 posted over 2 years ago! It's a sign that 2013 is starting off strong for us- especially when it comes to the subject of fashion, and blogging, for women over the age of forty.

First off, let's welcome two dear blogger friends BACK to the bloggersphere!
Last year, a tough one for some, and many slowed down or took a break from blogging. But two of my faves are back, so please welcome them with open arms: the delightful Reva of Revas Rags to Roses, and the wonderful Ofelia of My Intended Life. Both of these women are warm and genuine, and share a few passions of mine: personal style, and thrift shopping. 

You can check out their blogs here: 

Revas Rags to Roses:
Midwest magpie, and frugal fashionista, Reva "the Marvelous" has long been a favorite a mine. Her eclectic, bold and colorful style, keen eyes for a bargain, and burst of personality stand out in a sea of sameness. Warm, down to earth, Reva is a personality that hits home, and offers up more than just a laundry list of fashion tips. Reva gives you real life examples on how you can love fashion, explore trends without losing your sense of self. Reva's blog is a must-read for anyone learning how to SHOP SECONDHAND FIRST.


My Intended Life:
Puerto Rican plus 40 beauty, Ofelia currently lives sunny Florida, and her posts are filled with much more than her thrifted goodies and outfits. Ofelia shares the art, culture and cuisine of her city, as her blog is much like herself: warm and personal . A visit to Ofelia's blog will leave you with the sensation of savoring simple pleasures, and, after viewing picture after picture of her heaping plate after plate of delicious looking food, more often than not, you will go away hungry. And I mean that in a good way.

Picture Perfect: Local Color

Local Color: the sights and delights of Ballard. Seattle, Washington

The above is how I see the world. Because it's MY world. As I adjust to living in Seattle, specifically the Ballard district, I can not help but delight in the local color. The skyline, always a breath taker, competes with the most interesting of details- the white of frost, a red cart, a green window, a blue light and above all, a wonderful sense of place. 

Outfit Post: The "NEW" Black

What's Old is New Again. The New Black Outfit was 75% Thrifted.

According to the latest issue of Harper's Bazaar, we've got a "new black. "

Remember the movie Funny Face? Not only was it a fun fashion romp featuring the gamine charms of Audrey Hepburn, it was a movie with some great memorable lines. One of them being the petulant declaration of "the new black."

The new black has since been declared by many a fashion editor: navy, white, pink, camel, nude, you name it, it's been it.

And this season, according to the Harper's Bazaar article, the NEW black is...

Simply, Karina

The best thing about wearing a dress from Karina Dresses, is the ease of it. You simply, put the dress on and you're ready to go. While I LOVE to style my Karinas (you can see some of my previous stylings HERE, HERE,  & HERE ,) the simple fact of the matter is that I usually just slip one over my head, pair it with a jacket/sweater, put on some footwear, and I'm good to go. And I go everywhere in my Karina: to the market, to lunch, to work, or to the pub to meet some pals for a pint. I dress. And go. 

The way you think of a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, is the way I think about my Karina. It's basic, its classic, it goes everywhere. But unlike jeans and a Tee, it's not mere utility; my Karina still retains my poetry. It's fun and flirty, and femme extraordinaire.

Street Feet: Polka Dot Rainboots

Raindrops and Polka Dots: Feeling Right as Rain in Adorable Dotted Rainboots

Like All the Girls in Boston. When I wore these adorable polka dotted rainboots out and about on Greenwood Ave the other day, I received quite an unusual amount of comments from passerbys. Among the handful of "cute boots," and "nice boots" and "hey polka dots!" came my favorite comment- slung at me by a tall, gaunt cowboy looking gentleman in his early to mid fifties. 

Said gent was outside a bar, smoking a cigarette and somehow had managed in between his  puffs to nod at me and say: "Hey, nice boots! You know all the girls in Boston are wearing those boots."

I stopped in my polka dotted tracks. I turned to face him. 
"Oh yeah?" I say.

Cowboy: Exhale. Nod. 
"Yeah," he replied. "All the girls in Boston. Especially the young ones. They go about wearing boots just like that." I nod. 

"They look nice, he says. "You look nice," Boston cowboy hat takes another puff of his cigarette. His face lit up at the memory of all those girls. Wearing all those boots. He smiled, giving me a good look up and down. "Yeah, you look like all the girls in Boston wearing those boots."

Here's where it would have been smart to answer back in my best Goodwill-Hunting accent, to say in my best Ben Affleck/Matt Damon voice a Beantown "Thank you." Only I'm shitty at accents, so I just said it in my signature high pitched Nor-Cal utterance: "Hey yeah, that's cool. Hey thanks!" 

A perky nod, an about face, and a march onto my destination. In my polka dot rainboots. 

Just like all the girls in Boston.


Now Wearing:
Polka Dot Rainboots, similar HERE

SHOP SECONDHAND FIRST: The Citizen Rosebud Etsy Shop

Bloom Madly, Shop Gladly: The Citizen Rosebud Etsy SHOP is  officially open for 2013.

My 2013 #SHOPSECONDHANDFIRST pledge has officially begun. This year, I am committed in making smart, sustainable shopping decisions and have pledge to "Shop Secondhand First." For those who care to join me, you can take the pledge HERE.

Outfit Post: Minty Fresh

Last night there was snow! After a day of rain, and then a burst of hail, the conditions were finally right, and down came a feather dusting of snow. I snapped a pic when my boyfriend came home from work all wet and cold and snowed upon. He said the night looked so beautiful, as it was snowing out on the street, but I didn't make it past the porch steps. One quick click of a little weather-worn succulent, and back inside!

Think: Pink

Instead of suffering through yet another inane session of celebrity sighting in a droll slide show of who wore what (I'm talking at you, Huff-Po,) let's focus on some REAL star power, and put the spotlight on some people who ACTUALLY deserve some headlines.  

Case in point: this gorgeous gaggle of pink vigilantes otherwise known as the Gulabi Gang (or Pink Ladies) who enact justice when their village police fail to do so. Led by a fearless woman, Sampat Devi, a former government health worker, these pink ladies show up to extract justice when a man beats on, or abandons a wife. Crimes against women, are often overlooked by the authorities, so the Pink Ladies take the law in their own hands, often forcefully, and with bamboo sticks.  "If they don't take her back and keep her well, we will resort to other measures," Devi says. 

Clad in bright flamingo pink silk saris, this boisterous band of women definitely inspire, and by so much more than what they are merely wearing.  However, you'll appreciate the powerful statement of their bright and bold uniforms, and while I've never been a fan of pink before, these women have got me seeing this hue with a whole new respectful view. With their fierce and brave brand of justice, the Gulabi Gang of Banda have definitely got me tickled about pink.

You can read more about these pink Heroines by clicking HERE.
Edit: Anne has shared their website with us: www.gulabigang.in 
Thanks Anne!

Linking up to Patti and pals for Visible Monday

Happy New Year!

Thank you friends for sharing a year with me. I wish for all you a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. 

I'll be taking a short blog break for the first part of January, but plan to be back by the 15th. Talk to you then.            -Bella Q