Shoppin' in LA

Friday was the first drizzly and significantly chilly night in LA this season so  Jonathan and I kept it low key, cruised around Hollywood and stopped at two of the best shops in LA. Jet Rag Vintage, and Amoeba Records.

Our friend has been urging us to go to Jet Rag, promising we would love it. Holy Shite. He was right. (Rhymes! You're Welcome!)

Soooooo Jet Rag is pretty much the Amoeba Records of Vintage Stores. By that I mean it is massive, and honestly you could spend hours in there and still not see everything. There had to be over 500 vintage dresses (organized by color and era), over 200 pairs of boots, plenty of sequins, tons of options for Halloween costumes, and on and on. When I walked in I was totally over whelmed. To shop here you need to be well fed (for energy), caffeinated (for more energy) and wearing sweats (so you can easily try stuff on and for mobility....there are stairs). The prices are completely reasonable as well. Simple vintage dresses for $24. If you are in LA, go there. 

And of course, Amoeba. We had to scoop up some gifts for a good friend. We got him staples for any vinyl collection. 

Bob Dylan's Soundtrack: Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid

(In my top five favorite Vinyls ever. It's Folky and westerny and the first instrumental track played as I walked down the aisle)

Smokey Robinson and The Miricles Greatest Hits

(Such good party/mood boosting Motown)

Willie Nelson: The Troublemaker

(Jonathan has been on a Willie kick lately)

If you're record shopping, any one of these albums is a great buy. We got some Phosphorescent, Shangri Las and Pinback for ourselves. I guess we were feeling mellow. 

One of the rooms for dresses:

Jonathan's signature "let's get outta here" key twirl.

Waiting for the lift (I'm British) at Amoeba.

 Black Riding Pants: American Apparel, Cable Knit Sweater: Cotton On, Boots: Vintage, Bag: Vintage Coach.

¡BANDIDOS, BANDEROS, ESPECIAL!

Excuse the lack of posts this week, I've been a bit under the weather. The good news is I received a package full of vintage dresses and blazers from my Kimono designing, tea drinking, forever cat having , minimalist Godmother. I was the recipient of the casualties of her recent closet cleaning. Most of the items are simple and clean, but well made, vintage and fit me perfectly. WOOHOO!

I tried my hand at this Nicole Miller dress first. The beaded trim detail on the dress reminded me of the Mariachi-like hats Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short wore in ¡Three Amigos!. 

I straddled that desert/southwestern inspiration into the preverbal style-sunset. 

Snake Necklace, brothel thigh-highs (which Jonathan warmly refer to as "whore-socks"), lace-up frontier-ish boots, and some turquoise. Aaaaand a hat to tip to strangers/hide my unwashed hair. I guess I could get away with calling this a "messy side braid" but lets be real: it's a dread.

I will admit, this is a little costumey, but 

GIMMEABREAKIT'SOCTOBERIJUSTFELTLIKEITSTOPJUDGINGMEEEEEEH!!!!!

On a serious note, I really do adore the details of this dress. I love the texture of the dupioni silk. The cut of the bust line and the back especially made me want to put it on immediately. And of course the beading at the bottom. It's amazing how texture and cut can turn an other-wise boring piece into something special. 

Boots: UO, Thigh Highs: Spirit Halloween, Neckalce: Brooklyn Flea Market, Hat and Nicole Miller Dress: Gifted, Bracelets: Thrift

She Might Go All The Way

This is one of those looks that would be nothing without accessories. Sometimes you just want to be completely comfortable yet still stylish, and I think you can achieve that by layering on gobs of ridiculous accessories. I think the rule is actually only to have one pop to keep it classy, but I just went for it from head to toe. Thankfully it worked. You could probably just pick ONE of these and be good to go...

50's inspired scarf to feminize an otherwise ordinary pony tail.

Giant statement necklace for a solid shirt or camisole. (In this case my carousel horse which is one of my favorite pieces that I just don't wear enough).

A bright clutch/shoulder bag in place of the usual black or brown.

A HILARIOUS rhinestone belt inherited from my NaNa. (I have to be careful what I choose to pair this bad boy with or else I end up looking like a cougar trolling at a sports bar).

Bright green suede shoes I found at a thrift store. I like to call them Harlem Church Going Shoes. 

And of course, three watches....none of which work. What I'm doing here is making an ironic statement about the irrelevance of time (no I'm not).

Scarf, Necklace, Watches, Jacket and Shoes all vintage or thrifted, Belt: Gift, Jeans: F21, Pink Cami: H&M, Glasses: Cotton On