Yet More Animal-y Outfits

"Fishy Monday (Brought to You by Lands End)"--Monday, 2/27/17

In searching out a Reverse Inspiration for this outfit, I discovered that there is a website devoted to helping shoppers locate the garments (or similar ones) that actors wear on television.  Like this one worn by a character (Haley) on a show I've kind of heard of (Modern Family). 

From wornontv.com

Meanwhile at chez Sally, I went with the easy mixing of two Lands End garments, tied together (hahaha) by a Target scarf.

Drapey cobalt cardigan (Lands End), $3.75/wear
Coral red dress (Lands End), $6.75/wear
Red/white/blue fish scarf (Target), $1.33/wear
Black leggings
Tall black boots by Fitzwell, $2.10/wear

Outfit total: $13.93/wear

I think the fish were disappointed to discover that the "coral" in this outfit was only the particular shade of red.

"Velvet Leopard"--Tuesday, 2/28/17

In this outfit from last April, grey animal print + pink are a nice spring combination, lightening up the black trousers.

From savvy-southern.blogspot.com

Although I couldn't make pink shoes work even with the higher-than-typical temperatures in Coldville this week, I think the velvet blazer makes quite a statement.  And while the dark grey reflects today's gloomy overcast skies, the bright pink represents...well, I would like to say "my cheerful mood" but don't let's be silly.

Grey leopard top (JNY), $4.08/wear
Bright pink velvet blazer (thrifted, Old Navy), $2.33/wear
Dark grey skirt (Walmart), $1.50/wear
Grey polka dot tights
Tall grey boots by LifeStride, $5.88/wear
Grey/black/red birds scarf (gift)

Outfit total: $13.79/wear

And of course I ended up almost completely obscuring my shirt with this cute printed scarf.  The pink-red color of the birds is interesting--depending on what color it's next to, it can take on many different shades...which turns out to be a quite useful quality.

And so ends the official "Winter" season in my sartorial calendar.  Starting tomorrow, "Winter/Spring."  It's exciting, y'all.

This assiduously self-cleaning rabbit demonstrates the pleasing quality of grey with a pop of pink...and the importance of good grooming habits.
 

In other news...They fixed an oil something-or-other sensor on my car today but are keeping it until Thursday so they can drive it and make sure everything is operating normally.  So that's good.  Another good thing--my health insurance came through in completely covering the cost of the gum biopsy from the "weirdly growing gum" incident a few months ago.

And for an extra bonus good news feel good, check out this roundup of wholesome things that happened on Twitter.

Uber-Asshats

"Skyrim Bunnies"--Saturday, 2/25/17

It's always nice to see someone else in a giant cream-colored cardigan.

From sarahsreallife.com

In my case, this was with a rabbit blouse and (sadly not pictured) fuzzy boots.  Just the outfit for sitting around your apartment waiting for the towing company to take your car back to the shop to fix the problem they supposedly fixed with $3,000 worth of repairs 2 weeks ago, right?  I did go out to play Pokemon Go all afternoon, so it wasn't a total loss.

Cream/dark green rabbit blouse (Loft), $4.96/wear
Cream Skyrim cardigan (thrifted), $1.25/wear
Black peplum hem hiking skirt Black knit hiking skirt (Patagonia/REI), $2.14/wear
Black tights
Black fuzzy boots (Walmart), $1.82/wear
Black booth/claw necklace (Outfit Additions), $0.90/wear

Outfit total: $11.07/wear

"Puffy Leopard Redux"--Sunday, 2/26/17

Let's keep this inspiration party going, shall we? 

From anneinresidence.com

I somehow do not own a white puffy vest, but leopard print is a neutral, right?

Red cashmere pullover sweater (Macy's), $4.00/wear
Leopard puffy vest (Macy's), $2.44/wear
Black scarf (Target), $0.80/wear
Black bootcut jeans (thrifted, NYDJ), $0.88/wear
Black ankle boots by Sam Edelman, $1.94/wear

Outfit total: $10.06/wear

I'm probably slow to this news, but I was both astonished and unsurprised to read about this woman's experience as an engineer at Uber.  Here's an article discussing the issue.  So, in case you didn't already have a reason to delete the Uber app from your phone, here you go.

Butterflies and First Lady Fashion

"Fake News!  I Mean, Fake Animal Print"--Thursday, 2/23/17

A blue patterned dress and plain blazer get a punch from brown leather accessories in this ensemble.

From whatlizzyloves.com

I chose to jazz mine up a little differently, with a bit of faux animal print (pseudo-zebra) + real animal print (butterflies) pattern mixing.  I also like the bit of bling that the gold buckles on my flats brought to the outfit.

Black/blue faux animal print dress (JNY), $4.74/wear
Black velvet blazer (thrifted, Talbots), $0.50/wear
Black tights + black buckle flats by Me Too, $2.43/wear
Black/red/blue butterfly scarf (Kohls), $2.00/wear

Outfit total: $9.67/wear

Gotta take this opportunity to post another butterfly photo from the state fair--this time, a very thirsty butterfly.

In other news...Feeling nostalgic about the Obama administration?  This is an interesting article looking at the significance of Michelle Obama's fashion choices as First Lady.  "You can get some good stuff online!"  Very, very true.

Also, enjoy this brief run down of the pros and cons of America's two party system.

Side by Side

"Color of the...Well, Two Years Ago"--Wednesday, 2/22/17

In this blog post from last January, the 2015 Pantone color of the year, Marsala, is paired with black and leopard print.

From savvy-southern.blogspot.com

After yesterday's rather hectic outfit, this seems sedate by my standards.  (Note that my pink Fitbit looks awesome in this combo.)  With the unseasonably warm weather, I had to hope that a single layer of cotton sweater wouldn't be too warm--and that turned out mostly true.  My office tends to get warm for the last hour of my work day if it is at all warm outside (like 55 F or more), and especially so when it's sunny, but with my fan running, I can usually cope.  Today I ran the fan on low all day and was very comfortable.  And then when I was halfway to my car after work, I realized I'd left my (lightweight spring) coat inside.  So tomorrow I'll be walking into work at the coldest part of the day without a jacket and back during the warmest part of the day, hopefully with one.

Black pullover sweater (thrifted, Macy's), $0.90/wear
Burgundy skirt (Nordstrom), $2.12/wear
Brown leopard scarf (Kohls), $1.66/wear
Black tights + black mary janes by Hush Puppies, $3.53/wear

Outfit total: $8.21/wear

This mini rex has gorgeous black-and-brown fur.  I'm really not familiar with this particular color in rabbits.  I wish I'd taken a photo of the sign on the cage so I would know what it's called.  Beautiful, though, by any name.  (Mottled dark chocolate?)

In other news...Have you seen this fascinating side-by-side comparison of articles that Facebook might display for conservatives vs. liberals?  That's a really terrible description, actually.  Well, they have a methodology page where they explain it, so you can check that out.

Maximal

"Style Clown"--Tuesday, 2/21/17

Some people wear very sophisticated garments in neutral colors, embodying minimalism.  Others like to wear more vibrant and mixed outfits, embodying maximalism. 

And some of us are OK with occasionally wearing the pattern-mixed kitchen sink like this riotous outfit.  (Well, she's a model, so she didn't really have a choice.)

From youlookfab.com

Despite having a basic foundation of black top and denim trousers, this outfit with a self-pattern-mixed blazer, striped scarf, and leopard shoes had a sort of style clown feel to it...just a bit, not too much.  If I were forced to wear a wardrobe consisting of black, white, bright pink, blue, and leopard print, I wouldn't be happy about it overall, but I could imagine a lot worse restrictions.

Black and white striped/polka dot blazer (thrifted, Jessica London), $2.50/wear
Black peasant top (thrifted, Banana Republic), $0.80/wear
Denim trousers (thrifted, Boden), $1.31/wear
Bright pink striped scarf (Walmart), $4.00/wear
Black socks + leopard smoking slippers by Clarks, $1.67/wear

Outfit total: $10.28/wear

Minimalism, maximalism...whatever.  This French Angora asks, Is fur in this year?  Mais oui.

In other news...And maybe soon we will have winter weather again, so those extra-furry bunnies aren't quite so overheated!  After getting into the 60s today, it's supposed to be 31 F with 5-8" of snow on Friday.

I've fallen a bit behind with my article links, but here are two that caught my eye recently.

A primer in gaslighting, perfect for the age of Trump's take on "who you gonna believe, me or your own eyes" with a side of alternative facts.

Famous women talk about imposter syndrome and self-doubt.

Rabbit Ladders

"Stripey Purple Candy"--Monday, 2/20/17

I had originally thought of wearing a striped top + blazer + jeans combo to work (as she did in this May 2015 post), but instead decided to create a confusing weather holiday Monday outfit instead.

From brynnash.blogspot.com

Nothing is more perfect for a rainy February Monday in Coldville like a puffy vest.  I left the vest off during the warmer parts of the day, and put it on for the cooler parts (as in, when the fan I had set up next to the open patio door brought in a whole lot of cool outside air).  I enjoyed wearing bright flats (no socks, whoa!) and a very bright ball necklace, which today is reminding me of the kind of sugary candy I would have eaten as a child but wouldn't eat these days.  See, I'm all grown up!  (Well, I expect that I have candy on the brain because of the Pokemon Go candy thing, so maybe "all grown up" is not quite the right characterization of my situation.)

Purple puffy vest (thrifted, Kohls), $1.75/wear
Cream/grey striped top (Kohls), $0.73/wear
Black skinny jeans (thrifted, YMI), $0.35/wear
Wild ball necklace (Macy's), $2.43/wear
Medium blue flats by Sofft, $3.50/wear

Outfit total: $8.76/wear


When I saw this photo for a new store opening on an LA rabbit-lover's style blog, I couldn't help but think of Leo and his unexpected baby-gate climb to freedom when we lived in Austin.  The market for rabbit ladders may be small, but not zero.  Now the issue is whether they will take online orders and deliver to the rabbit's home.  A bunny probably can't reliably convince their humans to shop for a ladder for them, since rabbit ladders will so often be used for rabbit mischief.  (Some people do put up rabbit "ladders" that are really ramps for their bunnies to use, however.)  Time will tell whether this store is successful.  I think they should warn customers that in addition to letting their "imagination run wild," they do risk letting their rabbits run wild as well.

From hellokatiegirl.blogspot.com

In other news...I mostly managed to avoid the President's Day sales.  I am in the market for a short-sleeved white cardigan to replace my current one, as well as a white knit jacket of some kind, so I tried Loft first because I was so pleased with the fit of the items in the last order I placed with them (the one with the dark teal rabbit blouse).  And not only did they have a short-sleeved white cardigan and a white knit moto jacket, they had a navy short-sleeved cardigan and a gorgeous magenta/mint bird blouse (of the same type as the rabbit one), plus the burgundy version of the cream peplum sweater I can't get enough of...all on sale.  I hope all those items work out!

I also placed an order at Kohls, which is always dangerous, but only bought 3 pairs of black tights...which I think is a new minimum for me with online shopping at Kohls.  (It helped that as a card holder, I could get free shipping even though my total order with 30% off was only $18.)  I have ruined 2 pairs of black tights already this winter (which doesn't upset me--I'd had those tights for several years so I had gotten a lot of wear out of them already) so I was really in need of some replacements.


How did you spend your President's Day?

Sudden Burst of Spring

"Puff the Magic Purple Vest"--Friday, 2/17/17

I was not well prepared for a sudden increase in temperatures on Friday to an afternoon high of 49 F, so I was scrambling around on Thursday evening to decide what to wear to work.  Then I saw this outfit I had put together and realized it would work very well.  What?  Yeah, I wore the down vest as my outer layer (without a coat) in to work, then removed the vest while at work, and carried the vest tucked inside my tote bag across the parking lot after work.  With my small fan running at low speed during the last 2 hours of the day, I was quite comfortable in sweater + jeans + lightweight scarf as it turned out.  Not bad for an outfit that I had put together expecting a high temperature below freezing.  I admit that it did feel a bit odd, stylistically, to not have anything layered over or under my sweater for most of the day, but I survived.

Purple puffy vest (thrifted, Lands End), $2.62/wear
Grey pullover sweater (thrifted, Laura Scott), $1.75/wear
Bootcut jeans (thrifted, Kohls), $0.30/wear
White elephant scarf (Charming Charlie), $2.50/wear
Grey socks + grey leopard flats by Fergilicious, $0.54/wear

Outfit total: $7.71/wear


How is this for a double dose of disapproval at this unexpectedly warm weather?

In other news...With the warmer weather and the unanticipated release of 80 new Pokemon types on Thursday, it's been all Pokemon Go all the time around here.  We are taking a break this morning (Sunday) to catch up on laundry, etc., but will almost assuredly be out again after lunch.  Monday is a holiday for me but not for Robert, plus it's expected to be a rainy day, so instead of spending yet another entire day playing Pokemon, I will probably stay in and do some more outfit planning and photos.  It's a good thing I don't have any real responsibility for anything but going to work or my Pokemon Go addiction could be a disaster.

Small Blazer Difficulties

"Velvety Barbie"--Thursday, 2/16/17

Over the weekend, I finally mended the torn seam this blazer--a 3" or so tear on the underside and back of where the arm attaches to the body.  This was a bit more of a pain than I'd expected because I hadn't considered the implications of the fact that the blazer is lined.  So instead of just sewing it up from the underside (because I didn't want to open the liner to do it), I used the smallest whipstitch I could with thread that happened to be a very close match (just a hint darker than the blazer).  And it turned out well.

And it was nice that I figured that out because my very next mending project was to mend the torn seam in a trench coat I bought at Goodwill over the winter--a 3" or so tear on the underside and front of where the arm attaches to the body.  Of course this coat was lined as well so I used the same method there, which worked even better--I think the flat fabric was much easier to deal with than this velvet fabric.

Anyway, a few days after repairing the blazer, I wore it to work.  Thusly.

Bright pink velvet blazer (thrifted, Old Navy), $3.50/wear
Black/bright pink/blue floral blouse (JNY), $2.21/wear
Black work pants (thrifted, CJ Banks), $0.66/wear
White lace infinity scarf (Walmart), $0.83/wear
Black socks + grey ribbon flats by Louise et Cie, $3.13/wear

Outfit total: $10.33/wear

My only complaint with this blazer is that the velvet fabric surface did not play nicely with the coat I wore over it to work.  It wasn't exactly like velcro when the velvet hit the lining of the coat, but it was insufficiently unlike velcro for my purposes.  Add to the stickiness problem the fact that the blazer is a little bit oversized and it was a real irritation trying to get the coat situated comfortably over the blazer.

In other news...This was my last chance for a bit to wear a velvet blazer to work.  The high temperature of 39 F on Thursday was followed by 49 F on Friday and into the 50s over the weekend.  WTH.

Another Typical Wednesday

"Striped Owl"--Wednesday, 2/15/17

While not personally crazy about the cognac in this September 2015 outfit idea, the grey + burgundy combination is a favorite of mine.  The heathered grey skirt gave me the idea to pair a burgundy sweater with a grey striped skirt.  Of course, I sighed in disappointment that I still haven't found a grey vest, but I have good grey blazer options.

From insideoutstyleblog.com

I decided to go with the lighter grey blazer for a bit of contrast with the dark grey skirt, a reverse take on the inspiration photo.

Burgundy cashmere pullover sweater (Macy's), $4.57/wear
Black and grey striped skirt (thrifted, Loft), $0.75/wear
Light grey blazer (JNY), $1.76/wear
Owl necklace (Kohls), $1.18/wear
Burgundy/magenta floral scarf (Target), $3.33/wear
Grey sweater tights
Grey ankle boots by Seychelles, $5.38/wear

Outfit total: $16.97/wear

In addition to this semi-boho articulated owl pendant, I made a faux-infinity scarf from the long burgundy/magenta floral scarf that ruined one white t-shirt and almost ruined another when I wore the scarf before thoroughly hand-washing the extra burgundy dye out of it.  I was actually feeling a little paranoid about wearing the scarf with this light grey blazer even after washing it.  But I really liked the bit of brightness it added to the dark and neutral hues, so I wore it and hoped for the best.

I love the taupe-grey color of this otter mini satin, who demonstrates how a pop of pink can look great with neutrals.

In other news...Work, dinner, Pokemon, laundry, bed.  An exciting day, no?  No.  As I prefer.

I will leave you with this Regarding the Secret Life of Rabbit comic.

From regardingcomic.tumblr.com

It's Deep Water

"White Skirt/White Piping"--Tuesday, 2/14/17

It's such an obvious combination, it's a little surprising I haven't gone there before, but I have a large wardrobe so there are a lot of obvious combination I haven't gotten around to quite yet.  But this one is just absolutely pleasing.  It started when I saw this May 2013 (!) blog post on blazer style, featuring a coral blazer with white piping.

From anneinresidence.com

I kind of liked her high contrast shirt + blazer combo than my subtle burgundy with black and white, but the main thing is how the white skirt and scarf work with the white piping on the blazer.  I love the how it ties the whole look together.  And the darker palette feels appropriate to these wintry days.

Burgundy tipped blazer (JNY), $4.54/wear
White skirt (Walmart), $1.33/wear
Black and white paisley top (thrifted, Rafaella), $1.00/wear
White lace scarf (Walmart), $1.03/wear
Black leggings
Tall black boots by Fitzwell, $2.14/wear

Outfit total: $10.04/wear

I didn't realize how much I needed a plain white scarf (though this one was some textural interest with the lace insets) until I ordered this one to get free shipping on a Walmart.com order. 

Continuing the theme, I offer you a big white duck from the state fair.  Why a duck? you ask.  That is a question that is challenging to answer.  (Maybe because I haven't photographed a piping plover.)

In other news...To take advantage of the last night of the Pokemon Valentine's event, we went out walking at a park--a different one from the usual Pokemon park because a hockey game had turned parking in that entire area a madhouse.  We had a successful time, but bejeezus it was cold!  Only 32-34 F in temperature but with a frigid wind.  And I had dressed expecting a cold level like last night, so that was inadequate.  Brrr.  To borrow Robert's pun, we were walking in a winter candyland.

***The post title is, of course, a reference to Groucho's response to the eternal question, Why a duck?

Playing Candyland

"Odd Brown and Burgundy"--Monday, 2/13/17

I loved this striking, unusual, and vibrant color combination, which Lorena described as "odd," from an August 2015 post.

From myeverydaywear.blogspot.com

Here is another--to my eye more typical--version using dusky aqua (is that a thing?) and magenta.

From shealennon.com

My outfit is based on a bright aqua sweater (more similar to the first photo) and a burgundy skirt (more similar to the second photo).  But it's winter in Coldville, so bare legs are not an option.  My instinctive choice is to wear this with grey, but I decided to give burgundy and brown another chance. 

Aqua cashmere pullover sweater (Macy's), $5.71/wear
Burgundy skirt (Nordstrom), $2.26/wear
Brown quilted vest (thrifted, Relativity), $2.25/wear
Burgundy/white geometric scarf (Walmart), $1.49/wear
Brown sweater tights
Tall brown boots by Fitzwell, $4.56/wear

Outfit total: $16.27/wear

This time I wore brown in two areas--tights and boots + quilted vest--so the brown didn't stand out from the rest.  The burgundy color is repeated in the tonally-related scarf, so that's good.  But now the aqua really, really pops against the rest, which I guess isn't a bad thing.  But this makes for a kind of strange iteration of my sweater/vest/pencil skirt/tall boots/scarf winter outfit formula.

Let's get a hop (ahem) on Valentine's Day with these kissing rabbits, who show that brown, white, pink, and blue can be a very cute combination.

In other news...I was slow on the uptake, only just realizing on Sunday evening that there was a reason the Pokemon Go Valentine's Day event features double candy.  It's like, I can't eat chocolate any more so it doesn't exist. 

Robert and I spent Monday evening taking advantage of the double candy situation by walking and kinda continuously catching Pokemon at our local Pokemon park.  I am happy that they still have all the trees lit with white lights (it's a 1 x 1 block park, so this isn't crazy) so it's both pretty and not too dark.  I was a bit surprised there was parking available given the Pokemon event and the weather being warm enough to walk outside for hours, but it seems there wasn't a hockey game/concert/other event nearby filling up the spots, and perhaps other people who walked themselves into the ground over the weekend weren't up for another evening after work.  We saw a lot more people playing from their cars than playing in the park, though there were several small groups of 2-3 young guys walking around, keeping the area a Yellow Team stronghold.

Walking Ourselves into the Ground: Day 3

The Story Behind the Brown Skirt--Sunday, 2/12/17

In this post from last winter, Bridgette gives advice on how to wear colorful tights "without looking like a clown."   I have a burgundy pair that I get a fair bit of use from, but I don't think I've ever tried pairing them with beige/taupe as in this inspiration photo.

From bridgetteraes.com

So that sounded like a great idea...until I realized I don't have a beige/taupe skirt that is winter appropriate.  (I have a light brown linen skirt.)  So I decided to wear them with the dark brown corduroy skirt I do have instead.  Because I wore them with my go-to maroon ankle boots and a scarf with burgundy/magenta in it, the tights looked just right in this ensemble, but the brown skirt was a bit out of place.  I think this would have been a more natural combination with a denim skirt instead, but oh well, good enough for a Sunday.

Blue t-shirt cardigan (Lands End), $3.75/wear
White long-sleeved T (Walmart), $0.33/wear
Brown corduroy skirt (thrifted, Walmart), $0.50/wear
Navy/burgundy birds scarf (Kohls), $1.70/wear
Burgundy tights
Maroon ankle boots by Dolce Vita, $6.70/wear

Outfit total: $12.98/wear

But wait!  I know exactly what I need to make this outfit complete.  A chocolate brown mini rex, of course.  The doubling up on dark brown would make it look a lot more intentional.  Plus she could sit on my lap all day, and even with the natural velcro of corduroy + mini rex fur, nobody would be able to tell that I had rabbit hair all over my skirt because the colors are such a match.

In other news...Today we went insane at a Magikarp nest in a park 8.7 miles from our apartment.  I am not exaggerating when I say that I caught more than enough Magikarp today to evolve a Gyarados, which is to say at least 50 Magikarp.  It was nuts.  We saw several other people on the Magikarp hunt as well, including an older guy who told us that the last Magikarp he went after turned out to be a Ditto (too bad) and a couple of young boys who were desperately eager to watch Robert and me battle an opposing gym.  It turned out that they were at the park with their mom, who was letting them play Pokemon on her phone--she had to tell them no, they still weren't strong enough to battle a gym, but they got excited and distracted by seeing a Raticate.  The younger boy kept yelling "Razzberry!  Razzberry!"  Being a mom to two young boys looks absolutely exhausting!

Also exhausting, in a different way?  Spending hours walking all over a park catching Magikarp.  Surprisingly, my legs didn't feel that tired, even after 2 days of very intense Pokemon and 1 day of moderately intense Pokemon, but my feet were very sore by the time we left.  Wearing tights instead of heavy socks contributes to that effect. 

With all the Pokemon we've been playing lately, my legs are so muscular they kind of feel like they're made of stone.

It'll be good to go back to work tomorrow and give our bodies a bit of a break!

Walking Ourselves into the Ground: Day 2

"Fresh Minty Floral"--Saturday, 2/11/17

This outfit from March 2016 combined floral print and mint.  They rhyme, so they must go together, right?  Isn't that a law of sympathetic magic or something?

From morepiecesofme.com

Rather than wait for spring (or, well, whatever season we want to call March in Coldville), I decided to do a version of this outfit right now.   I don't typically wear a scarf with this vest, but as a concession to the weather, it seemed prudent.

White/purple/green/orange floral blouse (Lands End), $3.33/wear
Mint cardigan vest (Kohls), $3.91/wear
Black scarf (Target), $0.86/wear
Black skinny jeans (thrifted, YMI), $0.37/wear
Purple flats (thrifted, Target), $0.87/wear

Outfit total: $9.34/wear

As I'm already going out of season with my outfit, how about we enjoy this greenery poodle with a white bird on his tail, from a display at the state fair.

In other news...After replacing my ballet flats with all weather mocs, we walked over to our local Pokemon Go park and played Pokemon for a few hours.  Hours?!  Yeah.  With the 6 hour lures active all over the park, it was pretty much non-stop Pokemon.  I can't remember how many dozens of Wigglypuffs I caught--they were so plentiful (like, I kid not, there was at least  one available on the screen practically the entire time) that I have to wonder whether there was a nest there.  Anyway, very little trouble hitting our 10,000 steps for the day.  The kind of exhausting part was all the standing that we did in between the walking, though.

Valentine's Friday

"Animal Mixing"--Friday, 2/10/17

I'm really enjoying this adorable puffin sweater this winter.  This is outfit #5 featuring the puffin sweater, and I'm getting the cost per wear down to a reasonable level.  Once again I paired it with the textured tuxedo jacket--the jacket is stretchy and generously cut so it is very comfortable to wear over a sweater.

Light grey puffin pullover sweater (Loft), $5.95/wear
Black tuxedo jacket (thrifted, Chico's), $0.75/wear
Denim skirt (thrifted, Levi's), $0.55/wear
Coral cheetah scarf (thrifted), $0.33/wear
Grey polka dot tights
Black ankle boots by Sam Edelman, $2.00/wear

Outfit total: $9.58/wear

This outfit does have me questioning the wisdom of putting a cheetah and a puffin in such close proximity, however.  I mean, cheetahs don't eat puffins in the wild, but isn't that a matter of habitat/opportunity rather than preference?  Google is not prepared to answer my question, "Would a cheetah eat a puffin?"  Note that my cheetah print scarf has cheetah heads on it--you can see the yellow nose in this photo--but it doesn't have any cheetah legs.  So I guess the cats won't be able burst down upon the oblivious birds.  All is well.

Let's head back to December 2010 for this cheetah photo.  See how surprisingly well camouflaged he is against that background?  That's a key to his hunting style.  So again, my puffins are probably safe--I chose that scarf to stand out against the grey and black (and to coordinate with the color of the puffins' beaks and feet, of course).

In other news...I left work at lunch time, came home, and changed into all weather mocs and my Alice scarf because Robert had arranged a fun Valentine's Day date.  After eating lunch, we drove about an hour south of Coldville, stopping at several parks for Pokemon Go along the way, to a small town of about 16,000 people along the Mississippi River.  We had dinner and then went to see an Alice in Wonderland play!

The theater was established in 1904 and still had its old-school interior.  We were joined by mostly family groups, though there were some adult-only groups like the trio of three older ladies in front of us that we immediately pegged as season ticket holders.  The play was just over an hour long, and it was followed by a question-and-answer segment with the cast members that was surprisingly interesting.  The kids in the audience had good questions about how many of the effects were accomplished.  Perhaps the most amusing was when the Alice actor was asked about how old Alice was supposed to be.  The actor asked the girl to guess and she said nine, a very good guess.  Then the actor asked how old the girl thought she (the actor) was.  The girl said 14.  The actor is actually 33.

Because it was a children's play, the dialog was on the simpler side. The play was originally written in French, then translated into English.  It was interesting to hear how that worked out.  They definitely made the necessary changes so that the series of heart puns, for example, all conformed to English idiom.  The theater company is from Quebec, and 3 of the actors were clearly Francophones while the other had a standard English-speaking Canadian accent.

The staging was really wonderful.  I was wondering how best to describe the stage and use of puppets and big pop up books, but luckily the theater web site has a 1 minute video at the bottom that gives you a good feel for how it looked.

Of the characters, the clear crowd favorite was Humpty Dumpy, and my personal favorite was the Cheshire Cat.

So, the Cheshire Cat.  The puppet was amazing with its various pieces that moved independently, and because they had multiples of the various pieces, the cat's head, tail, etc., would appear at various points on the stage as though it were popping in and out of existence.  You can see the glowing eyes in the video (I believe they said they used ping pong balls and flashlights)--they were eerie.  At one point during the main Cat scene, the 7 year old or so girl sitting next to me cuddled up to her mom and said quietly, I'm scared.  And I thought, You should be scared!  The Cat is spooky and he's not your friend. 

I wish they'd shown more of Humpty Dumpy in the video too so that you could appreciate just how wonderfully coordinated the actors playing the head/hands and feet were.  They did a nice job of building the suspense as it really did seem like he was going to fall off that perch over and over again (until he did).

Best bit of verisimilitude:  At the opening of the play, the White Rabbit appears in Alice's dad's library, and she ends up following him into the bookcase, then down the rabbit hole.  When he shows up, he starts nibbling at the books in a very rabbit-like way.  Robert and I both have books with the kind of bunny damage that would result from the nibbling technique used in the play.  So somebody studied up on their rabbits (or has a rabbit).