#VintageDecemberStyle Outfit 2–Christmassy Cabaret with Aunt Nance

I know some funny people.

Chicago is a comedy town, and I have the good fortune of knowing and loving some truly delightful goofballs.

Take the illustrious Brittny Congleton, and her alter-ego, Aunt Nance.

This is Aunt Nance.

Yes, she has a giant cardboard cut-out of her face. Why wouldn’t she?

Aunt Nance is an aggressively Midwestern, ever-tipsy, brassy, sassy broad, who gets up to all kinds of mischief. This year, she invited my alter-ego to come sing some tunes in her Hot Flash Holiday Cabaret. It was a delight, and all kinds of silly. It was also an opportunity for another #VintageDecemberStyle outfit.

You cannot see how truly giant my beehive was, and that is a shame. Dress–Lindy Bop, Charlotte. Petticoats–two of ’em. Sweater–Pinup Girl, maybe? (I don’t buy from them anymore). Stockings–Frederick’s of Hollywood, seven (?) years ago? Hair scarf–literally a strip of chiffon Shoes–Payless, also about seven (!) years ago.

Things I learned, out and about in this outfit.

  • Why wear one petticoat when you can wear two?
  • If you dress like this, old men in bars will really want to talk to you.
  • The gingham + peppermint stripes almost crosses into lady clown territory, but narrowly escapes by going easy on the accessories

While this might be a little much for a company Christmas party, it was excellent for a visit with Aunt Nance!

Maker Monday: Winter Salad

Recipes for salad seem a little silly.

But this one was really delightful, so I’ll share it.

Summer salads are lush and lovely, but winter invites minimalism. Lettuce forms the base of this one, but spinach, cooked greens, or massaged kale would be good, too. A crisp apple and crunchy broccoli stems co-star in an unlikely, but delicious, pairing.

Continue reading “Maker Monday: Winter Salad” →

This Week’s Old-Fashioned Pleasures 12-11-17

These old-timey things brought me some joy this week:

  1. Wearing Sweaters
    It’s cold in the Midwest. For me, that means sweaters.I have, perhaps, a slight sweater problem.  They are the coziest of garments, lend themselves to layering, pair equally well with jeans and skirts, and, in short, I probably have too many of them.  My sweater wardrobe is overwhelmingly thrifted, since that’s how I can afford cashmere. (This is the part where I brag about never paying more than $6 for a cashmere sweater. I take my sense of accomplishment where I can get it.)But speaking of sweaters…

    I knit this one! I finished it! It only took me two years! It fits on my body and everything!It’s the most basic of basic cardigan patterns. The buttons are vintage from my grandma’s button box, and no, they are not all identical. Sweater-knitting is super addictive, and I am hopeful that my next one won’t take two years.
  2. Looking at Lights
    One of my favorite holiday things to do is the Lincoln Park Zoo’s light display. Zoolights is a truly impressive installation of Christmas lights. It’s free, it’s festive, and sometimes you get to see animals.SIDE NOTE: This year, I discovered that looking into zoo exhibits at night is scary. Some deep, evolutionary warning pings deep in your stomach when you’re looking for polar bears and can’t quite see everything. I pointed this out to my companions, and I was not alone in my freaked-outedness. When a snow leopard’s eyes glint at you in the dark, your brain is not too convinced that fences make that much of a difference.But we were not eaten by leopards. We just saw a lot of pretty lights.

    Hallo!
  3. Eating Marmalade on Toast
    I think of marmalade as a winter food. I suppose that’s because that’s when citrus is season. Of course, marmalade is preserved, so it could be eaten year-round, but I only crave it in the winter. My preparation never varies. Toast, thin layer of butter, thick layer of marmalade. It makes me feel like a British lady detective.

    Bonne Maman is good, but I like the Trader Joe’s house brand even better.
  4. Drinking Hot Chocolate in the Evening
    My grandma was a hot chocolate (with a dose of instant coffee in it) for breakfast person. I am a hot chocolate (with the occasional dose of brandy in it) in the evening person. On the advice of one of my favorite cookbooks, Make the Bread, Buy the Butter, I switched up my recipe this year, and started using brown sugar instead of white. This is a game changer. It is really delicious, and perfect for sipping while watching Netflix and knitting.

    This is not my hot chocolate, but you get the idea. Photo by Rab Fyfe on Unsplash
  5. Going to the Movies
    My neighborhood movie theatre has been in operation (almost constantly) since 1912. These days, it’s a four-screen, affordable treasure. Their ticket prices are already inexpensive, but on Tuesdays they run an all-day $5 special. So lately, on Tuesday nights, we’ve been going to see a picture. This is a good incentive to see things on the big screen that I would otherwise wait to stream. For $5, I’ll take the risk that I won’t like something.There is something special about movies in the theatre. Being part of an audience is different than watching something at home, and feels a little more connected.

    How about you? What old-fashioned pleasures have you enjoyed this week?

#VintageDecemberStyle Outfit #1: Tree-Trimming

As previously mentioned, I am in love with my Christmas tree.

I gaze upon it and smile. I insist upon showing it to my Internet ESL students. It is a thing of beauty, and thus, a joy forever.

I also like holiday outfits, so, oh boy, have I been enjoying Emileigh at Flashback Summer’s hashtag #VintageDecemberStyle. Hop on over to Instagram and behold the holiday sartorial concoctions. It’s fun.

This was my first holiday outfit opportunity–the trip to get the Christmas tree.

I am of the opinion that there are no bad Christmas trees. Artificial, real, live, aluminum, I like them all, Charlie Brown. I also am not picky about where to get one. I have a slight (entirely unsurprising) preference for little parking lot tree lots, but I’m flexible. This year, a restaurant down the street from us had a tree lot on their patio, and so we walked over to see what we could find. Continue reading “#VintageDecemberStyle Outfit #1: Tree-Trimming” →