Don't Fade Away

These were a near miss on eBay last week:

Cacharel 'degrade' sheer pants (retail ~ $775) from eBay seller edropoff, one of my favourite online consignment boutiques.  I stalk them relentlessly for unique pieces from seasons past.  Auction-style listings tend to start around $20, which always gives me the tantalizing illusion of having a shot.  Turns out my meager bids never had a chance with these translucent beauties, and now I'm stuck wearing my usual opaque trousers... like a sucker.

Baby, It's (Still) Cold Outside

February is to the year what Wednesday is to the week.  It's limbo, so close yet so far.

We just had a quick cold snap here.  As always, I felt defeated when I had to reach (again!) for my black puffer coat.  It just feels like such a failure, such a mistep - "I was just layering a jean jacket and sweater last week", I grumble to myself as I grab Old Blackie and lock the apartment door behind me.

Maybe it's time for a new down-filled Blackie, one so style-forward that I actually look forward to wearing it - just in case it's going out like a lion.

Mackage "Chloe" coat, eBay seller: allure700



swirling Patagonia puffer, eBay seller: edropoff



Elizabeth and James cocoon coat

Rihanna wears this Marios Schwab peplum puffer onstage

Hell hath no fury...

Last week someone was selling "an ass that won't quit" on eBay.  Clicking on the item didn't exactly yield one taut booty, just one Egyptian dictator in pre-owned condition.  The joke-listing of Murabak was quickly quashed by the eBay Fun Police, but I think this one's still going and is 100% real:
"My Ex-boyfriend's Closet" is getting rid of all her ex's junk, just in time for Valentines Day.  The seller states her old beau chastised her for dressing provocatively, hence the increasing flesh content of her posts:

$20 with three day to go?!  That's pure profit, people, with the value-added bonus of giving your ex a very public "look at what you're gunna be missing" pose.  I'm sure enterprising girls everywhere are rifling through the remnants of relationships past.  Warning, gals: check the legislation and caselaw in your jurisdiction first.  The abandonment principle means that his bowling shirts, travel mug, and Hootie & The Blowfish CD become your personal property, but not for at least 30 days.  Score!

She sells sex - used Ed Hardy T-shirt, classy!

You know, I could sure use a little extra scratch this month, and I am skilled at cultivating imaginary boyfriends, usually in the service of plus-one occasions and family inquisitions dinners.  Better head down to Value Village to stock up on 'my ex-boyfriend's' clothes.  His favourite colour was blue.

Bedazzled

I'm really looking for a heavily studded jacket, preferably in leather or denim.

I just think it would go so well with the current Young Hollywood aesthetic.  Skinny jeans, military details, strappy ankle boots, and the tough-chic like aren't going anywhere anytime soon.  For now, I'll wear it with a hoodie underneath for warmth.  In the summer it'll be an opposites-attract cover up for feminine blouses and party dresses.

So, a little eBay roundup of what's out there:

Vintage Jean Paul Gaultier (BIN $200)

Stella and Jamie leather jacket (BIN $350)

Vintage punk jacket (BIN $200)

Sheri Bodell canvas jacket (BIN $90)

Vintage denim blazer (seller: bambi bones)

A Hitchhiker's Guide to the eBay Galaxy: Searching

It takes a little while to feel comfortable shopping on eBay.  You have to be prepared for a few let-downs (wrong size, lost in transit, etc.)  Many such problems can be averted by buying from reputable sellers, using the feedback system, and paying securely.

Whereas most virtual stores have a team of marketing experts to create a comfortable online environment, eBay offers little assistance to new shoppers.  The best it gets is eBay's Clothing/Shoe/Accessory Buying Guide. Pretty basic stuff, considering that clothing purchases are now second only to antiques (in terms of volume) for the auction site.

In the last couple years eBay has wizened up and begun collaborating with legit designers and offering virtual sample sales.  You will often see the 'eBay Fashion Vault' promo'd on the homepage.  I first took notice of this when they were offering steeply discounted French Connection dresses last summer.  Today's: 

Preloved's capsule sweater collection is currently available (Sadly, no Free Shipping for us Canucks.  Still, I prefer the American eBay site to eBay.ca, since most US sellers are happy to ship here for a few extra greenbacks and there is far more choice.)

So sometimes it's that easy, like shopping at any other online retailer.  Something on the homepage catches you're eye and you're off! (Think Anthropologie; you click on one cute Tracy Reese dress and that leads you to another.. and then another...)

*   *   *   *   *

Here's Part One of my quick reference guide to help navigate those scary eBay waters (consider me that frugal friend, pointing you towards the 'good' garage sales and best flea market finds)...

1) Searches - the easiest way to search eBay is the Search bar (duh), but it only brings up exact matches so type carefully.  The drop down menu allows you to search either the whole or eBay, or a specific category (ie: Clothing, Shoes and Accessories). 

Since item titles and descriptions have limited characters, sellers will often abbreviate words or phrases.

Frequently used acronyms:

EUC - excellent used condition

NR - no reserve

BIT - buy it now (fixed price auction)

BNIB - brand new in box

NWT - new with tags

PU - polyurethane (as opposed to GL - genuine leather)

NSFW - not suitable for work

VTG - vintage

OOAK - one of a kind

AUTH - authentic

MRSP - manufacturer's suggested retail price

2) Limited Searches - the basic search can be limited by a variety of factors.  It is now mandatory for sellers to list the item's condition (new or pre-owned).  Sellers also have the option of filing their items by color, size, type, designer, location etc.  You can use the tickboxes to narrow your search.

Similarly, if you are on a tight budget (or you are easily suggestible), you may want to use the blank fields on the left-hand side to view only specific price ranges!

I most frequently limit my searches with the three tabs at the top of the search results, since I almost always like to bid on items, rather than pay a fixed price (where's the sport in that?). 

It also helps to sort your results according to time left, price, or location using the drop down menu on the far right (The default setting "Best Match" will show you items in which your search terms are most readily/closely matched).

3) Advanced Searches - there is a blue hyperlink for Advanced Searches just to the right of the basic Search option.  I hardly ever use this, but it does work well if you are looking for a particular store or seller you know the name of (ie: "Linda's Stuff" is a popular eBay consignment store.  Instead of searching the whole of eBay for individual items, I can view all of her items with the Advanced Search because I know her SellerID).

Note: eBay does NOT have a spellcheck function, so when lazy or rushed sellers list their items with a misspelling it will not appear in the search results.  Some industrious folks created a free search engine called FatFingers, which scan eBay for one or two-letter misspellings of the item you are looking for.  This way, you are able to bid on items that nobody else can even see!
Also: 42, it's the answer to everything.

Ear Cuffs

The Helix or the Conch?

How well do you know your piercings?  Wiki Them Answers.

I have none, but even I knew #4.  The Daith is supposedly one of the most painful places to get punctured.

As one of the few girls who's happy with the holes Gaia gave her, I am limited to #7 and #1.

Hooray for ear cuffs.

below: etsy seller nevertakeoff $75                                       below: etsy seller ringringring $40

above: rough hewn wide ear cuff

from etsy seller

thebeadlily $35

below: ebay seller nicta10

Trophy Jackets

Trend (n.)
: the general direction in which something tends to move.
: predominant tendency or inclination
: thing causing otherwise-reasonable women to purchase harem pants and fanny packs.

I'm not much for trends, mostly because I do pretty much all my shopping online or at the Sally Ann. I kid you not; retail shopping is exclusively an underwear/swimsuit venture for me now. Another reason, second only to my frugality, is that I loathe conformity for it's own sake. If jeans and T's are your staples, fine. There's nothing wrong with wearing 'classics' if they are in fact classics. Conventional items like bootcut jeans and Converse One Stars come and go with the coolness tide, but you get bonus points for credibility if you've been rockin' a pair of each for the past decade. When the time is right everyone will run out to buy new Levi's & Chuck Taylor's, but they won't look like yours, or feel like yours. Fashion trends are cyclical, and currently experiencing the same celeb-obsession that everything else is (check out the WhoWhatWear book, the gals break it down well).

So, I do trends like college kids vacation... in the off season. Doing either lets you avoid paying full price, fighting the crowds, and having the same photos as everyone else. So I had a little chuckle when I was researching Trophy Jackets and found this Vogue UK article that claims they are the 'it' item of Spring 2009. And, yes, Topshop has been cranking them out for a few years under Kate Moss's collab label and their own:

It's now Fall 2010 (in reality, Runwayland is stomping through Spring 2012 already). It's been a year since anyone called the Trophy Jacket a "must", "gottahaveit", or "go-to". Guess it's safe to go back in the water.

Love this streamlined black and gold version from Australian brand Willow. They do such glitzy & graphic stuff - if Cleopatra joined a biker gang stuff. Alas, it's, as Tony Soprano would say, two large (as in $2000, or the current Blue Book value of my car, or a year's worth of student loan repayment).

Instead, let's see what eBay has to offer in the Vtg (that's eBay truncation for 'Vintage') Beaded Jacket department:

eBay seller: Trendsetter Vintage

eBay seller: American Archive

eBay seller: Tin Roof Vintage

Verdict:
All super cute, a bit heavy (read: $$$) to ship, and apparently must be worn with daisy duke's short enough for Britney herself. Think I'll keep the Trophy Jacket on the back burner wish list, since I'm bound to get one of those infuriatingly cryptic "Dress Festive" invites over the holidays.

All The Leaves

All the leaves are brown,

And the sky is grey.

I went for a walk,

On a winter's day.

Leaf dangle bookchain necklace from eBay seller scentsnstuff

Lee Angel stitched leather bangle


We're having a little resurgence of summer temperatures here. The 'leafers' are out in full force, clogging up the bike paths with their awkward gaits and expensive Nikons. Still, it's lovely. I have returned home several times this week with leaves the shade of pumpkin, ochre, and rust in my tangled mane. Perhaps a better way to celebrate the season is adopting more deliberate, less dandruff-like, foliage. I'm particularly fond of the acorn/leaf combo bib necklace below:

Vintage (circa 1940's) carved wood necklace from eBay seller oxfordjewel.

True North Strong & Stylish: The Bay Blanket Coat

I just had the pleasure of visiting Vancouver's Hudson's Bay Store on busker-lined Granville St. Had it not been for that pesky HST, this could've done some serious damage. As it was, I mostly wandered around enjoying creative marketing and display cases that would make Simon Doonan (creative helm of Barney's) proud. Witness below the elegant arrangement of upcycled Bay Blankets coats amidst canoes, furs, and other assorted stereotypes.

Each was reimagined by a notable Canadian designer (10 designs in all).
(left: Comrags)
(below, from left: Lida Baday, Pink Tartan, Jeremy Laing, Smythe)

The Smythe hooded swing coat was available for a steep $695 at the Vancouver store during the 2010 Olympics. I understand it sold out quickly. I do hope that this obvious commercial viability gives the company impetus to once again produce Bay Blanket Coats; I have been trying to find a vintage version on eBay for my Mom's Hanukkah present since 2005, to no avail.

My holiday shopping aside, it's definitely time for our nation to embrace the Point Blanket as the integral piece of our history and cultural identity it is. Remember doing fur-trade dioramas and War of 1812 essays in Grade 5 Social Studies? The Hudson's Bay Blanket is an icon of Canadiana. Or at least, it should be.

If America was built by men wearing Levi's Dungarees (forgetting the disenfranchised Chinese who constructed the all-important railroad), then the True North equivalent is the seminal Hudson's Bay Point Blanket (forgetting the rich tradition of the indigenous peoples who braved the climate sans woolen coats).

Not familiar with the Hudson's Bay Point Blanket? Please feel free to Wiki That Shit.

Power Animal Presents

I have two good friends, The Turtle and The Phoenix. They sound like a duo from Aesop's rejection pile, don't they? The codenames derive from a lengthy, somewhat inebriated discussion we had this summer about our 'power animals'. Typically way too new-agey for a skeptic like me. But after getting asked, "if you were a cheese what cheese would it be & why?" in a recent job interview... well, I've had to relax my standards on what constitutes an insightful or revealing line of inquiry. BTW, blue cheese.


Tory Burch turtle-print bow blouse

I would love to do a series of power animal gifts for my friends who are in on the joke (shout-outs to Cougar, Gazelle, & Rabbit) like this adorable rhinestone clamper bracelet that was a recent Near Miss on eBay - #120607083955. Vintage clampers (1950's-70's) are typically well-crafted, with strong hinges and decent weight/heft. Kitsch quotient is superhigh, although so is the likelihood of snagging those bunny ears on a beloved blouse. Also, haphazardly stabbing strangers on Public Transit with lupine accessories is a no-no.