Hi to All My Gal Pals,
I’m late again with this blog but life happens. I just picked up 2 more psych cases so I can’t even guarantee the next one will be on time but I will do my best. It seems like I am unable to keep up and I am only working part-time so I am still asking myself how I used to get things done when I worked full time. Is it because I am getting old? One of the reasons I am glad to be back at work is because it forces me to use my brain again. I was beginning to feel like Aunty Acid when she said “I find that these days 95% of my conversations start with ‘Where was I?’ or ‘What was I going to say?’. It also forces me to use a little technology again other than social media or games. In case I haven’t mentioned it before, I am technology challenged. I totally identify with a quote by Dave Barry, “Buying the right computer and getting it to work properly is no more complicated than building a nuclear reactor from wrist watch parts in a darkened room using only your teeth”. I am sure all the people I worked with are nodding their heads and chuckling. If it weren’t for friends like Liz, who is a technology guru, I would have been pulling my hair out and accomplishing very little at work. Aunty Acid describes it the best; “I’m on the INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY but I’m in the slow lane and my blinkers are on”. Let me put it to you this way, I only have a flip phone and a landline phone but I like it that way. My daughter asked me when I was going to get a big girl phone. My response “NEVER!” Let’s face it, many of you with iPHONES occasionally feel like Crabby Maxine who says “I miss the days when you could slam down your phone without it costing you $300”. You can’t fight progress but you can unplug a good chunk of it. Consider me officially UNPLUGGED!
Alright, enough about me, let’s talk fashion. This blog is about jackets and jeans. Jackets are a great way to hide that belly bump that appears sometime after fifty. Most of us don’t want to dress up any more so we reach for our go-to jeans unless, after being home for so long and eating our way through life, they don’t fit any more. That reminds me of an Aunty Acid quote, “I signed up for aerobics at the local gym…they said wear loose clothing….If I had any loose fitting clothing I wouldn’t have signed up for freakin’ aerobics!”. So true, so true. I did a past blog on jeans so this one will focus on jackets, the kind you can wear indoors. I try to give you a little history about the article of clothing that is the topic of the blog. Women started wearing short jackets in the Victorian era to provide warmth for lightweight gowns. They followed the high waisted style of the dress but had long sleeves and a high collar. They were known as “Spencer” jackets. Up to 1954, jackets were fairly bland, like the jackets of the Suffragettes. But along came a a French designer named Gabriella “Coco” Chanel whose designs for women’s jackets and suits were rejected by European designers but embraced by American women because the style of her jackets were modern and liberating. Her jackets were straight and structured, almost boxy and devoid of any darting, with a single seam down the center back and made pretty by beautiful embellishments. You can go to almost any event or party by pairing your favorite jeans with a lovely jacket and matching accessories. I love to take one of my pretty suit jackets and wear it with jeans.
As far as an outdoor picture, I have given you a picture of my winter garden. Planting was easy.
Even though it looks like it could be the Alps, it is the same area I always decorate in front of my house. That little blob on top of the hill in the forefront is my little Matty in his outdoor jacket with a faux fur trimmed hood. He has almost as many winter coats as I have thanks to his Aunt Vicki who loves to spoil him. I promise next time I will put up a picture of flowers so we can all start thinking spring.
Let the fashion show begin! You know I hate drab colors in the winter so my jackets have to have colorful patterns.
This jacket is great because it is reversible so I get two outfits from it. The flowers are light blue, black and gold with a cream background on one side and a black background on the other side. The buttons are hard to see but they are very pretty on both sides. I love a jacket that has pockets (thank you Coco Chanel!). I paired the jacket with a black top, black jeans and black flats. I would feel comfortable wearing this outfit almost anywhere and not feel out of place. The accessories below help to dress up the outfit.
The antique silver and bright gold metal necklace totally matches the flowers in the jacket. I paired it with bright gold bangle bracelets, a silver and gold watch, antique silver earrings (not part of a set with the necklace but they go so well together) and my black wooden ring along with my antique silver metal ring with a rhinestone in the middle to match the ones in the earrings.
This jacket is like wearing a piece of modern art. You can wear it with almost any color jeans. I have paired it with dark turquoise jeans, a black turtleneck top and black, 1 inch heeled shoes. The sleeves have an 8 inch flair between the elbows and the wrist and I let the sleeves of the top hang below the flair. The jacket is the statement piece so the accessories are barely noticed.
I decided to highlight the red color in the jacket so I paired it with a red heart necklace since Valentines Day is around the corner, very modern pair of earrings, and a red watch. I wore this bracelet because it goes so well with the jacket and highlights autism awareness. I am not sure who gave me this bracelet but maybe one of my LWASE co-workers can help me out on that. One ring has a greenish-yellow stone and the other a turquoise stone. So many options of jewelry with this jacket.
PEACE! I think I told you that I am a 60’s girl at heart. I love everything about the 60’s but especially the fashion. This Boho-chic jacket is one of my favorites and I wear it often. In the past I talked about combining texture and pattern in a single piece and this epitomizes that design concept. The lower part of the sleeves and the lower part of the jacket are made of a stretchy polyester while the upper part of the sleeve and the bodice are made of a crushed velvet with the lapel made of a sheer material. I have paired it with a maroon pair of jeans that go so well with the coloring in the crushed velvet and a greenish-gold top and maroon colored shoes.
I decided to highlight the blue in the crushed velvet part of the jacket so I am wearing a faux, blue stone necklace with earrings containing beads that contain the same blue stones as in the necklace (not part of a set). The blue ring and rope-like bracelet remind me of the 60’s and the antique gold watch goes well with the coloring of the jacket.
OK, let’s talk weight (ugh!). Actually I have lost 10 pounds since the beginning of the blog. It only took me a little more than two years. I have 5 more to go to make my liver doctor happy. I have had to adjust my diet because my heart doctor wants me to give up fats, my liver doctor wants me to give up starches and sugar and anything that’s left I am allergic to because of my sulfite allergy. I figure the only things I can eat are bland poultry and occasionally red meat. It reminds me of another Aunty Acid quote, “Dieting is easy….it’s like riding a bike….and the bike is on fire….and the ground is on fire….and everything is on fire because you are in HELL!”.
Well, that is it for now. I am not a football fan but I always root for the underdog. I hope you all have a happy Valentines Day. I am going to ignore what I am suppose to do and get myself chocolate covered strawberries, my favorite dessert and partially healthy. The only sweets I seem to be able to eat without having an asthma attack is chocolate. However, maybe I am allergic to it because of the way Aunty Acid describes it, “I think I am allergic to chocolate. My ass and thighs are showing definite signs of swelling”.
On that note, till next time and remember God loves you and so do I.
A Peek Into Pam’s Closets 