Annual Pirate Festival in Milford, CTBelieve it or not, every year, the Downtown Milford Business Association in Milford, CT hosts an annual free pirate day event during the first Sunday in June. This happened to be the 22nd Annual event and it was my first time attending. The event invites folks to dress like a pirate, rock out with Rockin' Ron the friendly pirate, and watch Captain Kidd and his mutinous crew invade Milford Harbor around noon. Then the event transitions to a scavenger hunt on the Milford Green and surrounding businesses, along with food trucks, vendors, and live music. There's no entrance fee and the event is very family friendly. The festivities are from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, (which I imagine is perfect if you have young ones that need something to do before a nap). For us...not so much. We had a long day in Hartford the day prior attending a production of Beetlejuice the musical, and honestly could not get there until around 1:00 pm after putting on our costumes and finding parking. Parking around downtown Milford and side streets and neighborhoods is free, but it is CHALLENGING to find a spot. We parked somewhere between Lisman's Landing and Downtown proper, and I'm not sure exactly where we were parked, except that we were rather close to the Milford Historical Society. At the Milford Historical Society, New London's Free Men of the Sea were offering a presentation on actual tools and pirate lore as well as donning historical dress. Apparently Captain Kidd really did visit Milford, CT on his final voyage as a stop on his way to Boston in 1699 (before his subsequent arrest, imprisonment, and being returned to England for trial and execution). It is known that Captain Kidd buried treasure off of Gardiner's Island just off of Long Island, but locals believe he also hid a portion on Charles Island, a 14 acre island connected to Silver Sands State Park by a rocky outcrop that is only accessible during low tide and winter months for those who want to explore it, as it currently remains a state protected bird sanctuary. You can read more about the island itself, why it's called the "Thrice Cursed Island" and actual local accounts of their experiences on the island at Damned, Connecticut. Now, if you recall, we dressed up like Pirates last summer for a pirate event in New London. For this event, I basically did a variation of my pirate costume from last year with a couple of new layering pieces. I kept the bandana as my headpiece with bold dramatic makeup. I'm wearing the crow skull necklace again, but a different layering necklace I got a million years ago when I worked at The Limited. I'm wearing six stone bracelets on each wrist. And of course I can tell you which stone each one is along with their metaphysical properties, in case you were wondering. The blouse and skirt is the same, but this time I am wearing a waist belt that has two large pockets that hang down over my skirt and a real corset! I thought I had corsets in my 20's that I bought at Hot Topic that had button closures, but this one is the real deal. It has metal clasps in the front and is boned all around. The covering is a satin/silk and it is decorated with ornate black lace and black beading on the top and bottom. The lace up ties in the back lace up in the middle of it and any extra gets tucked into the top or bottom of the corset (whichever is easier). I gotta say, the first 45 minutes or so wearing it, especially while sitting, was pretty difficult. I felt a shortness of breath, even though I hadn't pulled it as tight as it could go. (It's technically a bit big for me, but I considered that a sort of insurance as women's bodies tend to get bigger over time). But thankfully, after walking around in it for a few hours, it conformed to my body, and I had no problem sitting up very straight and comfortably sitting cross-legged on the ground eating tacos by 3:00 pm. I also wore my snake fishnets instead of regular fishnets. Honestly...I couldn't find my regular ones..and now that I think about it, I believe I tossed them because they were old and ripped...badly last time I wore them. The boots are the same choice as well. I feel like these are the perfect edgy pirate boots for the heat of the summer. Now the only thing that's the same about Pahl's outfit from last year, may just be his bandana, his pants, and his boots. He's wearing a different linen/cotton blend long sleeve shirt, with a definitely more pirate like tail coat that is a deep red velvet with black lace details and silver buttons. He's getting good use out of his baldric with a very nice metal cutlass and a pretty convincing revolver hanging from his waist belt. You can't see it in this picture, but he's wearing a silver octopus belt buckle. Another addition this year is a cheap tricorn pirate's hat that he added some feathers and a few other things to make it more snappy looking. Oh and of course, he doesn't have long hair either anymore. By the time this photo was taken, I had worn the corset for over 3 hours and even eaten a full meal in it. Pahl says that I need more props to look more like a pirate. He let me borrow his revolver so I could look like some of those fierce female pirates depicted in the tv program "Our Flag Means Death". I enjoyed myself at the festival and was very happy to have managed to break in my corset during the event. It has given me the confidence to invite other corset like garments into my life. Pahl had a blast handing out coins to young children and being asked to take photos with random people and families at the event. My pirate costume wasn't as good and it's alright. I haven't put as much thought or money into my costume, but maybe next year I'll add a tricorn hat to help keep the sun off my face.
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Old Fashioned Sweet Shop & SpeakeasyAround the end of May 2024, I attended a fashion meeting with my local community. We went to Emrey's Speciality Sweets & Sodas and it's night time business The 196 Club , along with visiting shops along the Pratt Street Historic District in Hartford, CT. Both businesses are located at the same address (196 Trumbull St), yet one of them has a secret entrance, requires reservations in advance, and only opens in the evening. Emrey's, located just across the street from the XL Center and near the Yard Goat Baseball Park, offer's a vintage soda bar with a variety of old-fashioned sodas, milkshakes, ice cream and select coffee creations. They also offer old fashioned candies and other gifts available for purchase as well as a digital photo booth. The inside is well lit, bright, and decorated in 1950's pastel pink with white and black tiles and accents. There is seating inside at the counter and other tables on the side. The counter fits a group of 8 comfortably, even while some of them are wearing hoop skirts. Now at this point, you might be wondering why six people are wearing all pastel colors and why the other people are essentially wearing gothic styles in the group photo. Was it because the goth people lacked closet options? No, on the contrary, they were dressed for the speakeasy portion of the meeting. The 196 Club, (also located at 196 Trumbull Ave) totes itself as "an intimate and casually glamorous space for inspired cocktails, decadent bits, and rumored debauchery". You have to go to their Instagram to inquire on how to find it, but you must make reservations in advance either on their website or calling in advance. The dress code is upscale casual...we nailed that part no problem. They offer a variety of cocktails as well as mock-tails and small plates and desserts. Where as the Sweet shop evoked the charm and whimsy of the 1950's, the Speakeasy went further back in time to express an intimate yet darkly lit space of the 1920's prohibition era. Red painted walls with framed advertisements from the era hung near our small tables. We each ordered a drink and two small plates to share with everyone in our group, so I must say that I've also tried most of the menu. It is very good, but don't expect to eat a full dinner. It's just not that kind of place. We had a bit of time before we could enter the speakeasy, so we all ordered speciality sodas in the meantime before settling down for our group photos. Pahl and I shared the lavender soda. I usually don't really like drinking soda, but I'm still dreaming about this one almost two months after I got it. The lavender flavor was subtle, but the overall taste was sweet (but not too sweet) and very refreshing! Our Speakeasy OutfitsFor my outfit, I went with black, gray, silver, and off white as my main colors. The dress I'm wearing is called, "Where is the Bat?", and it is by a Polish indie brand called Lady Sloth. I purchased this dress from another member in my community earlier this year at a swap meet. The dress is light gray, with matte black illustrations of sphinx cats and bats with silver and black stars. It comes with a black waist tie. In other photos I've seen of it, it also comes with a black bow you can place on the bodice or a strap, but that wasn't part of mine. This dress is very comfortable and even has pockets. Since it was getting to be warm outside, I opted for a mesh inner blouse from Chinese Indie brand Honey Machine. It was my first time wearing it, and it's neat how the shoulders poof out a bit while the rest of the arm tapers down to a small flare at the wrist. It was a little tight in the chest for me, but other than that it fits fine for an inner blouse. I also wore ribbed lace heart pattern calf socks to echo the mesh look of the blouse. Now because I knew I was dressing for the speak easy, this is where I did some things that are different. I wore my Miss Point Rhine Riverside Top Hat and my Modo~Vintage Elegant Three Buckle Mary Janes in the off white to match the pearl details of the hat. I completed my outfit with silver and black jewelry along wtih a matte black shoulder bag. I am also wearing a hoop skirt for comfort. It is slightly big for my skirt, but it helped with comfort while walking around in the sun especially. Pahl wanted to match my black and gray look, so he wore a white striped shirt, a more casual gray and black herringbone waist coat, black jeans, black and gray herringbone oxfords, a gray bow tie with black polka dots, and a black hat. It's always fun when someone plans a fashion meeting at a place that serves food and drinks where we can simply socialize and get to know one another. And this particular one was very clever to boot--with both the sweet shop and the speak easy portions. You could attend one or the other, or both--it was a great way to get out and experience some cool new businesses in our little state!
Wadsworth Atheneum: Fine Art & FlowersEvery year during the first weekend of May, the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art hosts a special exhibition called Fine Art and Flowers. This was the 41st Annual Fine Art & Flowers exhibition, and it was my very first time attending. At this event, florists, garden clubs, and interior designers are assigned paintings, sculptures, and objects from the museum's collection to create floral arrangements inspired by the colors, textures, motifs and emotions that the artwork they are assigned conveys. Apparently you don't have to be a florist or a designer for a living to enter the design contest. You can just be an art enthusiast with a flair for putting things together. I believe there is an entry fee and the museum does give you a choice in the type of art whether it be abstract, modern, painting, sculpture, and or object such as fine china and then assigns you a specific piece from their collection. The art that is selected changes from year to year, and there is a spot to vote for your favorite on a ballot at the end of your tour. Annual Springtime Double DateWe attended this event as part of our annual spring time double date with Sarah and Erik. Last year we went to the Elizabeth Park Rose Gardens and had a picnic together, so we wanted to continue off the flowers in Hartford theme. Luckily we chose an indoor activity this time as the weather was a little uncooperative. It was threatening rain the whole ride up and was actually raining when we left. My original outfit that I was going to wear for the date was an ivory based dress with a lattice design of purple flowers and purple ribbons, but it was entirely cotton and I didn't want to get rained on in cotton. At this point in time, I lacked a purple or ivory colored shawl or short sleeve cardigan that might have gone with my original piece so I swapped my original dress and blouse idea for my trusty Alice Girl When Camellia Blooms JSK, because it's lined polyester, water resistant, and went with the bonnet and shoes I had planned to wear with my other dress. I'm wearing the jumper skirt without the matching overlay apron and a 65 cm daily wear petticoat underneath. This is much more casual than the first time that I wore this jsk with a much poofier petticoat to an afternoon tea at the Wadsworth Mansion about some 14 months prior. Instead of wearing an off the shoulder 3/4 sleeve slightly translucent blouse, I opted for a complete stand collar cut sew with slightly poofy upper arms. I also paired it with off white cable sweater tights and my trusty beige oxfords I found on the clearance rack at DSW years ago. The only part of my outfit that reads particularly flowery at this point is my bonnet. The Xiaogui~Elegant Lolita Bonnet Bows Straw Hat in the Satin Ribbon and Lilac Vine Color certainly worked with the muted lilac color of this dress. I'm also utilizing my beige and brown violin cross-body purse. It just goes with every classically styled outfit at this point. Pahl's outfit reads a bit more flowery than mine. He is wearing a white shirt with a special type of collar so that he can showcase his carefully tied flower themed bow tie and exemplary bow tying skill. Over the blouse he has a burgundy and black paisley silk waist coat with beige and burgundy striped straight pants. His tail coat is a dark reddish purple to bring out the tones in his waistcoat and pants. His straw boater has a navy and red hat band that ties in his bow tie and tail coat. His black rimmed glasses and shiny black oxfords complete the look. He also cut a piece of a real flower he had given me in a bouquet as a boutonniere. Other accessories include a silver pocket watch and a silver and amber ring. Sarah is wearing a vintage zip up over dress from the 1960s. It is so colorful and vibrant, I asked her to stand near this wall of faux greenery in the cafe so that it could be better perceived. She wore neutral gray sneakers with this casual look mainly for comfort while walking around the museum. Erik's flowery shirt may or may not be vintage. I'm not sure, but it goes with the colors and flowers in Sarah's outfit, and it looks like it's from the same time period. He kept the rest of his outfit simple with black jeans and black shoes. Afternoon Tea in the CafeThe museum cafe offered something like an Afternoon Tea in honor of the Fine Art and Flowers Exhibit. The trays were relatively modestly priced, but you had to pay for your tea separately. You also had to serve yourself the tea, even though they provided us with these wonderfully fancy tea cups and matching saucers. The treats were served on a single tray (rather than the 3 tiered tray I am used to) and it was a mix of crafted sandwiches from the cafe as well as pre-made pastries, macarons, and truffles. Not only did the galleries have all of the fine art and flower designs to view, but there were parts of the event where you could listen to live music being played or sung in the main hall as well as being able to talk to the designers directly. It was such a mentally and creatively stimulating event, that I would really like to bring my fashion friends back to it when it happens next year. Posing with the ArtGreat Minds Think AlikeAt the end of April 2024, my extended family worked together to plan a surprise 80th birthday party for my Aunt Lucille. My Aunt Lucille is a very active community member. In her 80 years so far on this planet, she also ran her own day care for awhile as well as helping organize and run events for various community organizations. You can always depend on her to make a dessert to sell for the bake sale, eggplant parmigiana for the craft fair, or answer all the vendor phone calls for the community tag sale. Any job that seems impossible or too much for other people, Aunt Lucille executes it well and makes lots of friends along the way. Not only was I able to see most of my extended cousins at this gathering, but also I caught up with many of the people who's children she helped raise, and neighbors and friends that were still living in the area. My role at the party was simply to KEEP IT A SECRET and attend. Knowing that I didn't have to do anything except show up, I made sure I wore a lot of pink. When I think of my Aunt Lucille, I think of the color pink, so I wanted to incorporate it into my outfit for the day. I am wearing a black heart button down off white shirt with a frilly peter pan collar that also has a black velvet tie around the neck, a black denim studded mini skirt (you can see the matte black studs around the pockets), black and pink diamond tights, a pink long sleeve button down cardigan, pink and black platform creeper style sneakers, and a big light pink and white heart shaped bag. The heart bag repeats the heart shaped buttons, even though they are different colors, just as the diamond pattern on the shoes reflects back at the diamond pattern on the tights and the studs on the skirt. Even the ribbon design on the bag reflects the ribbon and frills on the shirt. My coworker always says that I always put soooo much thought into my outfits, as if not everyone did that. I guess that's why I'm writing about my fashion pursuits on my fine art website. Because fashion in every form is an art to me. Now, come to find out, I wasn't the ONLY one who thought black and pink were the right colors for the occasion. Here's a candid photo of my mom and I. She also wore a pink blouse with silver bling around the neckline, black slacks and shoes, and matching jewelry and makeup. I think our lipstick colors almost completely match too! We didn't even plan it. It just worked! My cousin Susan and her partner Vera made all the flower arrangements at the tables. We were instructed that the winner of the vase arrangement at each table was whoever's birthday was closest to Aunt Lucille's. I guess at my mom's table it was her, but she didn't want to deal with taking a vase home I think. The flowers worked really well with the different pinks in my outfit too! Luckily I brought Pahl with me, and he was very good at holding the vase with flowers on the car ride home. Pahl stands at the ready showcasing a little of his "normie" style clothing and holding all my things so I can open the door. Even without any pink in his outfit, the flowers and bag work harmoniously with the green of the lawn and the rhododendron to the right.
I think for some people my day to day fashion wouldn't be considered normal, but it's the closest thing to normal outside of my fantastical and awesome historically inspired alt EGL fashion pursuits. Funny enough, my extended family was a little disappointed that I didn't wear one of my EGL outfits to the birthday party. It's nice to know that my family now expects me to be eccentric, and I'll be sure to pick out an official EGL outfit to any parties going forward. Wooster Square's 51st Cherry Blossom FestivalNow I've known for a long time that the Historic Wooster Square neighborhood in New Haven, Connecticut has a cherry blossom festival every year. It's even listed in a National Geographic article about "Best places in the United States to view cherry blossoms". The park itself isn't even 20 minutes from my house. But when this festival happens, traffic stops and it's very challenging to get in or around the festival. You might as well plan to park at IKEA and walk eight minutes under the overpass to get to the park, as parking is VERY LIMITED and often zoned for residents only. Luckily some of Pahl's family are residents of the neighborhood, and they were able to lend us a parking pass so we didn't have to walk too far. Most of the cherry blossoms this year were at peak bloom during the festival. The weather was sunny for a bit, but then it became overcast, and even rained a little. There were HUNDREDS of people at the park, surrounding the park and on side streets taking photos with the blossoms. There was also a blocked off street filled with 14 different food trucks, with lines wrapping around each truck onto the sidewalk. There were different bands playing about every hour of the festival in a staged area with fold out plastic chairs near the center of the park. There were also lots of info tables set up in different areas of the park to educate visitors about the different ways they could get involved with the community and giving out free swag like tote bags and pens. Pahl's family and some of our mutual friends brought picnic blankets and snacks to share. We sat out on the grass together. It wasn't exactly like a traditional hanami or cherry blossom viewing because of all the extra stuff going on with the food trucks, the band, the info tables, and the hundreds of people walking around. (When I studied in Japan almost 20 years ago, I did attend hanami at an ancient Buddhist temple--and it was much quieter and people were mostly sitting with small groups drinking canned cocktails and eating snacks). Since I had the luxury of close parking and a protective escort, I went really over the top with my look for the festivities. I chose to wear the Alice Girl ~ Bloody Rose Gothic Lolita Dress JSK set in the light pink. I've been slowly adding more pink goth or shiro (white) goth looks to my alt wardrobe as sometimes I still want to be goth, but not all in black. What makes this particular set gothic as opposed to sweet is the cut of the bodice (which unfortunately you can't see in my photo because it was too cold for me to wear it with the matching bolero yet), the type of pink (it's more of a mauve pink--not saccharine at all), the skirt is a short tiered ruffle with the texture of brocade roses on it with an additional train that looks kind of like trailing gauze with wine red roses attached to it. Ethereal looking "petals" uniquely fit around the waist adding an air of mystery. I decided to repeat the pale pink and the wine red colors in the rest of my accessories to put the look together. The Red Maria ~ Lace Printed Bow 80D tights in Wine Red are definitely a bold move that helps move the eye from my rose head dress to the roses on the skirt then to the legs and back again. The pale pink platform shoes are actually the very first pair of shoes I I ever bought for this fashion. They are probably 3 inches high but fairly comfortable. They have pink bat wings with heart rivets around them on the top. If you could see the bodice of my outfit, you would know there were also pale pink bat wings on it as well. Any print or design with bats is a sure sign it is a gothic outfit. But here's a curveball. The cardigan is actually a sweet style. Again, it's one of the earlier pieces I purchased for myself before I knew what I really wanted and how to get it. It's a very soft light pink with white hearts between the buttons. And it's insanely warm to boot. It was perfect for the unpredictable weather of the day. Lacking a wine red or light pink bag, I opted for my beige violin. I swear this bag gets the most action and is a fan favorite. I will be wearing the most over the top outfit possible and someone will say, "I love your bag!" I'm not sure if that is because that is all they feel comfortable seeing, or if that's truly the best thing about my outfit whenever I wear it with my coordinate. I'm not going to dwell on this. Pahl looks dapper in his green and gray outfit. He is wearing a white shirt, the Regency style waistcoat I got him for Christmas, striped gray and black pants with black shoes and a slightly different striped pattern for his spats which I believe are more Victorian era. He leans on a nice wooden cane with a working metal compass and small range telescope (probably a steampunk accessory), and wears an early American style tailcoat, straw boater, and floral bow tie. He appreciates when others dress fully historical, but he's a well-dressed punk through and through. Most people felt much more comfortable approaching Pahl and complimenting us on our outfits together, but there were a few brave people that knew that I was wearing Japanese street fashion and complimented me on my coordinate. This outfit took me a long time to put on. The skirt is especially layer heavy and does need to be floofed between each layer to get it to lie correctly. But it was amazing to walk around in it. I felt like Venus, embodying the goddess of Love and Beauty spreading the joy of the coming of Spring around the park and surrounding areas. I look forward to wearing the bodice and skirt and all its pieces again in the warmer months and styling it a little differently.
Chocolate Tasting at Fascia's Chocolate FactoryOne of the meetings I longed to plan with my group as soon as I acquired my own chocolate themed dress was to go to a chocolate factory dressed in our chocolate or sweet themed outfits together. Luckily Fascia's chocolate factory in Connecticut not only offers tours, but also make your own bar and chocolate tasting experiences right in Waterbury! We planned our meeting the second Saturday of April 2024. We booked the "Sweeten Your Spirits" tour and tasting, which allows for the option to try chocolate pairings with alcoholic beverages (but we skipped the alcohol part). The approximately two hour program led us through each stage of the chocolate process from how cacao beans are harvested, where they come from, how a roasted cacao nib becomes cocoa butter, how the cocoa butter is processed with sugar and eventually becomes the milk, dark, and white chocolate we enjoy as chocolate candy. The program included tasting chocolate at different stages of its preparation. Barbara and I found the roasted cacao bean to be quite palatable when paired with dried cranberries, but otherwise while it smells like chocolate, the taste it is pretty bitter on its own. After we had our official tastings, we also got to make a huge bar (about 1/2 pound) of take home chocolate. They asked us if we wanted dark or milk chocolate (or both) and then brought perfectly melted liquid chocolate with toppings such as rice puffs, sea salt, sea salt with jalapeno seasoning, chopped almonds, and sprinkles. These fresh take home bars were THE BEST. I'm still dreaming about their dark chocolate paired with the jalapeno sea salt. As you can see, we have a lot of snacks other than chocolate at our table. The factory encouraged us to bring snacks to not only pair with our chocolate, but also to just eat while enjoying each other's company. The full educational part of the program only lasted about an hour, so we had another hour to socialize. This was perfect for me, because I didn't really know anyone else from our group yet except for Pahl and Barbara. As for my coordinate for the meeting, I went for a combination of milk and white chocolate. My dress is the Musee du Chocolat salopette from Angelic Pretty (the one I had to have altered to fit my chest) . I am wearing a milk chocolate and white striped stand collar blouse from Miss Point, a light brown beret with darker brown trim that 42Lolita accidentally sent me, Yukine's Box Retro Chocolate Color over the knee socks, with some off brand suede brown and off white booties. I am also utilizing a chocolate bar cross body from the chinese indie brand Lovely Lota. I enjoyed making my eye makeup very glam while sticking with warm neutral tones for my blush and lip colors. I am wearing a watch necklace as well as gold hoops to match the gold details on my salopette. This coordinate has been at least two years in the making, and it still has room for improvement. I have been searching for a solid brown stand collar blouse that will fit my chest now for 2 years, but I have not yet been successful. So striped it is, for now. Pahl used this chocolate factory meeting to create an outfit around the different cinematic versions of Willy Wonka. His outfit I would say is more closely related to Timothee Chalamet's Wonka with the striped pants, green waistcoat, and reddish cravat, but the gray top hat, and deep reddish purple tail coat are similar to Johnny Depp's Wonka. Barbara's outfit doesn't quite scream chocolate, but what's wrong with constellations and cats? She just really wanted to wear this beautiful dress and to be honest, I don't blame her. She looks great in this deep teal green and gold star trimmed dress with various celestial and feline imagery in the border print. She tied the gold in again with her rose headdress and the cats in again with her decorative cat earrings. All in all an intersteller coordinate! Bianca is wearing an Alice in Wonderland themed salopette that utilizes a variety of colors with white as its main color and lilac, grey blue, grey green, rose pink, ivory, and chocolate brown as accent colors, along with various imagery of teacups, glasses, rabbits, Alice, etc. The skirt flares quite a bit at the bottom and an entire scene is revealed as you view the dress from different angles. The matching bunny ear headband is so cute! This is definitely a sweet style and pairs will with the sweet theme of the day. While I was basically milk chocolate in my coordinate choices, Dizzy was dark chocolate in their color choices with their dress, blouse, matching head bow, and shoes. (Although Dizzy actually prefers to eat milk chocolate while I prefer to eat dark chocolate). Nicole made her dress and some of her accessories from scratch. She utilizes various vintage looking fabrics to great a timeless, springtime feeling with light blue, apricot, and off-white accents to a white textured blouse. She apparently makes all her own clothes and also sometimes sells bloomers made from recycled sheets at Renaissance Faires. I'm showing off my Handcrafted Mini Chocolate Sauce Cookie Adjustable Ring in this selfie photo, along with the little chocolate bar pin that came with my blouse. Observe the severe fluorescent lights of the factory behind me. The tasting and bar making classroom was right next to the factory, so we could watch the chocolate coming off the conveyer belt and the factory workers (which might have been local teenagers), inspect the chocolate for quality control. I'm not sure that I'd rather fall in chocolate than in love, especially not while wearing my chocolate themed outfit! Overall it was an excellent program that I learned a lot at! I would definitely recommend the Sweeten Your Spirits tour, even if you don't bother with alcohol because it's just nice to socialize longer and take home a half a pound of artisanal chocolate!!!
Concert Fashion from April & May 2024In between dressing in historical and EGL fashion, Pahl and I also went to three concerts within the span of about a month. In this post, I'll be highlighting a little about the acts that we saw, what kind of music they played, and what we wore to the show. Adam AntThe first show we attended was Adam Ant at Foxwoods Casino. This concert was the EXACT SAME DAY as the Alice Tea, so we got a hotel room in Norwich, CT and took a nap before getting ready for the Adam Ant show. Adam Ant is an English singer, musician and actor who gained popularity as the singer of the new wave group, Adam and the Ants from 1980-1983. With the Ants, he gained popularity with songs like "Stand and Deliver", and "Prince Charming". He began a solo career in 1982 and top singles like, "Friend or Foe", "Goody Two-Shoes" and "Vive Le Rock" all became songs that he is widely known for. During his American tour this time he played all the top hits of his early days, which I recall having heard before in some capacity, but I can't quite say exactly when as I wasn't alive during his most popular years. New Wave music is a genre that encompasses pop oriented styles from the 1970's and 80's, and is considered a lighter and more melodic "broadening of punk culture". Common characteristics of new wave music include a humorous or quirky pop approach, angular guitar riffs, jerky rhythms, the use of electronics, and a distinctive visual style in fashion. Adam Ant's onstage fashion has always been a HUGE influence in Pahl's everyday fashion. He incorporates military style tail coats, waist coats, expressive belt buckles, a sash, a hat of some kind, motorcycle boots, and some sort of cravat into his on stage looks. The waistcoat that Pahl wore to the concert---apparently Adam Ant owns the exact same one. Pahl got his in London years ago, so it must be one and the same!!! Pahl is wearing a cotton shirt with the collar up, a red cravat, the iconic black corduroy waist coat, a pleather motorcycle tailcoat, black jeans and knee high leather boots. If you just keep kind of scrolling up and down between Adam Ant's onstage look, and Pahl's concert look, you can see similarities in style choices. I didn't grow up listening to Adam Ant as an idol or anything, so I kind of worked off the idea of "lighter punk" look. For all of the concert looks in this post, you'll notice I wear a lot of items from Killstar. Killstar in general I have mixed feelings about. They have a lot of choices on their website and many different types of "goth" styles. But the sizing is not inclusive and the product is inconsistent. For instance, I'll never know how I went from being a Large to an XL within a few years but can still wear my older Large size garments without a problem. But if they have a sale on sale merchandise, and they actually have your size, check it out. You might get something great! Black Spiderweb Beret & Black Fanny Pack: Sourpuss Clothing (RIP) Half black half purple tartan zipper dress & Black Combat Boots: Killstar Sparkle reptile skin gray tights: Snag Tights Choker: Offbrand Purple Coffin Earrings: Crafty As Ari I didn't even redo my makeup or anything from the Alice Tea. I literally just put black eyeliner over the look I already had. Bravo! Later on I added a Killstar "Corporate Goth" jacket over my dress for warmth (Pictured in first photo in post) After all, it was still the first week in April, and it was still quite cool at night. Looking back, I could have gone for a much more flamboyant look, but I was still relatively unfamiliar with new wave fashion, and still recovering from my cracked rib injury. The simpler the better--especially after the Alice tea. HeilungHeilung is an experimental folk music band made up of members from Denmark, Norway, and Germany. Their music is based on texts and runic inscriptions from Germanic people's of the Iron Age and Viking Age. Heilung describes their music as "amplified history from early medieval Northern Europe". Their music is usually about Germanic deities, the Jotnar, and the Valkyries. The word Heilung is a German noun meaning "healing" in English. Back during the pandemic, I taught myself all of the Elder Futhark by illustrating them in my Norse Rune Zine. A little before that, I had read all of the myths and tales associated with Norse mythology and the Eddas and the Sagas. I also listened to Neil Gaiman's Norse Mythology on Audiobook. I had seen Heilung once before, but the experience was so transformative for me, when I knew they were coming to Hartford, CT (even on a Monday night), I ABSOLUTELY had to attend. Their show is like no other show you've ever attended. It's like witnessing an ancient ritual of the past through a forest clearing. They use mostly natural instruments and supposedly have a skull from one of their friends on stage with them. At the last Heilung concert I attended, some people wore all black, while some other people had access to natural fibers and furs, and incorporated bones and horns into their outfits for the show. Leaning more toward the former, Pahl and I decided to construct some basic all black looks for the show. Pahl's base outfit is a pair of linen pants and blouse that he would likely wear when "dressing as a pirate or to a renaissance festival" to stay cool. He's wearing leather motorcycle boots, as well as a waist belt with a sea god belt buckle. A variety of large statement rings and a metal necklace compliment his look. He is wearing a lightweight great coat over his whole ensemble. He's also wearing transition sunglasses where one lens is square while the other is round. I am wearing a tunic blouse, arm guards, and boots from Killstar. My pinafore is a wonderful jersey knit (with pockets!) that has metal chains as straps. The tights are a patterned knit wear from Me Moi. I am wearing silver and abalone planet earrings and necklace. My hair is tied back in a simple pony tail and I am wearing very basic makeup (as I went to work that day and then went to the show). I love everything about this outfit, except for the fact that I kept setting off the metal detector when we tried to get into the show. I took off my long sweatshirt coat (not pictured) and after that they had to pull me aside and waved a wand at me. I was mentally preparing myself to have to remove my pinafore...but I made it through the second level of metal detection. Note to self: Don't wear outfits with too much metal components in them to a show. Voltaire & Vision VideoAh, finally a true all goth show. Goth music and goth fashion unite in full form! I've been a big fan of Voltaire for years. I think the first live show I saw him perform in was about 20 years ago. He's hilarious, he writes goth parody songs as well as very personal songs about growing up different and embracing the darker aspects of life. When Voltaire ascends the stage, it's just him, the microphone and an acoustic guitar. But he's so funny and the time goes by so fast, it's just a treat to catch him when he's in town every year or so. The other bands, honestly I had no idea what to expect, but they were all very good despite all being different kinds of gothic music. It was the cheapest but longest concert I have attended in a long time. And it was standing room only. The only thing I would change about my outfit for this particular concert was to put some very good insoles in my boots to save my feet from the pain I felt from standing in one spot for 4.5 hours. But it was worth it to be so close to the stage and see basically everything from the bands equipment, to the set lists and even their personal style and tattoos and such.
One of the things I went all out on for the Voltaire show, which I did not for the others, was my makeup. I used a cushion foundation that was a few shades lighter than my normal skin tone, and a couple of different eyeshadow palettes that I received in a Gothic Beauty Box to layer light, medium, and dark gray tones with some sparkle. I also took a black eyeliner pen and made both a large wing and a graphic liner back into my crease. Minimal blush, opalescent highlighter, and black matte lipstick complement my look. I also filled in my brows pretty heavily. I'm not quite Siouxsie, but somewhere in the middle between basic and over the top goth makeup. All in all every concert was amazing. I had a newfound appreciation for Adam Ant after seeing him live. Heilung was just as great as ever, but I got to bring new people to experience them for the first time. And Voltaire was just as great as always, but seeing all the other bands was great too! Always support live music when you can! It's sometimes the only way musicians can make money nowadays. And if you don't know what to wear---go with black!
Alice in Wonderland Afternoon TeaOne of the activities that my fashion club loves to participate in is any sort of Afternoon Tea. I've made a database about the different places that offer Afternoon Tea in Connecticut, which includes the location, type of reservation, cost, days of the week offered, as well as if they can make vegan or gluten free accommodations. I'm always a little overwhelmed collecting money for reservations in advance, so I prefer to plan meetings around places that folks can reserve and pay for on their own, at a specific time and location. The group hadn't been to the Old Lyme Inn yet for their themed Saturday afternoon teas, so Pahl and I made it a reconnaissance mission (and a cute little date for ourselves!). Every Saturday in April, the Old Lyme Inn offered an Alice in Wonderland themed Afternoon Tea. Now the way it works is that they set up their menu offerings ahead of time and make EVERYTHING in house (so it's super fresh). It is definitely one of the pricier Afternoon Teas, topping off at $45.00 per person, (before tax and gratuity), but it's honestly one of the best ones we've ever had (in Connecticut). Unfortunately they cannot change their Afternoon Tea menu to accommodate vegan or gluten-free dietary needs, BUT you can email them and ask in advance if they have anything on their regular lunch menu or if there's ANYTHING on the tea menu that works for your dietary needs. Reservations must be made in advance on Open Table at the time of day you expect to arrive. (You need a credit card to reserve, but it's only charged if you have an unexpected cancellation without 48 hours notice). Then you just show up at your time. The Inn offers Afternoon Tea between 11:30am-2pm, but it's not a private event like other tea rooms, so people will filter through, enjoy their tea service, and move on with their lives, like a regular restaurant. You will also get a bill like a regular restaurant. (Other tea rooms will charge the host EVERYTHING UP FRONT before the event including the tea service, tax, and gratuity a week or two before the scheduled event, and then if someone can't make it...oh well :-( !) The tables were nicely decorated with flowers and playing cards with Alice and other characters from Alice in Wonderland on them. Cream and honey with lemon were already on our table paired with our tea cups. The inn staff was great at making sure our tea cups didn't stay empty, and our food service was available right away. Mad Hatter and Alice OutfitsPahl really got into being the Mad Hatter. Alice in Wonderland is actually one of his favorite books, so this was a really big theme for him. He is wearing striped pants with the green waistcoat I got him for Christmas, a white shirt underneath with a green ALICE IN WONDERLAND bow tie (that he tied so that you can see both Alice and the Mad Hatter in it), a reddish purple tail coat, his tigers eye skull pocket watch holder, gray and black pinstripe spats, and black oxfords. His hat is also black but a little uneven with it being bigger in the front than the back (purposely as he is the Mad Hatter), with a cream and black pinstripe hat band and a piece of paper with some fractional nonsense tucked into it. Everything cleverly matches in color and design. While Pahl's outfit was very complementary and full of vibrant colors, I decided to focus on pattern and color within the blue and white scheme. In Disney's version of Alice in Wonderland, Alice was wearing a blue dress with a white apron, so I wanted to take a nod to that concept, but in a more mature and elegant way. First I pulled out the 100% cotton NyaNya Opera Theatre JSK in Navy that I had purchased last year. This was a pre-order that I purchased in April 2023 and received in September 2023. By the time it arrived, it was kind of too cold outside to comfortably wear it. This piece is absolutely gorgeous though and it has pockets too! I also got the matching headband that I ordered at the same time. The blouse that you can order with this set is a beautiful off-white tulle, but since I was going for white and blue, I swapped it out for the Yilia Princess Sleeves Slim Lolita Blouse. For tights, I wore the antique blue lace printed tights from Red Maria, and for shoes, the Angelic Imprint~Elegant Princess Lolita Heel Shoes in Dark Blue. I also paired it with a key necklace, that falls below the waist. I wore rings and earrings that either had blue, silver, or pearl accents in them as well. Meanwhile, across the street...We finished our tea around 12:45pm and wanted to explore the area for a little bit. Old Lyme is known as an artsy town, and just across the street from the Inn is the Academy of Fine Art Gallery, Old Lyme Art Gallery, and the Florence Griswold Museum. The Florence Griswold Museum has beautiful grounds, walking trails, gardens, and the Florence Griswold House is an iconic landmark...all of these things you can visit and walk around in on the outside FOR FREE. Right next to the parking lot there's an old building with stone steps. Did you catch my outfit change? I changed to my stone colored oxfords for walking around the trails and avoiding goose poop. I'm also wearing my wool Unideer coat as it was pretty windy that day. Overall it was the perfect date and we had so much fun at the tea and our impromptu photo shoot. I decided after all to host a meeting for the Wizard of Oz theme Afternoon tea in June, so if you think Pahl was feeling green in this particular outfit, wait till you see him as OZ!
A little Easter Walk Around Downtown BranfordMarch 2024 quickly flew by for me...not because I was going to events left and right, but because I finally caught COVID (after four years of evading it). I spent most of March after the Bridgerton Brunch laid up in bed with a very bad headache for about a week. Then I spent a lot of time coughing and even cracked a rib from coughing! It was not a good scene and it took approximately 3.5 weeks to start feeling better enough to start going out and dressing up again. This outfit I had planned to wear to a special hooked rugs exhibit with a fairy tale theme the weekend I was super sick. Luckily, Easter Sunday was on March 31 this year, so I got a chance to wear one more March outfit before April. You might be wondering what is open on Easter Sunday in CT, and I can tell you---not all that much. Churches of many Christian denominations are open for church service, but most restaurants and other businesses, including grocery stores are closed. Easter is an interesting holiday because if you're not a Christian...it just turns into another Sunday or a paid day off if you normally work on Sundays. For me, I don't celebrate Easter in the Christian sense, (I'm more about the spring aspects of rebirth and renewal, Eostre if you will) and now that I'm dating someone who never celebrated it before (because they were raised in a religion that doesn't celebrate it), it opens a lot of interpretations of how to celebrate Easter. The plan was to walk around downtown Branford and take some photographs, and get food somewhere if we were lucky. We got lucky because an Indian restaurant was open and serving a delicious lunch buffet!! Here I am modeling an essentially Sweet style EGL outfit. The pieces are from all different parts of my wardrobe that I noticed work together (even though I did not purchase them at the same time). The JSK is from the Chinese Indie Brand Yilia and is called Dream Elf ~Chiffon Lolita Dress. I liked this dress from the first time I saw it, and it comes in many colorways for your unique needs and choices, but I fell in love with the mauve pink. (But please don't be fooled by the Plus Size description tag in the listing if you're a western sized person...I could wear the 2XL or if I wanted a slightly more room, the 3XL, nothing less). The blouse is the Sakurada Fawn Short Sleeve Cotton Blouse in Navy. This shirt IS actually plus size and could fit a variety of people. It's a lightweight cotton and the navy is opaque. It was pretty roomy for me, but I found it kind of short in length. It was fine under a JSK, but it would be too short for a regular skirt. The cardigan is from Little Dipper and it is in the shade light pea green. If this looks oddly familiar it's because I own this cardigan in 5 colors. It's the best cotton cardigan and helps get the right shape with many JSK looks. The flowers with pearls on the cardigan is actually an elaborate fake collar from Infanta. Lastly, the bonnet is from Miss Point, the Rose Silhouette Elegant Lolita Flat Hat in dark cyan. I have the matching OP for this bonnet, but I haven't worn it yet. Every time Miss Point comes out with a coordinate I like, I try to buy the matching head piece(s), so that I can make my outfit look as cohesive as possible, but also to wear the headpieces with completely different dresses as well. The over the knee socks are off-brand and the shoes were one of my very first buys...off of AMAZON. I don't recommend buying shoes off of Amazon, but these aren't terrible...but when they wear out I will upgrade to a different brand with more support in the insole for sure!! The bag is a white heart bag from Loris. They are very large and affordable bags and come in many sweet colors. I purchased white x white because it goes with everything when I'm at a loss for the right bag. I'm still looking for a classic style crossbody or strap bag like this in beige or off-white with some flower and or pearl accents. It seems difficult to find classic style bags outside of something that looks like a picnic basket, and that's not quite the vibe I am generally looking for. Bridgerton Brunch in March 2024Back in March, I saw an event on Facebook for a modest brunch with a Bridgerton theme at a restaurant in the middle of a golf course in Middlefield, CT. It was something like $35 a person for the brunch, and they encouraged you to come in costume. Sign me up! The location was weird, but the event sounded promising. If you have Netflix, and don't live under a rock, Bridgerton is a fantasy romance drama about the Bridgerton family, set roughly in the Regency Period. It has completed two seasons, with a third on the way. The whole show is actually based on a series of 8 historical fiction novels by author Julia Quinn. Now, Pahl and I had neither read nor actually SEEN Bridgerton yet, but we knew from many stills and memes, and talking to people at the Jane Austen Festival, that it was definitely based on Regency fashion. So... it was a great opportunity to bring out our official historical Regency Period outfits. And it was the right weather to boot. Early March? It's cold--perfect for layers of wool, satin, and lace. Since this was my second time wearing this gown, I was able to quickly put on my makeup and even put a nice braid bun in my hair; so I did actually take off my bonnet in public this time. As a result, you can actually see my choker, the Rose of Sharon London Afternoon Tea Daily Choker. Chokers were pretty common in Regency Fashion. This one is a quality costume piece, that I originally purchased to wear with a completely different classic EGL style dress, but it works. So it's always good to have accessories that you can use on multiple occasions. Always think outside the box! You never know what you can put together! Pahl's outfit is nearly exactly the same, except that he chose a green based waist coat that he "hadn't worn in awhile". The green is just as nice of a complement to my deep red dress as the original red and black waistcoat was. You can always compare what we wore in my original post here. The whole event was very classy. Whoever planned it was a huge Bridgerton fan and had nicely decorated the tables with Lady Whistledown's papers, flowers and folded cloth napkins, while official classical music from the show was playing in the background. Some of the menu was a nod to delicacies eaten in the show and even the waitresses were instructed to wear empire waist dresses. The attention to detail in the way it was all executed was superb! I really enjoyed getting dressed up for this little event. It was fun to wear my Regency outfit again and have a low-key brunch morning with other people quietly dining nearby either really into the show, and or really into costuming.
Since the event, I've managed to watch the first two episodes of Season 1, and I recognized the music played at the brunch and the nod to Lady Whistledown (who's kind of like the town crier in the show. Her opinions make or break people's lives, even though no one knows who she actually is). I realized that my outfit was definitely not as fantastical as the womens elaborate dresses in the show. They tend to have these elaborate empire waist pieces that are always short sleeve that they pair with super long gloves. Pahl's outfit I'm not sure. When we watched the episodes, we noticed they mixed mens fashion from different time periods...some earlier and some later than Regency period. But you'd have to really know about the height of top hats, appropriate shirt collars and the way people tied their cravats, to really be able to notice that. The whole show is a fantasy Regency period. It's beautiful and engaging and I look forward to seeing more episodes! |
DanielleI love EGL and alternative fashion and modeling. I am taking two of my favorite hobbies and making them into a story for you to read about. Archives
July 2024
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