In a discussion awhile back with my fellow vintage maven Mimosa, we came to realize that we immediately associate certain prints or design details with certain people in our community. Almost as if they don’t have a name. Cat prints = Blue Wren Vintage. Floral = Jamie. Cactus prints = Rose. And (no shocker here), I am synonymous with trompe l’oeil. I’m not sure I even need to justify that one, as my heart literally faints when I see prints that trick the eye into thinking they’re actually leaping off the fabric…
One aspect of clothing design I really haven’t ventured into (yet) is fabric painting – which is probably why I’m completely drawn to them. I’m always enamored by art other people excel at. So, it’s no surprise that when this hand-painted Mexican circle skirt appeared on my radar at Snappy Gabs Vintage, resplendent in trompe l’oeil glory, my heart leapt and my Visa card shook. I mean, can you blame me? Trompe l’oeil is apparently my namesake after all….
Every canvas is a journey all its own.
Helen Frankenthaler
We are nearing the end of summer here in NC, but the air almost still feels as heavy as my head. Life these days feels so much like one of those Paint by Numbers art projects I used to do as a kid. Rote and predictable. Red here, blue here, the colors of each day blurring into the next. Follow the steps and you will eventually arrive at a finished piece. I feel more as if I’m on auto-pilot more than anything else, with every task taking 10x longer than usual and more in my head than I can articulate to the page.
If there was a game show called “Did it Happen in June, July, or August?” I honestly don’t think I could get past the first round. It’s crazy that days have almost lost all meaning, despite the fact that I know I managed to somehow fill them up with work and tasks and craziness. I wonder if this is a reason why I have been feverishly sewing – trying to break through the mundane of days bleeding into one another. Trying to squeeze something memorable out of these moments. Hopelessly, frantically mixing all of the colors, trying to color outside of the lines and paint something better than we had before.
If anyone is feeling the same, know that I get it. Trying to find our footing in this strange new reality feels familiar, and yet unnervingly off all in the same breath. And maybe all we can do is find comfort in the spaces we can control. In the beauty that lies tucked in between the chaos, just waiting to be revealed.
Yeah, I may start to learn fabric painting after all….
xoxo
Outfit Details:
Top: vintage JLC (similar here & here)
Skirt: Snappy Gabs (similar modern and vintage here, here & here)
Necklace: Kashuen
Sunglasses: Amazon
Handbag: gift, Trashy Diva, sold out (similar)
Shoes: Betsey Johnson
Lip Color: Dior Rouge 634
.
instagram // twitter // facebook // pinterest
.
Any items marked with a “c/o” (courtesy of) a retailer mean I was provided with an item for free in exchange for a review and/or feature on my blog. I always provide my honest opinion of any item I’m reviewing, regardless of whether it was sent to me as a courtesy item or if I purchased it myself. In addition, this post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you click and/or make a purchase through certain links or ads on this site, I may make a commission from that click and/or purchase at no cost to you, which helps with the day-to-day running costs of my blog.