Hold On To Hope

 Dress: Floral Lavender Fit & Flare Dress by Eva Rose (size 4x) via Gwynnie Bee

Teggings: Re/Dress

Sandals: Born

Earring: The Embellishing Room

Necklace: Green Goddess Vintage

Bracelet: Old Costume Jewelry

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-64

Eva Rose makes lovely warm weather dresses...& this lavender frock was all about spring. The fit & length were good, but it got easily wrinkled around my waist from sitting. Also, the fabric was super shiny & thin. It was still a fun dress to wear.

I'm incredibly excited that it's finally sandal season. But incredibly depressed that my knee hurts so much that I had to use my cane half way through taking these photos because just standing in place is too painful. 

All the jewelry here is being worn by me for the first time...the earring & necklace are from newly discovered artists on Etsy & the bracelet we found at the Nashville flea market last autumn. 

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Voodoo; UD eyeshadow in Asphyxia, Wildheart, Guilt Trip, & Big Sky; Mad lipstick by UD; & Samurai Breaks a Nail nail polish from OPI. 

A surprise delightful Davina singing live on my computer screen, a little vinyl garden art seen driving home, & a delicious dinner that David made from farmers' market goodness...including some amazing asparagus. I've been buying 3 pounds a week...their season is sadly so short. 

People! In person! People we like! People we like in person! I know you can all relate to how exciting that is in these times. David & Fred played peek-a-boo, which was...of course...adorable. After not seeing us for 2 months, he was a bit shy. We all socially distanced...with the exception of Val. Val surprised me by jumping up on my lap...my hat flew off...& it was pretty much one of the best things ever. At home...PBS was showing a Concert on the Square from two years ago. Kate & I attended this one because it was all Journey & Queen songs...we were there for Queen, but ended up loving the Journey part much more. The singer sounded quite a bit like Steve Perry...so I just watched that first half & marveled at how blissfully normal everything was back then. Also, since Kate & I sit very far away...I was not aware that all three back-up singers were wearing Fluevogs. 

High Noon also premiered a taped show from a few years ago of Seasaw. And Scott Bradlee did a late night online request show for an hour. Kate & I went to see Postmodern Jukebox a few years ago, but he wasn't on that tour & it seemed really cheap & gimmicky. But he was amazing playing live...someone would throw out a request of...play a mashup of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds & Girls Just Wanna Have Fun...in ragtime style. I was smiling the whole time he was playing. 

I have such a full live online music schedule...that I nearly missed this one...luckily Kate reminded me. Green Note, a music venue in London...has been doing a series called Virtually Green Note...in the round, featuring three artists taking turns playing songs. We were in it for The Lowest Pair...but the other two guys were awesome too. I love discovering new music. 

Another surprise Davina...giving us a tour of outside & inside her house. Charlie Parr (& some guy on harmonica that he called his brother), & Friday night regular, Sean Hayes. I spied this colorful hopeful message painted on the side of a building on my way to farmers' market pickup, Hold On To Hope. Yes, let us do that. First strawberries of spring from Young Earth Farm were a tasty treat. 

Pink Flamingos

 Dress: Flamingo Print Pink/Black Fit & Flare Dress by Eva Rose (size 4x) via Gwynnie Bee

Teggings: Re/Dress

Sandals: Born

Earring: Wendy Baker

Necklaces & Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-64

I was smitten with this flamingo dress...I mean...the kitsch of it all. The fit & length were great...& the fabric was soft like pajamas. My only criticism was...I wish more flamingoes had been right side up, as the majority of them were standing on their heads. 

As we were taking these photos in front of the mural painted on the side of A Pig in a Fur Coat...the door was open & they were cooking...it smelled sooooooo fabulous, but they aren't even open right now.

The armholes were a bit large...but not so much that my bra showed.

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Perversion; Violet Voss eyeshadow in Flamingo, Donut, Pineapple, & Seashell; Big Bang lipliner & lipstick from UD; & OPI nail polish in I Can't Hear Myself Pink!

I wore this dress to do some teletherapy & gather things from farmers' market. I also watched some live online concerts (mostly while *not* wearing this dress)...JP Harris, Bret Helm from Audra, & Brandon Beebe (Kate & I "discovered" him when he opened up for Zoe Keating)...he played some Prince covers & in addition to his own music, he has a cover band called Purple Veins. A neighbor who walks by our house often, knocked & asked David if he could have some of the bricks we have stacked in front of our house (all vintage recycled from Deconstruction Inc). We used them for building our fireplace surround & David is currently using some for making a walkway outside his shop. This neighbor was looking for something to put under his rain barrel & David had a bunch of cement blocks in the backyard that the guy & his wife loaded into David's truck...so the wife baked us a rhubarb pie. Yum. David is the friendly one...I never would have answered the door. 

A new style of earrings from Wendy (worn in these outfit photos), a vintage necklace from Australia that I feared was lost, lovely vintage earrings repurposed into something more fantastic, & a set of purple flower jewelry from Colleen Toland. 

After perusing nearly 70 curtain books...I've narrowed it down to 5 that have useful information...but really...the best of all of them (which I've downloaded, but will probably buy a paper copy of too) is The Complete Photo Guide to Window Treatments. David picking my favorite flowers...lilacs. And...more live music curtesy of Arts + Literature Laboratory of a delightful band I'd never heard of. 

Every Friday night...Sean Hayes, live from his house in Petaluma. Charlie Parr...live from someone else's backyard (is it because he doesn't have a computer/internet...or because he doesn't want to clean his place up?). Mary Lou Lord has been doing Facebook live popup practices, but she isn't ready to show her face (she deletes them afterwards...which is sad). Waiting in line for Saturday Dane County Farmers' Market pickup...I also got delicious veggies from farmers directly. 

I ordered a pink carnation vinyl copy of Pokey LaFarge's new album a month & a half ago...by the time they sent it out, the pink ones were gone & I got a boring black record. I needed a new jar of Drunk Elephant moisturizer & Sephora sent it along with a Nars birthday gift. My dying lilacs...less than 24 hours after they were picked. Is it just me, or did lilacs used to last longer? Another Sunday with Bret...& more Charlie. 

Lake View Sanatorium

 Dress: Terrazzo Print Ilana Fit & Flare Dress by Leota (size 4L) via Gwynnie Bee 

Tights: We Love Colors in Navy

Shoes: Born

Necklace & Earring: The Embellishing Room

Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo, Kate, & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-64

I liked the pattern & colors of this dress, but I preferred this fabric in Leota's Sweetheart style that I wore 3 years ago. I'm not sure I've worn this cut of dress from Leota...I think I'd remember that deep scooped back. The fit was good, nothing bad to say...perhaps it was just a tad bit too conservative for me. 

There is a peachy color in this dress...but I decided to put some orange with it...mostly because I wanted to wear some new jewelry I hadn't worn before.

Real times...my bra strap is poking out. I read an article this week that answered the question...ever wonder why Kate Middleton's bra straps never show? Because she wears a strapless bodysuit. If it wasn't for taking these photos & seeing a few clients for teletherapy, I wouldn't be wearing a bra at all in quarantine times. How about you?

My make-up with this outfit included...NYX eyeliner in Deep Blue, MAC eyeshadow in Fireball, Mon Ennui Cosmetics eyeshadow in Lumiere & Year of the Dragon, Santa Sangre lipstick by Kat von D, NYX 507 lipstick, & Give Me Space nail polish from OPI.

Hi, Violet! She likes to come up behind my chair & if I ignore her, she will often climb on my shoulders.

Some jewelry from Etsy, including a necklace from a lady I've been following on Etsy for ~5 years, Colleen Toland...she's currently having a 20% off sale for the rest of the month...so I finally took the plunge. I loved it so much, I already bought more. 

We took these outfit photos at this old building by our house that is currently Dane County Department of Human Services, but it used to be Lake View Sanatorium. I had always thought this was a former insane asylum...but it was where people with tuberculosis used to live in the 30s-60s. We watched a beautiful sunset in the former veranda of the nurses dorm & read about the history. 

Eager to do something else out in the world...we drove through the Flight of Lights at the airport...because we were curious & also because several people on our neighborhood Next Door had raved about it...one woman said she had to drive through a second time because she was crying so much the first time. It did not have that effect on us...but we did enjoy the final display with the alien & spaceship. Later that night...I cut out some more fabric for face masks that Angie is making...I have a new template that Toby made & it is so much better than the cardboard one I kept cutting into. The next day, we dropped off the cut fabric & picked up masks & this delicious ramp cheese biscuit that Angie made...& I saw Val & Sadie in the backyard. Yes, this is what qualifies as big exciting stuff nowadays. 

Some live concerts online...Richard Hildner, Sean Hayes, & a new to me band, Gully Boys...on Mid West Music Fest...I tuned in for Charlie Parr, but had just missed him. 

It's the girlie!!! We met for some wine chat & drank twinning bottles of sparkling wine...

Drinking & toasting. I miss Kate SO much...I have not seen her in person since March.

After our chat...I joined David outside to go through the vast variety of outdoor items I have collected over the years to decide what to do with them...David's shop is coming along nicely & is nearly done.

David got me this Schwinn bike over a decade ago & I never felt safe on it (just on a bike in general)...so it will become a flower holder in the front yard. We got rid of a truck full of stuff. David wheeled me out in the wheelchair he got me because that is about what I'm up to these days with my painful knee. It was a gorgeous sunshiney day & it was fun to see things I hadn't laid eyes on since moving. 

Picnic at APT

 Dress: Hanky Hem Navy Multi Shirt Dress by eShakti (size 28) via Gwynnie Bee

Tights: Snag

Shoes: Bandolino, thrifted

Earring: etXarte

Necklaces & Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo, Kate, & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-64

I adored wearing this hanky hem shirt dress...there was a LOT of fabric, but that just made it extra flowy. The fit was great & the pockets were generous. The colors in the dress are white, navy, burgundy, & mustard...however, the button placket is black...which was confusing to me...why not navy? This was a fantastic dress for a spring picnic on a windy 70° day.

Have I mentioned 100 times yet how much I love Snag Tights?! They are the best fitting tights I've ever worn. 

I decided to play up the navy & mustard & ignore the burgundy...

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in LSD; Tipsy, 2012, & Poppin Bottles eyeshadow by Melt Cosmetics; Kat von D lipstick in Gothica; & Give Me Space nail polish from OPI. 

I forgot to include these photos on my last post...on my birthday we saw the artists painting the mural on the side of Mother Fool's Coffee Shop...I've only happened upon this a handful of times over the years. They were covering up the plague doctor that I never took a photo with.

We headed out on a beautiful Saturday to first pick up our sandwich order from Gotham Bagels before driving out to Spring Green. Both APT & Shitty Barn will announce this week that they are canceling the season...so I'll miss driving there all summer. On the way we saw many baby cows (they were so tiny they couldn't have been more than a week old), several classic old cars, & this little robot lawn mower.

Once at APT, we discovered that not only were the picnic tables not set up, they were screwed together...so we used the bench inside the shuttle area for a table. My sandwich was SO good it was called OMFG...fried egg, sharp cheddar, Nashville fried chicken, thick cut bacon, & spicy aioli on an onion bagel. Oh! C-3 Pinot, bubbles from Kate, was perfect picnic wine. And Basque Cake from Estrellón.

I spied this secret cemetery driving out of APT...I had never noticed it before...how could that be?! It was very old & small. Then we drove into downtown Spring Green & took outfit photos. 

The next day...Wasted Wine online, with the girlie...

Then I watched some live online music, starting with the Bang on a Can Marathon...which I tuned into for Zoe Keating, but they were running behind & I got to watch a few other artists perform. Followed by my Sunday favorite, Bret Helm. 

49 + 1

 Dress: Mock Neck Tonal Zebra Knit Midi Dress by A by Addition Elle (size 4x) via Gwynnie Bee

Tights: Snag

Shoes: Moda Spana, thrifted

Earring: etXarte

Necklace: former Etsy shop

Bracelet: Vintage

Photography: Super Boo, Jason, & Me

Stats: 5'7" 55-50-64

This dress was a one & done...the fit was fine...it was all...fine. The fabric felt really thin & cheap. I liked the black & blue zebra pattern & the front slit. 

It was not what I would have worn for my 50th birthday had we not been in quarantine. I did consider dressing up as if I was having a fancy party...but just getting dressed is difficult enough these days...you know what I mean? So just the fact that I put make-up on & left the house was a celebration. 

 Oh! And I dyed my hair for my birthday...

My make-up with this outfit included...Urban Decay eyeliner in Abyss; Too Faced eyeshadow in Golden Nugget, Sin City, & #selfie; Spiderweb lipstick by UD; & Give Me Space nail polish from OPI. 

On Friday...I woke up to many missed calls from Kate...& this lovely sign in my front yard. Alas, I was not up at 7:30. All these photos are elephants from her trip to Thailand last year that she then hand lettered & colored. 

Jason took a video of her in the front yard singing Happy Birthday to me since I wasn't able to see it live! Thanks, Jason!

 Porch presents! from Kate & Angie. 

The girlie dropped off four bottles of wine (3 of them sparkling!)...she has the same four bottles so we can drink them together. Angie made me a Bakewell Tart (almond & jam) & a cocktail...Maple Manhattan, which we later sipped together while FaceTiming. 

David & I usually start the day out with oatmeal...he surprised me by making it special with caramel roasted pecans & cinnamon whipped cream...yum! He also made me a card & wrote me a sweet poem. Then we drove 45 minutes to Randolph, WI to Young Earth Farm to pick up spinach, salad mix, arugula, & bunches of radishes. There was a doggie! And a cat. We could have picked these things up the next day when they came to Madison...but times being what they are...a drive in the country was an exciting thing to do. We got back to Madison in time to scout out parks for picnic tables...it was entirely too windy on either lake...so we opted for not as pretty...but also not being blown away. We picked up our order from Dark Horse...fish fry for me...a hamburger & Cuban sandwich for Super Boo. This was one of the best fish fries I've ever had...the beer batter on the fish was not too thick & super crispy, the caper/garlic tartar sauce was delicious, & the cole slaw was full of veggies & crunch...but the fries! The fries stole the show...I think they were double or triple fried & had chunky flakes of smoked sea salt sprinkled on top. From now on...when I think of fries, I will think of these. 

After dinner we picked up two pieces of Basque Cake for the next day...then took outfit photos. Back at home...we video chatted with Angie & drank cocktails. Then I called Kate on Facebook & we talked, but did not drink wine because it was too late. Birthday tart! Then bed. It was a wonderful day spent with my love, but not the celebration I would have liked to have had. David & I were going to take a trip to Broadway to see all the plays...hopefully, next year. So I decided I was going to turn 49 + 1 this year & 50 +1 next year so I can celebrate my 0 ending birthday properly.