1940s black and brass for a very cold winter's day at Skaha Lake

Outfit details

1940s black tilt hat: etsy seller JoBella's Emporium

Green molded plastic beaded necklace: Thrifted

1980s does 1940s/50s glen plaid dress: etsy seller Sepia Vintage

Edwardian inspired dangle brooch: eBay

Quadruple buckle "waist cinching" belt: Forever 21

1940s brass studded black gloves: eBay

Vintage Saks Fifth Avenue black patent purse: etsy seller MK Retro

Black tights: Arden

1940s style black shoes: Thrifted

Lip colour: MAC Russian Red

Photography by Antonio Cangiano

{An especially cold gust of wind hit my face so I instinctually closed my eyes here.} 

 

 

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The Okanagan Valley is a land peppered generously with lakes of all sizes, of which our town is sandwiched between two of these many bodies of water. The photos above were taken at Skaha Lake (which you may recall me talking about in earlier posts, such as this one), however not on the side the touches Penticton, instead on the opposite end in Okanagan Falls.

The tiny, charming community of Ok Falls is only about fifteen minutes away from Skaha beach in Penticton, and while it might not offer up scads of excitement during the winter months (when the beaches are too cold to swim in, the lake isn't usually solid enough to fish on, and the beloved local ice cream shop is closed for the season), it's still fun to pop out there every now and then for a change of pace and scenery.

On a bitingly cold day a few weeks ago, Tony and I did just that one Sunday afternoon. This was, to date, the coldest day we've ever taken pictures outside on, and I'm not going to conceal the fact that I was shivering up a storm sans heavy winter coat. Knowing that the mercury was hiding that day, I opted to wear my heaviest winter dress (it’s a thick polyester that feels surprisingly like cotton), opaque tights, and of course gloves. I could have used a few more layers though, let me tell you!

Teeth chattering, we both got through this shoot though, and I'm so glad that we did, because I adore the photos that Tony took that day. The icy cold shoreline of Skaha Lake made for a marvelous backdrop against which to let the black, white, green, and brass tones of this winter outfit shine through.

I'm making a conscious effort to both buy and wear more green this year (I love it to pieces and have no idea why I haven't done more of both of those things in recent years), so on this day I opted for verdant accessories. The last time this lovely antique inspired brooch appeared here on the blog, the weather was a whole lot warmer and sunnier, and we were gearing up for a morning spent at the local Penticton farmer's market (which will reopen come May - yay!).

My here necklace is a string of molded beads that I picked up last year for around fifty cents while thrifting. I have several similar necklaces, which I really like and wear fairly often, because the ones I own are free of metal and thus completely safe for someone like me with a nasty nickel allergy.

This dress is a 1980s does 40s/50s L.L. Bean (the first, and to date only, L.L. Bean item I've ever owned) shirtwaist in a classic glen plaid print. The thick, sturdy fabric makes it the perfect frock for those especially nippy days the so often crop up during the second half of the winter, and thus I've been wearing it at least once a week lately.

You may have heard me say before that it can be challenging (due to medical reasons) for me to wear tight things around my midsection, and indeed that is very true, however this awesome quadruple buckle (stretch) belt is not as tight as it would appear. You see, when I bought it a few years ago from Forever 21 in Toronto, I made sure to get a size that would be a little loose even on the tightest notches, that way I could still wear it most days, even if I had to sport it on looser fitting notches. In fact, it's comfier to wear than most of my belts and I've had no trouble keeping it on for as long as 12 hours at a time before. Yippee! Because I absolutely, positively adore it, especially for wrangling in the waist on classic shirtwaist dresses like this one.

I adore these brass studded 1940s gloves (the studs don't go all the way though, so there's no risk of the metal, which could in theory contain nickel, touching my skin) and thought they'd be the perfect pair to accompany the brass on the belt and brooch. The swirling vine pattern is so elegantly pretty, and the longer length makes them ideal for icy winter days when its imperative that your wrists are fully covered.

If this lovely 1940s tilt hat looks familiar, it's because you last saw it just a few months ago as part of my Oktoberfest outfit. I love this hat. I mean, I really, really, really love it! I swear, I have to stop myself from partnering it with darn near every 40s outfit I put together (as I do like to let my other hats, all of which I'm crazy about too, see some action as well). I tend to wear more black during the winter than other times of the year, so for the time being, it really is cropping up more days than not, let me tell you.

As March barrels onward, it's good to know that this is the last true month of winter left. This month will likely still be fairly cold - and potentially somewhat snowy - but soon spring will be here and that means the return of dipping our toes in all these wonderful local lakes - Skaha very much included - once more. I can hardly wait!