Fashion Friday - a zombie skirt come back to life, and an outfit inspired by the art of animation

Happy Friday!  Finally was strong enough to get to Slimmons last night - was great to be back and sweatin' (though this heat wave makes that extra possible.)

I have two outfits for you this week - one real and one imaginary.

Since last week I skipped the real-life outfit, let's start out with this one.  Thanks to the Curvy Closet Raid a few weeks ago, I have a new vest to play with.  I haven't owned a vest since... probably tenth grade!  Once I got it back to my closet, I realized that it is the exact reddish-plum color of a patterned maxi skirt that I was about to heave-ho. (It had gotten too big so I was no longer wearing it.)  I figured... what the hell?  Maybe I should bring the skirt back from the dead... a zombie skirt, if you will, masquerading as a strapless dress.  Cinched in with a belt around the wrap vest, maybe the ol' skirt had life in her yet.  (Even though she might eat your brains if you get too close.)

Crochet-back vest by
Skirt by Jessica London
Necklace by Lane Bryant
Belt by Torrid

My imaginary outfit is inspired by animation.  Or, more specifically, an animated necklace I stumbled upon a few weeks ago.

You may or may not know that I'm a bit of an animation buff.  So much so, in fact, that my first paying creative screenwriting gig was in animation.  (First and only - so far.  Sigh!)   But the experience taught Tom and I how much we love writing animated TV, so last year we developed a concept and wrote the pilot for our own original animated series, called Bubble Gumshoe.  Hopefully some more news on that topic in the next few months, as we work on some promotional pitch material.

Anyway, animation is one of those art forms that makes me thoroughly happy.  I love early animation mechanisms, like the Thaumatrope.  Even if you aren't familiar with the name of this Victorian toy, you've probably seen one in action - it's a disc suspended on a string, with two different images on front and back.  When you spin the disc, you see both in one image.  Like a bird and an empty cage - when spun, it becomes a bird IN the cage.

So when I stumbled on a Thaumotrope necklace, I fell head-over-heels!  And I built this imaginary outfit around it.

Spin the necklace, and the boy and girl dance together!
Necklace by Uncommon Goods
Purse by by Luxe de Ville via Pin Up Girl Clothing
Shoes by T.U.K. via Torrid
Belt by Torrid
Dress by Bettie Page Clothing

 

Front view of the dress. Love that boat neckline!

The necklace - and the outfit, for that matter - remind me of that swingtastic cartoon short by Fred Moore, "All The Cats Join In."  Groovy boys and curvy girls, cutting a rug together to the sound of Benny Goodman.  Check it out!






The idea of a Thaumotrope necklace makes me wish that there was a working Zoetrope choker available, too!  You've probably seen a Zoetrope - a rudimentary machine with which to view animation.  A cursory google for Zoetrope necklaces yielded only this...

Boo.  I want a REAL Zoetrope around my neck someday.

On another note... if you've been inspired by animation, as I have, I highly recommend you check out Disney animator Andreas Deja's new blog, Deja View.  I saw him speak live once with his mentor Ollie Johnston, and it was a formative experience for me.  His insights into the art and history of animation are truly wonderful.

All right!  It's the weekend, and I'm off to enjoy it (as opposed to last weekend, which I merely endured. Good riddance, flu.)  I hope you enjoy this beautiful summer, and take care of you!