in which life is a fashionable circus

So, it's Monday. Once again. I had a pretty good weekend, although an intense anxious boredom descended upon me on Sunday afternoon between museum-going and K's return home. Sometimes I just feel so bored that it absolutely incapacitates me... and it usually happens when I've been a busy little bee for so long that I forget how to relax!

(dress/scarf/sunglasses/shoes: thrifted; socks: uo)

I bought this dress soooo long ago and have yet to wear it on this blog (actually I think I wore it once before but I can't remember if I posted the pictures... I just remember I didn't like them). It was one of those things that I bought without trying on and then didn't really like the way it fit. But it fits fine so I'm not sure what I thought was wrong with it! Anyway, I love how the little pockets look like tulips :)

On Friday night K and I stayed in and watched a movie (LA Story), which was light and funny and just what we needed after a stressful week. Saturday he left really early and I got up around the same time and went for a run, then hit Goodwill for a bit of a shopping spree (I definitely stocked up for A/W, although every single dress I bought needs serious hemming) before meeting my friend Elizabeth at VCAM to load up some film equipment. We chatted over iced mate at the bar below her apartment, then started setting up to film the first in what we hope will be a series of interviews for a documentary we are working on. We finally wrapped around midnight and went out to meet her BF at a bar where we drank G&T and watched people sing karaoke until the wee hours.

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The next morning I dropped her (and the equipment) off at work and headed over to the Shelburne Museum to check out the In Fashion exhibit. It was definitely enjoyable, albeit a bit small (pretty much to be expected around here), and I spent a couple of hours closely examining couture and stepping back through the fashion of decades past. Having never seen a couture gown up close, I was absolutely astonished at how beautiful and intricate they really are. I think one of my favorite parts of the exhibit was the FIT student work. The museum had a small collection of bodices that were missing skirts, and they opened up a competition to FIT students to complete the look. I just thought it was a pretty creative way to juxtapose contemporary and historical fashion design and to expose the community to new design talent.

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The only other exhibit I was really excited about was the Circus Figures and Posters. It didn't disappoint. The moment I walked in the door I was awed by an elaborate hand-carved three-ring circus (Kirk Bros), which Edgar Kirk fashioned over a period of 40 years using a penknife and treadle jigsaw! Can you imagine committing to a project like that for 40 years?? That's almost double my lifetime. I've always been fascinated by the old-time circus of the 30s, so this was definitely another interesting exhibit for me. Finally I headed home and waited for K to return with a fresh (and fabulous) tattoo... but man, do I feel exhausted! Getting up this morning was no easy feat.