LOOSE THREADS

Sorry I fell off the internet there for a while. The fact that one of my most recent posts was themed around something that happens at the beginning of November makes this post, on the last day of November, even more shameful. I was going to do a Long Beach flea market post last weekend, but it got rained out! And throughout my fun-filled Thanksgiving Break I never found time to sit down and commit to a blog post... until now!


Wearing Triple Five Soul Jacket, Vintage red coral necklace, tunic, Levis, and boots.
It would have been Jimi Hendrix's 68th birthday last Saturday, which lead to the outpour of many stylish photos of Jimi from photoblogs and tumblrs the world over, which needless to say got my styling gears turning. I gladly welcome Jimi Hendrix into my computer monitor and out my speakers on a daily basis. Also I wanted to debut the latest installment in dumpster denim here at Denim on Denim: a ratty pair of faded black Levis with the seams ripped! Here's a mood board I made while dickin around in photoshop today that gets what I was goin for...







I picked this bracelet up for my dad, on the occasion of his birthday, last year at a farmer's market in Silver Lake and I steal it on a regular basis. I'm not one to declare such bold fashion statements like the following, but the design of this bracelet is pretty flawless. Even the string is the perfect shade of muted white! I know some people buy gifts for other people with themselves in mind, but I didn't this time I swear!


Close up of the ripped seams. I find the loose threads to be very delicate and beautiful on torn garments. That idea is firmly rooted in my personal aesthetic, which works out for me since I'm constantly on a shoe string budget. When I can afford some 800 dollar boots to make these jeans look like a million bucks, you guys will be the first to know! Sorry if the flash looks too harsh since darkness sort of snuck up on my dad and I, "Fall Back" is the bane of the existence for most blogger folk. If you drink enough antifreeze, it kind of looks like a Juergen Teller photo.

Until next time - thanks for stopping by!

-Cruz

ROADHOUSE BLUES


I picked this dollar t-shirt up on one of my flea market excursions. I love the blues, despite being a walking antithesis of the genre. At least I can express myself with this T-shirt.


Thought I'd pair American roots music with American roots fabric (I know denim originated from France, but c'mon it's pretty much an American thing).


I know I just wore this alligator tooth necklace (the fact I have a very small pool of clothes and accessories to choose from my closet aside), but I've always considered alligators to be my personal mascot of the delta blues.


I'll leave you with one of my favorite Chicago blues musicians, Holwin Wolf, breaking down the blues for us.

-Cruz

EL DIA DE LOS MUERTOS


Vintage shirt, jacket, bracelets, and boots, Cheap Monday jeans, my own alligator tooth necklace


This is my idea of a "California Casual" tribute to the Mexican holiday. I pretty much look like walking dead most days since I regularly have bones strung around my neck and cow parts around my feet and wrists, but I wanted the focus to be on the beauty and inspiration of the Day of the Dead. I guess the Mexican influences I've thrown in aren't exactly obvious, I suppose they're what they mean to me or at least what they are after having traveled through my universe (but hey the boots were hecho en Mexico). I'm deeply inspired by Mexican culture, the Mexican artist Jose Guadalupe Posada is known for his Day of the Dead cartoons and is one of my favorites...


“The word death is not spoken aloud in New York, in Paris, in London, because it burns the lips. The Mexican, in contrast, is familiar with death, chases after it, mocks it, courts it, hugs it, sleeps with it; it is his favorite toy and his most lasting love.”
-Octavio Paz


Found these bracelets on me and my friends' annual group trip to Big Bear Lake about a year ago, we all bought them as friendship bracelets. I love the way these two look stacked together.


One of the random bands of leather I've picked up from a flea market.


This pewter octopus brooch from Ebay mostly chills on this denim jacket.

-Cruz