CRACKED ACTOR



After watching Cracked Actor the second time around I took notice of a particular outfit of Bowie's...



The pairing of a cropped long sleeve shirt with flared brown trousers, topped with a fedora struck me as so compellingly bizarre that I had to try my hand at the puzzling silhouette myself.
My version let a bit of air out of the original look's tires, casual elements mixed with Denim on Denim regulars.

I could have gone with a wider rimmed fedora but I decided to go with this porkpie hat because it's the closest thing to a fedora that I'd ever wear outside a blog post. I used to wear it all the time, and I still think it's nice, even aside from the fact that I can't bare to bring myself to wear anything on my head besides a beanie these days. Most instances I prefer to keep the crazy below the neck I suppose. It has a little sword detail tucked into the band as well, which I think is pretty cool too.


I went to the Long Beach flea market yesterday and I took a ton of pictures so stay tuned!

-Cruz

A BAG FOR THE AGES


Pretty self indulgent outfit of some of my favorites, vintage 'flaum' jacket, Bodie ghost town shirt, vintage Levi's jeans and vintage boots

While out looking for a mother’s day present at the antique stores downtown, I stumbled upon this bag for myself! I’ve been looking for a bag to be second-in-command to my trusty leather messenger bag, so that I may enshrine it as long as possible. I wouldn’t want to put my trusty leather companion in the line of fire, like being stuck with vintage band pins and at the mercy of my verdant stitching skills, so it’s nice to have a bag that can take abuse in its stead.

It’s a vintage mailbag, I can tell because the lining is very old and has a lot of stains (don’t worry, I cleaned it), which some would find disgusting but I consider them stains of authenticity. I’ve stayed clear of the tote realm of, I’m going to refrain from using the term ‘”murses”, because I’ve never cared much for the look on men and definitely not on myself, but I cannot deny their functionality. This bag works the same but doesn’t ride high up into your armpit when you wear it over your shoulder like a tote bag would.

The design itself is pretty chronologically ambiguous to me, it couldn’t be too old since the price was right, but I could imagine it even fitting in during medieval times since the design is so basic. It to me is a bag for the ages (I hope this clears up the ridiculous title). I like the slouchiness of it too, brings a relaxed element to any look, which goes well with my style which sags on the slouchy, sloppy end of the style spectrum.




I’m a fan of building a dangling shrine of sentimental talismans on your utilities (cellphone, handbag, etc.), so I thought I’d put together one for my new bag. The furry blue claw was a birthday gift from one of my closest friends Paige, and is probably one of my favorite things, joined by my furry eyeball critter, Lego incarnations of Vader and Boba Fett given to me by my cousins and two pins I knicked from my Dad’s vast collection. Naturally a creative cluster such as this will be a work in progress, so look forward to tweaks in the future.

-Cruz

LONG BEACH FLEA MARKET MAY 2011

It's been a while since my last flea market post, it's been a busy couple of months so I was elated to finally be able to pay the Long Beach flea market another much needed visit! My dad and I went, and although we left nice and early, mother nature thought it'd be funny to rain on us and the unfortunate vendors. After waiting it out in the car, the rain finally let up and I was able to snap some pictures...


I was greeted by this towering native american statue.

DRAG BEAT


Vintage top to bottom

While thumbing through my closet I unearthed this scratchy, sparkly gem. It's a shirt I got at Out of Vogue, which was apart of a drag routine from a performer in San Francisco. I love vintage finds with a story, especially one such as this! I haven't shot it for ages so I thought I'd give it another go.

I put together this outfit in the spirit of Bowery punks and clash city rockers, but it reminds me also of a piece that a 50's rock and roller, such as Elvis or Little Richard would have worn. I would consider myself a failure if I couldn't successfully integrate a piece of drag into my wardrobe, which maniacal as it is, shouldn't be too difficult. So I decided to try to style it as everyday as possible. Here's a mood board I pieced together to paint a picture:


Shoot me an email if you have any questions about the board :)

-Cruz

JAPANESE DOUBLE DRAGON

Asian "tour jackets" are synonymous with flea markets - I see at least one whenever I stop by one. I've kept my eye out for just the right one and finally found it. They're most commonly found in the varsity style jacket design with terrific stitching on the back of beautiful images from the visited countries, such as Japanese or Korean imagery. Great detail and design on this one (it was also the right price). Some loose threads, which I have a penchant for anyway, and it's a little short but it's fine, gives me a chance to play with proportion. I've learned to adapt when shopping vintage over the years.







One of my favorite outfits to wear from this winter. Vintage everything but the tee and pants are from American Apparel. The necklace is my dad's and really really incredible. You could learn to play that harp wherever you go! I'd love to record a song using the necklace.


It would be so much fun to curate an exhibit of all the different variations of these jackets! The collar is fantastic and the silk is subtly lustrous, the zipper is really something too but my camera can't get that good of a detail shot up close.


Worn with my prized calf skins.

-Cruz