neon signs and indian summers

Vancouver's having a glorious September (well, until today when it's suddenly cloudy and 15 degrees Celsius). Shona and I, to get out of our work/homework slumps, went down to Vanier park, where the Museum of Vancouver had an exhibit of 1920s fashion, another of the role of Neon signs in the cityscape, and where the park itself was appealing for a walk afterwards, among new abstract sculptures and the tents of Bard on the Beach, Vancouver's famous Shakespeare festival. The next night we were back there to see a play, a riotous, hilarious interpretation of The Merry Wives of Windsor set in Windsor, Ontario in 1968, in which Shakespearean soliloquies were frequently interrupted by country-style fiddle and brilliant versions of "You're Cheatin' Heart." Bard is one of my all-time favourite things to do in Vancouver and a definite summer/early-fall must for anyone visiting.






I'm feeling completely casual lately. All I want to wear are funky t-shirts and simple skirts. And since I packed for Vancouver at 3 am after three glasses of wine, my shoe-choice left something to be desired so sorry... there's going to be a lot more of these sneakers...

Last of the summer stories: guest post from Resplendent Tranquility!

It's definitely time this fun little summer series was wrapped up. Perhaps I've been hanging onto it as I hang on to summer. In any case, this entry, from my friend Emily of Resplendent Tranquility, is all about the end-of-summer nostalgia. I'm always left thumbing or clicking through photos of all the best times in my life again again... but how to capture them perfectly to begin with? I love Emily's blog because it is a truly resplendent and tranquil place, and it focuses on the little details to tell a whole bigger story. Much like these delightful film-captured snippets of summer she sent me. I think I can feel the sun and instinctively know the air temperature in every one of them...







Hello! This is Emily from Resplendent Tranquility happy to be participating in the Summer Stories series here at Ruby Slipper Journeys. When Emily asked me to share a few film photos with all of you I set out to capture some of the serene and idyllic moments that perhaps are summer at its best. The moments you're happy to witness whether you have a camera on you or not. The moments you wish would last just a bit longer - full of enveloping heat and unmistakeable summer colors. A multi-hued umbrella against a rain-saturated sky. Vibrant and delicate wildflowers reaching toward and reflecting the sun. A foggy-pink sky at dawn. Dry grasses rolled into hay bales. It's the little things that often bring out the best in each season. Take a look around you and soak them in. With that said, please enjoy some scenes from a countryside summer.

summer stories: the readers edition part 2!

Here's the rest of the great reader submissions to the Summer Stories series. These are all keeping me warm right now as the rain literally buckets down outside.

Right, got to run, thesis due tomorrow (or tonight if I'm organized)!


from Penny of Striped Socks Play Ping Pong

"Me and my best friend in Greece and represents all that's summer for me: blue sky, friends, sea, (anklets of course)! :)"


from Julia of La Belle Oiselle

"I guess you could say I was somewhat of a hermit this summer. It's just that instead of socializing with people, I socialized with my environment. This was taken at a petting zoo in a local park. I'd take goats any day of the week over a person small-talking my head off."


from Louise of For Sentimental Reasons

"On the sunniest weekend this August my long lost cousins and their ballet troupe from Canada made their way to my house in suburban London for a reunion (if you can call it such, we had never met before.) They were more silly, more funny and more wonderful than I ever could have imagined. We ate cake, drank tea and spoke until we were hoarse. There is nothing sweeter than meeting your own family for the first time, in any season, but to do so in the height of summer was particularly lovely."


from Jazzy Elizabeth of Hivenn

"This summer's been amazing."


from Rachel of Bats and Rags

"This photo may look familiar to Twin Peaks fans: it's Laura's Log! In June we took a trip to a little town in Washington state called Poulsbo, and I just about died when I discovered a pivotal scene for one of my favorite tv shows was filmed just down the road! We had to sneak through the closed grounds of the Kiana Lodge (shh!) to get to the log, where it sits by the Puget Sound, surrounded by lovely roses."


from Monique of Tipa Tipa

I spent four days on a New England getaway for a friend's bachelorette party. I climbed out of my tent and snapped this photo just before the sun came up.
Saco River, New Hampshire


from me!

Sadly that picture is probably most representative of my summer, as I battle with this paper in various cafés. I definitely prefer the gorgeous, sunny or foggy, human or animal accompanied shots the rest of you have submitted though. Obviously, due to summer being over, I'm no longer accepting submissions. Next year though!

summer stories: guest post from Waking Life!

So, I can't believe today is September 1st. What happened to summer? I don't feel it's really over until my sister goes back to school next week, but it's undeniable that things are winding down. Which means I really need to ramp it up on the Summer Stories. Today I have Caitlin, who is basically an American version of me (my middle name is even Caitlin), except more stylish. ; ) I found Caitlin's blog before I had one myself, lost it, and was so glad to find it again. Apart from her enviable hair and great way with dresses and ankle socks (and hats), she writes, she drinks wine, and she enjoys a good moan and neurotic breakdown of life from time to time. As anyone who has been around here knows, all these things float my boat. Make sure to head over to Waking Life!





waking to the cool breeze through a lace curtain





perhaps a leisurely morning bike ride down a country road





getting my feet wet (almost)





drying out in the sun





exploring new secret swimming holes





reading a good book by the river's edge





Hi all! My name is Caitlin (from WAKING LIFE) and I am delighted to be posting today as part of Emily's summer series! As I'm sure her loyal readers know, Emily is totally awesome, and I have long considered her to be quite the kindred spirit. I always get excited when I see one of her rants pop up in my Google Reader :p



Anyway, although Emily's world travels are enviable beyond belief, I've been rather enjoying my lazy summer here in rural Vermont. This post will focus on the pleasures of luxuriously languid summer days. In my mind, there is nothing better than an afternoon spent soaking up the sun, reading a good book, and cooling off in a refreshing body of water. And of course, an al fresco dinner with lover/friends/family is always in order, topped off with a drink (or two) on my makeshift stoop.





driving around with the windows down/strolling through the forest





gathering at the garden





bumblebees and green beans





a drink at dusk





sitting on the stoop





sunset at shelburne pond/scrabble at the drive-in



Thanks again Caitlin...Life's all about the little adventures, and I seriously hope one day we can murder a bottle of wine on a stoop together!

summer stories: the readers edition part 1!

A week or so ago, I invited my readers to contribute a photo with a brief description to my Summer Stories series. I received lots of great responses (and am still accepting, go here for instructions), and here's the first batch. If your photo hasn't appeared, don't worry; I just wanted to keep these posts a manageable size, so yours will be in a future post. Thanks so much to everyone who has sent me a picture--I'm really enjoying getting to share everyone's summers a little bit! Without further ado....



Well, with slightly further ado. I see this spelt on various blogs ALL THE TIME as "without further adieu." Just saying. That is so wrong. It's ado, like Much Ado about Nothing. Pet peeve. Sorry. ; D







from Georgia of The Velvettes



"This photo best represents my summer to me. Even though it's the middle of winter here. It was taken last December on a little road trip with friends. We stayed in an historic villa by the shore in a tiny settlement, and spent the days exploring an abandoned primary school and jumping off the wharf and drinking beer deep into the nights. On a frosty morning like this one, I'd give almost anything to be back there."





from Ashley of She's Come Undone



"Sangria is pretty much the perfect summer drink, usually clothed in its best summer outfit (a funky colored glass, and some fruit to boot). Totally my drink of choice to unwind as the summer sun sets upon the sea. Ahhhh..."



[I'm in total agreement....]





from Xavi



"This is the romanic church called Sant Pere de Graudescales, in the walley d'Ora, just in the center of Catalonia. I visited it this last July. I fell in love with the tranquility of the area. This nice church with quiet cows around, inspired me a lot. This area is very important in the whole history of Catalonia (several centuries)."





from Alison-Claire of Holland 1945



"My love took this photo of me on our trip to Hawaii this summer. It was our first time snorkeling, and we had an absolute blast! The reef was neon green and the fish and sea turtles let us swim with them all week!"





from Annebeth of The Styling Dutchman



"I had to use this pic since that entire post was my tribute to summer :-)

Summer weather has been incredibly disappointing over here in Western Europe, so this one simple day of biking around our town was basically my perfect summer's day. Sun, a gentle breeze and beautiful surroundings shared with my love."



Thanks again, ladies and gent for infusing some extra travel, romance, and erm, alcohol, into my summer. The rest of you, I hope you enjoyed!

summer stories: guest post from virginie's cinema

As this posts, I am (hopefully, no more delays please) winging my way towards this guest poster's home and native land, which just happens to be my home and native land too. I found Virginie's Cinema last year and loved Virginie's style, musings on work as a film producer, and getting the odd chance to ogle her beautiful quebecois surroundings. I've never been to Quebec, but it's way high up on my list as a (hopefully summertime) destination. In addition to being a beautiful part of the world, a lot of the best of Canada's arts scene comes from this province. As a stylish blogger, Quebec native, and arts worker... who better than Virginie? You guys must watch her video!







Hello Ruby Slipper Journeys readers! My name is Virginie and I am a French Canadian girl currently living in Québec city where I work as a movie and video producer. I am so excited to have been invited by Emily to share peaks of my city with you! I always love travelling through Emily's blog and am glad to share a bit of Québec with you all!



Québec city is the cradle of the Canadian francophone population and one of the oldest cities in America. It is a small city by the Saint-Lawrence River and is surrounded by mountains. Which makes it a sought after area for outdoors and sports junkies, hikers, skiers and bikers alike (my favorite Québec city activity is snow shoeing!). It is also a highly cultural city with a vibrant community of young artists.















Québec city is a lot less fashionably inclined than it's sister city Montréal. Although there is a rise of intrest in personal style, here people are mostly natural and dress for the weather and the four distinct seasons (suffise to say it's cold and a half in the Winter!). I started Virginie's Cinema as a way to share my outfit creativity and have since found so much inspiration from blogs from all over the world. Even when I'm making movies and videos, I try to dress in a way that makes me feel happy and empowered.

A Ruby Slipper Journey in Québec city from Virginie Lavallée Bélanger on Vimeo.

A Ruby Slipper Journey in Québec city from Virginie Lavallée Bélanger on Vimeo.



Thank you so much Emily for having me! I look forward to seeing all of you again on my blog :)



Virginie ♥



Thanks again, Virginie, and be sure to pay her a visit, folks! I'll be back with some reader Summer Stories as soon as I land (seriously, Air Transat) and get over my jet lag!



And check out the other posts from the Summer Stories

Lion Heart Vintage

A Fine Day for Sailing

Milk Teeths

país tropical

This is my favourite dress that I hardly ever wear. It's honestly, a bit bright even for me, but I love pink and orange as a combination, and I find the shape really flattering. Given my tropical inspiration recently, I knew I wanted a setting with palm trees, so we went to Plaça Reial, a beautiful square in the middle of Barcelona that is unfortunately a complete tourist trap. The light was beautiful though. ; ) And this is also one of my favourite photo shoots ever!











Since my Summer Stories series has been quite popular and since there are so many more summer stories than I could properly feature, I thought it would be nice to throw it open a little bit (she says, shivering in freezing Germany--I just want to live vicariously!)



So, for anyone who'd like to participate:

1.Send me a photo you feel really captures your summer or represents something interesting this summer (doesn't have to be of you, or fashion related, though it can be) At least 600 pixels wide please.

2. Write one or two lines max explaining why it's important (optional)

3. Email the above to rubyslipperjourneys(at)gmail(dot)com, with a link to your blog if applicable.



I'll collect the submissions together and post them a few at a time, with a link back to you blog (if you have a blog; you don't need one to submit). Anybody up for that? I hope so!



I DON'T WANT: Overly shameless self-promotion, blurry pics of you and your boyfriend (we don't care) or anything, ANYTHING Lolita-themed. I am so disgusted by something I just saw used as "inspiration" this afternoon that I can only splutter at the moment.



Love, the Grinch. ; )











Photos by Albert



dress: Pure by Alfred Sung, Liz Claiborne shoes, vintage purse via Mom, old anklet.



P.S. This outfit is "so 2009" for me. That's when I bought the dress and shoes and wore them to every job interview imaginable, most of which were pretty random... I got taken to one by an retired Mexican wrestler who knew all the bigwigs in town, and in another the head of the Department of Employment tried to kiss me and said I should give him private English classes. Ew. Talk about summer stories!