Tag Archives: Wheels and Dollbaby

Expect the Unexpected

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DSCF2291_2DSCF2290_2 DSCF2284_2Cardigan: Wheels and Dollbaby 

Skirt: Asos

Shoes: Chie Mihara (via eBay)

At the princely sum of $200 and change, this “Dita” cardigan from Wheels and Dollbaby is one of the great indulgences of my shopping career. It’s divine, don’t get me wrong, but like my Leona Edmiston t-shirt dress, and more recently the Cashmere heart sweater from Banjo & Matilda it was one of those items I had to work reallllly hard to rationalise, because it just didn’t seem to warrant the inflated price tag.

Like the Leona Edmiston Dress and the B&J sweater I’ve never regretted it for even a second, but I have to admit that I’ve found it a difficult item to pair things with and as a result it’s only appeared on the blog once. ONCE.

I’ve worn it plenty of times, but always with the same, plain, high-waisted black skirt because none of the other ensembles I’ve tried it with have worked. Until I fluked this one.

I’d love to pretend that I have some magic fashion-blogger-fu that allowed me to look at these two items in my wardrobe and go: “Ahhhhh…. the monochrome colours in the skirt won’t clash with the pale blue of the cardigan, and the unexpected juxtaposition of the mod-print and the baroque embroidery will be cheekily effective” but I think I’ve explained before that I don’t really possess that enviable skill that allows people to mentally construct outfits out of disparate pieces.

In all honestly what actually happened is I dressed in my customary black-skirt-and-Dita-Cardigan, went to brush my teeth and drooled toothpaste all over the skirt, went back to the wardrobe to start from scratch, swapped the skirt over first and then went “Huh. That actually works.”

So there you go.

Worst. Fashion. Blogger. Ever.

Incidentally, (and despite the fact my poor Mum hates them with a burning passion) I’m getting lots of queries from people about the new spectacular spectacles.

During the White Cruise at FFFWeek in June Dani, Ashley, Sam and I crammed ourselves into the onboard photo booth to take some silly snaps to remember the night with. I donned a pair of downright hipsteriffic black framed glasses, and when the photos came back I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they suited me.

A few days later I spotted these beauties at Fabulous Fanny’s after a reader recommended I check the store out. They’re actually part of the store’s modern “vintage inspired” range, rather than being a one-off vintage pair, and are called “Skier II” just in case you’d like to try a pair for yourself.

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Glacial

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24

Cardigan: Wheels And Dollbaby

Skirt: Asos

Shoes: Milu

Yeah, I’m a little dressed up for a Saturday, but when you’ve indulged in a cardigan like this one, why wouldn’t you dress up?

This, my dear readers, is the famous, much-coveted, limited-edition “Dita” cardigan from Wheels and Dollbaby. At *cough*over$200includingshipping*cough* it’s the most breathtakingly expensive cardigan I’ve ever bought myself, especially considering it’s cotton, and not woven from the mane of a unicorn. Other cotton cardigans in my wardrobe cost me $8. But, of course, they don’t look like this one.

It’s beautifully embroidered down the front, and has a cheeky rose embroidered on the left shoulderblade as well (which I forgot to take a photo of). The many buttons are covered with black velvet (and had to be all resewn on, after three fell off in quick succession and I got anxious about losing the others). There’s also a gorgeous velvet ribbon tie at the neck, and the cuffs and collar are trimmed with a pleated black satin ribbon.

So, basically, it’s all the the details. And the (optional) keyhole neckline.

I fell hard for the Dita Cardigan after seeing the inimitable Teer Wayde looking even more mouthwateringly luscious than usual in her own black and red number.

Wheels and Dollbaby only ever do a limited run of these cardigans, so the red and black was out of my reach (as was my other favourite, the blush and black) and I knew I’d only have a limited time to make a decision on the ice blue.

It’s not a colour I wear much of. Or, you know, at all. So the decision was quite a difficult one, but in the end I decided to throw caution to the wind, and I put my order in.

I bought the size 16, and while there’s plenty of stretch in the fabric I had to perform my usual trick of sewing the front of the cardigan up, to avoid unsightly gapping between the buttons.

The result though is a perfectly form-fitting, extraordinarily flattering, retro-styled cardigan that looks great in the pictures, and even better in Real Life. The first time I wore it (in this exact ensemble, plus crinoline & hat, to Melbourne’s recent Love Vintage Show) I was stopped by several strangers commenting on my outfit.

So, two thumbs up, and even though the thought of the price still leaves me a little breathless I’m prepared to consider it an investment piece, and one that will earn its keep in my wardrobe. And I’m not promising that I won’t buy another one, in whatever colour comes next!