Turn! Turn! Turn!: True Blood Season 5 Ep. 1

Yesterday I took a day off from the shop and lounged around finishing Season 4 of True Blood so I could start Season 5. Well, that wasn't the only reason. At 39 weeks pregnant I'm getting a bit exhausted.  While watching, though, I was quickly reminded why I fizzled out partway through the season last year. Oh, HBO, you could do so much better!

Last season I started off excited to see what Sookie's wardrobe mavens had in store for us.  I planned to write about it here because so much of it seemed vintage or vintage-inspired in previous seasons, but Sookie spent most of Season 4 naked or in t-shirts and tanks. Not exactly inspiring.

The first episode of this season also didn't yield anything fabulous in the way of the Sookie wardrobe department, but fortunately someone else has risen to the occasion. Thank goodness for Jessica! She wears a stunning red cape in the early scenes, but it's this dress that really stands out.

While rocking out to The Runaways' Cherry Bomb, Jessica wears this amazing late 80s/early 90s influenced body con dress. I don't have any currently stashed away in my shop or my own closet, so I immediately prowled around etsy looking for similar dresses. Not that I can wear one any time soon, but I know some of my lovely readers can!

1990s body con dress available at On the Prowl Vintage

1980s tie dye bandage dress available at Native Owl

1980s floral body con dress found at So Passe Vintage

Beautifully Broken: True Blood Ep. 2 Season 3

Sookie, classic American girl next door.  Sure, she's got some mystery to her, but really she represents that concept with her sweet nature, love of family, romantic ideals. It's no wonder that in episode two of season three she's in a classic American shirt. The one she has on in this episode has a bit of a western flair to it with a small floral print and pockets, but the button down for women is iconic.  Shirts like this are great under cardigans, blazers, or alone like this one.  Wear it all year round like here in this summery look where it's paired with jean shorts.

Here's where you can find a similar one for yourself:

1. 1970s western plaid shirt available at Pretty Little World Vintage
2. 1970s embroidered floral blouse available at jessjamesjake
3. 1970s metallic stripe blouse available at The Bea Project
4. 1970s floral and berry print blouse available at Clever Nettle

Bad Blood: True Blood Ep. 1 Season 3

One of the things my mom and I do is watch True Blood together (don't worry, I make her close her eyes during the sex scenes).  I made my husband get us HBO over the summer so that my mom and I could cozy up and watch our show, but that didn't happen.  My parents were over a lot this summer, but my dad wasn't feeling well even then.  I think we were both hesitant to start watching television when it was obvious he was uncomfortable and tired. 

My plan had been, at the time, to do outfit posts around the show.  The Sookie posts on this blog are, after all, the most visited portion of the site.  Today, my mom and I watched the first two episodes, drank coffee, and snuggled with the Siamese and though much of the world has already seen True Blood, we're still catching up.  When I watch an episode, I'll post about it.  It keeps me busy and blissfully thinking about something else for a little while.

 

This episode was light on fashion.  Sookie wears a purple dress, which frankly I didn't find very inspiring.  The most obvious stunner of this episode was Evan Rachel Wood's outfit. As Sophie-Anne her wardrobe is lush with strong vintage influences. It's about the only thing I appreciate about her character, or Wood's acting for that matter.  In this episode she dons a lush silk harem pant ensemble topped with a fur. Easy and elegant, non?

Version 1: The Light Side

1. Vintage 1980s harem pants available at Starlet Vintage

2. Faux fur bolero Dorothy Perkins

3. Apiece Apart tank top available at La Garconne

4. Pixie T-bar heels available at ASOS

Version 2: The Dark Side

1. Vintage 1980s harem jumpsuit available at Midnight Flight
2. Faux fur bolero available at Far Fetch
3. Stein & Blye Enamel Cuff available at Nordstrom
4. Vintage 1980s heels available at Allen Company Inc.

That Sookie Stackhouse dress

Sookie, through the vision of Audrey Fisher, is one of the most stylish ladies on TV. I've already blogged here about my quest for the red and white vintage inspired dress in the above photo and here about how getting any copies of Sookie's clothes is near impossible since most are original.

Given these realities, what were left with is getting the aura of Sookie's style without being able to replicate it exactly. I know, collective sighing and groaning out there in the interwebs. But really Sookie's style is so vintage-inspired and is so easy to integrate into your wardrobe.

So here's the best of what I can currently find for takes on Sookie's beautiful red and white halter dress:

Sookie: The Lead Contender:


What you get: the ruched bodice, the seaming under the bodice, the sweet and romantic look, the floral pattern, the nipped in waist, the sweetheart neckline, vintage

What's different: the color pallet relies on pink rather than white, the floral pattern is larger, it's not fully a halter, it comes with rhinestone straps

Available at etsy store Fab Gab's vintage for $138


Sookie does Hawaii version:

What you get: happy floral print, romantic look, halter top (not shown in this picture), nipped in waist, vintage

What's different: no white, bolder print, no sweetheart neckline, fuller skirt, no ruched bodice

Available at ebay seller Forever Lovely Vintage for a buy now price of $125 or best offer


Sookie: bridesmaid by day, Bill's girlfriend by night version

What you get: feminine look, flattering bodice, less full skirt, sweetheart neckline

What's different: fabric, empire waist, lack of floral print or pattern, not vintage

Available at J. Crew for $215.


Sookie on a budget friendly version:

What you get: red and white floral print, waist accentuating, flattering cut, summer inspired

What's different: more red than white, heavy red border, lack of halter or even strapless cut

Available at Chadwick's for $19.99.

True Blood Costuming

I've made no secret of my love for the HBO series True Blood. As a longtime reader of the Southern Vampire series by Charlaine Harris, I was eager for the show to start last year. In fact, the only reason I have HBO is because of the show. Now that I live close to home, I wait until my mom can come over to see it before watching the next episode. Given this, I don't feel like I can always offer up to the minute fashion reporting on the series. But I'm still here, watching and coveting (the clothes, the clothes, I swear!)

Last season, my post on Sookie's fabulous halter dress has proven to be one of the most searched and visited portions of this blog. In fact, most posts have asked about finding the exact dress which I would love to help with but can't. Despite my love for the show, it's been awhile since I've checked in with everyone about the fashion in it. The costumer for the show is Audrey Fisher and this month True-Blood.net (a fansite for the show) interviewed her about her choices for the show and her sources. The radio show takes awhile to warm up, in fact Audrey's interview doesn't start until 20 minutes in. For those interested in fashion, the wait is worthwhile. Audrey talks about her career path and what it's like to style a show with a wide range of characters, particualry one like True Blood that has present and past time.

Audrey shares her styling secrets for the show. She reveals that for most characters, she buys clothing from Kmart, Kohls, and JcPenny. She wanted to keep the clothing choices appropriate to the financial resources of the characters and their access to stores. As someone who lives in quite a rural area, I appreciate her concern for keeping this relatively accurate. She also states that she bends the rules for Sookie a bit. As those of us who watch the show know, Sookie's clothing has a vintage flair. Audrey reveals she does create a lot of custom pieces for Sookie and shops vintage stores for items that suit her. That's why in most cases we can covet her clothing, but we may not be able to find it in the stores. I expect to keeping using Sookie's outfits for inspiration though: her cute floral sweaters, her adorable sundresses.

With that, I'll leave you with some great True Blood outfits and ask you, my dear readers, if you have any favorite outfits from the show. Link to them if you can!

Vintage Search: Sookie Stackhouse's halter dress

Okay so posting the opening credits of HBO's True Blood is completely gratuitous in regards to this posting. I simply love the gritty, dark images and the swampy feel of Jace Everett's song "Bad Things." At the moment I can listen to this song over and over.

But really what I'm writing about is my current vintage search. Every once and awhile I become obsessed by something I must have. It can be a general thing like an embroidered top or a beaded sweater. Sometimes though it's heartrendingly specific. HBO's new series features the lovely Anna Paquin dressed in a lot of vintage inspired sundresses. As someone who lives in the searing heat of the southwest I know that sundresses can be a life saver on days that are too hot to move. True Blood is only on its third episode as of today, but in all of the previews I keep seeing Anna Paquin's character Sookie Stackhouse being carried by a vampire. She's wearing a gorgeous red and white halter dress. It's in the picture below. It's the best picture I could find and even though it's blocked by a bar table you can sort of see how lovely it is.

So what I'm on the hunt for is a halter topped sundress with a sweetheart neckline in red and white. I'd prefer the floral print to be a bit bolder, but really I'm not picky. Or at least I can tell myself that. The hunt for the perfect summer outing dress begins now.