Strange Obsessions

The buttons on this jacket perfectly illustrate my occasional propensity to become obsessed with strange details. To tell you this story I have to go back to my trip to Argentina, where Jess and I kept seeing an odd symbol in various locations: schools, tombs, official buildings, you name it. The symbol depicted a pair of joined hands holding a stick with a pointed, elf-like hat balanced on it, and a sun peeking out from behind. First we were merely curious to find out exactly what it was, and after many unsuccessful tries we eventually learned that it's a symbol of the Argentine Republic.

Then it went that extra step further, when I spotted the symbol emblazoned on two large brass buttons on the collar of a beautiful floor-length vintage wool cape. I'm not really exaggerating when I say that I very nearly bought that cape solely for the buttons. Not that the cape wasn't also gorgeous, but you have to understand that its bulk would've consumed every last square inch of space in my luggage. I didn't buy the cape, but it suddenly turned my vague notion of finding some sort of clothing or jewelery with that symbol on it into a mad quest that would allow me no rest until it was resolved.

Thankfully that day was the open air flea market in the San Telmo neighborhood. After scouring dozens upon dozens of vendors' booths, I finally spotted what I needed: ten matching vintage brass buttons that I could take home and sew onto the clothing item of my choice. But of course the quest wasn't entirely fulfilled, because now I was left with the need for the perfect jacket to sew these treasures onto.

Enter the lovely Erin and her wonderful blog. After weeks of searching high and low, I spotted just the jacket I needed when she raved about it in this post. I counted the buttons: there were exactly ten. The jacket had the crisp, military styling and flattering fit I was after. Better still, it was from Forever 21 and was bound to be affordable! Mere seconds later, I was on the F21 site ordering up my very own jacket, which turned out to be every bit as perfect as I'd hoped. A little bit of clipping and sewing later, and I had my very own faux Republica Argentina uniform.

Other oddball, fashiony obsessions of mine:

• A pair of nerdy, tacky vintage golf shoes (I got outbid for the perfect, plaid-tastic pair on eBay and it nearly broke my heart, after which I gave up the search)
• Getting a pair of white leather ice skates and removing the blades to wear them as boots (I didn't actually do that, but found a reasonable substitute)
• A charro suit (still looking for one; I'm also hooked on the idea of joining a mariachi band someday, just as soon as I learn to play an instrument and speak Spanish...)

Jacket: F21
Top: Pete & Greta
Necklace: H&M
Tank: American Eagle
Cropped pants: Noa Noa
Socks: Sock Dreams
Shoes: Art Shoes