More jewelry.

I hate to pop back in on the very same topic I left you all on but I'm going to go ahead and do it anyway.

I have some rather odd pages on my FB, mostly from this blog and store related things. Caught a post from one of them today about an auction they're participating in and I took a peek. These are the gems I found in the "heart of a cowgirl" auction on the "Cocky Cowgirl Inc" FB page.

Flotsam from 'Cowgirl I Am'- I think this one wins because there isn't a single western element in it that I can identify.

Flotsam from "Caya's Cowgirl Creations"

This, uh... sweat band? from Crafty Cowgirl Texas, boy, who doesn't need that?

This, uh. I don't know. From Froghook Jewelry Co.

And what is it with the alliterative names? Crazy cottonpickin' cowgirls can't contain their compulsions to create confounding, confusing craft company careers. 

Sorry for the absence!

Hey folks!
Sorry we've been MIA for awhile. Hope you had an excellent Christmas- We'll be back real soon with lots of new stuff for you to look at.

Cowgirl jewelry

I have an honest (albeit snarky) question here. All this trendy "cowgirl" jewelry- the huge pendants/bead/flotsam- don't it make your neck tired? And doesn't it do a number on your hair? With all that's going on there, I'd think it would make for a big tangled hair mess within a few minutes of putting it on. Questionable fashion aside, it just don't strike me as being at all wearable.

These images from SookieSookie brought these questions to my mind today. I don't get it.

Mondays make me cross.

I promised you more from Arkcotex, and today we have it. These are made by Adiktd. The brand name alone promises to make your eyes hurt and the clothes don't disappoint- I gather it's supposed to be "Addicted" but no doubt that name was already taken.

Here are some that definitely have crosses on them.

These ones, I really can't tell if they have crosses or not, so I'm just going to assume they do. 

A vest by any other name

Let's be clear here, because this is just silly. A shrug is a type of extremely short open fronted jacket with long sleeves.

Cowgirl Kim's list of sins just keeps growing. They pawn off all sorts of non-western items as things as western and now they're pawning dorky ass vests off as "shrugs." Yes, I know that the term vest conjures up all sorts of ugly in many people's minds- the Christmas vest, the school teacher vest- all tragic (but at least humorously so) examples. But just like calling something western does not make it so, calling a vest a shrug doesn't make it one.

Not a shrug.

Also not a shrug.

I also wanted to take a moment to make note of the fact that Cowgirl Kim's website is one of the worst I've run across in ages. It's cluttered, hard to navigate, and OMG the GIF sparkles on the modified 1980's nail salon looking graphics make me want to shoot myself in the face. 

Saturday Shootout

Which is western? Answer after the jump.

Authentic

I want to take a moment today to talk about those makers and retailers who sell roots western wear. In some ways, you really can't get more western than what they make/sell because most of what we see today grew from there. At the same time, a lot of what they sell isn't exactly wearable in a day to day modern world way. Sure, there are some folks out there who can pull this look off as their style, but for most of us, we'd end up looking like we're part of some fringe fundamentalist group if we dressed this way.

Still, I'm glad this stuff exists. It makes me pause and think that perhaps the fans of this stuff think what I see as good modern western wear as just as impure and bad as the products/trends I talk trash about. And there probably are people out there who feel that way- but that's good. I'm sure I could have a darn good conversation with those folks too.

What do you folks think of really really real western wear?

From Wild West Mercantile (I bought my first Scully shirt from this company many years ago!)
All are made by Frontier Classics.

From CattleKate, a little bit more modern-

Happy Thanksgiving

Here are some Indian themed Nudies to help you celebrate the holiday. Couldn't find any pilgrim Nudies, though I bet they're out there somewhere.

Wear this, not that.

Awhile ago we dubbed Troy Gentry the worst dressed guy in "country" music. Today we're following that up with a photo I found when digging for that post. If you recall, his buddy Eddie Montgomery is a sharp dressed man, so today's wear this, not that, is the two of them together.

We have Eddie rocking what's gotta be a Manuel coat. And Troy wearing... god only knows. It's freakin' hideous though! The 70's lapeled shirt under a crushed velvet jacket could work under some circumstances (like at a costume party), but when paired with the string necklace that looks so tight that a properly placed flick to this guys forehead could send his head flying off, along with whatever huge pendant is hanging from it- it sends the whole thing straight to superdoucheville. And that haircut is just atrocious. Please folks, take your pop country fashion cues from the man on the left. 

Tuesday Reality check

Today we're gonna take a peek at some lovely western silver buckle sets. I gotta admit, once you step into the higher end of the market, there's really not all that much to complain about, but since it's Tuesday, that's a good thing.

First, take a gander at these from Bohlin. Western to the core and beautifully made.

Next, let's look at a few pieces from Vogt. 

This buckle set leaves me speechless. Scrolls done right? No doubt. This is sharp!

This one hopped off the screen and slapped me in the face too. 

We'll close today with a $10,550 Vogt buckle set. While I do think it's just a touch insane to spend that much money on a buckle, it is quite a work of art.