valdez street stylez.

Shelly from the quilt shop has the cutest coordinated outfits. Check those dansko clogs that match the cab driver hat. Adorable!

I spotted this stylish local at an art opening last month. (there's no white stuff on his shirt, it's from the projector) He said he gets all his fashion sense from the Target racks! With a new Target store in Anchorage and online ordering Alaskans can now hunt more than just deer, but those wild, wild bargains.

Mayor Mustache.

Mayor of Valdez is back in town with his friend Mustache.

For an ex-cop he's looking mighty fine rocking that 'stache. Look at that suit and tie get-up too. Only the finest for city council. Valdez is straight class.

more favorite faces!

(all photos by me)

Love these expressions and hats!

i did i did i did the iditarod trail!

The iditarod gets me all excited! Not only is it a thrilling testament to Alaska history it also means the days are getting longer and spring and is just around the corner. And I just I love singing that Hobo Jim song. But my favorite thing is following the mushers.

In elementary school, I always loved getting assigned a musher to track throughout the race. We'd cut out pictures from the Anchorage Daily News and make little scrapbooks of our musher's journey as homework.

My brother had Jeff King the year he won. I was so jealous. My mushers never won--Tim Triumph had to withdraw due to competitiveness. And then to make it even better my dad met King and got my brother a signed King Iditarod trading card! I hope he still has that.

But anyway, I'm following the race this year. And I've assigned myself a musher: Matt Hayashida. Apparently he's originally from the east coast and then moved to Alaska to race dogs with Martin Buser. Now he lives in Willow.

Sigh. I have such a school girl crush on his dirty hat and Carhartts fashion sense.

And he's doing well so far! In 20th place as of today, pulling ahead from his previous ranking. Maybe I can get his trading card...

Who's your favorite musher?

(photos from ADN, http://www.rubiconracingfastdogs.com/, and travel.webshots)

*UPDATE:Just so you know my musher made it to Nome in good time. He made it this morning Friday, March 20 and finished in 21st place--his best yet! Oh Matt Hayashida!

*update: Check out this story, "Stumbling, Bumbling Sled Dog: 'Sorry, This Is My First Iditarod'"on The Onion. As always, The Onion is effing hilarious.

"You look around and you realize that you are going up against your idols—Larry, Bronte, Salem, Handsome, Blue—and then it hits you: This is the fucking Iditarod," Melvin said. "It's not the Jack Pine 30 or the American Dog Derby. Out here, if you playfully root through your musher's sled basket and destroy his heavy parka and extra-warm sleeping bag, well, that's a mistake that could haunt you the rest of your career. Unfortunately, I'm learning that the hard way."

Thanks to my favorite hippie Amy for sending me the link!

OMFG

Hats that look like beards and staches...AMAZING!

these boots were made for walking (in 40 below)

I am jonesing for these boots. They're called the "Joan of Arctic," made by boot-company-extraordinaire Sorel.
They're totally sexy with faux fur trim and waterproof soles but at some $120.00 bones I'm not sure I can justify the purchase. But ... they are weatherproof up to -40 ...

And they do go along with the whole "fur trapper chic" look, that seemed to be hip from this season's winter lines (see last photo below) and just in time for Fur Rondy- Anchorage's winter festival honoring its economic past in the pelt trade. It's so much fun and a must-do in winter if you're in the area.

(It's such a big deal that in honor of the Fur Rendezvous Festival there used to be a dress-up day at the elementary school and a little kids would parade the hallways. When I was five, my Mom's idea was to dress me up as a mail-order bride, I had no idea what that meant at the time. My brother made me a little pixelated "mail order bride" sign on the old Mac computer and everything! And then in second grade I wore an old fur jacket and went as Miss Fur Rendezvous! Amazing.)

When did Sorel become so sophisticated? I have to admit there's a special place in my heart for the old Sorel boots that my Dad used to wear to snow-blow the driveway. You know the ones that are so dorky that they're cool? I used to have the light pink version of those when I was a kid because my boots just had to match the rest of the ensemble. According to my Mom, I would cry and not leave the house if my outdoor gear did not match--it's hard being fashionable!

(Photo courtesy of www.in70mm.com)

You love it when she wears that hat! Doctor Zhivago knows what's up.

(Fashion spread photo from http://www.annesage.com/blog)

On another note, the fashionable use of fur and faux fur does bring about some ethical questions. Some think wearing dead animals is gross and even sporting the fake stuff is continuing to promote unjust deaths. Even vintage fur--animals that have been dead for years--brings about the same debates. Personally, I like the aesthetic and appreciate the nod to historical usage but what do you think?

Stay tuned for Part II on Arctic Explorer fashion--with a special section on Antarctica Explorer Ernest Shackleton!

this is what we wear to go snowshoeing...

You gotta look good while scaling those ridges.

I'll post the "after" photo later--the one where we actually made it up the mountain!