New Pretties

While I was incredibly responsible with most of my gumbint stimulus check, I did buy myself a present or two.  They came in this week:

First, my new shoes:  the Valaardingen Viking shoe from Bohemond, in brown leather.  They're based off 9th-10th century examples from Holland and Poland, worn by both men and women.  They're SUPER comfy, and the leather is so soft.

I'm wearing them around the house for the next few days to break them in and get used to wearing them - I put gel insoles in them so I wouldn't be walking flat on the ground, which hurts no matter what shoe I wear.  They look GREAT with my quarantine uniform of boxers and a ripped up tshirt. My roommate laughed at me.

While I love my new shoes, I'm absolutely head over heels about these new brooches.  They're from Raymond's Quiet Press - the "Vendel circle" brooches, based on a very early Viking piece. They're 3"x2", and aren't nearly as heavy as they look, thank goodness.

There was nothing wrong with my round brooches, and I still love them.  I'll probably use them to close my coat and/or cloak from now on.  It's just that I've had my eye on this pair of brooches for a couple of years now, and I was finally ready to bite the bullet and order a pair.  I adore these things.  I can't wait to wear them.