SF Spring Vintage Expo loot

The Spring SF Vintage Expo was this past weekend and the entire week before I was himm'ing and haw'ing about going. I'd heard that the prices were insanely expensive - and who wants to spend a day looking at pretty dresses you can't have? We went though, and I'm glad we did. We showed up on Saturday in the early afternoon to be greeted by the lovely duo that is The SF Style.

When I first started walking around I seriously got so overwhelmed by all the beautiful things I started tearing up. It was just - too much, too fast. So, I did the initial loop around - and then I pulled myself together to start the browsing. I have to do this with magazines too... I can't read any one thing until I flip through the entire thing.

The expo had mostly ladies clothing. A range from Edwardian lawn dresses to 60s polyester with some really amazing sheer/floaty 30s dresses in between. Lots of shoes, hats, jewelry, and sunnies too. There was also a really lovely selection of fabric and sewing notions - if only I were a dressmaker, it would have been a really great opportunity to stock a fabric stash. I was a little disappointed on the men's clothing situation. The few folks carrying menswear had mostly 50s rockabilly styles and not a single piece of nice workwear, denim, or collegiate attire to be found. Does this only exist in LA and on the East Coast?? I'm beginning to wonder....

... So, my loot - gosh.... what was supposed to be a weekend of no shopping for me, turned into 3 dresses, a coat, a scarf, and 3 old millinery flower do-dads for my hair... I have absolutely no self control.

I wore the 30s fruit print dress home on Saturday. And immediately stuck one of the flowers in my hair





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We ended up going back to the expo on Sunday and I wore the 40s geometric print dress ... I get so stupidly obsessed with new things... I wear them for days and days in a row until I'm sick of them.



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I lugged my camera with me to the expo (see proof of the thing making my bag look ridiculous) but I didn't snap a single photo. I know how crotchety old ladies get about taking photos of their stuff at expos and fleas, and I didn't even feel like getting a lecture. The Hummingbird Girls managed to get some good ones though!

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The 'ol shop has been updated today! And if I do say so myself, there's some nice things in there! It's warm and the windows are all open and I'm excited for lazy warm weather dressing days, the ones where you let the dress do the talking and all you have to do is add shoes.

This is me and one of my favorite dresses and and some of the shop's loot. Precariously hanging loot... but this is how my entire apartment is! The dress is from Bobby's ... Best length. Best color combination. Best skirt and neckline shape. I wish allll of my dresses looked like this!!!

and this is a very accurate representation of how I spend most of my etsy working days!





Jadite. Iced tea. Perfect combination! I highly recommend it!

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March 10th

A few weeks ago I stumbled across a set of rubber circus stamps on ebay and somehow I was the only bidder? They finally came last week and I think they're just lovely!

I'm thinking of ways to translate these stamps into pretty embroideries to hang about the house so that I can share my animal stamps with other folks and not just hoard them for myself ... but right now I'm up to my ears in vintage dresses and so embroidered stamp animals will have to wait!



Speaking of those dresses - I had a really great haul from this past weekend's flea and this is one I'm keeping for myself:







40's rayon Larry Aldrich with this crazy fully attached hot air balloon type cape thing in the back and an amaaaazing print! It reminds me of the vibrant flowers in the middle of the dark forest in the 1951 version of Alice in Wonderland ... as for the newest version. I haven't made up my mind yet. I'Il have to see it again to truly decide. If you haven't seen it yet - you should stop reading now, I think it's best to go into the theater with an open mind!

I have to say, it was better then I thought it was going to be ... there's a lot that I liked about it and I think they handled telling the sequel's story nicely... But I left the theater feeling absolutely nothing - isn't it the type of movie that should make you leave feeling excited and giddy? I think I had more feeling in me leaving Sherlock Holmes then I did Alice in Wonderland... There weren't enough scenes of Alice wandering about Underland, too much time at the Red Queen's castle. And maybe too much CGI, especially that awfully cheesy Johnny Depp/Ali McBeal dancing baby-esque scene at the end.. It also seemed like there wasn't as much 3d going on as there could have been. Man, I really wanted smoke rings to pop out of that screen... Is that too much to ask?

Anyway, I will stop with my rambles and get back to my old dresses. Expect a blog post from me later on, in the mean time - if you're curious, you should take a peek at my flickr!

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The start of Spring

There's definitely something in the air right now. It's that funny in between time - the change of seasons - an anticipation for new and exciting things ... I'm being vague - but it's sort of a vague thing .... Does anyone know what I'm talking about? It's subtle - but it's the sort of thing that puts an extra skip in your step and makes you smile a little more, even if there's nothing to smile about.

These pictures are actually from last Saturday, I don't have anything too special to share besides them - so you'll have to excuse my lack of aesthetic interestingness! But, that dress is new and I love it to pieces... I found it in Los Angeles at a weird sort of junky vintage store - it was cheap and in bad condition, but a hot oxy clean bath and some new buttons and now it's just perfect! I've also been rag curling my hair a lot lately.. I've been so inspired by all the pretty early 30s inspired hairstyles in clothing photos that have been popping up on the internet - the loose curls pinned up around the neck! In case anyone wants to try it, I recommend putting the rags in right after you dry your hair and leave them in for about an hour or so - it makes the curls a bit more soft and subtle!

I had a really nice day today, hanging out in my apartment with Meggy and eating fancy lunches and finding a perfect plaid elfkin hooded elf coat at American Rag - and also just getting excited for the weekend in general! I'm going to see Alice in Wonderland tonight and I'm excited and nervous at the same time. The Disney version was a very important part of my childhood and I'm not usually into the dark adaptions of Tim Burton's story-making .... But, I'm keeping an open mind!! And I'm not going to lie, I'm excited for the frivolity of getting a big thing of buttery popcorn and a fountain soda!

Anyway, I better stop rambling and get myself ready to go! I'm wishing everyone lots of beautiful early Spring adventures this weekend!!! And I can't wait to see your photos and share mine, whatever they end up being!

PS I cleaned out my closet yesterday and I have a bunch of things to list, but I think I'll probably get to it tomorrow? I have a few more things to photograph so I think I'll just put it up all at once!

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Today

Working at home can kind of make you crazy. It was nice when Alice and I lived together - periodic human interaction in between sewing and photos and joint post office trips. But, when one is doing said things solo, it's not always so fun. So, today I woke up and I thought, I'm going to take myself out to breakfast. So I gussied myself up, and putzed about and before I knew it- breakfast was lunch and then I decided, going out to eat by ones own self isn't so much fun.

So, I thought - well I'll snap some photos... and in the time it took me to build my tripod (aka stool/multiple boxes and a piece of styrofoam setup) I knocked over a cup of coffee and stepped on a few other things. So I do suppose that I better stay home and clean up this mess.

Well, anyway - whilst I'm cleaning (aka eating rocky road ice cream and watching lost on netflix) ... you should check out the fully stocked etsy shop. This dress was supposed to make its way there today, but I think I'm going to hold onto it - just for a little while. Even though it's a size too big and I'm pinching it a bit in the back to make it look right!



(but if you realllllly love it, let me know - and i'll list it sooner!)

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The Main Street, pt. 2

Here are a few more photos from our mini-adventure exploring my mum's building. Someday, when it's not frigid and windy I'll drag Jeff back and we'll take more pictures, something involving some sort of skillful set design with furniture and props and floaty floral dresses and nice shoes?? Who knows! Until then, there's these - scraggly long bangs and all!

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Awwh, and a silly photo of Jeff taking a picture of me taking a picture. He's the one responsible for all these photos. Some taken with my lomo, some with my digital, and some with his fancy Contax G2.

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My Uniform

It's getting to that point... the Winter closet woes... for those of you who are familiar with this - it's bad. Very bad.

I'm a Spring and Summer gal - a dress, and shoes - that's it! No need to worry about the complications of wearing two pairs of tights under leggings, +/- a slip to make sure your skirt doesn't get all wonky with the friction of tights and then the sweater you wear with your normal clothes in combination with the sweater you wear under a jacket ... Then add a hat, scarf, and mittens and you get a very complicated winter wardrobe! ... And don't even get me started on the Winter Coat dilemma ...

You'd think living in California I wouldn't have to worry about this... except it's worse in San Francisco. It seems to always be this weird in between temperature. Never really hot, never really shockingly cold and not many places have heat. Do you know how complicated this makes things for me?!? In New England you bundle for outside and then inside you can kind of slack a little - heck, you can even have short sleeves if you want... San Francisco = dressing for the outdoors, indoors - all the time.

So, since it's only December I've been thinking of ways to cure my insanity before it gets ahold of me. What have I come up with? Uniforms... No, no - no oxford shirts in varying colors with pleated skirts and sweater vests. But, just a simple kind of outfit you wear every day. The type of thing that makes you feel nice and un-frumpy and comfortable... and it's also good for finding just a few pieces to be able to mix and match... My uniform ... ?

The Cream Lace Dress



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My favorites are the heavier lace 60's dresses (the two on the left) But - I can't deny I was happy to find that 40s lace slip which is the perfect thing for mixing and maxing ruffley blouses and fur trimmed cardigans.



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The one I'm wearing here is my favorite. Long sleeves and the perfect winter length (I always feel better wearing knee and mid calf lengths with bare legs in summer and then a shorter hem line when you have 3 pairs of tights on in Winter)



I think my favorite thing about this kind of dress is that whenever I wear one I feel like a cross between a sweet little 60's gal and a crazy old rich lady - all depending on the accessories of course. And I think both are very good things.

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Pink Frills and Evolving Outfits

Well, I have a surprise day off! So - I'm going to scrounge around my closet and try and get a Big Cartel update together for later!!

Oh! And that blousey from yesterday!!! When I first found it I didn't have the slightest idea about what to wear with it ... so, this post is dedicated to the evolution of an outfit!!!

Pt. 1



This is my favorite version! I really like the pale pink with the faded green trousers. But, those trousers always need a heel, and when a gal has to stand on her feet for work, heels aren't always so practical!

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Pt. 2



Hat, meet flats!! I wanted to wear my hat because I was so excited about it, and thought the blue shoesies would be another nice introduction of blue into the outfit. But, I hate wearing pants and I start to feel weird and too self conscious in them... So...

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Pt. 3



The most practical 'me' version! A sweater because I'm always so dang cold! And my wool tweed Lyell shorts. Funny that wearing pants makes me feel weird, but shorts and tights are okay... Girls....

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And this one is just 'cuz. All practicalities forgotten! A sweet co-worker of mine leant the shorts to me because they're so dang cute and go perfectly with that blouse.... A proper photo shoot with that blouse/shorts duo is in order!

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... But in the mean time

This is what I'm wearing today!



sailor knit sweater: the greedy seagull - it's really the best! this photo doesn't capture even a quarter of the loveliness!
silk scarf: la rosa
necklace: flea
leather belts: Bobby from Boston
wool pencil skirt: Cafe Society
argyle tights: tj maxx like seven thousand years ago
suede 60s oxford bootie type things: Bobby from Boston
crocheted handbag: Bobby from Boston

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3 Days

It's quarter to 10 in the morning' and I have to admit I'm still in bed and feeling so, so guilty about it. I have a scary long to do list today, but instead of chipping away at it I'm looking around my almost empty room and realizing I have only 3 days left in this house I've lived in for 3 years. A really important 3 years.



Please don't get me wrong. I'm excited for San Francisco... but there's certain things about this house I'm going to miss that just can't be replaced. Like my next door neighbor's flower garden, and their friendly orange cat Ella who meows at any sign of people walking by and does flips if you happen to stop and pet her. And I'll miss being able to hang all my old dresses on Alice's porch to dry in the sun after a handwashing. And being able to run downstairs and talk to Alice whenever I want, and hearing her knock on my door to come in and chat whenever she wants. And all those silly little things you might take for granted when you live just a staircase above your best friend.

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Hi.

I'm still here. Just outside the city. My dresses have found their way into cardboard boxes. My shoes are stuffed with newspapers and tucked into one another. The wooden floorboards are covered with all those strange little things that keep our lives moving, but don't belong in the same containers as the kitchen plates or bed linens.

I don't know where my cell phone went. And I'm sick of having to wash my hands to clean off the newspaper ink from my fingertips. Yep, it's safe to say that I've had enough of packing, and I'm nowhere finished. Now if only I could get good at magic tricks, one good disappearing act is all I need!

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The Emerald Necklace

Time is moving so, so quickly!!! I'm moving out of my apartment in two weeks and moving to California in three!!! Ah!!!!!! I don't even want to update you on my packing progress ... I think I have a total of 4 boxes packed (gulp) but, maybe there will be some all-nighters to come. All-nighters and day trips, cuz no way am I missing out on summertime in New England. Yesterday I was hoping to visit New Hampshire with Jeff but instead we got cupcakes and bubble tea and hung around some little spot in Brookline (I really love living near the The Emerald Necklace, exploring is always the perfect go-to on uncertain summer days)

This is a little outfit I hope to wear to the Woodstock Fair (northern Connecticut, not New York) which is one of my childhood's summer staples. Typical county fair type stuff. Biggest pumpkin contests, fried food, and carnival rides. There's something about a colorful striped skirt that yells ferris wheel and cotton candy, oh and that zebra gum too!



Anyway, enough chatter. I have so much sewing and packing and sewing to do it's unreal. More to come though - I just realized I'm already two blog posts behind what I have pictures for!

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To keep, or not to keep? (to keep!!)

Last night I got home from the most wonderful little weekend trip to the cape with Alice. We ended up driving to Provincetown yesterday to visit that amazing army navy store that I remember from my childhood as being a little dream world of hanging helm wheels and fishing nets. I did pick up a slew of pretty linen kitchen towels and a WWII apothecary bottle, but these treasures aren't the point of this post!!

I found this pretty pink floral 1940's romper that made my jaw almost disconnect from my head when I saw it. Perfect condition and in a smaller size! Thank you gods of summer, thank you-thank you!! I tried it on at the store - decided it was perfect, and put it on as soon as we got back to Alice's grandparent's house. Walking around our room I realized that I was just a bit too long for the thing. But, it worked fine enough and I thought maybe I could lower the back seam a bit and it'd be fine. Well, I looked at it briefly today, I don't think I have much room to work... So, Jeff spent the afternoon with me and I made him take some nice photos so I could sell it on etsy. But, now - looking at the photos I feel like I neeeed to make do somehow! Maybe it's not even that bad to begin with. And surely a pair of tights would even out the scandalousness ?



Well, I think for now I'm going to hold onto it ... really take a good investigative look at the thing and decide on matters later. No rushed decisions when it comes to 1940's puffed sleeve rompies. No, none whatsoever.



** UPDATE: I couldn't wait to investigate after writing this post and I realized I could let the back seam out with no trouble and although it's not a perfect fit, it 'aint bad! Keeping it I surely am!!

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Summer Hats

Good summer hats are hard to find. Ones where you can actually step out of the house and not feel like a goofball or like you're wearing a costume.... I think I found myself a nice one at Cafe Society last week. A pretty little floppy straw hat from the 40's and I can't wait to wear it at the Cape this weekend! (it'd be a teeny bit better if it were brown instead of burgundy, but you can't be picky about these things!!)

In the mean time, I wore it out for a little movie date at the Coolidge with best twin mouse friend Jeff. Here we are loitering around near a church on some mysterious road in Brookline.



Sometimes when I get dressed I feel like a 60's girl dressing up in her mom's old clothes. I think yesterday was a particularly good example of that.

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23

Well, the passing of 23 turned out to be a surprisingly lovely time. I've been dreading this day since I turned 22 (My favorite number is 2, and so 22 is the best! and it also holds a lotta sentimental value for other silly reasons, but I won't bore you with my numerology!) It started off at a little dance party in Cambridge where all the best folk in Boston came out to celebrate! It was also three of my roommate's birthdays in July so we had one great big party on Sunday and it couldn't have been nicer!

I started off my Monday morning with a few little sweets that my boy had sent to me. I'm still whining about the Ferry Boat Building Miette being out of strawberry balls, but - the other Italian chocolates were still nice! I decided on wearing that little 20's dress Amy gave to me at Elmwood. When I first saw it I declared it my birthday dress right there on the spot - so I don't know why I was himming and hawing about what to wear. Well, I think I needed one more accessory to go with it - and so I decided to go a little over the top and tie that floppy scarf in my hair!

Alice suggested I start a new spin on the birthday dress tradition too! 1920's dresses for my 20's, 1930's dresses for my 30's and so on and on! Yes, indeed!!



We headed off to Southern Vermont for a little New England exploration. We found our way to a really beautiful old graveyard. There was this little part that dipped down into a tiny valley in the back - we were hoping for a river to be there but it was only ferns, soft squishy grass and more head stones.








I also made Alice sit for a picture too!! Me 'n my little fairy baby... (hahaha, Alice - JOKE! JOKE!)



I have a few more pictures to share from our other adventures from the day - but that'll have to wait until tomorrow!!

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