i shop too much, i talk too much

~sorry for the lack of posts; i've been so caught up in traveling to different camps for my brother that i haven't had the time or energy to sit down and put together a decent write up! now that camp is over (for at least this week), and since it is beginning to rain outside anyway, i thought i'd show off some of the new goods i got since last time ;)

first off: the thrifted finds

*just a small selection of the INCREDIBLE finds from a day of thrifting last week, these are by far my favorites! the first dress has a beautiful sheer embroidered top half and then a green swiss-dot skirt. i'm pretty sure it's from the 60's or 70's, and the tag says it's saks fifth avenue, pretty cool. it's so delicate looking! and too small for me...damn, lol *my other two favorite thrifted finds are the light pink linen hand-embroidered blouse and pale yellow high waisted shorts, both from the 40's or 50's. salvation army was having a very good day! haha. unfortunately (again) the shorts are too small, and i'm not the biggest fan of pink clothes on me (even though the pink and yellow blouse and shorts combo look adorable!) i'm just going to have to dress up one of my human barbie dolls (aka my friends, hi guys!) and take some pics of the awesomeness that is this selection of vintage!
(sorry for the wrinkles, i have to keep my thrifted finds in bags because i have no more closet space! i'm a total hoarder now, and i really need to open an etsy shop to unload some of this onto you guys, lol)

all thrifted clothing: salvation army (lovelovelove)

next up: etsy packages

*i lovelovelove the prints on these two dresses!!! (i'm so sorry, i forgot what the names of the shops were that i purchased them...usually i browse etsy and just send the link to my mom if i like something, and sometimes she surprises me and buys me what i want! only thing is i can't go back and find where they came from...i should keep better track of that)

both dresses are from the 50's, and i absolutely adore the little belt-like bow on the yellow dress! and the tiny purple floral with the scalloped neckline on the one below! i had to mend the yellow one because the stitching thread had gone to dust, and the purple one is a bit too long, but i'm scared of altering anything beyond a few minor repairs! too chicken to mess with an object from the past, i suppose. oh and i guess yellow is my new favorite color? seriously EVERYTHING i've been buying has included something yellow, i'm like an addict!

50's dresses: etsy (?)

and lastly: the regular store purchases

* a floral bustier! i don't know if i have the courage to wear this one out in the daylight, but it was on sale...haha, excuses excuses. maybe if i find the right bottoms to wear i can dare to venture out with this baby.
floral zip-up bustier: urban outfitters sale

*oh, surprise surprise, TWO new floral yellow dresses...i have a weakness for this, i must refrain from buying any more yellow dresses! although they are oh-so perfect with the sunny weather...i really do love the versatility of the darker yellow dress, great for any season, and the print on that top dress! liberty is to die for. now i'm sounding vapid and clothing obsessed, but heck it's what i do ;)

yellow floral dresses: urban outfitters*a couple of headbands in pastel hues, a tiny music box that plays "hey jude", and a bright red lipstick that smells of vanilla icing; i do love the little pretty things in life

headbands: j crew, lipstick: urban outfitters, music box: borders bookstore

*the rachel comey for urban contributor oxfords! so beautiful, the details had me won over in a second flat. i don't want to get them dirty though; i always ruin light coloured shoes! for now they're protected in their sweet little sparkly box, but i'm going to break them in soon i hope!
oxford heels: urban outfitterswhew! so i guess i did find a whole lot of good stuff this past week, and even more besides that i haven't gotten to photograph for you all yet! i promise that there are some wacky, pretty, or down right classy pieces that i can't wait to show off! (a peek at my ever-growing vintage/thrifted finds!)

the girl with kaleidoscope eyes

the last few days i've been at my college orientation; i can't believe how fast time goes!
i feel like i only just began the process to go to high school, and i am already moving on to college! i'm excited to start school; meeting new people, seeing things differently, and living on my own for the first time are things i'm looking forward to most in a bittersweet kind of way :)

the university i am going to is really quite close to my aunt's house, where she has the old volkswagen bus of my dreams if i so choose to take it and restore it!! (exclamation points galore on this post; as you can see i am so psyched for everything! haha) yay graduation gifts!!!

it's fairly beat up and rusted, but i haven't seen a more beautiful pile of junk in my whole life!dreams of driving cross country, and maybe even across europe, in one of these fine pieces of machinery has crossed my mind more than once the past few years, but i don't have the money to get the bus back into drive-able, safe shape at the moment (much less the money to fund an extensive trip)

and then there is the whole issue of the drivers licence...i'm 18 and have yet to go take the test, but that is on the top of my ever-growing to do list, of course!

for now my dreams of being a pseudo-hippie have to wait i suppose, but someday i will drive this fantastic vehicle!

we walked through her house, which at the moment is gutted for renovations, and on the way out we passed a beautifully wallpapered room, and i had to get a snapshot of it! it totally reminded me of this great handmade vintage dress i just bought on etsy (random change of topic, sorry guys!); it's a really flattering cut and it is yellow! doesn't it remind you of the wall? and the 60's/70's? it even matches my bus; isn't that weird? i'm still on the hunt for the quintessentially 50's pale yellow summer dress, but for now i'm really happy to have this addition to my growing vintage/handmade wardrobe!

summer only started this past weekend, but fall will be here in no time, and i can't wait to get on campus and show my new school what i am all about :)

the girl with the milk maid braids

this is the first outfit/photo shoot post i've done, so bear with me if they aren't as beautiful as Liebemarlene's or thecherryblossomgirl's as of yet!

photos by my sweet little (or at least younger by 22 months) brother Andrew ;)

here it is, my folding beach cruiser bicycle! B E A U T I F U L!

here is my mint plant and a bouquet of wild daisies :)

lemonade ice pops on a warm summer afternoon

t straps: good will, coach bag: salvation army, vintage camera: flea market

daisies are my favorite flowers!

blue gingham dress: salvation army, belt: h&m

contents of my bicycle basket <3

classy bathroom shot of my hair and makeup, i tried out milkmaid braids in real life; they are super easy and a welcome change from my usual ponytail (i like my hair up, i don't like the feeling of hair on my neck, although i love long hair! haha)

i also can thank him for finding a little blue typewriter for me today as well!

the yellow high waisted swiss-dot bathing shorts are vintage, and the swim suit is J Crew just thought i'd add them in here

slanted sunlight

after several days spent inside (due to the crummy weather and subsequent crummy feeling/ wish to do nothing but stay in and browse the internet) the sun has come out! granted, it's nearly night time, but here's a quick post of all the stuff i got at the salvation army today so i can go outside and enjoy the sun!

*sparkly cat-eye glasses (these are actually from my aunt, not salvation army. she found another pair when she rifled through her basement and since she gave me that other lot of old glasses she sent them on to me! thank you aunt annette!)

*wicked cut-out 80's boots. not sure if i'll keep these for myself or not yet, i have issues stepping out of the house in anything but flip flops these days. one boot needs a new cap, but otherwise they are great! i sense a madonna moment in these, lol

80's white cut-out boots: salvation army

*a sweet pink gingham and white lace peter-pan collared blouse. i usually shun anything pink but the collar was too good to leave; plus i never find any blouses at salvation army (i don't know why, there are literally racks full, they just are never appealing to me)

pink gingham peter-pan collared blouse: salvation army

*a handmade dress, with the sweetest little floral print (that you can't really see in the pic...oops) this one is huge on me, but i think i'm going to alter it quite a bit; the patterned fabric was too good to leave behind

handmade floral dress: salvation army

*the shape of this dress is great, it reminded me of 1940's house dresses (although i'm pretty sure it's from the 80's) it looks much better on, for some reason my camera is making everything look a bit grey

*another gingham print find, this dress is perfect for a sunny day picking flowers! or for a dorothy-inspired photo shoot, which is totally happening, btw! haha. it also happens to match a table cloth i have, which is too funny not to photograph ;)

blue gingham dress: salvation army

well, that's it for today, i'm out of here before the sun goes down! oh, i just got my graduation present from my dad; a baby blue folding beach cruiser style bicycle!!! it is fantastic, although i have to relearn how to ride since i'm so used to my mom's old banana seat bike, which is way too small for me. pictures of me and my bike in the countryside (aka the only dirt road left in my town, where i happen to live, love it) soon to come!

not fair!

augh, so bummed about this one

today marks the two-month anniversary of my first post! (somehow i totally missed the one month mark, whoops...haha)

is it just connecticut, or has the weather been not june-like at all? i think there has been two nice days in the past three weeks, which is awful! bring back the sun!

ok, nothing new bought (yet) this week, but this dress above, found at allencompanyvintage on etsy (one of my favorite shops to look through, everything is so amazing!) is B E A U T I F U L!

and i cry because it's also too small...damn

i've been hunting for a pale yellow dress for so long, and the fact that it's from the 50s makes it so much better (or worse, in my case...)

oh well, the hunt is still on i suppose, but this beauty is getting saved to make favorites folder

(p.s. click the picture to go to the etsy listing, maybe one of you can buy it. if you do send me pics of it on, it's too pretty not to be posted on a person!)

life goes on

i'm officially done with highschool, and summer couldn't come sooner!
so far for my first week of break i have slept, bought books and gone thrifting, which is all i could ever want!
i don't feel like writing a book like my last post tonight, so here is the awesome stuff i've found in the last week or so, plus a few non-thrifted/vintage finds that i couldn't resist :) i got some really great stuff that i've been excited about, so here it all is!

* this is my bureau, which among other things (some of my favorite books, thrifted metronome, train case, and troll doll!) my new phone now sits! i need a plug converter thingy, and i hope that it doesn't burn my house down, but hopefully this beauty will be fully functioning soon! making phone calls, which i normally hate to do, seems so much more glamorous and bearable when you get to talk on a phone like this
phone: local thrift store

* i thrifted a floral dress/top (more like a top, but we shall see) i think this will go great with denim shorts when it's hot out (send me the hot weather please!!!) florals are really winning me over lately, and i feel as though i'm turning into a crazy grandma character...which is fine with me as long as no one objects! lol
top/dress: salvation army thrift

*dress in the above and below photos is another of the floral finds that i just couldn't leave on the racks; look at it, the collar on this is just amazing! i'm pretty sure this was a kids dress, and i'm not sure how to pull the lolita look off yet, but this sure would make for a good start. maybe with more adult pairings i could get the gumption to rock this...we shall see

dress: salvation army thrift

*i got this silk scarf on sale, so it was only 50 cents! i've always wanted to try out the whole mysterious girl with a scarf in her hair look, so i'm googling tutorials and pics. any tips on how to wear this? it's far too pretty to just sit on my dresser!

silk scarf: local thrift store

*high waisted shorts in a great chambray blue with white stripes! really comfy and great for summer, of course

shorts: local thrift store

*finally, a pair of shoes that fit! i almost didn't notice these guys, but thankfully i snagged them as i was checking out at the salvation army and they fit perfectly, plus they are almost twins to a pair i wanted off of etsy! awesome luck, and so so comfortable (and the name "Cobbie Cuddlers" makes me laugh every time, haha)

70s platform sandals: salvation army thrift

*my brother needed a beside clock, and this one just looked to cool not to get. it almost looks like something off of urban outfitters. i got him a john cougar cassette to play, since i doubt my house has any. jack and diane will play constantly this summer, of course!

clock and cassette: local thrift store

*and now for the non-thrifted finds, (another!!) floral dress, this time from forever 21, and a great pair of shorts from h&m.

dress: f21

shorts: h&m

*these two machines are really awesome, i'm so glad i found them! the crazy futuristic machine below was in a cabinet that i really didn't need, and after i asked if i could just take the machine, i took this home along with two boxes full of parts and manuals! EPIC WIN FOR ME. ok, happiness rant over. when i told the thriftstore lady that i wanted machines she went in the back and got me the blue machine up top, and since it lacks a foot pedal i got everything for $10!!! so much happy, so much happy! these two do so much more than my grandmother's singer, so i can do a lot more with sewing. cannot wait to start a project with these!

* finally, i got some sweet...floral...fabric for a dress i've been thinking about making for the last few weeks. i got a few baby sized buttons as well, not sure what they will be a part of but i love the color!

ohh, so many good things to find, so little time!

your friend,

the bandit ;)