sweet disposition

On Saturday I took a short trip to the next town over to see if I could snag anything cool from the local church fair. Unfortunately, I got there just as it was closing, but I managed to take a few halfway decent outfit shots outside one of the many historic buildings. I'm lucky to live in an area rich in history and old, old buildings, and I hope to take advantage of that for my outfit shots in the coming months!

I'm wearing the dark rinse overalls and white peter pan collared blouse from my last post, leather belt from h&m, thrifted vintage coach bag, and old flats from J Crew. I hopped out of bed and threw this on to beat the humidity, and it worked fairly well. I'm on the lookout for long ones in a dark rinse, or maybe even white. I'd roll the hems and wear them all fall.

I also got to thrift a bit before picking my brother up from school on Friday, and here's all my finds!
A vintage dish drying rack which I'm converting into a basket for the back of my bike; it's perfect for holding books from the library, and thrift store shopping bags!

My first copy of The Little Prince; can you believe I've never read this book before? I sat in the car and read it through in one go. So pretty and sad, this might just be my favorite story yet. (the illustrations get me too)

This is one of my favorite finds yet. A tooled leather bag, with roses stamped into the leather. Also, I love that shade of leather, it reminds me of the natural colored Swedish Hasbeens.

A plain silk tank top in a neutral color, for tucking into jean shorts when it's too hot to think. I might just collect these.

Another (I know, I know, but I'm a sucker for all things soft and comfortable) plaid flannel, this time in blue.

Another piece that I can see becoming a warm weather staple; a perfect vintage blouse, airy and light, and the blue stitching kills me. I need more blue in my life.
Sorry for the funny faces, for some reason I can't keep a straight face when I'm being photographed! Let's hope the good weather is here to stay, because I also finally put up a hammock, and I plan on using it to loung about (as if I don't do enough of that already). Till next time :)

back to basics

Here's a look at some of the stuff I've been finding lately at the thrift store/estate sales/flea market; pretty sweet if you ask me!
Two mini bottles of Chanel N5 and Chloe Narcisse. Personally I've always thought Chanel N5 smelled awful, but the bottle sure is pretty.

I got myself some dark rinse overalls, a nice buffalo plaid flannel, and crazy ass Levi's daisy dukes. The shorts are not for me by a long shot, but are perfectly worn in and frayed.

I got this wonky 80s belt and funny black purse at the same place; normally I hate gold but with black I suppose I can stand it. I also got these leather men's brogues at salvation army for free, because the shoes are a mismatched pair! It's hard to tell so I got them anyways, and they are super comfortable and broken in.
These four white blouses are pretty and clean, exactly what I want for summer. The first is from the 40s or 50s and is handmade, a really awesome find! I just about cried when I put it on and the bust was too tight; I've been searching for a simple sailor blouse for ages! The next two shirts fit me, thank goodness; one is linen and the other a soft Swiss dot cotton. I've already worn the peter-pan collared one, and actually took some outfit shots so hopefully you'll see that next time! The last is crochet, I guess from the 60s/70s. It's funny because I turned to my mom and mentioned that I was looking for crochet dresses, and there this was! Pretty lucky I guess.

These last four dresses I'm exciting to have found; they are so beautiful! The first is a formal dress from the 50s/60s, I wish so bad it fit me! The second is a 60s dress, likely hand made, and it reminds me so much of this Lover dress, with the high neck and longer sleeves, that I grabbed it right away. It fits everywhere but the arms, does anyone out there know how to re size arm holes!? Help would be appreciated! The last two are from the 70s, and they pretty much speak for themselves.
I have been planning for something special for you guys, and I can't wait to let you know about it! Next time I have some more finds to show off, and an outfit post (a commodity around here, haha)

blue jean baby

How's this for keeping up with the blog? Three posts in the last week! Ha!
Well, as you may have noticed, blue is currently my favorite color, and as i mentioned in my last post, I've found a new appreciation for denim. So this post is dedicated to the blue things I found last time I went to salvation army with my mom.


First up is this awesome vintage 60s(?) trench/rain coat made by Misty Harbor, "a division of Jonathan Logan," that is perfect for spring. As soon as I fished this out from between sketchy flasher-trenches and some really odd, over-priced fur coats I instantly thought of Rhiannon, who has been talking about finding the perfect spring trench for ages now. I think I have found mine! It has contrast top stitching, is the perfect length, and has the cutest buttons and pockets without looking too contrived. Plus I was in serious need of a raincoat with all the rain we've been getting lately.
Next up is two button downs; I've been practically living in the lower one for the past few weeks. I've been on the lookout for chambray shirts for the past few months, and luckily I've found two that are perfect! The top one fits closer to the body and is good for tucking into high waisted jeans/skirts, and the bottom one is incredibly soft and easy and looks pretty wild my my great-aunt's vintage sequined vest. I'm loving these right now!

I grabbed this denim dress the other day at salvation army, and fell in love with the collar. Doesn't it look familiar? I swear I've seen another dress with the same exact collar in some spring collection, but I have no idea where. I cut it shorter as it was awkwardly ankle length, maybe a little too short because now I can't hem it (oops), but I'm crossing mt fingers that the edge won't fray!

And lastly I wanted to show off my (growing) 70s jean collection! I have six pairs now, five of which were thrifted and one bought off of eBay (from Australia, no less!). The only pair that fits me is the ebayed pair, but I'm thinking of selling the rest...that is, if anyone actually reads this and would be interested in owning 70s high waisted denim! Anyone out there? Hello?

Oh, and before I forget, my first post was this time last year, right after Easter! How weird is that? A whole year has gone by! I can hardly believe, when I look back on the past twelve months, how much I have changed. I feel like I'm a bit more mature, and my tastes have definitely changed, but what do you think? Am I totally the same? Totally different? Let me know what you'd want to see more/less of! (less text probably, haha)

'til next time :)

black and blues

So here is the dress I wore to the sweet sixteen last weekend! (Gosh, that was only a week ago! It feels like ages!)
I initially fell in love with it a few weeks ago, but it was a bit pricey so I left it and mulled over whether or not it was worth the cash (damn Anthropolgie, making such beautiful expensive clothes!). But then I got my first few paychecks burning a hole in my pocket, and knew that I wanted to spend them on something special ;) I'm slowly building up a collection of their beautiful dresses, and I'm pretty ecstatic, to say the least!
I love how it is unconventionally blue and black, and with the velvet bustier it's magical! The tulle is stiff enough to hold shape too, which is exactly how I like it. The only downfall with this dress is that it runs pretty big; I should have gone down a size because it fell down a few times over the course of the night. I wore my polka dot J Crew tights as I said before, and had my hair up for conveniences' sake. Next time I wear it I'd try doing my hair the right way; a strapless dress deserves long hair worn down! I felt very Karen Elson ish, which is always a good thing!
I also wanted to say that I'm sorry for being such a deadbeat blogger as of late; but I promise good things are to come, including Christmas (or Hanukkah, or whatever) wish lists and maybe something a bit more eloquent that I have had in the works for a while. We shall see...

whirlwind

My slacker ways are becoming a bit too much; I really need to establish a schedule for blogging so I don't lose the five people who read this (counting family members, lol).

So I've been busy busy these past few weeks, getting my spring schedule set for school, finishing up fall rowing and starting winter conditioning, hanging out with the family on weekends (I'm a terrible college kid, all I want to do is stay home and watch TV with my little brother!). And going to as many high school football games as possible! I feel like I missed out on that part of high school, so I've been catching up on all the crazy sports fueled Friday nights that I can :)

I also went to my little cousin's super sweet sixteen party last Saturday, and I forgot to charge my camera (stupid me) so we had to use a disposable...which I have yet to get developed! It was at this fancy restaurant on Coney Island, NY, and I was channeling the latest Lula in my outfit choice. I got this bustier black velvet and dark blue tulle dress from Anthropologie, and I wore my J Crew polka dot tights so I didn't freeze! If only I had Karen Elson's beautiful red hair :)

I was so tired that night from getting up to row at 4:30, so I don't even remember most of what we did, but I know I had some fun. So: pictures, if they came out, will be up here shortly! Whew!

dark star

Hello! So, here's a little rundown of my Friday in NYC. I literally had to run from class to catch my train, so I just grabbed whatever clothes I felt like I wanted to wear and rushed out the door. So I guess I was feeling a bit goth Friday on morning? It probably had to do with the cloudy skies, but thankfully those cleared up as soon as we got on the train! Once we got to New York, I really wanted to see if any of the book stores carried Lula, so after a quick walk through Bryant Park we found a little magazine store that carried it! I finally have my copy of Lula Nine, and it is so great! I love all the red heads; I always wished I was red haired, or at least blond, but I guess I'm happy being a brunette :) We eventually made our way over to the clothing show, but I only got a photograph outside. It was pretty cool this year, albeit a bit expensive. Some sellers were trying to sell 90s rayon floral dresses for almost $200! Considering these are abundant and crazy cheap at Salvation Army, I really hope no one bought them, lol. There were some good deals though, and I managed to buy one really great fall dress, soon to be debuted here! It was crazy packed in there, and I was trying to stick to a list of things I want, but it was difficult to find all the pretty little 50s dresses I had in mind! There was a lot of fur, plaid shirts, and sequins; none of which I have a problem with, but not what I was looking for. The dress I got makes up for it though :) I got home exhausted, but with the new Lula and a great little dress, I'm definitely happy, and can't wait for the next show!
floral dress: fredflare.com, lace shirt: free people, tights: target, shoes: forever 21, bag: vintage coach
P.S. I threw together some clothes that represent what I want to be wearing more of this fall, mainly dark florals and purples and blues. All inspired by the show and Lula Nine. Don't my Lula's look good together? I'll try to channel the inspiration as much as possible in the next few weeks!

paper doll

So, here is what I wore on Monday (and I can't even remember Tuesday, so I'm assuming I didn't wear anything all that great). The dress is vintage, from that same store that I got my awesome boots at (woot!), the cardigan is J Crew, shoes are Chloe (lovelovelove, but so painful, lol), belt is thrifted, and necklace was handmade by my mom when she was about my age! I wear this thing everywhere, and people constantly ask me where I got it/ what it means. I just think it's cool, and it reminds me of mom when I'm away. :)

Other than the obligatory outfit shots, I wanted to let anyone who lives near New York City/ has some free time this weekend to check out The Manhattan Vintage Clothing
Show! I went last year and it was so cool; basically a bunch of Vintage dealers show up and have booths stocked full of really awesome vintage clothes/shoes/accessories. It's alsmost like a bazaar of vintage! The only downside is that most of the stuff is priced pretty high (dealers plus new york equals crazy prices!) but since the recession has hit everyone hard I'm thinking some stuff might be priced to sell...all the more reason to make it out there for some hard core vintage viewing! Unfortunately there's no photography allowed, but I promise I'll try to sneak some shots when I go this Friday! I'm so excited, and I'm on the hunt for a sweet little blue dress like Liebemarlene posted about. Fingers are crossed that I find some cool stuff!

like a little girl

One of the many perks of going to school close to home is that your parents can pick you up and take you out almost anytime you want them to. So essentially my mom and I went on a mini thrifting/shopping excursion the other day, and these are the good I found/bought!

I bought a pretty blue floral headband at Anthropologie...
Like I give a Frock is a book that has been on my wishlist for a long time! I actually read through the entire thing last night, it's so cute!

And I also got a sweet little sailor inspired blouse at Anthro, I adore this!

We also stopped at the local Goodwill and look what I found; a boater hat! So weird that I finally found one, but it looks funny on my head so for now it's a decoration, haha

Alright everyone, it is late and there are many many more pages of biology and calculus to attend to...kill me please, lol.

a day in which the sky echoed my words

once again, an unfortunate sounding "estate sale" turned out to bring me some great stuff, and for mad cheap!

sometimes things are just meant to be. let me count the ways...

1-we pulled up to the sale after waiting at my brother's school for his football practice (it was cancelled...damn) and NO ONE is there. usually a bad sign, right? nope, this meant that there was very little jostling of arms and things when maneuvering around the home. YES

2-we go inside, at first not much looked too promising...how i was wrong (thank god). then we head upstairs...KA CHING VINTAGE CLOTHING COLLECTION! and everything was like, $5??? YESYES

3-the true stroke of fate, after seriously only 5 minutes in this place i have a nice little pile set aside for me and as i go to pay the grand total is $20 (WIN). and it gets better, because i ask who lived in the house and i am told a 90 year old woman named GENEVIEVE (yeah that's my name, holy hell weird!) had died and left all her glorious things for me to buy, haha. now that is fate!

the only true "vintage" dress i bought was this blue 50s/60s pleated number. it reminded me of 500 days of summer (which i have to talk about in another post, so i don't rant, lol). i've been craving all those beautiful blues from the film, though!

next i picked up this sweet little pink striped/lace accented/rosebud buttoned day dress. no tags, but i think it must be 80s? late 70s? it's in good condition if it is old!

my favorite piece by far has to be this ADORABLE (caps are necessary) white sailor blouse! the label Lover is old hat by now in the blogging community, but i lusted after that sweet (but exorbitantly priced) sailor blouse for months, and now i think the one i have here (for $5! ok, enough gloating, i'm bad, lol) is way better! it has the perfect almost-elbow length sleeves, a nice sized sailor collar, and pretty little details. and i wasn't all too happy with the split collar on the back of the lover shirt anyway, so i'm really glad that this blouse is sans unsightly split!

i also picked up these two interesting little purses in the basement of the home. i love the saddle style of the black one, and the fact that the strap is long like an across-body bag. and i wanted a picnic-basket type purse for some time now, and i like the gold/white combo. the picnic one is also vintage, judging by the label.

so yeah, other than waiting for my brother's football practice in a thunder/lightening storm, today was a good day =) and i might just go back tomorrow, because i left behind piles of nubby vintage sweaters and some good dresses that i'm now regretting not buying...haha!