Tuesday's Lovely Finds

As promised, I am finally going to try and post photos of many of the fabulous vintage items I've found both here in Georgia and while on the road. I think I need to just go ahead and make a weekly segment out of it (what about every Tuesday? We'll see how well I can stick to that!) since I am constantly finding great things but they don't necessarily fit a certain theme.

So, let's begin, shall we? I know some of you may remember my mentioning a fabulous brown 1950s jacket with rhinestone buttons not long before I went out of town. This little handmade lovely is in stunning condition and it is in a larger size. I know a lot of my friends have expressed to me their frustration at not finding enough pretty vintage items in larger sizes. Well, this absolutely falls into the pretty category. I am so in love with the glamorous buttons and the pretty details like the faux pockets and sweetly cuffed elbow length sleeves. I just know that this was intended for a sexy pencil skirt (black?) and some wonderful high heels. And yes, it's heading into the shop very soon as well as a number of other wonderful 1950s items.



Next up, a pair of late 1930s/early 1940s dresses found baking in the stiflingly hot and humid back room of a north Texan antique shop. The dresses are both a sad state, but my bleeding heart ("I cannot leave these here to continue rotting. MUST SAVE!") could not let them go, so I bartered with the shop owner and got them for $5 and $9, respectively. I paid too much for the $9 one, but that is just me being cheap. Six Woolite baths (EACH) later, they are free of the ookyness and hopefully that wasn't rat pee... but they still have some problems. The apricot one is actually quite wearable, though the shoulder pads need replacing (they're dried up and er...crunchy) and it has some weird sun-fading in places. The blue one is definitely a little sadder, but may yet be wearable. One day. But look at those pockets!



I also wanted to share some of the photos and ephemera that I collected while travelling in Oklahoma and north Texas. I especially love perusing through boxes of old photographs. The antique store where I purchased these two ladies had a very cute little sign posted next to the box of photos that said "Need ancestors? Pick your own!!". When I took the photos up to the counter to pay, the old man running the store teasingly asked me if I had found myself some ancestors. I replied that I had chosen the prettiest and most stylish ladies so that I could tell everyone that my ancestors were knockouts with a sense of style. ;)

I love this girl's dress, and she is so pretty too. Perhaps it is a photo taken to send to her sweetheart who is off in WWI?


I am always drawn to Victorian photographs. I think it is a combination of the clothes, the colouring, and the general oldness of them. To think that photography had not been around all that long when these were taken is quite extraordinary to me. I also love that she is smiling! I don't often come across people smiling in such old photos, so it is a sweet touch.



And last but not least, my little expat's guide to Weisbaden, Germany! I stumbled across this in the book section of an antique shop, and picked it up mainly because of the bizarre pinup girl walking a turkey on a leash. Indeed, I think that would get anyone's attention, don't you agree? As it turned out, it was the November (Thanksgiving) issue of a little booklet that was published for American servicemen and their families living in Germany. Very cool! It is especially interesting to me, as someone who has been an expat, to have a look into what expat life was like back in 1956 Germany. The magazine is full of bad jokes, German business ads with awkward English, and updates on American trends. Did you know that in November 1956, shoes with pastel soles were en vogue?

Tea Parties and Hats

I do apologise for not writing more this weekend, but it has been quite a whirlwind! I barely had a chance to catch my breath from the roadtrip before I was thrust into July 4th celebrations and tea parties and all of the baking that accompanied those events.

Yesterday's tea party went very well, and much delicious food and fun was had by all. Since the tea was fancy dress up (hats required) I decided to dress around my hat. I found a fantastic little 1930s cloche a few months back that has been waiting for the perfect outing. It's a little bit misshapen, so it required more than a few hat pins to secure it so that it sat smoothly on my head, but in the end it worked out and was very worth the many treacherous hat pins.


To go with my hat, I chose a little black cotton 1930s-inspired dress that I made myself back in April. The collar is vintage, and I really think it is one of the most beautiful collars I have ever seen. It has such a lovely aged colour to it and a wonderful exaggerated shape. I think it suits the simple black dress perfectly.


I made my tiny whole wheat scones by special request from the in-laws. It's a delicious and very easy recipe, so if you are interested in trying it, it's posted here.


And for the record, I really will post better photos of all those fabulous vintage finds I've had from the last couple of weeks, and I promise that I will try to do it soon! :)

Farm Life

Hello, all! I am back from the big mother/daughter roadtrip to Oklahoma '09, laden with many antique and vintage finds from southern Oklahoma and Texas. Clothing-wise, it wasn't quite as successful as I was hoping (many wonderful items, but most were both damaged and very overpriced considering, so I had to pass on a number of pretties), but I did end up with a few nice things. I came across a wealth of beautiful cotton printed skirts from the 1950s and scooped all of them up. I am still deciding which ones to keep and which ones to sell. I am fiendish about vintage cotton skirts, so I was pretty excited to find those. I also found several hats that struck my fancy! (not a hard thing to do, and not a moment too soon for the tea party that my sister-in-law and mother-in-law are throwing on Sunday!)

Here's a tiny preview of what I found...


Yes, ladies, that is a 1950s sunhat with cherries on it. Actually, the hat is period, the cherries are not. But it was still darn cute for $4! As well as the clothing items, I will share more details about some of the ephemera I collected at a very interesting antique bookstore once I get some better photos of everything.

Meanwhile, I will share a few photos with you of my grandparent's farm. One of the things I love most about visiting them is being surrounded by nature, even if it is tended and worked as a farm. They are so far from the city (at least three hours from a large city) that there is very little pollution, so it is always nice to clear my lungs. And of course my grandfather is an avid and devoted farmer (Up at 5am and works sun up to sun down! Not much of a retiree, is he?) so the table is always full of fresh picked organic veggies! (as a vegetarian, I never have any problem eating there!) Though, every time I go out there I do realise what a city girl I am (I can't help it, I am a hyperactive personality and tend to get bored very quickly if I don't have anything to do!) and how much my years living abroad make me stick out like a sore thumb when we venture into the tiny nearby town. But small doses of the farm life are quite nice and pastoral. Here is a sampling of some of the highlights of the trip.

My favourite tree on the farm...and it's hay bail season! While I was there someone came and hauled all 68 bails off (it took about four trips)




Three generations of ladies - me, my mother and my grandmother shelling purple hull peas (like black eyed peas) on the back porch...I felt like I had been lost in another era.


Beautiful cabbage in my grandmother's front garden.


Lovely apples growing in the orchard.


I'm still recovering from the long drive and have a pretty busy weekend ahead of me (July 4th and Sunday tea), but I will try and post more pictures of my hats and skirts by Sunday evening. (hopefully!) I hope you all have a very happy July 4th!

Secret missions and art commissions

My, but it has been such a tiring week! I feel like life has been on fast forward since Sunday and that all the time in between has disappeared into thin air between trying to get ready for the trip, thrifting, photographing, working on art commissions, organising my vintage inventory (in my amazing new "wisteria" toned stacking containers, yes!) and running around town with Patrick on a secret mission. The purpose of these many secret missions may only be revealed once they are complete. Then I will reveal all. (or most) I feel that it is quite an original mission. (and no, there are no babies or anything like that involved) It's very exciting.

I've had such incredible luck over the past few days thrifting. In my city we do have our fair share of both dealers and wearers of vintage, so it's so rare to come across anything pre-1960s these days while thrifting. But lo and behold, stuffed between secondhand Old Navy blouses and Charter Club sweaters, a tiny gem appeared. A gem in the form of a small, waisted 1950s jacket. It is handmade of a beautiful rusty brown rayon-type fabric and features a whole row of the most exquisite vintage buttons with rhinestones in the middle. Patrick didn't believe me - he thought it had to be some modern reproduction, mainly because it is so unheard of to find such old treasures in thrift stores. But indeed, my many years of museum studies and costume history have not abandoned me or my eyes. Unfortunately I did not take a photo today, so that will have to wait. But it will most likely be going up in the shop sometime after I return from Oklahoma. (along with many other beauties) I also found the prettiest cotton blouse, which I think I am going to keep for myself. It's from the 80s, which is a decade that doesn't really suit my own personal style (though I have found many, many pretty things from that time), but it is surprisingly lovely and Edwardian. Oh, and did I mention that adorable 1960s navy blue minidress?

I think my thrifting must have been blessed today.

As I mentioned, I also finished this commission for a lovely customer. I can't seem to stop myself from painting Marie Antoinette. She is such a wonderful muse, and the clothing of the 18th century provides me with endless inspiration for colour and style.

Marie Antoinette's Birthday Dress
Original Commissioned Painting
8x10 Acrylic on Canvas

I am not sure I will be able to blog while I am on the road, but I am sure I will come back with plenty of stories, photos, and hopefully some wonderful old treasures that I acquire along the way!

Roadtrips and Paris Dresses

You know that feeling you get when you're a few days away from going out of town and know that you are about to miss an entire week of life in the real world, and that's okay, but you feel like you have to make up for it in the days leading up to the trip? Indeed, that is me right now. I am heading out to Texas and Oklahoma on a roadtrip with my mom (Patrick couldn't get off work, which is very sad) next Thursday. I am going to my very first family reunion. Half curiosity over family members I have never even met, half extreme intimidation. I also fully intend to hit up every antique mall, ma-and-pa thrift and salvation army I pass. (As well as every Cracker Barrel from here to Timbuktu, as the actress Kathy Bates put it so well) It is a little weird, this will be the first time that Patrick and I have been apart for more than one night since we got married 8 months ago. Isn't that sappy? But we're just that kind of couple. I do wish he could come. He's never seen my grandparents gorgeous farm, and now that they are talking about selling it I feel the urgency for him to see it before they do. Plus, it'd be nice to have a nice, big, tall shield in case the family reunion stuff gets to be too intimidating for my introverted self.

Today we met my mother and brother for breakfast at a nearby patisserie, and I pulled a dress out of my closet that, while I have owned it for about 2 1/2 years, I've scarcely worn until this summer. I bought it at the most divine little vintage shop in Montmartre, Paris, called Mamie Vintage. The couple that owned this shop charmed me about as much as the gargantuan, sprawling, piled up in heaps of heavenly vintage inventory. What I remember most is the gentlemen. He was wearing a short leather bomber jacket, high waisted pleated trousers with suspenders and had grease slicked hair and a tiny mustache. He looked like a cross between Fonzi and a Swing Kid. Adorable.
I had to dig for this dress, as it was hidden under a pile of crinolines, 1940s housedresses, and 1970s Hawaiian print shirts. I was then surprised when he told me that this dress had come all the way from Virginia, USA! It's quite funny, because everyone who has ever seen me wear it is quick to exclaim, "You look so Parisian!" without even knowing I bought it in Paris. I do need to do some work to the dress. The area under the sleeve needs some re-enforcement, as the fabric (which looks like a silk-blend) is starting to run little. I am determined to keep this one in wearable condition, though. It's just too pretty to let fall apart.

(please excuse my little kitty's head - she walked into my shot!)



As for the rest of the weekend, we spent it scurrying from estate sale to estate sale (including being sent on a wild goose chase by some antique dealer, woops), cleaning and photographing clothes for the shop. Oh, and looking at houses! We found an adorable Edwardian house that we may just decide to rent. I'd be able to have an entire room of my own for a studio/work space! Ah, heaven.
We also found time to hop down the street to the new British import shop that recently opened. The lady who owns it is a British expat and as sweet as can be - she was even kind enough to special order one of my favourite British treats, Tunnock's Caramel Wafers. Not that I need more sweets in my house, but how could I resist the novelty?

My teeth don't really know quite what hit them this weekend.

The Mysterious Life of the Metropolitan Housewife: Give Away! Give Away!

I just wanted to share that this lovely lady is hosting a giveaway on her fantastic blog in honour of one hundred followers! The giveaway prize is vintage hair themed, so if you are interested in recreating the lovely hairstyles of times past, check it out!

The Mysterious Life of the Metropolitan Housewife: Give Away! Give Away!

Weekend Finds and All Kinds of Lovely

Dress - Armstrong's Vintage, Edinburgh, Scotland
Handbag - One of my very first thrift finds
Shoes - Target

And of course, rag curls! I felt like Mary Tyler Moore's character in "Thoroughly Modern Millie", Miss Dorothy Brown, with all those curls and a frilly dress made of cotton lawn.

This weekend's antiquing and thrifting turned out to yield all kinds of lovely. My mom and I have a Sunday afternoon tradition of hitting the antique malls together, and this week was no different. I had been a little bummed about missing a rather fantastic sounding estate sale that happened on Friday while I was out of town, but fortunately I ended up quite lucky with my other outlets. The dresses will have to wait, as they went straight into the wash this afternoon and are now lined up and air drying on their little hangers. But I will show you some of the other pretties I found.

Gold Flower Brooch
(going up in the shop soon)

Cream Leather Gloves
(going up in the shop soon, as well)

Perfect Summer Hat
(for me to keep!)

Might I also mention that I found a stunning black silk velvet 1920s flapper coat with fur trim? Unfortunately, at $225 it was about $200 too much for me, but it was achingly beautiful. It closed to the side and featured several huge (at least 2") mother of pearl buttons, which in and of themselves were to die for. Oh, if I were rich!

Adventure to Savannah

Patrick decided to surprise me with a little weekend trip to Savannah to make up for the slight disaster that was our six-month wedding anniversary in April. (that is, the kitten getting poisoned, spending $800 to save him, the car breaking down halfway between Atlanta and Savannah and spending $500 to tow it and another $1000 to fix it, and then finding out that his grandmother died) So, we had a grand eight-month anniversary to make up for it! And it was lovely. No unfortunate events on the drive or during our stay. We ate lots of delicious Thai food at Saigon on Broughton, got caught in a crazy storm, explored a beautiful cemetery, and had some fun at the beach.

I only had 24 hours to get ready to go (Patrick told me about it on Tuesday night and we left Thursday morning), so what did I do? I decided to make myself a sundress. I knew it would be very hot and humid, and I don't really have many nice lightweight sundresses (I'm still re-developing my warm-weather wardrobe, as this is only the second summer I've been in the south since I moved back here from five years in Scotland), so I took a heap of red cotton and threw one together. I would say I'm happy enough to wear it, but it isn't one of my best. I was in a hurry (had to pack, too) so I took too many shortcuts and I fit it to my dressform instead of to myself. My dressform is marginally bigger than me, but enough so that the dress hangs funny in the bodice and looks a bit odd and saggy. Needless to say, now that I am back home, I'm going to take it in and hopefully doing so will make it more wearable.



I was really excited that we got the opportunity to explore Bonaventure Cemetery this time around. We've been to Savannah a few times but have never ventured outside of the historic district other than to go to Tybee Island. But I'd heard about the cemetery from a ghost tour guide and really was curious about this place that she described as being much better than the cemetery that is inside the historic district. (next to St John's Cathedral) Indeed, even Johnny Mercer of Charade fame is buried there! It did have some very pretty statuary, and the setting was completely lovely and serene...all Spanish moss and drapey trees and slightly derelict old statuary with missing fingers.




We also made it out to the Tybee Island beach, which was fun. I am not much of a beach/ocean swimmer myself (I love swimming, but ocean water grosses me out a little bit), but Patrick really wanted to do it and I did end up enjoying it. We encountered a lovely summer thunderstorm which ended up producing the loveliest rainbow and drove the crowds away, which was perfect!

Speaking of Thunderstorms, we got caught in quite a violent one on Thursday night. We were having dinner and had just paid when we noticed that the wind was picking up and there was an occasional flicker of lightening. As we walked outside, we looked up and saw a black cloud encroaching upon the sunset and we decided that we needed to hurry up and walk back to the hotel. As luck would have it, literally as we turned the corner to the street our hotel was on, the bottom fell out and within thirty seconds we were soaked through. It was rather embarrassing walking into the lobby of a fancy hotel in a white muslin blouse...soaked. When we got to our room we watched the storm from our 12th floor balcony, which was spectacular.



The forcast had predicted mostly sunny skies all weekend, so it caught us completely by surprise!

I just wanted to show off a couple of pretty dresses that I listed last night. The first is a stunning electric blue brocade cocktail dress from the 1950s. Unfortunately my crinoline is still at my mother's house (yes, I only moved over 8 months ago...!), but even sans crinoline it is amazing. I am so sad that it doesn't fit me! Patrick suggested that I alter it, but I honestly can't in my good conscience start nipping and tucking at it when I know there must be someone out there that will fit it perfectly. I think dresses like these are better off unaltered - especially as the workmanship is so beautiful on the interior of this dress.
I found the dress a few years ago on a thrift outing. When I came across it, it was hanging on a coat rack quite by itself, except for three other dresses also from the same era. I could hardly believe my eyes! Four exquisite dresses, all beautifully tailor made (no tags at all, but perfectly finished on the inside with very, very wide hems) for whoever had owned them in their first life. I ended up buying three of them - one was a slightly less glamorous brown house dress and I didn't have quite enough money on me at the time. So three of them came home with me. Strangely enough, the other two fit me perfectly, so they will live with me indefinitely. But this one needs a loving home!

Blue Brocade Cocktail Dress
Available @ Oh, Kirby! Vintage

This other one has a wee bit of a story to it. It belonged to my grandmother. My still auburn-headed (she's never dyed her hair a day in her life) grandmother has always been an extremely fashion-concious woman. Some of my earliest memories of her are of her striding into the room in a very sleek, glamourous outfit, and telling me how important it was to stay up to date with the fashions. When she was a teenager in rural Oklahoma, she would design clothes for her friends and they would pay her in fabric. She would then go to the city and try on lots of clothes at the department store before coming back to recreate all the elegant fashions she had seen in town.

C.K. Dexter Haven's Girl
Available @ Oh, Kirby! Vintage

It has a bit of a Katharine Hepburn in "The Philadelphia Story" feel to it, doesn't it?

I am now off to go do some very overdue housework. (doesn't that sound like drudgery?) I'm afraid I've been so busy lately that the dust bunnies have collected in the corners!

Weekend Finds and Pretty Dresses

It has been a long and busy weekend! Between thrifting/antiquing, buying art supplies, and celebrating my sister in law's 18th birthday, we've been running at breakneck pace. Friday was very successful vintage clothing-wise, but while I am cleaning those and getting them ready for photographing, I thought you might enjoy a peek into my other weekend finds.

Tiny Framed Sissi Print

Vintage White Cotton slip

Vintage Spring Green Net Hat

I wore this adorable little confection to my sister in law's birthday party. Isn't it sweet? It came from Solanah's lovely shop. This was its first outing, as I purchased it early last fall and the weather changed before I could wear it. It still needs a few alterations - I want to hem the skirt a bit and the bust needs taken in, but it was fun to wear! I felt like a Bavarian milkmaid.

I rolled my hair up in a bit of a messy 'do that looked like this. Lately I've been wearing my hair like this a lot. It's easy to do, requires no hair spray, and feels like the right combination of both Edwardian and 1940s, which is odd, but very much my style. Perhaps someday I will post a little video tutorial, if I can muster the courage to video myself. :)

Vintage Additions

Among a few other things, I added this to the vintage shop today! A big dark brown bag -isn't it lovely? I am sad to part with it. But alas, I own one too many beautiful, big vintage bags and this one deserves a good home, rather than collecting dust in my closet. :) How cool is the lining?

Patrick and I are hoping to move into our first house later this summer. One small sliver of the reason I am trying to vamp up my vintage shop again is because we need a little extra income in order to help pay for this upgrade! (which gloriously will mean my own STUDIO!! I would finally be able to move the sewing junk outta the bedroom and the art stuff outta the kitchen and the vintage stuff outta the hallway closet, yay!) So, I am busily and steadily working my little tail off trying to get more things into the shop and freshen up the look a bit. The asset of a new camera definitely helps in that regard! Patrick's giving me a hand there, and we're both having fun with that aspect of the business. I think it makes him feel manly to fiddle with the fancy schmancy big new camera and have me do model-y poses for him! :)

Now I must sign off for the rest of the evening. I am slowly making my way through the most recent North & South miniseries and the Victorian melodrama calls!