Oh hey, I'm wearing pants.

I got this little victorian style 70s blouse off of the $1 rack at work, it has a little bit of fading, but it fits like a glove, and um, it was a dollar.

It was the perfect blouse for the type of rainy, not too cold but not too hot, weather we've been having, cotton and long sleeves, just what I need. This look is something I would have worn in high school, a mix of vintage and modern, also something victorian inspired, I was way into costuming, but that topic is for another post. I thought the striped pants were a nice contrast to the ruffles and the floral, and they are not quite jeans, which I feel weird wearing out in public. People always ask if I'm sick!

I miss my old mossy ally so much, it always had the perfect lighting and backdrop, not at all like the blank porch I take my pictures on now. I decided to take my tri-pod to work today and work up the nerve to take pictures in that ally, it's pretty neat, all grassy and dirty, but there's usually people and cars back there. I got lucky and managed to take pictures with only two little old ladies passing by. Maybe I can be brave enough and take more pictures there in the summer :)

Isn't this locket the sweetest? What's even sweeter is that my boss gave it to me, I found it lying on the ironing board when I got to work with a little note "I want you to have this because I appreciate you so much!"

I know, she's so sweet.

So I slipped some thread through it and wore it all day, it went perfect with what I was wearing.

Blouse-Urban Eccentric vintage

Pants-Marc Jacobs, via Buffalo Exchange, Burnside

Shoes-A gift from Sam, by Sailor Jerry

Locket-A gift from my boss.

Estate sale finds

This morning before helping Twila Jean move from one house to another, my grandma and I went to an estate sale held at a community center. The paper said the sale started at 9:00 so we got there early, but apparently they listed the sale on Craigslist as starting at 8:00, and had to open doors then. And while there were still some really good items remaining, the clothing rack only had a few late 60s dresses left, and since most of the other items were from the 20s to the 50s I just know there must have been some great feedsack dresses or nylon blouses someone grabbed. Sigh.
I did buy some really pretty things though, three aprons for my shop, and for me three 40s cotton kerchiefs, a big collar, 1915 and 1916 books on sewing and embroidery, the coolest address book ever, a plastic bead necklace, cat eye glasses, and an orange bakelite bangle. I was really excited to find the bangle, since it was only $1! So far I've found four bakelite bangles at estate sales for practically nothing thanks to people throwing them in boxes of junky jewelry and assuming they're just cheap plastic. You can tell if a plastic is bakelite if you press it against your clothes and rub it for a few seconds, and it has a chemical smell or the rubbed part feels warm. Some people always look at me funny when I walk around smelling jewelry ;)
I really want to be more educated about bakelite, so if anyone recommends any books or websites to check out, let me know!

There was a bittersweet aspect to the sale, which was that the woman who passed away wrote little notes and attached them to things, such as "I sewed this in 1942, with linen my friend Ethel brought back from France. I had to press it often especially when it got wet." All sorts of notes in beautiful cursive on yellowed paper. It was a vintage lovers dream, because it gave dates and history. Nothing I bought had a note, but I wish I had bought something with one just for that reason! It was so sweet, I wish they had pictures of her!

Successful day!

Today was such a bright and sunny day! Felt like summer. On our way to Portland to treasure hunt for my shop, my mother and I passed a little yard sale. We stopped, and when the woman running it saw me said "Oh, I have some things in my basement you might be interested in." She brought out an armful of 40s and 50s vintage dresses, really pretty things that will go in my shop this week, they just need a little mending. It pays to dress up, you never know :)
At the sale I also bought the cutest vintage hot roller set, the woman told me she bought it brand new, still in its box, and hardly used it. It has everything and does look brand new. I've been looking for a hot roller set for a while, but all the new ones are just not very pretty, so I was really excited to find this. I also found a cute pair of cat eyes I think will go in the shop, but we'll see, I'm tempted to keep them.
In Portland I found bunch of great dresses as well, all 50s. So this week get ready for a flood of pretty dresses :) I pay so much more attention to my shop when I put things I like in it. This week I've kind of neglected it since I didn't have a great week as far as finding items goes, I have a big pile still to list, but it's mostly late 60s and 70s stuff which I'm not that into. So it will probably never get listed :)
After treasure hunting we stopped by Hattie's Vintage, a fabulous store we had not been to forever. The owner is super nice and helpful, and I seriously wanted everything there. There were lots of late 30s early 40s housedresses which I love, and just an overall great selection of 40s clothing. And some really pretty 30s tea frocks I fell in love with. My mother got a great 50s Hawaiian dress, and I got frilly early 50s pink dress I think I will wear tomorrow. Its pretty much "cute" in a dress.