Another Sneaky Peek

Yesterday, I spent some time over at "Retroville" moving some of my stuff in and playing around with some different things. Most of my vintage stuff has been living in a storage closet in my parent's basement, so I really haven't had a chance to see it all together. I honestly was worried that much of my stuff that I have been collecting would not mesh well together, since I have purchased little items here and there. However, yesterday I put this little table and lamp together just for fun and instantly knew that all of my stuff would come together.

Isn't this barkcloth amazing?! It was my Grandma's and she had saved a lot of it, all in different sizes. This piece fit well over the top of the table, which was also hers. The lamp was found at a thrift store for only $9 and the shade was found at an estate sale, I think for only $5. The lady thought I was crazy when I asked if I could just purchase the shade sans lamp. It's a fiberglass shade and it actually got crushed in my car, however you would never really know it unless you looked closely. I was able to fix it by using my steamer to smooth out the wrinkles and bind the slits together.

I really like how this came together and will probably keep it like this when I get all my stuff in place. It was so much fun to play around, fix things, and begin the decorating process. The whole little vignette only cost me about $15, since the table, barkcloth, and candy dish & ash tray were my Grandma's. However, I am sure I could have found similar pieces at the thrift store or an estate sale and would have still be able to put together something cute for not a lot of money. Being able to get a great look for not a lot of money is one of the many reasons why I love vintage so much. I am able to stretch my dollar, while decorating in a style I love. :)

Emily

Rain, Rain, Go Away

It has been raining here pretty much every day since the beginning of last week. With the exception of this weekend, the sun has been hiding. Yesterday, the sun was out and the humidity set in. I wore this sweet little wrap dress for a trip to the store to get some more veggie plants and some dirt.

I found this dress marked for only $12 "as-is." I really couldn't figure out what was wrong with it, since it was deadstock, complete with its original tag. I then noticed it only had one tie and the other one was missing. I knew I could just sew in some hooks and eyes and wear a belt and the dress would be good as new and a super cheap deal in a retail setting.

Oh, I also chopped off most of my hair at the beginning of last week, on a lark! I am still getting use to it and figuring out how to style it, since this is the shortest I have every had it. :)

Emily

50s Wrap Dress: Lost and Found

Belt: Salvation Army

Just a Glimpse...

...at my new casa. :) Within the next few weeks I will be making a move over to my Grandma's house, which was built in the mid 1960s and still has much of its vintage charm left. I cannot wait to get all my vintage furniture moved in, which I have been collecting for the last few months.

Today, I worked on getting the yard in shape. My mom has kept it looking very nice, but I wanted to add some vintage touches to it. I found these repro chairs at K-Mart of all places, on clearance for only $37 each. They were quite the pain to put together, but thanks to some help from my handy dad, I got them together.

I got this vintage plant stand from this past week's estate sale haul. It was only $5 and I knew it would look great on the porch. After I found the stand, I figured some uniform pots would look the best and found these galvanized pots at IKEA. I need to go back and get some more, since I was planning on using the large one one the bottom, but decided it would look better on the table instead. I am going to pick up some red flowers next weekend at the Farmer's Market to go in the big pot that is on the table.

Since I will have a back yard, a vegetable garden was in order. I dug out the garden today, but haven't planted the above veggies. I am waiting until I get them all so I can better lay out all the veggies. So far I have some strawberries, tomatoes, green beans, and summer squash. This plant stand was also an estate sale find and goes so well with my back porch furniture. No pictures of those yet, as I am still working on making the cushions for the love seat out of some vintage barkcloth.

Over the next few weeks, I will probably be sharing much more of my new home with you all. And any gardening success. :)

Emily

A Puppy in a Basket

Last week, I mentioned that I found an awesome plastic shopping basket at the thrift store, pictured above with my sweet little Pumpkin inside. I was super excited about it because I make the weekly trip to our local farmer's market and knew it would come in super handy. Plus, since it was plastic, I could rinse it out to keep it clean.

So imagine my surprise when on Friday, I found the basket pictured above at an estate sale. This one is wider and I knew would be perfect to hold house plants that I knew we were going to purchase this past weekend. And, it was only $1.

I am so smitten with both.... maybe too much so! ;)

Emily

40s Dress: Mother Fletcher's

Sweater and Flats: Target

Belt: Kohls

Michigan Vintage Shopping Guide: Regeneration

So, I realize I have been kind of slacking on my virtual tour of the vintage shopping here in Michigan. However, I am super excited to share this store with you all. Regeneration is a resale shop that offers mostly used newer clothing, but also has a small section of vintage for both men and women. What I love about this store is their prices. I have never paid more than $30 for a piece of vintage and I have found some really stellar items there.

Regeneration also offers a selection of vintage jewelry, hats, and occasionally shoes. Since it's a resale shop, it's really hit or miss, so I check back often to see what new things they have to offer. Just recently, Regeneration opened a second location, which is bigger than their original storefront. I'm really excited they have been able to open another location!!

Here is one of my recent finds. A little brocade like jacket, dating to the 60s, for only $8!! I also found my DeWeese dress there and this dress and jacket set. The best thing about Regeneration is they are so much more affordable than any other vintage clothing store in the area, so it's really worth checking it!

Regeneration New and Used Clothing

Pleasant Ridge

23700 Woodward Ave

Pleasant Ridge, MI 48069

(248) 414-7440

Clawson

126 E. 14 Mile

Clawson, MI 48017

(248) 589-0500

email: shop.regeneration@att.net

Swim Dresses

I can't even begin to express my excitement about this dress. I found it a few weeks ago at my favorite resale shop that has a small vintage section. It's a DeWeese, the "swim and sun fashions." Some people like to call these "swim dresses," although, I don't think one could actually swim in one of these because they don't have bottoms. I have a feeling that they have received this nick name due to their construction. They have a built in bra and the top half is made very much like a bathing suit, complete with a low back and smocking. Mine is a later model, probably from the last 60s, but I love it just the same.

I have seen a few of these on eBay lately and could not believe what the seller was asking for them -- $195. Her's very well might have been earlier models, but still, that is quite steep, in my opinion any way. I only paid $15 for mine and was super pleased with my deal; proving there are still deals to be found in out there!

The one nice thing about this dress,is it was highly copied. I have a copy, which I actually paid more for than the De Weese! The copies are very easy to find. The other nice thing about this dress is the style. The smocking in the back allows for a variety of sizes, something I love in vintage pieces!

Here's a few I found on eBay and etsy.

A DeWeese Design $45

DeWeese Design $38

A DeWeese Knock Off $45

DeWeese Dress: Re-Generation Resale

Sweater: Target

Fakelite Bracelet: Royal Oak Flea Market

Pink Swirls

This past winter, I made it my mission to comprise a fun new summer wardrobe. I really wanted to add a few more Swirls into my rotation. This is one such acquisition. It's a pink gingham with hidden slit pockets at the hips. I'm pretty much in love with it. :)

These are the earrings I paired with the dress. I got them a month ago and have been itching to wear them ever since. Once I put on the dress, I know these earrings would go perfectly with it. They aren't bakelite, but aren't they super adorable?!

Tonight I start my Spring semester of graduate school. I am only taking one class and it's on the graphic novel. I am really excited to see what this class will be like! Are you reading anything fun?

Emily

Swirl Dress: eBay

Cardigan: American Eagle

Shoes: Re-Mix

Earrings: Mother Fletchers

Last Bits of Cold

Last week, I think Michigan experienced its last bits of cold weather, or at least I hope so! Jesse and I were going to be out for the evening and it still was getting quite chilly at night, so I had to wear my tights again, hopefully for the last time until fall. :)

I stopped by the thrift store today and found an awesome plastic green shopper basket. I am saving its blog debut until after a trip to Eastern Market. I'm so excited to use it!

I also picked up several yards of vintage political themed heavy cotton. I have no idea what I am going to do with it. Right now, I am thinking a play suit and skirt set. Ideas?

Emily

Late 40s Dress and 40s Wedges: eBay

Tights: Target

Belt: Kohls

Cardigan: JC Penny

Fakelite: Royal Oak Flea Market

Film Fashion Friday: Vintage Fashionable Films A-Z

I saw someone in blogland do an A-Z list of movies and I thought it would be a fun challenge to do an A-Z list of vintage fashionable films. If anyone else decides they would like to make their own A-Z list, let me know. I would love to see what you come up with! I'll be back next week with a regular Film Fashion Friday post.

Above Suspicion (1943)

Black Widow (1954)

Colleen (1936)

Daytime Wife (1939)

Employee's Entrence (1933)

Forever Darling (1956)

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)

I Wake Up Screaming (1941)

Joy of Living (1938)

Kid From Spain (1932)

Lady of Burlesque (1943)

Mildred Pierce (1945)

Neptune'sDaughter (1945)

Orchestra Wives (1942)

Possessed (1931)

Queen Bee (1955)

Rebecca (1940)

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Thirty Day Princess (1934)

Unfaithfully Yours (1948)

Vicki (1953)

Wife Verses Secretary (1936)

Madame X (1966)

Yours Mine Ours (1968)

Ziegfeld Girl (1941)

All images were found on google. All films are available on either DVD, VHS, or from film collectors online.

Hawaiian Florals

When I bought this dress at the Salvation Army a few weeks ago, I bought it with the intention to shorten it, since I loved the pattern but wasn't too sure about the maxi length. Well, I have a hard time altering vintage, so I left it alone and decided to try and make the maxi work. I have to say, I am in LOVE with this dress. Even though it's a poly blend, it's surprisingly light and has such a lovely drape to it.

Tonight, since it is Cinco de Mayo, I am hoping to make it down to Mexicantown and wear one of my new Mexican inspired 50s dresses. :) How will you be spending Cinco de Mayo?

Emily

60s Hawaiian Maxi Dress: Salvation Army

Shrug: Target

Sandals: Michael Kors

My Vintage Bakelite

Only about a year or two ago did I get into collecting bakelite. I always thought it was super expensive and lets face it, I'm not about to pay $100+ for some plastic. However, I have been lucky enough to find some great pieces at estate sales, vintage shops, and eBay that were all within my price range.

When I started collecting, I knew little to nothing about bakelite. I am still continuing to learn about the ins and outs of collecting bakelite, but I thought it would be fun to share my collection. I love seeing other vintage blogger's collections, especially when it comes to jewelry.

Holly has done an excellent post on bakelite and I would definitely check it out if you are looking for a thorough history and detailed guide. I would also check out the above book. I was really impressed with the information provided in the book. Plus, it has some wonderful pictures! As a side note, most of the information provided about bakelite in this post came from the above book.

There are many ways to test a piece to see if is bakelite, however, one of the interesting things I learned from Parry's book is the discoloration factor. I recently just came across this a few weeks ago when I found a set of what I thought was green bakelite bangles. Once I picked up the pieces, I noticed the insides and outsides of the bracelets were different than the tops and bottoms (the parts that rub up against other bracelets). I'm not good at the "rub and sniff" test, so learning about this other way to possible spot bakelite has certainly come in handy. When I got home and I tested them with simichrome, they passed as bakelite.

One thing I wanted to note that Parry says in this book is that not all bakelite will pass the simichrome test and some fakelite will pass the simichrome test, so it's important to use other methods to test pieces as well. With the bracelets above, the tops and bottoms had wear on them and the discoloration helped to ensure that these pieces were indeed bakelite.

Here is my collection of bakelite bracelets. I don't have a lot of fancy pieces, but I am slowly adding to my collection. I have worn a lot of these in my previous posts, so now you will get a chance to see them up close. I always forget to take close-ups of my jewelry for my blog posts.

Bangles Top to Bottom:

Red Carved - eBay

Green Carved with Birdies! - eBay

4 Paprika Spacers - eBay

Creamed Corn Carved - Midland Flea Market $5!

Forest Green Carved - eBay $15!

Yellow Bangle - Estate Sale $1!

Set of three Teal Bangles - Estate Sale $2!

Large Yellow Bangle - Estate Sale $1

Root Beer Spacer - Estate Sale

Set of Three Swamp Marbled - Were my Grandma's

Pins

Swirl Shaped - Chicago Vintage Jewelry Store

Elephant - eBay

Carved Scottie - eBay

Stud Earrings - My Favorite!!

Orange Carved - eBay

Dark Green Transparent Carved - The Getup Vintage

Creamed Corn Carved - eBay

Green Carved - eBay

Hoops

All the hoops above were found on eBay except for the yellow brownish carved pair just to the left of the root beer hoops. Those were found at an estate sale for only $2!

As you can tell, I have found most of my bakelite on eBay and honestly, I think you get the best deal there if you look hard enough. I have been ripped off in person at flea markets where I have absolutely no recourse what so ever. At least with eBay, you are protected if you pay with PayPal.

Finally, here is a great youtube video that talks about the different ways to test bakelite. I hope you find it as helpful as I have.

Emily