Show & Tell Friday~

Here is a recent photo of my grandson. He is now 2 months old. He is sooooooo funny. This kid can actually flirt! He raises his eyebrows... up and down, up and down..... then he bats his eyes and smiles~ Man-oh man it is sooooooooo funny! I don't think he does it to be funny because when you laugh at him... he gets kinda mad lol... but how on earth can you help but not laugh? I think I'm going to spend his childhood years covering up my face so he won't see me laughing at him all the time lol.


(Is it me? or does Friday seem to come around awfully fast? I was going to take photos of several different things so as to keep up the illusion of my greatness....but alas...I've had to give into my laziness and resort to an "already downloaded photo." lol)

Show and tell Friday is hosted by: http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/

Still bored~

I think the heat is zapping all my energy. Or at least thats the excuse I'm going to be using for the next few months lol. I did manage to get one of my drip systems put together and a'dripping. Trouble is... I think the spicket is dripping more than the whole drip system combined~

Worked on some baby fairies today. I just love that family photo of baby Margaret. She is my muse. I have her dressed in different colored dresses and each one is adored with a beautiful set of wings...and each is sitting on a flower in a tiny jar. I've made 4 so far. I've got 24 total of the small jars that I'm going to use as "fairy jars." When I make something, I like to make multiplys. I was wanting some tags....I made a whole box full, just the tags.. both sides covered, just awaiting some kinda something on it. One of these days~

Playing with Princess Seams

In the mid 1960's, when the simple shift dress became popular, designers began experimenting with seams to add some visual interest to what could be a pretty basic style. This 1960's coat is by a company named Irvama-Carmel. I don't know who the designer was, but I love the ingenious use of the S curve in the front Princess seams.

The seam starts at the neckline under the collar, and curves out over the bust, back in above the waist, and then out to the side seam. That seam incorporates the bust shaping and also provides placement for the faux pocket flaps. Why use a straight dart when you can do something so much more pleasing to the eye?

See this coat and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Bored~

I was so bored today...I decided to give some of my things a makeover. I'm trying to get my studio whipped into shape. I think I'm making a bigger mess trying to clean it up. Anywhoooooooo, I'm happy with the results of my mini-bin. I like having my old photos out and I think this will work out nicely until I think of something else. I made some dividers out of doubled up cardstock, added a little lace, some elmers glue...and a ruffled title and taaaa-daaa instant cute. I've got two more identical wire baskets that I'm going to house ephemera in. I do not have much in the line of vintage items.... something to shoot for I guess. I am a newbie to this online world of vintage cuteness.

I received my matchbox swap items today. A big thank you to Michelle from http://www.hippiedog.typepad.com/ she decorated two beautiful matchboxs and filled them with cute items~ Click the photo to make it bigger to see the cute things that were inside the two boxes. Very sweet~ again, thank you Michelle.
Here is the little box and items I sent to Michelle. Two more swaps to go and I'm taking a break lol.

Swapping~

Look what I swapped $20.00 buckeroos for~ a three tiered etagere. Cute as a button!....now I just have to find a place/use for it :-P

Score~

I had a fun day today at the boutiques~ I purchased 5 yards of fabric for $4.00 (one yard of which is vintage), a chenille basket $2.00.... a chenille bedspread $4.00 (in the washer as I type) a milk glass bowlie $3.00, a heavy wire bowlie $3.00, an old wooden shelf $3.00, two jars *free*, two wooden candle sticks $1.00/pair, a tall/thin metal laundry hamper $6.00. (I went to an antique store and saw one like it for $30.00 so I went back and bought this one) and last but not least.... one dollar for the 3 drawer small dresser. I do not need any of this stuff, I know this, but do you think it even slowed me down buying any of it? Nooooooooo --- I've got a shopping problem, admitting you have a problem is the first step. To what I have no clue....but its a step. :-P

Miniature Tree house~

Here is the frame of the miniature tree house I have been working on. It is going to look like a tree stump when I'm completed with it. It is going to house a tiny teddy bear that I received after my grandfather passed away~ I am not using a kit, this is made out of a tall plastic laundry hamper that I flipped upside down. I cut an opening (to be used later as a door) and then I added some thin wood for "floors." I then covered the laundry hamper with paper mache and thats where I've left off~

This show & tell Friday was hosted by: http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/

Matchbox swap~

Well, I finally finished my box for the matchbox swap hosted by Natasha over at http://www.natashaburns.blogspot.com/ I didn't have a matchbox so I used a small box instead :-) I made a small baby fairy for the lid and used some puff tape behind her so she is 3d on the box. Kinda cute~

Baby Fairy~

Here is a picture of a baby fairy that I made today. She has transparent wings and wears a glittered dress in a very light shade of peach and sits atop a little rose~ This family photo is Margaret Everett Davis. She was two when the photo was taken. She has a sad look to her... just like I imagine a little fairy would have if it was caught and kept in a jar~ I am going to embellish it a little more, but for now she is going to sit below my computer screen to keep me company~

Vintage Coats II

As promised, here are more vintage coats from our 2007 collection, now available in our store.

1960's Mohair Boucle Coat with Mink Trim

1950's Karakul Coat with Mink Trim

1950's Navy Cashmere Swing Jacket

See these coats and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Thanks B!

Here is a picture of my daughter holding her son of two months. I got the honor of painting the walls of Jonathans room :-) I had asked if anyone knew how to make it so a picture can be enlarged if clicked and B over at http://bzplace.blogspot.com/ told me how... gee, now I'm feeling kinda dumb because it was sooooooo simple lol Thanks B!

Crown & Tiara Swap~

The crown I made as part of the Crown & Tiara swap hosted by http://hollydoodledesigns.com/WordPress/ is finished. I created a crown that is adjustable and it folds flat for easy shipping/storage... kinda neat. You know as well as I do that sometimes us queens get fat heads, well I took that into consideration lol. It is made out of paper as my swap partner said she was making mine out of paper as well~ You can see more pictures over at my Flickr account. Just click on the flickr photos at the lower right of this blog~ :-)

I cut up a large cardboard box and made a custom box to hold the crown along with a sceptre and small matching photo album I made. I think it turned out kinda cute~

Hmmm now I had better get busy on my other swaps! (I'm in a total of4 others lol)

When's the Best Time to Buy a Vintage Coat?

NOW! We're listing our 2007 collection of vintage coats this week, and we've got some beauties for you! Shop early for the best selection. We're usually sold out early!

1970's Rust Wool Coat with Mink Collar

1960's Mohair Plaid Clutch Coat

1940's Purple Velvet Beaded Evening Coat

1950's Baby Blue Clutch Coat

More tomorrow!

See these coats and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Sunshine swap

I signed up for the "Bucket full of Sunshine swap" over at Sweet Goodness swaps .... sounds like fun. This is one of four I'm participating in at the moment. (crazy huh) When I was shoping at the boutiques this past Saturday I purchased several vintage finds in the colors of yellow & orange. (not my top choice of colors but thats what the swap colors are) The "Bucket" can be anything you choose.... plus there is a contest to see who has given the best container... nothing motivates me like winning~ Like that old saying goes.... "If I can't win, I'm not playing". Hmmmm maybe thats just my old saying? *grins*

Cute~

I purchased this standing wreath holder at a boutique for 2 buckeroos. At the time I didn't know what it was...but I thought it would look cute holding a wreath. Very preceptive of me huh~ lol...

anywho.... I got tired of it doing that since I found out thats what it was SUPPOSSED to do... so I unscrewed the base...and added some rolls of ribbon (that were becoming unruly in a drawer) and a pair of scissors and taaaaaaa-daaaaaa instant cute~
I would appreciate it if someone could tell me how to make my photos "get larger" when they are clicked. Plllllleasssssssse anyone???

Boutique~ing

Ahhhhhh I love Saturdays. Thats my "special" day to hit the boutiques (a.k.a. thrift stores) I left the house at 6:15ish and hit some yard sales & one block sale. The first boutique opens at 8, so I always have time to gas up and then look for treasures on peoples lawns. lol I filled up my car so much so that I had to have stuff in the back seat hanging over the front seat. That is a sure sign I've had FUN :-)

hmmmmmmmm what did I buy?....ummmm several yards of vintage fabric. (rarity that I find any~) A bag full of chains...in the length of necklaces and some in the size for keychains... $2 dollars for the bag yippeeeeeee~ Two hard plastic file folders that I'm going to load with ephemera..... ummmm some paper boxes I'm going to cover.... ummmm...... a bunch of old tins, a lovely little sewing basket (40 cents) some embroidered linens. Tons more but its all put away and I've forgotten most of it already lol

Purple Shoes!

Where were these shoes when I was in 8th grade? In 1967, these chunky heeled shoes were all the rage. We wore them with our neon colored mini dresses and bright tights. I would have died and gone to heaven if I could have had purple shoes!

I had the perfect hot pink dress that just cried out for these shoes. I would have worn them with matching pink tights, or maybe yellow ones..... Leave it to me to find the perfect shoes 40 years too late! Of course, I no longer wear a size 5 1/2 shoe, nor do I wear mini skirts, but purple is still my favorite color. I know you understand.

See these shoes and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

1940's Chenille Robe

Cozy, comfy, snug, and secure - that's how I feel when I wear a vintage chenille robe. Made from soft cotton, chenille was first popular for bedspreads. And a robe like this gets better each time you wash it.

But how can you be sure its vintage? Well, this one comes with the original cotton filled shoulder pads. You can't get more Joan Crawford than that! And, it's new, old stock, with the original tags still attached!

See this robe and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Show & Tell Friday~

Drum roll please~..... here is my Show & Tell for this Friday. Okokok..its more like show off and brag lol. The box of beads (above) I bought for a quarter at a yard sale last Saturday..... had a REAL pearl necklace in it! I have often heard of people finding treasures for mere pennies...finally, it was my turn!

Here is the pearl necklace laying on the blue sheet of paper. BeAuTiFuL! After opening the box later that day...I noticed that the necklace had some weight to it. (not like the typical plastic bead pearl necklace you see everywhere) ....so I got out my eye loop....and inspected it vewy-vewy closely. Taaaaaaaaaaa daaaaaaaaaaa real-deal~ Hooray for me! hmmm I kinda feel like a pirate! lol

This Show & Tell Friday is hosted by: Kelli over at "There is no place like home"

Partea swap~

I got my package from the Partea swap I had joined a few weeks back. (my very first swap) My swapping partner was Suzy, and she totally deserves kudos for her creativity~ Wowzers.

I love the tags she made for each package.... aren't they so cute?

she wrapped each package in clothing patterns and what I'm guessing was paper placemats, (don't go thinking THAT won't be copied lol... super cute!

Here are a few items unwrapped.... love-love-love that sea foam green color. I've got it everywhere in my house :-) who knew?..... yep, I collect tins, and bird houses lol....okokok...and I love-love-love candles~ and doilies? do I need to say it? :-P

Another fabulous unwrapped treasure. A beautiful tablecloth with two napkins...Isn't that so sweet?....

Here is the whole bounty~

Pear for my Partea table~

A tablecloth for two~

Roses teacup~

Tin filled with treasures~

Eggplant teacup~

A box of mango tea~

Thank you very much Suzy, your package was delightful!~

Busy weekend

It was a busy weekend~ I did manage to hit some boutiques (thrift stores) on Saturday and found some fun junk. The most fabulous thing I bought....for a quarter.... I'll post on "Show and tell Friday's" post. *still smiling over that find!* In my neck of the woods, I don't seem to find the vintage treasures that most everyone else stumbles upon. I think those things get put in the dumpster.....grrrrrrrrr.At a church yard sale, I did come across two books full of wrapping paper samples. The two books were 25 cents each...The gal at the check out was beside herself with jealousy upon seeing them. (Only added to my own giddiness) I thought to myself.... YOU didn't go through all the stuff first???? Why volunteer to be a part of the yard sale if you don't get first dibs???? LOL I also got a box full of beads for 25 cents, a wicker basket with several pairs of scissors, thread, pins and other odds & ends for 50 cents~
I also picked up this shelf unit for $2 buckeroos~The shelves are oak, and it was easy to take apart and put back together. The person I bought it off of had plants on it outdoors~ I am wanting/needing some shelves to sort out all my stuff...but in the mean time this extra space is nice to house all the stuff I was putting on the floor lol. Below is a picture of it painted and the shelves covered with some vinyl... and some odds & ends trying out the new space :-P (And yesssssssssss that is a baby changing table in my studio... I have a little bassinet along with that changing table for my two month old grandson who comes over for milk & cookies (jOkInG)