Saturday 23 January 2010

Halloween, perhaps my favorite holiday of the year, is right around the corner. Perhaps it’s my favorite because it’s connected in my mind with the changing of the seasons, vibrant fall leaves, crisp cool nights and getting together with friends. Not to mention getting to dress up in costumes! I’m quite the costume snob in that I really dislike all of those pre-fab plasticky store bought types. And don’t even get me started at how overly-sexualized all Halloween costumes have become, even for children. If you want to dress up as a nurse, it has to be a sexy nurse! A sexy pirate! A sexy fairy! A sexy witch! Ugh, gross. I’ve always enjoyed putting together my own with bits and pieces from thrift stores, using a little sewing and old fashioned ingenuity to come up with an original costume. In the past I’ve been everything from an Edward Gorey character to Strawberry Shortcake (and no, not a sexy Strawberry Shortcake!). Sadly, I think the days that I’m willing to go out in full hair and makeup are over. This year I’m taking it a bit easy and simply raiding my own closet to come up with a costume. My boyfriend and I knew we wanted to go as a couple, but who? Travis Bickle and Iris? Johnny and June? Leon and Mathilda? I decided to let a trip to the thrift store decide for me. When I ran across a perfect three piece grey pinstripe suit in just Tom’s size, I knew we’d have to go as Bonnie and Clyde. We’ll be sure to snap some photos for you!

In the spirit of Halloween, I was researching (read: trolling through Flickr) to find vintage costume photos to post. I couldn’t decide whether to go in the direction of über-creepy kid costumes or adorable Hollywood starlets. Hmm. Decisions, decisions. Let’s do a bit of both, shall we?

Back before icky chain stores started pumping out pre-fab costumes of all the latest super heroes and Disney princesses, kids used whatever they could find to dress up as witches, goblins, hobos and clowns. It certainly made for a much creepier Halloween! Let’s just say if any of these kids ring my doorbell on Halloween I might not open it. Yikes!

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On the complete opposite end of the spectrum you have pretty Hollywood starlets doing their best stage-lit renditions of Halloween jesters, frisky felines and swashbucklers. Pretty, sure, but not nearly scary enough for me!

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Isn't it just darling?! I'd keep it for myself but my closet's already overflowing. See everything else that's going in the store down below. :)

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Thanks so much for hanging in there with me during the last crazy week or so. It should be business as usual from here on out! Remember, if you see something you like, you can click the photo to see it a bit bigger. Love ya! - SJ




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dress: H&M
sweater: vintage
tights: American Apparel
hat, purse & shoes: vintage

While I was visiting Alabama, my sister and I had too much fun dressing to the nines and taking pictures in the woods around my parent's cabin. It was a nice relief from using the tripod and timer! Ha. One of the nice side effects of my trip home was I had a little extra time to visit some of my favorite thrift stores. I was smart this time and packed a small suitcase inside of a large suitcase so I could check two bags on the way home. I didn't have too much luck with finding clothes (all of the stores were being raided by people looking for Halloween costumes) but I really hit the jackpot with boots and shoes. I just imagined whoever the airport employee whose job it was to x-ray my luggage on the way home had to think, "How many pairs of shoes can one girl need?!" Lucky for you only a couple of pairs fit me so they'll all be going up in the store over the next few weeks. Speaking of the store, I'm sorry for the sparse listings right now but the past week has been a whirlwind. I'll get back to business as usual this week so look for 20 new listings this Thursday.
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You can read more of me gushing about her book here (as well as see a few photos from the book). I imagine the store is filled to the gills with perfectly worn in leather suitcases, antique dressmaker’s forms, vintage rugs from around the world and well-loved furniture. In a perfect world I would hire Ms. Chalmers to decorate my home. Has anyone visited the store? Is it as perfect as I imagine?

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I was trying my best to come up with a nice fashion-y post for you today but frankly my brain is tired and I just couldn't think of anything interesting to write about. Instead I'll share a few more photos of my stay in Alabama. The huge porch on my parent's cabin wraps all the way around and each corner is filled with comfy rocking chairs and swings. This corner might be my favorite. It's the perfect hammock to curl up in and take a nap. Little did I realize I had to share my space with this little guy. He didn't seem to mind too much and scurried away right after I snapped this shot.
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dress: vintage
tights: Urban Outfitters
shoes: vintage

This is the tree swing I mentioned in my earlier post. It's hanging from a huge pecan tree in one of the pastures where my parents live in Alabama. The weather has cooperated and it's been wonderful with big blue skies and perfect white clouds. Something about the way the sun filters through the leaves here makes everything seem a bit magical.
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I'm still on the road so instead of a brand new batch of auctions I've listed more items with the "Buy It Now" option. Head on over to the store to check it out! I've linked all the photos to their auction pages so if you see something you like, just click away. Thanks!



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cabin photos

I'm still in Alabama but I thought I'd take a quick second to say hi and show you a few snapshots of where I've been. I've been staying with my parents in their perfect little log cabin in the woods. It's filled with pretty antiques and family heirlooms with lacey curtains in the windows. You can sit on the porch for hours and watch the birds and lizards scurry about. There's even a family of flying squirrels living under the eaves. It's surrounded by thick woods and rolling pastures and has two streams that wind through the property. One of the best parts is the giant tree swing that hangs from the biggest pecan tree you've ever seen (more on that later). I'm sure you'd all love it!
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tank top: J. Perse
crochet shawl: vintage
skirt: vintage
tights: American Apparel
shoes: vintagepurse: vintage
headband: made by me
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Hiya all! I've got good news and I've got bad news. Let's start with the bad news. I want to apologize to any of you that may have been bidding on or watching one of my items for sale on Ebay. My Ebay account has some serious knots in it right now and all of the listing have been canceled. Oy vey! What's the good news you ask? Well, I've relisted most of the items with "Buy It Now" prices. So, if you're one of those people that hates getting outbid at the last second (and who doesn't hate that?) today could be your lucky day. Hop on over to the store and get 'em while they last. I should have all the kinks worked out in the next week or so and then it will be back to business as usual. Again, I'm so sorry if you were bidding on an item that was canceled. Below are all of the items that I've relisted. If you were watching or bidding on an item that you don't see here, that item will be relisted with next week's batch.

To make it easy for you, I've linked all of the photos to their auction pages so all you have to do is click on the photo and it will take you right to the auction page. Who knows! If this goes well maybe it will be my foray into the world of Etsy. Thanks so much for stopping by! ;)







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dress: vintage
belt: thrifted at Salvation Army
boots: vintage
knit beret: vintage
purse: vintage
tights: American Apparel

On our recent trip to New York I ended up buying two vintage dresses. One is the little brown mod shift dress with the lace ruffle collar you saw in the NY photo collage (it's still in my to-sew pile) and this is the other one. Surprisingly enough I found it at one of the many American Apparels that dot the city in their California Select vintage section. I expected to find lots of flashy 80's vintage duds but was quite pleasantly surprised at their selection. I ended up trying on four dresses and felt a bit like Goldilocks. This one's a bit too big, this one's a bit too small and this one is juuuust right. I know that every time I buy a vintage dress I say it's my new favorite dress and once again I'm declaring this my new favorite. With its brown velveteen trim and pockets on the hips, how could I not?
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A couple of weeks ago when I posted photos of my recent vintage buys I included a pair of perfectly broken in Doc Martens. Several of you commented that you would like to see ways to style the boots so... here you have it.
  • On a day when I want to be 100% comfortable, say going to a thrift store to dig through piles and piles in search of that one perfect find that makes it all worth while, I'd throw on a pair of vintage Levi cut-offs, a beat up old tee and a slouchy cardigan. I'm not much of a sneaker-wearer so the Docs are the perfect alternative.
  • Now this is cheating a bit. I personally love this look, however, I don't think I could leave the house in this. It's not that I don't think it's a good combo, I do. It's just that the one rule of fashion (if there are any hard and fast rules) that I tend to follow is that if you wore it the first time around, you shouldn't go back. I think I literally wore this outfit when I was a sophomore in high school (yes, I'm that old!). But just because I've already lived my grunge years those of you that weren't even born in 1992 shouldn't miss out. And since I won't be wearing it out of the house, you can buy it here. ;)
  • OK, this is more my speed. I think the trick for me will be to mix feminine pieces with tougher pieces like this floral dress with my motorcycle jacket. The girly dress balances out the tougher pieces in the ensemble.
  • In the same way, I like to pair skinny jeans and a black tank top with a feminine sweater to balance things out. If I wore my motorcycle jacket with this outfit I'd feel a little too biker-chick.
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Here's a look at some of the pieces that will be going up in the store today. I'm busy right now trying to get the auctions ready to post. Be sure to stop by and check them all out. Thank so much!

(If you see something you like, click on the photo to see it a bit bigger)




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jeans: Superfine
boots: vintage Etienne Aigner
hat: Urban Outfitters

One of my favorite things about living in Lancaster is walking to Central Market. Central Market is the oldest operating farmer's market in the nation. There you can stroll the aisles and shop for local grown fresh fruits and veggies, fresh apple cider pressed by the Amish, and Pennsylvania specialties such as shoo fly pie and lots of fresh pretzels. You just have to make sure you avoid other Pennsylvania specialties such as scrapple and headcheese. If you don't know what that is, don't even ask. Going there always makes me feel like I'm living in a bustling little city in another time.
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Thanks again for all of the recommendations on vintage stores to check out while we were in NY. I think it would takes days or weeks to discover each and every little store. It seems they're on every street and around every corner. So here is a short synopsis of most of the vintage stores we visited on our trip. We visited more than this but a few of them have melded in my mind and I can't remember which was which.
CLICK NOW
COLLECTION OF WORLD'S BEST WALLPAPERS
WOW WHAT A BEAUTY
AMAZING NATURE
NATURE OF GOD
JAZZ OF LIFE
COOL PHOTOS BANK
BEAUTY OF WILDLIFE
BEST PHOTOS OF THE WORLD

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