Feeling Spring-y

I'm so excited because the weather has finally started to be warm consitantly!

So I thought it would be a great day to pull out my springy green sweater to wear!

It's such a nice fun color and it looks great with my 50s atomic circle skirt.

Sweater: Ribbon Threaded Jumper knit by me

Skirt: me-made

You'll have to pardon my hair. It was quite windy today plus I did this with a heated set and it was kind of crazy by the time I got to take pictures.

What spring pieces have you been wearing lately?

A Tale of Woe

Oh, what a lovely hand sewn hem on a giant circle skirt. I lovingly stitched you through Pirates of the Caribbean 4 and then some. Why did you end up so unwearably long? *sigh* Now to cut, and pin and press and sew again.

Youtube: The Mystery of Hair Styling

Today's tutorial is an experiment from the book The Mystery of Hair Styling, a 1950s hairdresser's text. I recently purchased it on Amazon and have been playing around with the setting patterns ever since. Enjoy!

HSF#7&8: Accessory and By the Sea

I've been doing some historical sewing! :D

Between the Stripes and the By the Sea challenges, I knew I had to make something nautical!

I made the Middy blouse for challenge #8 and the belt for #7 though I didn't get around to taking pictures of it till now!

The hat is one I retrimmed to go with my Lady Mary's garden party dress. It's not a perfect match but I didn't really have anything else to wear.

 I took these photos by a river since there wasn't a near by beach handy and we had some flooding so the water level was quite high!

The Challenge: By the Sea
Fabric: Green poly cotton and striped poly cotton (because I couldn't find any cotton in the right shade of green!)
Pattern: Folkwear Middy Blouse + self drafted patch pockets
Year: 19-teens
Notions: Self-covered buttons
How historically accurate is it? Wish I could have found something with less polyester! Nautical ensembles were very popular during this period and I'm really happy with the silhouette I got.
Hours to complete: 4 or so
First worn: April 2013 just for a photoshoot
Total cost: ~$25

I had a lot of fun running around taking pictures!

I just adore the peplum-ish length of the back! It made the whole outfit so fun.

Can't wait till I get to wear this outfit again! My inspiration/research is located here.

Sweet Tooth

I love sweets! And sweet dresses are even better! So when a local bakery owned by my a friend had it's grand opening, I couldn't resist wearing my cherry Bernie Dexter dress!

The bakery is Dream Bakery in West Alexandria, Ohio. They have the most amazing red velvet cake. Nom nom nom.

The barber shop next door was the perfect backdrop for some outfit shots.

I just adore a nice sun shiney day after a long gray Ohio winter!

The grand opening was very fun. I ate way too many samples and brought some more goodies home!

Youtube: Audrey Hepburn

I just adore Audrey Hepburn! She has such a cute chic look and looks amazing with short hair! I think I've finally cracked her style from Sabrina.

Enjoy!

What Real People Wore

It's quite easy to get wrapped up in the frilly party dresses and high fashion couture of the past and to forget what real people wore in their everyday lives. Today's outfit is not the most flashy or exciting but I feel it makes a great everyday outfit!

Last week I rotated my wardrobe and packed away most of my winter pieces so I went for layers on this chilly morning.

Outfit:

Blouse: me made

Cardigan: Ann Taylor

Skirt: 40s vintage

Hat and brooch: vintage

Can you believe that until recently, I had not one single basic white blouse?

Fabric: white rayon

Pattern: Du Barry 5909

Year: 1940s

Notions: 4 vintage buttons

First Worn: April 2012

Wear again: Yes! I imagine this will get a lot of wear!

I also added a vintage pin to my outfit! I really want to start wearing brooches more often but I have difficulty knowing how to wear them.

And of course, a hat is a must!

My husband got some new camera equipment recently and he decided to snap a few shots of me helping clean up at church after lunch.

 

 

I've really come to the realization lately that in order to really wear vintage all the time, I need more practical garments. Ordinary people didn't wear fancy or frufru all the time. They had to run errands and clean house and do all of the other day to day things that we do.

This outfit was quite practical and still cute!

Sometimes you just have to accept reality

As much as I wish I could live somewhere like southern California or Florida where I could wear pretty summer sundresses most of the year, I do not. I live in the midwest and it gets cold! And the weather is often uncooperative.

What happens in March is that the weather will be gorgeous for a few days and then go back to cold and rainy/snowy for a few weeks. At this point in time, I was so over winter especially since last winter was super mild. In an attempt to combat the winter blues, I set out to sew up a chilly weather appropriate dress and promptly purchased two lengths of corduroy from Jo-Anns (on sale too!)

This dress is the result of one of my fabric purchases! It's short sleeved so it won't be good for the dead of winter but it's going to be great for spring and fall days that are chilly in the morning and during early winter.

Fabric: 3 5/8 yd red corduroy ($4.50/yd), 2/3 yd black wool blend crepe (leftovers from another project)
Pattern:  Simplicity 2851
Year: 1949
Notions: Buttons (from Costume College $1), zipper ($2), belt is from a previously made dress
First worn: April '12
Total cost: ~$20
Wear again? Yup, I love it! It's very comfortable and much warmer than my summer dresses. I love the length and flattring late 40s silhouette. The only thing I don't like is that it's a lint magnet! 

I really want to make up this pattern in the other view in a more summery weight fabric but this dress is just perfect for posing in front of the old red storage barns!

Youtube: Ginnifer Goodwin

Today's hair tutorial is inspired by the lovely Ginnifer Goodwin in Mona Lisa Smile. It's a cute 1950s do with bangs!



And it's my birds Rachel and Leah's birthday! They are 1 today!

Happy Birthday birds!

Spring, Spring, Spring

I just love when it starts to warm up at the beginning of spring! I'm sure there will be a few more chilly periods before spring really takes hold but I took advantage of the nice weather to show off my legs!

I just love this circle skirt! It's one of the first things I ever made. The fabric has started to fade a bit but it's still wearable.

These shots were taken at an outdoor mall. It's one of my husband and my favorite palaces to hang in the summer. When it's hot out, the fountain behind me is on.

 

I had planned on waiting to cut my bangs till later in the summer but they got the chop last weekend and I've been loving them.

And my hair is finally long enough to pincurl without too much difficulty. Woot!

Purple peep toe wedges! I took style notes from the 40s and matched my accessories to each other instead of sticking with just the colors in my outfit.

And it wouldn't be a trip to the mall without some shopping! Mostly we just went out to enjoy the weather but I love window shopping too!

Youtube: Hats-It's not what's in your head, it's what's on it.

I adore hats! I know a lot of you too so I decided to share some of them! I have posted about my wall of hats before but I got a few new ones to show you!

Petals for Easter

I love any excuse to get extra dressed up! I didn't end up making anything special for Easter but I thought my pink velvet 50s suit would be perfect!

It's bold and sophisticated and not what you'd usually think for an Easter outfit. I like being a bit unpredictable.

Plus it was a bit chilly so I stayed warm!

The peplum is so fun! I think it looks a bit like tulip petals.

The shape it gives me is super sassy. Plus I wore my waist cincher for some extra curves.

Hope you all had a lovely Easter!