Being Adventurous

Sorry about the lack of posting lately. It's been raining and raining and raining and raining which makes it hard to get outfit photos! Anyways, all of this rain means more time for sewing and therefore, new outfits!

Tada! This is the first of my adventurer inspired looks which I made using some Downton Abbey Egyptian print fabric. I paired it with a lovely thrifted linen blouse which I'm really wishing I'd had all summer instead of getting it just recently.

I used McCall 7032 for the skirt. The pattern is a great basic pattern from the late 40s but it really could work for any number of decades depending on fabric, styling and hem length.

I added some topstitching details and used a cute brown button to finish off the skirt. I was a bit worried that I wouldn't end up liking wearing this much print but it's so cute!

And I got my hair chopped again. I was growing it out in the hopes of being able to do pin curls and updos but with the humidity, that's not going to happen for a while. So it's short for the rest of the summer. Plus I have been wanting to add a bit of 20s flair to my wardrobe too.

All the better to show off these earrings from Egypt. In high school when I was obsessed with ancient Egypt, I would go to this shop called the Nile Gallery in Cincinnati which is run by a lady who married an Egyptian guy and whenever they go to Egypt to visit family, they bring back things to sell in their shop (and also teach belly dancing lessons).

You may also have noticed that this outfit contains exactly one thing from my Project 333 wardrobe (shoes!) and the rest are cheats. Oy, I didn't even make it a month. I think part of the reason I quit so early is that I'd basically already been living out of the pieces in my Project 333 wardrobe for a few months and I was bored already.

 Ah, well. I will try again another time. Right now, I've decided that I'd rather enjoy my clothes than do something that was not fun. I still haven't unpacked my other clothes from the boxes so I'm really just adding in the pieces I've made/purchased/dug out of the boxes for my "fall" (now late summer) wardrobe.

Depending on how lazy I'm feeling, the other stuff my stay boxed up for a while... or until I think of something in the box that I want to wear and go digging again.

Now I just need a really fabulous cloche hat!

How to Wear Vintage at the Beach

In this installment of Q&A, we'll talk about what to wear to the beach and how to look classy during water activities!

Vlogging at Disney!

With my family in town last week, I didn't get any proper outfit photos! Oh, well. I did film a vlog from Epcot so you get two videos this week. Hope you enjoy this snippet of my Disney Bound adventures!

How to Take Great Blog Photos

We're back this week with some more Q&A. Today, I'll share with you some tips and tricks for better blog photos plus I'll give you the low down on what equipment I use for taking photos.

Vacation Week 2015

If you've been following me on Instagram, you've seen my adventures this past week. My family was in town visiting and we did a bunch of fun touristy things! I decided to leave the fancy camera behind and just do some Insta-blogging so here are a few of my snaps.

First, we hit Kennedy Space Center for some fun space adventures! While NASA doesn't do manned missions anymore, they still shoot off lots of rockets for satellites and such and several private companies are working on launching manned ships from the Kennedy Space Center. 

 While something 1960s would have been more appropriate, I went for an easy 1940s look that would be good for a day of walking around in big crowds.

Aside from some really cool space stuff, I spied these adorable vintage orange labels tucked off in a corner. So yummy!

And of course, all of the nerdy things! Even though I'm not much of a t-shirt person, I couldn't help but to snap a shot of this cute one.

Next up was Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure. Being a Disney buff, I've never made time for Universal so I was excited to see if it was as good as everyone says.

 For this adventure, I wore my Mexican peasant blouse, 1950s pedal pushers and comfortable shoes. When you are going some place you've never been, it's always better to be a bit more conservative in your outfits. I went for pants because skirts and roller coasters don't really mix. The park ended up being smaller than I thought but I was happy that I wore sneakers.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was high on my list of must sees at Universal. It was really cool! They did a great job of really making it look like Hog's Mead but the fake snow was a bit annoying in mid summer.

All in all, it was a fun day but definitely nothing to compare with Disney. There were more roller coasters but also a lot of water rides and 3D rides neither of which are really my thing. Universal Studios original park has even more 3D rides (almost all!) so I couldn't image going there. I did like the Jurassic Park section but was bummed that it's ride was a water ride. :(

For dinner, we hit up the Hard Rock Cafe which was yummy!

After two days of big parks, we took a rest day at the beach. It was super calm and we were able to go in quite far and see pretty deep into the water. Thank goodness for sun screen and beach umbrellas because I ended up falling asleep and napping on the beach.

After a break day, we hit up Epcot and I took my video camera so look for a blog some time soon. After my Downtown Disney vlog, one of my readers suggested that I do a Disney Bound. So here it is! I had so much fun doing this. Several cast members and visitors noticed my Snow White Disney Bound. Someone even knew it was a Disney Bound. :) Can't wait to do this again!

One of my favorite things about Epcot is the food! We stopped in France for a snack and look at those yummies! My husband was recently diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that is triggered by gluten similar to Celiac Disease and the staff at Disney were AMAZING with helping find gluten free options for him. Yay for Disney!

 Another reason I love Epcot is all of the fabulous clothes from all the countries! I loved this ensemble from Morocco. We had dinner in Morocco and it was fabulous! I think I'm going to be learning how to make Middle Eastern food soon. I also did some shopping in Mexico. I know I just started the Project 333 but I'm feeling really inspired right now and it might not end well....

All in all, it was a great week with my family. I'm so sad they are gone already but we had a blast. Back to normal life next week.

Vlogging from the Cocoa Beach Pirate Festival

Who doesn't love pirates? They arrrrrrrre amazing! Oh, lame pirate puns aside, I did have fun at this local pirate festival. I don't have a pirate costume but I did get to test out my 1940s summer survival ensemble in the crazy Florida heat and humidity. Why don't you watch to find out my choices to beat the heat?

Changing Keys

Every once in a while, something comes along that causes you to break one of your own fashion rules. One of the things that I've learned about my style is that I'm not a huge fan of all over prints on myself. Separates, sure. An entire dress, not so much. And today I've gone and proven myself wrong. I'm changing the musical key of my wardrobe, so to speak.

Music has always been a huge part of my life. I adore singing and have always wanted to live in a musical. I played flute for 8 years. I've taken music theory, philosophy of music, and piano classes. While I don't get the chance to play or compose much anymore, I do sing in the shower and rock out to music in the car. This print would also be great for swing dancers.

So when Wearing History offered it's melody print in one of my favorite fabrics, rayon, I knew I had to have some.

My original plan for this fabric was very different from what it ended up as. First, I envisioned a 1940s evening gown in this drapey rayon. But when the fabric got here, I changed my mind. It's a lovely rayon with a great drape. It's not too wrinkly or slippery to work with like some other rayons I've used.

And while this fabric would have been fabulous for an evening gown, when the fabric got here, I knew I had to make it up into something that I would wear more often. And when fabric speaks to you, it's a good idea to listen to it.

So I dug through my pattern stash and after a quick shout out to Facebook, I decided on Anne Adams 4832. I've made it before in a mid-weight linen which I wore on the 4th of July but I decided to make a few changes in this version.

I decided to bind the neckline instead of face it with a casing. I also moved the gathers from the center to off to the sides which gives more of a square-ish neckline. And I went with the optional patch pocket. The only other change I made was a narrow shoulder adjustment.

Between these changes and the difference in the behavior of the linen and rayon, these two dresses feel completely different! The rayon sewed up beautifully. Sometimes rayon can be super slippery and difficult to work with but this one behaved.

Something to consider when sewing with this pattern is that it is large and busy. It is best suited for a pattern with a simple design and not too many seam lines. A design with lots of crazy seam lines would get lost in the print and the print would get chopped up by the seam lines.

 On the up side, the print is so cute and would work for a wide variety of decades including modern styles. And the color palette is great-navy, pink, green, blue and white. It's got great potential for accessorizing in any of these colors. I also think it would be super cute in a color blocked dress.

Since I had originally planned on making an evening gown, I have some extra fabric. I really want to make up some coordinating accessories. I really want a navy jacket or bolero lined in this fabric to wear with this dress in the winter. And I'm saving all my scraps to trim a hat to match.

Love that music print so much!

 I finished this dress just a week ago and I've already worn it twice! So, overall, I give this fabric a thumbs up! If you'd like to have some of your own, you can find it here.

 Disclaimer: Fabric provided c/o Wearing History for review.