My cuban heels seem to go up a lot further than they’re meant to. A few years ago, before I figured out that seamed stockings could be bought for $4 at most sex stores, I used to soak in the bathtub with a few tea bags and then draw the seam with either a brown or black Sharpie marker before I went out. I may still do that this summer – it’s too hot in Texas for stockings once it hits 104F!

• Purple beret – military supply store, Seattle
• Flapper headband from Louise Black
• Damask earrings
• Black sweater – Express, had it since 1998 when I went clothing shopping for my sophomore year in high school
• 1950s plaid dress
• White slip
• Purple stockings
• Brown/Black t straps

This is one of those dresses that I seem to have a million of: 1950s silhouette, plaid, kind of brown. I swear I have at least six. I picked this one out because it has purply undertones and I like to haul out my purple accessories every once in a while.

This seems to be the formula for my outfits lately:

1. Headband from Louise Black and/or a beret
2. Light Cotton dress (with lots of underslips)
3. Black cardigan
4. Colored stockings
5. T Strap shoes

The blouse I’m wearing is from Jitterbuggin’ on etsy. It’s so cute! All handmade and they come in bigger sizes, too. I ordered one more just like it (it has kittens on it).
I’ve been needing some more blouses that don’t button up the front. My buttons have a habit of unloosening themselves. Can’t have that! When I saw Drew Barrymore in Grey Gardens last week I knew what I wanted the basic shape to be.
I got these glasses a few years ago when I first moved to Austin, on my first trip to Uncommon Objects. They were a bit crooked, but I took them to an eyeglasses shop and they heated them up and put them right. However, they told me it would be a $70 charge to simply put glass in the frames, so I just wear them plain and hope that no one thinks it strange.

Today I had to fight off Harry Potter references at work. They’re more like Harold Lloyd, anyways!

Sorry, no close-up today. I was up late late late working on issue #5 of Doublespeak, which is SO long over due it’s not even funny. I drank loads of coffee and ate too much sugar and ended up not letting up until around 3am. I tell you all this because I didn’t wash my hair, hence the teased nest+bandana combination. While I was biking to work this morning a homeless man yelled “I LOVE LUCY!” and also one of my customers asked me if I liked “I Love Lucy.”
Okay, I see that we both have blue eyes, red lipstick and red hair, but there are more subtle differences: my eyes are more teal, my hair is less carroty (and floofy, usually), my lips have a different silhouette.

I think I am going to craft and watch bits of Carnivale, Season 2 tonight. I love the production design of this show and I love the The Dreifuss family: their style, their story, everything.
This is from Wikipedia:
To give a sense of the dry and dusty environment of the Dust Bowl, smoke and dirt were constantly blown through tubes onto the set. The actors’ clothes were ragged and drenched in dirt, and Carnivàle had an estimated 5,000 people costumed in the show’s first season alone. The creative team listened to 1930s music and radio and read old Hollywood magazines to get the period’s sound, language, and slang right. The art department had an extensive research library of old catalogs, among them an original 1934 Sears Catalog, which were purchased at flea markets and antique stores. The East European background of some characters and Asian themes in Brother Justin’s story were incorporated into the show. Except for the show’s supernatural elements, a historical consultant deemed Carnivàle’s historic accuracy to be excellent in regard to the characters’ lives and clothes, their food and accommodations, their cars and all the material culture.
8 million USD were the budget for each of the episodes! No wonder they look so amazing!

I love brown and red! I have tried so hard to successfully incorporate animal print in a tasteful way in my wardrobe in the past few years, and the only things I’ve held on to are this fluffy collar from H&M and a muff from Coquette Faux Furriers.  I’ve tried on a billion leopard print dresses but they are too rockabilly Portland for my taste.

January 9th, 2007 – this was the first incarnation of this outfit nearly three years ago. I was still in Graduate school in Eugene, OR and I took this photo right before I rode my bike to school that morning. I’m still using the tube of Russian Red lipstick I wore in this photo. How little has changed!

]]> http://vintagevivant.com/2009/12/11/december-11-2009/feed/ 2 http://vintagevivant.com/2009/11/22/november-22-2009/ http://vintagevivant.com/2009/11/22/november-22-2009/#comments Sun, 22 Nov 2009 21:44:46 +0000 Vintage Vivant http://vintagevivant.com/?p=2058

I cannot get enough of this hat. It’s still not even that hot in Texas but I’m finding excuses to wear it. “Sixty eight degrees?! Better put my hat on!”

This is what the slips I sell on etsy look like when you lift up the hem of your dress… it’s perfect for signaling your order in a loud, crowded bar.
The Ladies’ Society for the Reinstatement of Proper Undergarments is pleased to present Doublespeak’s ultimate tool in flirtation: a coquettish vintage slip with the phrase Buy Me a Whiskey” hand-embroidered on the lacy hem. This item is perfect for the modern lady because it combines the uniqueness of vintage with the functionality of lingerie. It may be worn as an undergarment for the teasing flirt or as a simple dress for the tart. Ladies and gentlemen will melt at the sentimentality, and it’s much more tasteful than sliding one’s number on a cocktail napkin.

This hat is simply amazing. It’s all handmade by Behida of YellowField on etsy. I decided to order it before my big trip to Michigan last week and it was waiting for me when I got back to Texas. It arrived in a giant hat box and was carefully packed in tissue paper.

I have hand felted and shaped a cloche hat before (rather unsuccessfully) so I appreciate the craftsmanship and detail of this darling hat. The hat is altered to fit after you order it, so be sure to measure your head correctly or measure another cloche hat that fits your head well. It’s simply amazing from all angles and I received countless compliments when I wore it today. Please go visit Behida’s shop and ask for her hats for your holiday present!

• Antlers with felt and 1930s fabric ticking
• Brown and white spotted dress – Buffalo Exchange
• Brown knee socks
• Gold strappy shoes – Vivienne Westwood for Melissa

• Brown Beret – Military Supply Store, Seattle, WA
• Red Satin Ribbon
• Ruby Woo Lipstick
• Lace cuff with flower by Louise Black
• 1940s brown dress with smiling leaf print – Buffalo Exchange, Austin
• Vintage lace slip
• White socks from sockdreams.com
• Brown wedges

• Pink polkadot headband with lace and antique flowers – lousieblack.etsy.com (project runway!)
• Silver tooth necklace
• Brown dress with tiny white polkadots and lots of pleats – Buffalo Exchange
• 1940s pleated slip – Magpie, Portland, Oregon
• Peeptoe tstrap shoes – Target