Link Love ~ Vintage Angelfish Outfit

I love this outfit of Solanah's ~ it's stunning!  If you haven't already; do check out the full post.

Vixen Vintage: Angelfish   

This weekend my mother hosted an "Under the Sea" party, and I went as an angelfish.  :)

xox,

bonita

Do Bump Bump de Do

 

So in case anyone is confused ~ yes, the baby did come.  She’s currently snuggled up and asleep in her bassinet.  These photos are from before, but I thought I’d put them up anyway as they are still good, vintage styled, maternity fashion shots ~ right?

I don’t know about any of you, but I find dressing a baby bump is pretty challenging.  I managed to find some cute vintage items to wear this time around ~ I felt like I was much more true to my style this time around than when I was pregnant with Theodore.  So the more outfit inspiration ~ the better I think!  

Nonetheless, I am glad, glad, glad{!} that I can start wearing all my pretty dresses again!  I even have some new ones that I can’t wait to show you.   ヽ(*⌒∇⌒*)ﾉ

xox,

bonita

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~
White Hair Bow  ~  Diva  Vintage It’s Plaid Baby Top  ~  Etsy    Basic Denim Capris   ~  Crossroads, this season   Moscow Moccasins  ~  FSW Footwear, two years ago

Link Love ~ Setting Lotions for Pin Curls

This is a great post from Lisa of Snoodlebug on the different types of setting lotions you can use for pin curls.  Check it out ~

Ready, get SET go!:


Yep, another bad pun – I do love a bad pun. 

I’ve had a lot of questions about setting lotion lately – both online and in real life - so I thought a quick post on what it is and what it does might be useful. Back to basics for a lot of you I’m sure but that never hurt anyone. 

So. Let's begin at the beginning...

What is it?

Well, somewhat obviously, setting lotion is product that is applied to hair in order to set styles. i.e. to make them neater and last longer. It comes in many forms – liquids which do or do not need dilution, crèmes such as boots curl crème, foaming products and even gels. Some people even make their own. Some are best applied to wet hair and some to dry – some can be used on both. Finding the right setting lotion for your hair can be a little like finding your Holy Grail foundation, but once you have found it you won’t ever want to change....

xox,

bonita

Hold You Love

I honestly can’t think of anything to say…. 

I blame it on the baby brain.  Really.

I am currently alternating between being too tired to do much of anything except rest, {they don’t call it an irritable uterus for nothing…  It’s so irritating!}, and having insane bursts of energy which results in manic “MUST CLEAN ALL THE THINGS”!!

~ * Yes, I just generated my first meme.  Ironically, I think that’s where this image came from ~ from a must clean all the things post.  (> . <)  * ~

And that’s the extent of my functioning at the moment.  I am looking forwards to be able to think again in about ~ oh, 3 months?   Ah, the joys of late pregnancy/life with newborns.  (￣▽￣*)ﾉ

xox,

bonita

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~
White Pleasant Blouse  ~  Thrifted    Pastel Pink Capris  ~  Crossroads, this season     Blush Bloom Lace Socks  ~  Thrifted    Sandy Sandshoes  ~  Thrifted

Borrowing Tips from Grace Kelly’s Style

  


 

Easy to wear blouse, Capri pants, cute flats, simple hair and glam sunglasses?  Check, and check!  Whether or not I’ve managed to pull off the ‘Grace Kelly’ look, I do not know, but I do know that I love the simplicity of this outfit!

The vintage baby-doll top I recently purchased is one of the best maternity pieces I have ever laid eyes on ~ it’s the one item in my current wardrobe that I wish I could wear when I’m not expecting.   

As you can imagine, I getting a lot of use out of this blouse.   ; )  It’s just too cute not to wear as much as possible!  And on the subject of cute, how amazing are these repro 1950s styled sunglasses?? 

I think they are simply the bee’s knees, and even better, I could order them with my current script so I don’t have to either a}. Go blind and just wear the sunglasses or b}. Have to wear my sunglasses over the top of my actual glasses.  Which, let’s face it, isn’t an attractive look so that only happens when I’m driving and no one can see what I’ve done.   > o <

Thankfully these sunglasses have arrived now, so my days of dorky glasses-over-glasses can be safely thrown out the window ~ just in time for my family {and extend family} trip to South Australia. 

I’m looking forwards to our Christmas away, and I will try to keep updating, but I don’t know how consistent my ‘net connection will be, so I’ll wish you all “Happy Holidays!” just in case I don’t get to post until I get back. 

xox,

bonita

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~
Repro Glam Up Glasses ~  Zenni Optical    Vintage It’s Plaid Baby Top  ~  Etsy    Basic Denim Capris   ~  Crossroads, this season     Go Glitter Flats  ~  Modcloth 

Link Love ~ Casual 1940s & 1950s Style Inspiration

It’s been a while since the last Link Love, no?  Still, when I saw this post on casual vintage style by Miss Virginia of Retrospect, I knew I had to share it.

Talk about the perfect out-and-about outfit inspiration!  I love the elegant touch of a neat blouse and Capri pants; in fact I’ve actually bought two new pairs of Capris recently that I can’t wait to show you in an outfit post.  In the mean time, however, enjoy these lovely looks from the past, and don’t forget to hop on over for the rest of the gorgeous pictures.

Kelly Casual

~ *  My favorite vintage lady: Grace Kelly naturally…  * ~
  ~ *  I positively adore this outfit ~ I will be trying to replicate it very soon!  Mind you, it might very well be minus the white blouse, as white and toddlers really don’t mix with happy results...  > u <  * ~

xox,

bonita

The Casual Sporty 50s Vintage Pregnant Mama

Try saying that five times fast!  ; )




 

So this is my take on a sporty 50s look ~ as you can tell by the title of course! 

I think the pony tail, shoes, socks, and blouse are right, but if I wasn’t 20 weeks pregnant I definitely would have changed my skirt for a classic circle skirt ~ the perfect finishing touch.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any that fit at the moment…
  
Oh, the woes and problems ~ right?    > X <

Like the fact that early one morning, my sewing machine started sewing all by itself…..

And it wouldn’t stop!

*dadda-dum-da!*

Time for eerie music and ghost stories?? 

…No, actually, my foot pedal has shorted so now I cannot work on my new dress.  >: P   

Oh well, it’s not all bad ~ I can borrow my sister-in-law’s foot pedal in the mean time, so I hope to finish my dress anyway.  It’s going to be awesome I think, but I guess I’ll have to wait and see what everyone else thinks to really know.  : )

xox,

bonita

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~

Think Pink Blouse  ~  Thrifted   White Belt  ~  JayJays   Blue Bayou Skirt  ~  Valley Girl   Random Pink Socks  ~  ???    White Tennis Shoes  ~  Thrifted

Goodbye Bluebell Dreamer…

I really hate to say this, but I think I might have to put Depict This! on a permanent hiatus…

I don’t want to, but a part of me does, and I am really confused as to what to do.

I want to keep blogging ~ I love taking photos {outfit or otherwise}, I love sharing things about a vintage lifestyle, mine or other fabulous vintageistas I know.  I love writing, I love the community, and I love having a space to express myself where other people actually get it.  

But here’s the thing ~ I am tired.  It’s hard to keep up with the house, the toddler, and the horse {of which I now have two, thanks to number one’s lease ending suddenly!}.  It’s hard to have to time to just enjoy family life.  I want to be able to sit down and paint my nails without stressing about all the things I am currently not doing.  I want to be able to work on my novel.  Blogging just seems to drain all my writing juice clear away.  

Not to mention baby number two on the way…  We’re 16 weeks along and that magical second trimester energy they keep going on about?  Yah, not happening so much here.

*sigh*  I am sorry to be such a blue blogger over here, but I guess I need to talk this out. 

I kind of want to keep DT! going and just post whenever I feel like it, but at the moment I don’t know if that’d be even once a week and that kind of just bums me out.  I personally dislike it when I find an awesome blog {NOT saying that DT! is awesome ~ just citing some real-live examples} and it’s hardly EVER updated.  If I really like it, I might follow/keep reading anyway, but otherwise I feel like there’s no point.  So I don’t want to let any of my readers down, but I don’t think I want to shut down altogether either….

Although, if it came to it, I probably would close DT! if only to get rid of one more commitment I feel I can’t keep up with.

What say you?  Have you guys ever been through this kind of dilemma?

xox,

bonita

P.S. ~  On a happier note, I have been calling those flowers “bluebells” forever, but apparently they are Grape Hyacinths.  Aren’t they cute though?  I have them running wild in my lawn and I love it…  ^ u ^

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~

50’s Vintage Bluebell Butter Dress ~  Ebay    Carved Rose Bracelet  ~  Dotti   Vintage Creamy Drop Belt  ~  Etsy  Santa Cruz Beach Heel  ~  Modcloth

Dancing with Cherry Trees

A picnic lunch at the park, sunshine, pink blossoms and family ~ what a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon!   Our family has a big picnic tradition, Husband and I are always eating out at our local park when the weather is nice, it’s one of our favourite ways to enjoy the outdoors. 

We often prefer a quick grab’n’go lunch, but one of these days I’d love to hunt down a vintage picnic wicker basket set and a blue gingham picnic blanket!  Then we can go all out with the food ~ ham, cheese and tomato sandwiches, fruit slices, fruit cake {a firm favourite of the men} and anything else we can think of!  So dears, what are you favourite picnic foods?  Any particularly tasty recipes you’d like to share?  I am sure we’d all love to hear them!

xox,

bonita

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~

Lace Ivory Hair Bow  ~  Diva   Reel Red Cardigan  ~  Thrifted   Porcelain Flower Brooch  ~  Thrifted   Fall Fancies Dress  ~  Made by Me, ‘12    Cream Cable Stockings  ~  Target    Berry Well Oxford Pumps  ~  Modcloth

Link Love ~ Design History of the 50’s Wiggle Dress

I really like interesting background articles on my favourite fashion eras, and this post by The Vintage Dancer is no exception.  The thought and detail behind the fashion is so intriguing!  Hop on over for the full article. 

The Subtle Variations of 1950′s Sheath Dresses

 

When you think of dresses in the 1950′s what do you imagine? Most people would think of the classic house wife  dress that Lucile Ball or Mary Tyler Moore wore  in their respective 1950′s TV roles with large, puffy, skirts and snug fitting blouses, paired with cute coordinating accessories and perfectly groomed hair. While this style of dress was certainly popular there is another style, the opposite look of the 1950′s, that has been overlooked until now. Because of TV shows like Mad Men and Pan Am the slim fitting 1950′s style sheath dress is just as popular as its full figured sibling….

xox,

bonita

Link Love ~ The history of the circle skirt

I just love finding out about the history and background of designers and creative minds; and this lovely little interview with Juli Lynne Charlot is simply fascinating!  She is the creator of the original circle skirt, and how she started this massive fashion trend is really quite amazing!  Read on at The Vintage Traveler.

Interview with Juli Lynne Charlot

In 1947 two seemingly unrelated events came together to start her career in fashion.  First, fashion changed dramatically with the New Look.  WWII fabric restrictions were lifted and hemlines dropped and skirts got full.

About the same time, Philip Charlot lost his job.  Juli Lynne was a young woman who wanted to be in fashion but she had no money for the new styles.  So she decided to make her own skirt for Christmas that year.  Since she could not sew, she got some felt.  It was the only fabric wide enough to cut a full circle skirt without making seams…

xox,

bonita

Spectacular Spectacles or Sad Specs?

Pearl Fascinator Hair Comb  ~   Two Dollar Shop     Blue Danube Cardigan  ~  Me Made, ‘12    Apple Delight Crochet Top  ~  ICE     Vintage Lilly Flower Brooch  ~  Love Vintage Show, ‘11   Swingin’ Circle Skirt  ~  Me Made, ‘11    Cream Cable Stockings  ~  Target    Tenhut Tennis Shoes  ~  Thrifted

~ * ♥ * ~

I finally have my new glasses after a LOT of um-ing and uh-ing over which pair to try out.  The problem is that I am not 100% sold on them.  I think that they tend to overwhelm my face, but I not sure if that is partly due to the fact that I have never worn such large, bold frames before, and therefore are just not used to the look!

Another issues is that the multi-focal script in my new frames isn’t correct for me, so I still have to get another pair of lenses.  So do I buy a new-new pair of frames or just stick with these new ones?   Decisions, decisions…   

I also found out that I really shouldn’t buy vintage glasses with the aim to replace the lenses, as the plastic will most likely be too brittle{boo, hiss!} and may or may not break.  Honestly, if I could find a pair of gorgeous $50.00 & under frames I would probably give it a go anyway, but as it is all the frames I like are $100.00 and over, so that isn’t going to happen.  I just can’t risk that sort of money!

None of that changes the major problem which is having to potentially throw down $800.00 for the lenses I need.  With that in mind, I so have to find a pair of frames that I love! 

I would hate to hate wearing my $800.00 dollar plus glasses just because I didn’t find the right frame! 
: S 

So there you have it, glasses dilemmas of the day.  When I wrote the My spectacles ~ how to find vintage frames to suit you! post, I certainly didn’t think I’d be having this much trouble finding the right pair, but here I am…

xox,

bonita

Stitching Stories ~ Tackling Bias Cuts & Pattern Matching

This post is on the behind-the-scenes details of my latest me-made project, which I recently featured in an outfit post ~ My Fall Fancies Dress.

  

So I started this dress in February with this vintage Advance 9785 dress pattern I got off Etsy and this vintage thrifted cotton.  I think the Advance is late 1950s – early 1960s?  I’m not 100% sure, but I thought it was pretty anyway.

.      

        

I had to tackle a few new skills with this pattern ~ doing to an FBA on a kimono sleeve bodice was just for starters.  The dart ended up looking funny, so I just moved it to where I thought it should go and thankfully it worked! 

I also had to try my hand at my first on-the-bias project, as the bodice was bias cut, and to make the layout trickier, I had to pattern/stripe match as well!  This meant that it took me THREE hours just to cut out the bodice, and I wasted a fair amount of fabric which led me to the conclusion that, although pretty, bias cuts aren’t necessarily worth it. 

Buttonholes and pleating were also two new skills to me ~ and I have to say I adore my Bernina 860!  It’s five step buttonhole program is the easiest, simplest way to do buttonholes and once I practised a few I just breezed through the three buttonholes on the dress’s bodice.  I never thought I would say this, but ~ I love stitching buttonholes!

The pleats were relatively simple, and I am positively ecstatic with how they look!  I think that they suit my figure far better than gathers, so I know I will be trying these again. 

Of course, although I like the original pattern, I still made an alteration and took out the buttons/facing strip down the front of the skirt.  I think my reasoning for that was that the bodice buttonholes were scary enough without having to do more!  Plus, I find button-down skirts annoying.  They tend to pop open a lot for some reason.

I had trouble with the collar/neck facing and end up tacking and sewing that down in about a hundred different ways/places, as well as the collar being a pain to put on.  I had to re-apply it and rip it out at least three times, but even though the inside is a little messy, you can’t tell from the outside, which is good. I guess these things just take practise.

All these new challenges meant I did a lot of stop/start sewing; sometimes leaving the dress for weeks until I could summon up the courage and the time to pick it up again. 

However, the thing that I am most proud of with this project is how perfectly my seams match!  The centre back seam and the shoulder seams are spot on and I love how the front facing has that lovely ‘bridge’ between the two front chevron-stripes.  Pattern matching is fiddley and time-consuming, but oh, so satisfying when it comes out right!

~ Project Details ~

Year:  Late 1950s – early 1960s
Pattern:  Advance 9785
Fabric:  About 6 yards/5.5 metres of thrifted cotton doona cover {$9.00} ~ this is one fabric eating pattern!
Notions:  Three buttons {$3.00}
Time to complete: I have no idea…
Make/Wear again? Definitely wear again!!  I am really happy with how it came out: I love the fit, the style and the fabric. However, I am not so sure that I’ll make the pattern up again.  I’m thinking that once was enough.  Although, I do love the skirt, so it does seem likely that I might use that part of the pattern again. 
Total Cost:  $25.00 including the pattern

xox,

bonita

My Fall Fancies Dress

Fall Fancies Dress  ~  Made by Me, ‘12    Harvest Guardsman Gloves  ~  Etsy   Basic Brown Belt  ~  Thrifted   Cream Cable Stockings  ~  Target   Tan Penny Loafers  ~  Big W  
~ * ♥ * ~

M’dears, I am dreadfully excited to show you this dress as it has been an extraordinary length of time in coming! Can you believe I started it in February no less?  Mind you, it has been finished for a couple of weeks as I completed it on the 2nd of July, but I have been waiting for a chance to wear it.

I was originally planning for it to be my autumn dress, hence the title, but five months {give or take} in the making and we were well into the winter season before I was done!  I shall give you more details on why it took so long in my stitching-stories-sewing-geekery post that is coming later, but for now I will say that I am glad it is finally finished!  

Yes, I have already started planning the next project in my head, and I have gotten as far as “It won’t be a dress!”  Sadly to say, for the moment I am over dresses.  They just seem so complicated and time consuming! 

It’s not that I can’t do all of the steps, {with a little help from the sewing master ~  teh Internetz!}, it’s more that there are SO many steps that it takes too long!  *sigh*  And while I love a pretty vintage dress, I just would like to get my teeth into some shorter and more winter friendly projects ~ like some blouses, or a pair of 40’s slacks…  I am itching to cut into Simplicity 3688 which is all the rage with vintage blogger seamstresses at the moment ~ mostly because of the near-perfect trouser fit; something almost unheard of!

If anyone hears of a Simplicity or Butterick or Vogue online pattern sale ~ do let me know!  I have some favourites to buy, but want to wait for a sale.  Then maybe I can try my 1940s trousers!

xox,

bonita

My spectacles ~ how to find vintage frames to suit you!

~ *  Vintage 1950 advertisement for spectacles ~ I quite like pair number 4  * ~

Finding glasses frames that look good, suit your style, and don’t overwhelm your face is difficult at the best of times, but what do you do when you have a very distinct fashion style?   I am currently facing that problem ~ my script has changed {again!… } so I am shopping around for the perfect pair of vintage glasses to suit my look and my face.

The first place I went to look for glasses was Dead Men’s Spexs Vintage Eyewear.  You may have already heard of this site ~ they sell vintage frames that you can fill with your own prescription lenses. 

I couldn’t find a pair that I liked there, but I think that visiting their site is really handy.  You can use a “browse by period” feature to check out what style of frames where popular for the era that you prefer.

Now I tend to prefer to dress either 1940s or 50s, but I soon found out that I don’t really like either of the more common glasses frame styles from back then.  Before the 1950’s everything seems to be pretty much round ~ either thin gold frames, {which I could wear, except that I don’t like gold} or heavy black/tortoiseshell acetate.  Neither of those appeal to me ~ so onto the next era, 1950.

 

~ *  The classic pre-1940s/1940s spectacle shape.  The lenses rims can be gold, silver, tortoiseshell or black as seen here, and the arms can be either the same colour as the rims or a different colour like the picture above.  * ~

Everyone knows the classic 50’s look ~ cat's eye glasses!  I am not a real fan of the extremely pointy kind, although I have seen some vintage ladies looking absolutely fabulous in their sharp cats eye frames.  However, after searching around I decided that a nice deep cats eye frame, preferably two toned {dark on the top and light on the bottom} and in some shade of tortoiseshell or chocolaty brown would probably suit my style and my skin tone. 

So like these:

Or these:

At the end of a long hunt through all of the websites listed below I finally found a pair that I like, so we’ll will have to wait and see how they go when I get them!   I’ll show you the big reveal later…   Happy spectacle wearing!

Tips for purchasing vintage spectacles:

• Figure out which era you wear the most, or that suits your style the best.
• Look for frames that are similar in shape and colour to your favourite vintage pairs ~ you may be able to find a modern look-a-like for less.
• Try on styles at the optometrist to get a sense of what size/shape suits your face.
• If you have a complex script ~ bifocals or trifocals, buy the frames you like and get your optometrist to replace the lenses and don’t forget to ask your optometrist what size you need to get to fit your prescription.
• Shop around! There are many places to buy your perfect pair of frames, so if you can’t find the ‘just right’ pair, keep looking. 

Places to buy vintage eye glass frames:

• Ebay
• Etsy
• Dead Men’s Spex

Places to buy vintage reproduction/modern vintage look-a-likes:

• Bonlook – reproduction vintage glasses
• Zenni Optical – modern, but have some great vintage look-a-likes
  

xox,

bonita