Really Truly Vintage

Here’s the story: I love vintage, but I do not have many actual vintage items much to my dismay. 

Part of the reason for this is that I am relatively new to the vintage scene, but also that I have a major disadvantage from living in a relatively young country {Australia: we aren’t old}, and that means that most vintage is out of my range.   Literally!  Either I can not even find it {think 90s clothes in thrift shops} or it’s too expensive for me because I have to buy it through someone else {usually overseas} and pay for shop fees/profit/P&P/etc. 

As a result I am relying heavily on repo/shop items that I can find that look vintage and have a vintage feel, but more often than not repos simply aren’t even close to the real thing.  I am, however, lucky enough to be able to build my collection slowly. 

To date I have two vintage dresses {although I do not think that one of them is that old…  Maybe a 70s repo?} ~

Left: 1950s party dress from Etsy  ~ * ♥ * ~  Right:  Thrifted vintage dress {I am saving this one for a special outfit shoot!}

This delightful old camera which my DH inherited from his Grandfather’s brother and said that we could share ~

I did some searching online and found a website that described the camera ~ Iloca Rapid B. 

“The Iloca Rapid B is yet another German consumer rangefinder of the 1950s. It was produced in 1954… and it comes with a simple Steinheil München Cassar S 50mm f/2.8 lens; Prontor SVS leaf shutter; and a coupled rangefinder.”

And these gorgeous tapestry purses  ~  one is a handbag and the other is a makeup case with a mirror inside.

I found these when I was shopping at this darling antique junk shop in Wagga Wagga.   I absolutely love them ~ I think they are simply divine!   I have no precise idea of how old they are, but I think from my searching that they may be from the 1950s. 

Lastly, this is my most recent acquisition, a darling vintage collar I brought on Etsy  at  Wildfell Hall Vintage. 

It’s 49% Angora Rabbit fur and it is soooooo soft!!  I opened up my package and fell totally in love with it.  The colour, the feel, the style and the pearl embellishment are just divinely perfect!

These are my most notable really truly vintage pieces ~ I have a few other odds and ends; a teacup, a topless thimble, a pair of shoes from the 80s {I think} and a few pieces of furniture which I will show you when they are safely settled in our new house. 

So that is the extent of my collection for now, but I am sure it’s only the beginning, because honestly?  The more I study and see vintage things in real life, the more I fall head over heels for the detail and the craftsmanship.   It is just so unlike anything you find these days, and I love it. 

What is your favourite item of vintage to collect?

xox,

bonita

The Goals for 2011

Or to be more accurate ~ my New Years resolutions.   I want to share these with you, maybe you can keep me accountable on a few of them!   I also want to make sure that I set achievable goals and resolutions and not overload myself with expectations as I am prone to….  > . >’

So without further ado…  

My personal goal:  To be the best mother I can be.

~ * ♥ * ~  For me this doesn’t mean making sure baby is looked after perfectly, because frankly I have no idea whether I can do that or not.  I guess it depends on what your standard of ‘perfect’ is!   So this resolution is more about the child’s character.  I want to be the sort of person I want my children to grow up to be.   I say this because I believe that children learn by example. 

So this year I strive to be more disciplined and less procrastinating; especially when it comes to house chores and cooking!   I can be organized, I know that.  It’s when I get lazy that the organization falls apart and I am sick of that happening!   Less computer, more chores.  My 2011 mantra perhaps?

My skills goal:  To practise sewing and by the end of 2011; to have sewn myself a day dress.

~ * ♥ * ~  Pretty self-explanatory.   I wanted to learn to sew last year, and I started to, but then I lost track of things and I stopped.   I keep on forgetting how much I enjoy it and spend too much time mucking around and wasting time on other things.  This year I plan to change that by practising at least once a week.  {I am also trying to do a least one drawing a week too; with a similar goal to practise art but I made this resolution before the new year. : ) }

My business goal:  To set up my b dot depictions studio website properly, to get my business cards done and to go to at least one fair with my photographs this year. 

~ * ♥ * ~  Again, self explanatory, but this one is really important to me.  I feel like my business has been stuck in the one spot for the last four months of 2010 simply because I didn’t know what I was doing.   I want my studio website up because then I feel I can actually work on the studio products and promote my services. 

I can not seem to move forwards without that all important web launching pad, so this is a crucial part to the goals I can achieve for 2011 business wise.

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~

So those are my new year’s resolutions.  I hope I can actually stick with them!   I sometimes manage to get half way to my goals and sometimes I forget about them altogether.  But I do think that it’s a worthwhile thing to set goals and work to achieve them.  Of course, you can do this anytime in the year and I don’t think you should put off making a resolution as soon as you realize that you need to!

I have also heard that one of the best ways to help improve your blogging {if you are interested in that} is to make goals and resolutions for your blog.   It seems to me that there are a lot of serious bloggers out there that do want to achieve certain levels of performance with their blog as it is their income/day job.

I personally refrained from making any particular goal for Depict This! {besides to keep up my 3 a week posting schedule} simply because this is something I do for fun.   I don’t want to fall into the trap of trying to get x number of readers, or x number of sponsors.   My business is my studio, blogging is a hobby and I want to keep it that way. 

What do you think?  Should all bloggers have specific goals to try and achieve?  Do you have any blogging goals in your new years resolutions?

xox,

bonita

Ring the bells ~ Outfit Twenty Three

Happy New Year one and all!   This is the outfit I wore Christmas Day ~ it’s a stunning vintage 1950s party dress with attached crinoline.  My first real piece of vintage clothing! 

 

I saw it this dress on Revolving Styles’ blog when Anna put up the new listing for her Etsy shop and I wanted to buy it so badly ~ it was the Perfect Party dress for me.  But I couldn't decide if I could justify spending the money on it. It was listed at $180.00 USD + P&P and I just didn’t know whether I should or not. 

I haven’t ever spend that much on any piece of clothing except for my wedding dress!!   I was hemming and hawing; trying to make up my mind.  Eventually I decided I would get it and oh dear!  I'd taken too long and it had sold...    I was gutted, but moved on, because what can you do?

But then I got an early Christmas present from my amazing husband and guess what?  …..

He'd bought my Perfect Party dress for me!!  Being privy to my indecisiveness he'd made up my mind for me, although I didn't know it at the time!   There were many squee’s and so much dancing around when I unwrapped it.   I really did not expect him to do that for me!  

I just adore the silver sparkles and the floral print {it’s blue velveteen on chiffon} plus the pink lining is delightful.   And what can I say except I LOVE the poufy skirt!!  Yay for attached crinolines!  {Especially as I am very much lacking in the crinoline department ~ read as none in my wardrobe, and this skirt would not be the same without it.}

I received so many compliments on the dress; and the main one seemed to be that it suits me so well.   I happen to think so too!  I feel like such a lady in this dress and I love it.

All I can say is that my darling, amazing, superb, fantastic, wonderful husband is the best!!!   He is so considerate and even though he does not really get the whole dressing up thing that I like to do, he still supports my dreams {of vintage dresses!}  and lets me shop; or in this case, shops for me.  I love you DH!  ^ x ^ *kisses*

    Baby bump at 5 months.  ^ w ^ 

I have been having a lovely break so far ~ DH has time off for this week and the next and we have been hanging out, bludging on the couch.    I would be out and a about a bit more, but unfortunately as soon as Christmas was over I caught a cold off one of my sisters {thanks dear, love you too…  = . =’ }.  

Suffice to say,  it’s really knocking the stuffing out of me.  Cold:  25.  bonita:  0.  I am glad that I can relax and take some time to recover.  >  <  

I hope your Christmas/New Years holidays have been going well too ~ have a happy New Year everyone!

xox,

bonita

P.S.  ~  Thanks to The Random Rocker {a.k.a. sister number three} for taking these photos for me.  DH was indisposed as he was busy playing with slot cars.  > __ <

P.S. II  ~   No, I am not wearing the dress properly.   The front bodice comes down further to the waist, but I had to hike all that up over the bump and under my ribs because I don’t have a waist any more!   The dress still looked good, {yay!} but I think that will be the first and the last time wearing it until baby is out and I have slimmed down to fit back into it. 

Holiday Greetings from Depict This!

     Hi everyone!  I hope you have, and have had, a marvellous Christmas!!   I wish you much happiness and laughter in this season of celebration, and all the very best for the upcoming year… 

     

See you in 2011!!   

xox,

bonita

How to ~ Tea Paper Tutorial

Remember I showed you how I dyed some cloth for my Vintage Styled Hair Bow Holder Tutorial using tea bags to get an ‘antique’ look?   Well, I thought I’d also do a tutorial on using similar techniques to antiquitize paper as well!

This tutorial is super easy and simple, but has a lot of potential if you do any sort of paper craft {ie, scrapbooking, card making,  origami, etc.}.  And even if you do not do any of those crafts, you still might find the principles of the technique useful as it can be adopted to dying natural cloths and other organic materials as seen in my previous tutorial.

Materials you will need:

~  Something to weigh the paper down ~ I used four glass cups

~  Paper to dye (the thicker the better, but this will work with ordinary printer paper}

~  Absorbent paper to go underneath so you don’t make a mess everywhere

~  A Tea Bag {black ~ I used English Breakfast}

~  Bowel {sorry, forgot to put this in the picture..  = __=’ }

 

Step One:  Lay out your absorbent paper, place the paper you are dying on top of it and weigh it all down with your glasses.

 

Step Two:   Wet your tea bag in a bowl of water.

 

Step Three:  Rub your wet tea bag over both sides of the paper and leave to dry.    This might take a while so be prepared to wait.  The thicker the paper is, the longer it will take to dry out.

Note:  An extra step to finish the paper quickly is to set your iron on low and iron the paper until it is dry.   Just remember to place the paper between two pieces of old cloth to keep it from dirtying your ironing board and your iron.

 

Step four:   Take your dry paper and use it to make something pretty!    As you can see, the colouration of the paper is very subtle, but this is because I only used one tea bag to turn it a light creamy colour.  If you wish to make it darker, use more tea bags the first time around and repeat the dying process after letting it dry. 

You can also use the iron trick noted above.  But if you are trying to make the paper darker, set the iron to high so you ‘burn’ the paper as well as dye it with the tea.  If you iron to ‘burn’ the paper, leave the top piece of cloth off so that the iron base has direct contact with the paper.  It will be more effective this way. 

Note:  With this technique of tea dying, it is not about getting a vibrant colour ~ you would be better off buying paper from the store if that is your desired outcome.  Tea bag dying is more about achieving a natural brownish hue/tone with whatever item you dyed to make it look older than what it is.  The darker you dye it, the older it will look, but as a reverse, the more you dye it the more fake it can look!  Experiment to find the right balance for the look you want.  

 

~ * ♥   I used the paper to make some labels for a customer who purchased an amigurumi charm from my Etsy shop  ♥  * ~

 

I hope you enjoyed this easy tutorial, and if you make anything cool {or anything at all!} using these techniques, please send me photos ~ I’d love to see what you make.

xox,

bonita

 

P.S.  ~  How exciting!!  Only two more days {a day and a half??} until Christmas!  Yay!!    

P.S. II  ~  Oh golly, I better get on with wrapping all the presents….  > o < !

P.S.  III  ~  I did get my Christmas cards sent out incidentally!  I am so stoked that I managed to get that far this year.   Now I just have to keep it up for next year!  ^ w ^

Stepping Out ~ Grunge

Ever have those days where you feel like doing something different with your style and step out of your comfort zone?   I do, and what I end up with outfit wise is usually really off track from my normal ‘look’  ~ whatever that is, ‘coz I still haven’t pinned it down!  I thought I would start a “Stepping Out” feature for the outfits that are outside of my style comfort zone. 

~ Stepping Out Details ~

~ Differences to my normal style:   I went with a big hair style, aka; Elizabeth from Delightfully Tacky, and loose layers which I usually avoid like the plague. 

~ Similarities to my normal style:  Monotone!!  I adore black ~ it is THE base colour of my wardrobe and most, if not all, of my outfits involve some sort of black.  Oh, and the bows.  I can’t stay away from hair bows, no matter the style.  Yay for head eating hair bows!!

 

 

    I feel so young in this outfit….  > O <   Just like a  teenager again!  Dressing with a vintage inspiration definitely makes you feel classy, and as a result, more grown up I suppose.   I had not even realized that I’d crossed that line from ‘hip’ teen wear to ‘elegant’ adult wear until I put this outfit on and felt like I was eighteen again!  It’s funny because I always wondered how I’d know when to make that transition, but I guess it just happened naturally. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we took these the sun was just right, which was lucky because we were in such a rush I wasn’t sure that I even got enough to do an outfit post!  Then when I was editing them, I ended up deleting some of the pictures out of the final post.   So there you go…. Good photographs sometimes appear by accident!

{I’d say magic, but we all know that’s not quite true…  ^ w ^ }

 

 

 

Outfit keys ~ layers, lace and leather {faux ~ but we’ll just pretend m’kay?  > __ <}  The black ‘dots’ on the middle white layer are actually tiny pirate skull pictures and love hearts.  I should have gotten a close up of them, but that really would have put this post in over drive!

 

 

Accessories  ~    Black Satin Hair Bow  {Diva}      White Lace Hair Bow  {Diva}    

Earrings {Some random shop in Scotland}      

Chain Link Wrist Cuff  {Diva}      Wrap Around Studded Strap  {Random shop}      

Ribbon used as Wrist Cuff  {Random piece I decided to use as jewellery}    

White Bow Double Finger Ring {Diva}

Crop Top  {Best&Less}      Cream Top with Black Lace Embellishment  {Tempt}

White Skull Skirt  {A bargain basement shop in Germany!}   Black Sheer Skirt  {Best&Less}

Boots  {New Look}  

~  Extra Note/Rave:   I found out that New Look ships internationally and nearly died… They sell the cutest shoes I have ever seen for really cheap and no shoe shop in Australia even comes close to having as on trend, stylish and different looking shoes as they do!  I am so glad I can order from New Look now, especially as they stock all these gorgeous vintage styled shoes!!

These boots are my first pair from them and I am really happy with them.  For the height of the heel they are really comfortable, and they are exactly what was pictured on the website.  And for $67.00 AUD you really can’t go wrong comparing them to other similar shoes you might find here in Australia.

~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~ * ♥ * ~

   This outfit is what I wore to the Linkin Park concert in Canberra last week.  I went with DH and my two youngest sisters whom also love this band ~ we’ve all been fans from a fairly young age.

I had a lot of fun at the concert ~ about half the set list I loved and half I did not really like at all, but that was ok because it’s exactly the same for me with Linkin Park’s CDs.   I only listen to about half of every one!  But the songs I do listen to I really love, so it was awesome to hear them live.

I must say, Chester and Mike are great performers and I thought the rest of the band was great too.  Fun times!!  ^ U ^    Mind you, it went pretty late, so of course I was absolute knackered the next day.  As I had so much to do I found it really hard to recover and felt exhausted for the next three days.

In hindsight, I don’t know that I would go if I had the time over.  But at the same time I am glad I went, so it’s one of those mixed feeling memories for me….  I can’t quite sort out if I am coming or going, but to be honest that happens a lot  with me, so what else is new?!

xox,

bonita

3 Things they don’t tell you…

Until you are actually already pregnant!

1.  Your hips will hurt.  All the time.  Apparently as the baby grows and your body is constantly shifting, your hips, and most likely your back, will bear the brunt of the changes, making them permanently sore and tender.  And speaking of tender ~ the chest area?  It’s a no go zone.

2.  Morning sickness.  Some women are blessed and never get it, some women can’t get out of bed because the nausea makes them feel like they’re on a boat….  Oh, and the name is a fallacy.   Morning sickness can visit you morning, noon or night, and sometimes decides to hang around for all three!

3.  You will feel like you have been hit by a steam roller, a cargo train, and a tanker ~ everyday.   Energy?  What’s that?

And basically that’s the summary of how my pregnancy is progressing.  Yay.   : |    But to end this mini rant on a positive note, all though I might be putting up with a host of uncomfortable sensations, it’s totally worth it.  

When you feel the baby move and kick inside of you, you conveniently forget about all the other things ~ there is a baby growing!  How cool is that?  And I am so grateful that I have the chance to be a mother.  Finally, I think I am growing up. 

xox,

bonita

A few of my favourite things….

~ ♥  Tea & pretty tea cups  ♥ ~

 

~ ♥  Bows! Hair, jewellery or print  ♥ ~

 

~ ♥  Cute things ~ particularly plush ponies  ♥ ~

 

~ ♥  Books of any sort  ♥ ~

 

~ ♥  Shoes in every shape, size and style  ♥ ~

 

~ ♥  Cute notebooks for writing in  ♥ ~

And these are a few of my favourite things!

What are your favourite things?  Join this photo meme and post to your blog a few pictures of your favourite things that brighten your day.  I would love to see what is on your list.

xox,

bonita

Christmas and Candy ~ Yum!

 ~ ♥  My half finished ginger bread house ♥ ~

Christmas is coming and I am so excited!  I do have to admit that this is a change to my usual feelings however….

I guess I was always excited as a child for Christmas ~ all the bustle of people, presents and pretty decorations?  Who wouldn’t be?   And as a teen I loved hoarding my money, saving every cent for the perfect gift for each of my family members.  I remember my sister and I would have secret Christmas conferences that would last all afternoon where we would calculate how much money we needed, who we needed to buy for and what we would buy them! 

Of course, there would be the sneaky entry under each other’s name and stern warnings not to look at each other’s notebook!

I guess as I got older, the feeling that I missed the most was that excitement of expectation.  Oh, the day was fun, and I enjoyed spending it with my family, but the thrill was lacking….  Christmas was just Christmas. 

 ~ ♥  House complete with candy dripping from every available spot!  ♥ ~

Then, all of a sudden there was a whole new world of possibilities!   I was married, my husband and I were starting our own family and our own family traditions.  Plus, maybe, just maybe, we might be in our new house for Christmas.

Well.  That did it.  I was all excited for Christmas and all the fun things I could do for it.  Decorating the house, cooking, Christmas cards ~ the list of ideas was endless! 

 ~ ♥   The back view  ♥ ~

Now, although the purchasing of the house has progressed {what a relief…}, we won’t be in it for Christmas.  But I am still excited anyway.  Last week I decorated a ginger bread house to share with my in~laws, and this week I sung with a church choir for their community carols concert which was so much fun! 

I am planning to have my Christmas cards sent out by the end of the week; I am also planning to actually send them this year….  > O < 

Last year with all the hectic end of year fuss {wedding, honeymoon, getting sick. graduating ~ all that in the end of November/December!} I wrote the cards out but never sent them.  So some of our relatives will end up with two Christmas cards and a Christmas letter this year!   The more the merrier right?

 ~ ♥   Close up ~ I love how the front path turned out with pink stars scattered in the ‘crazy paving’  ♥ ~

How are your Christmases shaping up?  I hope they will be lots of fun for us all ~ a fantastic celebration.

xox,

bonita

Another Award?

Carys of La Ville Inconnue  is totally awesome ~ she’s so sweet and this is the third award she’s bestowed upon Depict This!!   It’s so nice when all your hard work is recognized, and I really appreciate it.  Thank you Carys.  ^__^

I am going to pass it on to:

~ ♥ Amber Rose from Laughing with Broken Eyes ♥ ~

~ ♥ Jennifer from Jennifer’s Blog ♥ ~

~ ♥ Katie from Katiefoolery ♥ ~ 

~ ♥ L. from Only Half Dressed ♥ ~

~ ♥ Lulu from Lulu and the Locket ♥ ~

~ ♥ Miruku from Milk Tea  ♥ ~

~ ♥ Violet from Tales of an Ingénue ♥ ~

 

I really enjoy reading your blogs and I hope you don’t mind if I call some of you ‘friend’.  I like getting to know you all through your blogs and also through some of the lovely comments I get at Depict This!.  Isn’t the world wide web fantastic at promoting communities of people that would never otherwise meet? 

I think so!

xox,

bonita

Quick Share ~ The wrong era?

Please visit this link to read an excellent post on the merits of being vintage in 2o1o.  I found it an excellent read ~ very thought provoking for the vintage lover. 

Snoodlebug: Born in the wrong era? A vintage rant.: "I am a tad (read hellishly) hungover and so I apologise for the rant but this blog is about something that really bugs me.

What is it that causes me such rage? It is when perfectly intelligent, reasonable, adult women state that they were "born in the wrong era." So many vintage aficionados seem to do this and it is something I'm seeing mentioned more and more. Personally I find this sort of comment incredibly naive and shortsighted...."

xox,

bonita

Rain drops are falling on my head ~ Outfit Twenty Two

Okay, these photos were taken on Wednesday last week.  But the weather has been the same from then until now!!  Wet, wet. wet.  I can hardly believe it is summer, because it sure doesn’t feel like it.  I am only just now going out without a cardigan for the day. 

And last week this outfit was constructed around a wool skirt!   Wool!!  In an Australian summer!!!  Trippy….   > > ‘

  

Because of all the rain, it sure makes it more difficult to get on with normal life ~ like looking after Copper {my horse} or doing an outdoors photo shoot!  Yays for verandas because I have no where nice to take photos inside at the moment. 

  

Accessories  ~  Silver Hoop Earrings {Christmas Present 07}   Hair Bow  {Best&Less} 

Pearl Necklace  {Thrifted}    Floral Cardigan  ~  SES     Top  ~  La Pearls

Skirt  ~  Thrifted     Shoes  ~  Payless 

     Baby Bump at 4 months.  

Gosh, my spine looks like it’s made of jelly the way it is curving so much!   I used to have a much better posture, but thanks to the little one, that’s flown out the window….  > <

The greatest news I have to share is that DH and I have finally gotten through some of the things that have been keeping us from finalizing on the house we wanted.  The bank has decided to play nice, so we have signed our lives {and subsequent children….. Just kidding!  > <} away on the mortgage documents and completed the exchange.   39 days and 5 hours until we can move in!!!   *eeeee*  >______<

It is all very exciting.

xox,

bonita