three cheers for the bright side!

The last time I won a prize from The Bright Side Project, it didn't show up. I won't name the contributor, but for some reason they didn't follow through with getting my prize to me. No big deal! But four months and a couple of emails later, I received a package in my mailbox from the contributor's former publicist.


She sent me a couple of cute headbands as a sort of consolation prize. I thought that was a sweet gesture! This one makes me feel like a Girl Scout - specifically a Brownie. Brownie colors are yellow and brown, right? Or maybe it's brown and blue. Did it change? Either way, I'm feeling girl scouty! And I can't stop sneezing.

Big thanks to The Bright Side Project, Miss B, and Connie from Moderne Press!

the birds, again

Another outfit for my wardrobe challenge! In 2 weeks I've only managed to put together 3 outfits (out of 12) -- this is definitely going to drag on a while. But I'm determined to complete it! Now that it's warmer outside, I know I'll be wearing skirts and dresses much more often. It feels SO GOOD in the sun!

This is what I wore yesterday to meet Robert for lunch.

Cardigan: Anthropologie / Dress: Converse (from Target) / Slip: Vintage Hem / Sandals: Target

I thought the birds might be too busy with the zipper, but it worked out just fine!

And I remembered to accessorize! Ring: my lavaliere / Cuff bracelet: stamp

Ah, macro settings... so much detail. Can you see where the ring starts to irritate my finger after a few hours? That's why I don't wear it so often! Too bad, because it's one of my favorite pieces of jewelry.

Oh and if you didn't see my baby goat post yesterday, go back and look! They're worth looking at a lot. I keep showing them to people just so I can stare at them more.

a friendly reminder

Just a quick note to self (and for the benefit of others):

Do NOT leave shoes lying around in the middle of the hallway, especially if they are high heels. Especially if you're in a hurry and you're running around barefoot. It will only lead to pain! This is the lesson I learned yesterday when I stumbled on these pretty shoes and then landed (with all my weight) on the heel of one. I have a giant red mark on the bottom of my right foot and it still sort of hurts!

Accessorizing!

But I can forgive the shoes, and I'm even going to take them on a little vacation with me. Ugh, I spent probably 3 hours yesterday trying to figure out what to wear to my sister's wedding! I think I've found the perfect outfit, but of course it involves a dress that needs to be repaired. I better get busy!

Shoes - vintage from Retropolis in Houston
Cuff bracelet - Clare Stoker, courtesy of the BSP a while ago!
Purse - surprisingly, it's from Target a few years back

I'm a little worried about our travel plans for Thursday because it's supposed to snow like crazy [2-4 inches]... but hopefully everything will work out! You know what? I've been having a crummy day, but my faith in today has just been restored: when I went over to the Bright Side Project to grab the link, I found out I won something else. Now it's a GOOD day. (And I cannot stress enough how awesome BSP is!)

OKAY, everyone, I'm going to be on a blog break for a while! We're spending a few days in Houston and I'll be back here once everything has settled down. Have a good week! I hope everyone is enjoying 2010!! Sorry for all of the exclamation marks - I'm really stressed out and you can pretend I'm kind of yelling every sentence if you want.

the ostrich set

Hello! Just wanted to pop in and mention that there are two new items in my Etsy shop! A matching purse and pair of shoes, ostrich style...


Both of these things belonged to Robert's grandma. She called me a few weeks ago to ask if I would like to sell some of her vintage clothes! I agreed: a week later my father-in-law knocked on the door with a box full of shoes and purses, and a few items of clothing.


It seemed right to start by listing this pair of items, which she called "the ostrich set." I think that's so cute! They're not even the same brand, but they do match quite well.


This shade of pink is not my style, but I do find the well-worn shoes very charming for some reason. I think the purse is made from synthetic material, but the shoes are made from real leather that's embossed to look like ostrich skin.

Anyway, since I'm doing this for someone else I'm going to try to be efficient about it and get everything listed quickly... Hopefully I'll have more items to share very soon!

feathers, braids and robots

I got something nice in the mail yesterday! A little bit ago I won the weekly giveaway on Luphia loves... ! If you're unfamiliar with Tina's blog, there is a giveaway each week, and comments on each post count as entries - it's a very neat concept! Anyhow, the sponsor for the week was my lavaliere, a shop full of pretty vintage-inspired jewelry and hair accessories. Exciting, no? I won a voucher to the shop and got to pick out a prize!

Hmm, what's this?

A pretty headband! I love it.

I was doing an experiment this morning with my hair. I recently watched this tutorial about Heidi braids by Aya of Strawberry Koi Vintage and it really made me wish I could braid my hair! Unfortunately, my hair is somewhat short.. and curly.. and layered, all of which complicate things. However, I decided to take the tip about starting the braid close to your head and sort of lifting as you braid [you probably have to see the video to know what I'm talking about]. I couldn't braid too much because of the crazy nature of my hair, but I was able to make a loose, messy braid and then pin it up on both sides, using just about every hair clip I have. I think it was really cute, though it wouldn't have lasted long - but perhaps that's something to try to improve on!

And if you were wondering about that box over my head, it's just the robot scene going on over our couch. Like it? I wish I could decorate our whole apartment in a minimalist / robotic nature, but we only have the resources for one wall... so far.

Oh, oh, one more thing! New recipe at the hungry lemur! Please go take a look at tell us what you think. I was really proud of the pictures for that one. And I apologize for the ridiculous amount of breakfast food recipes. We do eat other types of food... it's just easier to take pictures of leisurely weekend breakfasts! :)

a brief pause

This week is going to be very busy for me, but I thought I'd pause for a minute to make a blog post! A couple of days ago I received a mysterious little package in the mail. It took me a few minutes to realize what it was.


It was a beautiful jewelry set that I won from a giveaway on Diana's blog! Diana is so generous with her giveaways...


A necklace, ring, and earrings! All from Swaydehead on Etsy. Everyone, please go ogle the pretty things there - she even makes miniature hats! Oh, I need one of those.

I wore the necklace to work yesterday and started receiving compliments immediately. Instant confidence! Thank you again, Diana and Teisha!

Anyhow, the reason I'm going to be so busy this week is that we're moving in 4 days. I'll be working every day until then, so I'm planning to put my Etsy shop on vacation mode this evening and pack up my computer... Too many distractions! Apologies in advance for not commenting on any blogs - I imagine I'll have a lot of catching up to do when I get back online! I hope everyone has a lovely week.

thrifty wardrobe makeover

I made a trip to Music City Thrift yesterday. My ultimate goal was to find some vintage belts for a couple of dresses I want to sell, but I also had some ulterior motives... And though I did buy some belts, I also ended up with some lovely things for myself!

big comfy sweater!

Neither of the tops I bought are vintage, but they're perfectly good items that were about $2 each! I'm slowly changing my whole wardrobe, trying to buy things that are simple and more sophisticated. And lately whenever I put something on in the morning and think, "I hate this," I pull it out of the closet and it goes in a pile to be donated. There's just no need to wear clothes you hate when there are so many things to be worn!

Gap shirt, basically brand new

New [old] umbrella!

I am so in love with these shoes that I found... Not sure if I want to keep them, though. They fit me, but it's a pretty tight squeeze. Lately I've been doing awful things to my feet by not choosing comfortable shoes when I'm going to be walking a lot, and I need to try to stop that. My poor feet! You may be seeing these in the Etsy shop soon - but let me think on it!

another rainy day

I've got to stop trying to predict the weather and start checking it beforehand!! I imagined (falsely, again) that after a day as lovely as yesterday, we might get some more sunshine. I thought it might be a good day to take pictures by the pretty trees at the library, so you don't get the idea that I never leave the house. We made it out for groceries this morning, but on the way home the tornado sirens had started up, and it began pouring rain. Maybe it will magically clear up? We'll see!

Outfit:
dress - Forever 21
slip - flea market
bag - thrifted

There has been one nice surprise -- my bracelet from Stamp arrived!! It's the most modern piece of jewelry I own now. It's so simple and pretty. Courtesy of The Bright Side Project!

Oh, and one other sweet surprise! Since I had mentioned some shoes from jessjamesjake, Jess has started her own blog and she mentioned me in the first post! Lots of vintage fashion inspiration over there, so go take a peek!

third time's a charm!

I'm feeling extremely fortunate. Last night I found out that another one of the Bright Side Project designers had chosen me as a winner!! I'd been thinking that the questions this month seemed more difficult, and that maybe it was some difference between artists and jewelry designers. But I managed to win again!

Cuff bracelet by stamp

The question posed was: Where is the most beautiful place you have visited? My answer: "I haven't ever been outside of America, so I feel like I can't compete with all these pretty descriptions! I think Middle Tennessee is beautiful. Rolling hills, flowering trees, little peeks at the Appalachian Mountains. Having grown up in [flat] Texas, I am enamored with big hills, and I can't believe houses are built on them!"

And it's very true: I still can't believe the hills around here. Driving on them scares me sometimes, but it's really exciting! Anyway, check out the Bright Side Project if you haven't already- the prizes are getting bigger! It's such a sweet idea.

enid collins

Photo by glumpire

I just found my new favorite designer: Enid Collins. Turns out I'm a little late, since she was making purses from 1959 to 1970, but I can still be in love. Check out this post on Painfully Hip about her handbags.

Some of them are a bit kitschy for me, but I think they're all wonderful and adorable. I want one! I need one! I am watching a few of them on Ebay! I need Robert to work his magic and surprise me with a present. Do you think this is a big enough hint?

hanging lights and things

Here are some pictures to prove that I haven't been entirely lazy lately. I have been entirely distracted, though - we just have so many boxes and things sitting around that I will start one project, go into another room to get something, and end up starting an entirely new project.

Paper lantern in the bedroom.

Clock and some wall decoration over my computer (not done there, but I need more nails for hanging things!)

Bird lights in the kitchen. Those are from IKEA - they always have good lights.

We've set up the record player, and I finally got my sewing machine out of its box this morning. Things don't look too bad, considering we've only been here a week. There's a dissassembled bike in the middle of the living room. Not sure where that's going to go - we don't have any sort of fence around our patio or a place to chain it, either. I guess we could chain it to one of those cute little bushes outside, but that seems so rude.

Here are a couple of things that should be going into my Etsy shop today or tomorrow! I need to stop lurking around in my pajamas (which has become a daily occurrence) and get busy!

Hat! And that coat too, but not just yet... How white can I get?

Shoes! I'd keep them but they're too tight.

Also-- I did sell my darkroom stuff! I left it with my mom in case I ever wanted to use it again, but after we moved my friend Max asked about buying it. He just picked it up from my mom's house this morning! I'm really glad it's going to a good home. I figure by the time I have the right space / desire to develop photos again, I can always buy new stuff; mine wasn't all that great anyway!

old stuff

I got some exciting free stuff today! I like it when that happens. I also bought a really neat 60s style dresser that I'm going to repaint, and I got a dress in the mail! But let's focus on the free stuff.

I was at my mom's and I noticed this little box hanging out in her bedroom.

Aha! It's full of costume jewelry!!!

Shiny things to be looked at!!

Apparently this all used to belong to a lady I've known my whole life who died a few years ago. I'm sure I've been through it before, but I guess I wasn't interested back then. However, seeing how I'm kind of trying to replace my wardrobe piece by piece with vintage stuff...

She said I could take any of it, but this was all I wanted.

I never wear a watch because they always seem big and clunky or silly looking. But this one is tiny and dainty. And I have to wind it up every day! That's really appealing to me.

I also got some old flour sacks from my grandma- she seems to have a neverending supply of them. They all have the best patterns ever! I think it'd be neat to make a quilt from them.

heart headband

I'm feeling a bit more rested today. This morning I drew out some plans for how I want to arrange my craft area in the new apartment. I'm going to make little plans for each room, and if I can't figure out where something goes, we have to get rid of it before the move!

But this afternoon I was feeling creatively dissatisfied, like I hadn't really done anything. So I decided it was sewing time. I was hoping to use my sewing machine, but it's impossible to get to right now. Time to sew by hand! I usually prefer sewing by hand because I feel more in control, though sewing machines make things happen really fast (which is why they scare me a little).

It's about time to start doing Valentine's stuff, right?

Drinking green tea is my new favorite afternoon activity.

At this point I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with this little heart. So I looked in a mirror to determine if it would look better in someone's hair or as some sort of brooch. Turns out it was adorable in my hair!

Can you tell I ran out of those uniform white buttons? Left side is less pretty.

So I sewed it onto a headband. Actually, that's a ribbon that's supposed to go on a dress. But I like to wear it in my hair. I will wear almost anything in my hair.


Now I have to wait until Valentine's Day to wear it! Coincidentally, Valentine's day falls on the day after we move to Nashville. We won't have any furniture for the weekend (it's getting delivered a couple of days after we get there). We're planning to explore the city. I'm really excited.

ears and earrings

A couple of weeks ago my sister gave me some final Christmas presents that had come late in the mail. She got them on Etsy of course (the best place ever to buy special presents for special people!).

Tiny records!

Speaking of that there left ear, I went to the doctor today. I've been having some problems and now is the time to get all medical stuff taken care of since we'll be without insurance once we move. There's really nothing wrong with it, just that it constantly feels like I'm in an airplane and the air pressure has changed and there's no way to pop my ear and relieve it. It's been a little hard of hearing as well.

So here's the prognosis: I've got a Eustachian Tube Dysfunction! I should have known all along. They don't know why it's like that, but I've been prescribed a slew of pills and nasal sprays that should help it. The doctor said if my ear is still bothering me in a month to come back and he will make a "small incision." We will have no incisions inside my ears! Medicine, you better work!!