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I was going to title this post “Vintage Black and White Summer Dress” and then I thought about it. Yes, this is a great dress for summer. But actually? Add a black jacket or cardigan and you could wear this gorgeous dress year round.
Take a look at the other pics in the listing – you can see the detailing, and it’s pretty cool. It’s probably fairly adjustable, would be forgiving of a little weight gain or loss, and it’s a super flattering line. And come on: sexy halter, shoulders, flirty skirt, and black and white…. this is a foxy dress!
I found it at Sammy’s Chifforobe on Etsy, and Sammy, the owner/curator, has got a great eye. She gives you good pics, lots of detail, and the prices? In a word – amazing.
Go shopping! You’ll love the store, you’ll find great deals, and to top it all off, Sammy’s using her savvy and sense of style to help pay for grad school. We need more women in grad school, getting educated, getting out in the biz world! This is what we call a “win/win”!
This is just a small diversion from my vintage and glass jewels – I wanted to mention that dogtag necklaces are a great gift for dad. Dogtag necklaces that have the Japanese kanji that says, for example, Ronin, or Honor, or Bushido. Like this one:
That’s one of the most popular of my kanji dogtag necklace series. Which possibly says something about the guys in our lives: they appreciate Bushido, the way of the warrior. And, you know, we appreciate them: sometimes they like to know that 🙂
Just wanted to mention it. Now back to my regularly scheduled girly jewelry.
For all the fancy words, for all the debts and gratitude, it boils down to this: my heartfelt thank you to every man and woman who serves their country. In peace and war, with the gift of their time and sometimes their lives – you are appreciated, every day.
Thank you for your service, your dedication, and your sacrifice.
You know, if you’re trying to find something fabulous (and also affordable, and unique, and hey even vintage!) as a gift for your Mom – you are SO in luck. This lovely kimono would be a great robe, jacket, dress, or toss-over-jeans-cardigan-fabulousness for her.
Because moms like to look good too.
So the big question is… a gift for Mom, or for you? This is not an easy one.
But is this not lovely? I would wear it as a dress. Or over jeans. Or, hey, even as a robe except then I would get paint and dirt and dust and dog hair all over it, and I might want to save it for a little more specialness than that.
But why not for Mom? She deserves something a little more fun than, what, an apron? You weren’t going to get her an apron, were you? Or a vase of flowers from the grocery store because you forgot to get something?
No. Show her how special you think she is (and hey, the bonus is, she’llknow how special you are.) This wonderful garment would be a fabulous gift. No worries about “will it fit”. And it’s silk, which is always classy (and what many people don’t know is that it is super washable, too.) And the colors? Beautiful.
I found it at Shudder Emporium, a vintage boutique on Etsy with clothing and accessories and Oddities.
You are going to have so much fun over there. Go peek. And if the kimono is gone when you get there, let her know that if she should happen to find more, well, that would be good too. But seriously: such great items, and great prices too? This is a Find!
Yes, I like to play with beads and jewels – they’re my medium, if you like. And I think it’s good to try things that we aren’t “supposed to do”. After I saw that yummy, fuschia pink silk dress (see my post here), I couldn’t resist playing with some fuschia pink jewels.
I deliberately grabbed beads and jewels that I wouldn’t usually pair with the fuschia pink jewels. In the example on the left, that big jump ring is aluminum – not a material you expect to see with a classic rhinestone teardrop. And the upper stone is navy blue.
In the middle design, those round(ish) beads are glass E beads – I probably wouldn’t choose those color combinations and those very..hmm…casual beads. But hey, why not try it?
The design on the right has a sapphire blue oval paired with the fuschia pear. And the settings aren’t even the same color. Well, we definitely wouldn’t do that.
But – why not? Okay, if it was me, I’d try to use three different settings, not two, so it looks deliberate. But that’s me. You ought to do – whatever feels right to you. Both gold and silver settings in the same earrings?
Why not?
You know that aquamarine is the March birthstone, right? So I got to thinking about aqua, aqua blue, aquamarine, light turquoise…. all those color names for pretty aqua jewels. And since I had just found that totally darling aqua prom dress (see post here), I thought it could be fun to look at aqua earrings, too.
Let’s go understated, first.
These stud earring jewels are easy to use (just glue on earring posts – E6000 is a pretty reliable jewelry glue). They’re small(ish) but large enough to have a bit of impact, about 1/2″ long. They’d be great day or night – and kind of extra fun, when people *expect* you to wear long dangly earrings – and you’ve got on a pair of classy button earrings, instead.
Anyway. That’s a start. Don’t get me wrong, I like dangly earrings too – and I’m going to come back in a day or two and show off some designs I think you’ll like.
But meanwhile? Aquamarine blue. March birthstone. Make a birthday present for your BFF or your mom. Or you, of course 😉
Vintage patina brass filigrees are a wonderful complement to vintage glass jewels (hey, they’re good with shiny new ones, too). Brass can be so timeless! The examples I show here are a few items in my shop right now. They’re actually new brass – but the die (or pattern) from which each is made, comes from mid 20th century – or earlier.
I love the intricacy and detailing of these pieces. They are all made in the USA – from manufacturers that have dominated the brass jewelry trade for decades. They are, let’s put it this way, the Rolls Royce of brass filigrees.
Okay, I’m biased. I’ve found some wonderful manufacturers. They truly are quality though. Imagine any of these pieces, with handwired teardrops or pearls. Or used as the connector in a fab bracelet. Or, well, you can imagine.
I’ll be showing off a few pieces in the weeks to come. But these? are a fabulous start to the Year of Fabulous Vintage (style) Jewelry 🙂
These leaf spray connectors are a good example of the fun things you can add to your jewelry to make it just a little more interesting!
I show them here with glass teardrop jewels that are about 3/4″ high – so you can get an idea of the real size. They’re small but not tiny – they could be used as earring dangles (as suggested here) or as necklace or bracelet connectors.
They’re super affordable, too – and fun – and easy to use (attach with jump rings and you’re good to go). I like easy, cute, and fun – and I think you do too 😉
And now for something a little different – I’ve been playing with patinas lately, and I’m pretty happy with this verdigris (blue-green patina).
These are bronze over steel, not brass – which means they’re thinner and lighter in weight than brass would be (but still sturdy). And these are big – about 45mm in diameter, or 1-3/4″. Even at that size, they’re lightweight enough to be comfy earrings. Use them as is – or add complementary jewels – I’m going to try a few designs and revisit these later this week.
And you know the color – this gorgeous teal blue-green – is like the most flattering shade ever. Year round – flattering – comfy – these are a win!
I kid you not. This is the most wonderful Christmas ornament EVER.
You do see what I mean. This little guy (or girl) is adorable, interesting, unusual, and fun. Are these not qualities you want your Christmas to have? And besides, talk about a conversation piece.
You noticed his/her sleigh hitch with bells, right?
(S)he is available from Curious Burrow on Etsy, and if you think this sloth is fascinating you will probably also want to check out the uni-hippo jewelry holder, or the Lobster Love necklace. Seriously.
These delightful creatures are all made to order, and it may be too late for this year’s Christmas (or not, it can’t hurt to ask!) You may need to make your own Sloth holiday to start the new year 🙂
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Jewelry and Accessories
Vintage, Recycled, Upcycled!
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