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You know I love vintage clothing – it’s ecologically smart, which is great – but honestly, it’s mostly that I’m selfish. I love finding things that are unique, usually well made, and just little bit more fun than the stuff you usually find in Macy’s or Kohl’s.
For example, this fun and fabulous summer dress:
You see what I mean? Look at the detailing at the neck and armhole. And that clever diagonal print! The dress looks cool and comfy (and cotton, which is great). It’s got its own style – you don’t have to DO a lot, if you know what I mean. You could dress it up – a fitted jacket, nipped in at the waist, or just a pretty cardigan). A great pair of heels. It could go to work, to your inlaws, or to dinner.
But most of all? I’d love it casual. Toss this baby on, add a big pair of hoop earrings, maybe a stack of bangles, bare sandals, and go all day. And look good.
I found this sweet dress at Venelle on Etsy. Sophie, the owner/curator, has some fab finds and a great eye. Even with international shipping (I’m in the U.S., Venelle’s in the UK) her items are really affordable. Go shopping, figure a couple or three weeks for shipping, and have fun!
Did I mention how much I love vintage? Yes!
Just a little comparison I did this morning. I placed montana sapphire (navy blue) round rivoli jewels near some teardrops, one of them opaque black, one vivid aqua blue. It’s just interesting how the eye perceives these.
The combo on the left, with the opaque black teardrops, feels a little more Goth. The combo on the right, a little more fun and frivolous. That’s before we think about it. After we take time to reflect, we simply see the colors that match the definitions of “navy”, “black”, “aqua” (or turquoise).
But at first? Goth. Somber. And frivolous.
The brain is an interesting organ, yknow?
You know I’m a convert to glass cabochons and jewels. I had to learn that good jewelry didn’t have to be made with “precious” gemstones or cost a fortune. This pic below is just another example of how glass jewels can be lovely 🙂
These were jewels that were on my worktable from a couple different projects – and you know how I do sometimes – I just fiddle with different combos. These are all strong colors – golden topaz navettes, peridot green round rivoli jewels, and deep aqua glass octagons. Any of them could be used alone, as is, for earrings or necklace jewels.
And when you put them together? Stunning. Fun. Fab. Easy to make, easy to wear, easy on the wallet. You see what I mean? This is a win 😉
I’ve talked about these adorable sparrow connectors before but I just wanted to take a moment to show you how pretty the golden (raw) brass birds are:
They really do make terrific earring links or dangles – or connectors for your necklace or bracelet. They’re versatile and work with so many styles.
But – small tip – you can also clip off one ring, file the ends gently, and use them “as is” for earrings. Pretty little golden birds, just a touch whimsical, and of course as earrings they go with practically everything. Plus, they’re lightweight and inexpensive. This really is a win!
White jewels are classic for wedding jewelry, of course – and I recently paired these two different styles – and made this super combo 🙂
The opaque white teardrops are vintage glass cabochon jewels made in post-war Japan (talk about “something old” – very cool!) The crystal jewels are new, and the faceting’s clean and modern.
Linked with silver jump rings, these would be fabulous for a bride. Modern, clean, and vintage too? This is a win 🙂
We can’t all wear rubies and sapphres. And – I will say it right here – this doesn’t bother me at all. I’m kinda over feeling the need for Expensive Gemstones. Yes they’re beautiful (when they’re quality). But mostly I love color – and I think a lot of women feel the same way. Glass jewels are beautiful, they’re affordable, and they don’t damage the planet. Not as much as mining gems, anyway. So – glass jewels? A win-win.
Like these:
Used together as shown, wouldn’t those make a terrific pair of earrings? For about one squillionth the cost of “Fine gemstones”.
I don’t need fine gemstones. I want good looking jewelry, that I can make (or you can make), that I can afford, that’s fun to wear.
That’s a win 🙂
Now this dress is hot! And I don’t just mean that it’s a summer dress – it’s a year round Wowza dress, is what it is.
Look at that detailing! The waist detail, the draping, the spaghetti straps. The sexy slit. The wow factor.
This would feel fabulous – and look fabulous – and it would be easy to wear! Add some earrings, a jazzy necklace if you want, and some great shoes. Or go barefoot. Or wear it with flipflops for casual but glam.
You NEED this party dress. It’s available (as of this writing!) from Sailor Plus Vintage on Etsy. Paige, the curator, has some great finds there (I love the hawaiian print dress!) – and she gives clear, accurate pics and detail – you know how important that is when you’re buying online.
Go shopping. You’ll love it and you’ll thank me.
I mean – Wow!
Take a look at this super, summertime mini dress:
I love this dress. I love it because it’s JUST A DRESS. It looks great. It’s easy to wear. (I’d wear it with flipflops or strappy high heels, but hey that’s me.) It’s washable. It’s just a dress – the kind you want to toss on in the morning and just GO, and know it’s going to look good, and you’re going to look good, and it’s no big deal.
It doesn’t get much better than that, you know?
It’s available – right now, anyway – at Avid Noise – over at Etsy. Izzi, the shop owner, has some great stuff over there – which you already knew, because you’re looking at this dress.
And: it’s on sale. Go shopping. You’ll thank me.
PS Izzi’s tagline? “Vintage clothes inspired by the many great women in rock.” It’s not a coincidence that her icon at page top looks like Courtney Love… Hey, you know you have to check it out!
The “hangman’s noose” wire wrap is probably the single most useful wire wrap you’ll ever learn. Once you master it (and it’s not hard) you can create professionally secure dangles and connectors with any beads and components.
The wrap is called the “hangman’s noose” (really!) I guess they used the same technique back in the old days, with rope. I’m going to just move from that now…!
I did a simple sketch to illustrate how to make this wrap:
Basically you slip your bead onto a headpin, make a loop around the tip of round-nose pliers, slip the loop onto a chain link, and then wrap the remainder of the headpin around the straight part of the wire. I think – I hope – the drawing makes that clear!
Holler (email me) if it doesn’t! And check YouTube too – there’s handy files there. This drawing is just an extra reference 🙂
Over at Etsy, they’ve revised the New Layout. Rearrange is a lot easier now for sellers 🙂 Here’s how it works:
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First, go to Your Shop / Shop Settings / Options
On the “options” page, under “Rearrange Your Shop”, you have the choice of:
“Enabled” – if this button is clicked, you will be able to “Custom Sort” your items – putting them anywhere you want;
or
“Disabled” means your items will show according to Recency – the items you’ve just listed will always show up first.
If you want to be able to rearrange any kind of way (other than the “most recent” on top), you need to click on “Enable” – so you can custom sort.
Then be sure to Save that (you’re still on the Options page).
Then to back to your Shop front page, and click on Edit Shop, and then Rearrange Items. After the first 24 items, you’ll see page numbers (and every listing will have its own number). You can click on any page number, find an item, and click on the item – then click on a page number to put that item on that page.
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So they really were listening to the peeps that said Guys, this ain’t working!
Props to Etsy!
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Jewelry and Accessories
Vintage, Recycled, Upcycled!
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