Outfit: Baby It’s Cold Outside

February 9, 2016February 9, 20164 Comments

BRRR!

I really wish I could have showcased this outfit better, but I think it was mean’t for a warmer day. I had planned to take off the coat for a few shots so you could actually see this vintage-inspired dress and get some detail shots of the vintage scarf, but the strong and bloody cold winds suggested maybe that wasn’t a wise idea. Whenever it seems like the weather is against me getting the photos I want it’s pretty frustrating, I have to say. I’m not one to admit defeat easily, but when your hands are so cold you can’t seem to adjust camera settings anymore, it’s probably time to call it quits. It’s not that I didn’t get enough photos, I clearly did, but they didn’t turn out the way I had envisioned – it’s damn near impossible to exact an image when your hands are telling you to just stop. Ah well, there are probably (definitely) worse things in life. However, before my hands did freeze, I snapchatted some of my shooting process (and potty mouth)…so this is my ~~seamless~~ way of plugging my snapchat (pushyspence) so ya’ll can follow along!

– WHAT I WORE –
Dress c/o Unique Vintage | Coat, Scarf, Tam: vintage | Shoes: Seychelles | Tights: UO
Larkspur Vintage | Outfit: Baby It's Cold Outside

Outfit: Rekindle

August 31, 2015August 31, 20156 Comments

It had been ages since I had worn this dress. It used to be an absolute favourite of mine, but I think I wore it death and grew rather tired of it over time. However, something about it called to me the other day, and after slipping back into it, I remembered why I loved it so…and even more now with my short hair. It’s interesting how something as simple as a haircut can bring new life to clothes collecting dust in your closet. And this is the very reason I have so much trouble parting ways with my clothes. It is said that if you haven’t worn something in a year you should probably let it go, but I have to disagree. Sometimes you just need a break; a little time to find what once was. If I let go every piece of clothing I hadn’t worn in a year, well I’d have a whole lot of clothing regrets. This is not to say I don’t purge myself of the clothes that really are not ever going to be worn, but I choose not to hold myself to the rule above because some pieces are just more special than others and deserve a real chance to prove themselves once again (and clearly I am fucking over dramatic when it comes to clothes).

What about you guys? Are you frequent purgers? Hoarders of a sort, like me?
Dress: vintage via Friperie St. Laurent
Belt: thrifted
Shoes: H&M

Beauty / Tying a Head Scarf

June 25, 20153 Comments

We all have days when our hair is messy and greasy and just downright rebelling against us. In most cases a ponytail/topknot or hat would be a suitable solution, but what about changing things up a bit and adding a little interest to any outfit with a headscarf around your rats nest, a la 40s/50s housewife? This scarf tying technique also works great for when you are sleeping with rags, pins or curlers in overnight and want to prevent anything from moving about or – dare I say it – falling out. This look is for both functionality and style.
1. fold your scarf in half so it comes to peak, much like a triangle you learned about in some math class
2. place the scarf around your shoulders with the peak facing downward (towards your butt) and the other pieces hanging over top of your shoulders, like a shawl
3. pull the peak over top of your head, creating this lovely draping effect; in my case, I wanted to leave my bangs (fringe) out, so I only pulled it over my head as far as my bangs
4. take the two loose ends and pull them over top of your peak while holding it in place (this is when having 3 arms would be nice), shifting and tightening the head scarf to your desired look. at this point you can pull out any pieces of hair or put them back into your headscarf
5. now tie the loose ends into a bow; I also tied my peak into the bow as well so I didn’t have a weird piece hanging over my bangs
6. you are done and you look like a lovely 40s/50s housewife, which from a feminist standpoint could be a bad thing, but we aren’t talking about that now are we? so in this case, it is very good
*check out my other beauty and tutorial posts here.

The Life of a Dress

January 19, 2015January 19, 201513 Comments

I have such a hard time feeling okay about buying clothes that are not vintage or thrifted (this excludes independent designers). I’m not sure why – maybe they just don’t feel special…maybe I don’t like the idea of fast fashion – whatever it is, I actually feel like I have something against new clothes. Recently Forever 21 opened a location really close to my house and I thought, “okay, cool, I can take a peek, maybe they’ll have some cute things.” But the second I tried them on, I didn’t want any of them. It just didn’t feel like me. But say I were to find that same item in a thrift store and I liked it, I would probably buy it. Maybe hunting for clothes is part of my love for vintage and thrifting.

So it’s odd for me to say, but the only thing that is vintage in this entire look is my hat. This dress may look vintage – what with it’s 50s shape and fun novelty print – but it is indeed new. And it had me wondering…will I love this dress? Why shouldn’t I love this dress? I mean, when I saw it online, I fell for it almost immediately. But as soon as I knew a ton of others could purchase it, or that it doesn’t have an interesting past, it’s like my brain tried to sabotage my initial like for this dress, as if it was less special because it hadn’t been worn by another. But I’m glad I do own it. I am very fond of this dress. I no longer have any dresses with this silhouette in my closet – I sold all my 50s dresses with a similar silhouette long ago because I’m not really a 50s kind of girl (usually). But the length of this dress feels very 60s and it can act as a pinafore, which we all know I love. It may not have a history, but I’m the first home along it’s journey. I hope one day it will make some others girls happy. After all, all those vintage clothes I love so much now started out as new.

Hold do you feel about buying new vs old? Do you even care? I’d love to hear.

Dress c/o Larmoni
Blouse: H&M (old)
Socks: UO
Hat: vintage via Common Sort
Boots: Samantha Pleet x Wolverine

Belle Vie / 31

January 14, 20159 Comments

1. Old books.
2. My new-to-me pink 1950s flour, sugar, coffee and tea canisters.
3. iPhones are addictive, guys…especially when you have two.
4. We finally got curtains for our livingroom. Ryan decided to put his polar bear figurines (Ryan has loved polar bears since he was young) on the windowsill, on top of the curtain, to create a snowy scene for the bear…ya, I dunno either.
5. I see a pattern here…another 1950s pink kitchen item…this time a mixing bowl, with a happy little pineapple inside (we also got a juicer recently, so we have fruits galore).
6. We are looking after Ryan’s family dog, Beans, for the next few weeks. Aren’t they cute together? Like salt and pepper. (iphone)
7. Our livingroom is kind of filled with guitars and guitar amps. I’m still trying to figure out how to make the livingroom feel equal parts me and equal parts Ryan…it’s very Ryan right now.
8. A sleeping cloud baby.
9. We need to fix the frame on this picture so Bob Dylan can find a home on the wall. Also, maybe I should paint it a better colour.
10. Messy bed, that I’d very much like to be in right about now. (iphone)