Thrifting Vintage [27/31]

Several years ago, I made a small side-business out of buying & selling vintage home decor items. I bought gilded frames and sconces and revamped them for the 21st century. My "shop" did well at it's height, but ultimately wasn't sustainable. It wasn't too long after that I noticed Hobby Lobby selling similar products. 

I have a love/hate relationship with vintage. The word vintage, anyway. It's buzzy, worn out, and too often slapped on a piece of junk unworthy of the title.

"Vintage denotes something special—that an item has stood the test of time and has proven to remain relevant for any number of reasons—timelessness of style, [quality], historical or cultural significance or interesting provenance.” - Doris Raymond, Vintage Seller

Thrifting vintage, at least quality vintage, can be challenge as you are up against collectors & sellers alike. It's not impossible, but the effort can feel like a true treasure hunt at times. Here are a few thoughts consider in your search:

Know Your Personal Eras - This one saves me from bringing home a lot of potential clutter. There's a temptation to snatch up that kitschy owl cookie jar, but let's be serious. It doesn't go with my aesthetic and I don't have the time to attempt to market it online. I'm more of a mid-century, modern girl anyway.

Check Labels/ Stamps - This one is important for signifying value to an item. American-made items often indicate a pre-1980's creation date, especially in regards to clothing. This guide to identifying vintage clothing labels is like a history lesson in fashion.

Embossed labels beneath breakable wares can be a sign if an item is collectible. Put that smartphone to use and Google those manufacturer names! 

Don't Read Into Sizes - Don't let an ill-fitting vintage dress that is 6 sizes larger than your "regular" size kill your joy. Not only have sizing charts shifted over the years, but there was a completely different set of undergarments in place to be worn with those clothes. Nothing that a set of Spanx and a corset couldn't solve today, surely.

Know What Can Be Fixed - Basically, what imperfections are you ok with? Is it a garment that can be altered or repaired? If resale value isn't important to you, are chips and cracks a deal breaker for decor pieces? 

If you have specific items in mind (i.e. any of the above images), you may have better luck at flea markets or estate sales. Vintage resale shops & antique malls tend to price things a little higher. Etsy & Ebay are some other great places to start. Happy Hunting!

[Images: 1.Frame 2. Thermoses 3. Dress 4. Camera 5. Pyrex 6. Milk glass]

I am linking up with The Nester every day in October for #write31days. 

You can find a list of all 31 posts as they are published by clicking here. 

Sara's Beautiful (& Inexpensive) Baby Shower!

I had the honor of hosting a baby shower for my sassy friend, Sara, this past weekend. Sara loves all things quirky & whimsical (see here & here), so I wanted throw her a party that was uniquely her.

For the months leading up to it, I scoured the secondhand stores for brightly colored knick-knacks & vintage pretties. Seeing it all come together at the end was just as exciting for me as it was for Sara—and she loved it!!

On the menu, I bought a bulk jar of Caramel Cashew mix ($10) from Target and separated them into these little nut cups ($3) from Hobby Lobby. This worked out great for the guests in that all the little pieces weren't sliding around their dessert plates.

The little girl in the background is one half of a set of vintage bookends I scored from Goodwill ($4), which I included as one of my gifts for the mama-to-be. This actually worked out perfect since books for baby girl's library were requested in lieu of cards.

My pink lemonade cupcakes didn't look as amazing as I hoped, but the mini flags ($2) from Hobby Lobby most certainly redeemed them.

And would you believe I scored that lovely 3-tiered serving tray for $3 at a thrift store? If you know me, I guess it shouldn't come as a surprise;)

Some of the additional mini flags I used as labels for my cheese tray. I took the easy route and purchased a pre-cut selection ($4) from Aldi's. We've been doing a lot more grocery shopping there and have been pleasantly surprised by the savings we've made as a result of it.

The table runner is actually a piece of vintage scrap fabric I found for less than $1. I am so looking forward to what Sara crafts out of it someday!

Mama Sara by the entire spread. We also snacked on crackers, bing cherries, blueberries, cantaloupe, and fresh cut pineapple. The flowers in the thrifted milk glass vases were picked from a Trader Joe's summer bouquet ($4). The pink pom pom banner was from a kit I also purchased at Hobby Lobby ($5). It took a little while to assemble, but the finished product looked so pretty and I'll be using it again this week for Ruby's 3rd Birthday (!).

I didn't get a great pic of our drink station, but the ladies sipped on strawberry/ rosemary/ lemonade mocktails through pink striped paper straws ($3). We also played the same corny shower games that were featured at my sister-in-law Nicole's baby shower.

Overall, I thought the party was a success! Sara received lots of wonderful things for "Lil B" & I got the impression that everyone was having a nice time (if not, they did a great job faking it).

Throwing a baby shower can feel like a bit of an overwhelming task when you factor in the details & cost of every little thing (especially as a one income family), so I wanted to share how easy & inexpensive it was to put together something thoughtful & pretty.

Also, you may have noticed that the interior of our home got a face-lift since the last time you checked in (Hello, gray walls!). I'm planning on a living room/ dining room remodel post, that is, if I can keep it clean long enough to photograph it! Someday...

Jason & Sara's Wedding Weekend

This past weekend kicked off the first of a handful of weddings we'll be attending this year, half of which Wayde will be attending as a groomsman. Yep, my husband is a pretty likeable guy.

Jason has been a friend of Wayde's since high school and Sara we've got to know & love through Jason and church. The festivities took place around Burlington, IA.

The wedding day got off to a rocky start (for me, at least). I discovered after putting on the dress I had bought weeks before the wedding that there were some unslightly black streaks all over it. My only assumption is that is must have got shut in the car door on our way out. Thankfully, I had a backup ensemble, even though it was a little more casual than I would have preferred for a wedding.

That incident was followed up by Ruby taking a tumble on the sidewalk outside of our hotel room. There was blood. There were tears. There was a monster fat lip. I remembered that lavender oil was good for such abrasions, so I applied it to the site of Ruby's crash. I would say that within an hour, the swelling went down so significantly that the only visible indicator of what side it occured on were the little scrapes from the actual fall. My first real essential oils testimonial?

Jason & Sara couldn't have hoped for a more beautiful day. It was sunny—not too warm or windy. The weather was PERFECT.

“We are all a little weird and life is a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.” - Dr. Seuss (a quote read during the ceremony)

Sara has such ecclectic & quirky taste (which I love), so I was really looking forward to how she would put special touches on their big day.

The tables were numbered with the covers of vintage Harlequin romance novels and name cards were old library withdrawal slips.

The cake looked like it was straight out of the pages of a 1960's Better Homes & Gardens cookbook. Selections included chocolate, lemon raspberry, and Nutella. It was DIVINE, as you could imagine.

Our sweet Ruby stealing the show:) She did such a wonderful job of sitting still through the ceremony & making friends with guests at the reception. To know her is to love her, truly.

Thanks, Jason & Sara, for letting us be a part of your special day! xx

KC Anniversary Weekend!

Last weekend marked Wayde & my 5th wedding anniversay, which is just totally surreal to say the least. We wanted to go somewhere we didn't feel obligated to meet up with friends or family and since we've never been to Kansas City together, Kansas City became the destination.

We got some solid recommendations from friends ahead of time and found ourselves on W 39th Street, a hip little area full of kitschy shops & restaurants. Late lunch at d'Bronx followed by coffee and dessert at Rm. 39.

Rock Candy was a vintage boutique we popped into. Though I'm not in the market to buy a lot of clothes right now (28 weeks pregnant, hello!), Wayde had a few sweet finds by the end of the day.

I'm super thankful that my guy enjoys and could kill more time in a secondhand store than I even could.

We also checked out Donna's Dress Shop, which is pretty much the ultimate new & vintage ladies clothing boutique. Like, if I ever aspired to be a boutique owner, Donna's would be the living example of what I would like to open. Even the shop girls were dressed to the nines with their retro hair & ensembles.

Boomerang was another shop we hit, which reminded me of a Buffalo Exchange/ Ragstock type place. Wayde walked out with a pair of Allen Edmunds shoes, so he was a pretty happy camper.

After checking into our hotel, we walked towards the Power & Light district for dinner. There are few restaurants worthy of a 45 minute wait, but the Drunken Fish is one of them. I had Asian lettuce wraps, BLT sushi (yes, you read that correctly), and green tea fried ice green. Bloody fantastic.  

We stopped in a fancy grocery store for some snacks where I stumbled upon this selection of local, flavored milks from the Shatto Milk Company. I got a pint of the cotton candy. Seriously, cotton candy flavored milk!!

It was kind of a bummer for this pregnant lady to fall in love with so many food & drink items this trip and not have ready access to them back home:(

Since we didn't do any major traveling for this trip, we splurged on our accomodations by staying at the beautiful Hotel Phillips in downtown KC. And I am so glad we did.

It was actually more cost effective to do the in-room breakfast package which included valet and a $35 food & beverage voucher. Room service just might be one of my favorite things in the world.

Nothing like a lazy Sunday morning eating potato pancakes while watching HGTV...

Later that day we hit The Plaza, bought stuff at H&M, and grabbed some more food at Westport Coffeehouse before hitting the road home. We did NOT visit the art gallery which apparently is the thing to do while in Kansas City. Maybe next time...xx

Oh, It's Such A Perfect Day (I'm Glad I Spent It With You)

Birthday weekend is in FULL SWING!! I'm SO thankful to have a Hubby that is SO willing to celebrate all the days leading up to the big day (he's actually in the middle of baking me "almost vegan" chocolate-avocado cupcakes as I blog).

Last night, we went on an actual DATE!! We had sushi, we saw Looper (um...what??), we went out for a drink. And today, he was willing to take a day trip to my hometown for some thrifting & nostalgia. Because birthdays should also be a time for reflecting (and Lord knows, there's been a lot of that with the big THIRTY barreling towards me...).

I kind of can't believe how hard we scored today thrifting. I had been looking for a vintage toy camera for Ruby for awhile now and found this one for $3. I also kind of can't believe that Ruby pretended to be taking a photo with it long enough for me to take a photo of it. One year olds are kind of impossible to pose for pictures, if you didn't already know.

We walked around the downtown area and stumbled upon the most incredible wall covered in leaves. We couldn't NOT do a photo shoot.

On Papa: Flannel button-down (thrifted), army surplus sweater (thrifted), Baldwin Denim Jeans (Badowers), Red Wing boots (thrifted). 

On Mama: The "Saba" scarf (FashionABLE - check out their website!), Cardigan (TJ Maxx), Plaid button-down (thrifted), Jeans (Express - Plato's Closet), Chanel inspired vinyl-tipped ballet flats (Payless).

 Papa looking all dapper in his new vintage motorcycle jacket.

Do you want to see what else we found??

Vintage pillows. I normally have a rule against buying second-hand pillows (I mean, come on...), but these were practically in mint condition. And at $2 each, I mean, COME ON!! So hot right now, too.

 Vintage thermoses to add to the collection ($1 each). Because I don't already have enough collections...

My biggest collection is probably my library of vintage sewing books, which is kind of ironic because I can barely sew. The illustrations are mainly what draw me in. Or in the case of this book, the typography, which is RIDICULOUS (in the best way possible). Can you frame books?

THESE DRESSES. It can be challenging to find previously-loved kids clothes that don't show any evidence of "the love", but these beauties made the cut. Throw on a long undershirt with leggings, and Ruby can wear these through the rest of the season.

My actual birthday is tomorrow, so I'm soaking in these last couple hours of my twenties. [Sigh]. I'm not one to get super hung up on ages but, not gonna lie, this is kind of a hard one.

Thank you, Lord, for the years. For the lessons learned. Even the difficult ones. Shaping me into the woman YOU want me to become.

I've got some big dreams & goals for this next decade, some that I'm already in the process of working towards. Some are a little too big to share on this blog now, but you'll know when I do.

Here's to the next chapter...xx

A Banner Thrifting Day

It doesn't happen too often that I get to dedicate an afternoon to a second-hand shopping spree sans kiddo. And when I do, it's not very often that I hit the thrifting jackpot back-to-back-to-back. But today was one of those special days...

I was joined by my friend, Jennifer (former Blacklist Vintage owner & current Marigold Vintage proprietor) for a Southeast Des Moines sweep. Before hitting the charity shops, we stopped into the new Funky Finds Vintage & Retro at 515 18th Street.

Not only was it modestly priced, but also beautifully curated (which only made you want to buy EVERYTHING). Do yourself a favor and patronize this gem.

This rainbow Polaroid land camera was one of my "funky finds". I've been wanting one of these for a while now, so you can imagine my delight when I stumbled upon it.

I also walked out with this darling little puzzle by Galt Toys (Made in England). I could easily see it adorning a shelf or mantle someday when Ruby (& any other children we may have) outgrow it.

We stopped into Dorothea's Closet next door where I met this little number. It was nestled away in the $4 anniversary sale rack just waiting for me to come rescue it. Doesn't it make a great wall piece too?

New (old) books for the burgeoning vintage library.

I was pretty stoked about this paint-by-numbers masterpiece that I scored for $1.99. It's a bit awkward in places, so I have the option to disassemble it and reframe each painting individually. The Japanese landscape in the middle is my favorite.

Lastly, I found a floral vintage cocktail shift dress which I may have to save for another post. I think I ended up spending less than $30 total for my finds. We were pretty surprised by the array of old dresses & decor we came across today, which gives me hope that not all the good stuff has been picked over yet...xx