However, I’m going to be living in a glorified closet – BOO!

I’m barely going to have enough room as it is for myself and my own clothes, and it’s just not feasible that I could take my vintage merchandise for sale on Etsy up there with me.

SO!

It’s all on sale – 40% off, to be exact – but ONLY until January 20. THAT’S SIX DAYS AWAY! After that, the shop will be closed for the foreseeable future. I do think I will find a way to re-open at some point in the future, but i really don’t know when that will be. When it happens, I will definitely have had to downsize my collection and range of merchandise – so if you like something, BUY IT NOW or forever hold your peace!

Click here to shop – and if you’re interested in bulk purchases for your own vintage store (now’s a great time to pick up some hot merchandise on the cheap), contact me about pricing. I actually have more than just what’s available in my Etsy shop, and if you’re interested, I’d be happy to tell you more about it.

OMG PILE OF SPARKLY

Still in time to order for the holidays, I’m now offering lovely vintage jewelry for sale at my Etsy store! Check out all that’s for sale by clicking here.

And don’t forget – everything is still 25% off from now through Christmas, with free shipping on orders over $50! Jewelry and scarves are fool-proof gift ideas for the one-of-a-kind vintage loving lady in your life (especially if that lady is you!).

Party on! Right now, everything in my shop is 25% off, which is a great start to a happy holidays for you and the vintage lovers in your life! Better still, all orders of $50 and more get FREE SHIPPING within the US!

Treat yourself to holiday gems, like this early 1960s mink trimmed suit.

Was $145.00, now only $109.00!

Or this warm and stylish velvet and tweed cape from Raymond of London!

Was $70.00, now only $52.50!

Turn up the holiday bling in this Victoria Royal sweater:

Regular price $29.99, now only $22.50

Splurge on yourself with this incredible and rare 1950s/60s Louisa Spagnoli dress:

Regular $175.00, now only $130.00

Or show off a perky pink version of holiday cheer in this Lilli Diamond party dress!

Marked down from $50.00 to only $37.50

There’s no wrong way to save money, and it’s not naughty to be nice to yourself! So give the gift of vintage – scarves and handbags are a great one-size-fits all stocking stuffer, and you can always find something in your size (no matter large or small!) and start dropping links and hints on your Secret Santa!

So get shopping already!

Everyone's favorite disobedient lady-fish!

This Little Mermaid’s polish scheme is based on her flaming red hair and shimmery green tail.

Ooh la la!

They kinda look like strawberries when you turn them this way...shhhh...

I used Hard Candy Lava as a base. Hard Candy, as you probably know, relaunched sometime recently with a Wal Mart exclusive cosmetics line. They’re nothing like they used to be (look at these old Hard Candy polish links if you want to be depressed for the rest of your life), but they have some stellar shades.

Best. Color. Ever.

Lava is my favorite. I LOVE this color. It’s probably in my top 5 of polishes I currently own. It’s a very warm orangey red with massive amounts of gold sparkle. The red itself is a bit translucent, so you definitely need at least 2 coats for full opacity, but the translucence allows the flecks to show through and give the polish tons of depth. </gushing rant>

I put a coat of Sinful Green Ocean over the red because it looks like an ocean in a bottle, with big iridescent flakes that flash purple like Ariel’s classic shell bra.

Sinful Colors aren’t universally loved – some people really hate the formula but I personally think they’re great. You can pick them up for very cheap at drugstores, they have a fantastic range of colors, and apart from the occasional dud bottle I think they go on fine. Certainly not any worse than most other major polish brands.

For the mermaid tail-look, I used Splash Nail Art Glitter in Tropic Teal. This loose glitter combines small teal glitter pieces and larger green iridescent hex glitter. I love that the bigger iridescent pieces almost look like fish scales!

I applied this loose glitter by taking the cheapest of my clear top coats (it doesn’t matter which; you’re just using it as a binder) and dipping it into the glitter pot. A little goes a long way! I put the glitter on the base of my nail and then basically just pushed it around the edges and brushed upward to achieve an ombre effect.

Protip: Don't clean the polish up around your cuticles until AFTER you take your ultra-close-up macro shots. Wait...that's horrible advice...

I’ve already gotten quite a few compliments on this manicure – it’s one of those paint jobs that does amazing things in real life. The glitter is crazy, kinda like our girl Ariel!

That's what you get for listening to a talking sea gull.

Momentary nostalgia: If I had a dime for how many times I tried that “bursting out of the water and tossing your hair over your head” thing while swimming, I’d be able to buy King Triton’s castle. Any girl from my generation that says she didn’t do it, too, is lying.

Oh, and don't forget: it's okay to sell your mortal soul to a cephalopodian witch in order to be with a man that has so little in common with you that aren't even classified as the same species. Thanks, Disney!

Milan was the first stop, in time to catch the Formula One race in neighboring Monza. I had done a small amount of research on where to go vintage shopping, and it looked like there were a decent handful of stores within a reasonable distance of the Milan city center. I only made it to one, Humana Vintage on Via Cappellari, ultra-conveniently located about 2 minutes away from the Duomo at the heart of the city.

This store stocks a grab bag of vintage clothing, shoes, and accessories, with reasonable prices and a fantastic charity attached. From their website:

Humana Vintage sources its stock from Humana People to People (HPP) Italia ONLUS: A non-profit organisation formed to collect clothes in Italy for sale or onward distribution in order to provide support to international development projects in Africa.

Through specifically purchasing at Humana Vintage in Milan you will contribute, at this point in time, towards two development projects in Mozambique:

• A pre-school for 60 AIDS children orphaned as a result of the AIDS virus – part of the HOPE project
• The Vocational School of Nacala – funds will support the daily running of the school, which gives practical, vocational training to rural students in areas, such as, agriculture, construction and bookkeeping.

Who can argue with that? Fabulous clothes from the 60s-80s sold for fair prices going toward a worthy cause. If I could only go to one vintage shop in Milan, I’m glad it was this one!

But on to the goods – or, more aptly put, the greats. I got a great deal on a gorgeous vintage Missoni skirt with the high end orange label. Isn’t it pretty?

Instant love. The price was low because the back of the skirt had a big pull in it; unfortunate at first glance but not enough to stop me! The fabric is a very loose plaid knit done with twisted, slubby yarns, and when I got back home it took me all of half an hour to work the pulled yarn back into its place. It started out looking like this:

I used my nail art dotting tool to pull the thread vertically through the direction of the knit. If you’re ever trying this at home, a very small gauge crochet hook would work just as well, or even a tapestry needle with a blunt tip.

I worked the yarn through, being careful to give it enough slack to blend in. You can theoretically do this with any pulled knits, but it’s a heck of a lot more difficult when the knit is tighter and the threads don’t have a twisted texture that blends easily.

I just kept working my way up, one knit at a time, reseating the pulled yarn comfortably beside its twin. Going…

Going…

Gone! Wasn’t that easy? And now, I’m the proud owner of a flawless vintage Missoni skirt, straight from its home country!

Pull? What pull?

Milan would’ve won my heart even if I hadn’t had such epic luck, but as it stands I’m pretty much in love. Desperately. The city was amazing, and its residents were unbelievably stylish. Scott Schuman is forever posting pictures of chic Milanese on The Sartorialist, and logic would dictate that the standards set by his portrait subjects is unattainably high. Not so – young and old, the people of Milan just know how to dress. Especially the men. Oh, the men…

But I digress. Long story short: yay Milan, yay Humana Vintage, yay Missoni!

I’ll show off my other Italian finds soon – Florence and Rome treated me quite well, and I can’t wait to share!

Can you see the comparison?

I always thought her dress ended up blue at the end of the movie, but she’s usually seen in the pink version for all the Disney Princess stuff. It’s grown on me, I have to admit, and of course I enjoy any excuse to paint my nails pink.

For this paint job I used Avon Nailwear Pro in Cotton Candy (seen above) and Viva Pink (seen below). As I said in my last manicure post, I really like the way these Avon colors go on. Very easy and so pretty – Cotton Candy is a perfect baby pink, and Viva Pink is quintessential Barbie pink. Both dry quickly to a creamy finish with no shimmer.

I painted the two Avon pinks in a design reminiscent of Princess Aurora’s gown, and then as an accent I added – wait for it – AURORA Borealis Swarovski rhinestones! I’m so clever it hurts. No lie, though, these babies were blinging like nobody’s business.

Bonus dark-but-blingy rhinestone shot:

I didn’t wear this mani for long because A) I’m fickle and easily bored, and B) I  knew those rhinestones would start popping off sooner than later. I only attached them using Seche Vite topcoat, and I don’t like the way the facets of the rhinestones lose their luster when you seal over the top of them. If I did this one again, I’d commit to a drop of nail glue to keep the AB stones stuck down soundly!

Part three is coming up for the Little Mermaid – I’m typing carefully because it’s drying on my nails right now.

Oh and by the way: I swear this is still a vintage fashion blog. Just…+1 additional obsession! Anyway, Sleeping Beauty is old enough to be vintage and this manicure is based on a dress. I don’t see a problem!

I couldn’t resist starting with this one:

Click for Bigger!

This mani consists of 2 coats of Avon Nailwear Pro in Vintage Blue, with 2 coats of Confetti’s Ice Ice Baby over the top. It’s finished off with 2 coats of Seche Vite, the best-est ever for an ultra gloss top coat.

I wore just the Vintage Blue for a couple days and LOVED it – Avon’s formulas apply like a dream and dry quickly. This color, a cream, went on smoothly without the gloopy unevenness and streakiness that creams are prone to.

Ice Ice Baby is what I would consider a base standard for an iridescent clear glitter – not as exciting as some, but classic and lovely. The iridescence ranges from pink in indirect light through to greens and blues. Here’s another picture for more glitter detail:

Ooh sparkly...

Isn’t it pretty? I’m calling it my Cinderella manicure, because it reminds me of the Disney Princess and her beautiful blue gown!

Yeah, yeah, blah blah blah, home by midnight, I'm listening. Have you SEEN this dress?!

What time is it? Daddy, a watch doesn't really go with this outfit.

Let’s see: blue, twinkly, feminine, and sweet. Sounds like Cinderella to me!

I think I’ll see which other Princesses I can distill into manicure form – it’ll make me feel like I’m polishing for a purpose – and if the results are good, I’ll post them here!

I’m back, from outer space! (or, from Alabama.)

So, about all that blogging I was planning on doing on the joys of costuming? Didn’t happen. For the last couple months, I’ve been so busy I barely had time to keep up with my email, much less my blog. But, I had a great time in spite of the stress and challenges, and most importantly, the show looked FANTASTIC. I know I am a bit biased, but the costumes were excellent and the cast looked gorgeous.

And now, life is back to normal.

Which means that my Etsy shop is back to normal, too! Most importantly, my shipping schedule is back to normal. I have about a million new things to post, so check back here or at my store for the latest. Expect a major sale in the very near future, as well – it’s a little late for spring cleaning (at least in Florida, anyway), but I’m ready to clean house all the same! I will, of course, post all about it when the time comes.

I feel like I’m slowly reacquainting myself with the internet at large – I’ve had such limited time to keep myself informed about the fashion world and what’s going on in the realm of vintage clothes. Here are a few things that caught my eye of late:

Couture Allure’s 4 part series looking at the designs of Luis Estevez – so gorgeous:

1960 Part 1

1960 Part 2

1961 Part 1

1961 Part 2

The Sartorialist has been running a vintage photo contest, with some really stunning selections. They’re peppered throughout his blog, but check out some of my favorites:

“With the Boys”

“Majorca”

“Eatmore”

“Alejandro & Mom”

She’s so pretty! Click the picture for the full link, with more shots of this beautiful ensemble.

The FIDM Museum Blog posted a great interview with Deborah Cook, costume designer for the animated film Coraline: read it here.

Until further notice, due to my recent schedule changes, I am only going to be shipping out Etsy orders once a week, on Mondays. For more information about what this means, read my full shipping policy. To shop my store for vintage goodies, click here!

Why the change, you (probably didn’t) ask? For the next few weeks, I’m going to be assisting a costume designer with the creation of a wardrobe for a musical at a University out of state. I’ll only be home on the weekends, hence the packing and shipping everything Monday on my way out of town. I’m pretty darn excited for the opportunity, if not the commute! Hopefully I’ll be able to update my blog here and there – the show spans the late 1940s/early 1950s, so my brain will be all stuffed with retro clothing styles. There’s bound to be something interesting enough to blog about in there.

Regardless of my blogging frequency, which is unreliable at best, I will definitely have access to my email on a regular basis – so any questions or convos sent to me on Etsy will be answered promptly. Like I say on my policies page, I will try to make exceptions where I can if anyone absolutely must-have something quicker than what my shipping schedule will allow.

Anyway, I’m off to pack. Shouldn’t be too hard to prepare for the week ahead – let’s hear it for the costumers’ uniform of black clothes, a chain of safety pins trailing off the shirt, tape measure scarf, and a pencil in the hair!

The Vera Company’s blog announced today that their new book, “Vera: The Art And Life Of An Icon”, is now available for purchase on Anthropologie.com. The book is described as, “a chronicle of the career of the incomparable designer, artist and entrepreneur Vera Neumann, who built her company on the philosophy that fine art should be available to everyone.” Vintage fashion enthusiasts, as well as many others who enjoy textile and graphic design, have long since loved Vera Neumann and her bold prints. I can’t wait to check this book out and see what gems it contains!

Link via The Vera Company; book available for purchase from Anthropologie.