Monday, September 29, 2014

༺ A Field Day ༻

1950's style for spring | Lavender & Twill

Pastel stripes create a cheerful effect | Lavender & Twill

Enjoying lovely sun in a sun dress | Lavender & Twill

Baby's getting bigger & wiggling like a Mexican Jumping Bean | Lavender & Twill

The glorious spring weather we’ve been experiencing makes me long to break out into a rainbow of pastels and sun dresses{not that I’m ever not in the mood for pastels really (♡ ▽ ♡) ~ ❤}. So when this new-to-me, retro 80’s-does-50’s beauty landed on my doorstep recently, you can bet your buttons I was reaching for it first thing this weekend!

As far as the dress goes, it’s really only construction technique that gives it away as an 1980s piece; it has an elastic waistband, overlocking on the seams, and a polyester fabric. As for the styling?

*squee!* I love it! It feels so sock hop-sports day-cheerleader-ish!

It’s one of those super finds that not only came at the right price, but makes you feel right at home when wearing it. I can see myself reaching for this dress a lot over summer, it’s just so me right now. I think it’s the pastel blue, combined with the white accent and stripes. That, and it’s really easy to wear, and doesn’t feel too fragile. Both thumbs up! ヽ(*^ー^)ノ

I seem to have had an unusual run of good luck on eBay recently; I picked up three vintage pieces for great prices, and the shipping wasn’t that much either. Two dresses; one summer {this one}, one winter, and then a darling 1950’s beaded navy purse which was an awesome $14.00 including shipping!

I’ve got say though, this does seems like a rare streak of good luck to me, as I never seem to find that many decent, really-truly vintage items on eBay that are within budget, or that don’t have exorbitant shipping fees. (~ ̄0  ̄)~

How about you? Do you have any eBay hunting tips?  I sure could use them. I think I could get used to finding more vintage on eBay that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg like most of what you find on Etsy!

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Cream Angora Cardigan | Thrifted
Rainbow Sweater Clips | Sweet & Lovely
The Sock Hop Dress | eBay
Lacey Blue Socks | Dollar Shop
'Mel' by Melissa Bow Flat |  ASOS

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:

Instagram | missbjvear
Pinterest | bjvear
Ravelry | BJVear
Twitter | bjvear
Youtube | Bonita Vear

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

༺ Green Way ༻

Circle skirts & cardigans for comfortable maternity style | Lavender & Twill

A 1950's vintage maternity look | Lavender & Twill

Statement broaches add an interesting touch to a netural cardigan | Lavender & Twill

Bump progress - 19 wks + 3 days and still rocking on | Lavender & Twill

I adore the slimmer silhouette of the 1940’s attire, but let’s face it. You ain’t gonna squeeze this bump into the tiny waists and slender hip-skimming skirts that were so popular to that era. So I end up diving into the 1950’s for most of my maternity looks ~ particularly towards the latter end of the pregnancy.

Like this boxy knit cardigan I picked up just the other day. It’s totally modern retail, but with that delightful “swing” jacket look that just speaks 1950s and does wonders for covering over growing babies.  ()    I’ve been wearing it non-stop, but not for too much longer, because the weather is surely starting to warm up.

With summer on the way, it’s become quite clear to me that there is one wardrobe gap I need to fill ~ circle skirts! Elastic waists provide a lot of comfort for as long as they can slip over the baby bump, but I am thinking the way to go might be elastic waists with a clasp. It’s the best of both worlds, and it’ll keep me in the skirts for that much longer.

I’m now hoping that I can add ‘sewing two circle skirts for summer’ to my list of things to do, and at about 3 hours to whip up from woe to go, I might just be able get them done. Though I still have Isabelle’s baby blanket to finish crocheting and I haven’t started on the blanket for bubba number 3! 

….Oh dear…  ﴾͡๏ ̯͡ ๏﴿ 

Time for a quick quilting project methinks. I’ve never pieced a quilt before, but surely quilting a baby blanket will be quicker than knitting or crocheting one? Right??! ….

One can only hope! (๑→ υ ←)

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Beige Box Swing Cardigan | Rivers, Current
’Mother’ Pearl Script Brooch | Va-VaVoom Vintage, Instagram Sale
Pink Knit Bow | Dollar Shop
Dotty Delight Cupcake Pendant | Me Made, ‘12
Pink Knit Top | Thrifted
Picnic Rose Skirt | Me Made, Jan ‘13
Cream Tights | Old
Wine Red Wedges | Rivers, 2013

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:
Instagram | missbjvear
Pinterest | bjvear
Ravelry | BJVear
Twitter | bjvear
Youtube | Bonita Vear


Thursday, September 18, 2014

༺ Why I *don’t* Wear Vintage Every Day ༻

When I talked about “Wearing Vintage ~ Real world vs Blog land" and "Why I Wear Vintage" I really liked being able to explain some of my thinking behind the style choices I make.

So the part of the conversation that comes next ~ as I am sure you have already guessed from the title of the post ~ why I don’t wear vintage every day. Or more specifically, why I only dress in vintage style when leaving the house for outings.

*gaspshockhorror* right?

Here’s the thing though, dressing vintage from head to toe every day is something I thought I would do, and wanted to do from the very first time I fell for the vintage dress style.

I adored the purist look ~ the chic 1940’s street wear with polished attire from hat to gloves, to matching purses, shoes and belts, to fully fashioned stockings. I admired the cupcake styles of the 1950’s circle skirts pouffed up with layers and layers of tulle under cute, kitsch novelty prints, paired with elegant peals and a perfect coiffure.

I wanted to do that. I wanted to be that glamorous woman who looked like she just stepped out from a time machine or photograph every day.

The Running of The Leaves 1940's vintage outfit post | Lavender & Twill

So I eagerly started creating and curating my own collection of vintage pieces ~ focusing on 1950’s day dresses to start with, and any 1940’s pieces that I could find within my budget.

I yearned after stacks of bakelight bangles, sighed over fabulous forties frocks and drooled over feminine day dresses. And isn’t that half the fun?  Taking your time to build your wardrobe, finding your perfect pieces, hunting them down, and the thrill when you find it ~ the one ~ yay! yay! yay!

But as time goes on with my slowly growing collection, I’ve found I have also had a few lifestyle clashes with my preferred style of dress.

Off On An Adventure 1950's summer style post | Lavender & Twill 
Up there in terms of big life events ~ well, two precious blessings of joy have made their way into our family, and I am now a mother of two busy little people, with a third one on the way.

Babies are hard on vintage and that’s the truth.

I have to crawl on the floor, resign myself to snotty noses wiped my shoulder, change nappies, clean up all sorts of messes ~ not to mention cleaning the house. I wish I could throw a dainty apron over a pretty frock and be as glamorous flitting around inside the house as I feel when I do go out.

But bleach everyone! Bleach! How can I even dare to have that near vintage fabric? My one and only of that dress. 

No worries you say? Buy reproduction? 

*sigh* I wish! It’s as expensive to buy quality reproduction that will last as it is to buy original vintage, and that elevates those pieces to “Can’t wear it if there’s any chance of wreaking it!” along with my vintage items. 

Sew my own?

I do, but again… The items that I make are few and far in between ~ maybe two to three pieces a year is all I can manage. So yes, they immediately fall into the ‘precious’ category as well.

And… All The Bleach!! 

As a result, I find vintage clothing really hard to incorporate into my at-home-day-to-day wardrobe. I do try and dress vintage whenever I am out for errands, or social events.  It doesn’t always happen, but I think I do manage to succeed about ninety-eight percent of the time. But it’s a different story when I don’t have anywhere to go, or anyone outside of my family to see.

Case and point - Rilakkuma cape with fuzzy bunny pyjama pants | Lavender & Twill

My vintage wardrobe simply isn’t big enough to cope with all the demands of life, and I don’t have the ability to round it out far enough to cover the necessary ‘at home’ wear. 

So around the house I tend to opt for cute lounge wear that I find on sale instead ~ like a scalloped mint sweater, or a loose t-shirt with a kawaii panda bear face on it. I wear ordinary jeans {because hello, love my Freddies as I do; too expensive to wear everyday!} and sometimes even pyjama pants…  Well, a pregnant lady with all day nausea isn’t exactly glamorous, and neither is her outfit apparently!

Then there’s all the hobbies ~ horse riding which requires very specific attire, and snowboarding is the same deal to keep you dry and warm on the lifts and when you hit the snow {in a bad way  (> . <)’ }….

Got A Ticket For The Long Way Home 1950's vintage outfit post | Lavender & Twill

So why is this something I am sharing? 

I guess it’s because I’m coming to terms with the fact that no, I’m not a “Purist” vintage dresser ~ I could aspire to be that, but I don’t think I’ll ever get that far, plus I really can’t see myself wearing vintage under garments. Just no… 

I’m not even an “Every Day” vintage dresser with pin curls in my hair, but that is something I do still want to keep working towards.

I find myself reluctant to admit that’s going to take a while, and might not even be possible for me at the current moment of life I am in.

But I don’t like feeling like I am slacking from my commitment to the style of my dress and wardrobe by sullying it with mundane, pedestrian, ‘Mom’ clothing.

Then I ask myself, why do I care? Who’s judging me? 

I’m wearing these clothes because my lifestyle at this point often dictates and demands{!} comfortable, hard wearing, easy washing, mundane, pedestrian, Mom clothing!

Then I perceive that I am actually passing judgment on myself….

Let’s be real here ~ I am judging myself for not reaching the standard I want to achieve with my attire and for not being “true” to my style on a daily basis. I’m obsessed with making sure I don’t “let myself go” and give into the Mom jeans look.

Way to add pressure I totally do NOT need right now.

Blue Lolita 1950's vintage outfit post | Lavender & Twill

So what’s a vintage loving perfectionist like myself going to do when ideals and reality are at a cross purpose?

Here’s my plan of action ~

I am going to assess my vintage wardrobe.  What do I wear the most? What do I enjoy sewing? What silhouettes am I drawn to, which ones work best on my body? {Not always the same thing!} What’s my style? I classify it as girly-retro-china-doll, but what does that actually look like in terms of color palette, fabric textures and cut of the cloth?

Next I’m going to ask myself the same questions about my at-home wardrobe ~ and see how that lines up with what I’ve already got and what I tend to purchase. 

I figure that even if I can’t wear vintage all the time, at the very least I can still wear clothes that I am happy to put on and that don’t make me feel bad for not dressing in vintage that day.

It’s about accepting where my life is at and learning to live with it. It’s silly to be miserable over what I put on my body if I’m having a cleaning day, or mess-centric baby day, or a “I’m-stuck-on-the-couch-sick” day, rather than an “I’m-going-to-be-fabulous-in-this-dress” day! 

Maybe one day I’ll wear vintage every day, but for now, that’s a while away… And I can be happy with that.

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:

Instagram | missbjvear
Pinterest | bjvear
Ravelry | BJVear
Twitter | bjvear
Youtube | Bonita Vear

Friday, September 12, 2014

༺ The White House ༻

Winter 1940s style for running around town | Lavender & Twill

Signs of spring won't put the cardigans away just yet | Lavender & Twill 

Vintage monotone in grey & black | Lavender & Twill

Sssh! There's a baby baking... | Lavender & Twill

Time for bump number 3 | Lavender & Twill

First outfit post from the new house! Literally!

Oh yes, the location is not particularly glamorous, but I’ve always had a thing for blank wall spaces, and I thought it would be nice to commemorate our move with some pictures from our new house.
(。◕‿◕。) ♡

So this is the driveway side of The White House {in all it’s white brick glory!}.

To be honest, I’m finding outfit shooting particularly challenging at the moment. Mostly because we’ve been so sick this winter that we have hardly gone out and done anything unless it’s a quick dash to the grocery shops because our fridge is empty!

That, and the lack of easily accessible photogenic locations from our new place has really served put a dampener on blogging type activities…   

So currently I’m sort of at a stand still for good content that doesn’t take hours and way more brain power than what I have. But you know what, I’m okay with it.

We are working away at restoring family health from the recurring bugs that keep striking us down, and with the blossoming advent of spring {which is taunting us by playing peek-a-boo with the weather!} I am quietly anticipating that we shall be on our feet again sometime soon. 

I do miss blogging though. There seems to be little time {and energy} for my hobbies at present. And time goes by so fast! I am around 5 months ~ 18 weeks ~ pregnant in these pictures. Hopefully it won’t be too long until the next shoot or who knows, I could be making a “Such and such has joined the family!” type of post next time… Lol.  (´- σ ・)

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Sailor Me Away Cardigan | eBay
Stone Cast Peonies Brooch | Gold Creek Square
Vintage Pearl Strand | Gift from my Mother
Grey Knit Peasant Top | Old
Butterfly Clasp Belt | New Look, Old
Houndstooth Pleated Skirt | Thrifted
Grey Tights | Old
Around Town Mary Janes | Old

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:
Instagram | missbjvear
Pinterest | bjvear
Ravelry | BJVear
Twitter | bjvear
Youtube | Bonita Vear

AddThis

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...