༺ Teacup Chat with Chatterblossom ༻

The “Teacup Chat” series on Lavender & Twill is a short and sweet spot where we take a glimpse behind the scenes of a brand’s creative process. I am very inspired by all the creative talents I see finding a way to showcase their work. I think it’s fantastic to be able to pursue something you love, and have others love it too.

As we found out in the last post on Lavender & Twill, Chatterblossom is a lovely Etsy shop where Jamie hand crafts and sells stunning, one-of-a-kind floral hair pieces and fascinators using mainly reclaimed vintage millinery supply and trimmings.

So without further ado, let’s get to know some more about the artist we have featured here today!

 

Hello Jamie, and welcome to our teacup chat! Thank you for spending sometime with us today so we can get to know little more about you and your business. What first drew you into creating your hair flowers and fascinators?

About 5 years ago, I worked on a small organic farm where we grew vegetables and flowers and I fell in love with all things floral. I made the bouquets for our farmer’s market each week and loved seeing peoples’ faces when they decided to purchase a bouquet I’d made to decorate their home. Cut flowers are amazing, but also a luxury for most people. And we really relish in it when we can have something so fleetingly beautiful around us for even a few days.

When I moved to another home in another state, I missed working with flowers and I wanted a way to work with them again. My love of vintage and flowers intersected when I moved to Raleigh, North Carolina. I found a swing dancing community here and many of them wear vintage or vintage inspired clothing and flowers in their hair, so I started making some hair clips to suit their/my needs.

Then I got a tip from a random stranger about a warehouse full of deadstock vintage flowers right in the heart of Raleigh! So I purchased as much as I could and my venture began in earnest!

Is it tricky to restore the vintage millinery flowers? Have you ever had any past the point of no return? What happened to/with them?

Most of the millinery flowers I find or purchase are new old stock or deadstock, which means they’ve never been used. Almost all of my flowers were found in their original boxes with tags, so they just need some freshening up (with steam and shaping, etc.).

I do sometimes purchase or find millinery flowers in worse condition, but I typically try to get pristine examples if possible.

The flowers that have seen better days I’ll usually use in conjunction with flowers in better condition as a cluster, so they get a second life but aren’t necessarily the star of the show. Or I’ll keep them for myself as I don’t typically mind flawed beauties. They’re just as pretty!

 

It’s been very interesting to find out more about your business, but we’d also love to know a little more about the creative mind behind these beautiful pieces. Every vintage lady I know seems to have their own unique style ~ if you were to describe your personal vintage look, how might you do that?

I think the best way to describe my personal style is “fluid” or “chameleon-esque”. I really enjoy trying to wear things that I’ve been personally told I can’t wear or that seem challenging to put together in a way that “works”.

I enjoy wearing hyper-feminine to androgynous to typically masculine looks. I love both light-filled, floral frills and dark, earthy subtleties and mixing them is even more fun. I don’t worry about “period appropriateness” or wearing only one era as a rule, etc. I love mixing and matching to produce something all my own.

What is the one vintage thing you can’t live without (red lipstick, novelty prints, hats, etc)?

This is a very tough question! Because I change my look so often, I want to say…my vintage 1950s butterfly bullet bra. Ha! It is a softer pointed shape and I have never found a more perfect bra. It suits nearly every outfit I wear it with and it makes me stand different in my clothes.

So I guess it is an unseen thing I can’t live without. I’m going to be one sad cookie when that bra dies.

And finally, what are three quirky things about you that not everyone might know about?

- My first job was as a roller-skating drive-in restaurant waitress and they only played music from the 1950s, so maybe the vintage vibe snuck in early.

- I’m extremely introverted but most people would never guess it because I’m a bit “chameleon-esque” in my personality as well and can morph to suit my situation when necessary.

- When I’m not in vintage attire, I’m typically in hole-y sweatpants and raggedy t-shirts.

Haha, I’m so with you on that last one Jamie! It’s nice to be comfortable if you are not dressed up. I’m an all-or-nothing kind of gal myself. ;)

Thank you to Jamie for sharing her time with us, it was wonderful to have the chance to learn more about her and her inspiring creative work! And if you haven’t already, don’t forget to check out Jamie on Instagram and Etsy. 

But wow… What a collection of flowers! I hope you enjoyed this peek behind the scenes as much as I have. (❛▿❛✿)੭

 

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

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༺ How To Crochet A Rose Hair Flower Accessory ༻

Hello lovelies! (•ᵕ ᴗ ᵕ•)❀

This is a simple tutorial on how to crochet a flower hair clip like the one above.  You might have noticed me wearing it in my hair in my last Mother & Daughter outfit post?  Anyway, now you can make one just like it for yourself!

I do not have my usual step by step photos in this tutorial, as it mostly about following the crochet pattern, so if you have any questions; please do not hesitate to ask.  ( ^ _ ^)∠☆ 

Materials List:

• Yarn in two different colours {I used 2 ply cotton yarn in ivory & pink}
• Crochet hook in the appropriate size for the ply of your wool
• Hair clip finding {I used a mini millinery barrette as the clip}
• Needle for sewing the flower to the finding

Gauge:

I used a 1.75mm hook with my yarn.  For your standard 3-4 ply wool, a 2.00 - 3.25mm hook is recommended.  Hook & yarn chart.

Abbreviations:

ch – chain
sk – skip
sc - single crochet
dc – double crochet
sl st - slip stitch
* – repeat

The Pattern:

~  Flower Centre  ~

Ch 21.
Row 1: *Dc, ch1, dc* in fifth ch from hook. *Ch1, sk1. Dc, ch 1, dc in next stitch* till the end (repeat 8 times).  You should end up with 9 double crochet V’s.  Ch 3 and turn.
Row 2: In first ch1 space between the double crochet V’s, dc 4 times. *Sl st in next ch1 space between the double crochet V’s. Dc 5 times* till the end (repeat 9 times).  Sl st in last stitch in row.

༺ ♡ ༻

Step 1:  Fasten off and leave long tail for sewing. With the tail on the right side, roll the flower inwards (clockwise motion), placing the petals how you would like and sewing to hold it in place.

~  Flower Petals  ~

Ch 48
Row 1:  Sk 1 ch, sc in next ch and across, ch 3, turn
Row 2: *Sk 1 sc, 2 dc in next sc, sk next sc, 1 dc in next sc, continue from * across, ch 3 turn
Row 3: *2 dc, ch1, 2 dc in space between 2 dc, dc in next dc, continue from * across, ch 3 turn
Row 4: *3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc in ch space, dc in next dc, continue from * across, ch 3 turn
Row 5: *8 dc in ch space, dc in next dc, continue from * across – finish off with sl st leaving a long tail to sew the clip on.

༺ ♡ ༻

Step 2:  Take flower centre and roll the outside petals around it, sewing the petals in place with the rest of the flower centre’s tail.

Step 3:  Using the flower petals’ long tail sew the hair clip finding onto the back of the flower. 

Step 4:   Wear and enjoy your crochet flower hair clip. (✿◠‿◠)

༺ ♡ ༻

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:

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༺ Thoughts On Blogging and ‘The Taste Gap’༻

*le sigh* I told the Mister to tell me if my petticoat slipped down in these photos, but here it is making an appearance in just about every shot!  (￣。￣;) 

Oh well, no-one is perfect, and I don’t have to mention the lipstick I photoshopped off my teeth petticoats and the like to tell you that, do I? (*◕‿◕*)

Time for some real talk though ~ I find it hard to post pictures like these when I feel like they are not my ‘best’ work. In this particular outfit shoot, this one, and this one, {there are more, but we don’t have to go through all of them do we?} I feel like the photography is a bit subpar. Now, photography is one of those tricky things. When you are posting outfit shoots, how much of the photography matters, and how much is a good clear picture of what you are wearing?

Is it about the outfit, the writing, or the pictures? 

~ Isabelle wants to show you her pretty pink shoes; these are her favourite! ~

As blogger, I think it’s definitely a combination of both. As a writer ~ it’s all about the words because I’m painting a verbal picture. As an artist ~ it’s all about the composure, the subject, the ‘story’ your picture is telling.

I have this back and forth pull as a writer and an artist, as to which creative expression is more important and I guess that’s how I ended up being a blogger as well!  It’s the best of both worlds. Well, most of the time…

The problem is my inner art critique gets quite dramatic, and looks at the results of a 300+ photo shoot without enough decent shots and goes “I cannot post this! It is insufferable! Intolerable! It simply will not do! You will have to go out and take these photos again!” while my inner blogger is all “That’s all well and good, but I’ve got to post something. Empty blog space = bad. Static content = bad. Not posting regularly = bad! You will loose engagement in your community. Talk to people. Talk darn it!!”, but my inner writer shrugs, and just wants to write about how hard it can be to get good photos!

Haha. I’m not the only one with those voices inside their heads kinds of thoughts right? (⌒▽⌒)

As you can tell, my blogger side wins the argument most of the time, even to the point of putting up videos that are a bit grainy, or eking out a post from a scarce handful of photos gleaned from a shoot gone awry.

I think in some ways this is a good thing for me ~ it tells my perfectionist side to be quiet and just keep on turning out pieces {or posts in this case}. Sure, they won’t be like what I envisioned for the first little while {see this super amazing video by Ira Glass on the artist’s ‘taste gap’ if you haven’t seen it before!}, but the more I practise, the closer I get to creating what I see in my head.

And really, when it comes down to it, I think most of it is in my head. I know it’s not quite there, I know it’s not quite good enough. But the rest of the world isn’t holding it’s breath waiting on me to make the most amazing thing ever ~ and if it was, and if I did ~ how would I go on making more art if I couldn’t get over the fact that the next one might not be better than the one before?

One step forwards, two steps back? 

Maybe so, but as long as I keep stepping, I’ll keep moving forwards. My work will improve, that taste gap will close, and it will get better as long as I don’t quit and I keep learning.

This stretching process really applies to all kinds of creative efforts ~ writing, photography, art, sewing, outfit combining, knitting, blogging and just about anything else you do where you can say “Yes, I made it myself!”

Besides, who wants to make a perfect piece and never make anything again for fear of not being able to create something better? Sounds boring to me!

That’s why I keep on going on, keep on blogging ~ even those less than perfect posts ~ because I just can’t stop. It is continual cycle of metamorphosis ~ making, tossing, changing directions, creating a bridge to cross the gap so I can finally make the art I’m dreaming of.

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me:

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

༺ Sewing All The Things ༻

In my Shooting for the Stars post, I mentioned that one of my goals this year was to get faster and better at sewing my own clothes. 
I think that the best way to do this is to sew lots and lots of garments ~ as many as I can! To help me work on this, I’ve decided to do a list {surprise, surprise} of the clothes I’d like to sew up this year.

• March: Circle skirt {w/ elastic waist, stash busting}
• April: Summer Wrap Dress: Simplicity 2275 {stash busting – done in May instead of blouse}

• May: 1940’s Winter Blouse: Simplicity 3688 {stash busting??}  
         1940’s Summer Blouse: Simplicity 1590 {Done in April; Spring for Cotton challenge}
• June: Winter 3/4 Sleeve 1940's Navy Shirtwaist Dress:
                                                              Hollywood Pattern 1244
  
           ~ Leaving a space for the Sisterhood of the Travelling Pattern project I’m apart of ~
• July: Swing pants: Simplicity 3688 {baby corduroy}
  
  
         Winter Circle Skirt {baby corduroy}
• August: Playsuit & Skirt: Simplicity 4289
  
  
  
• September: Jersey Dress x2: Advance 3886 & Advance 9785

• October: 2nd Playsuit w/ separate Top, Shorts, & Skirt:
                                                                       Simplicity 4289
• November: Peasant Blouses x2: No pattern for this project yet    Pattern found; Simplicity 2483. One blouse sewn up for Christmas, December 2015

You may notice that I’m planning to recycle a lot of the patterns and sew them up twice.  I think this may actually help me achieve my goals because I will be more comfortable with the pattern once it is sewn, and hopefully I will be faster with putting it together the second time around. 

Also, I shall probably have to trace most of these patterns off depending on how fragile they are.  I must admit, I’ve gotten quite slack with this recently and just used the pattern straight out without tracing off first.

This is mostly because I don’t use pins for cutting, just fabric weights {old horse shoes I’ve collected off a few of my horses that were shod when we bought them (＾-＾)}, and I don’t do any adjustments to the pattern, or mark it in anyway. However, I feel this is not the best habit to fall into because the tissue paper is so fragile, and really I should be making a better effort to preserve the pattern. I’m going to make sure I take the time to trace and to photocopy the pattern instructions.

What do you think though? Do you trace your vintage patterns before using them?  Also, do you have any sewing plans this year? 

xox,

bonita

༺ ♡ ༻

Find me: Instagram | missbjvear
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~ A Story of a Girl & Her Rainbow Be-Ribboned Handbag ~

…He said he’d meet me at the corner of West Wembley and Adelaide Lane…


…Is that him? I can see a familiar face…


…*sigh* I hope he hasn’t forgotten about me…
 
…I’ll just do a quick lipstick check ~ I want to look perfect for him…


…It’s over an hour past our meeting time. He’s not coming, is he…


… *silent tears*…


…I guess I had better catch the trolley home…


…What’s that you say Rainbow Be-Ribboned Handbag? Let’s go on an adventure together?…

…Well…. Okay…

        …*takes off* Wheeee!…

~   ♡  ~

*This picture-story post idea was inspired by Rochelle of Lucky Lucille. She wrote a great Photography Tips article and one of the things that really stood out to me was the idea of telling a story with your photos. Now, I always try to do that with my artistic photography, but not so much with my outfit shoots. And I thought, well, why not?

So here it is ~ my Mary-Poppins-inspired, 1940s-styled, tale of a Rainbow Be-Ribboned Handbag and a Girl that stops waiting on her Prince Not-So-Charming!*  

xox,

bonita

~   ♡  ~

Crochet Pink & Beige Hair Rose | Me Made, 2011
40’s Floral Shirtwaist Dress | Ebay
Rainbow Be-Ribboned Handbag | Forever New, 2012
Camel Penny Loafers | Big W, 2011

~ ♡ ~

Find me:

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