The Olive Green Dress...

We heard about an opening of Saint Cloud, a bike/clothes store. We're dirt poor at the moment, and openings usually have free beer, so off we went. Sadly, the beer had dried up by the time we got there, leaving a sad crowd of hipsters. But, at least we looked nice.



Outfit Details:
Dress - Vintage.
Cardigan - Target NYC
Necklace - Thrifted
Shoes - ?
Bag - Auction Center
Lips - M.A.C Chilli.

Vintage Industria and Old School Themeparks...

Today we went to see Garth's new boss (he starts work next Thursday) and on the way stumbled across a great vintage industrial store in Collingwood.


The St Kilda night markets were also on, so we sat and people watched in the afternoon, not before checking out Luna Park and it's endearingly lame attractions.



Outfit Details:
Dress: Vintage.
Cardigan: Thrifted.
Lipstick; M.A.C Chilli.



Sorry about the eyes closed pic - it was windy!

New Town, New Haircut...

Outfit Details:
Dress: Vintage, found in Warwick.
Cardigan: Cotton On, shortened by me.
Lipstick: Revlon Really Red.
Haircut: Garth.



Well, I wouldn’t say Garth was a master barber at any stretch of the imagination, but I don’t mind this new haircut. He followed the diagram pretty much to the letter, and I think it looks quite like the wartime standard cuts of the 40’s – above the collar, side part, etc. It’s just too short to put up now though, which means I’ll have to pincurl it every second night. I suppose that just means I’ll get much faster at it! Maybe I’m imagining it, but I think it sort of looks like these girls..?


We decided to go for a walk yesterday from our house to Chapel Street for a $4 pizza at the Lucky Coq (a bar.) It was a nice walk – it doesn’t get dark her until after 8pm, so there was plenty of time.



The route we took also has a good variety of Laundromats.




I can’t describe what I like about them so much. Maybe it’s the fact that wherever you are in the world, they all look the same? It’s strangely comforting. Or something.

Monday...

Today we wakled all over the city looking for part time jobs. Garth starts work in the Hot Rod shop next week, and I’m at Frocks and Slacks, but we need a few days work between us for extra play money. I dropped resumes at a few nice looking places...fingers crossed.



Today we saw a violin workshop, a cool railway tunnel, the National Theatre and Tarlo and Graham, a great treasure trove of vintage...stuff.








I need a haircut, but am yet to find a vintage minded hairdresser here, so I'm off to print off the middy diagram and show it to Garth. We have some sharp scissors and he's good at reading maps, so hopefully he'll be able to give a decent cut following the diagram?

We Made It!

After a 21 hour drive, we arrive in St Kilda, met the moving truck, unloaded and fell asleep.
The place is really beautiful and Garth likes it, which was a relief - he'd only seen pictures.



We woke up to beautiful "summer" weather - it was 11 degrees Celcius! I think this temperature will be much more conducive to stockings and suspender belts than our old town!
So, for our first venture out of the house, here's what I wore...



Blouse: Made by me from a 50's pattern
Skirt: vintage
Cardigan: Target in NYC
Shoes: Country Road
Lipstick: M.A.C - Chilli


Our internet isn't connected yet, so I'll do another post when I can find more free wi-fi!

Last Post Before the Move + Vintage Suits...

We leave at 3am tomorrow morning, on a 22 hour drive with one heavily sedated kitty and a car full of stuff.
I've packed and sent all my dresses on a truck, along with all our furniture, so here's hoping they arrive safely!

Melbourne, for those who don't know, is prone to chilly winter temperatures, so I've decided that a vintage suit might be in order. Only problem is, which style?



Decisions, decisions!

Coming up Roses / Melbourne via Lomo.

I flew into Melbourne at 5am on Tuesday morning, with the sole purpose of finding a house for us. We move in 8 days!I found the perfect place, an apartment right behind my new job at the vintage store. Of course, there were millions of people at the inspection, I figured there was no way we'd get it...but we did!
It's a great space, small, originally part of a school built in the 1880's. Two bedrooms, courtyard, fireplace...perfect. And you enter through a special gate - It's like a secret garden. No one would ever know there was a house behind the shops.
Photos of that later, but for now, here's a few lomo shots of my new suburb...



**click to enlarge**

Pincurls, Renovating and Interstate Flights...

So sorry about the lack of posts. We've been madly painting,sanding and renovating to get the house ready to rent. We leave for Melbourne in 13 days. Eep!

On top of all the house work, I got a cold and have been busy working in my holiday job.I leave for Melbourne on Tuesday to find us a house, so there will be most interesting posts from then, I promise!
Oh - and I sold my car. Sad, but necessary. See you soon!

Wedding anniversary and the first sewing project of the year...

It was our 3 and a half year wedding anniversary on new year's day. We recently visited Garth's parent's house on Mt Tambourine, which is where we were married. It was a rainy day, but I managed to get some good photos of the place...








We look so young!!


*************************************************************************************

And on a totally different note...I bought this 30's dress a while ago on ebay, but the fit is strange and it is falling apart...

Just look at those details! Pin tucks, self covered buttons, side zip, peterpan collar, piping, a little bow!
If it goes well, I might make this style available in the etsy store...stay tuned!

First dress styles for sale...what do you think?

Based on the positive responses on the Etsy shop idea, here is the first pattern I was going to produce.


Not too sure about the style with the mandarin collar, but I really love the 2 bigger styles...what do you think? Would you buy this dress?

Etsy...?

So...I’m thinking of starting an Etsy Shop.

It would sell dresses that I had made from original vintage patterns.
There would be a photo of the original pattern, and a photo of the actual dress.
All dresses would be made to a professional standard, lined, overlocked, etc.
Each style would be available in XS, S,M and L.
Prices would be around $100 Australian dollars, depending on the work in each dress.
What do you think...would you buy one?
What styles would you like to see?
Fabrics, eras?
Ask and you shall receive!

**EDIT** - What if each dress was custom made to your measurements? You could order on Etsy, then send through your measurements and get a dress that looks vintage but fits you perfectly...would you pay slightly more, (say $30 AUD) for that service?

Oh - someone asked if they sent me a vintage pattern and their measurements, could I make the dress to fit them? The answer is yes!
And I will ship internationally.

Look! A non- Christmas Post!

I got another package in the mail the other day. Vintage curlers and wave clips! Now I just have to do a test set...wonder how they'll be to sleep on!



Now I'm off to the beach...

V for Victory Dress...

I found this one in a place called "Decades" in Salt Lake City, Utah...



I love the little arrows/"v" shapes...perhaps a war time dress?

oh, and the shoes were $5 at an op shop somewhere near the coast.

A few of my Friends...

So here are some of my favourites...




That's all.

My New Job...

Some of you may know I'm moving to Melbourne in about 5 weeks. I have a job lined up in a vintage store "Frocks and Slacks," which I was offered off the street last time I was there. The owners have just opened a second store, called "Fancypants."



I was doing some google-ing and found this interview with my boss about his newly opened store...


So how did I get the job?
Garth and I were walking past, we were in Melbourne for a job interview for him (in a hot rod shop). He got the job, but I had no work lined up. We were trying to decide if we should make the big move, when suddenly, I walked past this vintage store.



I didn't go in, because we were having this big, serious conversation, but the owner (Tracey) came out and yelled: "You can't look like that and not come in here!"



So I did. After chatting for the grand total of five minutes, she offered me a job. Didn't want my resume, didn't care if I'd done retail work before (I had). Just flat out offered me a job!



That was nearly 4 months ago. And she's keeping the job for me. What a doll.



Maybe some things are just meant to be?

Good Pincurls, Great Music...

Last night, the best band ever played a show. They only play once or twice a year, so I had to go. In honour of the occasion, I did super tiny pincurls and wore one of my favourite dresses.

The band is the Horrortones.

They're a soul cover band, which has the potential to suck, but it doesn't. Not one little bit. It's made up of members of my other favourite bands, which is also a plus! It was such a great night. They played songs by Sam and Dave, Joe Tex, Blacktop, Otis Redding, The Dirtbombs, King Khan and his Shrines and Sam Cooke. There was much dancing, and the pincurls held all night long. (Support bands were The Prehistorics and Velociraptor.)


Cool.

The Mighty Valiant...

I have to sell my car before we move.

Sad.

It's just so great.

See?

Oh, and here's the original advertisement. Ironic that the "move that makes a difference" is the reason I'm selling the car!

>sob.<

Brisbane Vintage Fair Haul...

Last night was the opening night of a local vintage fair. I went last time and it was really busy, really hot, really crowded and really expensive. This time, I was pleasantly surprised. Seems the recession has hit overpriced vintage sellers too.
Here's a few shots of what was on offer...





And here's what I came home with:

A great old suitcase (which will come in handy for the move to Melbourne)...




A cute top and some 60's dresses...



Some 50's floral numbers and 2 deadstock bullet bras!



All for the recession - friendly price of $50! yay.

Style Patterns Ltd...

I've been looking around for a while for a good (and affordable) 40's skirt, but to no avail. The only nice one I could afford was too small. (My 27 inch waist is never going to be 24 inches!) So, etsy to the rescue. This arrived yesterday.



It's from England, and must have been made during the war, as there's a strict reminder about fabric restrictions on the back!





The pattern pieces are real paper too, not the fragile tissue I was expecting.



Now to find the right fabric...