Friday Photo Swoon – Ready for June!!

{Photo Source}

Here it is! The last day of May is upon us and the sunshine of June starts tomorrow!

I figure we better start getting out our shorts, sunnies, and sandals and here is a bit of inspiration to do so! These lovely 1940s gals are decked out in a wide range of the sunglasses from the era. They seem pretty relaxed too, in that glorious sun-filled shot! There sure are some crazy looking specimens of eye protection here, am I right? I don't think I've even ever seen a shape like the ones on the top left. Like two baseball diamonds. There is also an aviator, goggle, and flower framed type too. The one in the center is bonkers! 

What do you think? Which pair do you prefer? (My pick: top left)

Last Week's Photo Swoon:

Double Take

Thursday Thrill – Picnic in the Park

Pint Sized Picnic Basket from Tinkers Vintage

Oh, the glorious days of May! They are at an end, but June will be just as pleasant. I really want to make sure to enjoy them as much as possible and what better way than with a picnic! So grab your best check or gingham and let's go!!

1930s Ruffle Dress from FabGabs

No one wants to get to their picnic and have essentials left behind at home, so here is a small list of what not to forget.

List of Don't Forgets for a fabulous picnic: 

Vintage Woven Wood Plates from Life with Oz

Utensils

 No reason to throw out dishware when you can reuse and keep the outdoors that you enjoy so much healthy and thriving.

Vintage Folk Painted Utensils from Elm Place

Breezy, But Fun Attire

Don't have a gingham number? Not to worry, a festively sunny little dress would do the trick just as nicely! 

1930s Yellow Organza Dress from FabGabs

Friends and Family

Don't forget to invite your friends! More the merrier and you can never have too many deviled eggs, in my opinion. 

Vintage Picnic Invitations from Boston Bag Lady

Sun Protection

Sure, you could just use sunblock, but why not be fabulous too?! Picnics in the park are the perfect excuse to wear a large dramatic hat. 

1940s Wide Brim Caspar-Davis Hat from Poppycock Vintage

Fun for the Kiddos

After they've run themselves silly in the sun, having a quiet activity like coloring would be perfect on a laid out blanket under a big shade tree.

Vintage Color By Number Book from Boston Bag Lady

Fun for Everyone

Adults and kids would enjoy a good beanbag toss! Adults only? Ever heard of beer beanbag? I haven't either, but I'm sure my mind will soon figure out the best picnic game EVER!

Handmade Carnival Beanbags by Smile Mercantile

For the Pooch

Look at this face! You can't leave him out of the fun, he did dress for the occasion after all! Make sure to bring a ball and bone for your little furry friends too.

Polka Dot Bow Tie for Dog by Charlie Be Good

Food

Because this vintage platter is gorgeous, but would be much prettier with the crumbs of decadent finger foods sprinkling memories of a great meal much enjoyed by laughing loved ones. 

Vintage Metal Tray from Stock in Trade

Last Week's Thursday Thrill:

Look Mom, I Married a Doctor!!

Wordless Wednesday – Poppyular Among the Iris

Last Week's Wordless Wednesday:

Iris Island & A Surprise!

Treasury Tuesday – Forage in the Forest

Today is the 2nd part of a Treasury Tuesday series that invites you to get out and explore the springtime treasures around you. In last week's treasury, there were butterfly earrings and moss necklaces to help inspire a woodland walk. This week, now that we've gotten ourselves to the forest's edge, let's just go in and forage a bit, shall we? 

This gorgeous collection of forest inspired items was curated by Sammie Sam, who did quite a beautiful job. My fav's? Well, there are many in this grouping, but that winged scarf and pinecone tiara are pretty fantastic! I was quite pleased to have my rustic bobby pins, "Sea Shanty" shown alongside such earthen treasures.

To view individual items in this treasury, click here.

Last Week's Treasury Tuesday:

A Woodland Walk

The Sunday Snag – Ribbon Wrapped Just For Me

Oh my! {enter gasps of delight}

Are these not the most scrumptious pair of shoes you've ever seen?! 

This Sunday Snag is just the first of three (you heard me, three!) teasers for what will hopefully be a magical outfit post in June. My husband, yes, the one you've all heard is amazing and wonderful and the best, has surprised me with the greatest gift ever for our upcoming wedding anniversary. It's a big one too! {enter joke here} We will be celebrating 10 years of wedded bliss in the first part of June! I cannot begin to describe how vastly and ridiculously in love I am with this man and many, many more years are necessary before I'll feel even the least bit satisfied that we've had enough time together. 

Okay, gushing aside, the hubs has engineered the best idea for an anniversary gift. We were talking one night about how we didn't have enough date nights. Suddenly, he perked up and suggested, "Why don't we just have a date WEEK for our anniversary?". Uhm, yes! Whatever that is, sign me up! We frantically came up with preliminary plans and decided that we would take a whole week off together and plan a different date for every day and night. We will go on picnics, to movies, dancing, out to dinner, etc. How fantastic is that?!

Plus, as if that weren't enough, he said he wanted to take me to Lantern, a local restaurant that is rated the most romantic in all of North Carolina and one of the top 50 restaurants in the country! Holy crap, can this get better?!

The answer is yes because my husband is like freakin' Santa Claus on speed. I was all like "Oooh, what would I wear???" and he said "Why don't you buy your bucket list dress?". WHAT?! We've talked about bucket lists before and I always said that I would put a mint condition 1940s outfit on mine. You know, something I would very likely never obtain except in my dreams. Well, he said to go for it! And my brain imploded. You have to realize, people, that we are not wealthy kids. The most I can usually afford to spend on any item is $30 on a good day. But I just got the green light to get an outfit from my fantasies! This anniversary will. be. epic! 

So here is the first purchase off of my Bucket List outfit. Pristine condition, never worn, 1940s peep toe heels in a black patent leather with a wrapped grosgrain ribbon detail. They have the cutest curled accent ribbon on the top too, like a little chocolate shaving on a piece of pie! The shop that made this magic happen was Honey Talk Vintage, where you can find many a bucket lister item to indulge in.

I'm SO excited about all of this and can't wait to share the 2nd teaser with you all next week!

***Updated: Click here to see next teaser post!***

***Updated: Click here to see complete Bucket List Outfit!***

Last Week's Sunday Snag:

40's Darling

Saturday Shop Talk – Heart of Stone

"Heart of Stone"

Personality: The Stoic and Strong Minded
Places you'll find yourself: Reading up on the latest issues of the day and contemplating what is in your power to help

These earrings are actually quite unusual. They are vintage buttons that are made from some type of polished stone, possibly a marble, in a creamy white with a cut jigsaw pattern. They're also quite large, compared to most buttons anyway, at 10/16", which I think is fun as it makes them more noticeable and almost gauge like. Although, they may only be bigger looking to me because my ear lobes are so freakishly small.  Normal human beings may not think they're all that big in their normal human sized ears. 

"Heart of Stone"

View my entire shop here.

Last Week's Saturday Shop Talk:

Harriet

Friday Photo Swoon – Double Take

{Photo courtesy of Vintage-Retro}

I was browsing through the many vintage images on Pinterest and saw this beauty. Now the reason she caught my eye was because I felt like I had seen her before. Doesn't she look like Marion Cotillard?! 

This striking lady is actually Teresa Wright, an Academy award winning actress born in 1918, shown here photographed in the 1940s. Isn't her hairstyle just creamy?! 

Below is a photo of Marion Cotillard, the modern day French actress. I think the resemblance in these photos is uncanny and exemplifies the term "Classic Beauty". 

{Photo courtesy of Digital Trends}

Last Week's Friday Photo Swoon:

A Mother's Love

Thursday Thrill – Look Mom, I Married a Doctor!!

That's right, folks! I am the very proud spouse of a newly graduated doctor! No, Mom, not the rich kind. But a doctor none-the-less! My Dr. Hubs is in the academic world of lovely old smelling books and sweater vests and he made it to the top of his education. After 25 consecutive years of being in school, he is finally finished! He graduated just a few days ago and I'm so excited for him! 

For those of you that don't know, my Dr. Hubs and I are high school sweethearts, so I have been with him for all of his adult education and we have practically grown up together. He has worked tremendously hard and has had an enormous amount of patience while trying to achieve this scholastic milestone and I am so happy and proud of him!

Plus, the graduation ceremony took place in this gorgeous cathedral built in 1924, so that was quite the bonus! It's like he graduated from Hogwarts! Which, let's be honest, would be just as awesome as getting a doctoral degree.

Last Week's Thursday Thrill:

Sick Day

Wordless Wednesday – Iris Island & A Surprise!

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***Specials are very, very, VERY rare, so if you've been eyeing a pretty bauble or two, hurry over and help me celebrate! :-) ***

I opened my little shop exactly one year ago today!! I started this blog just one month later, so this is such a wonderful milestone! Thank you all for being a part of it and supporting me along this exciting journey!!

Last Week's Wordless Wednesday:

Worth the Rain

Treasury Tuesday – A Woodland Walk

The weather here is becoming more and more beautiful. The days are warm and bright, but not intense like the summer days ahead. This is the time to venture out into the green and see the new life awakened by Spring. 

To celebrate the welcoming climate, I will be showcasing two treasuries, one today and one next week, that will invite you to enjoy a walk through the woods in these last days of Springtime.

The first woodland invitation is a treasury curated by Angela at All Things Granny. She has found so many interesting items too! I just love the handmade soap and the tiny moss necklace. My wooden button earrings, "Knock on Wood", seem right at home with these forest dwellers too!

To view individual items in the treasury, click here.

***Stay Tuned! Tomorrow has a very special surprise in store!!***

Last Week's Treasury Tuesday:

Rain Days

Thursday Thrill – Sick Day

Hello lovelies,

Unfortunately, after a week well spent with my mom, I caught a cold and am sick in bed. I had planned ahead when I knew my mother was going to be in town and had nearly two weeks of posts ready. But I didn't plan to be sick afterward, so I'm going to take a short blogging break to recover. So sorry. However, some great things are coming soon! My amazing husband has amazingly done some amazing things and I will be sharing those with you in the coming weeks!

I will be back for Treasury Tuesday on May 21st and in the meanwhile I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! Talk to you soon!
~Jamie

{1951 Vogue Paris "Fashionably Sick in Bed" via Clover Vintage}

Last Week's Thursday Thrill:

May You an Emerald Be

Wordless Wednesday – Worth the Rain

Last Week's Wordless Wednesday:

No Touchy!

Treasury Tuesday – Rain Days

We've had rain for days now in Raleigh. Spring is really in full swing here and all the new plant life is benefitting greatly from the moisture. Me? I prefer to not be soggy, but rain gives life, so therefore I'm happy with some days inside. Besides, they make the perfect napping afternoons! Cool and comfortable and slightly dark, these days can be quite refreshing. 

Leanne from Print Me Prettiful has curated this lovely collection of rainy day inspired items all in tones of gray, navy, and white. That simple chevron striped vintage dress may be my favorite, but the little storm cloud mobile is a close second. My little woven fabric earrings, "Stormy Weather" got to join the cloudy collection too!

To view individual items in this treasury, click here.

Last Week's Treasury Tuesday:

Fruit of the Gods

The Sunday Snag – 40s Darling

Look at this sweet little top I found! I was breezing through a local Raleigh treasure, Father & Son Antiques, when I happened upon this cutie smooshed between racks. 

This sweater is such a doll! Most likely from the 1940's to the 1950's, it is a rich blue knit with an ivory edged neckline. The neckline itself is what caught my eye. It has a diamond like pattern with two decorative metal and rhinestone buttons. The sleeve is a Dolman or batwing sleeve, which gives away its age too. The sweater needed some love. I mended moth holes and seams and secured the neckline a bit. I also replaced a missing rhinestone on one of the buttons (weirdly had one the exact shape and size it needed!). It still smells rather old. I've been soaking it in the tub every time I wear it and hopefully that will fade a little. I don't mind the "vintage" smell that much, but I prefer it to be a light reminder of age instead of a loud one.  I don't have many tops that are vintage (or many tops period) and I've been trying to keep an eye out for ones that I can afford and easily incorporate into my closet. This one looked so cute with a pair of ankle length, dark skinny jeans and flats.

Also, my new haircut is finally just about long enough to do pin curls!!! Yippee!! This was the reason I wanted to cut my hair off in the first place. I wanted to try out a bobbed type of look that I could pin curl. The salon, Eco Friendly Beauty Bar, here in Raleigh, did a fantastic job with the shape of the cut. The stylist and staff were incredibly nice too! At first, the cut was just a bit too short to pin curl. No worries though. I loved the cut and I knew that in a few months my hair would be the right length to start trying out a few of these vintage curls. 

What you are seeing is my first attempt. I'm not gonna lie, pin curls are a beast, but they are so darn cute! I'm sure I'll get better at them as I practice and once my hair is about an inch or two longer, it will be much easier. I love them though!! When I saw this photo, I realized that it looks like one of the photos of my grandmother when she was young. I cannot tell you how wonderful that makes me feel. She was a beauty and hopefully I can share an old photo of her with you all in the future. 

One thing I would have loved to go with this outfit? A pair of slightly cat eye vintage glasses. I don't wear glasses (had Lasik a few years back), but I would love them for an accessory every once in a while. And the hunt begins...

Last Week's Sunday Snag:

Asian Influence