Vogue 1922

Sneak peak! I found this dress and plan to alter it into flapper frock inspired by this June 1922 Vogue cover.  

Strawberry Shirts Forever

As per June tradition, the strawberries outside are flowering and I'm working on various strawberry themed creative projects. Here's a dress from Joe Fresh I found at a thrift store, shown partially deconstructed. I already own it in blue, so I decided to turn this pink version into a shirt. It will likely be a peplum crop top with puffy sleeves. I wish I knew the name of the surface pattern designer, as it is the fabric I love. It's like a fusion of my Strawberry Blonde and Splashy in Watermelon! Thank you, anonymous creative!

Historic German House

Dancing in a lofty, inspiring historic building with a great floor and clean bathrooms (featuring an abundant paper product supply) always makes a dance weekend better. I recently spent Stompology weekend at The Historic German House in Rochester, NY, and it measured up. 

Shortly after arriving I heard a few ladies joyously squealing about the bathroom stalls actually having functional locks. If that ruckus combined the smell of newly varnished floor wasn't enough, I looked up and saw this multilayered textural hint that renovations were recently (beautifully) done.

Yes please to this tin tile ceiling and curly chandelier

Balcony seats and arch windows

Marble and hexagon

Complete with a sky blue tufted velvet bathroom settee!

All that Jazz

I have been on the hunt to find or make a neon sign that says "jazz" but have not yet found what I have in mind. So in the meantime I have decorated a shirt to suffice. I found this cropped navy sweatshirt at the local thrift store. It originally had large white bell sleeves sewn under the sleeve ruffle. It was a cute design, but it looked absolutely dorky on me, and wouldn't be practical for working or dancing anyway, so I cut them out. I knew this navy was going to be the perfect background to have text stand out on, so I just needed to find some embellishment materials in the form of ribbon. In my stash I dug out some vintage poppy red lace bias and gold rickrack, both in their original packages. First I trimmed the sleeves with the lace, mainly to keep the raw edges of the knit from rolling, and to give the ruffle a highlight of the poppy red. Then I wrote with ribbon and sewed it on and voilà! As improvised and vibrant as the music itself. Off to spend the weekend dancing to vintage jazz!

Apricot Lace

I found this pretty cotton dress at a thrift store, originally from Forever 21. Though it is contemporary, it has the perfect structure to be transformed into a gloriously Edwardian gown that would fit right into a Downton scene. I love the pale apricot fabric, mesh neckline, low square back, and lace details. It is a costume project in the works for whenever I next discover an outdoor tea or the like to attend! It shall be lengthened and embellished. 

'40s Military Dress

This past weekend I attended Swingfest and swing danced surrounded by tanks and planes! This is the WWII inspired dress I tweaked and wore for the event. I found the original dress in the summer for mere cents at the local thrift haunt. I love its military green cotton searsucker fabric with the bit of stretch. The original dress was basically sleeveless so I spent months keeping an eye out for similar coloured fabric whenever I was thrifting, so as to have some material to make sleeves out of. Nothing turned up. Then one day I was trying it on again, and while taking it off it flipped inside out and I realized it had a slip! Glorious discovery! So I promptly ripped that slip out and started chopping it up to make the sleeves and lapels you see here. I also swapped out the buttons for these brassy ones. Lesson: always look under the dress' skirt for extra fabric!

Deco Table

I ordered my Deco Diamond design on linen cotton canvas and satin fabric to update this black powder-coated metal c-table magazine rack. The sling used to be a black faux leather, but I wanted to make it a little more interesting. The canvas is on the inside so it holds up to the books sitting in it and the satin on the outside to give it that black and gold gleam. I love the clean lines and airiness of the glass writing surface. 

Polka

With chillier weather I withdraw to my sewing machine, so lately I've been tending to my pile of clothing items to alter. At the top of the pile I have been tweaking and embellishing this dress. In the original condition it looked awkwardly short on me, so I am adding the black eyelet sleeves and coordinating trim on the hem to balance it out. I also removed the red sash from the back and added on the collar rickrack. Dances await!

Culottes Forever

I'm working on my outfit for going to a 1940s swing dance this weekend! The past weeks have been filled with tucking and hemming and dancing in trial outfits. Special mention is deserved for these culottes--not only do these culottes have pockets, they have secret pockets, as well as the best care tag I have ever seen:

"Give 'em hell!"

1920s Charleston Costume Hunt

I'm scouring thrift stores, malls, and fabric stores for beading, tassels, fringe and all that jazz to piece together a flapper costume. Over the past year I have taught myself how to dance the Charleston (the most amusing form of exercise) and now, of course, need to be able to dance in the period appropriate attire!

Cat Eye Glasses

I found these fabulous cat eye frames at Value Village for (wait for it) $3, had my prescription lenses put in them, and may have also taken a brush full of gold paint to the tips...hello, bespectacled '50s secretary joy!

Lace Denim

This old pair of jeans was sitting around and I decided to embellish them with some lace. Then I was trawling through the aisles at Value Village when this cotton lace cardigan caught my eye. It originally had big bell sleeves so I whacked them off and re-purposed them into embellishments for the denim. Voilà!

Anthropologie Cat Knob

I replaced the drawer knob on my desk with this cutie, the treasure of my Toronto shopping jaunt.

3rd Blogiversary: Leather Shoes

The traditional gift for 3rd anniversaries is leather. Hence, I have decided to celebrate my favourite piece of leather, my shoes, which I have worn pretty much constantly for 3 years. I found the lovely pair at Value Village for $12.99. Ironically, a week later, I happened to see the exact same pair in my size, but I passed them by since I had just bought mine and I didn't realize how much I would grow to love them. Ultimately, they are a metaphor for something that means more than fashion.

I replaced their laces with sheer ribbons, which have surprisingly held up for the 3 years!

 These guys have been to Toronto, Montréal, Québec City, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, many an antique show, and so on! They have been covered in mud, but they just brush off and acquire a pretty patina.

 They are obviously durable, and have aged beautifully. They are so soft now, and have comfortably molded to my feet. These shoes also look good with both pants and dresses, and, best of all, I can walk forever in them.

I hope someone else owns that other pair of these shoes and is loving them. This all to say that quality is what to strive for, because quality lasts. A life surrounded by good, positive, enduring things is gorgeous. Thank you for 3 years of readership--here's to many more years of loveliness!

Découpaged Flower Chair

This project began with me hoarding magazine clippings of flowers for 7 years.

I wanted to cover a chair in them, but was waiting for the perfect chair to drop into my life. One day I was driving home and realized it was garbage day in my neighbourhood. I took a detour looking for furniture at curbs and slammed on my breaks when I saw this chair upside down on someone’s lawn. I threw it in the back seat as the neighbours stared, and I smirked gleefully all the way home. The chair has funky mid-century lines. 

I washed it and ripped the decomposing upholstery off the seat; there were 3 layers of atrocity to work through, the crowning glory being this exquisite '70s fabric. Needless to say, ew, that was a task and a half. 

Then I started gluing the flowers to the surface with Mod Podge. 

And gluing...

And gluing...

It took too many hours to count, but it’s exactly the cheerful piece I first imagined oh so long ago!

Here's to the warm and flowery days to come!

Découpaged Musical Stool

Here's the twin to my Franglais Stool--my Musical Stool!

 I découpaged it with sheet music I saved from the trash at a book sale I volunteered at.

Namesake Sign à la French Country

 No, this isn't me awkwardly posting belated Christmas stuff in January, this is a sign I made featuring my last name. My mom found the frame at Value Village a few months ago, but the art within was some folk art painting that had nothing to do with the fleur-de-lis on the metal inset. 

So, I flipped the picture around and painted on the black back of it. I whipped this vintage French ephemera font out of my mind based on the French Country style of the rest of the frame, and went to town with some white acrylic paint and paint pen. Voilà!

Bow Tie Man

I sketched this dapper gent in a tux and embroidered his bow tie through the paper.

Christmas Chair

We are starting our present pile on this vintage red chair.

Inspiration: Tin Tile

Distressed white tin and quilted crimson.