Steven Meisel for Vogue Italia

This incredible editorial by Steven Meisel for Vogue Italia has all the ingredients that make me swoon. Contrasting textures of soft flesh and grainy sand, organic beauty, sculpted highlights and low lights expressed through the dichotomy of elegant humans and simple earth. It makes me miss days when I would lay in the sand and imagine myself sinking into the world and the ocean, feeling warm and peaceful. I think I am getting a little homesick. Images found here.

The Vintage YoYo Necklace- a new endeavor

A while back, I came upon an enormous stack of material samples at an estate from the 40's-50's in the most amazing cotton prints. I had no idea what I was going to with them because they are all pretty small, but I had an idea last night and woke up early this morning to give it a shot. Fabric yoyos! Ok, not really exciting but I have seen some really cool jewelry made out of them and I gave it a shot. It only took about an hour to make this whole necklace:



The best part is that I have just enough of the fabrics for two, so the one pictured here went up in the shop today.

Help me name this dress!

I recently purchased this amazing late 40's/ early 50's drop waist dress at an estate sale. It is absolutely glorious in every way, shape and form! The collar and the bow are just so perfect... I know I saw this or something really similar in a fall 2009 or 2010 collection, and I just can't remember who did this! Can anyone identify who did this style recently? I want to put it in my store but I want to know who did this look first. Or maybe I am just going nuts... anyone?

High Waist Pants

I have to admit, the idea of high waist pants always made me nervous. It brought back emotional scarring from freshman year, when a certain unnamed Spanish teacher had a perpetual camel toe that almost looked painful. However, my mom has always tried to tell me that (as long as the inseam fits) that they would actually look good on my shape. I bought a pair of high waist jeans last year, and it turns out she was right.

My only issue is that I have a non-store-fit friendly shape. Things are always too short in the inseam, and too baggy in the hips and legs when the waist fits. I am convinced that the only way to ever find a pair that fits is to sew them myself. I am now officially on the hunt for patterns. I came across a couple that I just love:

I found these at Nanas Sewing Basket on Etsy. She has lots of great dress patterns right now too!




This one came from ZipZapKap on Etsy.

The only, only problem is that neither of these are my size and I just don't think they will come out right if I try to adjust the pattern. If anyone spots something similar in a slightly bigger size, or has one they want to sell let me know!

Today was a good day

Today I went out thrifting; I took a long, long bus ride out to Savers and studied for the GRE like a good girl. I looked around and found NOTHING; was on my way out when I saw a fur coat hanging next to a mirror. I immediately noticed it was monogrammed inside; that was a good sign! Upon closer inspection, I began to notice that it was absolutely stunning, marvelous and wonderful in every possible way, and in the loveliest condition. It is fox; black collar, tan with white tips in a diamond set pattern right to the calves. It fit like it was cut for me, but I won't ever wear such a glamorous thing so I am taking it to a furrier for appraisal. Pictures and appraisal news to follow!

On the way home I missed the bus (of course) and had 20 minutes to kill before another came so I went into the thrift store on the corner and I found the dress I have on below. Black crepe, rhinestones, metal back zip; the best is the assymetrical, elegant draping at the shoulders! It fits like a glove, and I am awfully tempted to keep it for myself. What do you guys think, keep or sell?

Stop Making My Mouth Water

Damn you, Le Creuset. You make me hungry without food even cooking in you. Everything tastes so much better when it is cooked inside your smooth, enameled walls. Your lustrous cherry red finish is the color of desire. And people on ebay are selling you used, admittedly found at a church flea market for hundreds of dollars. You are sitting, unused in the homes of terrible cooks, spoiled housewives that order in.... when I think of all the miracles we could make together, it makes me want to cry.

Twitterpated

I feel like I just stumbled upon a secret society this week. I resisted and resisted Twitter because, well, I don't know. Now that the Blackberry is gone I was feeling an absence of continual gabbing. Plus, I have no physical coworkers anymore. It's funny, Twitter is like having a whole community of virtual coworkers. Only no colds, smelly food in the microwave, waiting to have my turn in the bathroom. AND I get to incessantly listen to Pandora instead of arguing over who-f***d up what.
Brilliant.

My screen name was too long as thegreedyseagull so I am just going by greedyseagull.

Also the shop got a little makeover today and I ordered real business cards to pass out at the New York and California vintage fashion expos. That's right, going to BOTH this year, because I am just that GREEDY.

Show me your BOOTS!

Back in college, a truck driver actually held up a sign while driving just one letter off from the title of this post. I didn't show them to him, but I will show all of you my BOOTS, all going in the shop. These are only half; the other will go in next week.

An Etsy Buddy and Partner in Crime

I feel so lucky to have met such lovely ladies through my obsession with vintage. For years and years, I felt like I was pretty much the only nut out there willing to hide under a pile of dusty coats in a warehouse to get at a leopard one in the bottom of the bin that I'm not supposed to be in. But fortunately, this just is not true! I knew I moved away from Orange County, CA for a reason (besides the housewife show). That place is a wasteland of tans, Ed Hardy, bleached hair, and Juicy Couture. No wonder I had like, 3 friends.

Nowadays, I find myself very fortunate to know so many stylish, interesting ladies that I know would have hid under that with me and cheered me on. I met Greatestfriend in a vintage clothing shop in Manhattan. We started gabbing about vintage clothing after we gushed over each other's outfits and soon after, she was sleeping over to get up with me at 6am to hunt down vintage. I knew we'd be a good team because we have different eyes for stuff, and plus we stayed up until 3am digging through all my stuff and talking our heads off.

Anyway, below are some fabulous things from her shop. She is always a step ahead of the trends and stocks all the masculine, work-wear type things that I never do, as well as incredible dresses and historical items.

Isn't she great?

The Greedy Seagull's Ultimate Triumph

I have meaning to do a post about this for a while now, but never took the proper pictures for it. I really needed them to go along with the story.



About eight or ten months back, I was checking out at the Salvation Army and eyeballing the little rack of jewelry they had out on the counter. I found a really pretty charm bracelet, I think it was marked $2.99 and was looking it over in line. I looked for a signature and saw "AK" on the toggle and thought, oh ok this is a piece of Anne Klein costume jewelry from the 80's, maybe I'll just put it back. But it was really, really pretty so I kept it anyways.



Six months later, I remembered that it was hanging on my jewelry rack (a four tiered trouser hanging thing that holds about 30 pounds of stuff) and thought I might wear it for a day and then put it on Etsy. That's when I looked at the signature again and it hit me; it was stamped 18k and it had an artist's signature right next to that!!! After freaking out, I went and weighed it and the sucker is about 65 grams! I decided to hang on to it for a little while because the price of gold is going up and I wasn't sure where I would sell it
and how much it was worth.



A few months ago, I ran into an antique dealer buddy of mine at an estate sale and was telling him about the piece. He said that based on the style/ signature it could be a Line Vautrin piece or at least a good reproduction and that I should take it right to Sotheby's. I checked out her jewelry and the style didn't really match but it so happens that my old co-worker's husband is the former head of Sotheby's London so he took it into the NYC office for me for appraisal. They said that indeed, it was a copy of a much older style and they couldn't identify the signature but it was definitely 18k gold and worth its weight in it.



After wearing it a few times and doting on how beautiful it is for the last few months, I decided to put it up on ebay. Yes, I would love to keep it but having a big savings account is more imprtant when you are laid off. We'll see what the closing bid goes for, I am pretty nervous!

Mystic, Connecticut

My guy and I recently had our four year anniversary, and he surprised me by renting a car and taking me upstate to Mystic, Connecticut. Just getting in a car would have been exciting enough, I miss my old Volvo so badly! Anyway, if you haven't been, GO! It's pretty much the neatest place I've ever been. It is an entire village frozen in time in the mid 1840s; there are bunches of little structures that are authentic buildings that are either original or have been transported from surrounding areas. There is watch shop, a rope making house, residences, an apothecary, a blacksmith, and galleries full of maritime artifacts.

Also, the world's only remaining whaling ship in the world, the Charles W Morgan, is up on lifts being totally restored, and you can explore the ship! You can watch a cooper make barrels, watch a smith forge iron, and listen to live mariner's songs courtesy of one of the many well-educated, friendly staff. This is all aside from the fact that Mystic river is absolutely breathtaking!

On the way back, we stopped at Abbot's Lobster in the Rough. We ate lobster rolls, clam chowder, corn, and coffee for grand total of 40 bucks, and it was definitely the best lobster roll I have ever had. It's right on the water and there are all sorts of greedy seagulls hanging around trying to snatch food. If you go to Mystic, bring your GPS and go eat there on the way back! Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Inside the apothecary store

What I would give to have these added to my collection...

Inside the rope making structure

Three views of ship heads, my favorite part of the whole museum

Abbots Lobster in the Rough

Small But Great Etsy Update

Below are some new items I've been collecting that are going into the shop today. I experimented with my camera this morning, turned down the ISO and slowed shutter speed and I think these look much crisper than previous photos. It takes a steady hand to shoot at 1/6 without a tripod, but I can actually do it with a a little support from nearby furniture. We'll see if the Etsy community takes notice, it's been sooo slow.

The Laid Off Laid Back To-do List

I am a compulsive list maker. I got it from my mother; she posts lists of absolutely everything all over the house. List-making is very comforting when you are scatterbrained like me. I'm pretty easily distracted and really forgetful and somehow lists make me feel like I can manage the chaos. I make lists for everything; cleaning chores, things I want to buy, places I want to go, bills I need to pay... the list of lists goes on and on.

I have a tendency to get bored easily, and hence slip into a lazy, lethargic state of existence in which nothing gets done and I waste time that could be spent doing better things. Right now, I have tons of time and I want to use it while it lasts doing all the things that I always complained about not having the time to do. So, true to my OCD list-making form, I created the Laid Off Laid Back To-Do List which will include:

- Read all the blogs I follow in the mornings over cereal.
- Drink huge iced coffees afterward
- Get to the gym or go run five times a week




- Wednesday morning runs to the Salvation Army for half off day
- Take the doggie for a long walk every night
- Updating the shop with amazing, perfect listings almost every day
- My kitchen table covered in beads and sewing (image credit here)



- Cooking salmon, thai food, baking banana nut bread and apple pies when it gets cooler
- Spending time studying for the GRE
- Painting my nails, styling my hair, staying groomed in general and wearing aprons and lingerie around the house (image credit here)



- Weekend train rides to new places and estate sales
- Outfits filled with skirts and frilly things and weird things I could have never worn to work
- Camera trips; just me and my Nikon D60




- Incessant listening to Pandora
- Writing a recipe book of all the family recipes for Christmas gifts
- Twice weekly scouring of apartment, ultimate freedom from dust bunnies (image here)



- Traveling to other east coast states to visit buddies; long drives through Vermont and Boston when the leaves change
- Scanning and cataloging all the images I have been collecting these past couple years
- Start using all these images in my blogs and become better at Photoshop
- Bicycle rides all over. To the park and through it, on boardwalks, over crunching leaves, etc.
- Drinking lots of wine. Funny enough the image below combines these last two goals; this is an old French bicycle advertisement label adopted for the label on a very good red wine:

image here

Now, I am going to put the list-making aside and actually go do something!

xoxo

Accidental Flapper Hair

This morning I was haphazardly blow drying my hair, lamenting the awkward length of my bangs and swishing them around from side to side with my brush, when suddenly, flapper hair appeared! I thought, hey, I can work with this! I went and grabbed the strongest gel I had, did some scrunching, and it turned out really, really well. I haven't had a hair day this good in at least a year, and probably will not again. That's why I made my poor boyfriend take these pictures in front of a lovely old church in Astoria!

It's only been a few days since I lost my job, and I already feel like a different person. I feel like I can literally SEE the stress gone out of my face. Last night, I went out and got pretty blitzed with some vodka-pineapple-orange juice concoctions, and for the first time in a long time I didn't get violently ill and actually enjoyed myself. I don't know if I should attribute that to not being stressed about having to work the next day or the greasy carnita tacos I ate just before, but it's probably both.

Anyways, I feel great. The bags are even gone from under my eyes. It's really amazing what having an hour to yourself in the morning to get ready can do for you.

Dress: Kensie
Cut Coin Necklace: Etsy via Petsalad
Shoes: Vintage

Thanks to rubyblossom and playingwithbrushes for layers!

I'll drink to that

So today, I got laid off. I should have been sad, and I definitely acted like I was, but in my head the scene looked a lot more like this:




That's me, walking out the door, with a huge smile on my face and already relaxing with a drink. All the executives are smiling because they just got to cut my salary out of their budget. Expect lots more from my Etsy shop, and more from this little blog too!