Vintage Pulse

I'm the featured member on Vintage Pulse this week! Click here and look to the left column. Vintage Pulse is a fun online community for vintage sellers on Etsy. Check it out!

Vintage Pattern Art

I love vintage patterns! Even though I'd love to bring some of those fantastic vintage dresses back to life, I find I love vintage patterns more for their cover illustrations. They are a great resource for fashion history and the illustrations are beautiful. It has been a delight to discover some artwork and useful items made with such illustrations and vintage pattern covers! Here are a few of my faves: janesapron- sew busy clipboard

JenniferConway- Original Collage Art Card

patternstash- Red Joy collage notebook cover

OnAMoonbeam- set of four coasters

Clearing out the Craft Bin

It's been a day of organizing and rummaging through my craft bins. I've decided recently that I just can't keep all of the wonderful trimmings and fabrics that I've collected over the years. This prompted me to open my Etsy shop, The Sparkling Cocktail, a month ago, to share my goodies to other crafters and DIYers out there. The response has been pretty good as some fabric and patterns have sold to be made into wonderful new items! It's a lot more useful than sitting in bins in my studio. Today I have put up for sale some wonderful button collections that I'm sure someone will be able to incorporate into their next project!

Vintage Item of the Week: ICE BUCKETS

An essential at all cocktail parties, the ice bucket! And since I love cocktail parties that have a vintage feel to them, it's only right to have vintage barware. My goal this summer is to finally set up an at home bar that is stocked just the way I like it. My main missing ingredient, besides some key liquor, is the ice bucket. Here are a few goodies I've found....

White ceramic bowl bucket- funkeyfinds

Tigers eye lucite-Vintage248
Faux bois-atouchofvintage

Coppercraft-ebay **This I won for my boyfriend for $5.99, he invented a wonderful cocktail called The Willoughby, a summery version of my beloved Manhattan! (Recipe coming soon)** There are many many vintage ice bucket choices on ebay, worth the search!

Do You Fondue?

A very old friend of mine recently got in touch with me. It's been years since we've spoken and what a delight to discover where her creativity has taken her. She wanted to let me know that she will be at the Renegade Craft Fair this weekend (6/14 - 6/15) in Brooklyn (McCarren Park Pool) and while I would love to see not only her but the entire fair, I work weekends and can't make it. Along with her hubby, Nicole handcrafts switch plate and tissue box covers out of vintage wallpapers from the 1940's and 50's under the name Fondue Art and Design. They are adorable and a great way to incorporate those paper styles with out covering your entire wall. My favorite is the Kitschy Kitchen collection. If you can go, please stop by the Fondue booth and say hello!

Vintage Item of the Week; Fishnet Stockings!

My current vintage obsession is stockings, especially fishnets. Nothing says bombshell more! I own several pairs that I love to wear on nights out on the town held up with vintage garter belts. A recent find was a black pair that have a tighter netting on one side than the other creating a line down the front and back of the leg. Rare indeed!

Now as much as I would love to, I can't keep all my finds for myself. I have several pairs for sale in my Brooklyn boutique, Ouvrez La Porte. Some may also appear soon in my Etsy store, The Smashing Darling. We'll see how generous I am!

Product Review: Pin-up Cosmetics

Cosmetics are my downfall, especially when I need an inexpensive pick-me-up. My latest delight is Pin-up Cosmetics, loose eye dust in a dark emerald sea green. I've been wearing it quite regularly. For only $12 my little jar will last quite a while. And with all the attention I've been getting it's well worth it! There is something about sparkly green eyeshadow that makes men wild! I am also in love with the creme shadows. They offer a nice smooth and sparkly finish and are so easy to apply. The color Satin Lace is my favorite, a soft snowy white color that highlights my brow bones perfectly! Pin-up Cosmetics is the brain child of San Francisco based make up artist, Aprill Lacey. Her mission is to "release your inner pin-up". With her help, it's working!

Pin-up Cosmetics is available at:

Girls Things; 1487 Pine St. SF CA

Ouvrez La Porte; 105 Bond St. BK NY

myspace.com/pinupcosmetics

GlamGarb

A girl after my own heart, Gunlis of GlamGarb, loves to surround herself with vintage slips. Only she takes them a step further by hand-dying them in lush colors and trimming them with gorgeous lace, ribbons, feathers, and ribbon roses. The result is a slip too pretty to be hidden underneath. Instead they are ready to be worn on the outside, layered with a vintage cardi or over leggings. A perfect combination of DIY and vintage!

Available at Brooklyn's Ouvrez La Porte.

www.glamgarb.com