Last Chance For Summer

Hi friends!  Just stopping in today to let you know that I've put all the rest of the summer stock on sale!!! Nothing over $20!!! Find all the items here.

Fall Trend: Colour Blocking

I thought I'd put together a little virtual outfit for you all today featuring this fabulous polka dot skirt from The Vintage Ramble Etsy shop.  I've been really eager to style this skirt cause I know it has so much potential to be worn in a variety of ways. 

It really is the perfect skirt for this coming fall season. With so much colour on our collective fashion minds, have some fun with colour blocking and play up a primary coloured themed look!  The swag and the slit on the front of this skirt make it even more appealing and relevant.  I had fun putting this look together and would love to hear how you would wear this skirt.  Would you wear it to the office? Out dancing? To a fancy dinner?

Outfit Details:

Skirt: The Vintage Ramble

Shirt: Top Shop

Shoes:Francesmay

Belt:Zara

Taking Some Time For Fun

It was another busy weekend in these parts.  We had the pleasure of babysitting our sweet niece who is four and fabulous.  We had a fun filled weekend, of baking, ice cream eating, nail painting, colouring, and best of all dress up! First we started playing dress up on my mannequin. Accessorizing with coats hats and necklaces, but then Maryn discovered the high heels and went for it.  It was too cute for words, especially when she kept the outfit on for story time.

Dripping In Diamonds.... Ok Not Really

I noticed this morning a bunch of jewellery pieces that have been piling up on my dresser that need to be put away.  I hadn't  realized how much jewellery I had thrifted recently, so I thought I'd share some of my finds here today. 

Green seems to be a reoccurring theme, and some pieces won me over with their charm even though they needed some work/rework...

This gold chained bolo tie appealed to me because of the bright green stone and the tassels on the ends of the chain.  This would be a stand out addition to an all black outfit. 

Next are two pairs of earrings.  The top ones were a must have.  They are sterling silver and I'm not sure of the green stone, but I love the colour. (ok all you stone savvy people, help me identify this stone...) The bottom pair are to be reworked.  Perhaps into sweater clips, perhaps incorporated into a brooch flower bouquet.  Not sure, but they were to precious to pass up.

These two necklace charms seem to belong to  a growing trend in my jewellery collection.  I love wearing natural elements in my accessories.  Crystals, chunky raw stones, shells, wood and bone.  Good to add a twist of something unexpected in any outfit.  The charm on the left is a bone horn, and on the right a gold leafed seashell.

This bangle watch is a little worse for wear, but I love the folky flowers and the contrast of the black red and pink.  I needed a third hand to show you the watch underneath that pretty painted cover, and to take the picture and model, so you'll have to use your imagination.  But the watch portion is concealed which I like.  Even though the watch needs repair and a the paint is chipping in some spots, I plan on fixing it up, and bringing it back to it's full potential. 

And lastly, and maybe my favourite is this dainty little green ring.(green item #3) It pretty much speaks for itself....

Fall Preview: Boots

I know I said I was going to be updating the shop last week with 10 new pairs of boots....all I have to say is I'm getting there.  The pictures are taken and edited, but in the meantime, here is a sample of what's coming to the shop.

Carmel brown leather textured boot Size 7.5

Soft black leather buckle boot, with rubber soles.  8.5

Rich brown leather snakeskin boot boot size 6.5

Coming soon. I promise!! If you haven't already, check out the other great items in the shop

My Fall 10

I'm feeling it this week.  Cooler weather, the smell of rain and leaves... Fall is coming and here is a run down of the 10 things I'm looking most forward to wearing this coming season.

1,2,3,4

A few staple accessories I love for cooler weather. Time to pull out the brown leather bags. I love the look of deep brown leather with jeans and sweaters, and it has to be big enough to keep my scarf handy in case it gets chilly.  I'm almost always wearing a scarf in the fall and winter months. One things I love about warmer weather is not wearing socks, but as much as I love my bare feet, I've got to have cozy socks and colourful tights.

5,6,7,8

This summer my red jeans were in heavy rotation (in fact I'm wearing them now) and a great way to transition them into fall is with a great denim shirt. The denim shirt also looks good with a neutral cloured tribal printed cardigan. The cardigan is great way to offset the double denim look.  And we can't forget one of the most exciting parts of fall is jackets!  I always get so pumped to pull out my jackets again.  Two great choices are a brown leather balmer and a bright red jacket. As long as it's red it can be in any style really... or so I like to think.

9,10

Next to jackets, I get really excited about boots and moccasins.  I bought my Madewell booties last winter and can't wait to wear them again.  And ever since I bought my moccasins about 4 seasons ago, I wear them with everything. 

And there you have it.  My 10 fall staples. What are you most excited to wear this fall?

One For The Memory Bank

I am currently recovering from a whirlwind weekend filled with fun girly time, a whole flood of memories, and some French conversation. 

My little friend Mahe came all the way from Paris to spend some time in Canada this summer with a host family (who are friends of mine) and I was lucky to have her for the weekend. I hadn't seen her since she was just wee and wasn't sure if she'd even remember me, but we had a fun two days packed with shopping, sushi, manicures/pedicures, some glow in the dark mini golf and lots of talk about how much we dislike Justin Bieber (she's wise beyond her years...)

I hope to be seeing her and her family again soon, but this time in Paris.  A plan is in the works. 

Friday's Most Wanted

A visit to my Etsy faves yesterday reminded me of all the utterly adorable things out there. I wish I had them all!  So here goes today's list....

I know summer is almost through, but how could you say no to this dress? Found Here

These stacking rings are glorious! Found Here

Oh hello Fox, I love you.... Found Here

These lockers are very cool. Some great inspiration for a little something I've got cooking over here.... Found Here

I would love a pair of these for the winter.  Perhaps something to keep in mind for my xmas wish list (take note family). Found Here

This shirt rocks my world.  How great would this look with wide leg jeans and clogs in the fall? Found Here

I've been looking forward to this weekend for months now.  Tonight I'll be reunited with someone very special... It's been six years since I left my Au Pair job in Paris and haven't seen the kiddos since.  Well tonight I'll be picking up one of them to spend the weekend with me!  She's staying with friends of mine to learn a little English and enjoy a vacation abroad, and I get to show her around this weekend.  I'm both oh so excited and very nervous.  She was four the last time I saw her, and my French is rusty, but it will be fun to relive memories of six years ago.  I hope you all have exciting weekends ahead!

Put It To Good Use: Vintage Wallpaper

Ok guys.  I'm about to get real excited about vintage wallpaper.  I LOVE VINTAGE WALLPAPER.    I've been collecting rolls of it here and there, and love to use it around the house and in crafty projects.  Heck I even use it right here on the blog!  Look up, and to the right... both my header and buttons are a scan of some fab wallpaper I've found. 

The newest addition to my collection... a space mural!

Even the instructions are cool on this old roll of groovy wallpaper

Most of my stash has come from thrift stores, but some of it has been ripped off walls of abandoned houses, or in one case my grandparents house in Italy. 

When we got married three years ago over in Italy, my dad was doing some renos in my grandparent's house, and one wall was going to be demolished so I saved two large sheets of the old wallpaper and brought it home in my suite case...

I used it to make tags for our wedding favours that we gave out at our celebration back here in Canada.  That wallpaper was sentimental for so many reasons, and was a great way to commemorate our wedding in Italy.  It let us share a little piece of our trip to Italy with our loved ones back home here in Canada.

I've also used this same wallpaper to make business cards and you might recognize it if you follow me on Twitter.

This roll of daisy wallpaper came in handy to line the back of our new (to us)  pantry.

I've displayed old photos matted on various patterned wallpaper to add interest to a growing gallery wall

And if you want more inspiration, here are some crafty ideas using some oh so pretty wallpaper...

Lamp Shades
Books
Wall Art
buttons/magnets
Poster Prints
Stationary
Wall Decals

Has anyone else used vintage wallpaper in your home or for a craft project?  I'd love to hear!

I Thrift Therefore I Am

There really is nothing like having a week off from work to do just about anything you feel like.  I did just that last week, and got a lot of things done around here including a mini porch makeover. It was inspired by this which I came across on Pinterest (I'm getting into all sorts of *trouble on pinterest)

*trouble=too many decorating and reno ideas for a husband who hates change

I also got to visit most of my favourite thrifting spots. And found some truly great treasures. Four pairs of shoes, one kitchen table and chair set, some bar accessories, a couple of darling purses, a few dresses for the shop and a kitschy pillow and these...

We had originally seen this table and chairs while driving by the sally ann on Sunday, and miraculously it was still there by Wednesday and even better, had been reduced to $40 for the whole set! What was also great was that we found a good home for our old table and chairs and a desk that we had to eliminate to accommodate the shuffle. Everything seemed to fall into place, and we are now enjoying our new table and chairs.

It was a good week for shoes.  I cannot wait to wear them all! A pair for all occasions...

So much to love about this pillow.  The graphics are what did it for me.

A couple of great transitional purses.  Good for this time of year when fall is peeking right around the corner...

These came in so handy for the bbq we hosted on Saturday.  Not only do they keep your drink from marking up the wood, but the numbers help you remember which glass was yours.  Love these.

All in all it was a great week of thrifting, but sadly I blew my thrifting budget for the month so I will be staying put and far away from the thrift stores for a while.  Have you found any great pieces lately at the thrift store?  What has been your most exciting score?  (I think mine was the table)

B-B-B Bird Is The Word

It's been quiet on the blog this week.  I had a week off from work, and was catching up on some stuff around the house. I've also been feeling a bit discouraged lately, and thought some time away would alleviate some of the doubt and worry.  It can be hard to turn off that voice in your head telling you to throw in the towel... But I shall prevail.  I'm still not sure if it was a good thing of not, but I lifted the temporary thrifting ban for this week to spend some time in my favourite places around town.... Just a little something to unwind.  It turned out to be good for my love of pretty things, but not so good for my wallet.  More on some of my treasures later on this week....

I did want to share something that I found with you, that really did bring a smile to my face and warmth to my creative heart.  Aesthetically, bird imagery really pleases me.  I'm not sure why, since I'm not really an animal lover and would frankly be freaked out if a bird flew too close to me.  But pictures of birds, clothes with birds on them, or in this case bird carvings/figures, really do it for me.

I was so delighted when I found these perched on the thrift store shelf.  A whole flock of them!  Not until I picked one up did I realize that they are all crafted out of various types of wood.  What is also really nice about them is the bright orange accents.  They are a perfect addition in our orange and brown living room. 

DIY: Skirt To Leather Tote

Things have been completely crazy around here. A little overwhelming in fact, but I do recognize that to be efficient sometimes you have to stop for a moment and regroup.  My idea of stopping never really involves stopping, but just doing something that will relax me. I always turn to making something, be it in the kitchen or in the sewing room.  Busy hands = happy girl. 

On Friday I decided to whip up a tote bag I had been contemplating for a while.  I found two great leather skirts at the thrift store that I wanted to transform into bags, and finally got around to it the other day.  So I thought I'd document all the steps to share with you!

If you want to try this out yourself, here is what you'll need:

* 1 large leather skirt.  Try and find one without a slit up the back, and no pockets.  The simpler the skirt the better.

* A leather strap or belt.  Look for leather that isn't too thick, that will easily pass through your sewing machine.

* Decorative studs, and a stud puncher ( I don't really know what the device is called....)

* Cotton fabric for the lining.  Should be the same measurements as the skirt.

* Scissors, and a sewing machine.

Size up your skirt.  Make sure the measurements correspond to the size of the bag you want, and take into consideration where the zipper or buttons are because you will need to cut that part off the skirt.

If there is a lining.  Remove it.

 I just ripped mine out and then cut it where it was attached to the zipper seams.

Make your alterations.  I just cut the top off at the bottom of the zipper fly.  This made the skirt the perfect size for my bag.

Sew up the bottom of your skirt. 

Next you will want to spread out your corners.  Flip the bag inside out and put your hands down in the bottom corner where the side seam meets the bottom seam that you just sewed.  Your corner should look like this.

Once you have your corners established, run it through the sewing matching Making a triangle.  You can make your triangle  as large or as small as you want.  By doing this you are determining the width of the bottom of your bag.  If you want your bag to have a wide "floor" or bottom then make your triangle bigger.  Something to note.  A bigger triangle will take away some height from the rest of your bag. So it's something to keep in mind when you consider the proportions of your tote.

 Once you have sewn up your two corners, the bottom of your bag should look like this.

Depending on how long you want your bag handles, cut them accordingly.  I wanted mine to be able to fit on my shoulder.  I put them in place on the bag before I cut them just to make sure they looked right on the bag. 

To determine their placement, measure the length of the top of your bag.  Then figure out the middle point and count equal inches on either side of the middle.  This will help you pin your handles in place before sewing them on.

To add a little something something to my tote, I added a couple of studs to the handles.  Traditionally the studs would attach the handles to the bag, but I'm using these for decorative purposes since my studs are not sturdy enough to hold the leather handles the the leather bag. 

This step is completely optional, but the studs really do add that little something extra. If you do decide to use studs, you'll need a the puncher to penetrate the leather. I found my stud kit at value village, but you can find these at most craft stores.

After the studs have been added to the handles, pin them in place and head to your sewing machine.  I just stitched around the perimeter of the bottom half of the handles and then went over my stitches about 6 times at the very top where the handle meets the edge of the bag.  Something to remember when sewing with leather is to not use a tight stitch.  Some leather will tear if your stitches are too tight. So keep them a bit on the loose side.

Next cut out your fabric the same dimensions of your leather bag.  Add a couple inches to all sides for seam allowance.  You'll essentially be making another bag to put inside your leather bag you've already assembled.

Fold over 3-5 inches on the top of your cotton (the opening of the bag). Iron, and then sew it in place.  This will ensure a clean edge for the top of the rim of your lining.

Sew up all sides of the cotton to form another bag.  I cut my fabric so that I only had to stitch up either side.  Keep the liner bag inside out then insert the liner inside out so that the wrong side of the cotton meets the wrong side of the leather.  Then stitch around the top of the bag securing the liner to the leather. And that's it! Your bag is complete.

Check out more of my DIY's here, here, and here