Taking Photos The Old Fashion Way

Last week we had the good fortune of making our way up to the Eastern Sierra's in California, where the sun is shinny, the wind is gusty and the mountains are majestic.  The scenery was undescribably beautiful, and we had tons of fun taking lots and lots of pictures.  (sorry to all those who follow on instagram for the photo overload). 

We toted along our vintage Polaroid Land Camera and a couple packs of colour and b&w film.  It was our first go at taking pictures with the camera, and I must say it was a constant source of excitement for me throughout the trip. 

Every picture was  a suprise waiting to be revealed.  Once we got the hang of it, it was easy to use and captured a unique view of our adventures.  After shooting a couple packs we experimented with shooting double exposure (see pics 2 and 8) which I am eager to try more of. 

If you are a photography enthusiast or just love cool things, you should keep an eye out for one of these cameras at the thrift store.  We bought ours for $8 and luckily the battery was still usable and the camera was in great condtion.  We watched a couple of helpful tutorials that prepared us for using our Polaroid 430 Land Camera and gave some helpful tips on what kind of film to buy and how to replace a corroded battery. 

Now I need a bigger camera bag! This camera is a must for summer road trips.

Turning Old Into New

I found this adorable dress the other day at the thrift store.  And while the dress was matronly and way to long for me, I nabbed it on account of it's charming floral pattern.  I loved the watercolour effect this print had and knew I'd be able to make it great.  It wasn't until I brought it home and snipped half of it off, that i realized how perfect the fabric was going to be for making little pom pom shoe clips. 

It was my first attempt at floral pom poms and I'm so pleased with the outcome.  I also love that I don't have to wast any of this gorgeous fabric, and since there is so much of it, I'm making more shoe clips!  For those who live in the area and are planning on coming out to the next pop-up shop, I hope to have these shoe clips for sale.  I'll have them available in other prints as well, but these in particular would be a great embellishment for almost any shoe.

The dress still needs some work, but I'll definitely be wearing it this summer. Anyone want to invite me to their next tea party?!

If You're Happy and You Know It

I've got my hands in many pots these days, and that makes me happy. Can anyone relate to this?  It seems the busier I am the better I feel.  So, here's a look at a few things that are brightening my mood today.... 

Thrifting quirky shoes and dreaming up outfits for them

Unearthing odds and sods in my craft room and making way for some new projects

Painting!

Enjoying the warm weather and wearing fun summer shades

Spending time in the garden and enjoying these fresh herbs in the kitchen

Goat's cheese is my new best friend....

What's making you smile today?

Getting Graphic

So far this summer I've been having some fun mixing and matching patterns with a sort of devil may care approach....  Being someone who is always attracted to interesting patterns, I am often careful about wearing the wrong kind of print for my body type which sometimes means staying away from things I am drawn to.  It seems a bit unnatural though to shy away from something you have an immediate reaction to.  So I've decided that instead of following all those silly fashion rules, I'm just going to wear what I like, and if that means mixing a bold floral print with stripes, by golly I'm doing it! 

Here are a few new shop arrivals to inspire you to wear more pattern and to never be afraid of the things you like.

P.S. These will be added to the shop soon, I promise!