gone thriftin'

I was feeling a bit better yesterday, and had a serious case of cabin fever, so we hit the road for a little country thrifting.

Vintage leaf print dress; thrifted Banana republic sweater; Target belt; J Crew boots.


We only hit a few stops and didn't find much clothing, but did find a few pairs of boots. And a really cute old dog planter that Andy tried to grab before I saw it so he could give it to me as a birthday gift next month. (I love it, but may end up in the Etsy shop.) I also found a cool, very mid-century modern Sarah Coventry golden sunburst necklace, and an insanely kitschy chalkware poodle in a bathtub. With a thermometer attached.

Everything thrifted, including vintage sweater.


We ended the day at one of our favorite local restaurants, an old roadhouse that used to be a biker haunt. All in all, a lovely day and an excellent way to recuperate from a cold and cabin fever!

xo
K

Sriracha and Kleenex preview

I get a cold about once a year or so. I have that cold now, and it's a whopper. I will spare you the details, but I will tell you that my only friends right now are Emergen-C, Kleenex (my overusage of Kleenex is so embarrassing; if only that were my only vice), ginger, garlic, and sriracha. So I only had the energy to photograph a few new items this week, which will be coming to the shop shortly.

Oh, the little suitcases in a couple of these photos were mine as a child. I think they were my dad's before that. They are made of a textured brown fiberglass-like material (very similar to that of some Herman Miller shell chairs). Neat, huh?


1950s olive green oxfords by Dr. Hiss.

1960s moss green floral dress by Vicky Vaughn Junior.

1950s Bobbie Brooks argyle sweater vest.

1960s abstract paisley wiggle dress by Mary Mason Original.

Charcoal pinstripe blouse.

1950s garden print shirtwaist dress.

Nautical print top by Russ.

1960s pink woodcut print shift dress by Carol Brent.

1960s leafy brocade A-line skirt.

1950s flower-embroidered cotton shirtwaist dress by Kay Windsor.

xo
K

don't knock the D

Detroit gets an awfully bad rap. The huge numbers of abandoned buildings and homes, some incredibly beautiful, are a very sad and a very visible symbol of the decay of the city.

But there is still a lot of life in this city. You can't help but love Detroit and Detroiters--the people who hang on in this rust belt city and love it no matter what. My best friend lives there, and so I am lucky to get a little taste of the D about once a month or so, a taste that helps alleviate the occasional longings I have for my previous home, another city I will always love--New York.

Detroit, I love you and I don't care what they say about you. I'll keep coming back.

Here is a very photo-heavy post about my weekend in Detroit. I hope these photos will give those of you who have never been a little taste of this city, which is still vibrant in many places and ways.


The Dakota Inn, a German restaurant in Detroit, open since 1933. I recommend the sauerbraten and spaetzle. Here are my friends Lori and Abram in their chicken hats.








We stuffed ourselves silly at the Dakota, so we did not partake of the soul food at the eccentric and friendly Café D'Mongo's Speakeasy. But we did have drinks. And were taken on an impromptu tour of Detroit's only synagogue, which is next door.




This eerie, half torn-down building was near our hotel. The entire facade had come down, so you could look right into the building as though it had been sliced in half. The photo is blurry, but there is a big excavator in front on a giant pile of rubble.




At the Detroit Institute of Art, Henry Ford is showing auto workers a dog-shaped rendition of an automobile engine in Diego Rivera's Detroit Industry mural. You could stare at it and listen to the docents talk about it all day long and you would still not know everything going on in this huge and stunning work. One fun new thing I learned is that Rivera placed two images of his favorite actress, Jean Harlow, in it!





The beautiful Wisteria Gates by Thomas Hastings, at the DIA. These were made for Henry Frick, who decided he didn't want them. New York's loss is Detroit's gain.






Caution: Knowledge is Power at the Detroit Public Library.




Abram looking très French at sunny Le Petit Zinc (thank you, Lauren for the tip!). Love the big bowls of tea and goat cheese crêpe.





Speaking of Miss Dear Golden, I did get to meet the lovely Lauren herself on Saturday night at Cliff Bell's. Unfortunately, we got there much later than expected due to the epic wait at Slow's BBQ (that place exerts a crack-like influence over everyone in my group, including me. Damn you Slow's!). Thus, by the time we reached Cliff Bell's, I sadly did not get to spend a lot of time with Lauren. But that will be remedied soon I hope! She, of course, was gorgeous, in a fabulous hat and dress. I, of course, was a dolt and didn't take a photo.


I did take a ton of photos on Sunday at the Heidelberg Project.












The Arboretum at Belle Isle.






Wall molding at the Grand Trunk Pub, which is in the former Grand Trunk Railway ticket office (lots and lots of delicious Michigan beer poured here).




The Art Deco beauty of the Guardian Building.







Many more photos here on my Flickr photostream.

xo

K

warm fuzzies

We had an amazing weekend in Detroit with friends (in which I also got to meet the lovely Lauren of Dear Golden Vintage), but have come home exhausted and having to host a sort of last-minute family party at our house tonight.

However, I was so excited to come home to one of the very coolest, heartwarming-est things for a seller of vintage--photos of a happy customer wearing a purchase! In this case, it's the beautiful Alex Keller wearing the Vera Neumann chrysanthemums blouse she got from Small Earth. (Click the photo to go to Alex's blog and see more photos.)

How lovely is she? And she wears the blouse in such a great, modern way--my favorite way to see vintage worn! I love that cool old movie camera she's holding.

Alex sells beautiful jewelry on Etsy, where she also has a marvelous vintage shop! Thank you, Alex, for posting these great photos of you and your Vera.


More on our fantastic weekend in the D to come.

xo
K

four hours later

This shop preview is kind of a huge one (four hours of photography!), but it's good, I promise! I know it's nowhere near spring-like most places (across the US, anyway) right now, so I've tried to mix it up a little with a few sweaters thrown into a mix of perfectly spring-worthy blouses and dresses.



Fifties farmgirl brown gingham ruched bodice dress.

Mustard and gray daisy cardigan.

1960s mod buttercup knit dress.

Forest green scarf-neck sweater (oh how I love this, but there's an even cuter one coming up--keep scrolling!).

Blue chambray pintucks shirtwaist dress.

Jungle green blouse.

Corduroy leopard print top.

1950s spring green daisies crepe dress with bow belt.

Lacy 1960s tunic.

Sailor style glen plaid dress with scarf tie at neck.

1950s orange flower pintucks blouse.

1940s tan gabardine branch print day dress.

Adorable jade green and white bows sweater.

Ruffled babydoll-ish maxi-dress.

1950s blue vine print zip-back blouse by Campus Casuals.

1950s architecture print shirtwaist dress by Susan Ross.

Ecru pintuck and floppy bow blouse.

Bohemian 1960s Kerala embroidered ribbon-trim shift by Bill Atkinson.

1960s flower print blouse by Cos Cob.

1950s Bobbie Brooks blue gingham wiggle dress.

1960s daystar twinkly shell.

1950s silky coat-of-arms print blouson top dress.

1950s batik print wiggle dress by Sue Brett.

1950s dragonflies, crickets, ladybugs and bees print shirtwaist dress.

1960s modern print silk dress by B.H. Wragge.

Grass green paisley pintuck bodice dress.

1960s paisley drop waist dress.

1950s blue willow dress with drapey neckline.

xo
K