Though I know velvet and tweed are fabrics for winter, I’m drawn to these bags with their rich textures.

Smocked, ruffled or appliqued, I just love the richness of these three.

By helis, Alk Designs and Wonder Wardrobe.

Google recently rolled out a brilliant similar image search.  That means when you type in a particular phrase, some of the resulting images are going to have a little hyperlinked caption that will take you to images that match your search.

Of course my mind instantly went to shoes.

Sadly, the more specific you get, the fewer similar image searches result.

But for something a little more general, you’ll be rewarded.

As a shopping tool, it’s far from perfect but give it a couple of months and I’m sure it’ll be get better.

I realize the Fail blog doesn’t tend to cover crafty stuff but they really should.  Now, I realize this sweater might not quite qualify for the epic fails they do feature but I’m sure I could submit some of my other projects that would be just as horrifying.

There’s nothing wrong with beige per se but I don’t like clothes near my face that are the same color as my skin.  I bought a grey dye, let the thing soak with a couple of stirs…soak some more…and a little more–and still didn’t really get the true grey I was looking for.

I’ll have to look into the synthetic dyes, I think.

Given the vintage focus of the last few posts, it seems all too appropriate to feature the Brilliant Magpie this cloudy Monday morning.

Amy Abshier-Reyes work has a decidedly retro feel.  From the wide-brimmed hats of the Edwardian era to the playful bobs of the 20s, her work is both stylish and beautiful–and reminds me in the best possible way of Vogue’s illustrated covers.

The minute she restocks the 5′7 section of her shop, I’ll be snapping one of these up.

Though I’m sadly not going anywhere soon, Jane’s search for awesome luggage had me recommending one of my favorite sites.

If only these hatboxes were leather instead of cardboard!  They’d be the perfect means of storing notions, yarn, or just about anything really.

You can buy the suitcases individually, somewhat justifying the discounted price of $27.99.

It’s the steamer trunk style end table that really has me sighing though.  If only it were $27!

All are from Sundance.

Related reading:

Pretending I’m Joan Bennett

What I knew of William Haines was pretty minimal prior to sitting down with a few of his movies this past week.  I knew that he was gay but didn’t know that was the reason he ended up leaving film:

The 1930 Quigley Poll, a survey of film exhibitors, listed Haines as the top box office attraction in the country. In 1933, Haines was arrested in a YMCA with a sailor he had picked up in Los Angeles.  Louis B. Mayer, the studio head at MGM, delivered an ultimatum to Haines: choose between a sham, or lavendar marriage, and his relationship with Jimmie Shields. Haines chose Shields and they were ultimately together for 50 years. Mayer subsequently fired Haines and terminated his contract.

Though I knew the design world benefitted from his amazing taste, it’s too sad he isn’t as well known for his films.  An outstanding physical comic, I found myself enjoying his buffoonery as much as I was enjoying the 1920s style of his films.

Yes, buffoonery.  Despite his debonair looks, his shenanigans, including getting into a slap patty-cake fight with a girl he’s trying to kiss are laugh-out-loud funny.  & of course, can’t forget the amazing 1920s fashion.

The cloche hats, the bobbed hair.

And Joan Crawford is priceless in her beret and nearly sheer dresses.  If you ever have the chance to catch any of Haines’ work, you really should.

Almost all of my laundry was dirty this past weekend & I threw on a pair of the boyfriend’s jeans inbetween showering and waiting for the laundry to dry.

Realizing I had enough excess hem to peg them like I used to as a fifth grader, I rolled them up.  & just about died laughing.

Hips render this look pretty silly so I won’t be sporting it any time soon.  But I should thank all of the celebrities and much more stylish bloggers for the memories.

We made it through the inspection and I’m again allowing myself to wallow in total midcentury modern flights of fancy.

Like this clock from Pilot Designs.

Or these trays from Modish Vintage.

& this wonderful table lamp from Velocity.

I just can’t wait!

If you couldn’t tell from my tendency to buy sandals in mid-winter, I’m a big fan of buying items in the off-season.  That is, buying items that are completely out-of-season and therefore usually quite a bit less than they might be during the time of year you’d actually wear them.

Given it’s April, that means all I can think about are boots.  Of course, given that this is out of season shopping, it’s best not to grab anything too trendy (unless you really love it of course.)  This basic pair are by Frye at Overstock for $69.

I’ve always loved the Biviel brand but have yet to pick up a pair because of the high prices.  These are $99 on Overstock.

DSW has more sizes than Overstock tends to have.  I’m wish I could justify these boots, especially since they’re $64.

Speaking of the buckles I like, there are these great riding boots by Miz Mooz on Amazon for $54.  Of course, the only disadvantage to this strategy is not being able to wear your purchase for months afterward.

A found bangle and some cream corduroy brings one more Consuelo Clutch.

With some of the eyelet edging I nabbed during the swap.

In the shop now.

The fourth or fifth day of sunshine finally gave me the excuse to switch out my few strictly winter items for those that got stowed away when summer ended.

That’s got my mind on transitional looks, for those days when it starts out gloomy and clears by mid afternoon.  Sanziana in Bucharest has the look down perfectly with her floaty top, cardigan for warmth, and nude shoes & sunglasses.

Though this coat looks heavy, the color is so richly green that I can only think of spring.  You add the summery white dress with black tights, and it’s the perfect transitional look.

I was just warning a newly relocated coworker that summer in Seattle means you can’t be sure whether the 4th of July barbecue will get rained out so the transitional period here can last months.  I guess that’s the trade off for (usually) not having a real winter.

An order of chain finally allowed me to add one of the birds I made to the shop.

And while I was at it, a few pairs of earrings, too.

Happy Thursday.  I know I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Beautiful handmade clothing from Townmouse.

In fabrics and styles that make me wish she made clothes for adults.

The vintage style and fabric choices are just lovely.  I’ll definitely keep this site in mind for my friends’ kids.

Via Simple Elegance.

Now that we’ll potentially be in a neighborhood that is not walking distance from downtown, my desire for a bike has only increased.

These heavenly bikes only make it that much harder to settle for something off of craigslist.

Brought to you by the Dutch of course.  Via notcot.

Let’s hope this print brightens up your Monday:

Thanks for the memories,  William Dohman.

You may remember this length of vintage lace I bought the last time we were in Walla Walla.

It took forever to find a tank top in the style I knew I wanted to use this with.  It certainly didn’t help that winter meant very few shops have had tank tops until recently.

I unfortunately had to lose a good portion of the design to properly anchor the lace to the neckline.

I ended up cutting the lace in two but if the neckline weren’t a v-neck I could have sewn it like bias tape to the edge.

& then joined the two sections at the V.

I’m sure I’ll do this again with some of the lace and edging I picked up at the swap a few weekends back–if I can get my hands on some more plain tops.

I also finished up a couple of pouches–and really had fun adding embellishment to these:

The Pin Up Luau with satin and grosgain ribbon.

& Marie Amie with a fun little skirt of eyelet.

Both are in the shop.

Hope you had a fabulous weekend.

A colleague with a lot of experience buying and renovating houses had to show me a web site for a local business after I told her the era of the house we’d made an offer on.  While the boyfriend and I had toured through and poured over more than two dozen Craftsman style houses, we absolutely fell for a midcentury place that looked nothing like what we’d told the realtor we wanted.

If any aspect of the house was updated, it was during the height of the 70s–so one of the first things we’ll be doing is replacing the fixtures (if we get it–the inspection is scheduled for Monday)…which is how my colleague came to tell me about Rejuvenation.  The reproduction fixtures are arranged according to era, which I love since we’re really hoping to remain true to the integrity of the house’s design.

The pendant lamps are sleek and simple, and the prices are on par or less than what you’d pay at Home Depot–and a lot less than some of the other sites I’ve been browsing like All Modern.

Love their sconces, too, even if the streamlined look is a little more 1930s than 1950s.

They also have hinges, registers, switch plates and just about any other thing you can think of to restore a house.

Our closing date isn’t scheduled until May but you better believe this will be one of the first things we tackle once we get the keys.

While I’m no typography expert with a love of good kerning, I do adore this print:

From Ink Finger.

I bought these sandals ages ago but was only able to wear them this week.

I wasn’t crazy about the look of peep toes for quite a bit but these really won me over.  Super cheap at Nordstrom Rack and probably the last pair of shoes I’ll buy for a while.

& these little studs also came quite some time ago, simple silver with the look of faceted stones and too perfect for when I don’t want to wear anything complicated.  From metalicious.

& this awesome vintage pattern that I just haven’t had time to even look at.  It came with the sweetest card and pin from Historically Inspired Patterns.

The shopping posts are very likely to slow down as we get closer to the end of our house search.  Or they’ll all just be around thrifting!

The latest favorites in shades of red.

Credits here:
1. 1930s Period Makeup, 2. marionberry wine, 3. origami madness…, 4. Colour Catcher, 5. Strawberry Wine Gathered Clutch, 6. Duckies, 7. IMG_1745, 8. Feeling Revolutionary, 9. Untitled