Crystal Chandelier

I created today's necklace with a chandelier in mind.  Going along with the white color theme I have started this week, I got inspired by the look of all things Shabby Chic.  I really love this look, and if I did not live with my boyfriend who completely thinks it looks too girly, I would have decorated at least a part of my house this way.  I love how lux and yet comfortable it feels.  So for today's pendant I used a vintage round bead covered in rhinestones as my main inspiration.  I love this bead and have been saving it ever since my aunt gave it to me to make something extra special....and finally, I have used it!  I paired it with faceted clear glass beads that I placed on the vintage chain and also as a sort of "tassle" from the rhinestone bead.  I also used other vintage faceted beads and iridescent glass beads on the tassle part as well.  Also, happy birthday to Jamie of The Wocka Spot!!

So Shabby Chic.....the necklace after completion...it fits right in with the chandelier crystals:

Thrifting Video!

I have uploaded my first "thrifting haul video" to youtube, thanks to the suggestion of Goodwill Huntingg!  This video documents my thrifting finds from my favorite local Salvation Army store in Eastgate, OH.  There is always an abundance of awesomeness at that particular S.A.....and by awesomeness, I mean super oldie pieces that even Goodwill doesn't have the likes of.  I always find a few gems when I shop there and this time was no different!  Check out the (bad quality) vid!  Some of the pieces I got will end up on here re-vamped on a Thrifting Tuesday in the very near future!  The prints on the first outfit and the Oscar top are amazing, it's just hard to tell from the video really....


Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=harcRKqyXWw

Thrifting Tuesday, February 22, 2011

This piece today was originally created from a Christian Dior (Yes, Dior, people!) Vintage nightgown that I bought at Salvation army for a whole $2.

There was a giant gaping hole in the back, and a slight stain at the bottom hemline.

But  I knew when I saw it that this old piece of ripped up lingerie would make a great top, definitely in line with the romantic, lacy, lingerie-as-outerwear trend that I am loving.  (Check out Last Friday's Post for more details.)  The whole gown is so sheer and soft, it almost feels like it was woven with air.  A perfect compliment to spring, in my opinion.

I shortened the hem, mostly to get rid of the stained area, but also to make the gown feel less like pajamas and more like something that could be worn day to day.

I also had to hand stitch the hole in the back, because it was a pain in the butt when I tried to stitch it with the machine but I am happy to say it is all gone! 

After a slight change and paired with skinny jeans, some gorgeous long necklaces  (two of which I made, one is shown here ,) and a sweater to fight the chill that is still in the air, this nightgown is ready to see some daylight!!  Enjoy!

My new gauz-y american eagle cardi!

I wore a faux leather motorcycle jacket with the top to class that day that I snagged for less than $1

look who joined me on the porch!!....Zoeykitty <3

Fashionably Friday, February 18, 2011

For today's Fashionably Friday, I wanted to focus on this spring and an element of fashion that has been around for awhile but is making an appearance again this season and that is the trend of lingerie as streetwear.  No, I don't mean people wearing their underwear out on the streets but rather the influence of lacy, romantic, and soft details to clothing.  We know that lace also a huge trend for Spring 2011, and can be found in stores everywhere.  My personal favorite lace item that I am coveting right now is the lace tiered skirt, shown here.  I need that skirt!  It is so delicate and romantic, I can't even stand it.  The vintage, lingerie, romantic look is everywhere in stores like goodwill also. Every time I visit the thrift stores around me I find myself with armloads of vintage, delicately detailed pieces.  Of course, I do not have an unlimited budget, so usually not everything I find comes home with me, but that is definitely one trend that has a hold on me right now.  I especially love this image of lingerie inspired lace that I found on this blog :  I think it really shows the intricate, delicate, romantic look I am in love with right now.  There is a special reason I posted this particular Fashionably Friday, but, you will have to wait until the next Thrifting Tuesday to find out!  :)  Suspense!.....

Rose Quartz Chips

I have had two baggies of Rose Quartz chip beads that I bought from Fire Mountain back in December, and I have not even opened either of them until now.  I think I only intended to buy one of them, but in my bead-buying frenzy at the time I must have ended up with two in my cart...but they are so pretty, and of course, you can never have too many pretty things!  I wanted to use them finally for something, and I thought what better than to combine the chip stones with a vintage chain and a vintage brass bird pendant, and create a pendant with a warm, springlike feel.....Yes, I know a lot of my posts lately have been in relation to spring, because I am desperate for it to arrive!  Usually after part of a season has gone by I am bored with what I get to choose from to wear everyday and cannot wait to create new outfits by combining in pieces and accessories for the next season.  Winter has passed that point.  I am now pretty much all about spring!  Bring it on!  :)  Let the warm weather and sunshine abound!

Vintage and Blue Magnesite Necklace

This necklace for today was created with a big, white vintage medallion pendant that my Aunt Penny gave me, along with other pieces of broken bits of vintage jewelry that she had gotten from Estate Sales....I know she has a ton more, I want to go raid her stashes again!  It is so exciting to see the amazing things she really probably was going to throw away anyway, since most of the things I take from her other people would consider junk since they are just broken pieces or parts, but that's all I need to create my own design!  The chain is also a vintage piece pulled from her pile of 'junk jewelry'...hey, all the better for me, right?  The bead that I attached to the bottom of the medallion piece is blue-green magnesite, which looks similar to turquoise.  I also bought a string of these beads at the $1 sale from Fire Mountain Gems.  This piece, along with the earrings from yesterday, really gives me the feeling that spring is near...and I guess you could say I am getting a little case of Cabin Fever with all this snow and cloudy weather lately!  I need some sunshine, and temperatures in the upper 70's-lower 80's..... :)

Gold Pendant Necklace

Today's necklace is a necklace that I actually made wayyyy back in November and wore on Thanksgiving.  It is an extremely long pendant necklace.  The chain I used on it is from the "bag o' vintage" jewelry that my aunt gave me from the estate sale.  The bits and pieces I used to make the pendant part of the necklace are a vintage Victorian-esque cameo piece, another vintage piece that looks like it was originally part of an earring, and opalite beads that I bought when i visited Stacey Kay back in the beginning of November.  The beads were from a bead store in Medina called  Potomac Beads.  Apparently, this bead store is a franchise-owned store that has other stores around the country....I NEED to own one of these franchises.  When Drew and I were there, he even mentioned that he would want to own a store like this, for me of course.  So now I feel like I should make that one of my goals.  To own my own bead/jewelry shoppe! :)

 an image of me wearing the necklace at Thanksgiving with my sister :)

An Unexpected Gift

On Sunday, while spending time with my friend Farah, she presented me with a gift that I was not expecting, and I love it!  She gave me a book on creating jewelry with all types of buttons.  It is very adorable, and the jewelry shown in the book is so unique and creative, and the photography is amazing!  The buttons used in the book range in type from Victorian, to ceramic, and metal, as well as sea shell or mother of pearl.  I wanted to show some pages from the book that I found particularly interesting and inspiring!  I can't wait to make some jewelry using buttons now!  The funny thing is that I never would have thought to use buttons in this way, but now I desperately want to!  My grandmother has vast collections of vintage, beautiful buttons.  She used to let me dump out her gigantic popcorn tin of them on the floor and sift through them as a child.  I was always amazed by the variety of colors and shapes and styles of buttons that were contained in that tin.  Reading this book took me back to those moments, and made me feel nostalgic.  I can't wait until the next time I can visit my grandmother now to see if I can have some of them to make into beautiful jewelry like the pieces shown in this book.

Vintage Inspiration

I created this necklace from pieces of Vintage jewelry that my aunt purchased from estate sales.  I love the bird motif on the pendant piece, and the vintage faceted glass bead is beautiful as well as surprisingly heavy!  The purple beads are more beads that I purchased from Fire Mountain Gems during their dollar sale last fall.  This is a casual necklace that would look great with jeans and a tunic top, or would be a cute necklace to wear out with a casual dress and tights.  The colors in the necklace are more neutral, and would look good with many other colors, making this necklace very versatile.

Glitz and Glam

This is another post I have been excited to create for a long time.  I found an amazing 80's sequin-covered top (complete with shoulder pads) :)  while on a Goodwill trip with my friend Jamie Foxx.  We were on the hunt for Ugly Christmas Sweaters for our office Ugly Christmas Sweater party, but surprisingly, even though it was December 4th, all of the Christmas sweaters were picked over, and we didn't really find anything we wanted for that.  However, I did happen to find this sparkly top buried among the racks of leftover Holiday attire. :)  I was so excited to take it home and see what I could create from it.  I can never pass up something sparkly, and this one especially caught my eye because of the color combination.  Classic black with pops of glittery gold.

  

I knew for a long time that I wanted to use parts of the top to make an accessory, I just struggled for awhile with which type of accessory I would create.  I felt that a headband was something I needed to add to my wardrobe, since I don't have really very many, and I felt I would be able to show more of the sequin floral designs from the top that way.  I have plenty of the original shirt left, I am sure you will end up seeing more from that in the near future. ;)  As for this headband, I am pretty sure I am wearing it to school tomorrow :)