Cherry Blossoms & A Thrifted Piece

Ciao!

I love this pendant.  I found it at one of my friends bead shop.  I was not sure how to come up with a necklace design.........but I love red and black and I had red chipped beads that really look great against this.  I added some black round beads and piece complete.  I finished it last night at our monthly bead meeting.

It is different.  That is what I love about designing jewelry.  You can create your own pieces to go with whatever mood, outfit, occasion you need.  The joys of being creative!

I am attending a city Art Association tomorrow.  They saw some of my pieces last month and this month I get to find out if I am voted in!  Fingers crossed!

Besides my many craft groups, I belong to a book club, and a local Art Museum.  I read something the other day......."Consume experiences, not things"  I really thought about that one, because at this state in my life that is what I am doing.  There is more important things in life than buying the over priced latest fad or being duped by the many advertising traps out there to make you think you NEED the next IPhone or whatever is current these days.  As I get older, this becomes abundantly clearer to me.


A friend of mine saw a 1950's bangle bracelet at a thrift store over the weekend.  This bracelet is awesome!  Matches my outfit today!  The cost was less than a $1.  I was so appreciative of my friend who gave it to me first thing Monday morning (what a boost for a Monday) and  it looks great.  This is what life is about, good friends, good thoughts........and a good glass of wine!

Wanderlust........and Gypsies

The other day I read a post on Misfits Vintage's blog about wanderlust. We all have it. We want to travel and see the world and meet fascinating people. I get like that, specially when I watch Anthony Bourdain. I just want to travel and hob nob with the finest people and talk about life over a good glass of wine.

But I can't travel the world, not at this point anyway. But you can satisfy your own wanderlust on a smaller scale. You learn so much about life and yourself when you go out and meet people, join groups, scower blogs. You can travel so far away right in the comfort of your own living room. This past month I have come across some pretty cool blogs from other parts of the world. These people have inspired me, reminded me of things, and given me a boost in an area of my life that needed a jump start. We all

After reading Misfits Vintage blog, her wanderlust reminded me of gypsies and how I like them and how I like Gypsy Rose Lee.

My mother use to call me Gypsy Rose Lee when I was little. I used to walk around with a bunch of jewelry on...all "gussied" up. Gypsy Rose Lee was one of the most famous strippers. During a raid at Minsky's Burlesque house she told the police that she was not naked, she was completely covered by a blue spotlight. Strong and witty! My kind of chic. She was also an actress and author.

I would love to pick up and travel on a whim. I envy the people who do. I do my share of traveling however. Weekends here and there with friends. I've had a busy summer this year......yeah!

Make sure you settle your own wanderlust....whenever it hits you. Don't forget to travel. It does not have to be to a far away country, it can be in your own town!! Take time for yourself, get to know yourself through others. I think sometimes we get caught up in mundane things in our life and forget to live uninhibited. We forget about our own desires. We sometimes let peoples negative energy squash our positive energies.

Don't let that be you......don't get caught in a slump.

Go......let your hair down, wear something outrageous DO something and GO SOMEWHERE!!!

Ciao!

Vintage Style Glasses

I am totally obsessed with vintage style cat's eye glasses! I just recently purchased glasses at the local optometry. It was disappointing to say the least of all the mundane, everyday styles that were around. I managed to find a pair that stood out from the rest until I find what I really want.

I just lost a bid on a 1950's pair of eye glasses! I am so sad, but can't let it stop me from searching! This is the pair I lost the bid on:

However, I did win this pair!!

When I first saw them, I wasn't to sure about them, but how often do you see this style?!?! I cannot wait to get my lenses put in them. Everybody I showed them too LUV'd them!! Once I get this baby ready to wear I will post many pictures!! These will be so fun to wear!

I love accessories and I love wearing pieces that will make any outfit pop and stand out! I think these glasses are just the item to do it. I am never afraid to wear anything. If you like it and it makes you happy.....GO FOR IT!

Ciao!

American Restoration

American Restoration is a show on the History channel that takes old rusty, beat up items that have been discarded for whatever crazy reason and restores them to their original state. LUV the show! I love seeing beautiful vintage pieces get new life breathed back into them.

The show features Rick Dale and his crew of fun guys including his son located in Las Vegas, Nevada. They can restore anything from a giant gas pump from the 1940s or a vintage Harley the 1950s.

One of the things that was brought to the guys was an old US Mailbox. I had actually forgotten that they used to be red and blue! WOW, it is funny how seeing things from yester-year....it brings back memories.

I hope I am lucky enough to find more great treasures...I am stepping up my thrifting game this weekend scouring the city for lost treasures.

Ciao~

Vintage Room

I have not blogged in so long! I have lost interest and desire until I came across a FABULOUS blog Vintage Vixen It is a great blog about vintage, car jumbles and it is just packed full of awesomeness!


Inspiration and encouragement is everywhere. You just have to be open to it.


I have a spare bedroom that is used as a guest room/craft room. I love vintage pins. I collect them! I have some displayed on a fabric picture board (also a thrift store find). This is not a real good picture, but for some reason my camera would not cooperate! I have many black and white photos of 1950's - 1960's women my uncle use to take back in the day. He was an avid photographer of just everday life. I am glad I have them. I have some of them displayed around this room. It just adds to the vintage feel!

I recently re-vamped this room! It was to cluttered. I scored a amour that has about 8 drawers on the inside and above the drawers is a space where you can put a TV. I use that as a workspace. This room also holds my vintage dressing table! I LOVE them!! This room doubles as and a great place for guests to stay and a place for me to create jewelry pieces. The amour helps store all my tools, beads, metal etc. I also have a vintage day bed on the other side!! I will post more pics soon!

Skeleton Keys & Things I love

I started working on a skeleton key necklace. I used black and gray beads I had laying around and made a necklace. I love it. I never get rid of beads. Even if I think I never will use them, because you never know when creativity will strike and you could come up with a fan-dam-taskic design with beads you never thought you would use again. OH, and the blob of fur around me? A black and gray 60's style vest I bought on sale for a steal....$10...marked down from $58...SCORE!

I am not sure what it is about skeleton keys that I love so much, but I do. I love the vintage look of them, the idea of that back in the day they opened many doors in old style houses or farm houses....that I would love to own one day. Who owned them? What story lies behind those old doors? I am going to create a line of key necklaces and add them to my Etsy shop.. I should have some up in a few weeks.

Nicole Atkins..............



LOVE her! Not only is she from Jersey, like me....grew up in a Sicilian family like me! Her music ROCKS!! The first song I heard from her was a song called Neptune City, homage to her hometown in NJ. The video is awesome. She is on the boardwalk in a pink vintage dress and the back ground is gray scale...very nostalgia.

I just bought her latest cd, Mondo Amore. Her sound is different; she has a bluesy, soulful....just fabulous sound. If you like artists like Neko Case you will love Nicole Atkins.


As for this picture.......



I saw this on the internet as someone's background. When I first looked at it, I liked it....the colors the dress...then when I really looked at it I was like WOW, she is shooting herself. Kind of morbid........The more I looked at it the more I liked it. I guess it is called "butterfly suicide" It is different....I like different.

On other notes, I decided to go back to school. I want to take a few art classes, psychology, graphic design and English/writing classes. I am not going for a particular degree...I just want to take these classes. I want to continue my education and keep my mind active. I consider myself an ongoing student of life, but it is fun and beneficial to be in a classroom. The hard part is deciding what I want to take first.

I think ongoing education is very important, I think what is also very important is having a skill; such as welding, mechanics, contracting etc.. You never know when you need to be self-sufficient. It never hurts to be able to fall back on an old fashion skill. I don't believe you should rely the corporate 9-5 gig. Drive, ambition and the key to wanting to learn is the best desire you can have.

Have a fabulous week!!

Ciao~

I am taking over the webs design for our bead society. I am real syked about that. I can't wait to get back into that. I will be designing our new page!I am also scouring the world for vintage items to fill my other Etsy shop I will be opening soon. I am also trying to work on a facial scrub and candle line.....and learning Italian on my own. Yes, my plate is full and I love it!!

A Key To All Things

This is a recycle piece with vintage flair. We were getting rid of an old door and I saved the brass decorative plates. I just new I could make something out of it.

I love skeleton keys. I love the old look. I wonder how many doors they have opened and imagine how cool it must have been to live in the olden days. I like to think of keys as symbolic. Such as a positive energy, when your looking to pass from an old situation and into a new one. I like to look ahead and "unlock the secrets" of new things.

Collecting skeleton keys is one of my many obsessions. They are hard to find, but when I do, it is such a satisfaction.

Ciao!

Vintage Blouse

Pretty In Pink....
and shear blouse
Nice for summer nights with jeans and chunky shoes........

http://www.etsy.com/listing/46981596/vintage-blouse

Classic Vintage Vixens

I love old movies. I love the vintage style, the mannerisms...I wish I could live during those times. The 20's....30's.....40's. Wouldn't it be great if we could time travel! My favorite actress whose movies I can watch over and over.....because of the times and their beauty are Sophia Loren, Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe.


Sophia Loren has that classic timeless Italian beauty! I love her voice! There are not enough Italian movies.......the ones she is in I adore! She has strength and courage and drive.






Breakfast At Tiffany's is my favorite with Audrey Hepburn. I believe it is the only one I saw. It is a must see! I love how she just goes through life without a care in the world it seems. Her style in this movie is absolutely fabulous!







I first fell in love with Marilyn Monroe movies when I saw my dad watching one of her movies. I was hooked!! When I was in grade school and we had to do reports I always choose Marilyn. My room was covered with her posters. I collect books, cards...you name it! My faves are Some Like It Hot, Gentlemen Prefer Blonds and the Seven Year Itch. She was very vulnerable, something we can all relate to at one time or another.




These women have always grabbed me. There charisma, style, strengths, ambitions and weaknesses all are inspiring.

My current favorite actress is Angelina Jolie. She harness classic and edge! Two of my favorite movies from her are Girl Interrupted and Changeling. I feel that she will go down in history as a classic like the ladies above. I love that she is edgy. To me the classic actress are classic, pure and that is great! But with Angelina Jolie I feel she has what it takes to go down in history as a classic actress even though she has that edginess.

Her role as Christina Collins was played great! The demeanor she portrayed was great. I could not be that calm in that situation. I am assuming that is how she handled it since it was based on a true story. Women back then showed amazing courage, strength and poise. When I watch this movie I realize many things..most of all courage, persistence, professionalism and hope.

Love this hat!!


Ciao~