Celebrating National Thrift Week.

Yesterday I participated in a thrift crawl with Sammy Davis and Christina of Philly Diva. Unfortunately, Christina couldn't make it due to personal reasons. It would have been nice to meet her. The crawl was also sponsored by the Institute for American Values and the Goodwill

I was so nervous on the drive to the meet up spot at the Cherry Hill mall. I usually don't go out with other people and I tend to hermit. So going out with a group of strangers and a blogger that I've admired for a long time was nerve wracking. It's easy to be confident online, it's different in person. Anyway, I got out of the car and approached the group fellow thrifters, and met Sammy Davis. She is such a warm and fun lady!

Ready to leave for the thrift crawl!

We went to three Goodwill shops, one in Pennsauken, Stradford, and Bellmawr. I found so many treasures in each shop including a Lilly Pulitzer dress with the tags still on it! It was originally $198 and I got it for under 5 dollars!

In the dressing room at the Stradtford Goodwill with my prize!

There was such a feeling of camaraderie in the group, we were all fellow hunters for thrift store treasures. If someone found something someone else might like they held on to it and gave it to them. When we got on the bus after visiting each shop we all dished on what we bought. This was by far the most fun I've ever had on a thrifting trip, and I've been thrifting for a long time. 

 This people were so awesome! Everyone was so nice and outgoing, we all bonded over our love of thrift shopping. (Photo borrowed from Sammy Davis's facebook page)

I met Jasmine, she had her first thrifting experience on this trip. She was with her mother and I had a blast talking to the both of them. 

We spent our lunch break learning about the history of National Thrift Week. Thrift Week was started in 1916, it begins on January 17th which is Ben Franklin's birthday. Thrift week faded out in the mid 60s when consumerism became such a big thing and it was reinstated in 2011.

I'm so happy my passion for thrift shopping has led me to yesterday's thrift crawl. Sammy Davis explained that thrift fashion is all about self expression and creativity and she is absolutely right. I would never be able to play with my style as much as I do if I didn't thrift, more people should join the thrift revolution and I can't see why anyone wouldn't! 

I was elated to meet her and go thrifting!

My Mommom is holding up some of the great things we received in our goodie bags. We also received the indispensable encyclopedia of Thrift. 

I got this gorgeous bubble gum pink skirt yesterday at the Pennsauken Goodwill and I paired it with my Mommoms's beaded sweater to go out today. 

Here's some detail from the sweater and a pair of gorgeous earrings that my Mommom gave me. 

Have any of you ever participated in a Thrift Crawl or do you bring a group of people to thrift with? What does National Thrift Week mean to you?

Like a Glove.

Lets talk gloves. Now, I know that now ladies don't wear gloves unless it's winter time but in my opinion gloves add glamour to your everyday outfits. Women used to be required to wear gloves whenever they went out in public and there were lists of rules for women to follow when wearing their gloves. Any vintage lover needs a good set of gloves for day and evening.

A small portion of my glove collection. 

I have been scouring the internet for glove etiquette and I hope I can give everyone a good beginners course in glove wearing. 

I visited Sweet Trash's blog this afternoon (http://sweet-trash.com/blog) and there was a very good guide for glove wearing. 

(via http://sweet-trash.com/)

For everyday outings like grocery shopping, meetings, visiting and going to lunch short white or mid arm length gloves are appropriate. 

I am a list person, information is better to me when presented in a list so here are some glove etiquette facts that I've learned. 

• The only acceptable jewelry to wear over gloves is a bracelet. Wear your rings under your gloves.
• Evening gloves go over the elbow and sometimes they can extend up to the mid upper arm. Satin evening gloves should ideally match the color of your gown. 

• When eating take your gloves off and never place them on the table, instead place them on your lap and place them on your napkin. Put them back on when you are finished. 

Does anyone else have any glove etiquette facts? If you are in your twenties like I am then your mother probably did not pass any glove etiquette down to you so it is up to you to mine your Grandmothers or the internet for information. 

Two South Jersey shops that everyone should visit.

I have been looking for some new antique/vintage shops to visit this month and I have two great shops to tell you all about. My dream town would be one that has antique shops every few feet and shops that sell vintage clothing. There would also be some sushi places and mexican restaurants, oh and a video store! Sorry, I am prone to going on tangents like that. Anyway, this Monday I visited a new thrift shop in Buena called "Wise Buys" it's on Wheat Road. When I walked in to the tiny first room of the shop there was a huge collection of vintage Christmas decorations. There was also a shelf full of cocktail glasses and other assorted glassware. Everything on the shelf was gorgeous but I had to stay away, I'm a sucker for glassware and my little bar cart is overwhelmed with glasses.  I was a little disappointed when I walked in, from the little room you walk into when you enter the shop it's a little hard to see into the huge room that is the rest of the store. I was overwhelmed with all the treasures in the shop. The owner said she adds new items everyday. I saw a cute 60s mini dress that I tried on and loved but couldn't buy since it wasn't in my budget. "Wise Buys" is a must visit shop for anyone near Vineland and Buena. I picked up two vintage Christmas ornaments.


Today I was driving around Glassboro in the middle of a beautiful snow shower. I was on Glassboro road and I passed a small antique shop that I've passed countless times and each time I passed I made a note to stop in sometime and today was the day. The shop is "Ternay's Shop in the Woods", it's a cute little shop and the owner told me that the shop is expanding soon. I can't believe I waited so long to visit, the store is amazing. They have everything from tea sets to vintage magazines. I walked around studying everything and then my eyes fell upon the tiny perfume display. I am a perfume junkie, there are enough bottles of perfume on my dresser to last 100 years. I ended up purchasing two bottles of Evening in Paris perfume. Evening in Paris is a light powdery scent, it can work in all seasons.

 The two little bottles are displayed on a pretty white fur wrap that I picked up yesterday at Twice Loved Treasures. I went there for fabric for my first sewing project and left with the wrap and no fabric. Aren't the buttons pretty?

Here are the two ornaments from Wise Buys. I've been looking for ornaments like this all winter.

Weekly link post.

I want to try something new. There are so many great blogs and articles that I encounter each week and I want to share them. So each week I will (try) to share with you the best links I've seen all week.


Yesterday I spent the morning looking at a stack of unread "Look" and "Life" magazines spanning from 1966-1972. Each issue is so entertaining, from the inane letters to the gorgeous photographs, to the ads. True to their time, each issue is packed with cigarette ads and a lot of them are completely hilarious! The alcohol ads can be pretty out there too but I will save those for another post.

Cracked.com (a site I visit daily) has a really funny article all about how bizarre vintage cigarette ads were. 5 insane trends from vintage cigarette ads

While watching Turner Classic Movies one morning I discovered this great vintage blog: Vintage Powder Room

Have you ever read a vintage cookbook or glanced through a women's magazine from the 50s, 60s or 70s and noticed that some of the food looked inedible or some of the recipes are just really bizarre? You are not alone, check out The Mid Century Menu and if you are really brave you can try some recipes on the worst list.


I hope you've enjoyed my first link post. I spent today cleaning some jewelry my Mommom gave to me . Silver polish is a tool that every vintage and antique collector needs in their toolbox.

 A pretty little tarnished bracelet

Many nasty looking coffee filters later

It came out so beautiful

Fashion Editorials from "Look" and "McCalls"

I've been going through my massive collection of vintage magazines and the images in them are so good I have to share. Unfortunately my scanner is too small to fit the magazines so I have to take the photos with my camera so the quality isn't all that great. Here's some inspiration for you all from 1969 and 1970, enjoy!

A 'Sears' ad in the February 1970 issue of McCalls. This would be a perfect coat to bridge the transition between spring and summer. The green color is refreshing after all the dark winter colors. 

These next photos came from the same issue. They are part of a spread called "The Petite Prints of Paris"

I love the outfit on the left. The belt looks like it has little golden keys as an accent. Also, clips on blouses and dresses need to make a comeback. 

I can't say I'm a fan of these looks but I love the chokers. This signals the 70s edwardian revival. 

These next three images are from the December 1970 issue of 'Ladies Home Journal'

I would wear either of these crocheted outfits. My Gran tried to teach me to crochet when I was little but I just couldn't get it. 

This is such a gorgeous hairstyle that wouldn't look out of place at a party today. Although there is nothing wrong with looking dated, it never bothered me. 

I love the metallic accents in the knitting. 

The final images are ads from the April 29,1969 issue of Look magazine. I have quite a few issues of Look and they are a delight to look through. 

 Here's a close up shot of the Admiral television ad. Isn't this a great hairstyle? Alos , look at those fantastic sleeves on the outfit of the girl in the ad!

It's unfortunate that the models legs were cut off in this Chevrolet ad but her outfit is beautiful. I love the rich colors and the large gold buttons on her coat. 

There are so many cigarette ads in vintage magazines. I really love this models outfit and I'm not a huge fan of purple but I would wear this. 

Let's pretend.

Sometimes a quote sticks in your head and you begin to repeat it over and over again in your mind. As this quote plays on repeat in your inner monologue you begin to see why it's stuck with you so long, it applies to you! It describes you so perfectly it's eerie.

This has happened many times to men and I'm sure I'm not alone. This time the quote that stuck with me was this one by Kate Spade. "I think that dress up begins at age five and truly never ends"

Think about when you were a child, boy or girl, it doesn't matter we all played pretend and for many of us that meant putting on a cape and pretending to be a superhero, or a crown to be a monarch. I used to have a dress up chest where I would keep tutus, fairy wings, costume jewelry and halloween costumes. I'm not sure when I stopped playing pretend with my costume chest but I always kept playing dress up in some way. I still dress up for Halloween and I always always will but that's only for a holiday. When I think of playing dress up now I think of the times I spend dressing. The act of dressing is something that has sadly fallen by the wayside in modern times and it's something that I find most enjoyable.

Remember when you would play dress up? You would pick the character you wanted to dress as and you would select your best outfit and accessories to play that character. For me, this carries into adulthood and I imagine that if you really think about it you do the same thing.

When I get dressed in the morning I always take into consideration how I'm feeling that day. Am I in a swinging 60s mood or a 50s bombshell mood or one of the five thousand other moods I can have. I pick an outfit that reflects my mood and I assume that character for the day. The right outfit really does make all the difference, it changes the way I carry myself. Some people dismiss the idea that an outfit can make a difference in the way you see yourself and the way you present yourself. Some people think that you need to spend a fortune to look your best. The way I see it both of these attitudes are wrong.

Anyone that knows me personally knows I can make a complete outfit for under 20 dollars so anyone can go hunting at a thrift shop to find a dream outfit. You're saving money, looking good and creating less waste so no one loses.

Now to the people that think an outfit can't make a difference, I want you to know that I'm not one of those people that wraps my self worth up in the way I look. Clothes wont make you confident  but they can amplify it. Different outfits can amplify the mood I'm in that day. If I'm feeling sexy I take out my 40s pencil skirt and pair it with a sweater and a bullet bra. If I'm feeling playful and young I pick a 60s mini dress. Think about how you're feeling and pick pieces to accent your mood.

An outfit I pick when I'm feeling playful and young (and it's warm out)- from Devil Dog Photography.

So readers, do you still enjoy playing dress up?

A new year.

Welcome 2014! I hope you all had a great New Year's eve and you all got your midnight kiss. I spent the night with Brianna, Jeremy, my Mom and Mommom. We had appetizers and dinner, then we watched my hour and fifteen minute long end of the year video. To keep ourselves awake until midnight my sister and I had a Lady Gaga dance party. She told me not to play what she called "old fogey" music so Lady Gaga was the most modern thing I had.

Ginger was all dressed for the celebration. I got him this little bow tie for parties. 

Brianna enjoys sneaking into photos. Here she is photo bombing our family portrait. 

The dress I wore was from "Twice Loved Treasures" in Vineland. It's by Leslie J and it's from the 70s. The dress comes with a black sweater that I kept putting on and taking off since the temperature fluctuated. 

Ginger wanted me to take off his bow tie later on. He looked so dapper in it. I also don't like to leave him alone with things around his neck since he tries to rip them off himself and he can end up injuring himself.

I made a bûche de chocolat for dessert. It's a rich french cake that you roll up like a jelly roll. Here's the recipe I use. 

2/3 cup sugar
6 eggs (separated)
6 oz. dark sweet chocolate
3 tablespoons cold strong coffee
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. Beat 1/2 cup sugar into egg yolks and beat until light and creamy. Get out your double boiler and start to melt the chocolate and coffee mixture. After the chocolate is melted let it cool a bit and then mix it with the egg yolk mixture. Then beat the egg whites until they're stiff and add that to the chocolate/egg yolk mix. 

Put wax paper on a cookie sheet and grease it heavily then pour the batter on the wax papered cookie sheet. Make sure everything dispersed evenly and then bake it for 15 minutes. After it's finished baking let it sit out with a damp cold cloth on it for 45 minutes. Now it's time to make the whipped cream (my favorite part)
Put the heavy cream, vanilla and a little bit of powdered sugar to a bowl and beat it until it forms whipped cream. After the whipped cream is made and the cake has cooled spread the whipped cream on the cake and roll it into a log shape. Sometimes the cake will crack in places but that's okay, I just add more whipped cream. 


Later on that night Brianna and I had a dance party. Jeremy doesn't dance so he watched us jump around like weirdos. We aren't dancers either and usually our "dancing" is nothing but jumping and flailing our arms. Brianna and I usually have little dance parties at home, we're not fans of going out so we make our own fun.

Jeremy and Ginger watched us dance from the safety of the couch.

New Year's day is one of my favorite days of the year. We always go to my Mommom's house for a polenta and codfish dinner. My Mommom's birthday is the week after New Year's day and she said that the tradition of this dinner started when she was around 12 years old. Her mother would celebrate the new year and her birthday in one day and my Mommom would always request polenta and codfish. When she was little the fish used to be quite expensive and you would have to soak it for awhile before eating it. We also eat stewed tomatoes and everyone but me eats sausage, it's a great dinner!

It was really cold yesterday. 

But I  wanted to get an outfit shot. My Mommom wore this dress to a wedding in 1977. I love the print. 

My Mom and Mommom stirring the polenta. 

 This is before we lapsed into a food coma. This is a special dinner that we only eat once a year. After we recovered we posed for photos in front of the tree.

 Clyde(Mommom's cat) got in the family photo. 

I set the timer so we could get a complete family photo. 

For most people January 1st is not a special holiday. It's usually the day they begin with their rigid resolutions but I start the new year on January 2nd. What traditions do you have for New Year's eve and New Year's day?