Pink Saturday, Espisode Sixteen~ Pink vintage dresses on parade~

Hello and welcome to Pink Saturday,

hosted by Beverly at How Sweet the Sound.

Please visit her to see many other participants showing off their pink eye CANDY!

Today I thought I'd share some of my pink vintage dresses.

Since we're building a storage area in my craftroom, (no~ still not finished, weekends only and we've been doing other things instead), I wanted to have an area to hang some vintage things for show. Most of them are from the 30's or 40's, some 50's.

These first two are aprons. However, they meet all way in the back and I've been wanting to adjust the closures so that I can wear them for blouses. The pink and green one has such a cute rose motif.

You may click the photos to enlarge if you wish, just remember to hit the back button to return.

The dress on the left was a gift from a fellow collector. The one on the right is one of my faves with great PINK buttons! It needs a few repairs, I've worn it quite a bit.

Here's a closeup of the darling embroidered design on the one.

I may have featured this dress below on the left before. It is one of my all time favorite vintage dresses. I found it "new with tags". The dress on the right I got on my birthday, yet I haven't had a chance to wear it yet. Just haven't felt like styling my hair properly, etc. lately. I think as soon as I color my hair red again, I'll have my vintage "mojo" back, lol! I bought the dress at the Vintage Haberdashery in St. Louis.

I adore the coral pink shade of the 30's crepe dress on the left. And the texture of the linen dress on the right.

Ok, you caught me. The dress below isn't vintage. It's a $3 Walmart clearance cheapie. But it's one of my lazy day favorites!

I bought this coat, (probably circa 80's or 90's) on ebay to embellish into Rose's pink coat from Titanic. I've changed out the buttons but that's as far as I've gotten!

This plum colored dress is so cool because it's cotton, yet it's iridescent. Changes from plum to green. Just awesome.

Next to it is one of my oldest dresses, to too small for me... it's a teen or pre-teen's garment from about 1912. Just darling. Perhaps I'll do a Pink Saturday post on that one alone some time!

Ah... I HATE to alter vintage via cutting it up, unless it's too far gone with stains or rot. But this vintage 60's or 70's dress on the left is just TOO scrumptious to let go. I plan to cut part of the length off, and add it to the bust and waist so I can wear it. Incredibly selfish me thinks, but I just HAVE to do it.

I beleive the dress next to it is actually a dressing gown, made of nylon. It has some repairs to be made too... and I'm thinking of hemming it. I just love the dogwood pattern on it!

I hope you've enjoyed seeing these pink frocks!

I have recently shared some new pink in my life. In the previous post, the background on the table is actually a vintage full size bedspread that I bought for only $8!! I'm using it as a tablecloth for now.

And a few more posts back I shared a baby scale from the 50's. Wonderful, wonderful retro pink. WOOT!

Thank you everyone for your well wishes on my new ETSY shop!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Tales of a shoe hoarder, episode 12~

Ok, ok.... so I'm still stuck on the pink shoes we wore in my sister's wedding. They are So freakin' cute!

I hope to resume my shoe hoarding posts to normal soon.

However, today's post is special.

~BECAUSE~

IT'S MY GRAND OPENING!!

I have joined Etsy to bring you The Scarlett Rose Garden Shop.

"A mixed bouquet of vintage fashoin & handmade goods."

Shoes are my main focus right now.

WANT SOME CANDY?!

These are some of the shoes that I have listed, or am getting ready to list.

They are either vintage or embellished.

When I got married over 8 years ago, I searched high and low for Marie Antoinette style shoes. I burned my eyes out on the internet and could only find shoes for $200 or more. I ended up finding a black pair in a thrift store, and I "reupholstered" them with the fabric from my wedding dress.

Today, they are still hard to find. There is really only one shoe that shows up for retail, and it runs between $50 and $70. And yet, the heel is too spikey and not so 18th century looking.

So I have decided to alter shoes to resemble colonial and victorian times, or a mixture of modern day with the past.

I'm having fun with it.

It has kept me quite busy lately!

And that vintage pink baby scale I showed you recenlty? It will come in handy to weigh things for shipping! Cool, eh?

You can click on the photos to enlarge them, or if you would like to view my listings please click www.scarlettrosegarden.etsy.com

I would love to hear from my fellow blogger friends who have Etsy shops as well!

Wish me luck!

*please note: if searching sellers for The Scarlett Rose Garden on etsy, leave off the "THE"*

We're off to see the Wizard!

Poppies! Poppies will put them to sleep... sleeeeeeeep.

Now they'll sleeee-eep.....

We're taking a little trip to Kansas City this weekend to celebrate the 70th anniversary of The Wizard of Oz. (and my birthday!)


There is an exhibit at Crown Center, and then we will drive about another 100 miles to Wamego to the WOZ museum there.


I was going to post some more Titanic related stuff, but I got busy this week sewing my FIRST PATTERN ever! I decided to make a dress for the WOZ event when I saw all the great anniversary fabric they have out. I promise there will be more Titanic posts later!

So, I've actually made two dresses this past week, the first was a trial. I'm so excited that I've actually put a pattern together that I cannot wait to sew more!

The pattern is the famous "walk away" dress. The Butterick 4790 pattern. A re-issue of the original 6015. It has also been number 7500.

The following info is from http://vintagepatterns.wikia.com/wiki/Butterick_6015
Quick & Easy One Piece Wrap Dress. Here's the smartest idea of the season . . . a dress that has only back waist and shoulder seams, that has its back wrapped around to the front for a sheath-and-overskirt look. Binding finishes the edges. Wear it for any occasion. Made from just 3 pattern pieces, no facings!


Here's a look at the history of the Walk-away Dress:
During the 1950's, Butterick experienced a phenomenon it had not known since the 'Garibaldi Suit' of the late 1860's. It was pattern 6015, and it was dubbed the 'walk-away' dress, because it was so easy you could "Start it after breakfast... walk-away in it for luncheon!".


It's simple yet flattering wrap design and easy construction were what made it so popular. Sales of the pattern were so great, that at one point manufacturing of all other patterns ceased, and only the 'walk-away' dress was produced until all back-orders for this dress could be filled.
Fabrics - crepe, taffeta, faille, satin, velveteen, shantung, gingham, chambray, cotton prints, linen, pique, cotton broadcloth, light weight wool crepe, silk.


I read many reviews and have seen tons of awesome specimens of this dress!


Here are my notes on the pattern.... Now before I show you, let me tell you that it is quite obnoxious. I know the underskirt fabric is not "appropriate" for this pattern, but I don't care. I like it and wanted to use it~



Ok, I cut the shoulders at a size 14, but kept the neckline at an 8.I cut the rest of the dress to fit a 12. I sewed the breast darts at an 8, but the rest of the darts at a 10. Sounds crazy maybe, but it fits.It's a trifle snug in the waist, but I did that on purpose as I am up a few pounds right now.


I rounded off the skirt edges, which I now rather regret as I wasn't thinking it would hang like a jabot. Oh well. I also extended the waist line that wraps around the back as far as I could; all the way to the salvage edge of the fabric. Then I rounded off the edges on the bottoms there as well. After sewing the bias tape to the entire underskirt, it didn't ride up like it had before. I think rounding off the edges really helps to keep it from getting caught in the overskirt and causing it to ride up too.


I didn't have enough poppy fabric for the back bodice so I sewed two pieces together.


Oh! I also sewed the back to the front right where it crosses under the arms. Yes, I have to wriggle a bit to get in and out of it, but it's alot better than dealing with shifting all day long!



Soooo, without further adieu...

Nova told me I need snow for the poppies, lol! Too cute!



Yes, I could've just worn my "Dorothy" dress... but I've worn it so many times, and it would be expected right? : P

I bought the orange shoes at Old Navy. But they were $30. (I thought they were only $20 when I bought them.) I've decided I cannot do $30 for a pair of shoes and they are going back. They are VERY comfortable tho!

I like the green ones better anyway. I'll be on the look out for some yellow shoes!

Kevin actually likes my ruby slippers with it, but I don't want to be dropping red glitter everywhere all day, lol! I'm taking them along just in case.

To see more notes and pics on this dress, click here.

If you do a google image search for Butterick 4790 you'll see many of the wonderful versions out there, along with great reviews. Thanks to all of you out there who have made this dress, you made taking the plunge a lot easier for me!

Tales of a shoe hoarder, Espisode Ten~ Let's go to the hop!

Girls... is there anyone out there that doesn't have or once had a pair of Keds? Hmmm??

I recently found these beauties~ looked like they had never been worn. Leather Keds for only $2.99 at the consignment shop. Just in time for a sock hop!

My client/friend invited us to a sock hop in honor of her 56th birthday. It was fun! The sad part is that we only got 2 pictures there, when my batteries died. Yep. I know. Blogger's worst nightmare. But had you been tagging along you would've seen all the great food and lots of twistin' goin' on! Everyone was in costume. I really enjoyed seeing the kids dressed up.

So, unfortunately we have no pics from the party action, or the birthday girl! But we do have some black and whites taken in a photo booth there, and a few from when we got home.

Here's the only pic from the party, Nova's first ice cream soda!

Here's what my little rebel wore~

Here's our black and white picture booth shots. I look like a total goof in some of these, but you know how those photo booth pics can be, lol!

Kevin wore a 50's style "bowling shirt" and jacket, rolled up jeans, and saddle shoes.

I'm all for poodle skirts, but I prefer pussy cats! My skirt and blouse are vintage 50's. I tacked on the kitty. The skirt is made of a fine wale courduroy, I love the texture... you can see it in the shoe pics. Thank goodness for wide 50's belts because after gaining my Thanksgiving/Christmas seven, this skirt was not zipping up all the way, lol!

I'm sporting faux bangs, black liquid eyeliner, and vintagey lips in Revlon's Cherries In the Snow. (which by the time these pics were taken it had probably worn off a bit!)

Musn't forget the high curled ponytail, complete with ribbon!

Closeup of eyelet blouse~
And lastly, here I am with Elvis and a friend at a work party back in 2005. Had to show you my pink crinoline! And look.... there's my saddle shoes!

Happy Birthday Andrea!

Baby it's cold outside!

In lieu of the insanely frigid cold weather we're having, I thought I'd share some of my coats with you. Most vintage, some not~

First is my favorite "everyday" coat. It is ultra-thin. It's probably 10+ years old but I don't care, it's warm and easy to handle while shopping, ect. The lining zips out, but I always leave it in.

This is Kevin and I on our honeymoon out west. We drove everywhere~ on this day we were at Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. It was my second time there. If you haven't been, it's an absolutely MUST see!





Here is my next fave... a vintage sage green coat from the late 50's. SO warm! A client of mine once gave me all of her vintage garments, and this was one of them. This was taken a few years ago, we were going out for a romantic dinner. The hat had been my Aunt Maudie's. This is one of my favorite pics of me because it shows how red my hair acutually is! (In most photos it looks brown!)



It has a real fur collar that I can stand up and hook in front. The gloves are new, chenille with faux fur cuffs. I have a fur scarf that matches beautifully, and I use it around my head instead of my neck... I'll have to snap a pic of that later!



I LOVE the great woven buttons!


Oh~ found one more. This was from last Christmas~


You may have seen this one before. What can I say, I adore this vintage leaopard set. It was my Grandma's.
It is too big for me, but there's no way I'm altering this vintage gem. I've got it cinched in back~

I'm wearing this with a 60's knit outfit from the same person, (Mary), who gave me the sage coat above. Modern vintage inspired shoes...

A closeup of print,


This next coat was givin to me by someone who just "knew I loved vintage"! I'm uncertain of it's age. It's wool and has a vintage Famous Barr tag inside, which was a grand department store here in MO until Macy's took it over in recent years. I like this one because it has an Edwardian look to it, I can wear it with my Titanic or Victorian looking garb. You can't really tell in the photos, but it has a great gimp/braided trim. It's too big for me too, but looks easy to take in... one of these days!
I also like to call this my Mary Poppins coat~

I'll try to get a better pic later!


Light leather jacket~ Kevin says he doesn't like this coat. I think my mom said that too? I don't know why.... but I LIKE it!

Kevin looks nice in his leather jacket too.... I SO wish this wasn't blurry. It's rare to get Kevin to smile for the camera. It's also rare to get a family shot of us!

BTW, Nova only had his jacket off while I was trying to get photos for our Christmas card that year! See~


OK... this is getting LOOOOONG, so I'm only going to share one more. But believe me, I have others!!!
A beautiful white faux fur coat that was also my Grandma's...(Dad's side), as well as the beaded handbag. These photos were taken for a special occasion, but I'll save that for a another post. (It was an internet thang!)
Anyhoo, these were taken at the Arch in St. Louis, which my Grandpa Nova, (Mom's side), helped build. He did concrete work.



Ok, I lied. I'm going to throw in a few more because they were taken on the same day... and since we're already here.... LOL!
Mom got me this vintage faux mink stole for Christmas last year. Snazzy eh?
I just love going to the FOX.

I bought this vintage 50's shelf bust taffeta dress at an antique store for only $15! It's WAY too big, I've got it cinched in about 8 inches. Needless to say I do NOT fill out the shelf bust area.
(BTW, I only mention that things are too big for me because I am proud that I have lost a ton of weight; success story in side bar. AND because I do not like to alter vintage clothing if I can help it.)
This photo was taken inside Union Station in St. Louis.

Once home, I did not want to take off this gorgeous dress but I was chilly... what to do? Put on a vintage angora sweater of course! It has the most gorgeous motif on the top. I'll try to get a closeup another time.