A Mid-Century Modern Chair Eye Chart

My new favorite Etsy shop, Ocean Swept

A few interesting recycling ideas: Mini Sumo Bowling Pins,  Newspaper Shoes and a little Book Table

Ever since my birthday extravaganza at our local ceramics painting joint, my gal pal and I have made ceramic painting and champagne our favorite activity.  I finally got back the egg I painted (for free!) on Easter, and I’m going back to finish my measuring cups this weekend!  I’ve been very inspired by the crafty lady behind RoomforEmptiness, and am excited to try new patterns of my own…

James found these adorable Mad Men Posters and I want them so bad!  Especially the one of Joan, of course : )

I have long been a fan of EWMcCall, and I love their simple Wall Chevron made out of recycled pallats.  Makes me want to whip up one of my own, maybe with a lick of paint.

Speaking of recycled wood, I was very drawn to this tree created from salvaged planks.

And last but not least, I found this amazing post about recycled/trash art.  There are so many great pieces here; especially the one of RuPaul!  Puts me in the mood for a museum.

Happy Friday!

xoxo

Brittany

Sigh.  What a pretty pink floral dress.  Perfect for the coming season, I might add…

Two of my favorite colours together in this lovely Blue and Purple Eighties Dress.  Here’s a little shot of me in the dress, remember this?

And last but not least, a pretty purply-pink sweater.  Very soft and snuggly!

All three of these are now available in my Etsy Shop!  As an exciting side note, I just got an email that our new couch is arriving soon, so I’m off to make room for it!

xoxo

brittany

Did you ever go to a Bob’s Big Boy restaurant?  When I was little, there used to be one near our house in Los Angeles.  I don’t remember the food at all, but I will never forget the large statue of Bob outside.  There he’d be, flaunting his original double-decker burger.

My father once told me a story of the Bob’s Big Boy in Westchester which is one of my favorties.  Apparently, in his youth he and his friend stole the Big Boy statue in the night and placed it in the elevator of their building. In the morning, when everyone went to work, they were greeted by the Big Boy, and were forced to squeeze in with Bob, who took up most of the elevator.  Eventually Bob was returned to his home, but it was good for a lot of laughs, I’m sure.

A few weeks ago, when I was exploring one of my favorite antique shops, I stumbled across a mini Bob!  He’s a little plastic bank!  I knew I had to get it for my father.  I brought it up to the counter, where the old shop owner waited to ring me up.  She took a good look at it and said “When I was a little girl growing up in Cupertino, there was a Bob’s Big Boy that had a large statue like this one out front. I can’t tell you how many times that thing went missing.  But I’ll tell you what: I don’t know how but they always found him.”  I guess my dad wasn’t the only one!

The shop owner also told me that these banks were almost as rare as the statues, which of course made me want a statue.  I guess there are many Bob graveyards, and I only hope to stumble across one some day.  In my research I also found this:

I.want.one.  Creepy and nostalgic and wonderful.  So, let me know if you find a Bob’s Big Boy arm.

xoxo brittany

Ohhh, ahhh.  Yes, I know: it’s marvellous. It’s certainly a statement piece, so we have decided to go all the way with this Mid-Century theme.  (!!!!!!!) This has given me the perfect excuse to spend hours on end oogling over all of the beautiful mid-century gems out there, compiling a little wish list in my head.  With vintage, as you know, one must search far and wide to find the perfect piece (at the right price).  Want to know some of my cyber haunts? Glad you asked!

These two are furniture joints in Los Angeles (the motherland) that post pictures of their refinished pieces at least weekly.  You can also request a piece and they will search for one like it!

Danish Modern L.A.

MCMF – Mid Century Modern Finds (This one is my favorite! Swoon!)

This next site is kind of like a fancy, moderated, mid-century furniture craigslist:

Lushpad

Dreamy and dangerous, no?  And that’s not all – there’s always Etsy.  Here are a few of my favorite shops:

Revitalized Artistry

Charlie’s Nest

And if you are a Pinterest nerd like moi you might enjoy the thread with which I weave my decorating daydreams:

I’ve also recently started pinning onto this group board with a sole focus on Mid Century Modern, which has given me yet another excuse to search for treasure!

I’m so excited but I know I need to take a deep breath and slow down.  I told myself before we moved in that I was going to decorate thoughtfully and deliberately; I know these things take time.  But wouldn’t it be fun if the whole house looked perfect now!?  Patience, young grasshopper!

Happy Decorating!  xoxo brittany

Hearts and Polka Dots.  The perfect combination, two star-crossed lovers made for each other… Don’t you agree?  The heart pockets on this dress were taken from the hem of yet another polka dotted dress.  Sweet and comfy with a keyhole button at the back.

Oh, I love this little dress.  With the rouching in the back, it’s just so easy. Perfect for spring or summer, a picnic or the beach.  And the zipper down the front just makes it.  Plus the heart, did I mention the heart over your heart?

Wear your heart on your knees.  These cords are in pristine condition.  The knees weren’t worn at all, I just couldn’t resist the hearts.  You understand…Size 27/4

And last but not least, here are some stripes.  I do love a good stripe! This scarf is stretchy and goes with just about anything…

And there you have it!  A few pretties for spring, all available now in my shop.

xoxo brittany

First up is this adorable apple-bow dress.  The fabric is new/old stock, and reminds me of a teacher.  Inspired by Butterick’s vintage pattern B5605, I placed a bow in the back and put darts in the sleeve.  It zips up the back with a dark red zipper and has secret deep red pockets.

And then there is this dreamy brown and turquoise beauty.  The top is a vintage cotton print, with a tap closure in the back.  It zips with the perfect turquoise zipper, and I covered the button myself with the same rich polyester as the circle skirt.  Oh, just look at the drape of this skirt!!  A lovely vintage feel that can be worn with or without a crinoline.

Both are now available in my shop, with more to come very very soon!!

xoxo brittany

This is the final, long-awaited episode of Easy Repairs on Jame’s Shirt!  The last thing we need to take care of is the hem.  You want to make sure you’ve reinforced the side seams and fixed your buttonhole interfacing before starting in on the hem.

Now let’s take a look at the bottom of James’ shirt.

Yeeck.  I couldn’t let him go out like that. See those strings hanging everywhere, the shirt slowly unravelling…  Upon examination, it appears that this hem has been serged, so to keep with authenticity I will do the same.

***If you don’t have a serger, you have a few choices: you could play the lazy sewist (like me) and use single fold bias tape.  Or, you can do a zigzag stitch, turn it under, press and sew a straight seem.***

But if you do have a serger, we are going to get down to the nitty gritty!  First, see if your front sides line up.

Of course mine don’t, so I’m going to have to trim a bit off the front so they do.  Mark your starting point with chalk or a pencil.

Here’s the trick to starting your serger stitch without leaving a tail: Start with at least a 3 inch tail.  Sew the first three stitches on your garment.  Stop when the needle(s) is/are down and lift your presser foot.  Gingerly take your tail and bring it around to the front.  Give it a little tug, then line it up with your seam line.  Begin sewing while you hold the tail, effectively stitching it in place.  Once you have stitched for an inch or two, bring the tail to the right side and let your knife chop it off!  Here’s a little GIF of the process:

Keep stitching all the way around the bottom of the shirt, grazing the edge with your knife.  When you get near the other end of your shirt, it’s time to finish off your stitch.  There are a few methods to do this, but here’s my favorite (aka the laziest method).

This one is a bit trickier, but you can totally do it.  Sew to the very end of your shirt, and then two or three stitches more.  Lift your feed dogs and grab your shirt.  Pull it out to the side and flip it over, so you can now sew back the same way you came!  Stitch for an inch or two and then veer off the side, leaving a tail.  Cut the tail off.  Here’ another GIF, just for you:

And we’re done!  Fixed, and my husband can once again venture into public wearing this shirt.  On a side note, have I impressed you with my GIFs?  I thought so.  Now get out there and save some of your favourite garments from their eventual downfall.  Make a GIF of it if you have to.  I’d love to see it!

Happy Saving!

xoxo Brittany

And this:

How is your Monday going?

Many people fear/admire the Crazy Cat Lady, but not enough attention is paid to the Crazy Bunny Ladies of the world.  I know they’re out there; I’ve met a handful.  And there is always yours truly.  But maybe I’m the only Bunny Lady you know.  Or maybe you are a Bunny Lady yourself, or a Bunny Gentleman, or a bit of both.  Whatever your rabbit involvement may be, I want to share some bunny awareness with all of you.  I posted this last year, and I’ll post it again!

In spring, many people want to take home a cute little fluffy bunny to call their own.  Baby bunnies are often shy and don’t mind being held. They are cute and cuddly and soft and warm and sweet and…. But when the bunny grows older and becomes accustomed to it’s surroundings, it begins to exhibit different behaviors.  Among my favorites are bunny licks, races, binkys, and the determination to fit through small spaces.  But there are also some undesirable habits that begin to show up.  They chew.on.everything.  Cords, carpets, moulding, doors, guitars: everything. Sometimes, when I’m so fresh and so clean clean, Emily sprays me with pee (as an act of love).  She also bites through my computer cords, and in her adolescence she peed several times on the couch.

When going to the pet shop, most people aren’t warned of these behaviours. Too often, new bunny owners get frustrated and ‘release the (domestic) bunny into the wild.’  Wild rabbits live in family units in burrows, so a domestic rabbit is especially ill-equipped.  These bunnies fall prey to cats, dogs, cars, disease, starvation….  A few years ago my friend rescued an extremely frightened domestic baby bunny with a broken leg. The bunny was shivering and just wanted human attention.  My friend brought the abandoned bun to a vet and crossed her fingers that the baby would find a good home.  Most bunnies aren’t that fortunate.

Bunnies need love and attention, and are a 10-12 year commitment.  They are timid creatures, and have a very subtle way of communicating that is often hard for children to understand.  I can’t express to you the importance of Emily’s presence in my life.  I love her and she is my adored companion. She makes me laugh without any words.  But I have the luxury of having lots of time to spend with her, and to me all of the downsides are completely worth it. She is the perfect pet for me (I’m a crazy bunny lady, after all), but bunnies aren’t perfect for everyone.  So this spring, won’t you spread a little bunny awareness love?  That way all those sweet new rabbit owners of the world will have made an informed decision.

Ready for another quick fix?  Here’s my remedy to a common problem.

This is a situation I come across frequently in previously-loved button-up shirts: the buttonhole interfacing is getting a little wonky. If you flip your shirt inside out and examine the button and button-hole area, there is often a piece of interfacing that has been sandwiched among the layers.  Between the buttons and button holes, the interfacing can twist and move out of place.  Before we fix this problem, let me introduce you to a good friend of mine:

You two will be good pals in no time.  He’s cheap, strong and handy.  I really like to have a few of him on hand, if possible!  So first we need to tame that rascally interfacing with the iron.  Turn your shirt inside out and spray the buttonhole/snap/button area.  Gliding the tip of your iron under the top layer of fabric, press the wrinkles out of the interfacing between the buttons/snaps/buttonholes. When your interfacing is sufficiently flat, fold the top layer of fabric back over the interfacing, spray again and press with the tip of the iron.

I like to secure my interfacing by taking it down along it’s outer edge with a straight stitch in a matching thread. Done and done!

Yikes!  Look at that hem.  Let’s worry about that tomorrow…

Happy Sewing xoxo brittany