February 28, 2015

Vintage Link Love for February 2015


It's fascinating, isn't it, how the shortest month can sometimes feel like the longest due to the lingering winter weather? (A point that I touched on recently in this post.) February was an interesting month. Objectively, I wouldn't say it felt that long this time around (January seemed much more so to me), but as with its predecessor that kicked off the year, it was a heavily mixed bag with no shortage of stress and curveballs (although, yes, I readily acknowledge, that's often just life in general!).

One of the better points for me was when I hit the point of having 400+ items listed in my Etsy shop at once for the first time ever (if you haven't stopped by in a while, why not do so today and checkout the plethora of great new offerings there!). As you may recall from last month's edition of Vintage Link Love, I'd set the goal of doing so by the end of March, so I was delighted to beat that date by more than a full month. My next big shop related goal is to reach 500+ listings by my shop's first birthday in early May.

In the midst of icy rain showers, Valentine's Day, an auction on the 15th in Vernon (which I came home empty handed from - but still had a blast at), listing up a storm, thrifting, and beginning my spring cleaning, I found time to enjoy some online reading and amongst the stories that have really jumped out at me lately, I hope you'll have a blast delving into this month's list of twelve exciting, informative, inspiring, or just plain fun selection of vintage related posts.




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Make a 1940s flower brooch: As part of Brittany's awesome 1940s fashion calendar for 2015, she recently shared this fantastic old school inspired flower pin how-to that will have you reaching for your felt stash and a needle faster than you can say "vintage accessory!" (and be sure to check out Bonita's beautiful version that she made and shared on her blog, too).


  Tips for taking photos in cold weather: Though winter might (finally!) be nearing an end, this is subject all outfit bloggers who live in climates that get chilly at any point in the year can definitely relate to and are bound to enjoy and appreciate the tips in this lovely post from A Beautiful Mess on how to still land great shots even when the mercury is shivering.


Aristocrats of Fashion - circa 1940 Educational Film: Ready to have your vintage fashion loving knees turn to jelly at the speed of light? Watch the delightful c. 1940 colour video below and prepare to be dazzled from start to finish!







Easy art deco nails with Scotch tape: Whether you consider yourself to be a master of nail are or are the newest of newcomers to the field, chances are you'll be able to not only pull off, but seriously nail, this awesome art deco inspired look that Bianca from The Closet Historian recently shared. It's chic, fun, and very Gatsby themed party worthy!


  Vintage Hairstyle Trick to Hide Bangs: Whether you call them fringe or bangs, they’re no denying that most women who opt to cover part (or all) of their forehead with an attractive length of hair end up having something of a love-hate relationship with said bangs at least every once in a while. If you’re not feeling your fringe at the moment and/or are in the process of growing yours out or simply want to learn how to do a classic rolled bang, than this excellent step-by-step, photo rich post from Tasha is sure to help banish those bangs blues in a heartbeat!


10 Reasons Your Grandparents Were Already Cooler Than You: To those of us who life a vintage filled life, this list might seem a tad obvious, while also including many things that we ourselves continue to do in the 21st century, but I still found it to be a fun, though admittedly somewhat over simplistic (for example, with #1, there has been processed food since at least the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, though I do certainly agree that eating locally sourced offerings used to be far more common and constitute a larger percentage of one's daily diet than it does for many in the 21st century), look at some of the things that really did make our foremothers and fathers so awesome.






Darling, Can You Spare a Dime? How Victorians Fell in Love With Pocket Change: I've long adored, and even one a piece of Victorian etched coin jewelry (with one of my nicknames/variations of my name, Essie, on it), so when I saw a whole (wonderful!) post on the subject of 17th to early 20th century examples of love tokens appear on Collector's Weekly recently, my eyes lit up like shiny silver dollars.


Top tips to working at home: One of these days, I suspect I'll pen a post on this topic myself, too, but in the meantime, be sure to check out Olivia's handy, helpful, practical advice for those who also call their abode their office.


A Wonderfully Nostalgic Compilation of 1980s Teen Movies Seamlessly Set to the Song ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’: For all those, like me, who will always leave a massive part of their heart in the excellent eighties, this memorable montage is for you.






10 ways to get a bigger profit when selling your vintage: From Trish Hunter's recently launched, and truly excellent website, The Vintage Post, comes this splendid list of ten tips that will help you up your profits when selling vintage, be it the occasional item on eBay or Facebook or full time on Etsy or anywhere else. Definitely one for all vintage buyers and sellers to bookmark.


Class Style Icon: Audrey Hepburn: Bethany, aka The Glamorous Housewife, serves up some currently available, timelessly lovely wardrobe options that will help you capture and convey Audrey Hepburn's elegantly youthful style in this fun fashion filled post.


Vintage Dance Cards: Liz's terrific photo filled look at this one commonplace, but now nearly forgotten (outside of the vintage realm at least) item is sure to put you in the mood to cut a rug, dance card firmly in hand, natch! :)






{All images throughout the list of links above come by way of the post that they are displayed directly beneath the write up of here. Please follow the links provided to learn more about these images.}


♥ ♥ ♥



Tomorrow we'll bound into March with the energy of an adorable baby bunny and I couldn't be happier about that point. March is a great transitional month. It ushers in spring and also houses the anniversary of when Tony and I met for the first time (2015 will mark eleven years since that truly life changing date occurred back in 2004). In addition, we start thinking about the next crop of holidays, such as Easter, Mother's Day, Victoria Day (here in Canada), and Father's Day that will greet us in the coming months, as well as the simple pleasures and immense joys of the season alike.

As winter slowly melts away, I've got vintage fashion on the brain (okay, I know, I've always vintage on the brain, but still! :D) and will be blogging about everything from an ode to one of my favourite colours ever (and how to wear it in a vintage context) to some awesome 50s warm weather looks that have been setting my heart a flutter this year to my final set of outfit photos from our trip to Vancouver Island last autumn, all in the coming month.

With every ounce my heart, I wish you each a magnificent, sun kissed and very beautiful March and hope that the third month of the year is as sweet to you as the first strawberries of spring!

22 comments:

  1. I read the A Beautiful Mess post on tips for taking photos in cold weather with great interest - and realised I was already subconsciously doing most of the things suggested! Which makes me somewhat despair, as I still really don't enjoy it and can't wait for Spring to be here!! Come on, March... CC x

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    1. I was/am pretty much doing all of them as well and agree that it still doesn't make the process all that more enjoyable. Winter is such a tricky time for outfit photos. If only we all had the means to have well equipped indoor photography studios with a good heating system and a skilled photographer on hand to capture our winter looks without us actually having to face the elements very often. Thankfully spring is almost here again and hopefully we won't have to worry about icy cold weather again for many, many months.

      Sending tons of hugs & happy weekend wishes your way,
      ♥ Jessica

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  2. That video was too funny, the fact that it was all an add for rayon makes it even better, the production value on that commercial! I wouldn't mind adding some of those dresses to my closet though, especially that tropical print green gown with the yellow jacket near the end!

    Thanks for linking to my nail art tutorial! I hope people try the technique as it is so easy to achieve a sharp look with the tape.

    I can't wait to see the posts you have coming up for Spring :)

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    1. You're very welcome, my dear. It really is a smashing howto (much like your awesome tutorial on barkcloth nails this week) that deserves to be shared far and wide.

      I'm really excited about spring and a new crop of posts, too - especially including finally having nicest enough weather to get out and take photos in nature again without freezing my tail off and battling the harsh elements in the process! :)

      Have an awesome weekend!
      ♥ Jessica

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  3. I like your blog, I like Vintage, I will follow your blog. Nice work!!

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    1. Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to "meet" you.

      Have a beautiful weekend,
      ♥ Jessica

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  4. A great round up; once again I'm eagerly clicking through the link to read the posts. Thank you for sharing Jessica, and thank you so very much for kindly including my 1940's felt flower corsage link too! ❤

    xox,
    bonita of Lavender & Twill

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    1. You're very welcome, my dear. Your flower corsage/brooch is seriously gorgeous! I really hope to get a chance to try and make my own one day, too.

      Tons of hugs & happy weekend wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  5. I love eighties movies! and I adore audrey's style. Great list!

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  6. Hello Jessica.
    MY heart skipped a beat when I saw "The breakfast club" soundtrack - and I simply had to play it. Every time I see it - I have to play it. The film was a memorable gem, it marked the entire movie industry - it still remains on my "top ten" movies of all time list, you know?
    Thank you for reminding me of it.
    ..
    I must agree with the "10 Reasons Your Grandparents Were Already Cooler Than You" list. And, in that name, I'm saluting them (my grandparents - now long gone) for teaching me how to live the Old Way ...so, I'm cool, too. :)

    Marija

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  7. Spectacular as usual. I am interested in the article about art deco nails with scotch tape...which we have plenty of! :)

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  8. Thanks for the link love Jessica :) I can't wait to read the other posts now.

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    1. You're very welcome, sweet Liz. I lap up your posts with gusto and am always seriously excited to see what you'll share with us next.

      ♥ Jessica

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  9. Ahh, this was just what I needed to relax with after my first day back at work. Thank you Jess, for putting together one of my favourite posts. Is your middlename Essie, like the nail polish? I cannot wait for spring either. Yesterday I put up a few springy items, like fake hyacinths, simply because I long so much for warmer weather. The days have become longer, it is dark at 5.30 pm here in Denmark now, lovely. Have a great day, dear. :)

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    1. Hi sweet Sanne, that's great. I'm happy to have been able to assist you in relaxing on your first day back at work after being on holiday.

      Great question! One of my nicknames is indeed Essie, like the nail polish brand. The story goes that I called myself that when I was learning my name as a very small child (I guess I was trying to say "Jessie", which a couple of relatives called me, but I've never formally gone by, and it came out of my toddler mouth as "Essie") and it just stuck, especially since my little sister came along a few years later (there's six years between us) and called me Essie, too. She's usually the only person that calls me that these days (and I love that she still does).

      We're slowly getting longer days here, too, and it really is marvelous! Come on, spring!!! :)

      Happy start of March, my dear friend!
      ♥ Jessica

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    2. I just watched the rayon fabric fashion ad, and LOVED it! Normally I'm not that fond of forties fashion, but oh boy would I love own ALL the dresses in the film. Such a charming way to make an ad, I wish they would do them like this today. And the eighties movies - I know them all, I was sixteen in 1980, and Back to the Future is my absolute favourite. Michael J Fox is fantastic. Son and I are very nerdy about BttF, I have a poster of him doing the BttF II movie poster with Doc and the Deolorian. And I've just given him a Lego Delorian, which you might have seen on my Instagram. He has always loved Lego, so he had to have the Delorian. Wishing you a great day, dear. :)

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    3. Sign me up for the whole wardrobe represented in that delightful film clip, too, please. I took many deep breaths in when I first watched it. They're all so stunning - and glamorous. I want the carefree lifestyle depicted that that goes with them, too! :D

      I adore BttF as well, especially the first one. MJF is such a terrific actor and advocate - and my heart can't swell with even more pride when I think about him, as he hails from Canada (he was born in Edmonton, Alberta, but spent much of his youth in the Vancouver area of my very own province of BC).

      Thank you, my lovely friend. I hope that you're having a terrific (and relaxing after your long journey home from Austria) day/week!

      ♥ Jessica

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  10. I'm impressed you have so many goodies listed on your Etsy shop !
    While you're waiting for Spring, I am actually wanting summer to end, so we can get copious rain and I can start planting :)

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    1. That's really sweet of you to say, lovely Lorena, thank you very much. I love discussing my listings and sales goals on my blog, as I find it helps me strive to reach them all the more.

      I wouldn't mind some rain right now either. I was just reflecting last night actually on how it's been several months since we last had a good thunder storm. I love them so much (and thankfully our dog isn't phased by them one iota) and am really looking forward to the small handful we should get here this spring and summer.

      Here's hoping the cooler weather strikes soon for you!

      ♥ Jessica

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  11. I look forward to this post every month, even more that I must read it when I have ample time to go to each link. It has become a wonderful break from whatever life events I am working with during my day. Thank you for such great lists of endless inspiration.

    She Knits in Pearls

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    1. Hi sweet Cherry, that's awesome to know, thank you for sharing with that you enjoy this series so much. It's one of my favourite reoccurring posts here, too. I love tucking away stories to include here throughout the month and trying to put together a diverse assortment (not just in the scope of a single post, but across all of them in general).

      I hope you're having a great week. It's business tax time on this end and that's what I'm doing with 95% of my waking time until it's done (and then there's still personal taxes a little later in the spring; thankfully they're less work than the business ones).

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  12. Well done with all the listings! I am constantly favouriting your items and hiding pennies away like a squirrel hides nuts! I like the link about living like our Grandparents. I always try to live like my Nan

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