[ click for a larger view of these wonderful images & sources! ]
This week has been wildly off-kilter here at the EM House; I am looking forward to getting back on track with my sleep schedule this weekend (sleep? What’s that? lol). That and working some finishing touches on posts that are slated for next week: a crafty tutorial (gasp! I know I haven’t done one of those in ages… and I call myself a “creative blogger”–haha!), and hopefully photographing some items for a virtual yardsale next week. Possibly working on a new sewing project too–if I can ever make my mind up about the skirt design. I’m stuck between doing a wide ruffle on the hem of a skirt, a very petite ruffle (possibly on a scalloped hem), or just leave it plain. I tend to think of skirts with wide ruffles as very “summery” (I have an odd way of “season categorizing” items), but since I don’t live in a part of the country that has a proper winter, do I really need to worry about that? hehe. I say I just need to make a decision and get sewing!
- Have you been following Jen’s tutorial on sewing a modern, old fashioned dress? You really should!
- An interesting article from 1949 on wearing the ever classic seperates and making them work (in a retro way).
- I absolutely adore this beautiful and whimsical star crown that Emily made–I need one!
- This tutorial on making a sweet yoyo pillow has got me dreaming of a whole slew of them for my sofa.
- A lovely, new-to-me style blog; I think you’ll enjoy it!
[ "mad for plaid" - september 1947 (be sure to click for a larger view). ]
This week’s vintage inspiration is dubbed “mad for plaid”! I have been eying many of the lovely, vintage plaid dresses that have been making appearances on stylish blogs, and coveting many! I’d love to find a sweet, plaid dress (that isn’t wool) to wear this fall, but so far my internet browsing hasn’t yielded anything quite right. hehe! Neither has my search for fabric found much more than rather yucky flannel plaids (or polyester… I really dislike polyester!), or things that are a bit too summery for my idea of a autumn/winter plaid. hehe! I have some cotton plaid in my stash, but it’s a half made dress (read: failed dress), and I don’t know if I can salvage enough. Time to find out, huh?
Have a glorious weekend!
July 31, 2009 ·
14 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings
· tags: vintage inspiration, weekly inspiration
[ wearing besame "red velvet" over mac "cranapple" lip pencil, with a dab of red lipgloss over top. ]
After my post on red lipstick, I was contacted by Besame asking if I’d like a sample of the new lipstick they were developing once it was available. I eagerly said yes, and was delighted when it showed up in my mailbox last week! I was really looking forward to trying their lipstick, not only because this was from their new line, but I had never tried Besame cosmetics and I wanted to see how the lipstick held up to my beloved MAC.
Upon initial inspection, I found that the sample I had received (in Red Velvet) was pretty identical to MAC’s Russian Red (my personal favorite red lipstick). Even over the various lip pencils I have, the two did not differ much. I wore the Besame lipstick a few days in a row to compare it to the wearing experience against my MAC lipstick. Here’s the pro’s and con’s that I discovered while I gave it a test drive. Please note this is only reviewing the Red Velvet lipstick; not the pencil or the brush (which I was not sent).
[ for comparison (left to right): nyx "hot red" jumbo lip pencil, mac "russian red" lipstick, besame cosmetics "red velvet". ]
Pro’s
- It’s a lovely, deep rich, red color. Perfect for either your vintage or modern look. Red Velvet definitely falls into the “classic red” category for me! I also was impressed with how the color looked next to my pale skintone.
- The color is quite matte, which is hard to find in many red lipsticks. This makes for an even more vintage look to the color.
- It blends beautifully with both a brick red and raspberry red lip pencils I tried the color over. This makes for a really versatile color–one you don’t have to stick to one base color with!
Con’s
- The application was a bit dry and tricky. I used the recommended application method of a lip brush, as well as applying straight from the same stick. Either way, I felt that it dragged across my lips (which were properly moisturized).
- The color wore off more quickly than many of my other red lipsticks. I found that even without eating or drinking, it had begun to fade and wear off towards the inside of my lips.
- The lipstick is currently only available in a set with the pencil and brush applicator. For someone like me, that is not only on a beauty budget, but doesn’t need another brush applicator (or red lip pencil for that matter), it’s a bit of a hassle to have to order the complete set every time you need a new lipstick.
So what’s my final opinion? I like it, but with caveats. Namely that it does dry my lips out more than my MAC colors. Because of that, I wouldn’t rush out to buy the lipstick. However, if I was in the market for a versatile red I would say this might be a color worth considering.
So I want your opinion: have you tried this, or any other Besame, lipsticks? What your review?
July 30, 2009 ·
13 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings
· tags: beauty
[ click for a larger view. thanks to Sailor Husband for the photos! ]
- Pink jacket: vintage 1950s handmade
- Blouse: 1920s antique chemise
- Pin up shorts: made by me!
- Leopard clutch: made by me!
- Shoes: Steve Madden
- Charm bracelet: thrifted
- Sunglasses: Forever 21
Firstly, thank you all so much for sharing in my excitement with the news yesterday! I wish I could give you all a big hug! A couple people teasingly asked how I could have forgotten the magazine press. Well, it’s not that I forgot it, but I just forgot to post about it. I am a bit of an absent minded somebody at times, especially when I’m in the throes of a sewing project or some other creative endeavor, and forget the silliest things sometimes. lol!
[ click for a larger view. thanks to Sailor Husband for the photos! ]
Today I pulled this lovely 50s crepe jacket out of my closet. Even though it is wildly inappropriate in the 90+ degree weather, I still was dying to wear it. So I did! (It actually wasn’t that bad, since my errands took me in a lot of places with a/c, and I tend to get cold easily.) I was also feeling in a slightly romantic mood, so I paired it with my 1920s chemise. I just love how simple and pretty that particular piece is; I’m dying to make a similar garment soon! I just need to run to the fabric store and pick some material up. I’m thinking this might be a possible tutorial project, since it’s super simple construction. I think I felt a bit like a dancer from one of those old, early 30s musicals in this outfit!
Also with today’s outfit I wore the new Besame lipstick in Red Velvet. They kindly sent me a sample of their new lipstick line to review, and I’ve been giving it a test drive! I’ll have my mini review and thoughts up later this week…
Oh, and before I forget! In case you missed my tweet yesterday, Turner Classic Movies is airing a bunch of pre-code musicals tomorrow! I am utterly happy and can’t wait! hehe! They are airing 6 films from Gold Diggers of 1933 to Fashions of 1934 and other pre-code goodies. I can’t wait to watch these (believe me I’ve got my dvr already set up!); I’ve only seen Footlight Parade and Gold Diggers; I love musicals from this era. They tend to be a bit silly of course, but I love the fashions and over-the-topness of them! hehe!
July 28, 2009 ·
31 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings
· tags: outfits
I’ve been meaning to post about this, but totally forgot to until now! A couple months ago I was contacted by an editor of Sew magazine, which is a UK publication. She was interested in doing a short interview with me about my sewing–I was so delighted! I kind of forgot about it (so horrible of me!) until a package from the UK arrived in the mail the week I had that nasty cold. lol. I was pleasantly shocked to see that my interview was so big and prominent! hehe! It’s a bit weird to see photos of oneself in a magazine… especially across the page from the ethereal Audrey and fabulous Dita. A big thank you to the lovely editors at Sew magazine for featuring little ol’ me!
[ click for a larger view. ]
If you’d like to read my interview (and see the huge pictures of me–rofl!), I’ve got a big image here. I’m so excited and honored!!
[ click for a larger view. ]
On another note, want to see where we went this weekend? Take a peek! We had an absolutely glorious time, despite the oppressive heat and humidity, and deciding to forgo the fireworks (beat the crowds to the parking lot!). I got my long-coveted Mickey Mouse ears, visited the Alice in Wonderland tea cup ride, and spent the day exclaiming that I couldn’t believe I was finally here! (It’s been a childhood dream of mine to go to Disney’s Magic Kingdom, and at 24 I finally did!)
I hope you all had a lovely, magical weekend too!
July 27, 2009 ·
40 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings
· tags: happy things
[ be sure to click for a larger view and credits! ]
Hello, friends! This is a bit of a quick Friday post; I’m in the midst of doing fifty different things before I have to go meet my Sailor Husband for some shopping. hehe! I really need to get better about prepping Friday posts Thursday, rather than pulling my usual scrambling that goes on! So what are your plans for this last weekend of July? (Can you believe August is just around the corner?!) We’ve got a few things up our sleeves (if the weather cooperates!), and hopefully I’ll have some fun pictures at the beginning of next week. (I know I’m so cagey… hehe!)
- Anna fashioned this sweet 1930s inspired swimsuit
- If you love sewing vintage styles, you must check out this fantastic blog!
- Megan takes a look at style psychology was what motivates our sartorial choices
- A fun and informative interview with Anja and Rhiannon on running your online business
- I have had a lot of questions about my pin up shorts pattern. Although I can’t share the drafting instructions, there are some great ones for 40s shorts here!
I hope you enjoy this week’s inspiration image! It’s from an April 1949 pattern booklet that I’ve had for years (and still haven’t scanned all the pages!). I just love the dramatic collars on the right and left dress, and pretty much the entirety of the center one! So sweet!
[ click for a larger view. ]
July 24, 2009 ·
17 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings
· tags: weekly inspiration
