Date Night

 - Dear Creatures dress
 - old Gap sweater
 - ASOS duffle coat
 - vintage scarf & wool beret
 - H&M tights & socks

On Friday night Tom and I went on an honest to goodness date.  Dinner, entertainment, drinks!  It was a lot of fun since we don't get to do that much anymore.  All I was told in advance was to dress warm and be ready to leave the house at 6:00.  Fun, right?  We started the evening off at dinner at our favorite pho soup place, Rice & Noodles.  That place is always perfect for dinner on a cold night.

After dinner we headed to Clipper Stadium where they've turned the outfield into a skating rink.  It's been such a mild winter I think this was one of the first nights they were able to use the ice.  I've only been ice skating a handful of times in my life but I grew up with a pair of roller skates strapped to my feet so I managed to make it through the night without falling.  I honestly don't know how anyone is able to jump and spin and land on the ice! 

Once our legs felt like they were going to fall off we stopped in at The Fridge for fancy beers.  The place has hundreds of domestic craft beets to choose from and I probably stood in front of the cooler for way too long trying to pick just one.  Of course I ended up with some sort of Belgium style blonde which is always my favorite. Yum! 

Vintage Clip Art? Oh my.

 
There's nothing like re-discovering a book long lost on the shelves. Strong's Book of Designs just came back up to the surface, and I have plans for this. It's a great little volume, essentially a style guide and a commercial clip art source, printed in 1917. Nothing but pages and pages of period 1917 commercial poster and advertising art, in pen and ink, airbrush,and even full color. Loads of

Christina

I was doing a little internet research on autochromes and sort of felt like I'd fallen down the rabbit hole.  There are so many sites and so much information it can be a bit overwhelming.  I know back in the infancy of the blog (way back in '08!) I did a blog post about autochromes based on the Belgian Autochromists site.  If you haven't fallen down that rabbit hole before, I highly recommend it. But since then nary a word about them so I thought it was high time that I shared by favorite collection of autochromes in case you hadn't seem them before. 

The images were captured by Lieutenant Colonel Mervyn O’Gorman, a distinguised Aeronautical engineer, of his daughter Christina at and near Lulworth Cove in Dorset, in 1913.  Don't they look like they could be right out of a modern day editorial?

1928 DIY

I didn't make any New Year's resolutions for this year, but if I had, one would probably have been to make more things by hand.  More DIY!  I got a little head start at the end of last year by making some Christmas decorations for our tree;  yarn-ball ones and salt dough ornaments like these.  It was pretty satisfying to create something from scratch for the first time in quite a while, even though the salt dough ornaments were a bit of a fail.  I learned from my mistakes and they'll be better next time! 

Tom sent me the images from this Le Page's Craft Creations in the Modern Manner as a bit of inspiration for my DIY cravings.  Of course, I don't think he wants me to start covering everything in the house with pretty, patterned paper.  Here's a bit about Le Page's from the Daily Heller:

The Russia Cement Co., manufacturers of LePage's Glue in Gloucester, Mass., was known for publishing craft books. "Over a million women have bought LePage's Craft Books, which have shown them how to make useful, practical, attractive gifts with the help of LePage's Glue -- the money-saving, handy mender." Craft Creations helped the housewife transform the commonplace into the extraordinary. "You will find in making these articles that your handiest tool is your old mending friend LePage's Glue."  In those days products were not just brands, they were "friends."

Shown here are ways of antiquing, applying aluminum leaf, and other decoupage details to foot stools, cupboards, desk sets, book shelves, mirror frames, clothes hampers, boudoir boxes, kitchen spice shelves, serving trays and card tables. There is even a bench affixed with a map of New York City.  LePage's was essential to the modern home, even though the packaging was very nineteenth century. 

"More than one woman has written, 'I do not know how I could keep house without LePage's.'"

Etsy Update: For the New Year

olive plaid dress ... cocoa knit dress ... greta corduroy dress

geometry lessons dress ... carnival stripe dress ... houndstooth illusion dress

floral border dress ... noir flutter dress ... audrey shift dress

mossy plaid dress ... eleanor plaid wool dress ... forest mod dress

slate wool & fur coat ... collegian wool coat ... logan short trench coat

ebony cameo dress ... avant dress ... perfect jersey dress

midnight belted dress ... silver metal dress ... betty wool sailor dress

Something Else

I was doing a little post holiday online window shopping and saw some things on the Madewell site that I really like (surprise, surprise).  I noticed a couple of the pieces were made by an Australian line called Something Else by Natalie Wood.  Madewell's description says the label takes cues from nature, art and 70s bohemia.  Sounds just about perfect to me!  I decided to check out their site to see more. 

The winter collection is full of blues and greys and blacks with subtle patterns.  I think I love everything except for the shoes.  Sorry, but the shoes are bad.  Next I looked at the spring collection and it's the first thing I've seen that actually made me almost wish it was almost spring.  Almost.  I like the pale pink dresses balanced with the black pieces.  And then next is the summer collection, which includes some of the pieces I saw on Madewell.  Polka dot chambray?  Yes, please! 

Molly for Jack Sarnoff

 
Another now forgotten manufacturer that is somewhat new to us:
 Jack Sarnoff
This Seventh Ave. company received a great deal of press coverage across the country in the 50s and 60s.  Founded by Jacob Sarnoff c. 1949 - 1950, this was a family firm that manufactured expensive coats, dresses, and suits. Jacob Sarnoff, who left  I.J. Fox furriers to found his own business in 1946,was the president