January 31, 2011

All dressed up in vintage

I hope I don't seem vain for posting two pictures of myself, but I was all dressed up for a party this weekend and I LOVED the dress I wore. I know my expression is goofy, especially in the second photo, but I want to show the back. 

I purchased the dress at flea market a few months back and was dying for an occasion to wear it. I couldn't resist buying the dress although I am not frequently invited to balls and gala affairs! 

Alas. 

The dress was a Bob Bugnand (for Sam Friedlander), who according to Couture Allue Vintage Fashion, was a French designer active in New York in the 60s and 70s.  This dress felt super sixties. It was, um, a tad too tight, but I went with it anyway. I decided to be true to myself (shoes, hair and makeup) so it wouldn't look Halloweeny.  

Everyone looked fabulous. We had so much fun and danced nearly till dawn!!

January 29, 2011

Stairway to heaven

I love old ladders. There's something about what they do and the way they look that appeals to me.

Our house has a lot of hard-to-reach spaces, one of which is in Charlie's room. He has a little loft where he likes to hang out sometimes, actually I think his friends like it up there more than Charlie does.

That's why I've had ladders on my mental list of "things to look for at garage sales." (That list, by the way, is way too long.)

This past summer I found a beauty. It was beat up and old, for sale in this beautiful 150-year-old stone house, actually it was in the backyard stable I found it. The man at the garage sale said I could "fix the ladder up real nice" if I cleaned it first and then painted it with a mixture of linseed oil and paint thinner.

I paid $30 (after a bit of haggling) and I took the ladder home (thanks to Emma whose car we used to transport it). I immediately went to the hardware store and bought what I needed, cleaned it up and .... ta da!!! .... such a beautiful ladder.

I went crazy with the linseed/paint thinner mixture and starting polishing everything, all my old tools (I also like to pick up old tools, I think they're lovely) and a basket I picked up somewhere. The mixture is a miracle, it brings the best out in everything!