TWITTERPOLL: 08/28/09
This week’s TWITTERPOLL was inspired by my post, An Ode to IKEA. It didn’t get many comments, but I was thrilled to see it was a big RT (retweet, for you technical Luddites) in the Tweesphere, and that many other 20-somethings sympathized! After stressing (whining) about the gripes of moving and assembling furniture, I decided to ask what everyone actually likes in their place.
This week we asked:
aaaaaaaaaand all the cool kids said:
Thanks to everyone who participated! Follow us on Twitter to be in next week’s TWITTERPOLL.
The Big Bang Theory and Other Stylish Links to Sass Up Your Morning.
Did you resolve to kick off the new year by chopping off your locks but at the last minute couldn’t make that last bold step into the salon? Don’t go drastic! Get sassy in one simple step by going for one of 2009’s hottest hair trends: The Big Bang.
My New Obsession: LULLIE VINTAGE CLOTHING. At this impeccably styled eBay store, you can score a favorite new dress for as low as ten dollars! Each dress is modernized with a shortened hem and beautifully accessorized. One click and LULLIE VINTAGE will be the best new addition to your bookmarks!
While Monday mornings with a smile are typically the result of an unspeakable amount of espresso shots in your latte, the Vice Dos and Don’ts street style gallery is a no fail pleasure and won’t make you crash!
Listen up, ladies! As if BUST magazine wasn’t already cool enough, they are calling all readers to ask a question, any question on the subject of love to none other than the adorably awkward Brett and Jemain of Flight of the Conchords. Don’t be afraid to wear your heart on your sleeve. With hit love ballads like, “I’m Not Crying (It’s Just Raining on My Face)” and “A Kiss Is Not a Contract,” these boys are sure to deliver heartfelt answers to your most personal inquiries. The deadline is January 25th, so get writing!
Brighten your complexion without lightening your wallet. Check out Allure’s picks for Cheap Thrills: beauty essentials that fit into your budget.
Happy Friday! Stylish Links: The Weekend Edition
Working at a vintage shop and having a particular love of the looks that were, I can never understand why more people in Philly don’t wear vintage in its true form. With a thumbs up from British Vogue, Atelier- Mayer, this new and very impressive vintage site just launched this week. And while we can’t all fork out hundreds for a vintage dress, we can at least get some inspiration from it!
Wow, so I’ve been kind of underwhelmed by fashion blogs lately because it’s this new trend and it seems as though EVERYONE feels qualified enough to write about whatever they want. And I just found a particular post that proves how right I am. When I first saw her photo, I thought,“She can’t be complaining about bad trends. No way.” This accountant wrote about her picks for trends that have to go. For an extra treat click on the link to read the rest of the article and check out her office buddy modeling Crocs.
If you’re still determined to sweep up some good sales post-holiday but don’t know where to turn, Lucky magazine did all of the work for you.
Venturing around the city facing the wind while trying to text your friend about whatever is such a drag when you have to take your gloves off, because your hands will take no less than 10 minutes to thaw out once you arrive at your destination. In response to this problem, a number of glove makers came up with designs that allow you to text without having to remove the warm fuzzies from your hands. Seriously, though, the North Face ones … you’d be better off getting frostbite from texting than wearing those in public … wait, not just in public, more like wearing them period.
I have always loved Mischa Barton, and I am so excited to hear that she has started a line of handbags and headbands. While the headbands are adorable, they are a bit steep. But I think they can be a D.I.Y. creation of any crafty lady!
Home Sweet Home: Wilbur’s Vintage Has a Store
Big congrats to Wilbur’s Vintage (716 S. Fourth St.) who are finally getting their own home. Previously housed in the basement of Antiquarian’s Delight, Wilbur’s has set up shop on Fabric Row. The store will feature both mens and womenswear, including shoes and belt, along with locally made wares.
Like a fat kid loves cake
Just off City Ave is my personal wonderland, Material Culture. Maybe you’ve been? In a converted train garage, the warehouse-like space is packed to the gills with antique and vintage pieces from India, China, Indonesia, Turkey, Kazakhstan and beyond. Inside you’ll find unique items for all aspects of an interesting home; lighting, furniture, doors, rugs, textiles, copper table tops, and wall moldings (to name a few).
This week, I was trolling the rows of treasures on behalf of a client. She needs a tall piece to house her TV and other media components. Of course, they’ll all take a bit of carpentry tinkering to make them flat TV and cable box ready, but they’ll also add so much character to her Old City loft space. Here are some of the finds I’ll be showing her.
I’d really love to turn this pair of doors into a custom media cabinet. It is particularly great because the doors are wide enough to accomodate a larger flat screen TV but when building out the cabinet it could be made shallow so as not to take over the room.
Vintage Cloisonné Bracelets
The rich colors and designs are amazing. The older ones are spectacular. This ancient metal-working technique, called cloisonné, is an intricate process of creating images with super small wires (less than .04″) and filling in the crevices with enamel. It’s used to make jewelry, vases, dishes and other decorative items. The end result is an incredible work of art with lots of flowers and swirls.
The body of each piece is usually made of copper, so they’re heavy, substantial pieces.
The values of the nicer, vintage ones are between $20-60. If you buy from a dealer or someone who knows what it is, they usually charge what they’re worth. The bracelets sometimes have hinges, and can be flat & wide or shaped like large circular rings. I have gotten some really unique cloisonné from eBay, where people generally sell them cheaper, but there isn’t a large selection of the exceptional ones. They look great stacked on your wrist with all the vibrant colors mixing together.
Felicia explores: California Select
American Apparel shills your mom’s old clothes
Fine, we admit it. Even though our tri-blend romper shed its elastic after being washed once, and every 100% cotton tee shrinks like the dollar against every other damn currency in the world, we keep buying stuff from American Apparel.
Standard sizing has never been the vertically integrated manufacturer’s forte- we’ve chalked it up to coked-out technical designers spastically measuring the bony thighs of fit models incorrectly. Now the retailer is threatening to blow off all normal parameters of size and style with their venture into eBay-land:
“Vintage and More” is promised on the AA website, and features the usual cast of non-professional models clad in ironic sundresses or sample gear and gamblin’ granny-meets-M.I.A. shades.
With Cali Select stores currently open in Los Angeles, Berlin, NYC, Calgary and Mexico City, bite-sized vintage is sure to get even more overexposed and spendy than we ever thought possible.
Easy to hate on but impossible to abstain from, American Apparel has already posted some cutesy little numbers that we will shortly be tapping in to PayPal to acquire, and later posting grudgingly fawning feedback.
Most auctions open at $9.99 and virtually none are larger than a Medium. Typical.
Behold the TV Lamp
TV lamps were everywhere for about a decade. When television became the centerpiece of the typical household, there was a general belief that watching television without a source of ambient light in the room damaged your eyeballs. So people bought lamps specifically to put on the top of television sets, to turn on while watching for ophthalmological health.
For some reason, they’re usually glazed animals. Sometimes mermaids. Often panthers. Sold! I need one.
The greyhound.
This Asian one is rad.
The panther-lover special.
Holy shit! Not giving the link to this one because it’s mine. Go find your own vintage California pottery TV lamp of Spanish dancers!
Some are pots AND lamps. Dig it.
Lotta wagons, too.
