All posts by Dottie

One month in…

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This mourning thing is tough.

My mom has been staying with us since my father died and just returned home yesterday.  We hadn’t been apart since late May. We have been propping each other up throughout this whole experience and not having her at my side left almost as big a whole as my Dad.  It seemed that with Mom going home, I really had to deal with my grief alone and that Dad was truly gone.

I did get it together enough to go to dinner with Eric and the Peach the other night.  When she noticed my somewhat somber mood, the Peach asked me what was wrong.

“I miss Grandma.” I said.

The Peach took my hand and stroked it and looked me straight in the eye and said:

“I miss her too, Mama, but whenever you think of her or miss her, just call my name and I’ll come and give you a hug and tell you everything is gonna be OK.”

So, maybe it will all be OK, with this little wisp of a girlie at my side.

Retro Round Up:: Christmas in July!

Retro Round Up

Ho ho ho!!! Who doesn’t love being prepared?  Can you ever start too early to get on top of your holiday shopping? Exactly! In fact, I think I’m going to start looking for vintage holiday stuff now before they double in price in December. With that in mind I rounded up some darling vintage holiday cuteness for you all. Enjoy, my friends!

Check out this great home for the holidays sweater! I love the collar. From Etsy seller, Linda’s Time Compass.

Isn’t this robe perfect to wear Christmas morning to open presents in? From Etsy seller, Olive Road.

Who doesn’t love a good peter pan collar made of red corduroy?  We do! From Etsy seller, Bugeboo.

Everyone needs this book and this version of it is so darn cute! From Etsy seller, Muddy River Antiques.

This little Rudolf Christmas outfit is killing me with its cuteness! From Etsy seller, Tiny Tortoise.

Boy and girl twin vintage cuteness?  DYING! From Etsy seller, DOLKA.

This dress is ludicrously cute. I’m so bummed this isn’t the Peach’s size… From Etsy seller, Nesstiques.

OK–this Christmas stocking is truly perfection.  Hello Christmas tree hair do!  From Etsy seller, Miss Munnypenny.

Red + plaid + overalls = HOLIDAY MAGIC! From Etsy seller, Potato Cake Vintage.

This snow man night light will be perfect for those longer nights! From Etsy seller, Ismoyo’s Vintage Playground.

Happy Monday!

Too busty for that blouse? Try this trick!

Crafts + DIY, Dottie's Kraft Korner

There is nothing I love more than a cheery button down shirt dress.  The buttons and placket are a wonderful fashion design element as well as, of course, practical.  Button down shirts have been considered a wardrobe basic for the past 100 years and I don’t see that trend changing anytime soon.  The button down shirt was originally invented for men but quickly became popular with the ladies. Of course, there are  two things *ahem*  that get in the way of making a button down shirt lay flat, looking great on women, if you get my drift…

Friends, I am a busty lady.  I have more curves than Lombard Street and I LOVE a good, flatteringly cut button down shirt.  I also have a complete and utter weakness for shirt dresses. I simply can’t say no to one. However, if I find a shirt that fits over my chest, it is usually too big everywhere else—covering my tinier waist and making me look like a block of cheese. And really, looking like a block of cheese has never been big on any girl’s fashion agenda.

I’ve also found that most shirt dresses/button down shirts look great when you are standing in front of the mirror, but as soon as you sit down, they’ll gap awkwardly. Or sometimes, they’ll just gap awkwardly regardless.

I’ve tried pinning them shut, but that can create its own problems. And I’ve tried those little long pieces of two sided sticky tape, but they pop open and I’m constantly buying more tape, so I’ve come up with this great solution that has made all the difference: SEW IT!

Here’s the way I tackle sewing a button front shirt/dress:

IMPORTANT NOTE! Before you sew it up, make sure you can get out of the shirt/dress without undoing the buttons. This is the most essential step!

1) If you have one, change out the sewing foot of your machine to the narrower zipper foot, it will make sewing around the buttons so much easier, but if you can’t or are too lazy like me, just take great care sewing around the buttons.

2.) Starting from the TOP of the shirt*, place placket buttoned up on sewing machine and hold it tight so, there is no slack. You CAN put pins in to hold the pattern in place.

3.) Very very slowly, start sewing close to the edge of the garment in a straight line, easing by hand the buttons around your sewing foot.

4.) Finish and wear with joy!

*If you are working on a half shirt dress, which buttons only on the blouse part, I would recommend starting from the waist and working your way upward to the collar.

If you are a perfectionist (and I salute you if you are!) I would recommend taking the buttons off, pinning the placket closed and then sewing it up and then sewing the buttons back on.

You can also take your dress/shirt to your local dry cleaner and they’ll do it for $10 or so.

Now you can go out and wear those shirts and dresses you’ve been passing on wearing and actually WEAR THEM!

 

A Retro Round Up of super cuteness!

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Hoo boy! What a wonderful wonderful weekend! I spend it going to two tiki parties and then Sunday with one of my dearest friends gabbing about everything and making life choices that are wonderful and oh just glorious. I hope you all had equally inspiring and joyous weekends. But of course I didn’t forget about you! I found some extremely cute thing that I can’t WAIT to share with you, so ON WITH THE SHOW!

How could you not choo choo choose these sweet train pants? From Etsy seller, Quirky Mugs!

Do you have a bucket of awesome? Jeanine from Sweet Shop Vintage does in the form of this amazing Barbie box and clothes. OH YEAH!

Care for another bucket of awesomeness?  Well, here you go!  BOOM!  Super cuteness for your kiddo’s wall.

Whoo whoo would love this darling little owl pinafore? From Etsy seller, Breedbaby NYC.

Why have only one elephant when you can have TWO.  And throw in a palm tree for good measure, why doncha? So sweet! From Etsy seller, Wee Little Ones Vintage.

Ladies, the search is over for your the perfect swimsuit…  For your baby girl.. From Etsy seller , Noodle & Lou.

I can’t help but list at least one tiki item every week until TikiOasis. And this week’s cutie piece is from Storybook Retro.

Why, you little stinker! I might get this one–it would be so much fun on a rainy day! From Etsy seller, Little Monsters.

I can never say no to hand smocked cuteness like this!  So sweet! From Etsy seller, Izzy and Ever.

Oh man, I love this pattern on this boy’s shirt. SO divine! From Etsy seller, Aesthetikara Vintage & Handmade.

Happy Monday, friends!

Fairyland For Everyone—Storyland Amusement Parks

Vintage Pop Culture, , ,

One of the things I always loved about Oakland is Fairyland, a sweet little park filled with quirky and vintage rides and storybook-themed play areas.  It was always so unique in its charm—I even wrote about the first time I took the Peach there. Legend has it that Walt Disney loved it too and even used it as a bit of inspiration for Disneyland. See how cute it is?

Then one day while cruising the Internet, I found a picture of a certain boot:

But wait….Children’s “Storyland”? Hmmm…Looks pretty familiar to the one found at our beloved FAIRYLAND!

Turns out our sweet little Oakland Fairyland was part of a big Storyland amusement park franchise all across the entire US in the fifties.

Turns out, there was a Fairyland in Tampa:

And in Upper Jay New York a “Land of Make Believe”…

My personal favorite has to be Storytown, USA!

And if you were up to it, you could even check out Ghost Town and Jungle Land.

These amusement parks were more like a hometown version of Disneyland. They were all geared towards the seven and under crowd and don’t feature rides so much as they do “exhibits” —like one of my favorite things at Fairyland, Willie the Whale.  As  you can see, my sea mammal friend had quite a few cousins located  all over the country….

Here’s one that had little seals playing in the water!

And here is Jonah the Whale–a different spin. And different color…

But my sea faring heart belongs to this polka-dotty friend! CUTE!

This sweet but sad old whale that has certainly seen better days. Poor guy!

But whichever Storyland you went to, you were sure to seem some seriously charming stuff!

Although the majority of these charming little amusement parks are closed, there are still quite a few out there that offer affordable super cute vintage fun.  So, East Coasters, if you can’t make it to Oakland’s Fairyland, maybe you can make it to Glen, New Hampshire whose Storyland has swan boats and a Cinderella Coach, powered by a tractor! Or check out the version of Storybook Land in New Jersey.  And for folks in the South, there is one in New Orleans too!   A full list of parks can be found here.

Have you ever gone to one of these parks? What was it called? Is it still open?