The first treasury I’ve ever created! Go visit it and click on stuff.

Speaking of Miss Pettigrew, I finally watched the movie a few nights back and while I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, I adored the set design. I want, need, MUST HAVE Delysia’s flat:

images found via The Paris Apartment.

One of the best things about this summer has been the fact that I’ve had loads of time to read. During the school semester, I get so caught up in the assigned reading that I feel a bit guilty cracking open books I’ve chose. Not that this deters me in the slightest, but there is a drastic reduction in pleasurable reading during class terms.

I tend to go through trends in reading when I have lots of time to do so. This summer it has been all about the 1930s and 1940s. I’ve known about Persephone Books for awhile, but have never ordered anything from them. My mother did, however, and now she has me hooked. Miss Pettigrew was as lovely as I could have hoped it would be. I’ve also found a new favorite in Rosamond Lehmann’s Invitation To The Waltz, which, although having been written in the early 1930s, is incredibly modern. Any woman will recognize the anticipation and the humiliation of the moments leading up to and during the first dance/party. Diary Of A Provincial Lady is nowhere near as ho-hum as the title might make it seem. It’s incredibly funny, full of dry wit and the absurd. The illustrations are lovely as well.

Classes start tomorrow and I still have another pile of “To-Reads”….hopefully I can squeeze them in.

I don’t think I’ve spent more than an hour away from my sewing machine since I’ve been home. Oh how I’ve missed it. And the craft room, full to the brim with vintage fabrics and trimmings and knick-knacks and a glorious, colorful chaos. I work well in mess, I have to admit. It’s a special talent. I love having everything spread out in front of me, tangled and mixed together. I get some of my best color combinations this way; by complete accident. But I have to be good - I will be good - from now on. The craft room isn’t just mine; I share it with my mother. And she enjoys perfect harmony, everything in it’s place and a place for everything. Which I can appreciate, if only for aesthetic value. But it is really very hard for me to restrain myself. And to remind myself to clean up my messes. We’ll see how it goes.

I needed a sewing fix but didn’t want to dive straight in to something heavy and complicated, so I whipped up several little fabric cuffs for the shop and I enjoyed making them so much that I think I will make more!

Available at Moonshine Hill.

I’m back at my parents house, sitting on my little iron bed. Classes start back up again on Monday, so I had to pack up my things and leave New Braunfels (and the boy) behind. I miss it already. I miss him already. He has to stay there and finish out the season, which will hopefully only take a few more weeks. It’s actually not so bad right now, because I’m driving back on Friday to help out on Labor Day Weekend rush. But it’s still sad sleeping alone. It’s very strange.

It is lovely to be back though. I missed my room, my bed, my closet, my sewing machine. Many things. I missed talking to my mom and making fun of my little brother. Petting my dog. I have so many plans for this fall - so many ideas and goals and such. Create, change, do. We’ll see.

my room @ my parents.

I listed a few of the vintage finds I’ve been hoarding over at Moonshine Vintage, the little vintage housewares/clothing shop I share with my mom. A few beautiful vintage dresses and two blouses which I wish fit me!

Moonshine Vintage is really going to take off this fall as I’m hoping to live off the proceeds during this fall semester. So watch this space (and that space) for more updates and more vintage lovelies.

Today we went to Wimberley, a small town in the Texas Hill Country full of small boutiques, galleries and cute B&Bs. I think a lot of Austin-ites retire in Wimberley, so the whole town has kind of a ‘Keep Austin Weird’ vibe. Lots of ‘Obama 08′ stickers and women in gypsy skirts. Wimberley also has the second largest flea-market/junk-market in Texas (Wimberley Market Days) with miles & miles of antiques, vintage housewares, crafts, food and junk. I had a booth there in June and did pretty well selling my jewelry and there was SO much I wanted to buy.

Today we just walked around the downtown square area, popping in and out of the boutiques. We had lunch at Fresh, a new little cafe that uses all local and organic food and ingredients. Had the Fresh Veggie Sandwich (Avocado, hummus, red pepper cream cheese spread, sprouts, cucumber, tomato!) and it was so good.

Spend the time waiting for my sandwich with taking photos of the fresh flowers on our table.

One of the boutiques we went into was Wall Street Western, a totally glitzy, bling-y, rhinestone-studded western wear shop with shelves and shelves of vintage & custom cowboy boots. If only I had $800 floating around and the turquoise-green Virgin de Guadalupe beauties I saw would be mine.

We also stopped at Wimberley Glass Works on our way out of town. They have a little seating area outside their studio where you can sit and watch them create beautiful blown glass pendant lights, glasses, and jewelry. Well worth a stop.

And then it was back to the real-world. Oh wait, we did stop at our local Goodwill where I totally scored and found not only a 1950’s silk wiggle dress but also a beautiful, bright-as-the-day-it-was-made 1940s dress with little buttons and a cut-work collar. Just sitting there, wedged between the faux-Laura Ashley’s and denim dresses. For $8 each. Yes, please.

And then, home again, home again, jiggity jig.

♥

We spent tonight watching the original Parent Trap (you know, the one without LiLo). I kinda love the fact that my boyfriend likes silly old Disney movies and will watch them with me. I have plans for Swiss Family Robinson next….or maybe some Pollyanna.

I do love Hayley Mills. Miley Cyrus ain’t got nothing on this Disney princess.

Vintage glasses.