Vintage Home Decor

This is a March of the Bloggers guest post!

"Vintage Home Decor"

by Jennifer of A Well-Nurtured Life

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I don't think it's a secret that here at Frock Stock we LOVE vintage. But vintage does not have to stop at your clothing style. All sorts of vintage options are popping up for weddings, hairstyles, and especially your home decor.

Today we have the lovely Jennifer of A Well-Nurtured Life on our blog today. Here she describes her blog:

"A Well-Nurtured Life is my creative space where I share my love for fashion, art, interior design, music, and anything else that inspires me. "

And as an interior design lover, Jennifer's here to show you how you can turn your home into a vintage wonderland!

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Vanity Nook with Framed Vintage Fashion Advertisements.

I've loved vintage fashion as long as I can remember. From my Junior High days scouring local Salvation Army Thrift Stores to countless weekends spent wandering through Los Angeles flea markets (the Rose Bowl Flea is the absolute best!), I'm always on the hunt for the next great vintage find. After years of diligent thrifting, I discovered how easy it is to incorporate a love of vintage fashion into your home decor.  Whether it's a small vintage advertisement in your closet or a lovely hat box on your entry way table, the options are endless and only limited by your creativity. Here are a few ideas to add some fabulous touches to your home this spring, all from Etsy, one of the best online sources for vintage everything!  

  

Pair of Vintage Children's Shoe Forms, $22.50, Dirtyjayne Shop on etsy.com.

1. Vintage Shoe Forms: These are easy to find on Ebay or Etsy and come in both adult and child sizes. The more distressed and worn they are, the better. I've got a lovely one from the early 1900's on my bedroom dresser. Every time I look at it, I think of a cobbler in a small store using it to shape a tie-up leather shoe. Stack them on top of a few fashion/design books to really make them stand out. 

Sarah Jessica Parker as Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and The City 2, with a lovely blue hat box in her apartment.

2. Vintage Hat Boxes: Search for these on Ebay and you will be astonished at all of the amazing options you'll find. Made of a range of materials, from paper, to vinyl and leather, these remind me of a time where ladies never left their houses without a hat and matching pair of gloves. I use mine to store scarves, but they would also be lovely as a catch-all for your mail, keys, etc. in an entryway or office area.

1940's Vintage Hatbox with Victorian Carriage Print, $24.99,  BettyandBabs shop, etsy.com.

Vintage Dress Form from 1950s, $139.50, alwaysmaybevintage shop, etsy.com.

3. Vintage Dress Forms:  An affordable way to dress up a closet or bedroom, vintage dress forms add an air of nostalgia and sophistication to any space. I like to leave them bare, although they also work great as a space to store your necklace or scarf collection. 

4. Vintage Fashion Magazines: Stop by your local used bookstore, flea market, or estate sales and you are guaranteed to come across vintage fashion magazines. I recently received a collection of vintage Vogue's from the 1930's, 40's and 50's, framed them, and hung them around the top of my closet.  Even if the cover doesn't inspire you, take a few minutes to flip through them - every issue is a treasure trove of advertisements from storied fashion houses like Dior, Neiman Marcus, Henri Bendel and great editorial spreads, all of which are frame worthy. 

1969 Vintage Chanel Advertisement, $10.00, thevintagereader shop, etsy.com.

5. Vintage Paper Dolls: Growing up, I loved playing with paper dolls and took them with me everywhere I went. A few years ago I found a collection of vintage paper dolls at my local flea market and realized that they can easily be repurposed into lovely wall art. All you need is a simple frame, a white mat and some archival photo tape.  

100 piece Vintage Paper Doll Set, $10.00, threadsandmemories shop, etsy.com.

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These all seem so easy! Right now it's my secret dream to buy a house and create an entire room devoted to Frock Stock. I definitely plan on using these decoration tips for that future room...


What vintage styles have you incorporated in your home? Have you seen any other easy ideas out there that we left out?


Let Jennifer know you loved her post by visiting her blog and leaving her comments below! Remember, comments equal free jewelry!

<3 Loren of Frock Stock

Mintspiration

This is a March of the Bloggers guest post!

"Just in Time for Spring...

Tongue in Cheeky's Mintspiration"

by Ann of Tongue in Cheeky

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It's the freakin' weekend, ladies! Hopefully you're not stuck inside like I am thanks to Chicago's ever-volatile weather. But if you are, how about sitting down with a cup of tea and reading this next lovely blog post?

Our guest blogger Ann runs a fashion blog that does it all. She's a vintage lover (like us!) who covers style AND makeup and even has tutorials to help you achieve beautiful vintage looks. I adore this blog and I think you will too after you read this post.

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Anyone that knows me is more than aware of my affinity for the color green...especially in the mint variety. Green has been my favorite color since I was a child...I think it's because it reminds me of spring, the season of renewal and growth (and another favorite, rain!).

Naturally, I decided to post about a couple of my favorite things today...mint green, and fashion! It's a super popular color right now, that you can find everywhere! I've found mint green blazers, purses, skirts, blouses, you name it!

Here I have a styleboard that I've curated with my favorite mint items, and you can find a couple of them right here on Frock Stock!

Mintspiration -... by tongueincheeky

The Antigone Dress in Seafoam is absolutely perfect for spring! The Grecian-inspired draping and soft silhouette will fit any figure.

How can anyone not adore the Dance the Polka Sash in Mint? Not only is it an amazing color, but it has polka dots! A great way to add some color and a print to a dull outfit in a snap.

The other three items are from my personal "mint" collection, which are also my favorite pieces! Of course, my prized possession is the fabulous cocktail hat that I found at an antique store for $5!

Who else has a mint obsession? I'd love to see everyone else's favorite items!

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I'm obsessed with mint myself right now. It was already one of my favorite colors to wear before this big trend came out and now that it's big I'm literally scooping up every mint item I see before it disappears! (I even bought mint tennis shoes yesterday!)

If you loved Ann's post you absolutely need to head on over to her pretty blog. It's seriously a must-read! Also, leave some comments about what you think about the mint trend for a chance to win some jewelry tonight!

<3 Loren of Frock Stock

Vintage Jewelry Remade

This is a March of the Bloggers guest post!

"Vintage Jewelry Remade"

by Carrie of LadyLuxe Designs 

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Hope everyone had a fun holiday yesterday! We've got a really cool blog post for you today, so snuggle up with some tea and get ready for some great DIYing. Our blogger Carrie runs a fabulous blog about her own jewelry and accessory creations. Carrie's concept today is all about taking old jewelry that may have lost its appeal and turning it into beautiful new jewelry. Wait until you see this awesome piece she made!

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Are you a DIYer? Do you like challenges? Well, I definitely love a good challenge, which is why I enjoy jewelry design. I love using a vast variety of materials for my creations. Vintage supplies are some of my favourite materials to work with. I love the challenge of taking something that has definitely lost its "cool factor" and breathing in some new life. Let’s take these vintage earrings below, for example. To the naked eye, they're - well - pretty ugly. My challenge was to see beyond their ugliness, incorporate them in a piece of jewelry, all without tossing them out.

First, I began by cutting the backs off each earring or pin, with a simple wire cutter.

Using a silver wire bracelet as a base, (purchased at my local Dollar store), I began to glue each earring and pin to the bracelet. The BEST glue for metal material, in my opinion, is E6000.

OK. I know what you’re thinking. This is still pretty ugly, right? Well, I would agree, which is why I broke out my Krylon Silver Metallic spray paint.

Once the glue was dry on the bracelet, I spray painted it with a couple of coats of paint, and finished it with the clear coat.

Then, I got really crazy! I used another bracelet I purchased from the dollar store, cut it apart and glued the gems on the base of my new piece.

Here’s the finished product!

Now I have a new piece with some texture and sparkle! The moral of this tutorial is “waste not, want not”. Before you throw your old jewelry out, consider remaking it into something cool again.

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What an incredibly cool concept. It ties into the last post about shopping for vintage... you could totally find old jewelry in a thrift store for this project!

Hope everyone loved the jewelry giveaway yesterday. We're giving out more this week so don't forget to leave some comments for Carrie with your twitter name or e-mail!

Once you're done with that, head over to her blog... you won't be disappointed!

<3 Loren of Frock Stock

How to Shop Vintage

This is a March of the Bloggers guest post!

"How to Shop Vintage"

by Augusta of Runs with Lipstick

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Ah, finally it's the weekend! Hopefully everyone is out enjoying some lovely St. Patrick's Day festivities and spring weather. But if you're stuck at home or after all the fun is over, be sure to check out this next blog post because it's got some really useful info in it!


Today's blogger is the lovely Augusta who runs a blog called "Runs with Lipstick" - a title I adore. She talks all about her life, style, and even has a little shop along with her site. She's here to help all you thrift shop loving ladies make the most of your next thriftventure!

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Photo courtesy of Pinterest

Walking into a huge room full of second-hand garments may not seem appealing to fashionistas who want the best, latest, and trendiest. What many people don’t know is that vintage items have been known to inspire designer’s collections, and many items you find from expensive retailers can be found at consignment stores! But trying to pick the good-crap from the crap-crap can be time consuming and frustrating if you don’t know what you’re doing. I put together the best tips I know that have helped me over the years to look chic for less.

What you see is not only what you get.

One important part of vintage shopping is to remember that what you see is not the only thing you get. When I’m dress shopping, I’m also maxi skirt shopping. You can easily transform an old evening gown into a silk, slim-fitting maxi skirt—and how cute would that be with a button up blouse?! The same goes for shirts. Sometimes XL button-ups can be transformed into t-shirt dresses, or extra long tees into mini dresses. The key is to focus on the fabric of a garment, and not so much the shape.

Get your tweak on.

In addition to turning a shirt into a dress, you can also change/add to the garment itself. I love to buy a $2 shirt and then sew or cut it to totally change its look. For example, I once bought an oversized clutch in a tacky yellow color. So I painted it gold and glued turquoise jewels to it—ta da! Or you could buy an old denim jacket and transform it into a distressed, bleached, and studded cropped denim vest. Sew shiny gold buttons onto a denim blouse to make it seem more expensive. Glue vintage earrings/brooches onto flats for added appeal. My personal favorite all-time transformation is to buy a pair of high-waist jeans and cut those suckers into high-waist cut off shorts. Or just find a garment inspiration from net-a-porter.com, neimans.com , or another expensive retailer, and try to imitate the design. It really is amazing what you can do with vintage items!

Get a clue.

Don’t walk into a second-hand store without some sense of fashion/trend knowledge. I once found a great mint tie-neck top at a local consignment store, but if I hadn’t known that pastels and tie-neck’s were a trend, I would’ve looked right past it. It’s so much easier to go into a world of used clothing when you have a rough idea of what you are looking for/what’s in.

Back to Basics

Make like X-tina A and get back to the basics. What I mean is, if you see a blazer in a timeless design at a second-hand price, GET IT. I don’t care if you have 8 blazers already. The same thing goes for classic white button up blouses, or a basic slim-fitting tee. Assuming there are no stains or rips, you cannot go wrong buying these items for these prices. As much as I love Joe’s soft t-shirts, I just can’t let myself spend $70 on something so basic that I could get anywhere. Even if the colors are a little drastic (I once bought a bright red blazer), you usually wont regret it (now bright blazers are huge!). Keep your eyes peeled for basics like blazers, button-ups, denim shirts, leather jackets, fur jackets, silk tops, cable-knit sweaters, and cardigans.

Shoes, and jewelry, and purses, oh my!

You can’t forget the accessories! As I’m sure you already know, loafers have been huge on the fashion scene lately. Why spend over a hundred on a label (which I’m not saying you shouldn’t if you can) when you can find these by the dozens at your local vintage boutique?! My little ol’ town can’t be the only place like this. Vintage jewelry is also great because it’s so versatile. Certain necklaces can double as headbands, while others can be taken apart completely and the jewels can be saved for other DIY projects. Purses can be a bit more tricky, because used purses tend to look…well, used. God knows us women are more than hard on our handbags. But don’t exclude them completely—I once bought a fabulous tribal clutch. Lastly, don’t forget belts! I have a friend that shopped the little boys section and came out with the cutest turquoise/silver waist belt. It definitely worked with the Navajo trend!

Now that you’ve got an idea of how to hike that vintage mountain, grab a friend and start saving money!

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I'm a big proponent of thrift shopping so I'm so glad Augusta chose this topic for her post. I think the biggest thing when you are thrift shopping is that you have to take the time to go through everything to find these gems. Just like she said - you can totally change items easily so always look for the item's potential, not just at the item's first look!


Leave comments for Augusta below! We're giving away more jewelry tonight so don't forget to add your twitter name or e-mail on your comment!


Also don't forget to check out her fabulous blog as well!

<3 Loren of Frock Stock