Lifestyle: True Vintage Style

In the middle of helping my sister move and rearranging tons of stuff in my parents house, I stumbled upon some of the the coolest, most adorable, and truly vintage pieces of clothing I've ever seen. A pair of self-cut, hand-embroidered jean shorts, from roughly 1972. Seriously, how cute are these? And the fact that my mom cut off a pair of old jeans to make shorts and used her Brownie Scout skills to embroider all the the designs herself, just too neat! I could see the memories flooding back as she showed them to me.

So cute! It's crazy to see how popular styles of the past always make their way back around. My sister owns a couple pairs of shorts extremely similar to these, except she paid for hers to look this frayed when she bought them, and they aren't quite as customized!

And then, just when I thought it couldn't get any cuter, my mom showed me a few old school outfits from her childhood. Cue me completely GEEKING out over the little dress I'm about to show you. I mean, it's like a miniature 1959 prom dress for a toddler. I think the only think more precious than this dress would be a picture of my mom as a youngster in this dress! (I'll have to ask my grandmother to break out the old albums) Ok, maybe I should also mention that I'm totally and completely in love with the styles of the 1950's and 1960's. If I thought it was acceptable to wear Mad Men-esque dresses and my hair hived up on the top of my head every day to work, I totally would!

And here it is, the cutest little dress I've ever seen, that my future unborn little girl WILL be wearing!

So, so sweet! And pretty impressive that it's in such great condition considering its somewhere around 50 years old. If there was ever a reason to have a child, it would be this dress! Ok, ok, just kidding, but seriously, this makes me want a little girl some kind of bad. (And something tells me that our current little beagle girl, Harper just wouldn't be very happy in it)

Green with Envy

Featured Product

Welcome to Monday's featured product! Today we are highlighting a vibrant, vintage, 1960-70's decanter. With thick, solid, green glass, this decanter would be the perfect accent to a home bar trying to channel the dapper fellows from Mad Men.

There isn't a single scratch on this beautiful piece and comes with a perfectly fitted stopper/top. It sparkles in the sunshine and and is sure to catch anyone's eye. Please let us know if you would like to purchase this vintage item from our shop or if you have any questions. We'd love to hear from you! [ptbreezecottage@gmail.com]

Oh So Inspirational

I am a big fan of Instagram, the photo-sharing app that lets you put cool filters on your photos so they look vintage, enhanced, etc. One day I was bored and looking through the "popular" page, and was instantly drawn to a user named ohsolovelystef because of her retro 50's-60's looking photos. I began looking at all her pictures, and began to feel as if I had met a kindred spirit. Not only is her house decked out completely in atomic-era decor, but she is also co-owner of a groovy vintage shop in Winnipeg, Canada called Rhymes with Orange, a mobile shop run out of a 1956 camper (!!!), Etsy shop, and blog Oh So Lovely Vintage. 

Stefanie and Erin's collection of mid-century modern housewares is incredible, from kitchenware (they, like me, have a soft spot for pyrex) to bakelite jewelry, kitschy wall art, knick knacks, and totally awesome radios. All of which is just scratching the surface. Their blog is a retro lover's dream, with featured products, a "Sixties Sunday" weekly post, vintage fashion, their personal inspirations, and even giveaways. These ladies are an inspiration to me and their shops are an example of what I hope Point Breeze Cottage can become someday, with of course, our own spin on things. For anyone who, like me, knows they were born in the wrong decade, or wishes they could go back to a simpler time, Oh So Lovely Vintage is a great blog to peruse. I hope to one day be able to travel all the way up north to Canada to visit their awesome shop!

Tropical Paradise

Featured Product

That is what I think of every time I look at this vibrant chair, Tropical Paradise. Given to our team from our fabulous yard saling partner in crime, Cathy, this retro chair was in great condition. Sturdy, solid, and structurally sound. Everything you want to look for when re-doing a vintage piece.

Our design expert, Donna, was the creative genius behind this chair, using Barcelona Orange AS Chalk Paint, AS Clear Wax, and a piece of fabric from Calico Corners. If you are looking to add a pop of Tropical to your home, sunroom, or beach house, this is the chair for you.

Please visit our etsy shop to purchase, or shoot us an email at ptbreezecottage@gmail.com for more details!

Out of the Blue

Thursday's Featured Product

Back in early spring our yard sale pickings were slim; The thrift shops were depleted, and craigslist was right down pitiful. It seemed there was absolutely no one with anything good to get rid of! After a disappointing Saturday morning we decided to detour and make one last stop, at the local Habitat Re-Store. There were the usual building materials, light fixtures, floor tiles, sinks, etc. and then we made our way in to the “furniture room”. Didn’t see much at first, but as we rounded a corner, there it was, an absolutely wonderful credenza/buffet straight out of a late 60’s or early 70’s dining room. Clean lines with a touch of pizazz? Check. Solid, sturdy, and well built? Check. Drawers and doors in good working order? Check. Is the price right? Well….maybe.

We all looked at each other, and nodded in approval, THIS could be the makeover piece we have been searching for.  You see, all three of us LOVE the way credenzas and buffets are being repurposed in to gorgeous places to house today’s Flat Screen T.V.’s. Storage abounds in these cabinets for DVD’s, games, puzzles, books, just about anything you would use in your family or media room.  We have also noticed a trend for using them in entryways as a place for keys, gloves, mail, purse storage, cell phone docking, etc.  We went up front and asked the very friendly clerk if we could purchase the credenza (or buffet, we still are not sure exactly which it is, although it has a silverware compartment so I guess it is technically a buffet?) She said, “Sure! If you buy the matching china cabinet I’ll give you a discount.” Hmmm we hadn’t even thought about taking on a china cabinet, but what the heck, if Sweet Bubba will pick it up and haul it for us, we’ll give it a whirl!

Bubba picked both pieces up and brought them home for us. We needed muscles, lots of muscles to wrestle them in to the shop, but boy oh boy were they worth the effort. Blue was the unanimous color choice, and not just any blue. Annie Sloan’s Aubusson Blue was what we were all drawn to. So we got to work, painting, and waxing, and waxing some more, buffing, and buffing some more, and the results are so pretty we are having a hard time parting with them. I actually had a scary moment of considering changing the entire décor of my living room just to accommodate the credenza, but sanity prevailed (and my husband Jeb’s look of disbelief kind of  brought me back to my senses), because I just repainted and refurnished my living room!

Let us know what you think of our two lovely pieces. We have enjoyed bringing a shot of color and fun to their somewhat boring original finishes.  You never know, sometimes a wonderful piece of furniture comes your way “Out of the Blue”. We certainly weren’t expecting to find these that dreary morning, but are we ever glad we did.