Vintage Kitchen Thrift Sesh

I don't even need to point out how adorable and sunny these salt and pepper shakers are. They make my food taste even MORE delicious because they were only $1.49!

"Whistle for your beer!" And it works! I fell in love with this ceramic mug instantly, and the price was fairly easy to swoon over...49 cents.

Another .49 cent mug in its cute rainbow glory...and this one is another Otagiri! I'm so lucky, I tell ya. Remember the cute as a button Otagiri Owl Mug from a few months back?

Both of these mugs (the mushroom and the Koala) were .49 cents.

I probably have one of the best mug collections out there at this point, but I'm slowly encroaching upon hoarding territory. Someone hold my hand through this whole reselling process, please!

I be scared.

Vintage Montgomery Ward

I bought this vintage print Montgomery Ward dress this weekend for $1.59! I love the print. Red flowers with navy, green, and tan. Knee length and lent itself perfectly with brown boots and/or a tan comfy cardigan. I wore this with one of my own Vintage Upcycled DIY Statement Rings and bright teal nails! So fun! Also, delicate black and gold clip-ons with tiny birds on them. One dollar, thrifted of course! Wore it all day long at school (I'm a full time student right now) and really enjoyed being able to take pictures outside in the dark with my new camera. I can't wait to keep practicing!

Viewpoints...and JAVA!

Some of my very favorite things are in my kitchen...and many of them are gifts! Take this cute "Chantal" red teapot from my friend Jenna! It is used everyday, more than once, to boil my french press and tea water.

Refocus your lens on the sign behind the teapot and you'll see a gift my mom brought me this weekend on her visit!

I love these vintagesque, Ann Taintor-style tin signs. Before I hang anything up in my house, it has to meet my requirements: be cute, be true, be vintage (or "esque".) This is not to say that I am entirely discriminate about hanging things. :)

I HAVE, after all, gotten a few, "Holy $*&@, you have a ton of stuff on your walls". More on the random things suspending around the house later... As far as the sign goes, it fits all three categories and I actually replaced another, smaller coffee sign with it. Thanks, Mom!

Primarily, I'd say this sign fits the "true" category, because I am a self-proclaimed java junkie in the worst way! How about you?

Quote Board: PROJECT GIFT #1

I made this cute quote board for my friend Kerra from a recycled calendar! She was actually the one who bought me the adorable vintage pinup calendar plus a candle and had it delivered to my house for my birthday. So sweet! Well, the awesome Gil Elvgren illustrated calendar was seriously too fantastic to just toss out at the start of the New Year...so I couldn't wait to begin upcycling it. I'm sure you will see more of it around shortly! And who better deserved to get something cute from my first effort than the sweet gal who gave it to me? :)

I bought a vintage frame at a thrift store for $1. I then did some cutting and arranging.

Used my home printer to make this little design with personalization!

Used gold vintage wallpaper behind the polka dots and the pinup! Left some white space at the bottom to write with!

It's great to use picture frames as dry erase boards. They are a touch fancier, clean up much nicer with no staining, and you can put anything you like behind the frame--a family photo, neat picture, or a printed grid from your very own design/printer.

All in all, it's a great (and quick) DIY project that is super fun to give away if you have beautiful, deserving friends. I'm lucky to have an abundant supply of those!

Naturally, the final step was to pack it up in some cute brown paper and vintage fabric ribbon. Voila!

Raspberry Creamsicles

A creamsicle: that's what mom said this ensemble reminded her of (she's visiting this weekend, yay!)! Taking a second look I'd have to agree that this vintage Toni Todd shirt dress and mock Izod sweater are definitely sherbet inspired! Just what I needed on a snowy Michigan day like today...a little bit of summer! Wearing this with brown boots and the Merona bag pictured.

ALSO COMING THIS WEEKEND: Two DIY/Gift Projects as promised in my

Workspace and Project Gift post!

New Blood

So....I got a new camera!

Pretty stoked about it.
But it's going to take time to get used to things.

Be patient with me as I learn my way around. Here's to mightier megapixels and luscious lowlight!

(P.S., It's a Canon Rebel EOS T3i.)

Dr. Undergrad Goes Guerrilla

This cute young lady didn't mind allowing me to snap a pic of her outfit yesterday at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan!

Unfortunately, the pic was taken on my ipod and the clarity leaves much to be desired. What caught my eye as I walked by the bus stop was the great purple damask coat she was wearing. Underneath was a plaid skirt, patterned tights, and short black high heel boot. Also featured, a vintage fur hat and horn rim glasses, plus a bright yellow bag.

Thanks for letting me snap your picture, mystery girl! Your bus came so quickly I didn't catch your name...hope you remembered the "Thrift Trick" I shouted as you hopped on...

_________________________________________________________

Did I mention this is my 7th year in college (only one and a half years were part time!)? UGH. Believe it or not, I've been on the straight and narrow path to language arts education the entire time! Now that I've finished most of my B.A. in Language Arts and Elementary Education, I've started on my last and final leg to recieving my teaching certification. This semester I'm wrapping up odds and ends and my projected graduation date is next year...finally. But until then...you can call me:

DR. UNDERGRAD!

So, Dr. Undergrad decided that, to make these final days of undergraduate hell more tolerable, she would go guerrilla at GVSU. I've been wanting to document street fashion here in Michigan anyhow, Sartorialist style. In case you weren't aware, click on the blog to the left to see some fantastic photography, street fashion, and captured humanity. Love.

You can expect to see more forward street fashion here at Thrift Trick. I may even have MORE tricks up my (secondhand) sleeve.

Workspace and project GIFT!

Welcome to my workspace! Err...lack there of. Better organizing my craft supplies, fabric, and DIY/Upcycling projects is something that is on my "to-do" list. Though I am *technically* hoping to place more realistic expectations on myself this year (per my All That Glitters Is Not Goals post), I have decided that for the next month, I will focus on using many of the items I have around the house and thrift finds for PROJECT GIFT! I want to make as many birthday, "just because" and housewarming gifts as I can in the next few weeks to add to my surplus of things to give away. A few things might pop up in the boutique as well.

LET'S GO UPCYCLE CRAZY!

I'll be posting DIY blogs and ideas of ways that you can surprise friends and loved ones with original, thoughtful and upcycled gifts that start with found or thrifted items. And....GO!

See how cramped I am in here? I store fabric in vintage suitcases (surprised?) and share my crafting space with my piano...hmmm....not the best design.

Ofcourse vintage beauty WOULD abound in my sewing space. The entire sewing cabinet and chair are also vintage and I own two vintage Singers.
That said, I sure do love my Kenmore machine!

Isn't it time for this little piggy button to find a home? I think so, too.

Grandma's Bracelet

I love this bracelet. It was given to me by my mother and belonged to my grandmother. She wore it in the sixties! It went with the print on my vintage shirt PERFECTLY! I actually worked the outfit AROUND the bracelet, because I really wanted to show it off. :)

The Calvin Klein bag in this outfit was scored at Salvation Army for 99 cents. I thought it was really cute! I love big, spacious totes. I always have so much with me all the time.

The boots and Cardigan are the only two items that were bought new this year. Both are from Target. The shirt is a vintage polyester print and the jeans were a thrift find. Belt has shown up in many of my outfit posts and was only a dollar at my favorite thrift haunt.

My favorite thing about this ensemble (other than the bracelet!) is the print in the shirt. I LOVE the blue, burnt orange, maroon and tan print. Those colors are great together and I don't often see them put together!

Have a great Tuesday! I'm home sick from work today with a fever. Boo. No outfit shoots for me today. Nothing but jammies and tea. :D

Red and Glitter Mani

Maybelline New York Express Finish 60 Second Nail Color, Racing Rubies 190

LA Colors silver chunk glitter

Wet and Wild Shine Top Coat

I'm not the most precise painter (as evidenced by high res photos) but I AM getting a lot more creative and adept with my nails as I do it more often. For years as a musician I avoided polish, because I always wore it off playing my electric guitar. As I transitioned into playing classical more often, the nylon strings were much kinder to my manicures! Also, the glitter manis are so very kind to those who aren't as precise or may be rough on their paint jobs. The chunk glitter hides so many imperfections and it's tough!

One thing I've found is that I really appreciate having my nails cut in a "square-ish" shape and to a uniform length. I use to try and "grow out" each nail to its potential, rather than trimming them all the same regardless. Why I did this, I'm not exactly sure (am I weird?). However, my manicures really do look so much nicer when I aim for a homogeneous length.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, then you KNOW I am cheap. I do not pay for manicures--I've been giving them to myself and others my entire life! I know some people incorporate professional manis and pedis into their routines as a method of self-pampering and if that is your thing--more power to you!

However, if you are like me and you can't afford to do that regularly and/or can't justify spending $30 (or more depending on what you have done) on something fairly short lived, then try these "pro" tips I use regularly:

-Soak your hands in warm water with essential oils and soap to soften, and follow up with moisturizers. You could also achieve this by folding hands into a steamy, hot towel and letting them soften up that way.

-Less is more. Over three coats of nail paint and you could be heading for trouble and smudges!

-Roll the polish in your hands to warm and mix. Shaking creates air bubbles in the polish.

WEB RESOURCES

Marie Claire: At home manicure

Manicures: Beauty at About.com

Wiki on how to give yourself a manicure

InStyle Plaid and Fur Remix

It's another InStyle remix!

The outfit above caught my eye in this month's InStyle magazine on pg. 108! The original is great--lots of colors, textures, and it's a little bit rock and roll. My version was slightly more conservative without the cute lace up boots and the vest, but definitely a very close runner up! Here's the $1,120 dollar question though: do you think my frugal and thrifted outfit is really $1, 085 dollars LESS of an ensemble? Because that's how much MORE the InStyle version cost. It's fabulous, but I could never justify spending that much. What else could you buy with just over a thousand dollars? That's alot of dough. What do you think? Did I hit the mark?

This outfit is easily dressed down with jeans. In fact, it was a blustery, blizzardy and cold day in Michigan, and I remixed this outfit once again with dark jeans and calf boots. It was JUST as cute. Very glam with dark sunglasses. I also posted another alternative to the grey boots that I thought would be quite sassy--bright green Chuck Taylor All Star high tops!

Everything in this outfit is thrifted with the exception of the white shirt underneath, a "Danskin" plain white tee from Walmart ($7) and the grey slouch boots, "Upper East Side" for Payless ($13).

Proof of today's arctic weather below!

P.S., my one of my favorite gals, Drew Barrymore, was on the cover this month! I personally thought she looked strange--too digitally altered, perhaps? BUT, I digress!