I knew I loved that skirt!!

A few weeks ago I freaked out about this super smart idea Aunt Peaches had. She turned a thrift store skirt into a curtain. YES.

As I am a curtain-hater, I was surprised by how much I actually wanted one. I didn't want one in my living room -no, I enjoy hearing my husband complain every night as he walks around in his skivvies about the lack thereof (curtains, not skivvies) so no, I didn't want to change that. So where? In my office. Thats where. We have tons of foot traffic in front of our house every day and since we sit up a few feet from the sidewalk people look right in allllll the time. And its kind of weird. So yea, I guess I'll take a curtain in my office.

Super unflattering Royal Blue accordion pleated skirt:

Scissors + Tension Rod = Curtain!

Getting Clean

I come from generations of clean addicts. When my mother travels, she sneaks a little Ziploc bag containing a tooth brush, Q tip and dust cloths in the car and cleans everything she can reach from her belted position in the passenger seat. She learned this from her father. A few summers years ago, my grandfather and I had the chance to meet up at my parents house and spend some really quality time together. We planted in the garden and got into our usual amount trouble. At the end of our trip, he passed down his little box of cleaning tools to me. It was a simple gesture but I understood the responsibility that came with accepting his gift. The torch/feather duster had been passed.

Now, I believe my mother and grandfather were born with the "clean gene". I was not. I'm an average housekeeper, love the smell of laundry detergent -but honestly, I could care less about the two plates and six glasses in my kitchen sink right now. And my house probably needs power washed. And my car is about three months overdue for a bath.

In efforts to make my family proud, I'm trying to get it together. So I've started my "Getting Clean" period with items I hold closest to my heart: Vintage Clothing!

My wonderful friend Arwen recently shipped me a box containing 37 lbs of gorgeous 1950s and 1960s vintage clothing. Most of it was perfect in every way, but a few things had stains or rust. I picked this gorgeous 2 piece sleeveless, chiffon top and skirt with 12+ rust spots and embarked on my cleaning journey.

Sad little spots:

I ventured to my favorite store ever, ACE Hardware to peruse the cleaning aisle and found some really great products:

One thing I've learned from my family: Tooth brushes are your most important tool! I picked a kids brush for this project because I needed the bristles to be soft enough for the delicate chiffon I would be using it on.

I'd heard really great things about "Grandma's Secret Spot Remover" and after spot testing the skirt, I proceeded to treat the little rust spots per instructions on the package:

Kind of gross, right? Totally looks like my skirt has the measles!

After the first treatment the spots had faded, but were still visible. I decided that the fabric was in good enough shape to let me try the process one last time, here are my results:

The "After" was really hard to photograph, as the results were super light. It wasn't a total success, but it was better than what I started with! In some spots the rust had totally faded, but so did the beautiful pink! The chiffon had also shrunk about 1" shy of the lining.

All in all, this gorgeous pink lady will probably never be fully restored to its original state, but its okay! I absolutely adore it and will be keeping in my collection of "Imperfect Pink's"

While trying to rehab this dress I ran in to some really helpful resources:

Covet and Love It Vintage Fashions
Cleaning Tips for Vintage Textiles
Cleaning and Storing Antique Clothing

Hot Tip from my friend Laura: "Murphy's oil soap is pretty good at getting spots out of vintage clothing and linens. You can make a spray with it for spot cleaning. Read the label for directions. Or cream of tarter made into a paste with vinegar or water."

Feel free to add any great cleaning methods that work for you in the comment section!

The Dapper Dude and other Goodwill treasures

I didn't find my husband at Goodwill.. but wouldn't it make a great toast? "To the best treasure I've ever found..." (I actually found him at a music festival, but thats a whole other story)

I do however, find his fashions at Goodwill, ARC, Unique and on Etsy. He wears a uniform to work, so he really enjoys dressing up on his days off. Saturday evening we decided to head out to the Goodwill half off sales and scored, BIG TIME!

Check out this adorable er.. manly outfit:





Thrifted: "Arrow" button up $2.99, "Puritan" knit sweater $2.49, "Dockers" pants $4.99, Boxer belt buckle $4, "Allen Edmonds" shoes $8.99, green tie $.99

New: Argyle socks, Target

I also forced him to try on a gorgeous 1960s trench coat al a Don Draper. He acted like he didn't want it but it somehow ended coming home with us..? $9.99! Photos coming soon!

Other gems I scored for the shop:







Thanks DeeAnna for tuning me back in to Goodwill! Its worth the drive!

xo,
a

How to: Bow tie!

Twiggy + Adele = Makeup Glory

Thanks to Sameera of "Makeup By Sameera" for your amazing talent and the time you took to hang out and play dress up!

Also, a big Thanks to Ali!! You were the sweetest and most fun!

xo
a

i heart afghans

while I love the people of Afghanistan, i'm referring to those amazing works of crochet art that come in all colors and patterns. and once I grow my collection i just might hang them on my wall and have a party, and call it an art show.



growing up, we had two afghans. One was a blue's and white zig zag pattern and one was a bold colors (think crayola bold colors markers circa 1986) marigold, purple and teal. they were glorious. the bold colored afghan was best when used as our tent top while making forts. someone's big toe had forged holes, larger than the rest, in just the right places so we could easily loop the blanket around the tops of the dining room chairs. the blue's and white zig zag blanket was choice for cold nights, as it had been knit super tight and kept you very warm. the chance for your big toe to pop out of a hole was much slimmer than if you were under the bold colors afghan.

yes. purchasing blankets at thrift stores/estate sales can be icky. but not if you are smitten and follow protocol:

check it out -if it's got stains and isn't simply amazing just let it go this time. seriously, any stains you can see with your eyes are just plain gross!
sniff: if it smells gross -it will always smell gross. pass this one up.
if it passes the sniff test -purchase, keep in a separate bag in your trunk until you return home
hang your blanket outside overnight. let the cold get to it
keep your blanket outside in the sun the next day. let the heat get to it.
bring it inside and wash according to fabric content.
hang outside to dry.

Mad Mad Men

Every girl wants their man to look like Don Draper, and if every man knows what's good for him.. he should want to look like Don Draper as well!

I came across this fa-byew-lossss vintage mens tuxedo while we were back in Illinois in December and was bummed to find out it was not going to fit my man.

Lucky for some guy, it's up for sale on my Etsy site: www.dingalingvintage.com




Also for sale:

"Oh Yeah" 1970s Mens Vintage Brown Tuxedo