A Mirror World

     Have you ever noticed that the world you see in the mirror looks more appealing? Maybe it's just me, but when I was little I would lay on the ground and stare at the reflection of the room in the ceiling fan. It sparked my imagination, and I loved to make it come to life. I would imagine all sorts of things, and wish I could go through to the other side. When I read "Into the Looking Glass", I felt like they had it wrong. Things in the mirror are not skewed and wrong, they are beautiful. Seeing things in a mirror makes you take a new perspective and see with fresh eyes.
     I really want this blog to be a fun place for people to visit. I know that there are blogs out there that are too standoffish, and don't feel personal, or blogs that get a little too personal, and both of these are bad things. I think I may be erring on the side of standoffish. I want this to be an interesting blog that has some depth to it. I want it to be about beauty, life, love, and everything that is good in my life. Not that my life is perfect, but I like to look at the good side of things. Whenever I catch myself starting to get overwhelmed or depressed, I remember to look at the big picture; it is good to put things in perspective.

     Spring Breakg was this last week for my school. My sister and I, with a friend of ours, were able to go home. There is nothing like being home for a week, without homework or responsibility. Of course, home is not always like this, but a small break like this is an excuse for laziness. 

     There is nothing like good, homecooked food. This meal was so pretty that I had to take pictures of it. My Mom made salmon (which my Dad kindly de-skinned for her), a quick bread, and I made the spinach salad. Afterwards we ate lovely little lime cheesecakes which Rachael made. I forgot to take a picture, we just started eating them!

     I'm back at school now, but I can still remember my beautiful home, and appreciate my second home as well; and I can still let the beauty of God's creation seep into my soul, just like I did with the reflection in the ceiling fan. The second half of this semester is going to be even better than the first.

Lots of love to all of you! 

Love is in the Air

Sorry about my weird, skill-lacking, selfie-ish photography. I don't have a very good camera, and I am not a good photographer. Perhaps someday this will change. Also, sorry about all of the serious faces, I am concentrating on not shaking the camera. I mostly just want to show you some of my world. 

     Valentine's Day is such a sweet holiday. Even if you don't have a sweetheart, it is still lovely to see all of the adorable couples who are so happy to be together, and I find that I can't be envious of their joy. Plus, there is almost always chocolate.

      Last night I decided to wear pinks and reds in honor of this day, and this morning I completely forgot (I was running late to chapel). Instead I am wearing blue; the sheer number of people wearing red today makes me glad that I 'decided' to be different (though I did wear my red trench coat). It is blustery outside, which means absolutely butchered hair (not that I do much to mine, but I consider bangs standing straight up as butchered). It doesn't bother me personally, but I feel bad for the girls going on dates tonight for whom nice hair has become a hopeless case. I suppose that hats and scarves would be useful...

      I am in love with my new tights, they are so fun and practical. This color goes with most of my wardrobe, and I feel like they are dark enough to not stand out too crazily.

      This blouse hasn't shown up yet (indeed, I've only worn it once). It was the only item that I managed to finish over Christmas break. I was really pleased with how nice the construction is (it is from a vintage pattern). The print was a little bit louder than I expected once it became a blouse. However, I still like it. It is not a flower print, as it may look. It is a Blue Willow China print, which has always charmed me. My mom has a small collection of this type of China, and I think it is absolutely lovely. Anyway, that is why I bought the fabric. The construction was very simple; the sleeves were cut in one with the blouse and then a cuff was added. Also, it is fitted below the waist line. I love details like this in vintage patterns. Whereas most modern blousy patterns/blouses would make the entire blouse full, this vintage pattern is made specifically for wearing tucked into a skirt or pants. The practicality is simply marvelous.

     These shoes haven't shown up either (that I can think of, at least they haven't been spotlighted) and they are some of my favorites! They are so very practical for cold days, walking across campus, rehearsing (in fact, I will be wearing these for my part as Nelly in the school play, "Oliver Twist", this semester), etc. All that I really need to do is water proof them and get some nice, cushy inserts for them. I found them last Spring semester at Plato's Closet after looking for shoes similar to this for months. They are a size too big, but it really doesn't matter in this style at all.


      I am thrilled to announce that I will be able to show you some sewing projects soon. I volunteered to help sew for the play, and I was just given my projects today. I will be making several silky red petticoats, and 10 orphan tunics, as well as an apron, and possibly some other projects. As you all know, I have been complaining non-stop about my lack of sewing machine, but that ends now! I don't want to be all negative and complainy, anywhere, but especially here! I am absolutely giddy about getting my paws on some proper sewing materials, it kills me to be so un-creative (in a non-negative way...)
Lots of love!

My Vintage PenalJo Spectator Heels

     Well, to begin with here are a couple of pictures that show my bangs off better.

     I promised I would show you my exciting thrift store find, and here they are! These shoes just make my heart flutter. I am having issues dating them, because I do not have much experience with shoes. They are labeled 9N, which, from what I can find, would place them in the 70s since earlier shoes would have been labeled with an A-D system instead. However, I think that they could easily have come from earlier. I know that they were made in Taiwan and they are real leather with a man-made balance; and that is the extent of my knowledge. If anyone has any further information, I would love to hear! Again, I haven't researched shoes nearly as much as other garments.

      Even though I usually like to stay before about 1965 or so, I think that these shoes are absolutely timeless. Based on appearances only, I thought they might have been from as early as the 30s. This is not the case, unfortunately; but I am not turning my nose up at them just because they are from the 70s! Every time that I wear these shoes I get a big grin on my face. They are just so perfect in every way; my only problem now is to keep them intact and not stress too much about actually wearing them! Oh, and did I mention that they were only $4? I will love these shoes forever.

     Now I just need to find some saddle shoes and some proper black flats to keep my shoe closet sensible! My present life as a student has been rather hard to come to terms with, since so many things require me to be sensible, especially as a theatre major. It is hard for me to wear these shoes very often, since the first time that I wore them the company label completely came off (along with most of the interior lining, which was leather); it all flaked off and got stuck to my socks. However, the inside was already flaking when I bought them. I almost didn't buy them because of this, not realizing they were vintage till I got them home; observant, right? Anyway, the outside is in absolutely flawless condition, so I shouldn't worry too much.
     I have been spending a lot of time drooling over pretty vintage frocks on Pinterest lately, and I think that I am going to go stir crazy without the ability to make anything new. I was definitely on a slightly lethargic, I-just-don't-care streak for a while there, since I am so busy. I guess, I have been remembering why I fell in love with the 50s to begin with, and I am dying to fatten up my wardrobe some. The sad thing is that about 800 miles away I have tons of fabric, patterns, and a sewing machine just waiting to be made into pretty things. My closet is nothing short of irritating to me right now. I have one skirt that I feel I can really wear (I overdo it on summer sewing, cotton is just so wonderful!) and not many dresses. I have been wearing jeans way more than I would like. This wouldn't bother me so much if they were at least vintage style. Fortunately the Spring semester always goes super fast!
Lots of love to all of you!

Howdy Do, and a New 'Do!

     Well, I promise I haven't abandoned you again! I am fighting a cold, and therefore spent the time I would have used on Wednesday to write a post sleeping. Dreadful, I know; only not really. I am feeling much better now though!

     I was so excited last week to finally have my hair trimmed (I hadn't done it since the first week of July, yikes!) and I finally got the bangs I wanted! I had set my heart on them over Christmas break, but didn't have the opportunity to do it, so I was thrilled when my friend next door offered to do it for me. She did an excellent job, too. I know this isn't the best picture, but I will be coming back with more soon. I wanted some fringe that could work for an Audrey look or a more modern look; that could be worn straight across my forehead, or pushed to the side. My basic stipulation was to not end up with thick, heavy bangs; I have too many bad childhood memories of those.
     I am feeling the need for color, lots of color, right now. It is dreary and dreadful outside, and I am dying to put on my summer garb and go prancing around, but that is out of the question. The real need is for more winter skirts. I will be devoting myself to sewing skirts over the summer; skirts and blouses. I will have to force myself to keep away from sewing pretty summer dresses. I have plenty of those, and I wear them far less than I do my warm clothes. I am also looking towards starting an Etsy shop when summer (and therefore my sewing machine) come back around. Stay tuned for more details about that! My next post I will be sharing a very exciting thrift shop find!

Lots of love!