Happy Halloween!

Love,

Weetzie the Unicorn & George the Monster

(Yes, we're those people. But aren't they adorable?)

What I'm Making: A Fall Rainbow Bag

My rainbow ruffle bag! I finally finished it. It's from the same pattern as the bag I made for my mom's birthday except this time around it took a bit longer to finish because I wasn't pressed for time. It's still a ridiculously easy pattern, though, and I highly recommend it! I used Knit Picks Palette because I preferred the way it felted over Wool of the Andes (I used both for my mom's bag) and I'm really glad I did-- it makes a much looser, more casually-felted bag (if that's even a thing) whereas WotA felts much stiffer and shrinks more. So instead of a structured bag I've ended up with a felted tote, which I love.

I'm afraid I don't have much to say about the outfit except that I've worn it (what feels like) a billion times since putting it together and just now managed to photograph it. I've been throwing this trench over everything. It's really only weather-appropriate for a little while so I should probably go ahead and tire myself of it (although really it was only usable for a little while in St. Louis last year-- I'm sure with our strange weather in NC I'll be able to wear it all winter.)

Forever 21 top
Modcloth skirt
Target tights
Seychelles heels
Tucker for Target trench
Bag- knit by me

PS: Make sure to enter my earrings giveaway -- it ends tomorrow!

New Hair, Old Dress & a GIVEAWAY!

The blogging hiatus of laziness is over now, promise!

And look-- new hair! I can't believe I finally grew out all that dark dye, which is a process, good heavens. It still isn't quite how I want it (there are some dark bits at the ends) but I'm so happy to finally have a red base to work with. Yay!

Yesterday we went to Oakdale Cemetery (the oldest in the city) to take a few creepy-ish Halloween photos, because apparently I have tons of old vintage dresses that look nice in cemeteries (remember this one?). They closed early and we had to finish up a few other shots at the park, but at least I got a chance to finally explore the place. It's huge and the oldest sections are both beautiful and heartbreaking, because there are so many children.

This dress was a thrifting find from ages ago, back when I had the most perfect source in the world for cheap vintage (RIP magical little thrift shop). The rhinestone detail on the bodice is so beautiful and the color combination is lovely-- it would look amazing with a crinoline, if only I had one.

Another reason for the graveyard visit was an attempt to show off the gorgeous vampire bat bracelet I received c/o My Selvaged Life on Etsy! She makes jewelry out of interesting pieces and vintage materials-- my beloved moth necklace is from there and she has an amazing selection (check out the Halloween collection, ahh!). I love all things bat-related so I adore this bracelet, and I especially like that it adds a dark vibe to an outfit while being so small and delicate.

Heather from My Selvaged Life has graciously offered to do a giveaway with my readers, so up for grabs is a pair of these gorgeous Cinnamon and Sea Salt earrings like the ones I'm wearing above! From the description:

These lovely dangles are made with vintage West German lucite tear drops to in a yummy cinnamon shade. Each is hugged by gorgeous ornate brass filigree bead caps that have been patinaed a deep teal green. Each hangs from brass leverback earwires approx. 55mm from earlobe.

I don't normally wear earrings, so I was a little nervous when she asked if I would model a pair for her shop-- but I've gotten so many compliments while wearing these that I really shouldn't have worried! They look amazing and it's my favorite color combination, so I can definitely see myself wearing these more. My giveaways are always pretty uncomplicated, so just comment below to be entered. You can earn a few additional entries by doing any of the following and leaving an extra comment telling me about it:

• Blogging/tweeting about the giveaway with a link to this post
• Becoming a follower of Pansy Lane and/or adding My Selvaged Life to your favorites on Etsy
• Following myself and/or @Myselvagedlife on twitter

The giveaway is open worldwide until I choose a winner on Friday, October 28th via random.org. Good luck and thanks for reading!

Thrifted vintage dress
F21 cardigan
Bracelet and earrings c/o My Selvaged Life
Target tights
Seychelles heels

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The winner is #18, Anna from Cinnamon & Coffee! I hope you love the earrings as much as I do!

Thanks to everyone who entered!

What I'm Making: Plywood Halloween Decorations

I totally forgot to take more progress photos!

Creepy Owl & Sassy Monocle Cat.

Neat, right?! I'm so happy with them!

I obviously based them on my favorite Beistle designs from a couple posts ago. They were super quick and easy-- the most time consuming part of the entire project was having to run back and forth to buy extra paint and wood because I decided to do the pumpkins last minute. I had Lowe's cut the plywood into 4 x 4 pieces for the owl and cat, and the pumpkins were done on individual 2 x 2 squares that you can buy separately. My dad cut them out and Jeremy screwed them onto posts. I always feel like a Big Deal when my projects end up involving wood and power tools! The biggest thing to remember was to seal them with some sort of outdoor protectorate.. I've already put on a few coats, but I think I might do a few more just to be safe.

We're the only house around us with any decorations up, so I'm sure the neighbors are looking at us a bit strangely right now!

Old Favorites

I feel like I've been horribly neglectful of the blog lately, but I swear I haven't lost interest! It's silly because I have lots of post ideas but I've just been unusually busy with about five different projects, plus I'm still trying to figure out if it's worth it to do a Rocky Horror (Columbia) costume this year. I've been wanting to do a Columbia costume for years but I'm on a budget and won't be able to do the jacket properly, so I don't know. I don't know!

This outfit post is kind of sad, though, because it's the only picture I liked from last Saturday (it was taken at Riverfest here in Wilmington, and I'm kicking myself for not getting any photos of fall-fair-type-things). Also I'm wearing two things that I ALWAYS WEAR: mustard cardigan, Audrey tee. They have served me well.

I'm about 80% done with my plywood Halloween decorations so expect photos this weekend!

UO cardigan
Audrey tee, nola
F21 shorts
green tights, (?)
thrifted vintage boots

Vintage Beistle Halloween Decorations

As Part One of my do-all-the-Halloween-things mission I've been collecting pictures of vintage die-cut decorations from the Beistle company, because they are (obviously!) the best ever. They're all bright and simple and kind of weird, which I love. When I was little my dad used to buy those flimsy cardboard decorations and paint the design onto plywood to go in the front yard-- we had Dracula and a witch-- and I always thought it was such a good idea. This year I've decided to do a few of them for the deck because I've accidentally turned into Crazy Halloween Lady and I want the house to match my state of mind.

I'm almost done with the owl and next up is the monocle-cat (because everyone needs a fancy creepy cat in the yard). I wasn't planning on doing the pumpkins but I don't think I can resist those panicked/creeper expressions, and they would look really good nailed vertically to a post.

To summarize: Halloweenhalloweenhalloweenhalloweenhalloween--

Source:

roadsidepictures
riptheskull
bindlegrim