1950s Full Circle Skirt Using a Doctor Who Tardis Fabric!

I AM SO SILLY PROUD OF THIS COMPLETED SEWING PROJECT!

I just had to share it in one more place! 

To view the "how to" video series you can click below

Chasing Euphoria and One Fabulous Dress

You might be asking..."Jen are all your blog posts going to be about running?".  Short answer...No.  :D  Running and exercise is not my natural state (it's more pretty dresses, fancy hair, game controller in hand, and TV playing a great movie) so I need to keep myself motivated in the early stages and sharing with you all does that for me!  You all are my cheerleaders and coaches, and before you ask...your salary is paid in virtual hugs. 


Heading into my second week I'm still arguing with myself and fighting to not procrastinate.  Do you know that I actually used the excuse of "I can't go cuz I forgot to wash my running bra"...insert eye rolling and a disbelieving snort here.  Really Jen, that was the best you could come up with?   I've heard I'm not alone in this and that it could take up to a month before it stops happening consistently.  What really motivates me now to get out the door is the euphoric feeling I get when Doom (see previously post for explanation) tells me sweetly in her robotic voice that I have completed my run for the day.  At that moment I get a rush of adrenaline as I calmly walk down the street with the stupidest grin on my face looking around to see if anyone else has noticed the momentous event that has just occurred.  Mentally, of course, I do a Judd Nelson Breakfast Club fist to the sky in jubilee.  The amazing thing is that this feeling lasts for hours after I finish running, I get more stuff done around the house, feel a sense of accomplishment at ticking all those items off my to-do list, and generally feel bouncy and more completely in my body.  Later when I wind down I feel properly exhausted and entitled to some quality time on the couch with my cats and my remote and even later to sleep soundly and restfully.  All these fabulous results from getting up off the couch and yet tomorrow I am sure I will try to convince myself to stay home with an even dumber excuse!  


How do you all motivate yourself to get moving?
Total Distance:  1.23 miles (I think it's more time than distance
Overall Pace:  15:45 (worse than day 1 but I got stopped at a lot of red lights...the downside of city running)
Fastest Pace:  10:07

Now for the girly pretty!  If you following A Vintage Vanity on Facebook you'll know that my Mom recently bought me a lovely dress and my Sister and her family got me some great shoes, for my birthday.  I happily wore all of them on Mother's day.  So here's a little OOTD shot for you!


Dress:  Pinup Girl Clothing - Netti Dress in Lime Green


Shoes:  J-41 Adventure On - Fiji


Hair Flower:  Belle Blossoms - Lovely Magnolia


Cardigan:  Old Navy - Cropped Lightweight White Cardigan


I am in love with this dress, it looks great with or without a petticoat and it has a bit of spandex in it so it is incredibly comfortable to wear.  The shoes I am in awe of.  That sounds like such an odd statement, but normally I don't wear heels since my feet tend to reject them but these are so comfortable I feel like I could run a marathon in them...all that and they are super cute!  Old Navy is my supplier for my cardigan addiction...it's so light and soft...swoon.  As always Belle Blossoms has some of the loveliest flowers around.


Eep!  Hope you all enjoy my first OOTD!  :D  Big thanks to my Sister for taking this shot for me...punch ya!

The Windy City + Flirty Sundress = Thank God for Bike Shorts!

The Opposite of how I Looked!

So yesterday I was feeling a little cheeky, the weather was perfect, I was wearing a new flirty sun dress, my hair is newly dyed and looked amazing.  Now anyone that knows me will quickly tell you that I'm more often neurotic than overly confident, but when the planets align properly you just have one of those days and you can't help but walk with a spring in your step and a bounce in your curls.  So I decided that during my lunch hour I would go out and enjoy the weather, watch some tourists, and generally bounce around being all that and a bag of reasonably priced chips.  With my big sunnies on I stepped out onto Michigan Avenue with a very Mary Tyler Moore attitude and with perfect timing Mother Nature decided to show me just how sarcastic she can be by blowing my fabulously flirty new sun dress up around my ears!  Nope...it was not a coy Marilyn moment, it was more Lucille Ball.  Frantically I turned in circles while batting and grabbing at my errant dress desperately trying to bring it back to knee level, all the while thanking the heavens that I had the forethought this morning to wear bike shorts therefore saving all the innocent tourists from their very first flasher moment.  Once my dress was back under control and my dignity was clutched fervently to the side of my leg I continued, albeit with a little less bounce, to enjoy the remainder of my lunch break.  Of course by then the wind that caused my frantic dress dance was no longer blowing,  Mother Nature was too busy gasping and clutching her side laughing.  Once clear of witnesses the bounce returned to my step because one is so resilient when having a great hair day!

I'll be back on a regular blogging schedule soon!

Just a quick post to let you all know why it's been so quiet lately.  I've been stretched thin and exhausted the last couple weeks with work and family.  My Mom has been in rehab recovering from a hip surgery and she's doing great, but it's like my life is in a sno-globe right now and someone keeps shaking things up!  Hopefully Mom will be home by next weekend and we can all get things back to "normal".  I've got some great ideas for upcoming blogs and a hairstyle video that I've shot but that's going through a slow editing process...I'm hoping to have it up next week some time.  I hope everyone is doing well and I'll be back to a regular blogging schedule in the next week or two...which is good since I have so much I want to share with you all!

Feeling the Love During a Tough Week

So the last week and then some has been pretty rough.  My Mom just went through hip surgery and it's looking like it will be a long recovery, which has taken it's toll emotionally and physically.  So while I was drudging through this time I was thrilled to find that one of my favorite bloggers, Atomic Chic, awarded me my very first blog award!   If you've never stopped by her blog please do so, I'm sure you'll find her as interesting, inspirational, and fashionable (with just the right amount as geek) as I do.  Thanks again for the lovely award!

The Rules:

If you are tagged...

Thank the person who gave you the award 

Share 7 random bits about yourself

Pass the award on to a few of your favorite blogs

(And don't forget to let them know!)

I'll be tagging and awarding the following lovely ladies!

Caroline over at In Vinculis Etiam Audax...for inspiring photography

Tami over at My Moving Finger Writes...for great style and overall fabulousness

Jess at The Vintage Huntress...for inspiration and drool worthy fashion picks

Now for the random

1. I've eaten pretzels as big as my head, drank beers larger than it, and danced on a table while singing German folk songs at Oktoberfest in Munich.
2. My dream is to live in Europe, write travel books for Rick Steves, and visit every country in the world.
3. I'm not afraid of being a little wacky...talking in odd voices - check, dancing in a supermarket -check, creating stupid songs complete with a strange dance...oh, check and check.
4. I practiced martial arts for 8 years, and have used it twice it my life.
5. For a short time I did stock upgrades and downgrades on The Rob Black Show, and no...I'm not a financial guru.
6. If I reincarnated as an animal I would want to be a pelican...they can swim, fly, float, plus they come with storage!
7. My favorite nut is the walnut.

Can't wait for more?  Then check out my Weekly Blog:  Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Sweet Art in St. Louis, MO.  Click here to view Veggie Girl Eats Out! 

If you'd like an email notification when new blogs are posted sign up for an e-mail subscription, which can be found to the left of this post.

Vintage Repo/Inspired Shopping and the Curvy Woman

I cannot wait to rock this lil' number!

Today Ashley over at Lisa Freemont Street posted a great video on shopping online for vintage repro/inspired clothing.  Combine that with some great clothing posts I've seen lately and I felt like the universe was telling me I absolutely had to buy a pretty new dress today.  What I had forgotten was my curvy size was not that compatible with a lot of the vintage clothing out there.  After looking at a few of the sites I started to get a little frustrated at the sizing...and quite frankly a tad bit depressed.  Well, we couldn't have a frustrated and grumpy Jennifer today so I decided to dive straight in and research and create a list of vintage clothing websites (based off of Ashley's video) and the maximum sizes they offer...that way if any of you out there are like me you don't have to endure what I did.  (Falling in love with a dress to only find out that it would come to a dead stop trying to make it over one's lovely lady lumps).  While researching I did find a match made in heaven at Sourpuss Clothing...the Out to Sea dress, they may be one of the many reasons I have a fear of the sea...but yay for giant killer octopus' on dresses! (oh...and side note:  this is my first vintage repro clothing online purchase)


For the sizes listed below I based it on a dress that was listed on the site.  Often even on the same website sizes vary so please be sure to always check the sizing charts.  

Please let me know if you have any suggestions/changes that can be made to the list!

Daddy O's:  Most go up to 3X, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average a 3X measures B46/W38.
Pin Up Girl Clothing:  Highest size is 2X, the site allows you to search by size which is nice, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average a 2X measures B44.5-45/W36-37.5

My Baby Jo:  Highest size is 3X, but not as large of a selection as some of the other sites, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average a 3X measures B44/W36/H46

Mode Merr: Everything comes in sizes up to 3X (B46/W38/H49)

Bernie Dexter Clothing:  Only goes up to XL (B40/W32/H42)

Bettie Page Clothing:  Highest size is 4X (4X sizing is not on the website, measurements for 3X are B42-45/W34-38.5/H46-49)

Heartbreaker Fashion:  Highest size is 2X (B46-48/W36-37/H48-50)

Miss Hussy:  Highest size is 3X, but its sizing is smaller (B45/W36/H48)

The Red Dolly (swimsuits):  Highest size is a large (B37-39/W28-30/H38-40)

Sourpuss Clothing:  Highest size is a 2X, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average measurements for 2X are B40/W40-42.

Le Bomb Shop:  Highest size is a XL, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average measurements for XL are B36-42/W28-38.

Vintage Suits by Mary (swimsuits & playsuits):  Highest size is XL, but custom sizing is available upon request (B40.5-43.5/W32.5-35.5/H43-46)

Vivien of Holloway:  Highest size is XL (B44-46/W36-38/H48-50)

Heyday Clothing:  Highest size is XL (B42-47/W34-38/H44-48)

Revamp Vintage:  Highest size is XL, but made to measure is available (B40/W32/H42)

Nicole Katherine Designs:  Some go up to 26W (B52/W44/H55)

Blue Velvet Vintage:  Some go up to XL (B42/W38/H46)

Candy Violet:  Highest size is 2X, they do custom orders as well (B42/W36/H45)

Big Beautiful Barbara Brown:  Highest measurements are B46/W38/H48

Freddies of Pinewood:  Highest measurements are W38/H48

Tara Starlet:  Highest size is 16 (B42/W33/H42)

Whirling Turban:  Highest waist size is a 42, they do custom made orders

Queen of Heartz:  Highest size is 3X (B44/W36/H46)

Tarantula Clothing:  Has a curvy gals section with sizes 1X to 5X (B54), don't get too excited they have only two items (very cute but again...only two)

Mod Cloth:  I’ve not seen higher than a 3X, sizing varies so check the size charts.  On average a 3X measures B46-57/W40/H50 (type plus in the search box to shift through the massive amount of dresses)

Shabby Apple:  Highest size is a XL (B41-42/W33-35/H43-45)


Can't wait for more?  Then check out my Weekly Blog:  Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Sweet Art in St. Louis, MO.  Click here to view Veggie Girl Eats Out! 

Have you purchased from any of these stores and if so, what was your experience?  Do you have a favorite dress?  Leave your response in the comment section below.

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Snood Hairstyle Tutorial: Bad Hair Day...Snood to the Rescue!

I love my snoods, they're great on bad hair days or after a hair experiment gone horribly wrong!  So I've gone and done it again...created a hair tutorial video!  I hope you all enjoy!

Can't wait for more?  Then check out my Weekly Blog:  Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Letizia's Fiore and find out if vegetarians should ever eat there.  Click here to view Veggie Girl Eats Out! 

What's your favorite fix for a bad hair day?  Leave your response in the comment section below.

If you'd like an email notification when new blogs are posted sign up for an e-mail subscription, which can be found to the left of this post.

The Winged Eye: Liquid or Pencil Liner Make-up Review

One of the fun aspects of wearing vintage is getting to play around with those great make-up looks.  One of my favorites is the winged eye or the cat-eye.  If you're unsure of how to create this look click here for a great tutorial from Lisa Freemont Street.  Creating this look can be a little tricky, but with the right product it can make the process much easier.  I've been trying out a lot of different liners lately to find one that works for me.  I tried the following liners:  Stila's smudge stick waterproof eyeliner in Stringray, Wet n Wild Mega Liner color 861, and Revlon ColorStay liquid liner in Blackest Black and this is what I've found (from most expensive to least):

Please note that all products I review are cruelty free.

• Stila:  I wanted to try a good traditional pencil eyeliner as the liquid ones can sometimes be a little hard to control.  For me to execute a great winged eye look I need to be able to easily do a flick and swish at the corner of the outer eye.  With a pencil I was not able to do this, it felt difficult and the result was messy and uneven.  Essentially I was like a kindergardener with a crayon...not a look I was going for.  As a regular liner for above/below the lashes it's great.  What I did like is I was able to wipe off any mistakes with a tissue, but yet it dried in a reasonable amount of time.  Overall it's a good product, but not for the look I was going for.
• Revlon:  Now I was back in the liquid liners, and spoiler alert...this one was my favorite!  The brush is firm with just a little bend which helped me keep control of my brush strokes.  It also was not bristles so you don't have to worry about a bristle going all cock-eyed and leaving little black trails everywhere.  It didn't dry too quickly so you were able to clean up the line with a tissue and it doesn't bleed onto your upper lid when you fully open your eye.  Overall great price and easy to use and control.
• Wet n Wild:  I liked that it was a liquid and brushed on smooth and easy, but after that things didn't go so well.  A little like a bad blind date...starts off good but the more they talk the worse things get.  This is where it went wrong:  a few of the bristles on the brush got kinked and started leaving little black dots all over my eyelid, often my hands get a little shaky when applying liner and with such a flexible brush I frequently found myself "coloring outside the lines", and when I fully opened my eyes I found that the liner bled onto my upper lid creating a slightly crazed look.  Overall myself and Wet n Wild where not a match made in heaven.

Can't wait for more?  Then check out my Weekly Blog:  Veggie Girl Eats Out for my review of Letizia's Fiore and find out if vegetarians should ever eat there.  Click here to view Veggie Girl Eats Out! 

Have you tried the winged eye look?  How did it work out for you?  Leave your response in the comment section below.

If you'd like an email notification when new blogs are posted sign up for an e-mail subscription, which can be found to the left of this post.

Je t'adore my new Hat!

Ever since I've started wearing the retro/vintage look I've wanted to find the perfect little hat to go along with the hair (still working on the clothes!).  Well, one day when I was happily reading down the blog trail I stumbled upon The Modern Day Flapper and I noticed all these great hats she was wearing...then...I noticed that she was actually the milliner of these fabulous creations so I immediately surfed over to her Etsy shop Jayjayamore and essentially drooled until payday.  Well, you can bet your last casino chip that when payday rolled around I ordered myself my very first vintage inspired hat, and boy was it difficult to choose which hat I liked best!

While at work, diligently working away, I received a package.  I was so excited thinking it was my new hat, but alas it was just stupid business cards...stupid unwearable non-hat business cards.  As the day drew to a close I realized it was too early to see my hat come through the mail, I had just ordered it on Sunday.  As I completed this thought Brian (my co-worker) walked around the corner with a hat shaped box in his hands and he was headed straight for me!  Bliss...my hat had arrived.  It was everything I expected and more.  The look and size was exactly what the website showed and the construction and materials where even better than I expected.  The material was so soft and the embellishments were just perfect.  I could not wait to run home and try it on!

Once home came the difficult decision...should I wear it on the right or left side?  What's great is the hat is really easy to attach (two duckbill clips on the underside), easy to adjust, and very stable...I don't think even a good Chicago wind could whip it off my head.  (it might possibly knock over me before the hat)  Here's some pictures of my new accoutrement, please forgive the hair and make-up...it was a long day at work.

So what do you think...right or left?  Leave your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.  

Read my Latest Dining Out Review for Letizia's at Veggie Girl Eats Out:  http://veggiegirleatsout.blogspot.com/

Attempt #1 at the Happy Pompadour

A Closer Look at the Happy Pompadour

Weekends are made for trying out new hairstyles!  Since I knew I'd be spending Saturday with friends I decided to try a very 40's hairstyle...my genius mind knew I would get honest feedback on how well I did and if I could "pull it off".  So Friday night I casually flipped through my favorite hairstyling book, Vintage Hairstyling, to find just the right "do".  I decided to go with the book's cover look...the happy pompadour, it looks so fun and sassy I just had to try it!  This is such a fabulous book and I really want to support the author so I'm not going to walk through how I did the hairstyle, but I will tell you about the experience and how it turned out! :D  (I've also included an amazon link to the book if you're interested)

It's my "Shoooot" Facial Expression!

So I set my hair and covered it with a hair net...yes I know it's very cafeteria chic, but I can't sleep without wearing one.  I must fight zombies, or disco dance, or spin plates while I sleep because I wake with at least 2 or 3 rollers nearly unrolled...so the hair net has been a hair saver!  The next morning, in true Jennifer fashion, I woke up late so I did not have as much time to spend styling the look as I'd like but I think it worked out OK for my first stab at it.  I'll tell what really bugged this morning is that the hair in back didn't dry all the way (arguh...I think I didn't wait long enough after washing), you can tell by the lack of curls at the ends.

I Just Like This Picture :D

The steps in the book were really clear to follow, the most difficult part was getting the bangs just right.  You can see from the picture that I didn't quite master that yet, but I think it works.  btw...the picture is from much later in the day so I'm happy that the look was able to stand up to my daily activities and Chicago's wind.  The only other thing I'd like to work on with the look is the very top.  You can see the little white flowers on the top of my head...those are used to cover up the rubber band that's up there and I'm not in love with that look.  I think I'm going to try playing with either wrapping some hair around the band or doing a criss-cross with a small section of hair on top.  

One thing that I did play with was throwing in a cute little side pony tail and an extra flower...gotta have fun with it!  I definitely like the look and will try it out again...I think I'll even work it at work!

Not Sure why I Keep Making the Odd Faces?!

What are your weekends made for?  Leave your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.  

You can also find me at  Veggie Girl Eats Out:  http://veggiegirleatsout.blogspot.com/