an atlanta visit

1960s Plaid Jumper Dress - Thrifted

1990s Platform Lace Ups, Two Tone Satchel - Thrifted

Opaque Tights - American Apparel

Gold Bobby Pins - H&M

And we're home!

Neil had some work to do in Atlanta this weekend, so we thought we'd make the most of the quick trip and visit my sister Rhiannon and Drew. We shopped around the Five Points (I found a vintage peter pan collar blouse and smocked crop top), drank coffee, and ate Antico pizza.. all of which are fast becoming our Atlanta traditions with Drew and Rhi. I couldn't be happier about that.

I wore this 1960s Sears mini dress for a day of photos, but it's actually headed to the shop this week (shop update coming this Wednesday!). It's a deadstock find with the prettiest cream colored puff sleeves and gold buckle. I haven't found anything this adorable in awhile, so I was super pleased when I found it tucked away in the children's section, old tags and all.

Neil's vintage ankle boots came from Tidwell and Perryman, a menswear gem situated in Local Honey's new Nashville location on Belmont Boulevard. The shop is filled with all-American looks - plenty of plaid and denim, varsity jackets, and lots of great looking vintage brogues and oxfords. I'm always stealing Neil's button ups and striped sweaters.. if only those boots would fit me, I'd be stealing them too.

I received my sewing patterns in the mail today, which means I'll be busy sewing velvet dresses and cotton blouses all week long! Happy Monday!

a southern birthday celebration

Vintage Betty Barclay Velvet Dress - gift from lovely Carmen

Black Oxford Heels - H&M

Heart Locket - Forever21

Hey, it was my birthday on Thursday!! And I'm 25 now!!

We're back from our Atlanta birthday visit and man alive, are we beat. We had a great time with Rhi and Drew eating the best pizza in the world, visiting vintage stores in the Little Five Points, and stocking up on wine. We also got to spend the afternoon with Vanessa and Abi, who are seriously lovely.

I can't wait to show you guys pictures of our H&M and Madewell adventures (yessssss Alexa Chung collection) and coffee drinking and the best peter pan collar blouse in the world. And I'll share why I'm not exactly wearing anything handmade for my birthday..

But for now, I'm admitting defeat and heading to bed. Happy weekend, all!

my atlanta trip and adventures with ayn the owl - a crafting love story

Welcome September, my second favorite month of the year! Two weeks until my birthday!

I wanted to show you a few Atlanta moments! We had such a great time. The weekend consisted mostly of eating and talking, and you can't go wrong with that combination. Rhi and Drew are so fun and so generous and thoughtful. How did I end up with such a good family?

And I really have never seen a cooler house than Drew's. There is no contest. No woman decorates like Drew decorates. Or man. Gay or straight.

My friend Rachel is having a baby! She found out it's a little girl.. I wanted to make something for her baby shower coming up in a couple of weeks, so I went straight to Etsy for some inspiration.

While I found a plethora of cutesy cupcake felt hair clips and bear ear crochet baby hats, my favorite finds were, by far, the stuffed owls. One of my favorites was a cute little owl done by Plants and Animals (their shop rocks for many other reasons besides stuffed owls, so check it out!). While I knew I couldn't make a perfect little owl like they did, I thought I would use their pictures to make my own version.

So, here is the process..

And here are the results! Ayn the Owl. Made with felt and vintage fabric and coffee (not really the coffee part).

After Ayn was born, she kind of took over the place while Neil was away. Here are the exploits I caught her in.

Here is Ayn surfing the web, looking up pictures of other owls.

Here is Ayn listening to some music.

Here is Ayn having a snack. She loves her bananas and lemons.

Here is Ayn on the toilet.

Here is Ayn reading. I can't pull her away from those Hitler biographies!

What do you think? I'd like to give Rachel something else besides Ayn, maybe a little something for her and the owl can go to the baby. Do you guys have any ideas?