dolled up.

I have come to the realization that I am drawn specifically to black and white clothing, usually with bib collars or a "tuxedo" style. I really prefer more masculine inspired looks paired with feminine accessories and makeup. As most ladies, collars alone get me almost every time. Almost. 

In the last year I have adopted a couple of my favourite closet staple pieces.

Three are dresses, two are tops. Three are vintage, two are not. Say hello to a couple top notch stunners I am proud to call mine!

These are two of my acquired finds and both are from Etsy. On the left is my 60s velvet tuxedo jumper that I've had since last April. I bought it for myself as an early birthday present from DutchessVintage, to wear on my birthday and take on our Chicago trip. It's probably my favourite vintage outfit I own. On the right is my newest vintage clothing purchase (other than for the shop of course!), a beautiful LucyInDesguise dress that has sort of a 60s folk style mixed in. I haven't even had a chance to wear it yet, other than a quick try-on, but it's in my closet waiting to make its debut.

And in case you're wondering, the dress in the photo above is an asos petite collar swing dress. The most effortless thing in my closet that instantly makes me look like I tried to put myself together. In reality, it feels like being draped in the softest, comfiest blanket.

Does anyone else get pulled in by these styles? Or do you have another wardrobe weakness?

Marissa

Retro Inspiration

The very first episode of Mad Men Season 7 aired last night. Did you watch it?! I was at work and missed it, but caught up when I got home! I'm definitely excited to see what happens in this last season. And of course I'm ready for all the fashion and style that comes along with it. I'm not going to lie, I recently marathoned the other six seasons to recap and be ready for this one. Nothing has inspired me more lately than the 60s and 70s.

While I work on my art I like to have movies or tv shows playing in the background. (I'm a crazy multitasker.) Mad Men has been an excellent companion to my art-making, because I've used it as inspiration for developing a lot of the vintage-inspired patterns and designs found in my work.

I'm sensing you'll see some nods to late 1960s/early 1970s patterns in my newer, yet to be finished pieces. In terms of Mad Men itself, I can't wait to see where all the story lines end up. It's been quite the adventure and I've been loving every second of it. 

Here are some fabulous retro dresses and tops from a variety of Etsy Vintage Shops.

( Two of them are mine from CharmingShopVintage. Sorry for the self-advertising, but they fit in here so well!)

Click on the links to view: one//two//three//four//five//six

I hope you like them!

Marissa xo

Colourful Vintage Dresses from Etsy

I don't know about you, but I'm really starting to long for warmer weather. I put together a few vintage dresses from Etsy that I'm in love with right now. One of them is from my very own shop, but oh how I wish it were my size! These amazing colour combinations and retro prints are helping me forget how cold it is out there. See any favourites?

1. Hidden Jaguar Print Shift Dress

2. Turquoise Shift Dress with Beaded Collar

3. Mod Yellow Dress with Psychedelic Cutout Design

4. Pastel Long Sleeved Minidress

5. 60s Gold Asian-Inspired Dress

6. Geometric 60s Shift Dress

7. Handmade Floral Minidress

8. Retro Green Dropwaist Shirt Dress

Click the links above to visit each listing. 

All of these dresses are vintage and all of them are certainly on my wish list! 

Have a great day everyone. See ya again soon!

Marissa xo

New Clothing at CharmingShopVintage

Here's a quick update from CharmingShopVintage.

The shop got some new, fresh faces...

See anything you like?

I know I do!

It was harder than ever to give up some of these pieces. But you can't keep everything, right? Head on over to the shop to view these vintage clothes in the photos plus more! 

I've extended our holiday coupon to make sure everyone gets a chance to look over the new items and has the opportunity to use the holiday discount. The listing date for these beauties got pushed back a bit, so I wanted to keep that coupon code going until December 15th. How do you get your coupon? Type in the code "HOLIDAY20" at checkout to get your discount, dolls!

Lots of love,

Marissa

I Love...Enamel Brooches!

Hi everyone, I'm back from my vacation - a six day road trip to Wisconsin and back. I'm exhausted and drained, but there's no time for that! I have to get right back into work. If you've been following along with me through Instagram (@marissahowes), you'll know that I was posting daily photos of the goings on of my travels. Where I was, what I was doing, and most definitely, what I was buying. 

We went "free styling", meaning we just went wherever the Interstate took us. We travelled along through the smallest towns you could drive through in a matter of minutes. They were beautiful, breathtaking and quiet. There were dilapidated old barns and tonnes of weathered houses that were clearly lived in with love and heaps of history. Sometimes I truly wished I could stay where I was and settle into my own little home on the edge of the woods along with everyone else in those towns. I have never met such kind and lovely people too. It was the perfect place to search for highway garage sales and slow traffic antique stores by the side of the road. 

We stopped at so many, and probably one of my favourites was a an older couple's garage sale. The husband told me his mother used to collect thousands of salt and pepper shakers and he was trying to sell off some. I think he was thrilled I was interested in his family heirloom collection and he offered to dig out more boxes, so I could go through them. We were on a tight schedule then though, so I had to decline. But he was a very sweet man and was happy to talk about his vintage items and demonstrate some of the more complex mechanical salt and pepper shakers. I was in heaven. Before we parted to get back on the road, I purchased a squirrel and nut salt and pepper shaker and a creamsicle-orange enamel floral brooch I found in a box of jewellery. These pieces were bought for the shop, but the history of them and the memories I made while travelling around this past week were incredible and will stay with me forever. Maybe I don't get to hang onto those items personally, however I won't forget digging through other peoples treasures and learning about parts of their lives. That's what I love about vintage. It connects everyone, no matter who you are. Who doesn't love a good story?

Anyway, I'm telling you this now, because that enamel brooch really inspired me to do a jewellery based I Love... blog post. I was thinking, usually my I Love... posts are about home decor or clothing, and I've never done any about jewellery. I don't know why, because when I first started collecting things, my true interest was in jewellery. I was a real vintage jewellery hoarder back in the day. So I guess this is fitting. Here you go. Ten enamel brooch listings from Etsy, inspired by my sweet enamel Wisconsin find.

1. Red/White/Blue Enamel Floral Brooch

2. Purple Brooch with Pearlescent Centre

3. Autumn-toned Floral Brooch

4. Green and White Daisy

5. Holiday Wreath Inspired Brooch

6. Two-toned Yellow Flower with Stem

7. Value Set of Four Retro Brooches

8. Red and White Mod Flower

9. Flowers within a Flower Enamel Brooch

10.Classic Blue Enamel Brooch

Enamel all the way! Perhaps my favourite thing about these pieces are how bright and bold they are. If you want to stand out, wear a colourful enamel pin from the Sixites and you can't go wrong. And since they tend to be on the festive side, they're a perfect accessory going into Fall and Winter. I mean, you can't deny that number five would look incredible paired with a simple black cardigan and a glittering holiday dress! And if you're not a brooch-wearing lady, why not stick your hair up in bun and adorn your locks with a custom enamel brooch hair pin. There's an easy DIY right there! I'm all in for a season of enamel brooches. Are you?

Lots of love, as always!

Marissa 

CharmingShop

Great Summer Sales - Fashion I'm Obsessing Over!

I am so obsessed with summer fashion lately. The prints this year are seriously out of control in a great way! I would love to add each and every one of these pieces to my closet. Oh yes! 

Okay I know, I know. I ended on unlucky number 13. Sorry guys. But what if I told you absolutely ALL of these items are on sale right now? And not just a "few dollars off" pitiful sale. They're way cheaper than normal! I thought I'd pass on these great deals, because I love you guys so much.

Which one is your fav? I'm totally drooling over that ModCloth 50s inspired shell crop top. Just incredible!

1. Dani in Black by B.A.I.T. Footwear

2. ASOS Hanging Spike Head Band

3. Constance Dress in Peach/Mint by Dear Creatures

4. Light the Way Dress from Modcloth

5. Queen for a Day Dress from Modcloth

6. Seashell of the Ball Top from Modcloth

7. Nana in Blush by B.A.I.T. Footwear

8. Glass Half Full Wallet from Modcloth

9. Friend of Mine Dress by Finders Keepers

10. Venture Dress by Dear Creatures

11. Static and Apartment Dress from Modcloth

12. ASOS Bra Top In Retro Daisy Print

13. Know What I Mean Flat in Pink from Modcloth

See, that wasn't unlucky AT ALL. Happy shopping ladies! While you're on the web, check out my Instagram (link button on the side of my blog.) I'm getting prepared to make my 6 Retro Collection art pieces into prints! I'm way too excited to see how they turn out! Are you? Give me a shout and let me know which one is your favourite! I need to know how many to make, and you know... there are some contests in the works!

Marissa xo

CharmingShop

Charming Trends - Matching Up 50s Dresses with CS Necklaces

Hi everyone! It's Saturday and I hope you're out at the beach, having a picnic or out having ice cream with your best buds! I'm inside today preparing for future farmers markets. Boy, is there a lot to do. I'll make sure I at least get out for a walk around the neighborhood. The trees are lovely and filled with blossoms. My lilacs are finally in full bloom, and since that's my favourite scent in the whole entire world, I'm pretty happy right now. I can't bare to miss out on that, being stuck inside. This time of year is perfect. I have a little something for you today. It's the sweetest match-up I ever did see. I found the prettiest 50s silhouette dresses on Etsy and I wanted to share them with you. To make things even more special, I paired them with the CharmingShop necklace I would style with each one. Take a look for yourself! It's a pretty magical pairing. Here you go - Charming Trends for 50s lovers!

1. The daintiest colourful dress paired with the Turquoise Metal Collar Necklace.

2. This pretty bright white sundress paired with the Opalescent Snowflake Collar Necklace

3. The liveliest printed 50s dress around paired with the Elegant Peacock Collar Necklace

4. The sweetest easy-going vintage dress paired with the Beautiful Opal Collar Necklace

5. The Gingham and lace dress of my dreams paired with the Floral Bluebell Collar Necklace

Which pairing is your favourite?

Marissa xo

CharmingShop

Delightful Dresses

Browsing Etsy for one of a kind items is one of my favourite things to do when I'm not busy working on my own Etsy shop. Lately I've been scouring the vintage clothing shops on the hunt for some really unique retro mod pieces that speak to me on all my favourite vintage levels. I really can't get enough of the colours and patterns and the amazing silhouettes in mid century dresses. Whether it's an elegant 50s party gown or a bright and psychedelic shift dress from the 60s. These dresses are always so feminine and lovely. They really don't make them like that anymore. Dresses these days don't have the same quality, detail or the cut. They try, but can never duplicate the magic that is a vintage dress. Check out these beauties that are for sale on Etsy right now.

I'm so in love with this dress. The floral pattern is out of this world. 

Fantastic colour and fantastic collar!

WOW! Found here.

Now this is the prettiest shift dress I've ever seen. The simple, delicate pattern is paired with the most gorgeous shades of aqua, marigold and periwinkle. The wrap collar is just darling too! I wish I had this in my closet! Found here.

What an adorable pale blue dress with nautical influences! 

So sweet! This dress would pair nicely with some red lipstick and some t-strap heels.

 Found here.

This dress is wild and crazy and I love it! The funky colours and florals mixed with stripes really make this piece a show-stopper. Just look at that collar and belt! Such a strong piece. 

Found here.

When I think of mod 60s shift dresses, this is exactly what I dream up in my head! 

I love the swirly, funky design mixed with  the bright and slightly fluorescent colour palette. 

Just fab. I'd like to wear this gorgeous number. 

Found here.

I love this dress. It's high collar and 60s, 70s colours remind me of a tiny handmade vintage dress my Barbies used to have! Yeah, that's right. I used to clothe my Barbies in mini vintage dresses! Even as a girl I was obsessed. Now I like the real deal. I would love to wear this dress out on the town with a nice pair of heels and and some pearl earrings!

Found here.

Are you loving these gorgeous dresses as much as I am?! Go to Etsy to find more amazing dresses. For dresses like these, I like to search under "retro mod dresses" or "vintage collar dresses." I always find some great pieces and I know you will too! And since you're in the neighbourhood, go check out my shop, www.etsy.com/shop/CharmingShopLove. You can wear a vintage dress, wear some vintage-inspired jewellery from CharmingShop and hang a piece of my retro-style artwork on your wall! See how much closer you are to living a vintage life in present time 2013? You're on your way to being a retro bombshell. Every girl's fantasy!

Have a great day everyone!

Marissa xo

CharmingShop