Vintage Christmas on a Budget

I know it's slightly (okay, you caught me...VERY) early for Christmas. Don't be mad! After Halloween ends for some reason I'm always in a crazy rush to get our Christmas stuff out. I promise I'll wait at least until after remembrance day.

Christmas has always been a huge thing in my family. Tonnes of parties and many trees to decorate. Every year we would unpack so many decorations, and every year it would be a total thrill to unveil all these wonderful shiny things you only see for a month or so, before they go back into a box once more. 

I seem to have accumulated my own large mass of decorations as well. After living on our own for only four years or so, we have bumped up to seven or eight bins already! I really don't want to get much further than that to be honest. Most of the things we now have are hand-me-downs or family treasures I could never part with. Last year I bought the silver tree of my dreams and every year I make at least one christmas tree craft to add to the collection. Other than that I'm trying to slow it down to a halt.

I definitely didn't start out with everything I have. When I had my first apartment, all I had was a $10 garage sale tree and a package of ornaments I bought at Sears. I wanted to do this post for anyone who is just starting out. Maybe you're in a new apartment on your own for the first time or maybe you just bought your first house. Also for anyone who's on a budget this year. Are you doing the smart thing and pinching your pennies? Absolutely anyone can enjoy a vintage inspired holiday if you know where to look and how to be a little inventive. 

Step One.

If you don't have the cash to shell out for an actual christmas tree, get a small bottle brush tree. It's fairly easy to find vintage ones, but nowadays it's even easier to find them in stores. It seems like every company is recreating this looks right now. You can even go to a craft store and buy what you'll need to make your own! So whatever your budget allows, go get yourself a mini tree or two.

click for trees

Step Two.

Buying fabric is one of the easiest ways to get festive quickly. You can make tablecloths, throw pillows, a tree skirt (if you have a tree already), anything! You can even cut a doughnut shape out of cardboard and wrap holiday inspired fabric around it for a quick Christmas wreath. I am in love with this new fabric pattern, because it's atomic era inspired and it's versatile enough to work into your home after the holidays. You can use it all year round if you want to!

buy fabric here

Step Three.

Get a few vintage ornaments. It's so easy to keep your eye out at garage sales for these during the summer. It may feel very weird to buy Christmas stuff at this time, but this is generally when people are ready to get rid of these types of things. And for great prices too. You might walk away with a set of old Shiny Brite ornaments for 50 cents! Even if you only have a couple, mix them into your existing ornaments and it'll still give them a good vintage effect. And again, if you don't have a tree, don't worry. Put them in a nice bowl on your coffee table or hang them from string from the curtain rod on your windows.

Get Decorating

Step Four.

Christmas dinnerware can be pricey, so what do you use for holiday get-togethers or parties you might be hosting? Just use what you have and mix in a few pieces here and there. Investing in some cute Christmas glasses might be a better way to go. This small vintage set of four is a good way to start. They'll be much cheaper and easy to mix in with plain glasses and white dishes. Here's where you could make napkins from the fabric above to set at your table too. (Make sure you wash the fabric beforehand, to prevent the red from bleeding at the party if something spills!) I picked these cute glasses because the back and pink details are not typical of what you might find. If you get pink or black Christmas glasses, you may still be able to use them year round. Gold is also another colour you can use all the time, and it's really easy to find! 

Get 'em here

Step Five.

If you have some casserole dishes that have red or green details, use 'em! Even this red and pink floral one can fit into a holiday theme. Even though this would typically be a spring or summer-type pattern, with your table set up, the actual pattern won't matter so much, as the colour palette will. Trust me, it'll blend in just fine! And if you don't have any parties to host, you can use your casserole dish as that "bowl" to put your ornaments in!

click for casserole dishes

I hope this gave you some ideas for this year. I'm sure most of this stuff you can find laying around your home already. Or maybe you can make something similar. I know there are tonnes of crafty people out there!

I'm going to do another blog post on dream Christmas items very soon. Oh yes. Holiday decorations that are just too out of our reach financially. We can all admire them from afar together. 

See ya again soon!

Marissa xo

phone call.

Retro phones are the best aren't they? Rotary, wall mounted. Any shape, any colour.

This is one thing I don't have yet. Maybe someday. 

I'd love a bright pastel telephone tucked away in a cozy corner. Just for fun.

One can dream...

In the meantime I'll just look at all the wonderful retro phone eye candy on Etsy!

one//two//three//four//five//six//seven//eight//nine

P.S. The other day we booked our honeymoon flight to London and Paris! It's a year away but I'm already floating in excitement. Any suggestions on places to go and things to see? I'm starting my list already! Maybe there's some European vintage waiting for me somewhere...

Thanks for following along and have an awesome rest of the day!

Marissa xo

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

shop sales.

It's like project city over at my house lately. We're still chipping away at the finishing touches in our basement. I never dreamed putting things away and getting organized would take this long, but I'm thankful for the progress being made.

Even our bedroom is undergoing a few changes. A couple weeks ago we hosted a garage sale at my house and my grandma contributed a couple mystery boxes that I was unaware of until the garage sale was actually going on! It was a super close call, because my most treasured set of items of hers were in one of the boxes!! A Four Seasons wall hanging set from Coppercraft Guild. I know it seems pretty silly that they would be so important and memorable to me, but I always remember wanting them from a very, very young age. Needless to say they are now mine and awaiting their turn to be hung up in our bedroom like they were in hers all those years.

Today I received a FREE extra long 60s Walnut dresser with a mirror for our bedroom. My dad originally bought a full set for his cabin, but couldn't fit this particular one in any of the rooms. So I guess I lucked out! This thing is the absolute coolest and I'm glad because I agreed to take it based only on knowing the wood type and seeing the headboard from the set. I was pretty confident I knew what the shape would be and I was spot on. She needs a light scrub and some oil to restore the shiny finish in places, so onto the list that goes. Pictures to come obviously!

Because I've been so focussed on home things and haven't posted anything new lately (in the shop and on the blog) I decided to have some simultaneous sales going on in both shops. Maybe you've seen them already, but if you haven't...

This lady is $10 plus shipping now!!

For CharmingShopVintage:

Items that I've had in the shop for a while are marked down to $10 or $15.

Such a great deal for people looking for cheap gifts or things they want but would usually pay so much more for!! There is some pretty incredible stuff up for grabs! Check it out!

For CharmingShopLove:

I am trying to get my older art prints moving on to new homes, so I can start selling some new ones!

All prints are buy one get one free! (Or better known as BOGO.)

I am going to be starting a new collection of vintage inspired holiday confetti as well as smaller original artworks based on the prints I already sell. There will be some pyrex inspired ones so stay tuned for that.

As always I combine shipping for multiple items or for purchase from both shops. Don't hesitate to ask, because I'm always close by to help!;)



We'll be having our little wedding next summer and we've decided on an incredible (but expensive) honeymoon spot. So come on and contribute to our wedding fund! haha Oh dear...


Alright, I'm off to the basement to get started on the new shop area!
Hope you're having a great week!


Marissa xo

Some September Loot.

I have been busy preparing for a full winter of vintage selling. These are some of my finds from September. To keep and to sell. There's always a fine line...I'm not always so good at deciding...

Let's get my keep pile out of the way first. Right at the tail end of September I found these shoes. Like so many Value Village frequenters, I get overly excited around Halloween. Months before, they start holding back their coolest, most retro outfits to put out as Halloween costumes. I try to snatch up as many cute ones as I can! 

These intensely sparkly shoes were in the Halloween section this year and I'm pretty certain they're keepers. They fit my tiny fit, but they're a little snug. I'd say they're a narrow 5 and a half.  I might try stretching them out with bags of water. Has anyone actually tried this before? I haven't. I don't want to wreck these beauties! In person it looks like it has glitter or sequins all over, but it's actually just metallic thread. I love them and really hope our relationship works out!

I try not to get too attached to things, but I don't think I can let these go. The pattern is called Flair. Such a sweet name for the best plate set ever! There are eight dinner plates, eight bread plates and one small bowl. Normally I would like a larger set, but seeing as how I don't think I'll be finding anything quite like these again, they'll be mine for now. 

About six weeks ago, my house got broken into and I was pretty upset about it. Luckily the thief didn't get very much. The only thing they took was my purse, and I didn't have too many things in there at the time. I always carry small vintage purses that don't hold a lot, but the one that was stolen was my moms when she was my age. If anything, there was a little sentimental value and the inconvenience of having to cancel all my credit cards and renew my information. Luckily my purse was recovered in the end, along with some personal things the thief obviously didn't think much of. (Everything was found in a garbage can down the street. Gross.) 

Anyway the point of this story is that I was feeling down about having someone violate my home and break into my personal space. So I treated myself to an Etsy purchase that I had been eyeing for a while. A set of these amazing Hazel Atlas glasses from the Etsy shop Midge and Manny's. The seller is very sweet and I received them in perfect condition, wrapped with great care. Sometimes you just need to splurge on something, and this was it for me. (Please ignore my horrible front door partition wall that clearly needs to be painted soon!)

 This set was a nice find last month. I'm a big fan of gravel or textured wall art. I have two melted plastic still life sets already - one in orange and another in blue. These kitschy guys can go off to a new home where they can be fully appreciated for how cool they really are. I'm pretty excited about the incredible bold colour and visual movement of the images. 

Hellooo cute wall clock!! I'm a huge sucker for retro fonts, and the numbers on this Timex clock are pretty retro indeed! I'm willing to part with this beauty and for the right price. It does have a significantly large crack on the front. So sad. Expect a discount! 

*** 

To my Winnipeg people, we're hosting a three household garage sale at my home this weekend. Please email me at charming_shop@hotmail.com if you'd like details. (I'm sorry, I don't want to display my address here!) Direct any and all questions to me and I'll get back to you right away! 

We've been planning this garage sale for a whole year, storing these things in boxes and bins. I have no idea what's what. We wanted to do it earlier in the summer, but we ran out of time. Now we just want to get it done before it gets too cold out. Now there's construction on our street too, so unfortunately space is going to be very limited. A back lane party it is! We would wait until next year, except the amount of stuff is too out of control to store over winter. 

I was also originally planning on doing a pop-up of my vintage shop, CharmingShopVintage, at the sale, but because of the amount of stuff, I decided not to for this time. There's always next year. So come on out. We've been organizing and pricing for two days and I just want to get rid of everything! 

Make offers and take some things off my hands!

We hope to see you there!

Marissa xo

Cat calls.

Mid century stylized cats are the best kind of cats. 

Nine photos. Nine lives.

 I promise that was a total coincidence!

one - novelty cat print dress

two - pair of cat figurines

three - pastel cats on a black dress

four - chalkware siamese with jewel eyes

five - lefton "miss priss" dish

six - holt howard salt and pepper shakers

seven - glittery cat eye glasses

eight - retro striped sunglasses

nine - framed vintage prints

Yesterday we took our dog for a walk and spotted a sweet orange tabby in a parking lot. We both took turns going to see him, while the other stayed back with Leah, so as to not scare the timid thing. We have lots of wandering cats in our neighbourhood, but this one was so sweet. It rubbed it's face all over my hands and wanted a good scratch. I think he sparked my cat fever for this post today. If I could've brought him home, I probably would have. 

It's a rainy Sunday in the city and I have to do a second coat of paint downstairs. 

Everyone stay dry and enjoy a quiet day!

Marissa xo

I Love...Vintage Barware!

We're not big drinkers, but I always knew I wanted to host great little parties at our house right from the start. With our home slowly piecing together, and the discovery of a vintage bar cart early this summer for $7, I figured we should put together a corner for our barware. Something that's easy to pretty up when entertaining, but simple enough to leave up all the time. I thought we should definite start keeping our eye out for retro glasses and serving dishes to give our fancy new cart the recognition it deserves. It's a conversation piece worth having, and I can't wait to have guests crowded around, picking out their drink of choice! Here are some amazing vintage pieces I would love to have in my small but blooming collection. Do you have any of these?

(From top left to bottom right:)

1- These aren't vintage but check out this amazing pink starburst glass from Bombshell Bar Goods. 

2- Federal Glass Amoeba Boomerang wine glasses are always the most fun and classic of the mid century bar patterns! 

3- A set of four atomic, space-age looking glasses are a definite must have for an outstanding Mad Men themed look.

4- This a set of two orange glasses with a very unique design that I'm quite drawn to.

5- I love a good set of gold frosted glasses with their original carrier. 

6- The Pillow Talk Set (also not vintage) from Bombshell Bar Goods is the perfect gift for newlyweds. I'm digging the amazing retro font!

7- These spectacular pink, black and gold Hazel Atlas glasses are tough to find, but oh my, look at that fabulous pattern!

8- I'm all for a good tantalus. Especially one as decorative as this. Great fonts displaying each liquor name is a bonus too!

9- This set of travel flasks makes me so happy. Complete with it's own perfect carrying case, it feels like this mini collection should be on the set of a Wes Anderson film. 

There are so many styles out there. Even modern day companies are trying to compete for your attention by bringing out vintage inspired collections, a lot of which are oh so adorable. I always tend to lean towards vintage, because I know they're well made and the history side of it always gets me. However, I'm not above buying something new if it's worth it! 

So let's get this bar cart filled!

Marissa xo

Personal and Shop Finds for August

I can't believe we're more than halfway through August already. When did that even happen?! To break the blues of summer ending faster than we all want, I thought I would recap my top discoveries for this month. so let's do two of mine, and two for the shop!

I came upon this lovely small set of dishes at Value Village a week ago and I'm thrilled about it. I don't really stick to a type or maker when it comes to kitchen items. The only rule is it needs to be turquoise. I'm always on the hunt, but I know everyone else is too. Turquoise has become a very popular colour and tracking it down has become a matter of luck. I'm still in complete shock that this pattern belongs to me!

This letter organizer was a very sweet find at an Estate sale this Saturday. It was the very first thing I spotted and I nabbed it right away. It had a large sticker overtop of the entire "memos"section and a modern pencil holder stuck to the side with adhesive. I got both things off without any trouble. There is some light damage, and obviously needs a good scrub, (I only hung it up for this photo.) but this is exactly the thing we need to get organized and it's aqua! I have always wanted one of these, and had previously considered buying one off Etsy. Now I've got one and the temptation is gone. I can only imagine what they had sold the day before on Friday, because I sure felt like I had taken all the best things, or I should say what I thought were the best. What treasures did I miss? 

This cat salt and pepper shaker is creepy and cute all at once. Found at another Estate Sale, it was part of a shaker collection of the woman's mother that was high in the hundreds. I always love dipping into old salt and pepper shaker collections. You can always tell a lot about the person depending on how crazy their collection is. This one was wonderfully kitschy, and I walked away with three separate pairs for the shop. You'll see the other two sweeties very soon! All three need a good cleaning to be rid of their dust before they're ready for listing. 

Whether we like it or not, Christmas is approaching. For businesses big and small it's always important to get a leg up and be prepared for early holiday shoppers. Whether it be decorations or gifts. I'm pretty bad at getting my gifts organized early, but my decoration planning and buying happens at the first sign of Fall. I get way too excited to put out my family's things now that they've been passed down to me. I suppose it's a childhood nostalgia thing for me. Anyway, the point of this is that I discovered a giant box retro candles that will surely get us all in the mood for winter festivities. I've already glanced through them all to give them a once-over, but I'm pretty excited to take them all out to see what I've got! There a few newer ones at the top, but underneath them are the really cool guys. I know I saw a pretty adorable deer and a perfectly chubby snowman! Around Christmas I also like throwing a cute vintage ornament into my packaged orders for my customers. Maybe this year I'll have a few spare candles! We'll see!

Obviously there's still a little time left for summer garage sales and back-to-school thrifting. Can I find anything cool in the last 14 days of August? I hope so! 

Marissa xo

What's Old is New

I have recently noticed vintage has taken up a lot of my life, I think mainly because when we started redoing our basement, I had to bring up all my collections and shop items into the living room. Its kind of terrifying to see it all in one place. Yikes. 

So while I've been sitting here, working on stuff amongst the towers of boxes and loose items, (Yes, the living room is currently the only place I can work as well...) I have found myself getting more flexible in what I want to put into the shop. Here are some favourites that went up this week. I have no doubts about finding any of these things new homes, because if I could, I would keep 'em in a heartbeat!  

 These two kitties are cuter than cute! I found them completely speckled black with caked on dirt. They've endured a couple of washes and are now scouting for a new place to live. Every time I look at them I have second thoughts. Should I keep them?

NO.

 This was one of my more exciting finds this year. Mainly because suitcases such as these ones are part of my most treasured childhood memories. We used to have a bunch with paisley prints to hold our toys. They carried our vintage Barbie clothes. The ones my grandmas had made for my Mom and Aunt when they were young from the most retro prints you could ever see, and the ones that came along with those vintage Barbies kept in a separate case. All my Barbies ever wore was vintage. Even at that age I was entranced in another time.

The reason why I love these suitcases specifically is that they're pretty plain. I'm sure that sounds weird, but because of they're simple colour palette, they can easily be unisex for little girls or boys! Or if you're just in need of a cute little set for light travelling, like camping, you might consider this set for yourself. That was my initial thought upon finding them.

 This was a difficult decision, but I don't feel too much attachment to them. Please, someone buy them before I grow to love them! This set of two light green fibreglass shades is pure magic. I already own two different starburst shaded lamps myself. One table lamp and one floor lamp. Upon discovering these, I had instantly claimed them as mine, but reconsidered quickly. I have too many, so I'm letting some other lamp-lovers out there have a chance to own something cool and unusual. 

I thought these sweet girls would be our bedside table lamps forever, but I have recently replaced them. Making excuses to fit them into other areas of our home is just not working! It is highly unusual to find pink lamps of this age, especially with oval-shaped shades and as a pair. They're in excellent (almost like new) condition, but I think mostly because I purchased them from the original owners. I know someone out there will scoop them up and put them on display proudly in their home, just like I did before a couple turquoise two-tiered lamps stole the show and took their place. 

I'm trying to practice a bit more willpower. I actually have amazing willpower already when it comes to "things" and donating and giving items away. Plus my family hosts at least one garage sale every year! I have grown up with them as a tradition and actually look forward to the "junk" cleanse. In recent months I've been hanging onto way too much though. I've been pretty relaxed about my personal rules, and my Fiancé doesn't help. He's probably a bigger collector of random things than I am! Not specifically vintage, but he has a real appreciation for 50s and 60s styles. Especially fonts and cool era-specific designs. It's easy to ignore if you leave it for storage in the basement you don't use. Now that our basement is almost usable I guess I have to face facts and start purging some things. I think I'm okay with that now.

Have a great Friday!

Marissa xo

New.

Okay, so things have been kind of crazy over here lately. It seems like I can never find the right time to update the shop, but in the last few days I have put up a some new things. These ones are my favourite batch yet. I think because they are so, so retro. You just can't go wrong with a good 60s or 70s print. No way. 

So here's some I had a very hard time giving up. (Is it bad to try to keep clothes that are not your size just based on prints? Or kitchen things you know you'll never use and don't even go with your colour schemes? Oh dear...)

These mugs make me the happiest. They're just too pretty. You really can't beat that pattern.

I discovered this apron at an estate sale. Handmade by the original owner! So sweet and simple!

In May, I found two pairs of oversized sunglasses. One for me, one for the shop. The lady who owned them had fabulous taste. These ones are the neatest pale green colour, and the ombre lenses are kind of spectacular.

I can not fully express how hard it was for me to list this one. I've never seen one of these vintage bodysuit tops in real life... and now I have. It was a lovely treasure to have come across.

Go check out the shop for some more cool things!

Marissa xo

I Love... Barkcloth Fabric!

Vintage barkcloth has always been fascinating to me. It's one of those tough, sturdy, heavy weight fabrics you can do a lot with. You can use it to make curtains, pillows, bags or even reupholster furniture pieces. The best part about this material though, is the fabulous array of vintage atomic-style designs you may come across.

Winnipeg is finally in summer mode after a crazy long winter, which means the garage sales are in full swing. You can bet I've been out already looking for some great deals and awesome vintage pieces to complete my home, and stock up the shop. 

Don't worry, this all relates back to barkcloth!! I'm telling you this because this last weekend I came across the garage sale of this older gentlemen who was raising money for a nearby hospital. I looked around for a bit and saw a table with a heap of vintage barkcloth fabric on it. He came over and told me they were long curtains his wife had made before they had even met. I thought they were so awesome, so I asked him what he wanted for the set, and he said he'd give them to me for one dollar! He also wanted to throw in some vintage aprons for free, but I assured him I would at least give a donation for the hospital he was raising money for. 

On I went, with my freshly dry-cleaned, fully-lined barkcloth curtains with their superb atomic print and in pristine condition no less! (...and also a couple aprons!) I was kind of in shock at what I had just found. It's hard to unearth cool things like that in Winnipeg. Let's be honest here. 

So in honour of my new find, I wanted to show off some other cool barkcloth fabric that I would be more than happy to own. Some patterns are very iconic; others not so much. Each one is fantastic in it's own way, and I'd be pleased to meet some of it in person some day!

one//two//three//four//five//six//seven//eight

These barkcloth fabrics always have a lot of texture, colour and life. Especially the ones with added metallic bits throughout! I'm always partial to the really typical retro '50s ones with boomerang and antennae looking shapes. Surprise, surprise. 

What's your favourite?

Marissa xo