Home is Where the Heart Is

I finally am officially moved in to my own place! My neighbors are really nice—the girl in the other side of my duplex is also a Dr. Who fan (so we're already planning on watching the next season together, haha!) and my other neighbor is always outside renovating the house next door (he also has chickens he lets out during the day).

This house is so cute and quirky—I am going to have so much fun decorating it. Unfortunately all my furniture is still in Chicago, so it will probably be awhile before my house actually looks like someone lives in it! But I brought as much as possible in my car. I've got things to cook with, and a bed to sleep on, so that's good enough for now :p

I love my bathroom too. It's small, but looks like it has the original tub (with feet and wrap around curtain!) and sink (only problem is the hot and cold water come from two separate spouts...which means no in between!).

I'm looking forward to finding some estate sales around here so I can put some things in my living room. I will definitely share if I find anything cool!

I Sing the Body Electric

I'm so excited because I'm moving into my own place soon! It's been several months since I left for Florida to live with my Granny, and she has taken good care of me! But I've been so busy and stuck without the internet, that it was hard to really keep up with my blog.

The place is a duplex built in 1939. It's small but open and has that nostalgic charm that I've been looking for. I can't wait to post pictures! But anyway, I've been collecting the remaining essentials that I'll need before moving in, and today my aunt informed me of an amazing deal they're currently having at Dillard's. We found this retro microwave made by Nostalgia Electrics (with a very Frigidaire-like font) for only $35! It comes in red and black, and though my kitchen colors are red and turquoise, it was more of a magenta-red than the bright stop sign red that I'm going for, so I went with the black. Here is a picture:

The Artist Left Me Speechless

If you haven't heard of it, "The Artist" is a movie about an actor of the silent film era dealing with the loss of his fame due to the "talkies" or motion pictures with sound.

The film itself is shot, staged, and acted as if it were truly the 1930's and completely immerses the viewer in that world—with a few key exceptions.

I am a huge fan of classic movies, and am known for being particular and overly judgmental when it comes to period pieces, so it means a lot when I say that this movie is so accurate, reverent, and mindful of the style from which it draws its inspiration, that for once in my life, I am left with practically no complaints.

From the facial expressions, to the theatrical drama, to the interactions and differences of the sexes, and even the texture and accuracy of the set, this film is spot on.

It references the long-lost and underrated feel-good movies of Frank Capra with a concept and twist which gives it even deeper significance. In today's world, we can still sympathize with these characters because of their genuine and passionate nature and experience a happy ending in the midst of such modern cynicism.

The story takes the greatest possible advantage of being a homage created with modern technology. The concept is what sets this film apart and makes it truly brilliant. But so as not to give away too much, I will leave it at this: I cannot imagine another silent film being made that could be justified in modern times. Sure, it would be entertaining and refreshing, but no other movie of a similar style could live up to the bar that this one has set. I encourage you to see it if it's in a theater near you. I think you too will be left speechless.

Buttons

I finally finished my outfit woohoo! It was sitting around forever because I thought buttons and buttonholes were going to be sooo hard to do, but once you get the hang of it, they're really not! I was practicing by hand at first, and they were just turning out so sloppy and took forever, and then my Granny showed me the magic of the sewing machine once again and they turned out so nice! Now I have a skirt I can wear without safety pins keeping it together! :P

Here is a close-up of the buttons. I just used a simple white style for both pieces; a smaller one on top and slightly larger one on the skirt. 

I'm so excited to have made a pocket! Even though it was the simplest thing ever, I managed to have to do it twice because I forgot to fold the top under a whole inch and was wondering why it looked so disproportional. But I eventually figured it out...

This is what I love so much about vintage patterns. I think a gathered yoke looks so cute and feminine. I think this is my favorite thing about the shirt.

This shirt originally had sleeves in the pattern, but it is so hot here in Florida, I decided to make it sleeveless. Now I have a really light and summer-y outfit to wear out without dying of heat stroke, lol!