Housewife Horror..."Suzy Homemaker Was A BLOODSUCKER!!"

This past Sunday, I had another fun shoot collaboration with Kallea.  

Even with the loss of our makeup artist and hair stylist, it turned out really well.  I think you lot will like this one for sure!

Don't worry kids!  You're humble narrator hasn't really been bumped off by a Bloodsucking Donna Reed!!  I'm perfectly fine....except for the sudden craving for raw meat I've begun having...

Some other fun shots!.....

Some behind the scenes action......

The toile fitting.  That's the skirt to the great vintage Pendleton suit I showed you the other day!

Pip makes an appearance......

Photography:  Warren Verity

Wardrobe:  Ada Keli

Model:  Gloria Dixon

Set:  The 'Brady Ponderosa'

See more of our work in my portfolio @ Valley of The Dolls!!

Happy Halloween!--Life Magazine, October 31, 1960

Just had to share this fab article from the stacks!

Life Magazine, 1960...October 31st to be exact!

Here's a little snippet from the front of the mag.  The last paragraph is about the article and the photog responsible for the creepy, Surrealist shoot.....

"Won't scare the kids"???  Ummm, I'm an adult and even I find the images pretty darn disturbing.  See what you think:

I love how the little girl is sticking her tongue out at the demon!  And willya take a gander at that fabric her snazzy garb is made of!!!  Whoa!

Channeling Michael Jackson 30 years early....

Here are the kids behind the creepyness......

Pip wanted to get in on the action and tried to do his own version of the pics....Whataya think, kids?.....

In the end, he decided he looks much more appealing in a less Dali-esque pose...

Happy Halloween from the 'Brady Ponderosa'!!!

A Quick 'Haul' Post, Then Back To Work!

I've been a busy little bird lately, my loves!  But I can always find a smidgin of time for you!  Here's a quick haul post to prove it.

Just some of the lovelies I've scored recently!

A terrif 1950's dress from Penny's 'Brentwood' collection.  You'd never recognize this poor thing if you'd seen it when I got my hands on it!  Several rips, along with some seam issues, missing buttons, and bad buttons.  It took me three days of off and on 'messing about' with it to figure out an appropriate way to mend it without changing it much.  I finally added some darts where there were rips in the fabric and found some extra buttons in the same size, but a different complimentary colour (the originals were orange and the ones I added are red) that I then substituted for the bad/missing ones, alternating orange and red.

It's the perfect fall dress now!  Love the print!  And check out the detail on the yoke....

Another great little dress, this time from the '60s.  I can't for the life of me remember the designer...my boss borrowed it for her daughter last week and still hasn't returned the thing...but it's obviously knocking off Pucci....

Great colours and patterns.  I can't wait to wear it....

Here's one score that I'll NEVER loan out!  Say hello to the first (yup, it has a sibling that I'll show you in a few days!) of my vintage Pendleton suit collection:

The tag dates it to the '60s

As if there could be any question after simply seeing the silhouette!!  Pure Jackie Kennedy...which I'll relish wearing this fall, the 50th anniversary of that awful day in Dallas.  Check out the great green/brown/purple tartan pattern!...

One thing I'll hate about not being at the antique store any longer is missing out on the little lady who I used to buy jewelry from.  She'd come in from time to time to try and sell things she'd pick up at yard and estate sales.  I'd buy everything she had from the '50s-'60s!  The last time she came in, I got these three pins....

The red, white, and blue one has a little paint off the tip of one petal that I've yet to touch up...gotta get some red paint!  The green one will be killer for Christmas...unless I decide to put it in the DollyBird shop (which should be open for business right before Thanksgiving!  Stay tuned!)

When the shop closed, I helped the owner and one of the vendors pack up their 'wares'.  The vendor had a pile of costume jewelry on a table that she was going to take to the flea market and she told me to go through it and take whatever I wanted of it..."or all of it for that matter!"...to thank me for helping her box up and move out.  Here's a little sample of the goodies I got....

I love starburst brooches.  And I thought the wheat sheaf would be a great fall accessory.  The pelican ("whose mouth can hold more than his belly can") is wooden and has a little rhinestone eye!

I got more, but have only gotten pics of these so far.  I'll share the rest in another post!

This set is another goody that I bought from the jewelry lady I'd always buy from....

They're marked 'Germany' and are sooooo pretty!  I haven't made up my mind whether I'll be selling them or keeping them...or keeping them for a while and THEN selling them!

In other news, Pip's had his first birthday!  We celebrated by meeting up with my mom and HER Scottie, McTavish, at Petsmart.  We proceeded to play with all the toys in the toy aisle before picking out his favourite...a larger, purple version of the first toy he ever had, a blue dinosaur.  We then took our little 'terrors' to the specialty pet shop down the street where he got free treats and attention...and another new toy...for being a whole year old.  He was a happy camper, playing for the rest of the afternoon....

Still Kickin'! Here's a 'Haul' Post To Prove It!.....

Hi, poppits!
Since last we spoke, I've had LOADS on my plate!  Beginning to get DollyBird sussed so I can get some loverly things on Etsy for you lot to see (I was hoping for an early October launch, but it's looking like it may be November before I can get things started).  Also the worsening health and passing of my sweet Pappy and a lovely celebration of life for him.  The closing of the shop where I work.  A job interview that I'm super excited about (keep your little digits crossed for me, pleeeeeezzzz!).  The start of a collaboration with a local photographer in which I'll be doing a spot of styling and creating.  It's been a whirlwind of a month, but I've done a bit of scrounging in between all the 'chicken with its head cut off' running.

The 'Creepy-Culty-Jesus-Thrifty' where I got my Mersman table has been good to the Doll once again with some great little items, some of which I'm keeping, one of which is a prezzy, and a couple of smalls for the future Etsy shop!
As per my last 'haul' post, the following are photos I've found that are similar or identical to what I've bought.  The camera chip/usb the doggies killed has yet to be replaced!

First off...what I'm likely keeping....

A great lamp, identical to this beauty.  I can't wait to find just the right fabric for just the right shade so that I can use it!  A steal at $2!

In the same trip to the 'CCJT', I got the best Christmas present for my mother.  It was sitting in a corner with no price on it and when I asked the guy working how much, I could have died when he quoted $3!....

It's in perfect condition.  No chips or cracks and all the little bulbs are intact!  The only thing this one has that mine doesn't is the star on top...there's yet another bulb in its place.  I just had to get it for Mom because, after my grandmother (my dad's mom) died, the only Christmas decor of hers that Mom wanted was her big ceramic Christmas Tree like this.  It presided over every Christmas brunch my mom (and I!) remembered at 'Mama D's' house.  But whene we began going through things, my cousin remarked that she'd like to have it, so my Mom let her take it.  It broke her heart.  I think she'll just die when she opens this!  I'll probably give it to her on Thanksgiving though, so she can use it this year!

On the same trip, I got a couple of smalls that will end up in the 'Gilded Cage' section of the DB shop....

A pair of the above swanky golden rain textured late '60s tumblers

And a great Pfaltzgraff owl mug from the 1970's

I know, I know....how can I not keep that mug for myself and my 1970's owl and mushroom laundry?  Well, I need to put some cool smalls in the shop and not keep them all in my grubby little hands!

Besides, I got another set of mugs for myself...that I need like a hole in the head.  But hey, they're Siesta Ware.  And I LOVE Siesta Ware.  Plus I don't have any Siesta coffee mugs.  Sooo, you know.
How fab are these?

They were a 'shop closing' gift from my boss on my last day.  I'd been eyeing them for ages.  I adore them!

Another small that will be in the shop...although it's so darn lovely I've been debating the benefits of keeping it in my collection...is this great early '70s Disney World dish.  Soooo very lovely with the blues and golds!

I've also been helping the owner of another local shop with vintage clothing.  He's wanting to carry some, but doesn't know the first thing about it, so needed my help.  The other day, he rang to say he'd gotten in a truckload of vintage clothes from a theatre department and could I come round asap to sort them for him as he had no idea where to begin.  I made fast work of the piles, found a few good pieces....he had a 1970's Lanvin shift dress hiding in one pile and a couple of fantastic Pendleton suits as well as many other things that are super mod fun, made a pile of  'mine' as I sorted (which included the oldest garment in the lot, a 1950's Penny's Brentwood dress that looked too far gone, but that I've brought back from the dead with a little creative seaming and dart manipulation!...the leaf pattern on it will be fantastic for fall!), and traded him some great 1970's pieces that just won't fit in with the final DB image but will do great in his shop.
You'll see the dresses asap, along with some lovely hats I've scored...I now have a total of 46 vintage hats in my collection!  Crazy, right?  I need to get a 'collection' post together sometime!  I've also been gifted a couple of beautiful parasols and some vintage costume jewelry by one of our vendors at the shop as she was moving out!
I've also scored another Christmas gift, this one for my best friend's wife.  I'd post it, but they read this blog and that would spoil the surprise, so you'll have to wait until December for that one!