twenty one

...is better than twenty. It's only been a few hours, but I can sense that already. Casanova and Hans Christian Andersen were also born on this date. I wonder if they felt the same way?

Happy birthday to all you Aprilites x

photo: Susanna Majuri

Boris

What a week. We went through a horrible scare with Boris on Thursday morning. He threw up a little in the morning and then he was having trouble breathing. He was breathing a little harder and faster than usual. So we took him to the vet, which is only a few minutes up the road from us. By then he was barely walking and was kind of out of it. They did bloodwork, took x-rays, he had no fever, and they found nothing obvious wrong with him. They kepy him overnight and put him in an oxygen cage and gave him an i.v. and steriod shots. The vet said since it wasn't anything obvious, it was probably serious.

What made it even harder was that we went though almost the same thing with our old gal Ms. Fatty 5 years ago. She suddenly had trouble breathing too and the vet didn't know what was wrong with her. They gave her meds and sent her home. She responded well the first 24 hours and then got evn worse. She died in the car on the way back to the vet.
So that's all we could think about with Boris and we had a miserable night worrying about him. Our house was empty, quiet and miserable without him. The next morning I called the vet, expecting the worst, but they said he was responding well and was doing better. I went up to see him and he was much better, walking around responding to me and people.
They did a 2nd set of x-rays but still cannot figure out why he isn't getting enough air into his lungs. This time they did see that his esophagus is slightly enlarged and that could possibly be the problem. They also mentioned that he could have inflammation of the lungs, or he could have tumors in his lungs.
Happily we were able to take him home Friday night with special food, antibiotics and steriods. We were just so happy to have him home and sat watching him do his regular things was such a relief. He's just breathing a little bit faster than usual, but he's up to his regular naughtiness around the house and out in the yard. Me, my blood pressure was sky-high and my stomach was all a jumble.
We go back this week to get another set of x-rays to see if they can see anything clearer in his lungs.
So because of this I didn't get any vintage work done. Well, that and my camera broke earlier in the week and I was waiting for the new one to arrive, so I didn't get any vintage work done.

For The Love Of Accessories

With a relatively new line of Men's clothing and a collection of accessories called For Love 21, my favorite southern California-based cheap chic retailer, Forever 21, is gradually evolving into a lifestyle brand. As I browsed the new For Love 21 site, I noticed that they expanded their normal accessories line to include items such as luggage tags, cosmetic bags, watches, books, small gifts, and pins. Over the years, I've acquired quite a collection of necklaces and rings from Forever 21, but I admit to rarely buying their handbags, earrings, or belts. As someone who loves to occasionally splurge on of-the-moment, inexpensive accessories, I'm looking forward to seeing what the line has to offer. In addition to their expanding accessories, I have also noticed a growing selection of footwear in many of the Forever 21 stores that I have visited over the past few months. While the selection can vary greatly from store to store, it pays to peek around and check the floor displays or under the clothing racks, as the footwear is not always merchandised in the most compelling way. Below are some of my best picks from the For Love 21 collection.

1. Luggage tag, $9.80, 2. 1001 Ways To Save The Earth book, $9.80, 3. Cotton cap, $8.80, 4. Color thread teardrop earrings, $5.80, 5. Fern pin, $6.80.

Photo credit: forever21.com

© 2008 Fashion Trend Guide

new york, new york...

I'm in town to visit the Oyster Dress, wander Central Park, and raid Century 21 for a good pair of boots. See you Sunday with photos x

Back to My Bracelets!!

Serendipity strikes once again! A set of lampwork beads, oddly coloured with tones of brown, beige, olive and purple, carelessly placed on a desk next to some new strands of beads, and voila, a combination I may not have otherwise come up with. This matching bracelet and necklace (earrings will be posted soon) contains ametrine, moss opal, amethyst, and tiger-eye beads as well as those pretty, but oddly coloured lampwork beads. This necklace is very versatile (yes, despite the purple) because it looks great with neutrals such as khaki, black, browns, camels, and tans. I'm not selling them as a set, but I did make them together using all the same elements in each piece.


I've been making some bracelets this week (well, among other things); the unique bracelet above is one of my favorite combinations with the last of some of my favorite lampwork beads by Robin Weber. Fire agate and aqua Peruvian chalcedony may not sound like the perfect match, but with these lampwork beads - I'm in love! This is only the second time I've used this combination, but I think it's going to become one of my classics. Below is another classic: the labradorite bracelet with two strands - two strands so that there is always some blue flash showing! I choose my labradorite pieces carefully when I make a piece of labradorite jewelry so that each piece has "flash" and the stronger, the better. But even so, labradorite flashes with movement (the reason it's so great for dangling earrings and bracelets).
Below is a rainbow moonstone bracelet - also double-stranded for the same reasons as the labradorite bracelet. This one also has great lampwork beads in white and clear with a slight iridescent quality. I'll be making more moonstone jewelry since the modern birthstone for June is the moonstone (the traditional birthstone is the pearl).


jewellery accessories jewelry fashion shopping braceletsbeads handmade beaded jewelry beading helmi gioielli smykker tak? juvelen lampwork beads The Jewelry Blog jewelry trends accessories jewelry handmade bracelet unusual jewelry

there and back again

I'm back after a rocking west coast trip and straight into night shifts to recoup my travel bank. Photos will be up in the next few days.

P.S. I had the honour of meeting Jasmine from Pike/Pine on Capitol Hill last week- click for a photo (scroll down to 3/5/08).

evintage blog tag - Halters

Its Blog Tag Wednesday at the eVintage Society!.

Temperatures are rising and its time to show some skin! The halter neckline is a great way to leave a little to the imagination while exposing enough to stay cool and stylish. Lets talk halters!



1) Show us your favorite halter dress or top in your inventory

For an evening out on the town, I have this Black Velvet Halter Dress with Rhinestones







2)Marilyn rocked the halter bodice back in the 50s, but it came back big in the 70s…..which is your favorite era for the halter?

Def the 1950s, glamorous and sexy! The 70s make me think of hippies with saggy titties and hairy underarms! (just kidding hippie girls) Although 1970s Disco halters were pretty hot.



3)Bare backs are vulnerable, what’s your suggestion for protecting skin from the sun?

A little shawl that you could let slip off your shoulder now and then. A pretty parasol if you are outside most of the day. Or yummy coconut smelling sun tan lotion.



4)Halter as top or dress, whats your preference?

I like the look of both. I've always had a hard time wearing a halter though. One because I refuse to go without a bra and also because I have a big squishy mole on my back.



5)A bra can be a challenge…..best suggestion for support?

A challenge indeed. I never go out without a bra, so this has always been hard for me. Strapless bras uusally leave me pulling them up all day. I bought one of those bras with clear plastic straps from Victoria's Secret a few years ago. But the plastic is shiny and very obvious looking, so I never wore the bra. I need a halter that has built in support that doesn't move around. I bought a halter bathing suit top from Old Navy that does have cup support and I actually wore that out in the yard this weekend, leaving me with a halter strap tanline!





Check out the eVintage Blog Tag every Wednesday. Follow the links to read the posts from all of the participating blogs. I was tagged by Vintage Joy and now I'm tagging Diary of a Mad Vintage Addict