Wovenfolk not only carries baskets, but vintage clothing too. The addition of clothing was bound to happen as I love collecting vintage clothes. The shop gets updated weekly and these are just a few peeks of what is currently available. There is plenty more on the site and in a range of sizes too. The most recent upload are the cotton and linen tan blouses, and there will be more basket bags coming later this week. I love vintage clothes, but with a modern feel, and if I wouldn’t wear it myself, I wouldn’t put it in my shop. Sometimes, it’s so hard to let certain things go because I want to keep them for myself. Seriously, the struggle is real.
I never knew I needed linen overalls in my life until they came into my life. And they’re high-waisted and have two front pockets! They’re pretty perfect! This vintage pair came from vintage shop ABLE. I may be headed to my 40s (still got a few years though), but I do still wear overalls. Honestly, when I buy things, I think, will I wear this when I’m 40? Thinking that’s still about 10 years away, but then it hits me, it’s only 3 years away. Since my late teens, my unwavering love for vintage is still here. The only thing that has changed about it are the eras and silhouettes I wear. Now, I go for more loose, oversized, and flowy, but will never turn down a good fitted pair of jeans. Overalls have also been a staple love, so much so, I still have (and wear!) the overalls I wore when I was a teenager. I even took my senior (high school portraits in them), so I will keep them forever until I can take legit senior portraits in them too. That would be a fun compare and contrast to do one day.
My heart has got a soft spot for women run businesses, especially vintage shops, and I love tooting their horn when I can, so I’m glad I get to share about the shop ABLE with you. The internet and social media helps make pursuing dreams like this possible, but the instagram algorithm does like to rain on that parade too. As a small shop owner myself, I do appreciate when people love something I found and rescued, bring it into their home to love and share with their community. Liv, owner of ABLE, has curated a lovely selection of goods (look at this beauty), and am especially appreciating her selection of vintage, bakelite earrings. I’m so excited to have this pair of linen overalls from her. With me being the shorty that I am, I had to hem the length and also adjust the straps (they were way too long for me), but with a little snip and sew, they now fit me perfectly. These will definitely be on rotation through the warm months, which is almost every month of the year for a Southern Californian.
As for my crochet top, it is an Edwardian top from Ms. Tips. Antique pieces make my heart have an extra pitter patter. This 1920s romper from Ms. Tips is especially summery and sweet.
I realized I never posted the results of my wardrobe challenge, so here it is! My challenge was to wear black shoes for 5 days because black is never my go-to shoe color. I’m just not comfortable in it, but after this challenge, I’m feeling a little bit better about how to wear black shoes, though it still isn’t what I reach for first. Despite that, I’m still glad I rescued these vintage beauties and brought them home with me. Also, I’m vertically challenged, so I think black shoes tend to make me look shorter, but the shape and toe of these are definitely flattering and elongate instead of cut me off.
My favorite outfit was the skirt and button down combo, with the Canadian tuxedo and military pants tied for second. I”m already thinking of my second challenge, which would be to pull my hair back. My hair is always down, so I’m thinking I need to play with it a little, and try different pulled back styles. Recently, I’ve considered chopping it all off and getting side swept bangs, but I don’t think I’m ready for that yet.
I love the puff sleeves popping up for spring, especially the ones I see in my fave vintage shops. I’ve been keeping an eye out when I’m sourcing. This pink one was thrifted a week ago, but was a dress. I liked the dress and was planning on leaving it a dress, but the more I thought about it, I knew it would get more wear as a blouse. With a snip and a sew, it became a perfect pink puff sleeve blouse. Say that 3 times fast.
When I found it, there was a slight hesitation in getting it because it wasn’t vintage. I said yes though because it is second hand, so I’m all about that give old things new life thing, and this change certainly breathed in new life. Now, I have left over fabric to make the girls a top or skirt too. Two for the price of one is something I will certainly take.
If you want your own puff sleeve? Doen has feminine and floral, Rawson Chicago has vintage and simple, and this and this from etsy are beauties too.
I’m always tooting Everlane’s horn, but they’ve done it again with their new Editor Slingbacks. They are so classic and chic; I love the pretty colors they come in. Everlane sells out real fast, so if you’ve been looking for a pair of cute flats, don’t wait. I remember when the first stock of Day Heels came out, they sold out real fast and I had to wait a few months until the restock. Even though, I’m not ordering a pair of these (I prefer shoes with a bit of a heel), I wanted to share them because some of you flat shoe loving friends might love them. It’s Friday and it’s always nice to celebrate the weekend with a little treat for yourself!
You all know I’m a basket lover with a soft spot for vintage and handmade, so I wanted to share this brand I love… Unravel Co. Unravel Co based out of Austin, Texas, is a basket shop that features handmade baskets made by artists in Ghana (read more about the collaboration here). Started in June 2017 by Sanetra Nere Longno. Her vision is to have a business that helps others, meanwhile developing fruitful relationships through design and collaboration. With that, Sanetra has a fundraiser to help build huts in the Ghanaian community in Sherigu. The vision is to build a learning community center. All visitors needs will be met with a place to rest, a stand alone full kitchen, water for everyday use and a center to learn about weaving and the culture. All things we take for granted here in the US. This enables the community to have a better cooking environment for the women to feed children and students. It also provides a finished weaving center for the talented makers.
They need to raise $1585 to complete the huts, and they’re about a third of the way there. To learn more about the fundraiser or to donate, you can get more info here.
And though WOVENFOLK is a basket shop too, I’m proud to share another basket shop with you. I love supporting other women run businesses, especially those who share my love for all things woven and those with a heart to use their business to help others.
We are already into our summer garden, but this is how our winter garden fared:
Romanesco (above photo, top left) - The 6 plants grew slower than we hoped. Started from seed at the very end of November, the buds weren't evident until a few months after. Unfortunately it appeared to be too late for our warmer temperatures because they bolted. The small heads that were there blew out like a slow motion firework and we never got to enjoy them.
Kalettes (above photo, top right) - This was the most anticipated veggie that's a kale-Brussels sprout hybrid. And now in June, month 7, the suspense continues to build! They are painfully sllllllllooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwww growers. All the leaves you see there are not the actual kalettes. Rather, the kalettes grow just like Brussels sprouts, attached to the stalk at the "armpit" of where the large leaves you see in the photo connect to the main, vertical stalk. However, instead of looking like mini-cabbages like Brussels sprouts, the finished product is more reminiscent of a shuttlecock. Three different varieties are there and the kalettes just started to form in the last couple weeks. We're almost there!
Bok Choy (above photo, vacated spot, middle left) - We harvested it just like the ones you see in the store. Oops. Evidently it's a gift that can keep on giving, so long as you remove some of the leaves (not all at the same time!) We enjoyed it, but could've enjoyed it more had we harvested it differently
Fennel (above photo, middle, center) - We all love fennel. Ben doesn't like licorice but loves fennel (which has a licorice flavor), so it's possible to like it even if you don't like licorice. This is one of the veggies the girls get unusually excited about! Unfortunately, it is a one-hit wonder (when it's harvested once, that's all), but totally worth it).
Broccoli Raab (above photo, middle right) - This bountiful and bitter vegetable grew so fast; we just weren't ready for it with all the fruit tree planting back in January and February. It bolted and flowered shortly thereafter. Bummer since it's one of our favorites. The girls, not so much... their palettes aren't as accepting to such sharp and spicy flavors.
Mixed greens (above photo, bottom left) - The most generous vegetable by far. Like grass (or hair)... you cut it and it grows right back. Saved a lot on bagged mixed greens over the 3 months it was in ground!
Carrots (above photo, bottom right) - All shapes, sizes, and colors. The girls had a lot of fun popping these with ease out of the ground.
We learn new things every season we have new crops. We'd plant everything again, just making the changes mentioned in the tending approaches. The jury is still out on the kalettes to see if they'll be worth hogging up nearly an entire bed for over half of a year! Tomatoes are now in the bottom 2 beds, but since the kalettes continue taking the scenic route journeying to their destination, it prevented a 3rd bed for tomatoes that are so dear to our hearts and tummies!
