lately.

Hey, there. I've been sewing non-stop for the past two weeks getting ready for my Paulie Antiques fashion show on April 14th! This is my studio last night and then the photo below is me in a mask before I spray painted some hydrangeas. The first few photos are from last weekend with my balloons and my cat named Angela. She's a good model for photos. I've been trying to take more instant photos lately... here is the result! 

Also.. I am competing in a style competition for College Fashion Week tonight... see more details here! XOXO

love, polly

springtime travels

Just some pictures I took at the park last week. It was beautiful beyond belief out there.. but I can't dwell on that fact too much considering that I am confined to the solidarity of my bedroom. Sewing, sewing, sewing.... it's my life right now. BUT I CAN TELL YOU THIS................ the runway show is going to knock your shoes off... I can't wait to show you!

love, polly

Reader Question: Where should I shop for vintage online?

Hi, loves! I thought I'd start a new feature called Reader Questions because I sometimes can't respond back to the person who asked me a question because they don't have a blog or e-mail listed and also because it's a question that I have gotten asked before. If you have any questions you'd like to ask me.... feel free to ask them in this post!

Sabrielle asks: Where do I buy vintage online?

My answer is that I rarely buy vintage online unless it's cheap cheap cheap OR it's really unique and I can't live without it! The BEST place to find affordable vintage is at estate sales, Salvation Army, Goodwill, and random little sales that pop up like the photo below. Yard sales are a MUST is you don't have a huge budget for it. If I ever do buy online, I know exactly what I am looking for and I scout it out on ebay, usually! However, if I find something totally unique that I can't live without (on etsy) at a decent price, I will splurge every once and a while. If you DO have a slightly larger budget and want to find something unique, I have my own vintage store called Paulie Antiques, one of my dearest friends owns this shop called Figmint Vintage, and here is a link to my favorite shops on etsy! Have fun exploring vintage and handmade with that link... it's endless!

love, polly :)

2 for 1: Vintage Dress Remix from Annika of Pineneedle Collective!

Welcome to Annika from Pineneedle Collective! I've been eyeing her style for quite some time and we've become friends in the process of my creeping on her. She willingly agreed to participate in a wardrobe remix with me! Enjoy! :)

Look one: She took a beautiful vintage dress and made it the main garment to work from. This is the dress itself paired with knee high socks (she put the heart patches on herself!), a brown leatherbag and red accessories.

Look two: Annika calls this the "sneaky stolen collar look" because she is wearing the vintage dress under another dress. Genius! She says, "It gives the blue dress the appearance of having a collar. If you have a nice collar on a dress or shirt, then layering it under other items works well because you are basically creating a new dress! I've also used the belt belonging to the purple vintage dress on top!"

Look Three: "The vintage dress is now worn as a blouse. It's super easy to turn a dress into a blouse with a high waisted skirt or pinafore! I ended up feeling like a bit like a maid in this outfit..."

Look four: "The vintage dress worn under a cropped sweater Layering a collared dress underneath a sweater can give the dress a new look and also make the sweater look super cute!"

Look one: I also chose a vintage dress for my remix (haha... of course). I paired it with my mom's vintage hunter green knee socks and chevron wedges and a red hat. A bow tie to top it off.

 Second look: I paired the vintage dress with oxfords found at Goodwill, my Great Grandmother's fur collar with a vintage pin on it from my mother, and orange gloves from Dandelion Vintage.

Look three: I paired the vintage dress with taupe and white flats found at Salvation Army, a lace crop top from forever 21, a green thrifted belt, and an antique sleeping cap from 1905.

Look four: I wanted a bolder pop of color for this look so I added vintage blue bow heels from Salvation Army and a electric blue blazer. Green vintage pearls from my mother and my Great Grandmother's white mesh metal purse from the 1950's/1960's.

We hope you enjoyed our remixes and learned a trick or two in the process! XOX

love, Polly and Annika!

edited or not: a series of out-takes

I figured I'd share a  recent out takes reel of outfit posts because it's been a while and I kind of forgot about doing it! I know they don't reveal any side boob or anything.. but here they are :). Most of them just didn't make the cut or my clothing just ended up looking really strange whilst moving in the photo. Happy Friday! You can see even more of my out takes here and here. Do you post your out takes? Link me!

love, polly :)

10 days of family (day four)

This is my Great Great Grandmother Marie Berta Frisina. She died when my mother was 15 years old. Here she is holding her son James Frisina, Sr. (my Great Grandfather). James Frisina, Sr. is the father of my mother's father, James Frisina, Jr.

 James was born May 18, 1911... so this photo is probably dated around 1913-1915. He was the State Amateur Golf Champion 5 years in a row for the State of Illinois. No one has ever repeated that kind of success in Illinois history. Here are some photos of me wearing the only momento I have belonging to my Great Great Grandmother Marie.. her beautiful necklace and matching earrings.

I would kill to have a photo of her wearing the necklace and earrings!

p.s. you can also see me wearing this necklace with another outfit here.

love, polly :)

outfit: dreaming...

Happy Spring, everyone! So... story of my life... I rode my bike all the way to the Japan House to take these photos and as soon as I got there and turned my camera on..... it died. I almost didn't come back, but determination proved otherwise... haha! Besides... it's glorious outside! Riding your bike is a dream. Anyway... These trees smell like a perfume I'd make if I had that kind of money. I wish I knew the exact name for these trees... is it a White Dogwood?

outfit details: red tights- american apparel

chevron wedges- Steve Madden

vintage pink dress- Avalon Exchange Thrift, St. Louis, MO

vintage flower crown- Carrie's Antiques in Champaign, IL

vintage pink bracelet- family heirloom

red leather belt- Goodwill

vintage locket necklace- Salvation Army in Champaign, IL

faux leather pink jacket- forever 21

also.. please don't forget to enter my Automatic Doll giveaway!

love, polly :)

10 days of family (day three)

Day three of 10 days of Family is brought to you by my Great Great Grandfather Louis W. Zeiger at age 21. He is my Great Grandmother Frisina's father. This photo was taken in Blue Mound (right by my home town- about 30 minutes away) probably in the late 1800's. He had a brother, Fritz, my Great Great Uncle who I also posted a photo of!

love, polly :)

outfit: spring rain

It rained right after I got done snapping these photos today. I didn't mind much because this pastel pink jacket is water resistant and perfect for a light rain. Also, I can't be mad because it was one of those Spring rains when the sun is still shining and it's just so pleasant. Today has been a really great day so far. I found out my friend Tracy is quitting Dandelion Vintage in about 5 days and moving to Holland in the fall... which is bittersweet because I'll miss her so much but at the same time I know this is what she needs and it will make her happy. How life changes... but it all still goes on.

I bought some incense yesterday and I'm officially obsessed with burning it in my room in the mornings. My favorite scent is Coco Mango.

This is my breakfast today.. a dessert cup with blackberries, a bushel of grapes, and a pure organic orange cranberry fruit bar. I am still drinking blueberry and mint infused water that I shared the recipe for last week... I put the blueberries and mint in my water pitcher... best idea ever!

outfit details: vintage purple wool skirt- Goodwill in Springfield, IL

teal lace up wedges- TJ Maxx

yellow bow blouse- Hip

vintage pink wool hat- my mother's in the 1980's

pink raincoat- For Cynthia

love, polly :)