White Shirt

I bought this white top from a vintage fair for £2.  I liked that it was big and boxy but then I never wore it because it is big and boxy.  So I took it in at the side seams- too small twice, but now it fits.

Too Big Jacket to Cute Jacket

I bought a jacket from a vintage fair a while back because I loved the print (little blue bows all over it) and it was cheap (5 items for £10) but far to big and boxy with shoulder pads.  So about 6 months later I finally got round to upcycling it.  I wasn't sure what to do with it at first so I pinned and basted and unpicked and resewed etc until I had made a cute little waistcoat jacket.  It's perfect for the spring which is great given the cold winter weather we're having.

Vintage Fair

Took my little self to a vintage fair (unfortunately I went on Sunday not Saturday and there are much fewer stalls and the atmosphere is lacking) and bought a pretty skirt to wear on my jollidays and a book to read. But here are some awesome things I should have bought:

 

 Boyfriend (who came with me and complained, and moaned, and rather reminded me of how annoying I was as a child when I was taken anywhere- but he is not a child, he is 31) did not care for any of them, which rather made me want to buy them just to wear when out with public with him but alas I do not earn enough for that kind of spite.  One day...

The bottom jumper btw is a cartoon of the Own and Pussycat :)

Customised Blue Top

I bought this blue top for £2 at a vintage fair a few weeks ago, the pretty pattern on the fabric caught my eye, and the crinkliness of the fabric gave it some unusual texture.  Unfortunately the blouse also had a tie around the neck, a tie around the waist, a ruffled collar (that stood upwards), and wide 3/4 length sleeves elasticated at the end with little bows.  Way too much going on.

I wasn't exactly sure what to do with it but I decided to give it a go and see what I could make.  I took off the tie around the waist and the belt loops as I knew I hated that.  I also lost the tie around the neck which looked ridiculous open or done up, and I hate things around my neck anyway.

Before

After

 I didn't want to lose the collar completely, like the sleeves it looked funny without.  I wanted to keep some of the ruffles but I didn't like the way the collar stood up.  I removed it and re-sewed it so it lay flat, using the tie from the waist as bias binding around the neckline.

The sleeves were a problem, I took away the bows and the elastic at the end but they were quite wide and a very odd length (not a fan of 3/4 length).  I wanted to keep the sleeves long though, as I liked the effect of seeing my arms through the sheer fabric, and the sleeves looked odd shortened on a blouse/shirt.  So I kept them long but took them in to make them narrower.

I sewed the little bows from the sleeves onto the bottom of the blouse, at the seam line, for cuteness. :)

Before

 

After

N.B yes I am aware that it doesn't look that much different in the before and after shots but actually it is a lot more wearable now so I'm quite please :)

Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair Haul

A Saturday off work- reason enough to celebrate, but with a vintage fair too boot I was doubly excited.  Disaster seemed to strike earlier in the week though when my bank card was cancelled- but luckily I was able to get to the bank (passport in hand) and take money out manually.  I took out £50 to last me the week, for any unforeseeable necessary purchases but mainly it was for the fair.  As it turned out  I only spent £26, and got quite the haul- 4 tops, 1 dress, 1 skirt, 1 book, 1 magnet, and then a trip to Wilkinson for coat hangers, irn bru, and chewitts!

When I go to the craft fairs on Sunday's I usually take a turn about the room looking everything over, then go back to the stalls that looked promising.  I walked past one stall that had cool magnets but didn't buy one until my way out.  But the vintage fair has more stalls, and Saturdays have more people so I wasn't sure how to play it as I had less space to browse from afar and needed to get in and do some rummaging.  There was a rail of vintage-style new clothes which included cute cardigans (I love me a good cardi) with roses and anchors on them (as you do) but they were £30 and a little over budget.

I found a stand (the ladies had to stand on the other side of the pathway as there wasn't room for them in their actual stand) with a case full of clothes £3 each, 4 for £10, or 5 for £10 with a discount card.  I found three tops I liked but for another £1 I could get two more things, so I dug a little further and got 4 tops and 1 dress for £10!  They had labels in with previous prices which totalled £52! I'm going to have to customise the two blue tops as one is too big/long and the other is too busy and wearing it would be death by ruffles- so watch this space for a post on that. 

I was looking for separates if I could find them, especially cool trousers but I am an awkward fit at the best of times and vintage fairs are known for groovy dresses so trousers were few and far between.  Some nice snug jumpers around though but nothing that rocked my socks or looked/was a good fit.  I ended up at the large Mighty Baby stand- I recognised their offer, skirts/trousers/jackets are £10 each or 3 for £25.  There were three skirts I liked and toyed with buying all three but £25 seemed a little too much to spend even if it was a good deal.  I tried the skirts on there over the one I was wearing (so not warm enough for a skirt, and blew up in the wind as soon as I left the house) but it was obviously one was a little tight and I noticed it had a small rip in the back.  So I couldn't get the deal and decided to only buy my favourite. 

I stopped at the book/comic/record stand (one of the few not selling clothes) and picked up a Somerset Maugham book called Narrow Corner- I liked the vintage style cover, and the cheap price (£2) but was intrigued by the blurb (to paraphrase) -'a handsome Australian with a shadowy past...tense exotic tale of love, jealousy, murder, suicide...'  Walking along I had found a stand with free chocolates, so before I left I snook back and took two more :)Then headed to the exit/entrance when I bought the cool magnet I had seen.  Clearly just a sticker on some ceramic but it was only 70p so I went for it.  They had it in pink, blue, white, and yellow- normally I'm all about pink but I thought the image looked better on the yellow.  Plus renting a room in a shared house means none of my furniture/furnishings are mine and therefore there is no colour scheme so it's not like the yellow will clash. 

Then I headed to Wilkinson for coat hangers for all my new/old clothes!