etsy update

Blouse. Shorts. Bow Tie. Loafers.

I finally finished adding another look to etsy this morning!

I've been excited about photographing this look for a long time. My friend Lauren had a vintage shop in a nearby flea market, and when it closed in the fall, she let me rummage through all the leftover things. I took what I liked, even if it didn't fit, with the intentions of selling it online. Well, it's taken quite some time to get there, but finally, it's up!

I've also been active on other parts of the web this week too:
♥ The folks a Smashion did an interview with me for their lounge! You can check that out here.
♥ I compiled some of my favorite DIY's for the Delightful Dozen blog yesterday. Here.
♥ Anddd, I finally remembered to draw a winner for the Shabby Apple giveaway. The winner is VintageVeggie! Please contact me to collect your prize.

Vintage For Sale!

Purse. Shoes. Dress.

I've been meaning to open another etsy store for a while, and I'm happy to say that today is finally the day! The opening is really nothing grand. I left my old store and started a new one under the name A Thought is the Blossom. I haven't put together a banner or filled in any extra details, but I did list a few things in there! I'm bad about listing things in bulk, so I thought it might be easier on myself to build simple looks every once and a while. I've got to start making a better attempt at getting rid of some things! It's getting near hoarder status over here. If I had known that etsy updated their site for the better, I probably would have been back a long time ago.

Do you remember the dress from here? It's been a while. . .

Etsy: The Sixties & The Seventies

1.Zebra Romper
2.Wooden Love/Faith Signs
3.Sunglasses
4.Deadstock Polka Dot Maxi Dress
5.Psychedelic Slit Dress

6. Falling Flowers Dress
7. Lime Shift Dress
8. Tooled Wallet
9. Mad Men Coat Dress
10. Peter Pan Collar Floral Blouse

11. Yellow Fondue Pot
12. Hand Screen Printed Paisley Print Sweater
13. Orange Nylon Blouse
14. Orange London Fog Trench Coat
15. Yellow Snap Shoulder Blouse

16. Red Zipper Front Dress

17. Striped Shirt Dress

18. Mexican Embroidered Blouse

19. Liberty Print Dress

20. Red Jumper Dress

21. Red Coat Dress

22. Polo Blouse

21. Vibrant Spring Florals Dress

22. Pink Bubble Hem Nylon Blouse

23. Ivory Peter Pan Collar Victorian Lace Blouse

I finally added some more pieces to the shop last night, but this time I went with a  60's/70's inspired theme! I know it's kind of a stretch from my own personal style, but when I first started thrifting for my store a couple years ago, this seemed to be the vintage I was drawn to. Maybe it's because it was so obviously vintage and easy for me to recognize, but whatever the reason, it's been hanging on my dress rack for way too long and desperately needs to find a home before Goodwill gets a hold of it. I priced everything super low for that reason. Most things are under $30! It seems like I get a lot of really retro pieces given to me too, either from friends parents or grandma's, or sometimes even because they saw it at the thrift store and thought about me. I never sell any gifts though! I'll only sell an item if they bought it with the intention of me putting it in the shop. When I posted these photos on Facebook last night (you should friend me, btw!) I had a girl offer to give me 25 vintage dresses that she was planning on dropping off at a thrift store. You already know what I said.

Since these looks were so far away from my style and since I was super duper busy leading up to this shoot, I got really lazy with the styling and put the girls in the same shoes and socks the whole way through. I'm a cheat and ripped the black shoe/sock combo off from the Orla Kiely fall lookbook, but then again, who could blame me?

Birdie Girl

I wasn't planning on doing a post today until I remembered I had these photos of Hannah still lingering on my memory card. I figured if I didn't post them as soon as possible, they'd accidentally get deleted and I'd whine about how sad I was that they are gone. I think I've finally learned my lesson there! This is that pretty 40's dress I thrifted sometime last week. I'll have it listed in the shop sometime tomorrow for anyone who's interested (I think it's an XS/S).

Jake and I had a great Saturday today. We finally got over to the Argenta Market in downtown NLR  and bought us lots of yummy fruits and veggies (all from local farmers). A friend of mine just gave me a really nice blender, and I'm looking forward to making strawberry banana smoothies and peanut butter milkshakes!

Fly Away!

I've finally finished that project I couldn't keep my mouth shut about yesterday, and I'm soo soo soo excited to share it with you guys! Ever since starting my inspiration blog I've been spending a lot less time online and a lot more time creating (sorry for any unanswered emails). Due to all that added inspiration, I decided I wanted to try something different with the shop update. Instead of photographing all my pieces on the new white background, I wanted to build a collection that really carried it's own distinct point of view. I wanted to create a feeling and a story as if I were an independent designer showing off my creations for the season.  So, without further adieu, hold on the your hats because I'm about to make up for that lack of posting I've been doing with one mega post.

Before you can understand my point of view for this collection, I think you'll need to take a look at my inspiration. I've been drawn to really pretty pastels and soft, delicate textures this summer, and I can't get over some of the pieces from the Twenty Seven Names lookbook. They're done in the very best colors with just the right amount of details, and I love that everything is styled with really tough, almost boyish boots. It reminds me of old country looks typical of the 1930's.

I've also been loving really well designed sets with rough concrete floors and less then perfect model poses. I'm going to have to pass on the concrete floor for now, but I was able to build a very simple set based around my favorite colors of the moment. The Fischer fall lookbook has been a great source of inspiration for set design, and again, the Twenty Seven Names lookbook is great for the effortless model poses. 

My final piece of inspiration was this beautiful painting of Queen Guinevre done by John Collier in the early 1900's. I was really intrigued by all the colors and flowers in the piece, and they just seemed to resonate with all the romantic things we're seeing this season: floral crowns, pastels, and braids.

After looking around my apartment and finding things that really tied in with what I was trying to create, I decided to title this collection 'Fly Away!' based off of a piece I made last winter. Building the set around this theme wasn't really tough seeing as my home is already filled with tons of soft, muted colors. 

Styling the collection was really quite fun too! I scored tons of great pieces at Goodwill the day before I styled it and was able to come up with some outfits that I really fell in love with. I used lots of silk and rayon, and of course, nothing but the softest, most beautiful pastel colors. I even made a couple of  floral crowns to go with the collection too! I only have two in the shop now, but I liked making them so much that I plan to add a bunch more. Just let me know if you'd like to go ahead and place an order, and I'll get it ready.

I think that's about all I have to say, so I'll shut up now and let you have a look for yourself.

That's not it though. 

I also decided to make a video! I feel like I need to preface it with an apology for my inability to stop a video properly, so forgive me for the abrupt stop. I didn't get a whole lot of footage, and I'm still learning how it all works. I set it to Future Islands "Swept Away", and if you know anything about Dan Deacon and the Wham City guys you'll know that this video is not typically what they would place their songs too. They use some really wacky edits in their stuff, and it makes for a good laugh if you ever have the extra time to watch some of it. I only hope they wouldn't mind me setting my girlie mush to their beats. Feedback is much appreciated!

Enjoy and don't forget to visit the shop!

Fly Away! from Starr Crow on Vimeo.

An Etsy Wedding.

I feel like I've lost track of the blog lately with that missing camera remote and those anti internet urges, and I apologize to all of you who keep stopping by. You guys are probably tired of hearing me bitch about that, but I just get so disappointed when I neglect the blog like that. I'm hopeful that things will fall back into place soon though. While I try to get back on track with the posting, I'll show you some happy customer photos that I'm really quite proud of!

Do you remember that Victorian wedding dress I sold in the shop a while back? Well, it was actually worn for a wedding. I had one customer wanting to wear it to a forest party, but it ended up going to this pretty lady instead. Meet Andrea. All I know about her is that she lives in a remote area where USPS doesn't even deliver (that sounds exciting to me!) and that she just married her sweetheart, Dan. I think she looked absolutely beautiful, and I wanted to share her photos with you guys.

 

Ah, proud Etsy shop owner right here!

Also, just because I'm a big mouth that gets really excited about things, I have to share with you that I'm working on something really cool to show you later this week. Fingers crossed I'll have it all ready tomorrow.

Etsy: Huge Update

I guess I lied yesterday when I said I wouldn't be getting the shop updated til after the weekend. Last nights plans ended up being canceled, and I found a lot of free time to get it done! I added 19 items, and I plan to update it with lots more next week too. Sorry about the pink photos, still figuring it all out!

Etsy: Gingham

I think this post is going to be a bit pointless, but I just wanted to show you guys what all I've been up to today!  First, say hello to Miss Hootie. She's a sweet little lady who says she wants to start modeling for me, so look for her to be a familiar face around the blog (and shop!). This is just one round of shots we got this afternoon. I think in all we shot around 20 outfits, and I'll be working hard to get them in the shop throughout the week.

You may remember this gingham dress from my Misikko post a while back, and then again when Annie wore it for our meetup back in May. I'm finally holding true to my word and putting it up in the shop!

Etsy: Purses Handbags Totes Clutches

I committed to a shift at the restaurant today, so I don't have time for much of a post. I did want to show you what I worked on yesterday though. I finally got all these purses listed in the shop! Go have a look around, and I'll be back tomorrow with the Designer Apparel winner. I wish I had to time to draw today, but I closed entries and will let you know who won tomorrow! Enjoy your day. :)

P.S. I've been doing quite a lot of posting over on the inspiration blog too!