by Candice DeVille | Jul 17, 2014 | DIY, Kids
People always ask me how I dress my girls. I’m sure you have this romantic notion of them in matching little sailor dresses sitting perfectly at the dinner table saying, “please pass the salt Mother”. (Perhaps not.)
The reality is, that since they were little, there are only a few occasions when I’ve been able to have them in true vintage. We have some fantastic pieces like a 1960’s leopard print raincoat and matching hat, a 1970’s red skating dress with white faux fur trim, and beautiful little gloves for tea time. Day to day wear however, I’ve been loath to have them in vintage as I just can’t bare to see that history getting ruined in the mud. Instead I’ve made them little dresses from vintage patterns when they were small, and as they’ve grown looked for pieces that can be styled up with a vintage look. The problem is that now my eldest is TEN(!), it is becoming harder to find appropriate looks. She’s been pouring over pictures saying the same thing we do. “Why don’t they make these now?!”
She isn’t a fan of jeans or pants in general, and would dearly love to get into pencil skirted suits already. I was exactly the same at twelve years old and have some very amusing photos around here somewhere. Together we’ve been out scouring the stores and op shops in the hope of finding pieces we can put together for the right look. She’s in the awkward stage between not fitting into the girls clothes that look right (there are NO good tween options), and wearing very small ladies clothes. It seems that we are only left with the DIY option of sewing up Misses patterns; a very time consuming endeavour. Here is her preferred selection so far.
I swear, if there was someone in the vintage community making children’s clothes in these sizes, they’d have a decent business! (If you know anyone please let me know) There are a few options around but generally they stop at a size 7 at most. I guess girls over that age are a niche market within a niche market. We have an event on Sunday that she’d like to wear one of these to. Nothing like a bit of pressure hey?!
by Candice DeVille | Jul 15, 2014 | sponsors
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There is no one point that you reach when a timer goes off and says, “You’ve now reached your gambling limit and it may be starting to become a problem.” It is something that those around you can help you figure out a way through. When gambling starts to take over it can lose its shine and start to hurt in different ways.
Questions to ask yourself:
- Do you think about gambling every day?
- Do you hide your gambling from loved ones?
- Do you ever borrow money to gamble?
- Do you let bills go unpaid?
- Is gambling affecting your role as a parent?
- Do you think you can use skill to win on a pokie machine?
- Do you gamble to forget your problems?
If you answered yes to any of these questions,you may be experiencing an issue with gambling.
Experiencing problems with gambling is different for everyone and there is no one right answer to finding help; there are many.
Getting help means you can start to take back control of your life. All the things you ‘spend’ while gambling – your time, relationships, money – become yours again. Think about how much better off you could be.
If you or someone you care about is experiencing problems with gambling, there are many ways to get help.
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by Candice DeVille | Jul 14, 2014 | The Vintage Review, Vintage Shopping
A cold and rainy Tuesday in Ballarat seemed like the perfect day for taking a bit of a wander amongst the Mill Markets vintage stalls. Having visited before, I knew they had a little cafe section and even the tempting draw card of an open fire. I didn’t have anything specific in mind, but like all good vintage hunters, you know you can never pass up an opportunity for a bit of a ‘look see’. After all, that is how we manage to come up with the amazing finds; by constantly being on the look out.
With Sonny Molone (Miss 10) on the camera, I’m was free to wander and poke around hands free; a very important factor in digging about in piles of potential treasures.
The stalls are each run by individual vendors with goods sold by stall number at the central counter. It means that there is generally no one on hand to ask questions about items you’re interested in, but on the flip side, it does allow you to feel like quite the treasure hunter. Many of the larger items include the vendors contact number to help you sort out any queries or deals you might have in mind.
There is a large proportion of stalls selling the usual suspects of nick nacks and what nots, some of the more collectible variety and some that will appeal to the more idiosyncratic collector.
“There was this duck see, and he walked into a bar…”
There is a mix of what could be categorised as vintage, retro, second hand and artisan pieces here at the Mill Markets Ballarat. It isn’t a strictly vintage dealer outlet pre curated to meet specific tastes, but rather more of a choose your own adventure shopping experience. Something that everyone will see differently. Where I gravitated towards the clothes in a search for nifty hand knits, the girls made a bee line for the retro toy section, coming up trumps with an 1980s Kermit the Frog doll.
If you’re hunting for clothes you’ll only find a small selection of true vintage pieces here. There are a couple of stalls selling vintage reproduction outfits from the likes of Pin Up Girl Clothing, and local hand made pieces. Home wear and conversation pieces is really what the Ballarat Mill Markets are all about. That one off find that makes a room like an old fuel pump, a retro beaded curtain featuring pop culture hero ‘Monkey” or even a life sized came,l (sadly not for sale that day).
All in all, if you’re planning a visit to Ballarat, this is one place I’d recommend adding to your touring list.
by Candice DeVille | Jul 7, 2014 | DIY
Now that I have my new glasses, I’m all inspired to rummage through my fabric stash and start turning it into brand new vintage creations.
I may have to make a deal with myself though, as the pile of repairs is even larger than the fabric stash. Maybe make one new thing for every three mended?
The difficulty for me is often when I get up a head of steam on these projects, I burn out quickly by trying to do too much too soon and making silly mistakes. Having a little support group of friends on Facebook to talk me through does help, and it keeps me on track by wanting to share progress rather than just the finished piece.
With Spring and Summer already in mind, I’ve decided to plan ahead and take things slowly with these pieces as inspiration.
(I have no idea why she is holding what looks like a dead koala!)
I have loads of great fabric, rick rack and trim, but I am a bit intimidated by the embroidery. Actually I have zero experience with this and unless I can figure out a cool way to do this, it maybe left undone. I know there are sewing machines that embroider for you (not the one I have), but other than that, can anyone suggest and other ways to finish off these blouses? Maybe you have some easy tips for achieving this look, or you know of some great tutorials. Either way, if you can help with a suggestion I’d be extremely grateful!
by Candice DeVille | Jul 4, 2014 | daily outfit
After what I discovered to be fourteen years, I finally had my eyes checked again. The results explained why I’ve been having so much trouble with my sewing and a multitude of other things.
Today’s Daily Outfit is really all about my new look, and my ability to see, in my fab new specs!
Outfit Details
Striped top – David Lawrence
Black satin skirt – Review
1950’s reproduction earrings from Forbidden Charm on Etsy
NEW FRAMES from Specsavers by Aurora!
Black ballet flats – Areosoles
Lipstick – Cherry Red from Beseme
