ECLECTIC DESIGN: MINNA PARIKKA

I LOVE quirky shoes or in better words "shoes that really stand out". Minna Parikka does it right. great color combination, design silhouette with a twist of fun. her spring 2011 line is full of yummy creamsicle colors. she's definitely a good source to go to if you want to get out of your all black shoe collection as i somewhat have. these would look amazing with many of my vintage dresses. i'm glad there are other eclectic shoe designers out there besides Vivienne Westwood!

source and shop here: minnaparikka.com

gisela

FROM THE ARCHIVES / CIRCA 2005

picture of me circa 2005

The task of cleaning up old computer files can be daunting, especially if you have literally thousands of photos to look through as well as word files. i'm tackling this mission a little at a time. while on my quest i ran into old vintage shop photos from my Ebay days of when i would model the clothes. i actually did not much enjoy modeling myself and it was very short lived; but i liked this photo which i feel my friend Daphne captured perfectly. besides the background i so loved this dress with it's matching head band. i bought it back in 1995 and i held onto to it until i sold it on Ebay i believe in 2007. 

Most of you don't know that i've actually been in the vintage selling endeavors since 2002. i just never "worked" it as i should of when the concept first came into mind when my best friend then roommate Viv gave me the idea to sell on-line. i have for most of my life dressed in vintage first falling in love with it in 1992. that's when my love of thrift stores began and ultimately got me into International Fine Arts College in Miami for fashion design in 94. i had presented my portfolio of re-worked vintage dresses, and was so syked when i got in at the age of 17. 

I always knew i wanted to work in Fashion but also with vintage, but vintage took the backseat for a very long time until i finally started trying to sell in 2005. i never wanted to do Ebay like my friend had suggested (i kick myself a little for this one) but wanted my own online shop from the gecko. at the time roughly 2002 i was following such shops as poshgirlvintage.com (my favorite back then & still now, she carried the most amazing Ossie Clark garments), hemlockvintage.com, and kittygirlvintage.com (amazing dresses) were among the online stores i admired. 

So much has changed in the world of selling vintage on-line, especially in the social realm. i've been much to long on the sidelines although Fashion Design was my first priority. i have over 11 years worth of collecting vintage and feel a little overwhelmed by it all. 

This picture brought back so many memories and i think the biggest memory of all is that i only sold it on auction for $15 dollars. Boy, did that gal get a great deal or what!

gisela

RODARTE FOR OPENING CEREMONY

I had so many favorites it was hard condensing it down to just a few. i am in love with this collaboration, Rodarte really know's how to do them. the one with Target was great and this one is even more lovely. you can really see the vintage inspiration but done in a way where it doesn't look completely vintage. my eyes were even drawn to the mens line. they do mens very well, not boring at all. i want numbers 2, 3...actually i want them all!

complete look book on their Facebook HERE.

gisela

SOME NEWS & A NEW TUMBLR!

Hi all! i know i've been lost for a few weeks in cyber space; but i intentionally took some time off the blog to do a little re-structuring, thinking and goal making for the rest of the year. i won't lie, it's been tough the last few months, we've had a few losses from family to a close friend. i also made a few bad choices along the way and the set backs have been tidal waves in our lives right now. but this in itself has been a very hard learning experience but a good one in which i needed to go through. if it wasn't for my faith in Christ i would have turned into mush by now! 


With that said i won't divulge any more personal stuff on ya'll just felt led to share that. i'm sure many of you are or have been in my shoes....we are not alone...


On a different much lighter note, i'm starting my come back this week with a HUGE shop update. their are already many cute items i haven't posted on the blog, but i'll be doing an update on that as well this week. i plan on doing a decent end of the summer sale soon to make room for fall, can you believe it?!


I also started a Tumblr page which i created a while back but have finally now gotten around to posting! i love it so far because unlike the blog i can post random pictures, ads, anything really that catches my fancy and draws inspiration or just swoon over. you can find me HERE, come by and say hi and if you have a Tumblr page drop me a note in the comments so i can go check it out.


wishing you a lovely night,


gisela

NEW MEXICO ADVENTURE

[source]

We are still savoring the last few weeks we have left of summer vacation around these parts...when my friend Amy told Zoe and i we can tag along on a road trip to New Mexico, we jumped at the chance to do it. this year we were not able to do the "family" summer vacation like we have previous years, but it's nice to at least go on a road trip to a state we've only driven across for a few days. it is still a working trip for me, i just can't take any breaks at the moment. but i am looking forward to checking out the beautiful national park called White Sands New Mexico pictured above, breath taking no?! we are also staying in a small mountain town called Cloudcroft where you can just smell the fresh pine scented air, and see wild life around you. they literally only have mom and pop shops, no Starbucks here. 

I'm glad Zoe and i get this little summer adventure before we get back into the grind of school and the fall retail season. working really hard the next few weeks in preparation for it. 

Any of you have any summer adventures happening? would love to hear about it!

gisela

COLOR INSPIRATION: MOD ORANGE

Bright colors are my favorite. some of my favorite color combinations come right out of the 60's Mod era. i love the bright colors the designers used then. from the bright yellows to the bright greens and of course this gorgeous Mod orange, even the white then seemed so crisp and bright!

yarn above i use for shop packages. those killer vintage 60's patent leather heels coming soon to the shop. vintage 1960's mod jacket part of my personal collection a favorite!

gisela

INSPIRED: LEE RADZIWILL

I never new how stylish Jackie Kennedy's younger sister Lee Radziwill was. along side her sister she was not over shadowed, in my opinion she held her own and is stunning. i say is because even at the tender age of 73 she looks amazing. i love the clean and simple style that she had. favorites above is that amazing white Mod Suit and the Sailor Skirt with the knee high socks, love. her cheek bones seem to be her trade mark. all the Bouvier women are just gorgeous and seem to all have been born with their own style....

gisela

source: most fanpix.com, zimbio.com