To alter or not to alter. . . that is the question.

So here is one of the personal purchases I made on our trip. . . A beautiful blue velvet mini-dress I found at a Vintage shop in Montana. I'm thinking of wearing it to a wedding that I'm going to next weekend.  The question is:  to remove the bow or not?  I kind of feel like 28 is too old for large satin bows. . . but then there's the ethical dilemma of altering pristine vintage pieces.  hmm. . . any thoughts?

Well, the road trip is winding down. . .we'll be back home tomorrow.  This past week has been especially good shopping. On Sunday we left Western Washington and spent the night in Spokane.  On Monday I discovered the most wonderful vintage shop called Finders Keepers.  They specialize in Vintage Estate Jewelry, but they're vintage clothing collection was just as impressive. . . and very reasonably priced.

Two days later we stopped through Butte, Montana on our way to Bozeman.  Butte is an interesting town-- there used to be a lot of money there because of mining, so there are all these gorgeous old brick buildings built into the hill.  Unfortunately, now most of them are empty and some are condemned. So I was somewhat surprised to find a very upscale vintage boutique amongst the ruins.  Rediscoveries is run by a passionate older man who takes vintage very seriously. His collection of gowns/dresses is one of the best I've seen, plus a great stock of men's clothing, jewelry and shoes. It's a little on the pricey side, but everything is in pristine condition.

Our last stop before heading home was in Billings, MT.  Josh met up with some musician friends in the morning and while they practiced for the night's show, I wandered around downtown and found a few good thrift stores and one great vintage boutique, Montana Vintage Clothing.  Again, a great selection of just about everything, and very reasonably priced.  I tried on 3 or 4 dresses and ended up buying a beautiful purple/blue velvet number from the 1960's with silk ruffles on the neckline and hem. . .

Well, I'll be home tomorrow and I plan on getting started right away on updating the etsy shop, so stay tuned!

Vintage Mecca

So, yesterday we arrived at Josh's brother's house in Washington for a much needed break. . . from driving, playing music, and from shopping!  We spent a day and a half in Portland-- the amazing city that I consider "Vintage Mecca".  I was fortunate enough to spend a summer there a few years ago, and I fondly remember riding my bike around the city's four corners just about every day, seeking out all the vintage and thrift stores in the city.  Turns out, there are so many it really does take an entire summer to visit them all. 

Obviously, I was anxious to return. This being the first time I've been back in 3 years, I felt overwhelmed by all that I wanted to see (in only ONE day!).  Unfortunately, it was too rainy and cold to bike around (imagine that! rain in Portland!?), so I dragged Josh from neighborhood to neighborhood in the car--- quickly pulling over (and nearly causing a few accidents) whenever a vintage store was spotted. I lost count, but I think we found at least 15. . .

I just found this blog: Shop Vintage Portland.  I really wish I had found it earlier, so I could have organized my day. . . ah well.

One of the last places we hit, and by far the biggest was House of Vintage on SE Hawthorne. I remembered it from before, but had forgotten the shear enormity of it.  After a full afternoon of thrifting, I'll admit that I was a bit overwhelmed and exhausted by it.  Honestly, it deserves a full afternoon of its own.  But I managed to quickly scour the whole place in about an hour-- eventually deciding on two purchases: a simple wool 1960's shift dress in an amazing bright pink color (which I'm keeping for myself) and a matching wool pea coat (which will be available on etsy as soon as I return).