Awhile ago I did a shout out on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter asking those who follow me if they had any questions, and if I received enough I’d do a little Q&A post! Well, I did receive a good number of questions, and I got a little carried away with some answers!

Alicia from Facebook said “I’m dying to know what attraction you work [at Disneyland]!”

Well, I don’t work an attraction actually, I simply work in retail in the various shops Disneyland has to offer, but mostly in Fantasyland. I would say though that if I did move to attractions, I would love to work the Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes, especially since they get to wear moccasins.

Akram’s Ideas on Facebook asked “Since I know you are such a Disney fan, I’m curious what Disney character you feel you relate to the most?”

That’s a tough one. I have a few. Mainly though I would say Anna from Frozen. She’s gloriously awkward, loves chocolate, and doesn’t really think a whole lot before she speaks. The moment when she says “This is awkward. Not you’re awkward, but just because we’re…I’m awkward. You’re gorgeous. Wait, what?” is so easy for me to identify with. I also totally identify with Mabel of the Disney show Gravity Falls. Like Anna, she is awkward at times, plus she loves crafting! I would also say Jessie from the Toy Story films. She is opinionated, loves to laugh, but also has this fear of being abandoned, which I think many of us have. And I would also say Slue Foot Sue, from the Pecos Bill short, not that I’m a headturner or anything, but I love how determined she was to ride Widowmaker, and I can be determined and stubborn at times. Plus, ya know, both her and Jessie are redheaded cowgirls.

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fgradowski on Instagram asked “When/how did your love for all things midcentury begin?”

Great question! I have always loved classic cars and oldies music, as I grew up with them. My dad was involved in car shows, and my parents were in the antique business, so I was attending antique shows and flea markets my entire life. As I walked the aisles over the years I began to fall in love with the design of the furnishings of the 50s and 60s. In middle school I began to dabble in vintage clothing. I expressed to my mother that I wanted to dress like Jeannie from I Dream of Jeannie (post-wedding episodes), and she pulled out some her clothing from the 60s and 70s. In 2001 I found my first piece of Franciscan Starburst. Somewhere along in there is when I fell in love with Heywood Wakefield and began buying up pieces, and storing them at my dad’s until I got a place of my own.

Fellow blogger Emileigh of Flashback Summer asked via Instagram “I know you love incorporating Western and Native American style into your look. How do you navigate being PC and still midcentury? Are their certain items you would just never wear, even if they are historical?”

This is a wonderful question. The PC issue is one I give a lot of thought to when I look at vintage garments that have these elements. However I feel like some items that initially made read as offensive, should not be, deep down. However, I will admit I have a garment I have yet to wear for this very reason, despite feeling like I have a good “defense” of it. Perhaps I will make its debut as a post of its own discussing this issue! With regards to still being midcentury with my dress, in all honesty, I have begun to disregard wanting to go period perfect all of the item, and enjoy wearing what I like, and thus mixing and matching decades in outfits. One thing that I think is important when wearing real Native American jewelry is to know if anything you are wearing is of any symbolism, and what that symbol represents. This is where I believe the PC/negative cultural appropriation line is. It’s important to understand and respect icons. For example, I make a point of learning about the kachina dolls and their significance when I purchase items depicting them.

Megan over on Facebook asked “How did you learn to style your hair with vintage flair and how do you decide which hairstyle works best for each outfit?”

I had a lot of difficulty with vintage hair styling, and still do to this day, which is why I have yet to post any tutorials on hair-dos, as it is still very much a trial and error process with me. I learned a lot my basics from a woman named Kristen Behlings who I met through AlexSandra of AlexSandra’s Vintage Emporium, when I modeled with her. Kristen offered vintage hair style classes, and I feel very lucky to have such a wonderful opportunity to have great hands on experience, and I highly recommend attending a vintage hairstyling workshop if you can. Then I began to look at books offered on the subject. I know many people have had success with Lauren Rennells’ (of Bobby Pin Blog) book Vintage Hairstyling. I did not have a great deal of luck with it however, but did do quite well with the hair book from the Style Me Vintage series. YouTube is also a great source of information. I haven’t latched onto a YouTuber who I constantly go to for dos, I just type in whatever I’m trying to do and watch a variety of videos.

When deciding what hairstyle works best, at lot of my hairstyle choices comes down to practicality. I think about what I will be doing for the day, and plan my hair around that. If I’m just going out to lunch or dinner, I can plan a rather outrageous hair do. If I am going shopping, and thus putting on and taking off clothing frequently I may choose a less cumbersome hair-do. Same goes for if I am spending a day at Disneyland, or another amusement park. I also take weather into account, especially wind. I still try to think about periods for my outfits, and hats can also play a role in deciding what to do with my hair.

Kate-Em asked on Facebook, “If you had a chance to time travel which specific historical event would you like to witness?”

Believe it or not this is something I have thought about. Time travel is a very interesting thing, and I like the idea of witnessing something, rather than experiencing it. The one thing I would do, if given the chance, is to actually go to Disneyland, but on a day when Guy Williams, along with many fellow Zorro cast members, were there during one of several “Zorro Weekends” that were held there. Guests got to see a stunt show, as well as meet the stars of the show. While not a major historical event, it is my number one choice.

Cindy on Facebook asked, “Your outfits are always perfectly put together. Do you plan an outfit in advance and go shopping for the pieces, or have you just collected so many awesome items over the years that you draw from your closet for a particular look you want for the day?”

Thank you! Most of the time I pull together outfits from my closet. I wouldn’t say I have ever planned an outfit without having the items, since I never know what I am going to find out there. However I have on occasion purchased an item and realized I didn’t have anything that went well with the item, and then shopped for items to go with it. A great example of that is when I purchased this silver and pink dress. I didn’t want to wear it until I found the perfect pair of shoes to match the dress.

Twinpineapplescruff asked on Instagram, “I would love to know about your favorite albums.”

Great question! Well, as indicated by my recents posts, I’m a huge Gram Parsons fan, and I adore The International Submarine Band’s one and only album, Safe at Home, and of course Parsons’ work with The Flying Burrito Brothers, especially their debut album Gilded Palace of Sin, and Parsons’ two solo albums GP and Grievous Angel. I honestly listen to those on repeat constantly. I’m also a big Brian Setzer fan, and love Ignition. While Social Distortion is a great band I really adore Mike Ness’ solo album Under the Influences. I love Zombie Ghost Train’s album Dealing the Death Card. Not only are the lyrics great, the band can really play! I also love this album of covers that The Misfits did called Project 1950. I also love soundtracks to films and musicals. The soundtrack to Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical is a riot. And while it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, I love the music from Baz Luhrmann’s film Moulin Rouge! I also adore film scores, and especially the works of Danny Elfman and John Williams. Elfman’s score for the 1999 Tim Burton take on Sleepy Hollow is nothing short of gorgeous, and Williams’ work on Catch Me If You Can is my favorite. Additionally the score for the first Pirates of the Caribbean film is amazing, which was done by Klaus Badlet.

Thank you to all of those who asked questions! And I hope you enjoyed this little round-up of question. There were a few questions I couldn’t really answer, at least not at this time. But please remember, I’m always open to questions! So if you missed out on answering a question for this round, feel free to leave a question in the comment section below, and I can do another round of these in the near future!

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