Last night, Patrick, Angelina, Carla of Bohemian Vintage, and I attended Alex Sandra’s Tiki Madness fashion show at Tony Starlight’s.

With exotic drinks in hand we enjoyed live piano music, and fabulous fashions available from Alex Sandra’s shop.  Near the entrance Alex Sandra had set up jewelry, hats and clothing available for purchase, in addition to the items in the show being for sale. I love that Alex Sandra accentuates the versatility of vintage.  She had women of all shapes and sizes (proving that vintage is not just for the itty bitty!), and demonstrated of how a necklace and brooch can quickly become a bracelet.  Alex Sandra also pointed me out in the crowd, and I was able to come up on stage, share my dress (from Nobody’s Baby in Eugene) and plug both my antique space and my blog!

As for Tony Starlight’s itself, the establishment harks back to the lounges of the 1950s and 60s with live music and entertainment, and is showy without being gaudy, and also intimate and offers you a chance to hob-knob with the owner himself.  We ate dinner before hand and opting to do dessert and drinks there.  I highly recommend the Huckleberry Lemonade!

The next fashion show is sometime in September and is said to be Mad Men themed! OoOo…more details as the event draws closer!

One of the great things about Portland in the sense of community.  During summer, this becomes pretty prominent.  Between Flicks on the Bricks, Rose Festival, and concerts in the park, it’s hard not to feel like there is a great bond between Portlanders and their city.  Last night, Patrick, Angelina and I went to see Portland’s very own Vagabond Opera in Wallace Park.

So here is where I introduce part of the non-retro Janey.  Yes, it is true, I dig things that don’t relate to the 1950s and 60s! Vagabond Opera among them.  They are an eccentric array of people dressed in near cartoonish (and I mean this in a good way) attire of turn of the century fashion.  Their music is that of gypsies and cabarets and entertaining from start to finish.

As for the park atmosphere for concerts, you must get there early if you want a decent view, for the further you sit back, not only the less you see, the less you hear. This is not due to bad acoustics but mainly because the people in the back aren’t there for the band itself, but rather for the idea of lounging in the park with a live band playing and chatting it up.

Tomorrow I’m off to Liz’s sale over at Xtabay. $1, $5 and $10 items, plus 20% off everything in the store!  So come check it out over at 2415 SE Clinton!  I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Back in 1971, my mom graduated from college, and her parents got her a sewing machine.  And get this, she is still using that same sewing machine today.  On my graduation day my mom gave me a talking Star Wars card that blasted the Star Wars theme at me, followed by Obi Wan telling me I had “learned well”.  Also inside was a print out of a sewing machine that she had picked out for me online.  When she came over the weekend, she brought it.

I’m thrilled to say the least.  I’ve been quite envious of my friends with their sewing machines, and the loads of vintage patterns I’ve seen over the course of my antiquing.  Now, it can all me mine!  However, I’m quite intimidated.  I’ve built bicycles and worked on engines, but a sewing machine baffles me!   This isn’t to say I know nothing about sewing!  I’ve made out quite well with my hand sewing skills.  But that doesn’t always cut it, so I’m going to put my nose to the grindstone this week, and am going to get this puppy figured out!

Just before graduation, Patrick and I finally got around to doing our engagement photos.  It had been a process of waiting for just the right time for all three parties and not to mention waiting for good weather.  Ivar Vong, the photo editor for the Oregon Daily Emerald and one of the web developers for the EMU Marketing team, did these fabulous photos that were shot in the courtyard of the Bijou in Eugene. This is a small selection of the many, many beautiful photos he took.

It was a difficult process in some respects, since the tiny area forced Ivar to get creative with shooting and where to stand.  So, a huge thank you to Ivar for working in such small and difficult conditions (which was totally our fault), and not falling in the fountain!

Regarding the new Portland pad, things are nearly there, since I left a few things at my dad’s back in Eugene which I won’t get until next week.  Meanwhile, I picked up a clothing rack for my space at Antique Alley, thanks to Saks who is going out of business and selling all of their fixtures.  Additionally, Friday, I am joining my brother and his car club for Billetproof, a weekend long car show up in Centralia, Washington.  Not sure yet if our hotel has internet, so I may be blogging from the Evergreen state or afterward once I’ve returned to PDX.

So, here’s a little update to prove I’m still alive and haven’t died in the moving process!

We’re four days into living in Portland, and we’re still unpacking.  It’s like recovering from an atomic blast it seems.  The other day I found a box of dishes in the bedroom.  How did that get there!?  So, needless to say, we’re still stepping over boxes and newspaper and getting things where they belong.  But I can say things are coming together, and I think it’ll look great.  I’ll post some pictures once everything is in place and has a home.  It’s hard to focus since our window looks out onto the pool, which keeps calling my name…

Yesterday, we took a break from packing to check out the antique shops in the Hollywood District.  Not only did I find a few things, I also signed a contract for a booth at one of the antique malls!! I got a space at Antique Alley on 42nd, and move in on the first of July! I can’t wait!  A lot of things need to happen between now and then, like I need to go to the fixture store and get a clothing rack, and a few other things.  And dig out all of my inventory from Etsy.

Meanwhile, tonight we’re seeing The Phenomenauts (third time seeming them, check out the last time I saw them here) downtown at Dantes, and tomorrow we’re attending the Mid-Century Modern and the Recent Past discussion panel as put on by Portland’s Architectural Heritage Center.  If you would like more information, click here. Tickets are $20 each, and the event includes lunch.  I am also planning on attending the Rose City Round Up.  The event is all weekend.  Then, Sunday, the lovely Liz over at Xtabay is having a jewelry sale at her shop over on Clinton.  Starts at 11:00 am! I hope to see you there!  Now, I best get back to unpacking so I won’t come home to such a big mess after the concert!

After four years of hard work I have finally graduated college.  It’s both exhilarating and terrifying, but regardless, I am happy to be leaving the UO.  It’s been a crazy four years.  While I can’t reflect on my years at the UO by saying I was active in any sports or campus groups like I could in high school, I can say that I have enjoyed my time here since I feel that I learned a lot about a great many things, and met loads of fabulous people.  It certainly hasn’t been as wonderful of a four years as high school, but it has still be an experience.  I found it much more difficult to discover my niche in such a large school, and was fine to reserve myself to my studies and an intimate social life.  In 2006 I walked on campus as a journalism major (aspiring to be the next Edward R. Murrow), having been on the newspaper staff in high school and enjoying it, I thought it an practical and worth-while career path, having previously considered majors such as archaeology and art.  After a year of attending J classes, I quickly realized that the J school wasn’t for me, and moved to Women’s and Gender Studies and Psych, aspiring to be a councilor, although upon taking my second WGS class, I came to terms that I didn’t quite fit in with that crowd.  And after taking a few history courses, I quickly realized how stupid I had been…I had always loved the past, and here, I could get a degree about it! How wasn’t this so obvious before!? After loads of history courses ranging from the middle ages to the 1960s and France to Vietnam and thousands of pages of reading I am happy to call myself a History major and boast my BA.  Now I just have to wait for it in the mail.

As for Patrick, having also entered as a J major, he dabbled in architecture, and then settled upon digital arts with minors in both journalism and art.

On to Portland!

Yesterday, my mom, Patrick and I drove to Portland to take a few items to our new place, and clean and paint.  Some of the choice items?  My Starburst dishes…since these beauties cost an arm and a leg, I wanted to get them safe and sound in their new home before our entourage of family and friends help us move in, guns blazing.

One thing I was really eager about was the fact we got to paint at this place.  While I have often lived in places which allow painting, we just never did it, but there was this one wall that screamed, “PAINT ME TURQUOISE!”, which we did.

After some thought earlier this week, we also agreed to paint a wall in the bedroom as well, and we settled on a lime green color, which will go nicely with the turquoise comforter the bed will have.

After many hours of hard work, which included painting, wiping out cupboards and drawers, loads of Lysol, and vacuuming, I think everything came out pretty darn well!  We even decided to paint another wall turquoise.

Now, we just have to move in!  Tomorrow my dad and I are headed to Rickreall for their swapmeet and flea market, then it’s study! study! study! Since I have two finals come Monday (one at 8 am, quickly followed by one at 10 am!) and a final Tuesday, along with an essay!  Then it’s several days filled with packing, and then graduation and moving! I can’t wait!

With graduation and subsequent moving just around the corner, (two weeks! *eep!*) I will have to say to goodbye to my wonderfully cushy job at The Clothes Horse near campus.  It’s been a fabulous two years working for Ann, who offered me such a grand opportunity where I learned swell skills in retail.  I’m certainly sad to leave such a fabulous work environment, where I get to meet new and interesting people each day, not to mention fabulous deals on clothing.

I just hope I can find a job similar, at least until I have the money and opportunity to open up my own shop in PDX. So…dear readers…if you’re in the Portland area, and know of any openings at resale or antique shops, let me know!  I’m an eager, passionate, experienced and vintage loving girl seeking an income!

With graduation only 25 days away, Patrick took my senior portraits that I am going to send out with my graduation announcements, which he also designed for me.  Anyhow, here are some of the highlights from the shoot:

I think I’ll end up sending the first one.  It’s the most classic.  Although, I am certainly quite fond of the card catalog pose as well. We shot in the Knight Library, and along the edge of the Pioneer Cemetery.

Photos: Patrick Arlt

MUAH: Angelina Malizia

The main reason for our visit to the Rose City was to search, and hopefully secure, a new place, since we are relocating to Portland after graduation from the UO.  So, Thursday was spent running around town looking at various apartments and houses.  The process was painful, disappointing, but also hopeful and had me falling head-over-heels in love with a certain location.  So knock on wood, cross your fingers and say a prayer that we get approved for this pad that has me crazy.  But of course we wouldn’t venture into the city without visiting our favorite downtown haunts, which include Powell’s, Rocco’s Pizza, the Ace Hotel (for their photobooth) and an array of other shops.

Meanwhile, we couldn’t spend time in the area without hitting up Hawthorne and all of its vintage glory.  From Lounge Lizard to House of Vintage to Red Light, Hawthorne has amazing goods to offer the vintage lover.  (As soon as we move into Portland, I plan to write a thorough review of all the shops along the infamous street.)

It was a fairly hot day for us Oregonians, with temperatures in the mid-70s, so the 40 block walk was draining at times, so pardon the mess I am.  We took the 14 bus to the Hawthorne Fred Meyer and then walked our way down, stopping in at various shops, and ultimately ended up at Burgerville…the Northwest’s answer to In-n-Out.

As for the finds…I’m sad to say it wasn’t much. I picked up a few contemporary sweaters (hey, a girl can’t buy vintage all the time), and bought Pat a tie.  But I did find these amazing Daniel Green lounging slippers!  I pulled them off the shelf and said “Where have you been all my life!?” Pat looked at them and said “Those are ridiculous,” and I said, “Yeah, ridiculously awesome!” The mink pom-poms just make them to die for!  I’ve been looking for some lounging slippers for some time and have stumbled upon some Victoria’s Secret and Frederick’s of Hollywood feather ones, but never as outrageous as these.  According to Patrick, they are utterly impractical, but to me they are a dream come true!  And they were only $12.00!!

After a long day of walking, drooling over expensive items and purchases, we headed back to Eugene for our last month of classes, but the vintage swag didn’t end there, since the Coburg city wide garage sale was Saturday and the Picc-a-Dilly was Sunday!