I feel like I have been slacking on my crafty contributions, so I thought now would be a great time to let someone else do the talking.  Threadbanger’s seemed like the perfect complement to give you a little style, fashion and craftiness to get you through humpday on the very last week of July!  I can already feel the summer slipping through my fingers. *sigh*

I’m sorry that title just needed to be included when highlighting jeans.  I will admit that jeans really are my least favorite staple to shop for.  I am 5’2 and they don’t sell 28″ inseams so I have to go into the situation knowing that things will need to be tailored. (p.s. I need to find a good tailor in Chicago. Can you help?)  It is not fun to ‘visualize’ when you are in gross lighting with a huge mirror staring back at you. I will say that my jeans timeline has really been all over the place.  In recent years I jumped on the crazy-expensive jeans bandwagon. AG Jeans fit my butt so nice, but it was like keeping up with the Jones’s as they took me into the world of Paper Denim and I just don’t feel right spending $160 on jeans.  Then I went to the world of the skinny/mom jeans. I had many pairs, all in black. The Cheap Monday’s, the Gloria Vanderbilt’s (don’t judge!) and some other random finds, they weren’t very flattering, but for some reason I insisted on rocking them.

I have also “tried” going the vintage route for jeans.  Yeah, I have no words for how awful most of these gems look on me.  You would feel embarrassed for me.

My recent marriage brought me back to the land of Levi and I am actually not sure why I left.  I think I was looking for something more exotic?  A better fit?  A ‘cooler’ wash?  I am not sure.  I usually stay within in the realm of black jeans, white jeans and dark (blue) wash, so it is not as if I was too experimental.  I began stealing Matt’s jeans last fall when he was running 25 miles a week and dwindling down to a size nothing.  Yes, that is correct, I started wearing my husband’s jeans that were too large for him.  We even have the same inseam (kind of creepy, I know).  If we ever have children they can plan on being mini.   His Levi’s were great and comfortable and made me consider a change–moving beyond fit to the most obvious attraction–they sell Levi everywhere!  Right now it is back to school time and the shops are ramping up for your economy boosting purchases, so sales are insane!  I did a few searches for 501 classics and 511 skinny jeans and the prices ranged from $24.99 to $58.00.

I am an active day dreamer.  I spent most of my childhood dreaming of other places far, far away.  From big white castles to my own corporate office with secretary, (yes, that was actually a childhood dream) my dreams fueled my reality.  The moment I actually realized that you could change your life with the choices that you made for yourself was, in a sappy sense, magical.

My latest dreams are of a more tangible variety.  I have spent the past 7 years trying to figure out what kind of “girl” I am.  Am I city or country? Am I a hybrid or SUV? Am I 5-star or hostel?  I think my latest day dreams have revealed some of these answers for me.

I have always wanted to have land in some capacity, a lake house, a barn, but  I was always torn between my goals to live in  a big city.  I just had the epiphany that I can have both!  The move to Chicago brought with it a more affordable life in addition to the advantages that come living next to two wide-open Midwestern states. My dream is to have a lovely little apt in Chicago (check!) and a lake house within driving distance.   Now, obviously I wouldn’t want just any old cabin, I want a place that mixes my love of retro things with my love for modern/minimal architecture.  A place that my family can all come to hang out and have fun.

A phone call with my mom this weekend brought together the perfect combination in my mind.  We were chatting about some magazine at her house (I can’t remember House & Garden?) and the conversation sealed my mental concept of Half modern/Half Retro living.

A prefab modern house by Rocio Romero or weeHouse would be the first start to the dream.  These homes are AMAZING.  They look beautiful and solid, but yet they come almost completely assembled and delivered via flatbed truck.  They also have a very handsome price tag, coupled with the fact that property in surrounding states would not cost me my first born child–things are looking up.  So the prefab houses that I prefer are all a bit petite which is great for my micro family, but what about the rest of the bunch?  I mean without them there would be no point to have a lake house.  (This is where the mom conversation came into play!)

My mom said she saw a 1971 Airstream in the paper for $1,900 and she thought that we be fun for the family.  That is when it clicked–the  perfect combination for the lake house–modern house and vintage trailer guesthouse.  do you have a visual?  How cute is this idea?

So I did a little Airstream searching and found that, indeed, this dream could come true.  I mean a lot of the oldies need some serious elbow grease, but that is one thing I can offer. I have no problem with demolition and remodeling–especially on such a small scale.  I would like to restore all of the amazing vintage aesthetics with some lovely modern upgrades i.e. wood floors and a comfy couch. (I read that there are a lot of Airstream purists out there so hopefully I will not get hate mail for making these suggestions.)

What are you thoughts?  Are you feeling this dream?  Would you come and visit me somewhere in the middle, to stay in a beautifully updated Airstream next to a lake?  If you’re lucky, I’ll make you sweet tea and cobbler!

Last weekend my dad took me to JC Penney to pick out school clothes for my niece and nephew. I think he feels that is the store you are SUPPOSED to buy school clothes from because my grandma (his mother) would always have that giant JC Penney catalog at the ready.  At Christmas time we would get to go through the catalog and pick things that we wanted with a big marker of our initials.

I have to say that I think my love affair with Penney’s died somewhere around 6th grade when I was hell-bent on being hip.  The catalog was no longer achieving that goal.  Fast forward a 15 years (okay, maybe more like 17) and WOW!  Charlotte Ronson has brought some great designs to this mass chain at amazing prices.

I checked out the website and some of the pieces are on clearance! The ones I have featured here are all under $35!

I don’t mind buying sleeveless dresses at the end of summer because I wear a lot of my dresses year round with either a turtle-neck or a cute little sweater. Score!  I also wear short sleeved blouses year round as office thermostats are so funky.  Double Score! The rest of the collection (that is still available) is super cute, but it may be just a little to young for me. *sigh*

So yesterday was the one month anniversary of Budget Retro!  I know it is a very small milestone, but it feels significant to me as a lot of time and thought went into planning this little sucker.  All-in-all I think that everything went pretty smooth.  I have had a few technical set-backs, but nothing major to report.  I have loads more up my sleeve for the coming months and I am just so excited to see my mini dream come to fruition.  A Gi-Normous thank you to all of my friends who have supported this effort with links, emails and emotional stability.  Budget Retro is off to a great start with page views and visitors, but please continue to share as momma needs a new pair of shoes! (Oh crap, I don’t have advertising so I am actually not profiting off increased visits.  Well, maybe just tell people so I feel cool and liked.)

And continue to send your ideas and comments my why–even if they are concerning my cringe-worthy grammatical errors.

I have  a love for magazines. I read a myriad of categories too, I don’t discriminate.  It is hard to fully describe my love as it goes far beyond the content of the magazine and stems into color, page layout and the feel of the glossy paper between my fingers.  Yes, I am a freak!  I can’t remember a time when I didn’t feel this way.  As a pre-teen/teen I remember dreaming that I could subscribe to each and every one of my favorites, but alas, I had to get by with just Seventeen.  I think it was this love that took me into the world of PR. The job allowed me unlimited access to all my favorite pubs and an opportunity to assist with content.  Score!

As I mention in my “about me” section, I started this blog because a few of my favorite publications have been sent to the archives.  I feel that I should specify that I still have some favorites that are alive and (hopefully) well.  I have decided to feature one here, in hopes that you will also enjoy it and that you will subsequently subscribe so that it will NEVER LEAVE ME!

Ready Made is the man of the hour.  This magazine has a little bit of everything and if you are interested in the content that I provide on this blog, than you should really make a date with Ready.  I don’t want to draw this out to much because my description and love sick banter will never be enough to substitute the experience, but  I took the liberty of grabbing the projects page from their site so you could see exactly how diverse their content is.  I mean my sister even learned how to make a chandelier out of wine bottles!  AMAZING!

It appears that they are also having crazy subscriptions deals–which means you can even buy a copy for a friend or you can follow them on twitter @ReadyMadeTweets

Yes, you read correctly—the heavens have opened up and supplied an abundance of GOLD (or, well, the vintage equivalence of gold!) I bring to you…Shopgoodwill.com Yes, that is the same Goodwill from your hometown—but they are online and functioning like a mini ebay, but with all proceeds going to a charity and not some dodgy dude in a basement in Des Moines.

Are any of you familiar?  Am I two steps behind?  I have been a vintage enthusiast for a very long time.  Please refer to my previous post to see when/where the love for vintage began.  I am just in awe that this has been around for years and I had no idea!!!!

I did a quick scan for research purposes to report back to you, but I already have time set aside for this

Saturday to go on a date with this site.  Now, please keep in mind while browsing that this is a charity site so some of the fun web 2.0 bells and whistles are missing (like hi-res images).  I personally enjoy this—it is the internet equal of digging through a musty Goodwill store.  You need to source and scour the whole place from top to bottom to find the gems!!!

If you don’t like doing this, and I am currently picturing a handful of my girl friends and old co-workers that I know read the blog and realizing a lot of you don’t, you might want to wait until later this week when I will post on cute “new” things.  :)

My top quick picks are:

A lovely Smith Corona Typewriter (This is surely not the last time you will hear of my fondness for the typewriter)

A retro round table with metal legs (at the time of this post it was going for $16!!!!)

A petite milk glass dish with a little cover (perfect for a little something sweet!)

The cutest mod footstool you ever did see!

I must give a huge thank you to Debbie Hine for bringing this site to my attention.  Debbie is like the Yoda of upcycling and budget living with style!

I went through some old photos with my mom this past weekend while I was home and found this gem.  This is me circa 1982 when I first began to learn the joys of dressing up and accessorizing.  This photo speaks volumes about the person that I came to be.  For example the fact that I am wearing oversized slips as a dress and some sort of fake fur stole–yet I am rocking it like it’s couture and giving a pouty pose. Thank god for grandma’s that indulge little ones.

Oh my goodness, it is finally Friday!  I thought the day would never come.  July is always such a crazy month with traveling and guests, cookouts and the beach–it has all ended up being a bit of a blur.  Well what better to make things clearer than some super cool lamps?  (I love dorky transitions) My sister is the queen of cool lamps–she can sniff them out  and envision something a different color with a larger shade.  I personally prefer to get one that already looks ready to go.  We don’t have a lot of surface space in our apt, so as of right now I think we are only rocking bedside lamps.  I think an adjustable arm floor lamp would also be nice.  I did some exciting Etsy digging and found the following lovelies.

I did my search for $5-$100 to keep it within Budget Retro standards.  Let me know what you think.

The first lamp would probably just look rather ordinary if you saw it a garage sale or in a cluttered shop, but the staging and great lighting and photography really feature this guy as a star!  The dark wood looks lustrous and the shape is beautiful.  Only $65!

The 50′s desk lamp–how can you not love it?  I think my favorite shade of these is avocado green, but this one is in pristine conditions and it’s just so adorable.  I am envisioning this one sitting next to my typewriter with a glass full of freshly sharpened pencils. $22 is a steal, for real.

This large lamp draws attention from it’s massive size, but the texture is really amazing.  It kind of reminds me of fruit. Is that weird?  The two-tier shade is also a nice added element for depth.  This style of shade also look pretty when it’s illuminated.

Now I obviously saved the best lamp for last.  This is the lamp that transcends all lamps!  If I actually owned a home or had a lounge or bar or really any “additional” space to entertain I would find pure entertainment out of having this large lamp fill the room.  Not only would it be a great conversational piece–but ummm…who wouldn’t want a woman’s fishnet clad leg to admire on a daily basis?  They have entire websites dedicated to buying souvenir items from the movie.  They even have the red bar of soap that Ralphie had to put in his mouth.  Hilarious!  And it’s…drumroll, please….only $99.  I am sure not everyone is in agreement with me on this one, but I like kitschy stuff in moderation.

Well July has proved a busy and moderately tiring month and I think most of my creativity has been sucked out of me.  I am a shell that would only like to work within the creative parameters that others have set for me (I promise this is temporary!)  But in the meantime I give you…Paint by Numbers!

How long has it been since you thought about this art form?  I just love the sailboats.  I would like to paint it, put it in a modern glossy frame and hang it above my TV.