Crinolines and corsets

Vintage.....Pink, lilac, lavender, rainbow, industrial.....

Handmade goods......

I make things....and sell vintage stuff and I've have always blended them into one big funkoma soup...yummmmy.
But, recently ....I sent the handmades to their own shop on etsy...
that yountville girl
...is the name of the things ...like I say at my etsy shop......
"It's made by hand, designed by me in my workroom. All things..that yountville girl..are cute & quirky, tough & sturdy, and created by me..Cashmere knit lingerie & armwarmer mitts...are coming real soon!"
What do you make? Well, thanks for asking...I make clothes, fabric bags, small totes, assemblage jewelry, tiny sculptures, pesky art in a frame or at least glue things in a very provocative and adorable manner....sometimes I call it...
home decor ....like this ---

handmade trees made of vintage barkcloth....my tree shapes, and buttons and spools.

fabric apples....of vintage calico.....from my imaginary fabric farm....

This assemblage pin was featured on papercakes blog.. wow, that blog is so pretty....

 this that yountville girl  --->> Baby Columbia kitschy horror pin is Chelsea Ling's  Halloween pick.....Spooky!

and well...click and take a look!

Other people have a drug problem....others a gambling problem....I have a Crafty problem......Except !
It isn't a problem!
I love making stuff...I really love the challenge of coming up with my own ideas and patterns.
My limited collection of purses and tiny totes...all my collections and projects are limited because I have small amounts of calicos, barkcloth, burlap, lace, vintage textiles and practical fabrics, pretty laces, vintage buttons,metal loops, & what ever....that inspire me to make something that will look Fabulous ! with just the right mix of uh, what ever inspires me...etc.

frinstance------
I had this vintage sheet with a road trip vacation theme.....It reminded me of all the fun family vacations I took with my kids over their growing up years..

It also made me think of ...traveling as a philosophy.....moving on as we move through life.....

These bags, my own pattern and idea,have a convertible strap! Go from a cross-body messenger style bag to a handbag tote simply by buttoning and unbuttoning some big vintage buttons.
yeah.

They have a lot of pockets, they button closed and they're made of a mix of vintage fabrics.....calico, mattress stripes, osnaburg, lace, old jeans, crochet doilies....oh my.

See, re-button the strap shorter....and now it's a sturdy tote or shoulder bag.
I made 4 bags and they'll all be added to the new shop. I made 8 small totes, and they're on their way....to thatyountvillegirl

And the tiny totes....I like to be organized, or like to appear to be organized ! what ever ....
So the makeup and lip gloss and hankie go in one....some pens and change and business cards in another.  Or you modern people....it can hold an ipod or a cell phone and still have room for a kleenex or 2.

Tulsa Time, Mojave Desert....

Next collection?


I'm full on into fall

 .....expect wool, and burlap with hardware.......and lots more vintage buttons to make the convertible bags....
Cute As a Button....
yeah.....

Orange...Rust...Custard...

Pumpkin....Purple...
autumn...deep blue endless sky....
galvanized buckets.....
apple cider and caramels...persimmons and pomegranates...
squash and indian corn.....

Yipes Stripes.....

stripes are my fave...
Stripes have a long history in dress ....They have historically been used to identify a social and political class......here's a bit from...
Michel Pastoureau's The Devil's Cloth: A History of Stripes .

".....the medieval period's tendency to use stripes to identify those viewed as outcasts in society, including: serfs, the condemned, prostitutes, jugglers, clowns, hangmen, Jews, lepers, cripples, "bohemians, and heretics. The negative, or evil, stripe also appears in iconography and literary texts, worn by: treacherous knights, adulterous wives, disloyal brothers, cruel dwarves, greedy servants, Lucifer, the madman of the Book of Psalms, and Judas.
Pastoureau follows the stripe through history, as it is associated with servants, then later ("reclaimed"?) as revolutionary during the French Revolution. The punishing and degrading stripe reserved for prisoners, was again used by the Nazis in the concentration camps. Along all these vicious or negative stripes, good stripes also began to appear: a celebratory stripe, a romantic stripe, a seaside stripe, a children's stripe (sailor suits and Obelix!), an athletic stripe and a hygienic stripe."









It is the perhaps the easiest design to make...along with the circle.



 I listed a few things this week made of stripes. Be careful!






A 40s hat of stripes sewn together of a rayon or nylon boucle.

A vintage corset strapless top edged with a stripe ruffle.

a simple black and white striped cotton vintage shirtdress....pockets!!

Graphic gray wool blanket features white stripes.

Hey Pumpkin....It's Black....

It's the time of the Season...for black. It's always a right time for black, but now it's October and black and pumpkin are what's in...
Black goes with witches, goes with angel wings, goes with rock stars, goes with a medieval princess, black goes with velvet, tight and slinky, and goes with victorian, edwardian and steampunk....
starting Monday October 4...these shall appear in the funkomavintage etsy shop....don't worry...Dudes clothes are on their way also....this week will be busy!

40s Black and White stripe vintage hat....

Classic vintage black and white leather saddle shoes......

40s style blues singer 80s vintage floral dress....

50s Bombshell Helen West vintage cocktail dress....

60s vintage curve-hugging black sequin dress

80s Gladiator Girly vintage studded dress...

80s vintage Glamazon velvet and Sex party dress...

Romantic vintage 80s black velvet formal occasions...dress...

60s Mexican vintage lace and pintucks dress...

50s black rayon crepe vintage dress with a darling wrap and button collar-belt....

80s Fringe Flapper vintage dress ..

 80s Batgirl vintage goth blouse....

80s strapless vintage victoriana bow and stripe blouse...

80s Black velvet vintage bolero..

70s vintage gothic spider lace blouse....

70s vintage victoriana high collar ruffle blouse....

80s ruched Goddess or Dark Angel vintage dress...

Vintage Workwear Vintage Military

Perhaps because men who do things, who build things, seems to becoming rarer these days, there is a push to honor and collect vintage workwear and vintage militaria. I'm all for it!
I love quality and with the recent garbage that was made in the 1990's and the 2000's ..that Fast Fashion...It is about time that American designers and American workers who have been so beaten in the last 40 years are honored again.
To do something with your own 2 hands is a joy. I guess that's why (hand-crafted) Beer Brewing (and drinking) is so in vogue these days.....the last frontier....is always looking for a new frontier.
The classics.....Baking, gardening, sewing, chopping wood, painting and creating artful things.....It's Back!

I always have vintage menswear, and here are 2 great practical shirts. First is a 40s era military officers shirt with great style in wool gabardine. It has a few holes scattered on the front but it is still a fabulous thing!

Dating to the late 20s - 30s, this military influence work shirt has really great details...the double layer on the elbows is a real treat to see. The color is deep and glowing and the practical pockets have a slot just for a wood pencil or a metal gauge.

Coming soon to etsy, is this 40s pair of military khaki pants. That wide leg, high waist we love so much!