The better to see you with, my dear!

I didn't start having to wear glasses to see clearly until I turned forty-ish. Which means, eyeglasses were not a super-big deal to me until I met Mark.. He wears eyeglasses to see and has had to since he was about seven years old.
Therefore, eyeglasses have always been his fashion statement too.

Here's a vintage sunglasses and vintage eyeglasses preview (ha ha) of pairs I'm listing on Friday.

He's taught me everything I know about good eyewear. And that is why you can always rely on funkomavintage to pick only quality vintage eyeglasses, nifty frames to have your prescription installed, or just a killer pair of vintage sunglasses to do some secret people watching!

Everytime I've bought a new frame to change my prescription over the last 15 years, I've been so sadly disappointed. So, never again will I shop the new eyeglasses on display. It's vintage for me, for always. Over the years it's become much more common for people to take a pair of vintage frames to the optometrist and have a prescription set in or just change over to sunglasses.
It used to be rather tough to find a company that would do that....now it's pretty common and it can be done by mail with the internetz, if your town doesn't have a  place that's willing to work with you.Once you have your new eyeglasses prescription, you can get that quality vintage frame made into a fashionable medical device!
How often is an appliance cute? On your face?

Sneaking in the Fall

Temps are gonna hit the 80s, says the weatherman...but we know fall is coming on...in a few weeks! I'm looking at my closet thinking....What?

Brown dotty vintage 50s dress in cotton.... oh yes!

vintage Italian leather cap toe wingtips? yes again.

aww look at these cute kids...Gorgeous birch tree...

Khaki's are nice...a cotton shirt, but now I'm gonna tie a harvest color scarf as a headband....a lot more brown leather.....September seems to want tea-stained linen, some orange and rust, and blue....
Plaid, dark denim, and nature prints of birds and feathers, acorns, home garden fruits and vegetables....

 Rich brown leather vintage jacket....

Early 60s preppy bronze jacket...with bit of sharkskin....
men's vintage.

Amelia Earhart is always my inspiration......those flying scarves..that sepia leather, boots and lace and oh that determination...
 Tall brown leather vintage boots....

Heirloom tomatoes. Looks like Brandywine...and yellow something? 


In addition to eating tomatoes...and frying green tomatoes (my fave I think) you
can throw them like they do in Spain during Tomatina....weirdos.

Get happy at the Farmer's Market...meet friends...

you've only seen on the computer screen!

It must be the smiling people, the real colors of nature, the mouth-watering food....You Know local grown food is gonna taste better....

I haven't had a real garden for almost 3 years! how sad is that? I've lived in places that didn't have a yard, so I gardened in pots and did some Guerilla Gardening. This year, moving to a home with a big yard was #1 priority. Of all the things I do, I love gardening the most, so the last 3 years have been torture I tell you !!
Do you love gardening? Or do you see it as a dirty chore? Yeah, but you get food and pretty flowers!

Heirloom tomatoes....these look like Brandywine...Yum !  Oh yes...Basil and homegrown tomatoes on a whole wheat sandwich with mayo and horseradish....now that tastes almost as good as a chocolate sundae!

There's more than garden produce at Tacoma's Farmers Market....fresh seafood grown in our local saltwater farms.....Razor clams, OYSTERS and Clams !! oh my.

And then....there are the craftiest crafters.....Even before I saw the humans, I knew exactly who this booth belonged to....
****yeah! It's Scott and Jacqui of Slide Sideways !
in their own words..." We started Slide Sideways because we have always loved working with our hands and making things. Even though graphic design is a creative field we wanted to get away from the computer for part of our day and create using more traditional methods. "

They make hand-screened cards and posters, and sew (on a Singer (me too)) little zippered pouches, tea towels and more more more. And they live in Tacoma. That cracks me up. Me too. Mark and Tressie and our little doggie live in Tacoma too.
Here's Scott and Jacqui's shop on etsy. They do the Farmers Mkt, and other shows & festies around the area too.

We also visited other friends in the downtown Tacoma area, and got new keys for my ukelele. No kidding, I'm gonna learn to play poorly. Whatev', eh!
Bye downtown Tacoma. See ya later!

6 degrees from people...

Back in May, Mark and I took advantage of a lovely sunny day....and went to a few estate sales....I like to go later in the day, since I lack the Shove You Out Of My Way Gene (I'm a late sleeper too...)
I wouldn't have any fun early in the morning when the mean bossy shoving type people line up at 6 am.
As you walk around in an estate sale, you are told lots of things by sellers that may or may not be true about provenance.
But, girl you know it's true....this football jersey belonged to a guy named Dave Welsh. He went to the university of Washington in Seattle, in the early 60s. He was on the football team that went to the Rose Bowl and WON! in 1960 and 1961. Which was/is a Big Damn Deal !
 Dave attended Garfield High School in the Emerald City....and this was his football jersey. On this same Husky team was Norm Dicks, and Ben Davidson.
Really!

When the fake Mad Men tv show are living their fake life in the early 60s, I try to picture the real early 60s. Here's a bit of it....mmmmm....early 60s....Seattle....oh yeah this......;-)

Listed in my etsy shop, this is  a 50s football jersey, most likely from Dave's high school days...or maybe it was his practice jersey. #82. Pretty cool!

Some people don't like the idea of estate sales, or anything used for that matter. But it's all recycling, and it's all history, and the family is happy to get rid of the things they don't want..the things that don't have a lot of meaning for them....after a death, it is a great burden to deal with what is left. Families rely on competent estate dealers to price and sell that which is left....It creates a lot of income, and interest, and fun...if you like history. 
There are a lot of reasons people like old stuff and antiques......these things have stories. They are about our lives....I like to see them have more time in life. We're humans, we are social beings....we're born....we live...and then there are things...and memories.

Not here or there yet...

this time of year the light falls at a slant not high in the sky.....the air seems mistier...and the days are slowly slowing down and giving way to the dark night.

Colors are both bright and deep..........blue....black...brown...appear frostier and dreamy.......



Sparkling jazz of Miles Davis is just right.....Miles Davis: Bitches Brew 40th Anniversary




The fishes in the sea.......

Shadow plaid vintage shirt

The vibrant blue sky.......

the sky and the falling leaf....

a cool evening for a jacket........

Rainbows, Apples and Cashmere, yup, must be autumn...

right around the corner..........I love this time of year...the hot is hottest...a run thru the sprinklers or a jump in the pool is the best! Soon enough, the weather will cool and then get cold, and the gray rainy days will come...and maybe some snow.

The apples are ripening, the tomatoes have produced and been sliced in thick slabs and plopped with mayonnaise or sprinkled with salt and savored.

I designed some fabric apples last fall, and gave them real branch and twig stems and wired leaves....I'll get going  with that again next week..and the fabric pumpkins too. Those are fun to make...and I'm working on a tomato pattern too. Lucky me, that heirloom tomatoes come in lots of colors and patterns, so an orange stripe tomato will look normal now that folks are getting pretty used to them at the farmer's market.

This week I listed some fall dresses in harvest tones, lots of boots (so many already sold!) and I dug out the tweeds. Basic jackets and pleated skirts aren't boring when paired with vintage millinery flowers and sparkly rhinestone vintage pins from Granny.
(hey, that's me!)

 I really had fun styling these pieces ....worn with leather sandals now, and fun Converse tennies, and later as the days get cooler, with patterned textured tights and leggings and boots.

Always, a pair of Bass Weejuns penny loafers.

Double Rainbow vintage plaid blouse.

Blue tweed vintage fitted jacket.

Camel heather not-so-basic vintage blazer.

Why be boring? Add fun jewelry and roll up your sleeves and get busy!

Lovely turquoise 60s wool jumper.

Art Gallery 50s modern art vintage dress.

Wheat lambswool vintage cardigan.

Charcoal gray wool blazer...a basic to start...Add wildflowers.

Oooh...Vintage Pringle Cashmere...50s, and so soft and amazing quality.

And that ain't all! More more more.....tweeds, boots and jackets! Hey autumn, I got you covered!



fabric baby boo pumpkin !

A Dress.....

worn with sandals now.......
and then with socks and coloriffic tights pretty soon....

Blue flowers and mushrooms and butterflies......

Sweet yellow gingham checks....








Fun! 60s metallic Persian carpet sandals....


Accessories add pizzazz.....
Blue vintage sunnies and a 70s navy belt...My..what big Eyelets you have!

and then..

heavy socks and penny loafers.....

 with cute socks like these long striped socks from Sock Dreams!

or with boots...

70s leather and suede, with leather-stacked heel

and a cute girly jacket ...if it gets chilly...