Vintage Wear Part 2

I hope you enjoyed Vintage Wear Part 1 profiling a new favorite etsy shop. I'm back with another one to show off to you, though I almost hate giving away my "secret sources"! ;)

First, let me just show you the shirt. Notice the buttons.

I'll just wait while you take it all in. :)

I can almost hear your squeals of delight from wherever you are in the world, because I had the same ones when I first saw it!

I had been keeping my eye on it for a couple weeks, I think, and was honestly lucky that no one else swooped in and got it! I was waiting to find out if we were having a girl or boy. I don't know why I waited, really, but I wanted it to be my gift to myself upon finding out the news because I knew it was gonna be a big day either way. And since we're having a baby girl, the pink and lavender are just somehow even more delightful.

But...it's those BUTTONS that really got me!!! Sigh. And with seller DOTTO's funny description, it was impossible to resist:

daaaang, now I kind of want to be pregnant. and a 50s housewife.

I present:

the SWEETEST sugar plum bunny top in all of baby bump land

I mean, is she wrong that it's the sweetest top ever? I'm not exactly sure which decade this top is from...50s? 80s? (It does have machine wash instructions on the label.) But who cares? God, it's adorable! KameraWhore and I found a little playground that seemed just right for taking pictures.

And in case you were wondering, DOTTO isn't a maternity shop. She just happened to have this sweet little find. Once again, if you love vintage wear and totally unique finds, this shop is gonna be one of your new go-to's!

Top three reasons to buy from this shop:

1) The clothes range from sexy to frilly to funky. You'll be as unique as the clothes are when you wear them because you won't see anyone else in the same thing. There are super girly dresses, tops, swimsuits, shoes, even lingerie. I'm serious - there's some really cool stuff for sale. Here's a little sampling.

2) Shop owner Nicole donates proceeds to these charities:

PAWS Chicago . no kill animal shelter
KEEN . recreational activities for disabled kiddos
SitStayRead . literacy program for at-risk youth
Benton House . south Chicago food pantry

...and also donates toward Japan aid.

How can you not feel good about that?

3) Nicole is really funny. You can already gather that from the top's description above. You can also find that humor in her Shop Announcement, Profile, and even her Shop Policies. We’ve corresponded a few times, and her personality comes through there too. It makes shopping that much more fun! I swear she’s as excited for me to have this top as I am.

And wanna know something that just really made my day? Finding out that Nicole had actually run across our blog before I ever bought the shirt! I told her I would be blogging about it once I got it, and that's when she told me. As big as the world wide web is...I guess it's still a small world after all!

She has generously offered a discount to our readers as well! 

So now you have nothing stopping you. 

Just use this coupon code at checkout for 12% off anything in the store:

closetNARCISSIST

Happy shopping!!


Skinny jeans: Loved by Heidi Klum for Motherhood
Sandals: thrifted
Lipstick: Great Pink Planet by Lime Crime

~ Jenarcissist

30% OFF SALE IN BOTH ETSY SHOPS!

Now through Memorial Day, you can get a whoppin' 30% off all items in BOTH of my etsy shops! Make us work a little this weekend; we will not complain! ;)


Our handmade one-at-a-time, original design necklaces are usually $15 - $20, but throughout this long weekend, you can grab 'em for only $10.50 - $14!!! Use code TCNMEMDAY.

www.theclosetnarcissist.etsy.com

Also, on my other etsy shop that I run with my mom-in-law, you can get the same discount by using code JCMEMDAY.

www.juniperandclover.etsy.com

You can also see slideshows of the items in each shop in the  sidebar (the one for j+c is toward the bottom).

Enjoy it as our gift to you! Have a safe weekend!

Vintage Wear Part 1

I got these two super lovely vintage dresses from etsy seller miskabelly recently. Their slogan is "For Vintage Lovin' Mamas and Mamas-to-Be" - suits me to a T! 

I am in love with these dresses!! Not only are they comfortable (they are a bit nightgown-ish til you belt them, hehe), but they are so pretty. Now that I am feeling a lot better these days than I was before, I find myself wanting to put a little more effort into my appearance again and really showcase the belly! And what makes you feel even better than buying new clothes?? Buying vintage clothes!

I met Kam and some other friends for her daughter's 11th birthday brunch recently - Good God, I can't believe she's 11 already! I still remember the first time I ever held her. And now she loves to remind me how old she'll be when my child is however many years. lol Anyway, I wore the blue dress to brunch and had Kam snap some pics outside the restaurant, hence all the cars and lovely scenic backdrops. ;) Then I just put the pink one over top. Much less effort than going inside to change!

The blue floral dress is polyester but is thin enough where it's nice and cool, not hot. It's just a perfect springtime/summer dress. It also looks really cute with a white cardigan. The belt was my mom's.

The pink one is pretty tent-like without the belt, but belted, it becomes a stylish maxi dress. I'm debating whether I want to shorten it to just above the knee. I think it would be a great dress either way. And it has pockets, which is pretty fabulous! The purple belt came from miskabelly as well. I don't know if you can tell from the pics, but there is purple amidst that plaid, and a purple belt is so much fun.

The key to both of these dresses is belting them above the belly, and they were modeled so perfectly online with belts that I couldn't resist them! I had actually meant to don a floppy hat and sunglasses and totally forgot. Maybe next time. I had on a full face of makeup, and now I'm reminded how you really have to amp it up for photos or else it gets lost.

The sandals are the only shoes I've ever bought from Goodwill...I bought them a couple years ago for a Halloween costume and decided I liked them for everyday wear!

miskabelly is run by two sisters, Amanda and Jayme, and they not only have really unique and cute vintage maternity clothes but also vintage clothes for the wee ones as well! Vintage baby clothes are SO precious. I'm lucky to still have every single piece of clothing I wore as a baby because my parents didn't get rid of anything, and even though it feels weird saying that my baby clothes are old enough to be considered "vintage," I'm hoping at least some of them will be wearable for my baby girl. But I have a feeling I will be back to peruse their shop, for both of us!

They also have another etsy shop called miskabelle, which has awesome vintage clothes for the non-pregnant gal. So if you're into vintage wear, definitely check it out.

Top three reasons to buy from them!

1) Well, first and foremost, the clothes! They have a great eye for spotting special items and a knack for showcasing them in their shops. When you buy vintage, you don't look like everyone else walking down the street; it just gives you a different feeling somehow to wear vintage. Their prices are great, and even though the thrill of the hunt is fun, sometimes it's nice for someone else to do the work for you!

2) They have two blogs, one for each shop. 

miskabelly: http://miskabellyvintage.blogspot.com - ultra cute maternity fashion ideas, not to mention loads of adorable baby photos in sweet little clothes!

miskabelle: http://www.miskabelle.blogspot.com/ - really unique and retro fashion ideas, with a somewhat pinup type of feel from Amanda.

3) They are just really nice. I know that sounds silly since I've never met them, but you know, you can actually tell a lot about a person from their internet presence. I had some questions about the dresses before I made my purchase, and Jayme was so sweet in her responses to me. When you can tell someone genuinely cares about you (and what they do), it makes you want to support them even more.

And, ahem, shameless product plug - while you're already over on etsy looking for vintage finds, why not snag one of our TCN necklaces or a "juniper + clover" crocheted creation to go with them? ;)

Vintage Wear Part 2 coming soon! :)

We found out what we're having!!!!!

Every time I word it like that, it reminds me of how my husband always answers people’s “do you know what you’re having yet?” with, "Uh, yeah...we're having a baby." haha

And I guess the picture sorta gives it away before you even click on the post. ;)

We went to our second ultrasound today, and I have been so anxious to find out if we were having a boy or girl that I thought today would never get here. I was dying to know so we could really lay out some names (don't ask me; sorry, but I am keeping mum on names!) and know how to plan the room and all that stuff. Most importantly, the baby is healthy, and everything looks good. But I was hoping above all hope that the baby would let us take a peek too...I've heard of people having to go three and four times before their little one would uncross its legs! But that did not happen! She was not shy at all and let us see quite clearly from two different angles. :) The funniest part was they kept trying to get a profile view of her face, but she kept insisting on looking straight into the "camera." I didn't wanna say this in front of the ultrasound tech, but I thought to myself, "Haha, she's just like her mother!!!" Not camera-shy at all, heehee. My husband said later he thought the same thing. We did eventually get the profile, and of course, I think she's just beautiful. We also got some really sweet ones of her little fingers and toes...I can't wait to kiss 'em!

All my life, I've known I would have a daughter. But once I got pregnant, I was hesitant to say I knew knew, just in case. Little boys are wonderful...it's just that I always thought I'd have a girl for whatever reason. Turns out my instinct was right. I am beyond excited!!! Now I'm itching to start getting the room ready. But we're planning on selling our house because we need more space, so I guess it'll have to wait a bit. 

I don't believe in forcing gender stereotypes on children. I've said it a hundred times before, but I believe the best gift a parent can give their child is to let them be themselves, whatever that means. But while the baby is little and I'll be the one mostly enjoying her surroundings, I'm goin' all out with the pink and Shabby Chic, baby!!! Once she's older, she can of course have her own input, but for now, I'm going wild. Y'all have seen a pic of my old bedroom from before my husband and I bought our house, and my whole house was like that...so I have scads of pretties to pull out of storage that I'll get to use again. :)

I just can't believe this is really happening!! If all my horrible sickness didn't make it real enough, this sure does. I hope that I can help instill a strong sense of self in my daughter and always show her how amazing she is. I hope she can be confident and understand her worth. One thing I know is that she will never have to doubt whether she is loved!

One Flaw in Women

A friend sent this to me in an email forward today, and I thought it was a good fit for our blog.

One Flaw in Women 

Women have strengths that amaze men..... 

They bear hardships and they carry burdens, 

                    but they hold happiness, love and joy. 

They smile when they want to scream. 

                    They sing when they want to cry. 

They cry when they are happy 

                    and laugh when they are nervous. 

They fight for what they believe in.  

                    They stand up to injustice. 

They don't take "no" for an answer 

                    when they believe there is a better solution. 

 They go without so their family can have. 

                     They go to the doctor with a frightened friend. 

They love unconditionally. 

                    They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards. 

They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding. 

                     Their hearts break when a friend dies. 

They grieve at the loss of a family member, 

                     yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left. 

They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart. 

                     Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors. 

They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you 

                    to show how much they care about you. 

The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning. 

                     They bring joy, hope and love. 

 They have compassion and ideas. 

                     They give moral support to their family and friends. 

Women have vital things to say 

                    and everything to give. 

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,  

IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.


Well, we say, don't be one of those women. Celebrate your worth every day.

Preg update + new wedges + Twilight

Hi, everyone...just checking in with you because it's been a while! 

I won't look anything like this in mine...oh, well. ;) Romper from motherhood.com.

I got two vintage maternity dresses on etsy recently, and Kam took pics of me in them on Sat. I'm going to blog about them soon with pictures; I really love them. I also have this maternity ROMPER on its way to me in the mail that one of the kiddo’s grammas got for me...I am really excited about it!! I was just thinking the other day that I was sad I couldn't wear my one romper this summer, and then she told me to pick something out online, and I found it. I think about blogging a lot and can't seem to find the energy or words...even coming up with something to tweet feels like a lot of effort lately, and good grief, it’s not that hard to fill 140 characters. But hopefully the new clothes will inspire me. 

Elliana wedge from Target

I also got these wedges from Target last night to go with the romper when it comes; they look a bit similar to the model's. Sometimes I feel like the only girl in the world who has never been able to adjust to wearing heels or wedges. I simply love them, but I can't stand to wear them for very long at a time, and I'm an extremely girly girl who ought to be able to stand them, it seems like. Is it just something you have to get used to? But dammit, they all hurt! Most of the time, it's just not worth it to me to bother. Anyway, these felt incredibly comfy while I tested them out at the store, but today, not so much. Maybe it's just me. I do think they're great, and I at least don't have any balance problems in them like I usually do. lol Balance issues are not the kind of thing you want to mess around with while pregnant. I figure I'll try to enjoy these as much as possible before my feet are too swollen from pregnancy to fit into anything but flip-flops...

I finally stopped feeling sick 24-7 maybe 3 weeks ago, but the exhaustion still hasn't gone away. There is some elusive, magical 2nd trimester energy that people keep promising is coming, but I'm well into my 2nd now and feel like I'm just getting more tired! I could lay my head down anywhere and fall asleep. I'm trying to enjoy the need for relaxing and the excuse to be able to do it, because I will probably never have quite the same chance again after the baby comes!! When all I want to do is lie down all the time, books and Netflix are my saving grace. I can get pretty worked up emotionally from all the pregnancy hormones and completely freak myself out about raising a child, so it helps to have stories to suck me in and distract me for a while, and then I feel normal again! 

Which brings me to this: I have a confession. I have a newfound Twilight obsession, which has grown to weird and disgusting proportions, haha, and I have managed to finish almost the entire saga of books in just over two weeks during nights and weekends...and these are not short books. I’m literally a few pages from finishing and will probably have to start all over when I’m done. I've watched the movies several times by now as well; this whole thing started out by watching the first movie and then deciding I had to read the books too, which is backwards to how I usually do things. I don't know why it took me so long to get in on this phenomenon, but I certainly never believed "it would happen to me." Rob Pattinson is my new crush! Swoon. I may be happily married and pregnant, but I ain’t dead or blind! If you’re Team Jacob, stay the hell off our blog – just kidding. ;)

In case you didn't know, he's also a really talented singer. Do a YouTube search.

Pregnancy does the most bizarre things to you and can seriously make you feel like you have zero control over anything anymore. It's hard! But, today I got to hear the baby's heartbeat again, and I promise you, there is no more reassuring and comforting sound in the entire world than that. It is a love that I can’t even explain in words…it is almost frightening to love someone this much. But when I hear the heartbeat, nothing else exists in the world…not fear, not worry, only love. :)