Behind the Curtain

Interview, Letterpress and Faking It

Donovan & I did an interview about The Letter Writers Alliance and 16 Sparrows over at The Modern Letter Project. If you haven't heard about this project yet, take a look. It is quite an interesting way to get people back to old fashioned letter writing. Also, for those ladies who are proficient with the letterpress, check out this cool "Ladies of the Letterpress" patch from Jessica White.

I'm not sure if I have posted this "fake finger wave" tutorial before (or How to make marcel waves with a curling iron), but I figured it would be helpful for those who want to get fancy for New Years and such. I'm not sure if this "fake" way is easier than doing it the "real" way with clips, but I guess it depends on what tools you are more comfortable with. Click images for larger, tutorial is three pages, images posted in order.

            

Holiday

Happy holidays everyone!

Coles Phillips

I'm not sure how I wasn't introduced to the body of illustration work by Coles Phillips (1880-1927) before, but I absolutely love his style. I've already posted one piece by him and will post another tomorrow, but I wanted to share a few others with you. Click images to view larger.

       

If you would like to see more examples of his work, check out the collection here.

Clasping

I recently discovered this blog, BibliOdyssey, which is just full of book goodies that will blow your mind. I'll let you peruse it yourself, but if you are interested in viewing more book clasps, check out this website.

Travel Number

I'm going to be traveling for the next week, so it will be a bit quite here. Posting will resume when I return, but will be sporadic during the holidays. I hope your crafting and gift making/buying go well this week!

Illustration by Coles Phillips (1880-1927)

Coquette Faux Furriers

Images © Coquette Faux Furries, UK Glamore, Bernie Dextor & Dita Von Teese

For those of you keen on vintage winter glam but not so keen on fur, Coquette has some goodies for you. I'm not really into the lines they have on Bernie or Dita in the photos above, but then I'm not a fan of hot pink or animal print. I'm sure there are ladies out there who would love these two numbers, but for those like me, they have some wonderful lovelies for understated ladies too. For example: the Lily Muff (a little smaller than their normal muff) or the Lucille Hat (got to love the half hat), Marlene Collar (I like the faux brown mink style) or go super glam with the Ava Stole (love the length).

I've been needing/wanting a muff because I hate how my hands get stuck in my coat pockets due to my gloves, but if I don't have them in my pockets, they get too cold. Its a catch-22 and I'm figuring a muff would be a good alternative that also happens to look nice. I may just snatch up that Lily muff for myself after the holidays are over.

Bella Pamella

Bella Pamella makes really cute aprons and keen hair snugs. I love the fabrics she uses and the different (and unique) apron styles she has. I mean, who doesn't want to look cute when they are baking or cleaning the house? There are even apron styles for children, as well as bibs.

Vintage Radio Files & Music

I've written about the vintage radio files offered by the living history reenactor Jo before...well she's put up a lot more new files! There are news casts, music, and even some Christmas themed ones too! (The Christmas ones start at number 32.) My favorites are the French songs and the Biggest hits. She also has great files for historical reenactors, like frontline sounds and military radio transmissions. Oooh, and there is even Orson Welles' War of the Worlds (number 35). I was lucky enough to get that on vinyl a few years ago.

I bought myself a couple of radio sets and will probably be going back for some of the holiday themed ones in a few weeks when my cookie-baking and tree-decorating craziness is bursting at the seams. Speaking of which...what do you normally bake or cook during the holidays? I'm not talking about for the big holiday dinners, just for little things, like hanging decorating the house or sitting in front of the fire. My family normally roasts chestnuts, bakes gingerbread men and buy a whole bunch of this hard sweet called Turron (granted, we don't make the Turron, but damn, is it ever tasty).

Renegade Fair & New Designs

We unveiled new designs for two cards from our Effin' Collection at the fair this weekend. Both Effin' Holidays and Effin' Birthday have new faces! These are our two most popular, so we rolled out the new look with these, but we will slowly be redesigning the entire Effin' Collection. Hope you guys like them!

Donovan & I really enjoyed meeting everyone this weekend and had lots of fun. As far as all the goodies I got at the fair, I can't really show them because they are all gifts, but here are the online shops of the places I purchased from or wish I did:
Cutie Cooties
Re-Conceived
Cursive Design
Pearl & Marmalade
Owly Shadow Puppets
Mile 44
Crosshair Silkscreen Design

Renegade Holiday Craft Fair

Tomorrow and Sunday Donovan and I will be at the Renegade Craft Fair Holiday Sale! If you live in Chicago, stop by Pulaski Park for an indoor craft extravaganza. Our booth will be in the auditorium, in the corner by the stage. On top of our normal line of paper goods, we'll also have cards we don't sell online as well as LWA memberships. Donovan will also be selling goodies from her Etsy shop. More info here, we hope to see you there!