new hairs

ok, i couldn’t contain myself. i was going to wait until sunday to show you my new haircut when i did my regularly scheduled outfit post, but i just had to show you my new hairs. bear with me, it’s a little self indulgent because it’s just a bunch of pictures of my face. but i’m excited because i had only intended to go in for a little trim because i could no longer see past my fringe, but i came out with a completely new style that’s going to work so well with all of the little 60’s dresses i’ve been collecting for the spring.

as always, this cut was the work of my favoritest hairstylist in the whole wide world, shannon at revamp salon in san francisco. the best part is that he is also my pal, so after the cut, we went out for delicious vegan sausages and chocolate stout at a bar nearby. pretty sweet deal if you ask me!

blog favorites april 2

calivintage blog favorites april 2
le metamorphoses d’alice: dreaminggirls up
one of my favorites this week and i wish i could tell you more about it, but unfortunately my google translator did not help me make sense of this post. all i know is that i am in love with this outfit, whoever the designer and whoever the girl. perhaps my french friends can clear it up for me!

fashion forestry: hats and hearts
i’ve been following this lovely lady for quite some time. she has the most eclectic collection of vintage hats, accessories, clothes, shoes, you name it. i seriously want her to take me shopping or to design me some pretty dresses. if you aren’t familiar with her blog, you must take a peek at her extraordinary ensembles.

the velvet bird: white dress, wardrobe wednesdays, and zooey
i can’t believe i hadn’t been following her blog until now! anja posted this dress on tumblr the other day and i was instantly in love. she actually altered a much larger vintage dress and transformed it into the most adorable white spring mini dress. i really wish she was selling it, because it would be mine in a heartbeat, but instead i will admire it from afar.

on the racks: spring in my step
i recently discovered this blog, which is actually written by another local girl in san francisco. i love this fun and quirky ensemble she put together, with the perfect vintage topper! the colors and textures are absolutely divine. i’m definitely going to be watching this one from now on!

vintagevirgin: accessories
another recent discovery, this girl has some bold style. i love how she pulled together all of these fun elements into a perfectly wearable style. she’s got a hat, a bow, knee socks, and pigtails, yet it’s not over the top. i’m definitely going to be taking style tips from this lovely lady.

hannah and landon: cult salad snacks
another favorite, i am very pleased to see that hannah has started an online vintage shop. i have had my eye on so many of her incredible vintage finds, that i’m beyond excited to see that some of those pieces might make their way into her new etsy shop. and doesn’t she look absolutely beautiful in those pale blue stripes?

feeling expensive

i’m feeling extra-specially fancy today in almost all new clothing from places that aren’t thrift stores. i’m not going all high-end on you guys, but sometimes it’s nice to dress like a million bucks. ok, my outfit really wasn’t that expensive. you know me, i’m on a budget. but that’s not the point. the point is that whenever i wear something designer, even if it’s just this marc by marc jacobs blouse that i got on discount from gilt groupe, i still feel just a little bit special. i suppose that’s what you call conspicuous consumption right there.

one of the challenges to styling this blouse is that it’s sheer. it’s pretty great for layering under dresses, and i could certainly throw on a camisole underneath to keep it more modest, but i decided to go without one to make the look a little bit more edgy. this definitely isn’t office attire. so excuse me while i go feel fancy.

wearing:
rayban wayfarers
marc by marc jacobs blouse, gilt groupe
high rise trousers, zara
nine west suede platforms, piperlime
vintage coach doctor bag

oakland shopping guide

calivintage oakland shopping guide pretty pennyimage via the pretty penny blog

even though this blog is called calivintage, i definitely recognize that it firmly resides in the world wide web, so whenever i write a post, it usually includes links to online retailers where anyone can shop, no matter your location. but i recently wrote-up a local shopping guide for a contest on chictopia and thought i might share some of my picks for those of you living in the bay area. for this particular post, i focused only on oakland, which is where i live. but if this is a feature you guys like, i might expand and write more guides with even more shops!


pretty penny vintage: located on college ave, pretty penny offers a wide selection of vintage clothing at seriously affordable prices! not only do they have tons of women’s clothing, shoes, and accessories, but they also have a really great selection of vintage men’s clothing, too. definitely one of my favorite vintage shops in the bay area.

image via mercy vintage

mercy vintage: this shop is on piedmont ave., which happens to be walking distance from my house! it’s the perfect place to shop when you feel like investing in a serious vintage statement piece. they have a carefully selected collection of beautiful vintage dating all the way back to the 20’s and 30’s and up through the 90’s. and it’s where i bought this lovely vintage coat.

image via down at lulu’s myspace page

down at lulu’s: an adorable little vintage boutique with a rad selection and killer window displays. they also have a 2 chair hair salon in the back of the shop (though i could never cheat on my hair stylist, shannon, at revamp salon in sf!).

image via issues

issues: on those days when your wallet wont allow a mega vintage shopping spree, you can get your magazine fix at this cute little magazine shop in the piedmont neighborhood of oakland and pick up some of your favorite high fashion and indie magazines. they even have a case full of pretty jewelry made by cool independent and local designers!

image via rps

rock paper scissors collective: speaking of independent and local designers. stop by the rps shop for cool hand-made clothing, jewelry, books, and zines. in addition the the shop, this space is also an art gallery and they offer a range of cool classes like silkscreening and sewing! it’s a volunteer run organization, and a crucial part of the art community in oakland, so definitely offer your support if you’re ever in the neighborhood.

cream puffs

calivintage cream puffs chictopia dress

alright, well today’s outfit was directly inspired by yesterday’s post about an editorial in numero magazine. i loved the pretty little sheer top with frilly, fluffy ruffles and remembered that i bought a similar vintage blouse a few months back. i really wanted to wear it and knew that it would look great layered with a little pinafore or something, but i just never felt inspired to wear it. and well, it’s laundry day and most of my clothes are scattered around the floor, so i only had a few options for clean clothing hanging on my racks. enter “the chictopia dress” that i received from modcloth as one of the winners of the chictopia10 contest back in february. the bell shape of the skirt instantly reminded me of the dress in the editorial and well, that was that.

wearing:
vintage sheer blouse, ebay

sheer back seam tights, tabio
reproduction 1940’s platforms, remix vintage shoes

calivintage cream puffs chictopia dress
calivintage cream puffs chictopia dresscalivintage cream puffs chictopia dresscalivintage cream puffs chictopia dresscalivintage cream puffs chictopia dress

shopping list

calivintage spring picks

today i thought i’d share with you some of the items on my spring shopping list. this spring, whenever i try to create a definitive list of my favorite moods and trends , i get this feeling that perhaps i don’t really have much direction…. so i’ve been focusing on individual pieces that i really really know that i want and then hope that everything else will fall into place.

so let’s begin:

spring dresses: this is pretty simple. the other day i watched a rather bizarre movie starring peter sellers called i love you, alice b. toklas. the female love-interest and hippie love child with the great brownie baking skills, nancy, wore several adorable little hippie frocks that basically inspired me to add a few to my wardrobe. i like the updated take on this look from these two dresses i found at urban outfitters.

handbag: i recently realized that my purse collection consists of only vintage coach purses. this is not a problem, but they’re all worn and torn and tattered and i wouldn’t mind something a little bit more simple and modern. annabel recently posted a picture of this clare vivier messenger tote on her tumblr and i’m smitten! though instead of buying it, i think i’m going to be commissioning my friend with an industrial sewing machine to custom design one for me!

jeans: i’m pretty much on a constant search for the perfect pair of high rise skinny jeans. but whenever i think i’ve found them, something else pops up or i change my mind about what would actually make them perfect, and the search continues. i have a feeling that what this means is that i really just prefer the hunt more than the prize when it comes to clothes. but for the sake of this post, i’ll tell you that my ideal jeans are the j brand 210 oslo jeans in indigo. unfortunately, they’re out of stock and rather expensive at $187, so i’m holding myself over with two pairs of high rise cigarette jeans from urban outfitters.

socks and sandals: you guys already know about my infatuation with this look. i was tumbling so many pictures of socks and stockings yesterday that i felt a little concerned about looking like a fetishist. but whatevs, i like the look for spring. so besides the oh so desirable swedish hasbeens, i just read about hansel from basel socks over at fashion for writers and i think i need those little strawberry top crew socks! they’re reversible, too.

tank top: well, stripes and nautical themes will always be in fashion as far as i’m concerned and this pretty little bb dakota tank top looks like it will be just perfect paired with jeans, shorts, and cute little skirts. can’t go wrong!

riding high

oh hello. just hangin out on the roof, dude. the weather took a turn for the cold and blustery this week, so i decided to pull out my trusty jeans and boots and cashmere and whatnot. when the weather turned all warm and springlike, i instantly forgot that winter ever existed and i imagined my entire life ahead of me, filled with bbqs every weekend, drinking ice cold mint juleps and fanning myself with some sort of fancy… fan. so yeah, i’m cold right now. trying to keep warm in this 55 degree weather. i’m from the desert, alright!

anyway, i felt concerned that i looked a little costumey in this outfit, so i asked my boyfriend what he thought. apparently this look made him thinking of flying? like in airplanes. what, do i look like a stewardess? i think not. that boy is downright silly if he can’t recognize that this is clearly a chic riding ensemble. duh!

wearing:
cashmere cardigan, j.crew
vintage blouse, ebay
high rise skinnies, indidenim
vintage nine west boots, thrifted


pretty pretty


i know this is a style blog and all, but for some reason, i never really write about beauty. i suppose one reason is that i don’t think women should have to feel like they need to wear makeup to look good. and another reason is that i just don’t think it’s nearly as interesting to write about makeup as it is to write about fashion and style. but it is a part of my daily routine nonetheless, so today i decided to write a bit about it!

i recently decided (for the millionth time) that i should start using more eco-friendly, non-toxic, non-comedogenic products on my skin. i suppose the reasons for that are pretty obvious, but it’s a hard rule to stick to when the beauty products sold at the drug store are far less expensive. and when the beauty products sold at department stores have such pretty packages, and conspicuous consumption lures me to buy fancy things. but i’ve found a happy medium in tarte cosmetics because they come in fancy packages but they aren’t nearly as expensive as chanel. so i managed to find all of my favorite products for my daily routine: oil-free tinted moisturizer, concealer, eye brightener, cheek stain, mascara, and liquid eyeliner. i’ve been using them for about 2 weeks now and have zero complaints with the switch!

and while browsing the tarte blog, i was also reminded of my need to switch over to some less toxic nail polishes as well. i was rather enticed by the deborah lippman polishes in creamy peach and putty grey, but i wasn’t convinced by the $20 price tag. and then i remembered no miss, a non-toxic polish that they used to sell at my old natural foods store. a quick search through the colors and i found plenty of chalky pastels, perfect for spring.

lights, camera, action!

perhaps because i was just having a little fun entertaining the idea of a little pin-up photo shoot, i found myself rather attracted to these pretty vintage-inspired looks from an editorial in issue #112 of numero magazine. rasa zukauskaite by luciano val and franco musso. i’m particularly enamored with the amazing hair and makeup, but i’m also coveting some of those sheer black tops with poodle puffs as aptly compared in the image of a little ceramic poodle. i actually recently bought a sheer pink 1950’s blouse with similar little puffs and ruffles and have yet to figure a way to wear it. yet.

images via fashion gone rogue as scanned by carla-a at the fashion spot.