Carnival Rides

Hey Everyone! It is Jen from Jenloveskev. I am super excited to be guest posting for Julie today. I can't wait for the wedding this weekend!! I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas. So exciting!!

Anyway, Julie asked us to share a post inspired by the idea "Summer of Love." I decided to do a little outfit post, as well as share photos from a lovely summer outing with my 2 loves. My "Summer of Love" revolves around my daughter Rowan and my husband Kev. We have been taking Rowan on adventures all over the place this summer. It makes my heart full watching her experiencing new, fun things.

Outfit Details:

Vintage Blouse: Reworked and Sized down by my mom! It was seriously a tent!

Skirt: J.Crew

Belt: H&M

High Classy Heel: c/o Modcloth (MOST AMAZING SHOES EVER!!)

p.s. I am wearing these awesome heels to Julie's Wedding!!

There is a place by us called, Hoffmans Playland. It's this permanent carnival that is geared towards little kids. All the rides are miniature for your kiddos. Rowan LOVES it there. She walks around pointing and "oooooh" at everything. She also loves to dance to the oldies music they blast over the park. It's been a summer staple for us.

Enjoy the rest of your Summer!!

touring chestnut hill with tick tock vintage.

hello there, orchid grey readers! veronika from tick tock vintage here, filling in for julie while she's off getting married (who-hoo!). julie asked us to write a post with the theme of "summer love", which actually couldn't be more perfect for me since a) i love summer and b) i love love. my husband bryan and i live in philadelphia and we like to explore different parts of the city together. chestnut hill is one of our new favorite spots to walk around with an ice cream cone and our camera, enjoying the beautiful old homes and manicured gardens. i'd love to share some pictures of our trip to chestnut hill yesterday!

the landscaping and plants the line the chestnut hill homes and shops is really astounding. you can tell people take great pride in their gardens, however tiny.

cake is a great place to grab a dessert and coffee, or to sit down for a meal. the building is truly one of a kind and i just love the huge windows.

the shops in chestnut hill are pretty varied; there is weaver's way (a food co-op), art and antique stores, and upscale boutiques.

bryan and i always talk about how nice it would be to have a porch to sit back with a lemonade and people watch.

i just love all of the iron fences and street lamps.

here's my main squeeze!

i hope you've enjoyed this tour of chestnut hill! philadelphia has some beautiful neighborhoods; i write about them frequently on tick tock vintage because i think philly is such a hidden gem amongst the east cost cities. a big congrats to julie and chris, and thanks so much for asking me to guest post!

Summer Love

Photos via Punky

If you read Punky, Jen's, or Indiana's blogs you have probably already seen these photos. On Tuesday we had a mini blogger/friend meet up in Newburyport. I love meeting blogger's I've been internet friends with for so long, you just fall into step with one another, no awkward getting to know you phases, it's so easy. I love these ladies! We had a great time eating, playing catch-up, and wandering around Newburyport. Also, if there is one trend I will happily jump on right now, it's friendship bracelets. Chris made fun of me the other day because he caught me trying to match an outfit to my collection of bracelets.

I'm headed up to Maine this week to get ready for our wedding on Saturday (!!!!!!!). In the mean time, I have some very lovely ladies who are going to be blogging for me this week. This is my first time hosting guest bloggers on Orchid Grey, and I'm so excited to see what they come up with. Appropriately, the theme of this week is Summer Love. I hope you enjoy their posts!

The next time you hear from me, I'll be a married woman!

Last weekend...

(Buster, the fantastic, disappearing dog)

This week is one of those rare week's where I have too much to post about. I shouldn't have let Monday slide! As I mentioned in an earlier post, last weekend was a whirlwind. We travelled up to Maine to help my mom out with wedding stuff at the house, and I should have known something was up when Chris insisted we go out for breakfast on Saturday morning, followed by his insistence we go antique shopping until precisely 12pm. I was in for a surprise: when we returned to the house, the driveway was filled with cars, and all of the important women in my life we're milling around the yard! Lo and behold, a surprise bridal shower had been planned for me by my most wonderful maid of honor, Emily. It was such a wonderful, low key day, with lots (and lots, and lots) of food. I'm so glad everyone got to meet each other.

We of course had to take a bunch of photos, and pose on my dad's truck. Afterwards my ladies shuttled me to Portland for dinner and a night out on the town (of which there are no pictures). This summer has been so hectic, it was so nice to just relax with my friends.

(left to right: Chelsea, Jen, Bea, me, Emily)

August 11, 2011: Gold, Brick, Brown for work

Dress c/o Spotted Moth

Belt: Thrifted ($1)

Bracelets: Mostly Swapped

Glasses: Vintage ($16)

Necklace: Brimfield ($1)

Sandals: H&M sale ($7)

I'm pretty sure I've professed my love for Gloria Steinem on this blog before, but if I haven't: I love Gloria Steinem. Aside from being a serious feminist, she also has some serious style. I was thinking of her as I put this outfit together on Monday, maybe it was the glasses. Anyways, I know I've also talked about how much I love longer dresses and skirts, but as I made my way into the city for work, I realized why I love them so much: they allow for so much freedom. I can make my way through the world without worrying about gusts of wind, bending over, skeevy dudes, etc. I recently got this dress back from sending it around the Delightful Dozen, it was so great to see how everyone styled it. Just a few scattered thoughts for today, have a great Thursday!

A little snail:

August 9, 2011: Chambray, Creme, Brown for a concert

Top: American Apparel

Skirt: Madewell sale ($32)

Belt: American Apparel

Bag: Brimfield Flea ($30)

Bracelets: Swapped

Necklace: Spotted Moth sale ($32)

shoes c/o ModCloth

Whew! What a whirlwind of a weekend, I can't believe we're right back to Tuesday! There is so much that happened these past few days, it's hard to know where to begin. Friday is the logical start, this is what I wore to see Alison Krauss & Union Station at Meadowbrook in Gilford, NH on Friday. Chris's mom was kind enough to invite us along with her and her beau to see the concert. And we saw the concert alright: sixth row, center! It was pretty amazing. I'm a big bluegrass and old timey fan and was so excited when they played songs from the Oh Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack, that is one of my favorite movies of all time, and one of my favorite albums.

Since I spent most of the day in the car, I opted for something simple and extremely easy, with punchy accessories. A creme tank and chambray skirt fit the bill, with my favorite shoes. I added a patterned bag to add a little interest. Chris and I also filed our marriage license on Friday morning, so exciting!

August 4, 2011: Green, Blue, Brown, Maroon

Top: Swapped

Skirt: UO ($19)

Belt: J.Crew (gift)

Sandals: H&M ($7)

Bag: Swapped

Necklace: Gift

I love having my office day as an excuse to get dressed for work each week, as much as I love my job at the coffee shop and working from home, it's nice to break up the monotony of cut-offs and t-shirts with a cute outfit. The weather over the past week or so has been so pleasant, it's been really nice to not sweat constantly and actually get dressed. This is what I love about August, even though it's hot and still summery, you can tell that fall is on the horizon. Cooler nights, and cooler breezes coming off the ocean, I love it!

This was my work outfit on Monday, a celebration of this past weekend's swap. I tried to make an entire outfit of swapped items, but I think that would be more successful in the fall. Anyways, I love this little seashell top, isn't the collar so pretty? I don't usually wear stuff that's so girly-businessy, but that's why I love swapping: trying new things! I paired it with a basic skirt and my new swapped doctor's bag. I love! It's funny, after a big swap I always find myself searching blogs for stuff I brought to the swap, this time I had a huge bag of stuff i got rid of, I hope I see some it styled soon!

On another note, if you happen to be in the Boston area tonight, I'll be at Madewell on Newbury Street offering styling tips at their Denim After Dark event, I would love to see you there!

ps- Aren't jumping photos funny?

August 2, 2011: Leopard, Denim, Lace, Gold

Top: Thrifted ($5)

Dress: Rodarte for Target (old)

Shoes c/o Lulu's.com

Belt: Vintage ($2)

Necklace: Swapped

What I wore to Saturday's Swap Uncapped, possibly my most favorite outfit lately. Although, every outfit seems to be my favorite these days. I usually can't stay in heels very long, but whether it was sheer force of will or whether they were actually comfortable, I managed to keep these beauties on for the whole day. This weekend's swap was one of the best I've been involved in, we had so much fun! This outfit was comfortable and simple enough to take me from day to night. This was actually the first time I've worn this Rodarte for Target dress, despite having it in my closet for a couple of years. I added the blue denim top to make it a little more summery, and some gold jewelry to add a little shine. And what is better than leopard print as a final touch?

to find a swap near you, visit events.swap.com

Over the Week(end)...

Holy cow it's August! Please excuse the excessive amount of photos today, I thought I would do something slightly different and show what I've been up to for the past week. Why is it that everything gets crammed into the summer? Winter seems to slowly pass by, while summer goes at an alarming rate, so much to do. Anyway, last week was one of those weeks that was just crazy, lots of doing things and not much blogging. Top to bottom, left to right, play by play:

The Swapaholics and respective male companions attended Stuff Magazine's Hot 100 party, where we made friends with some very fantastic boys in very fantastic outfits (I wore a blue dress, undocumented).

Wednesday brought with it the Best of Boston party at the Boston Cruise Terminal. I also received some new shoes (I'm dying) in the mail (check back tomorrow for my outfit).

Thursday night we sent to Sea Chanties at the local cafe after-hours (exactly what it sounds like- singing old sea chanties and drinking with friends).

Friday I forced myself to have some of the day off (a difficult thing to do) and went to the Chihuly exhibit at the MFA. It was amazing and refreshing to see art made for beauty alone, without a deep concept (perhaps this is a longer post in the future). my favorite piece was the Ikebana boat, and I wanted to lick all of it.

I even had time that night to clean out my closet in preparation for the next day's Swap Uncapped (more on that later). I was so happy to spend the day with some amazing ladies.

Sunday was spent in true relaxation mode. I took a tour of the local light-house, and watched the lobster boat races with three very good friends. Went to a car show and ate barbeque with a handsome soon-to-be-husband (!). and ended the day attempting to make wedding decorations with some very curious and disruptive kitties.

Also, also: today our wedding is officially 20 days away!

Mini Spotlight: Lulu's, Pulp Vintage, & Bluesville, USA

Dress: Pulp Vintage, Hat: Bluesville, USA, Bag: Lulus.com, Shoes: Lulus.com

What is it about the impending fall that makes us think of darker colors? Shorter days? The desire to be cozy? I can't believe I'm even thinking about fall, but it's definitely on the horizon. I love incorporating booties with summer dresses, and it's a great way to introduce a little autumn to your summer wardrobe, without having to pile on the layers.

This sweet ruffle dress would look amazing with some black wedges from Lulu's. Add a black bag and sweet boater hat, and you're ready to go from summer to fall.

July 27, 2011: Black, Brown, Floral

Jumpsuit: Thrifted ($2)

Sandals: H&M sale ($7)

Bag: Thrifted ($10)

Belt: AA

Necklace: Black Sparrow (gift)

Quiz: What do you wear when you wake up and feel like every muscle in your body hates you? Answer: This. OK, so I may have been out a bit late last night, did you know the Swapaholics made Stuff Magazine's Hot 100? That's worth celebrating! I know a wide leg, floral jumpsuit is a fashion risk, but I think it's a risk worth taking, especially for $2. I went thrift shopping with my mom this past weekend, and found the 90's jackpot near where she lives in Maine. I love thrifting outside of the city, some of my most favorite items have come from charity shops and church basements. I also love that this entire outfit cost less than $20 (excluding the necklace which was gifted and the belt which was from an old job), it always feels really good to refresh my closet at a really low cost.

I wish I had more to say today, but I haven't had my coffee yet. So here's a question: what's the biggest fashion or style risk you've taken lately?