outfit: white after labor day

dress - unique vintage (similar here), necklace - the giving keys, lipstick - smashbox liquid lipstick in miss conduct

Here I am, a vintage hummingbird in the relatively young stage of her style blogging career, and already I am breaking one of the seminal rules of fashion - you should never wear white after labor day.  Well, whoever made that rule didn't pair their white with dark lips and pumpkins.

I am IN LOVE with this Unique Vintage dress that I just picked up at their Pin Up Picnic Sale last weekend for the unbelievable price of $15!  (You can find almost the exact same one here). It fits and feels like a dream, and with some Smashbox liquid lipstick in the color Miss Conduct, I felt completely in the autumn spirit walking around the HalloweenTime at the happiest place on earth!

How do you wear your whites after labor day?

Outfit Details

• Unique Vintage 1950s Ivory Swing Dress (similar)
• The Giving Keys Necklace in Dream
• Smashbox Liquid Lipstick in Miss Conduct

Photo Credit: @keeganmullin

adventure: camp hollywood 2017

photo credit: @keeganmullin

Sorry for the weeklong absence from the blog! I was in recovery mode from the wonderful adventure over Labor Day weekend at the National Jitterbug Championships at Camp Hollywood.  Camp Hollywood is one my favorite swing dance weekends of the year - amazing music, competitions, dancers from all over the world, and a joyous time of celebrating as a community!

For those of you who have never experienced a swing dance weekend, each day basically goes like this: classes in the mornings from 10am-3pm, then competitions from 3pm-6pm, a break for dinner and then social dancing, more competitions, and partying from 9pm-6am!  Then you crash for a few hours, wake up, and do it again! My friends and I decided to skip classes this year to use that time to catch up on sleep, lounge by the pool, and socialize some more.

In the pictures above, you can catch a couple shots of me competing, which as you can tell from my expression is a complete bore to me. *ahem*

Of course, I am kidding.  As these are the National Jitterbug Championships, people travel from all over the world (including Sweden, France, even South Korea) to compete, so the competition is pretty fierce.  Even so, my incredible partner (and great friend) Juan and I made finals in the Classic division and alternates for the Strictly Lindy division.  Translating that into non-dancer speak, the Strictly Lindy division is the fast moving, aerial-filled dancing that you probably think of when you think of swing, and the Classic division is to medium-tempo music and is more about style and musicality rather than flash.  I felt really proud of how we performed, and had a ton of fun to boot! I always leave Camp Hollywood inspired and ready to work even harder for the next year!

And while the competitions are a huge part of the weekend, the best part is seeing friends from out of town, hanging out, and being silly!

A huge thank you to everyone who made it a Camp Hollywood to remember!  Back to regular scheduled programming on Thursday! ;)

outfit: garden party

dress - unique vintage (similar), shoes - restricted (similar)

I'll be honest - I really don't like wearing halter tops.  Actually I hate them.  I always feel extremely exposed and generally not flattered.  I pretty much avoid them at all costs.

For that reason, I have only worn this dress one time since I purchased it last year from a sale at Unique Vintage. And that one time I did wear it, I covered the top half with a shirt to hide the halter part.  However, it has been sitting in my closet for over a year I decided it was time to stop letting this beautiful print collect dust and, instead get over my fear.

And I have to say, after seeing these pictures - I feel so pretty! I may have been wrong about my halter top prejudice.  Plus it helps when an amazing photographer like @keeganmullin is taking your picture!

I am guessing most everyone who is reading this knows of Unique Vintage, but what you might not know is that at least once, if not twice a year they have an amazing sale where they sell dresses like this for as low as $25! As much of a vintage shopaholic as I can be, I am usually pretty good at waiting for sales and finding good deals.  So if you are trying to get vintage style without breaking the bank, I encourage you to be patient - keep an eye out for sales on sites like Unique Vintage or Modcloth and keep your eyes and ears open for vintage warehouse or yard sales - especially in LA! We have so many events happening here in southern California, and it's all a matter of patience and determination to find the best deals. :)

photo credit: @keeganmullin

Outfit Details

• Unique Vintage Dress (similar here) 
• Restricted Shoes (similar here)

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outfit: 30s vibes

dress - loco lindo (old, similar here), shoes - modcloth, necklace - vintage

One of the nice things about having long hair is versatility it provides.  You always have the option to fake a short haircut, without having to commit to it.  So occasionally when I see a gorgeous dress like this with butterfly sleeves and a ruffle detail, I embrace my inner 1930s and pin my curls up.

I haven't spoken about this company on my blog before, but let me introduce you to a wonderful brand Loco Lindo which specializes in vintage reproductions - especially for swing dancers! I first discovered them because they are sponsors of The Hollywood Hotshots, a dance company I am a part of that primarily specializes in preserving American Vernacular Jazz dance from the 1920s through the 1950s.  So I have luckily gotten to wear many Loco Lindo outfits when performing on movie sets, live shows, or private parties!

In the case of this particular dress, I got extremely lucky and found it at a vintage warehouse sale in great shape and for an amazing price (I think around $28!).  I am obsessed with this mustard color and the wrap style of dress is one of my favorite silhouettes.  It's easy to wear, flattering, and gives an outfit a vintage flair.  One nice thing is that wrap dresses are coming back into vogue and now you can find them at most modern department stores like this or this or this or this.

Let me know how you wear your wrap dresses!

Photo Credit: @keeganmullin

Outfit Details

• Loco Lindo Dress (old, similar here) 
• Modcloth T-strap Shoes
• Vintage Necklace 

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outfit: modern does vintage

shirt - old navy, skirt - forever21, sunglasses - kate spade (similar), shoes - modcloth (old)

The number one question people ask me (other than, Grace, how can you possibly eat that much sour candy?), is "where do you buy your clothes?"  And while I do love shopping at vintage reproduction companies like Unique Vintage or Modcloth, I actually get a lot of my clothes at modern stores at the mall.  The trick is looking for vintage inspired items - for instance, a striped or floral print, a detail on the collar, or a silhouette that has a natural waist line.  This outfit is the perfect example!

This super cute blue/white striped collared shirt is from Old Navy, who by the way have really stepped up their game.  And this skirt is from Forever 21 is so easy to wear that I bought it in both colors.  Plus it is only $15.90! It really is possible to find cute vintage-inspired pieces on the cheap.

Now despite what I literally just wrote in that last line, I am also wearing Kate Spade sunglasses to complete this look, and those definitely are an investment.  Thankfully these were purchased during the brief window of time my sister worked there, so with her discount even that wasn't so much of a splurge. ;)

Let me know how you style your modern pieces with your vintage ones!

photo credit - @keeganmullin

Outfit Details: 

• Old Navy Striped Shirt
• Forever21 Midi Skirt
• Kate Spade Sunglasses (old, similar here)
• Modcloth shoes (old)

wishful wednesdays #3

Welcome back to Wishful Wednesdays, where this vintage hummingbird posts wishlists, pretty things, inspirations, or anything she is wishing that week!  This week's Wishful Wednesday is full of beautiful vintage summer silhouettes that are also easy to wear. When it is super warm out, I still want to have a touch of vintage to my look without the hassle of having to set my hair everyday or do a full face of makeup.  I love the idea of throwing a hat or hair scarf on and calling it a day.  Or just some red lips and cute sunglasses, and bam, instant vintage flair.

1 - bird print dress, 2 - bangles, 3 - tiki print shoes, 4 - hair scarf, 5 - colourpop lipstick in avenue, 6 - red crop top, 7 - tiki print shorts, 8 - pineapple brooch, 9 - nude sunglasses, 10 - diving beauties stoneware bowl set

I was apparently feeling very tiki inspired this week! I am dying over the new Birds of a Feather print from Trashy Diva. It is SO PRETTY.  Plus there are so many colors to pull out of it to accessorize with. Other than that, give me pineapple print and hawaiian floral inspired everything else! Til tomorrow!
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wishful wednesdays #2

Despite being born and raised in Los Angeles, I have always preferred cold, rainy weather.  However, I am doing my best to embrace the warmth that has come with the end of April and beginning of May.  If I can have it my way, I will be living in skirts and dresses until September.  I especially love that mint green gingham printed midi skirt.  I may try to make that into a sewing project!  

1 - bear t-shirt, 2 - floral skirt, 3 - dalmatian pants, 4 - origami butterfly necklace, 5 - cat socks, 6 - bicycle, 7- black flats, 8 - black/white striped cat sweater

My wishlist this week ended up having way more animal-printed items than I planned, but I can't help it! I am a sucker for a cute animal.  And by the way, if you are too, you should definitely go follow the instagram account @cutepetclub.  It is a never-ending parade of cuteness!  Also, I am OBSESSED with those Dalmatian pants from Paul and Joe Sister.  If only I had the money to throw down for them. That print is so wonderful!  Our family dog when I was growing up was a dalmatian named Elmo. We got him as a puppy when I was a baby, so I have always had a special love in my heart for them.

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wishful wednesdays #1

Welcome to Wishful Wednesdays where this vintage hummingbird posts wish lists, pretty things, inspirations, mood boards, or anything she is wishing that week! 

Dapper Day is coming up this weekend at Disneyland, and I can't wait! I am trying to brainstorm the perfect ensemble and am so in awe of the amazing dapper disneybounds people have done, especially  when couples or groups of friends do a theme.  If you don't know what disneybounding is, it is basically dressing up in an outfit inspired by a disney character.  Hopefully I can get one together by this weekend!

1 - floral scarf, 2 - balloon necklace, 3 - vintage shirt dresses (red,yellow,green,blue), 4 - seafoam sunglasses, 5 - smashbox liquid lipstick in miss conduct, 6 - cobb hill sandals

I cannot stop looking at pictures of vintage 1950s dresses shirt dresses. If I could, I would live in them all season in every color!  I may try to practice my sewing skills on a similar pattern soon. Other than that, springtime for me means seafoam green sunglasses and florals.  Of course, why not also throw in a beautifully deep wine lipstick from Smashbox.  If you are looking for a liquid lipstick that lasts all day but doesn't dry out, smashbox is the bomb.  It's a little pricier than other options which I wear a lot (colourpop ultra matte, sephora cream lip stain), but it does the best job of keeping my lips from getting chapped all day!  

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