BE MY VALENTINE Customer Appreciation Sale

THE February  'BE MY VALENTINE' Customer Appreciation SALE is over, but keep an eye out for FLASH SALES and future DISCOUNT COUPONS.

BE MY VALENTINE Discount Coupons

In celebration of placing my first add in the fabulous and exciting VINTAGE LIFE Magazine, I am offering 10% Discount Coupons for both of my etsy stores.

Enjoy a BE MY VALENTINE customer appreciation sale.

Use the DISCOUNT COUPON code number VLM1111 at BeeBeautifulVintage.com between January 14 and February 29, 2016 and receive 10% off every purchase in your cart when you check out.

Use the DISCOUNT COUPON code number VLM2222 at LuminousLadyVintage.com between January 14 and February 29, 2016 and receive 10% off every purchase in your cart when you check out.

It's always so exciting and terrifying to lunge into the deep ocean of the unknown. My Etsy vintage businesses have brought me equal amounts of joy and headache as I traverse a computer realm that is like second nature to my younger vintage lover peers. Luckily I have my I.T. husband David to help me conquer those techno phobias and basically save my bacon when I make a big boo boo.

 He suggested a long time ago that I invest in advertising but then I had this thought that overtakes so many women;."What if it works and I am wildly successful", how will I cope when I am already overwhelmed by doing all the jobs associated with an online business? I watched the movie; 'The Intern' with Anne Hathaway and Robert De Niro the other night and recognized my old fear; of being a woman with too many tasks and a new one; of growing old and not having the energy to do it all if I am successful. Both can be true but don't have to be. I do Tibetan Buddhist meditation and that helps overcome these negative states of mind when they pop up, transforming them into positive energy.

I have to visualize myself as that multi-armed Goddess I saw in a feminist cartoon in the 80's, in her case holding; an iron, a frying pan, a child, a telephone, a typewriter, a broom etc in her many hands. For me these days it's a job collage of; computer, photographer, fashion stylist, hiring models, photo cropping, historical research, listing each item, cleaning, mending & ironing the clothes & hats etc, arranging the storage so I can find that one tiny piece of costume jewelry a customer orders (there have been a few panicked moments as my inventory grows, I tell you), lovingly packing & shipping the items and the most fun of all; responding to my lovely customers and the vintage treasure quest itself! Believe me it's hard when a customer asks for a discount after doing all that for each item, but hey that is the world we live in! We put our ideas about things in a box of simplicity and isolation not realizing the complex interdependent causes and conditions that go into the production of every item we purchase, be it the clothes we wear, the water we drink or the food we eat.
Mama Earth isn't too happy with us about that, either!

Luckily David recently retired and has become my photographer. He's great with getting the models to relax and have fun and you'll see a definite improvement in quality there. We are about to re-photograph 60 HATS, for those of you who bought hats in the early days of Luminous Lady Vintage and wondered where in the heck they went. Boy were my  hat photos bad with a capital B when I went back through them. He also does the artwork on my adds, banners, business cards etc with some finalizing help from Kristin at Redbat Designs. I have found a model Sara who is perfectly  supercalifragilisticexpealidpocous (looks like Myrna Loy, my favorite actress of the 30s & 40s) who is a junior in high school and who won't disappear on me for a couple of years at least. I've made some headway in my understanding of blogs and other social media, so bring it on ;-) 

So we'll see how this all plays out. The Vintage Life Magazine which is published in Great Britain monthly, this Jan 26th, where vintage goes beyond clothes and accessories and is a 'lifestyle' for many men and women and has an international following. About half of my sales on Etsy have been international, so help me celebrate jumping into the void of new vintage treasure quests by visiting my stores (to help my Google rating) and take part in the sale if you are a vintage lover!  "Here's to you, vintage gals out there, some customer appreciation Valentine love & blessings and Discount Coupons!" #VintageLifeMagazine #facingfears #roadtosuccess #ValentineDay #DiscountCoupons  

Preview Winter Coats

RE-VIEW: Winter Wonderland Coats

Since it's that luminous, sparkling white and chilly snizzly time of year again, I thought I would remind you of all the warm, cozy and stylish vintage coats I have in my 2 stores on etsy. The models are 2 friends 'of a certain age' that graciously modeled coats for me when my vintage storage room was bursting at the seams with yummy new vintage treasures of the outer-wear kind. 

My dear friends Jeri and Jane, amazons at 5'10" (lucky dogs) size large, to give you a comparative size and length for the coats are having a good time here. David did the photo shoot and I ran around doing my favorite job, which is styling them with hats, jewelry, gloves and purses. It was a blast...from the past ;-)  #StyleInspirationTips BELOW.

When stylin' my models I love to use a combination of vintage eras in accessorizing the clothing, the key being to make; the colors harmonious, the design of the lines compatible, something sparkly to add some bling-zing and the occasional prop such as train cases, umbrellas etc for historical interest. #fashionstylist

A black Edwardian 1918 Silk Seal Plush Coat
 shown with 1930s Feather & Velvet Tilt Hat. Purchase here.
#edwardian #EdwardianCoat #AntiqueCoat

Black Velveteen 50's / 60's Swing Opera Coat shown with 1930's Velvet Pixie Hat with Celluloid Deco Hat Pin, large 40's Rhinestone Brooch and Patent Leather Hat Case. Purchase here.
#VelveteenSwingCoat  #VintageOperaCoat #VintageFashion

Yummy Chocolate 50's Boucle Swing Coat with 50's Metal-weave Box Purse, 50's Rhinestone Brooch, 40's Tilt Hat and Patent leather train Case. Purchase here.
#SwingCoat #50sVintageSwing #Vintage50scoat

Retro 70's does 30's Pink Suede Midi Coat with Sheepskin collar and hem, White 50's Gloves and 40's Pink Straw Tilt Hat with plaid taffeta ribbon and raffia flowers. Purchase here.
#VintagePinkSuede #70sfashion #WowzaFashion

Woman of  Noir Mystery London Fog Teal Trench Coat in high quality brushed wool twill with Black Straw 40's Picture Hat. Purchase here.
#vintageLondonfFog #VintageTrenchCoat #SpyTrench

Dressy 50's /60's Black Wool Swing Coat with Velveteen Cuffs and Removable Fox Collar, shown with Spanish Burgundy 40's Tilt Toque and 2 huge clear Rhinestone mandala brooches. 40's 
Purchase here. #50sSwingCoat #VintageSwingCoat #winterstyle

60's Mocha Wool Coat with Mink Collar & really cute 30's Pixie Fur Trimmed Tilt. 
Purchase here. #VintageWoolCoat #60sfashion #60swintercoat

Wowza! Vintage Tomato Red Jacket . Retro 50's does Victorian Revival . Goddess plus size . Lady Suzette label . WPL10640 label (1941 > 59) Purchase here. #VintageRedJacket #RetroFashion #VictorianRevival

Vintage Fleurette Camel Hair Swing Coat . Retro 80's does 50's . California Couture . Yum Warm Caramel . Winter Overcoat . High Fashion . Purchase here. #CamelhairSwingCoat #Retro80sFashion #VintageSwingCoat

Sophisticated Vintage 70's Coat . Mocha Worsted Wool . Maze Soutache Cording Collar & Cuffs . B Exclusive label . Purchase here. #Vintage70sCoat #winterstyle #VintageCoat

Classic Boxy Vintage 40's Navy Coat . Swanky Wool Sheen Gabardine . Fall to Winter Classy Retro Warmth . COOPER'S & Recovery Board labels . Purchase here. #VintageCoat #VintageFashion #FortiesFashion

30's Vintage Swagger Coat . Fine Navy Wool Gabardine . Midi Swing A line style . Hand Tailored . Forstmann & Recovery Board label . Swanky. Purchase here. #VintageSwaggerCoat #vintagevibes #vintageboutique

Previews, Inspiration & Vintage Style Tips

Inspiration & Vintage Style Tips 
My favorite task in running 2 vintage clothing stores on etsy is styling the models for their fashion shoots. I've been lucky to find some really lovely local ladies, young and of 'that certain age' to model the clothes. Each has their own natural style and finesse but has graciously succumbed to my ideas about how to wear 'Vintage Fashion'; the HATS, the GLOVES, the VINTAGE COSTUME JEWELRY, how to style their HAIR and MAKEUP.
Here are some photographs of Sarah in her first fashion shoot, for your inspiration and a preview of the new clothes offered on https://www.etsy.com/shop/LuminousLadyVintage
#VintageStyleTips Below

1)Stunning Forest Green Wool Dress from the 1950's
Purchase here. #vintagefashion

2) Retro Hot Tomato Red 80's does Flirty 30's Power Dress
Purchase here. #retrostyle

3) Late 1940's 'New Look' Changeant Lavender Silk Party Dress
Purchase here. #40sVintageDress

4) Retro Peachy Pink 80's does 30's/40's Tea Dress
Purchase here. #vintageboutique

STYLE TIPS & INSPIRATION
You'll notice that I blend accessories from different vintage eras to accomplish a put together look in both color, design elements and casual day to evening party style choices. 
1) In the first photo I used a divine 60's huge, fall-tone rhinestone mandala brooch to amp up the elegant lines of the dress, matching green 50's nylon gloves and a swanky 40s tilt beret with green & brown beading and soutache cording.

 2) In photo # 2 the over-all style tone was the Power of Red with matching 50's gloves, a large garnet red 50's brooch and a silly fun 50's pillbox hat of rainbow colored velvet fruits and vegetables. Whenever possible to enhance the look we used Sarah's fabulous waist length hair as a 'prop'.

 3) At Luminous Lady Vintage we like to enhance the luminosity of our clients using stunning fabrics such as this changeant lavender with silvery fushia overtones tissue silk dress, with another huge sparkly Eisenberg brooch, black gloves, shoes and lacy slip peaking our the neckline and a blue satin pillbox hat with iridescent beaded dragonflies from that extremely creative era of 50's embellished hats. 

4) So feminine and pretty, this retro mixed-era peachy pink dress has a unique waistline I found on a similar dress in a book on the 1940's, with a 30's cape ruffle collar, 40's shoulder pads and raglan sleeves. Another huge 50's rhinestone & art stone mandala brooch from my collection accents the center bodice, white 50's gloves, sweet pink 40's straw tilt hat with plaid taffeta ribbon and raffia flowers. The accompanying straw island tote adds fun and traveler mystery to this spring outfit. 

 I love this Alice in Wonderland dress in sky blue and white dotted swiss fabric. I kept the accessories to the minimum; traditional 50's white gloves, necklace and iridescent blue beaded evening bag. Here Sara is the 'real charismatic beauty' element in this photo.
SOLD

So there's a little style inspiration for you vintage gals out there! #VintageFashionStylist 

Vintage Country Goddess

Who am I?  I am a vintage country goddess. Vintage is the key word here. Back in the 50's, riding in the back of our families' fire-engine red Ford station wagon, every August on the way to Yellowstone National Park, I would dream and create exciting fantastical adventures... With myself as the heroine, of course. In the caves along the rivers I imagined finding treasures and exotic lost worlds, becoming their beloved Goddess dressed in luminous slinky dresses and radiant jewels (you've seen the movies, right??) Over the years I did travel to exotic places and my love of the history embodied in wonderful works of ancient artifacts, such as Tibet, Ireland and India, was born.

Over the last 40 years a parallel love was evolving in my admiration of vintage collectibles and handicrafts, particularly those created and worshiped by women in this country. My sister Lyn had a hand in this being an avid antique-r and we continue to exalt in our 'hunt for treasures'. I found in these vintage items a much deeper understanding and sense of the incredible history of the USA. In exploring the art and artisans who created costume jewelry, I found out how the compassionate idea of giving shelter to the poor, the exploited, the destitute from other countries brought unlimited creative genius here or what it must have been like to be in a country at war with limited resources, or to be a woman without the vote. I still see each piece of costume jewelry from the 30's as a tiny hand wrought sculpture to bring a smile during the depression or in the 40's as mood-lifter during WW2 or a out-of-this-world conversation novelty at the cocktails parties of the 50's. I saw amazing creativity and a place for women to show independent artistry in the marvelous history of women's hats. The aprons women created in the 50's are like forerunners of the psychedelic posters of the 60's, where did that come from? Purses and compacts and boxes (why do women loooove boxes??), perhaps the Jungian expressions of our woman's jewel case? I also love fur, a sensual childhood experience of having a beaver muff and hat clinched that, and though I would never buy a new fur, I do offer some vintage fur hats, coats, collars, chokers and muffs. Silk satin lingerie... do I even have to go there? Love, love love... 

So in my ETSY store: Luminous Lady Vintage I will offer you the fruits of this passionate search for the shining vintage treasures of this world. On my other stores in Etsy: Bee Beautiful Vintage with exotic and Mod attire and Shangri-la Treasures and Thankas, you can find the treasures to nurture the more exotic, luminous spiritual world in your heart.

Vintage Travel Back in Time

I thought that for my first 'On the Road Vintage' entry it would be fun to go back in time to one of my favorite vintage outfits; A VINTAGE CAR. Yes, in the 80's I owned an orange and black 40 Ford Pickup, then a 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Seville, then a cool sky blue Mustang convertible as my personal succession of cars. Our family cars included a 40 Ford black and white convertible, a 40 ford cherry red 2 door sedan, a navy blue 4 door sedan, a 40 Ford unfinished coupe, a 40 Ford tan and brown pick-up truck and a Lincoln Zepher. Our house was falling down but we had a lot of fun at car rallys ;-)

 This truck was hot!! A big engine that roared and a lot of muscle to drive.....

 I was told that this Cadillac Eldorado Seville was the car of choice for the 'Men in Black' in the 50's!

 A little vintage fashion 80's artist style; a 40's crinkle rayon quilted jacket, a Huiochol beaded bracelet, purple leggings, beaded crystals necklacce, zuni thunderbird inlay bracelet, purple & black striped tunic sweater, black crinkle cotton skirt, iridescent thread black scarf and Tibetan shoulder purse and clogs....Holy Moly check out the attitude....leaning on our family 40 Ford (what else) truck.

 This car was my fun freedom machine when I moved out to Green Gulch Farm Zen Center on the coast (after Norman died). The ocean breeze, my hair flying, sunsets alone on Abalone Beach....just my car and me and my grief...

 Big Blue, the family car that was a tank to drive and me as a hippy chick re-living the 60's.