So, Anyone Sew?

I sew some. I can find my way around a machine if I really put my mind to it. I've sewn a few things for my kids. I even cut a vintage style dress out for myself but never sewed the pieces together, it's still waiting to be made into a dress.

A friend of mine posted a link to a wonderful tutorial for a faux fur vintage style collar. This is gorgeous and looks like a great and fairly easy tutorial.

http://blog.caseybrowndesigns.com/2010/11/vintage-flair-make-a-faux-fur-collar/

See how beautiful this is...it looks pretty easy to make as well.

If you don't want to make one, she is having a giveaway for one.

And The Winner Is....

Drum roll please!

Miss Lindy Lee

Congratulations! Please email me the address where you want your goodies sent.

Thanks to everyone who participated!

Let's Have a Giveaway!!!

In honor of our 1 year anniversary let's have a giveaway!

You will receive this....Our 'Fall Foliage Fascinator'

And this...a set of "Bow Bobbies" (color may be different)

Some Cherries (may be red or black cherries, one or two leaves)

And one of these, an "Esther" Feather Clip

And how about to top it off, a 'Real Rose' the one you will get will be ivory with pink tips

To enter post a comment here under comments. To get another entry repost this on your own blog. And for a third entry repost this on your Facebook page. Only three entries per person. Giveaway will close on October 31. And winner will be announced on November 1. Winner will be chosen by a random number generator.

We have tons of other great stuff as well as everything listed in the giveaway on the site. Check it out at www.belleblossoms.com.

Matching Flowers to Outfits

I think that most people when they pick a flower to wear with an outfit, pick a flower that matches the outfit. This is what I have always done. If I am wearing a floral print, I try to wear a flower in my hair that is the same color and variety as the one in the print. I think that this is what most people do.

When I went to Tennessee for the Redneck Rumble, Ashley (Lisa Freemont) and I were getting ready for the event. I put on my dress which is white with black and yellow roses. When I've worn it before, I have worn a black rose...since it matched. I asked Ashley's opinion on the flower to wear with my outfit. She looked through all of my flowers and picked out the double pink Rock-a-Hula Baby hibiscus. I was very shocked with the selection. Since I had nothing else pink on and it really did not match at all. She told me, "It looks like you just plucked some flowers and put them in your hair". So I went with it, and it worked. It looked exactly like she said it would, not like I was trying to match...which I like.

When our models got there, it was the same with them. Brooke wore leopard with purple shoes and purple orchids. It was gorgeous!

Tina wore a red dress with a big orange mum. I would have never put these together, but it was just beautiful! I would have gone with the obvious...a leopard rose for Brooke, a red rose for Tina. How boring would that have been?

Elizabeth was wearing a black dress with very pale pink details. She came wearing a blue lily and behind it a blue dahlia. It was a stunning combination. She had nothing else on that was blue just a green necklace.

Ashley wore a black and white polka dot dress. She was just gorgeous wearing a red real rose with a white Gerbra daisy. I would have never put the two flowers together but it was so pretty.










So, if you have flowers that you think don't match anything...colors you may have nothing to wear with, mix them up. Wear them with other colors. The whole idea of wearing flowers is to look like you just picked them and put them in your hair. Try it...you'll be beautiful! I promise.

The Horror of Swimsuit Season

I hate swimsuits. I hate trying them on. I hate wearing them. I've never found the perfect suit. A long pant, long sleeve, tight corset, with a built in push up bra swimsuit. If I could find 'that' suit maybe I'd be a little less self conscious and enjoy swimming in public. But alas, they don't make one like that and if they did I'm sure I would attract a lot of attention if I waltzed into the pool area wearing one.

My beach vacation sounded great but it would involve swimsuits and me being in one...a lot. Yikes! I was in desperate need to retire my 5 year old Esther Williams that I got on eBay. I just didn't have it in me to go to a store and try on dozens of suits and see myself in a 3-way mirror. I did know that I wanted a vintage style suit. For something like this that I'm going keep and wear for years, I'll pay a little more than normal. After searching and searching I finally broke down and bought the Marilyn suit in pink from PUG. This is the most I've ever spent on a swimsuit. I was very apprehensive about buying a suit online. Like I mentioned, I have lots of areas that I would love to hide. But it was so beautiful on the model, that I had to give it a chance. I was under no illusion that I would look like the model (I wish I had her perfect hourglass figure!).

I got my new suit in the mail and was so excited to finally see it in person. I pulled it out of the package and put it on. I was instantly in love. I have never been happy in a swimsuit, I have never loved a swimsuit and looked forward to wearing it. The first thing I thought was that I wish I had ordered it a size smaller. PUG runs really small. I wear a Medium misses size 8-10 everywhere but here. At PUG, I'm an XL Plus Size...YIKES! I about died when I measured myself and found this out. But good thing I measured, a medium in the regular clothes I've ordered from them definitely would not have gone on half of me. But this suit is very stretchy and a large or maybe even a medium would have been great. But I didn't have time for an exchange. Plus, this thing is so gorgeous, I'll make it work.

I couldn't wait to wear it to the beach. I actually looked forward to wearing a swimsuit (this is very out of character for my very self conscious and shy self). I put it on and headed to the beach. I did not plan on being afraid to go into the water or sit in the sand though. It's just too pretty for that. I sat on a beach towel and walked in the surf. No sandcastles or getting buried in the sand by the kids. The rest of the beach vacation I wore my old ratty Esther Williams, so I could enjoy the beach. This is definitely a pool kind of suit or a laying around the deck kind of suit. I was so worried to mess it up, sand probably would have been fine, but I didn't want to take the chance.

I am home now and the suit is not stuffed in a drawer like every other suit in the past. It is hanging up in my closet. I have never hung up a swimsuit and I think that hanging a swimsuit up in a closet among pretty dresses sounds funny, but this really is the most beautiful piece of clothing that I own. I hate I didn't buy it sooner, at the beginning of summer instead of the end of it. But while the weather is still hot, bring on the water parks and public pools...I have found the perfect suit!

My New Favorite Hair Product

I ordered Hawleywood's Layrite Deluxe Pomade from Lisa Freemont Street, since she frequently uses it in her tutorials. I was a little skeptical since I've tried pomades in the past and they have weighed my hair down and were so thick and greasy. But, I'll try about anything that makes vintage hairstyling easier. Plus, if Lisa Freemont Street says it's good, it has to be!

I was very eager to receive my new product. I couldn't wait to try it out for myself. It was shipped very quickly and it was free shipping! I got it Tuesday. Yay! First, the jar is adorable. There is a pin-up girl on the side that you can't see in the picture. I was also immediately impressed by the size of the jar. You get a lot of product. Next, let me tell you that this stuff smells great! Time to test it out. I smoothed it over my victory rolls and it made the little fly-away hairs lay down and stay in a way that hairspray just can't accomplish. Next, I used it to smooth my large pin curled bangs. They turned out perfect.

Next day, time to test it out on a new style. I think I'll go with a Marilyn style (my favorite). I used hot rollers, lots of them and rolled my hair in small sections. I already had a little pomade in my hair from yesterday's style. I took out the curlers when they were cool and brushed it out. Put a little more pomade through it and I really don't think it's ever looked as much like a Marilyn style. This pomade really helps not only smooth out but also helps form your style and hold it in place.

I am hooked. This product is really wonderful for anyone who loves vintage style. It was only $14.99 with free shipping. It's a huge jar and I know it will last a long time.

July Blossom of the Month Club

The response to the Blossom of the Month Club has been great! It amazes me how many people have joined and are loving the club. I love seeing all of the pictures and hearing all of your comments.

This month's blossom was the orchid. Since there are so many people in the club and also so many lovely varieties of the orchid, I sent out several different colors and styles. The clue for the August Blossom is this,
"This 1946 movie starring the lovely Veronica Lake is named after this beautiful blossom." I will once again be sending out lots of different colors of this blossom, but they will all be the same blossom this time. The August Blossom will be sent out the second week of August instead of the first week because we will be closed for vacation the first week. This blossom is one of the best sellers and I know you will all love it!

Avoiding Bad Hair...Learn From My Mistake

Tuesday night I decided to try out my new pink sponge rollers. I curled up my very wet locks into the curlers and pin curled the bangs. I woke up Wednesday morning and my hair just went into a perfect Marilyn style almost effortlessly! Needless to say, I was in love with my new found beauty secret!

I left Thursday to go out of town for a long weekend and to go to a 3 day convention with over 6,000 people. I decided to take along my glorious pink curlers and to leave behind the much inferior hot rollers and curling iron. With hair this good using pink curlers, who needs anything else!

The first day of the convention I did victory rolls with my left over curls. As soon as I walked into the building, I was stopped by countless people telling me they love my hair. Once again thanks to LisaFreemontStreet!

That night, I decided to use my wonderful curlers. This time I did it on damp hair using setting lotion in a spray bottle to dampen each section to curl. I curled it up the same way as before and slept on them knowing my hair would be great in the morning. Little did I know, I was in for a big surprise. When I took them out, I immediately knew it was not good! I guess I slept too long on one side of my head and the curlers went "flat", leaving my hair looking more like a very frizzy 80's crimp, instead of a lovely Marilyn curl. Oh dear! I have a convention to go to! I have no curling iron to fix it! Oh well, I guess it's more victory rolls today. Even those weren't very good because I could not get the frizz to go away. It didn't matter how much I brushed against my hand. That crazy crimp on one side of my head just wouldn't leave!

I had no choice that night but to try the pink curlers again. I put them in wet hair again, thinking this was maybe the secret of why it went so well the first time. I did not sleep well that night. I kept waking up checking my curlers. Turning my head, making sure I didn't sleep too long on one side. I really wanted to wear my hair down and wavy.

Morning, it's time to take it down. A few of them felt a tad damp. I thought maybe they were just cold. Oh my, they were not cold. The back top curlers were still damp therefore straight. The sides were once again flattened into lovely frizzy crimps! Both sides today! Good thing I kept turning my head last night so the crimps would be on both sides today!

What I learned from this experience...Always take along another way to curl your hair in case 'Plan A' doesn't work. I don't know what went wrong with the curlers this time but I hope I can figure it out.

A Little Tour of Belle Blossoms

Hi Dolls! Welcome to Belle Blossoms! This is where it happens. My little studio. My favorite space, it reflects who I am and the things that I love and what I love doing.

I usually stand at this little black cabinet to make Belle Blossoms.



My desk that I never use except to sit things on.

Just in case I have any company so they have somewhere to sit or sleep (it's a futon)

Some of the vintage hats that I bought to restore and sell but I love them all so much I can't part with any of them. One day I know that I will work up the courage to wear them somewhere besides around the studio. That little number on the black candlestand by the way is to die for! So Marilyn! I am in love.

My $10 garage sale find. I love this piece. This is where your blossoms get wrapped up and packaged.
I love this chandelier which I got a steal on at overstock.com

a couple of fascinators that were on my desk that I've been working on.

a little bowl of feather butterflies ready to go on clips or headbands


The top of a bookcase with my old suitcases and cameras

the top of the other bookcase.

I hope you enjoyed your tour of Belle Blossoms as much as I enjoy working here.

Back to Memphis

'I'm going to leave here in the morning and walk down to the station
I've got just enough money to pay my transportation
I'm going back to Memphis, back home with my Mama
If I have to ride that bus barefooted in pajamas
Back home in Memphis, no moaning and groaning
I know everything will be all right in the morning'
-Chuck Berry

I lived my first 20 years of life in Memphis, TN. The birthplace of the Blues & Rock and Roll, the best Barbecue, and the home of Elvis Presley. The place most of my early memories reside. The place my heart lives. No matter how long I'm away this is always home.

My parents moved 3 months ago to Texas. I knew that going home this time would be very different. I wondered how Memphis would 'feel', would it still be home.

I went to visit my little sisters (actually cousins but we are closer than cousins and sisters fit us much better). And we did a couple of very 'Memphis' things. The touristy things that you just don't do when you live there. Well, that I never did.



I've driven by Sun Studios a million times and have never set foot in the door. I really wanted to do a tour, but my baby is 3 and they don't let children under 5 on the tour. But I did at least get to go into this historical place and bought a shirt...my new favorite.




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And another really cool thing we did was eat at The Arcade. This was my first time eating here and hearing the amazing history. This 50's style diner is the oldest diner in Memphis. A diner that still has Elvis' favorite booth for you to sit in. Original boomerang countertops worn on the edges from the thousands of people that have visited this famous restaurant before you.

Elvis' booth is the last one next to the window right in front of the mirrored Arcade wall.


Those were the two historic Memphis things we did. We also went to the Farmer's Market downtown, had cupcakes at Muddy's Bake Shop (the best cupcakes in the world), and went to a concert at Levitt Shell where we saw The Cowboy Junkies. And where every person in our group got chiggers. Yes, chiggers are real. I can attest. I don't know if they are just in the Southern United States or if they are everywhere but they are terrible.

Even though my parents weren't there and I missed them so very much. Memphis still felt like home. Driving down Summer Avenue like I've done so many times before, just is home. Memphis has changed so much since I moved away 15 years ago. It's nice that some parts stay the same.

Oh Rats!

I first have to mention that I grew up in a beauty salon. Both of my parents use to be hairdressers. It was in my blood to become a hairdresser, I suppose. So, I went to school and learned and practiced the art of hairdressing. I learned finger waves and pin curls among the many other things. Since this was in the early 90's and finger waves and pin curls were not popular by any means, I thought this part of learning was irrelevant and thought it very silly that the instructors were so keen on making me learn these useless old techniques. We had to practice over and over again to get the perfect waves and the perfect bases for the curls. We were tested...even the board test had a big section on these techniques and we had to perfect them. This has been over 20 years ago, I gave up hairdressing about 15 years ago, but I guarantee that if someone wanted finger waves or pin curls I could do it. A haircut not so much.

OK, so that had nothing to do with the subject of this post. I just wanted to give a little background to let you all know how involved in the hair world I have been. And the irony that now I am happy that I know how to do pin curls and finger waves. And the fact that I have never heard of the magical things that this post is actually about.

So getting to the subject. Rats! When watching Lisa's tutorials when she mentioned using a rat, I always assumed she meant a rat tail comb. That was the only rat I've ever heard of...besides the icky furry ones. I have to say that when I finally found out what she was really talking about I was so excited. I went right out and bought them and my hair has not been the same since.

You all probably know what a rat is. I just got stuck in my own time and never knew :) For anyone who does not know, I'm going to tell you. It is a mesh form for making rolls in your hair. Probably not the dictionary definition, but hey. What I found is called a chignon form. It looked like a blond donut when I bought it. They come in several colors and you get the one that matches your hair the closest. Since you can't really make victory rolls with a donut, I cut mine in half. So now I have two pieces. These things are great for victory rolls or Betty bangs when you have long bangs. (I didn't know that you could see mine until I saw this picture, I should have placed it farther back).

My first attempt at using my new rats. I rolled my hair in hot rollers. I rolled the sides with one big curler on each side. I pulled up the sides and placed the curler in like a Victory Roll. The front section I placed the curler in going down and toward the side. The back I just randomly placed curlers going down. After I took it down and brushed it out, I pulled the sides up in victory rolls. Now, I am not really experienced at victory rolls. I only got them right the one time (my last post). I was able to put in my victory rolls and large pin curl in about 5 minutes. If you are having trouble getting Victory Rolls, try using rats. They make it so incredibly easy. If you can roll your hair in rollers you can use rats.

Interesting Tidbit...Do you know how victory rolls got their name? Victory Rolls were a fighter-plane maneuver in World War II. Ladies wanted to honor soldiers, so they adopted the name for this popular hairstyle.

Daring to be Different

Who am I? To tell the truth I really don't know. I'm a 35 year old mom of two preschoolers. An advertisers dream. A natural born follower. Shy. Insecure. A go with the flow kind of person. Non-confrontational. I like to make things. Belle Blossoms to be exact. I love old cameras. Antique stores. Old hats. Old hankies. Old movies. Dean Martin.


Ever since I can remember I've gone with the flow. Including the flow of fashion. In the 80's, I was a prep. The early 90's a new waver. In between these times I wore the same tight rolled jeans, layers of slouched socks, and Keds that the other girls wore. I painstakingly teased and sprayed my hair to freakishly tall heights. Thankfully, I was a little older when the grunge phase debuted and started to find my own style...at least one tiny piece of it. Although it still involved huge hair sprayed and teased hair like everyone else. But, it also involved bright red lipstick. I can't remember why I started wearing red lipstick, no one else was wearing it, which was unlike me to do my own thing. The red lipstick is the only thing from my early days of figuring out fashion that I'm not embarrassed by and have never stopped wearing. 18 years later and I'm still in love with red lipstick and don't feel quite myself wearing any other hue.


I've always loved old movies and admired the beauty and style of times gone by, even as a little girl. I've always wanted to wear hats and gloves and dress up like women use to do. Problem is, I've always wanted everyone else to too, so I could. I've never understood why women started wearing jeans and tee shirts and not really caring anymore like their grandmothers and maybe even mothers did. I don't really mean that they don't care, I'm sure they do. But, clearly looking like a beautifully put together woman is a much better option. Even though I've gone with the fashion flow, I have never really liked it. I love to dress up and do so any time I get a chance. My closet is mostly full of classic types of clothing. I curl my hair often. I wear hair flowers. This is about the extent of my being different fashion wise. Although to tell the truth, most people would probably think that I do dress and look very different. Not many people around here wear their hair like Marilyn and wear red lipstick and hair flowers (I'm trying to change that part, I've given away lots of feathers and flowers to friends). But I don't feel really all that different, I guess because I am use to looking a little different with my classic style. I didn't feel different until now...

I've been playing around with Lisa Freemont Street's video tutorials for vintage hairstyling for sometime now. Two nights ago I decided to try one more time to sculpt my swing cut bob (once again for me the popular haircut at the moment) hairstyle into victory rolls of some sort. I actually got it this time. Practice makes perfect...though it wasn't perfect, it still looked good I thought. I did two victory rolls on the sides, a french twist in back, and three barrel curls on top. I topped the style off with a red Real Rose from Belle Blossoms (I probably could have had better placement of my Belle Blossom, but it was also covering a spot that I couldn't get right. See, they are useful for more than one thing) I wore a vintage navy blue polka dot dress that I got at an antique store for $3. Oh, and of course red lipstick. My family was going to my niece's dance recital. I was very nervous on the way there because I have never gone out like this. We stopped for dinner first. Walking in I was greeted by everyone staring at me, since I looked like I had just stepped out of the 1940's (although they were looking at me like I'd just stepped out of a UFO). Something I wasn't too comfortable with since I am so use to conforming and looking like everyone else. Then a lady came up to me and told me that my hair was beautiful. Wow, no one has ever done that! Oh wait, because I look like every other girl in the room usually. Other people sneered at me and I knew they were whispering about me. At this point I really didn't care...thank you random lady for boosting my confidence! Before we left the restaurant three more people told me how beautiful my hair was. So when we got to the recital, I walked in with my head held high. So what if I look different. I am different. So what if I'm the only person among the hundreds in here not wearing jeans and a tee shirt. I really don't care what you think. Yes, I am obsessed with a different decade. And probably would have been much happier conforming then than I am now conforming to non-glamorous and many times ugly fashion. So I will continue to wear hairstyles from other decades. Clothes that I found at antique stores, goodwill, and garage sales of old ladies. And red lipstick. And the next time I step out dressed to the nines in vintage fashion, I will step with more confidence than before.