She's a beauty

This little German beauty has all of the elements of a perfect 1930s necklace, in particular the dainty brass chain and the delicate stamped and enameled links. The carved bakelite roses are the icing on the cake. Shoppers hint: sometimes these old, carved pieces are marked leukorite, which is just the commercial name for bakelite. This necklace is now in the shop!

Bakelite and baby bump

                   

I know, I know - more bakelite jewelry! That's just how it worked out this week. I'm wearing a few of the bangles from yesterday's post, as well as a rad bakelite pendant (still can't believe I found it) and my new "every day" ring.  And hey - I'm 25 weeks pregnant with this little guy! His new nickname around here is "Baby Bear." I took these pics in his room so that you could see the birch tree decals we just put up. I really like how they look.

Honeydew bakelite

I recently found this set of bakelite bangles - tied together with a ribbon and just waiting for me. The colors remind me of melons (honeydew, cantaloupe, etc.) Or maybe squash is a better comparison, given the season we are headed into? A couple of these will appear in an autumn update in a few weeks. I'm keeping the rest!

Inspired by insects

Butterfly wing bangles

Beetle ring

Cicada ring

Butterfly ring

My friend Ellen of A Wild Tea Party told me about the company Dinosaur Designs in Sydney, Australia. They make jewelry out of synthetic resin, which is sort of a dream for girls who like plastic jewelry. Their recent collection based on insects is so awesome. The black resin cicada ring is my favorite! You can browse the online catalog here.

Photos courtesy of Dinosaur Designs

Poppies and leaves

This was a hard one to give up, mostly because of the colors - gray! peach! - and the flower and leaf motif. But I dutifully went through the motions (cleaning, photographing, etc.) and as I did, I realized that it was meant for Jean Jean Vintage. No matter how much I love it, I think someone else can love it more! You can find it here in the shop.

Cool it down

Well, it was 83 degrees in the Bay Area yesterday and yours truly was not prepared for the heat wave. I wished for icy drinks all day but, alas, Mr. Jean Jean and I have a tiny dorm-size fridge here in our temporary digs and the freezer is barely big enough to hold a bag of peas - let alone a tray of ice cubes. It made me wish for a second that this 1940s brooch was real! It is made of lucite and shaped like an ice cube and tongs, with the rotating cube etched with a cursive "M." Pretty cool (ha ha ha haaaa) and headed to the shop today.

Brights and braids

 

I've got bracelets, braids and bright colors on my mind lately. I can't seem to get enough bracelets, especially 1930s bright plastic or simple gold plated bangles. This time of year, I feel naked without a bracelet. Warm weather is so great for showing off pretty wrist wear! As for braids, I've been *trying* to french braid my hair lately with mixed results (i.e. sometimes my braid is inside out).

sundress || hand-me-down JCrew from Lauren
shoes || vintage Italian leather sandals from No Carnations
bracelets || 1940s laminated bangles, headed to the shop today
ring || 1930s molded plastic and filigree ring with a lady and rhinestone flower