Bold in Gold

Gold.  Everyone loves it.  So here are some gold items currently for sale, all below $20!

Only $12!  http://www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Only $15!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Only $8!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Only $20!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Coming Soon!

Only $12!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Only $12!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Only $16!  www.betterthannaked.etsy.com

Straw Handbags for Summer

Straw purses make a comeback every Summer.  Here are a few different options available online from little ole Better Than Naked!  Each straw bag is vintage, and some are handmade, too!

My favorite is this handmade knotted straw bag, which is perfect for toting to the Farmers Market each week!  Sturdy and light and decorated with flowers, this number will perfectly carry your veggies, fruits and flowers week after week with its netted design!

Looking for something with more coverage but just as big?  Pick from one of these delicate woven straw bags adorned with straw flowers!

  

Maybe your prefer something less traditional and with a bit more pizazz and sass?  Then chose from a small silver woven straw clutch, a large red straw purse or a black straw clutch with plastic clasp!

  

and last, but not least, a couple fun numbers that quickly spruce up any outfit:

 

whichever your style, we are sure to have it!

I've been stocking up quite some time now on vintage and vintage handmade dresses.  The dresses have made it out to many events, but for some reason they haven't made it online...until now!  Being that it is the first day of Summer, despite the June Gloom we are experiencing here in Southern California, I've put together a few Summer Vintage Outfits, all with items available from my online boutique and inspired by my own Summer vacation planning.  

This light cotton red dress with matching belt features an island floral print.  Pair it up with this Straw Bag and carry your toiletries safely in the blue vintage Samsonite Small Luggage Case.  Get this look for only $91!

Retro Red Floral Dress: $18

1950s Straw Bag: $38

Vintage Samsonite: $35

Looking for something a little more classic?  Make a statement with this 1960s red and white handmade polk-a-dot dress with high collar and matching belt.  Pair it up with this 1950s Navy Blue and Red Handbag for an authentic vintage look!  Traveling?  Add the small beige leather makeup case and you're ready to go!  Get this look for only $72!

Red Polk-a-Dot Dress: $18

Blue and Red Handbag: $32

Beige Makeup Bag: $22

Defining Vintage

It has come to my attention that there are many businesses, big and small, selling “vintage” fashions and accessories. I’ve recently visited these stores and saw their their "amazing" and "affordable" vintage finds...which cannot be given an accurate date or brand, and the pricing has been left to the discretion of the shop owner.

So how’s a shopper to know if it’s Vintage? Especially when it’s not obvious that the item is Vintage? Does it matter to the shopper if its true Vintage?

Derived from the wine making process, vintage is to describe something from seasons past. So does that mean that the dress from Fall 2009 is vintage? Technically speaking, YES. But in the vintage collector’s fashion world, NO. However, I’ve noticed a growing trend of retailers claiming to sell vintage fashions when indeed they’re not.

So what is Vintage? While it appears that the definition of Vintage is in the eye of the beholder, for starters its any item belonging to another era in the 20th century dating 20 years and older. Yes, that means that items from 1990 are now vintage pieces! If an item dates prior to the 1920s-1930s (timeline debatable), then you’re in the Antique category. Not my specialty...at all!

For my personal collection and my business Better Than Naked, I choose to define vintage from the 1940s-1970s. The 1980s are Retro and 1990 doesn’t exist for me as a vintage item. I happen to be a collector of purses and admire their architecture, interiors, and chosen fabrics and materials. Purses range from exotic skins such as eel, cobra and lizard to cheap plastics and vinyls.

Say you just found out that your 1960s vintage purse from the corporate store or local boutique isn’t vintage like you thought or was told. Upon closer examination, you find a small tag inside that reads Made in China, when in reality that’s not where a purse from its era would have come from...If it’s not vintage, then WHAT is it?......It’s Vintage-INSPIRED.

Inspire: “to influence, move or guide...exalting influence on...” Vintage-inspired - new fashions inspired by fashions from 20 years and older.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with buying vintage-inspired, as it’s obviously a compliment to fashions and times of the past. I’m simply defining the difference, in case you wanted to know.

The Old Ridge Route

By the time Monday came around, I was in desperate need of some shopping. Unlike most women in the City of "Angels," I do not enjoy day-long shopping sprees at the Beverly Center, Colorado Street, Melrose Ave., or any other over-priced shopping areas LA has to offer. Instead, I enjoy leaving the city and traveling a mere 50-60 miles North to the mountains, where vintage and antique shopping is patiently waiting.For many years I've wanted to check out View Larger Map">Old Ridge Route Antiques in Lebec, CA. Having traveled up and down that part of the 5 Fwy my whole life, I walked in with high expectations...and left on Cloud 9 (hours later).
I got sucked into the $1 jewelry box the second I walked in the door, where I scored great sterling silver necklace charms, old pins and a gorgeous pair of faux gold cuff links - which my husband claimed before I could even finish cleaning them.
After I left my thrifty finds with owner Paula Clevenger, I made my way through the huge layout of antique furniture sets that were in impeccable condition. If you are in the market for a vintage vanity set, well...this is your place! I believe the most expensive vanity I found was $200, and all of them are complete with a stool and mirror! If I didn't already have one, I would have come home with two!
After browsing through antique beaded handbags, vintage toys and dolls, household items and many more goodies, I made a final stop to the $.50 picture box. For some reason I was drawn to a picture of a woman who wrote on the back of her photo that it is "horrid" and to "destroy it."

I can't help but think that maybe I should obey her wishes that weren't met all these years and destroy it; or, if I should be selfish and keep it alive, in spite that she wanted it destroyed decades ago. What would you do?

Of the items I walked out with, I'd have to say that my favorite find of the day was my latest home decor project - 1950s pictures of Rome, Italy. Each photo includes a detailed description of the sites on the back in pencil, by the photographer I'm assuming. Having traveled to Rome a few years ago, the connection was immediate to the pictures. And the passion and interest in each description motivates me to keep those pictures alive.