Frilly little girl...

So recently, my favorite lingerie boutique (and blog) Faire Frou Frou announced on their facebook that they were hiring for a new sales associate, to which I eagerly applied with my resume via e-mail. The following Monday I received a wonderful surprise--a phone call from the wonderful Alison Rubke, (a.k.a. Miss Frou Frou herself) who asked me to come in for an interview. I was so excited! So then I met with her and, to my surprise, she hired me right on the spot! Tuesday was my first official day working at the boutique and I had a blast. It was wonderful being surrounded by so many pretty underpinnings! The whole store just makes your inner girl instantly come out!

We had some fun opening up a box full of new goodies from Mimi Holliday by Damaris (of which I'm a HUGE fan), including this adorable red polkadot 'Confetti' balcony bra (with garter and panty) and a sexy, yet sweet 'Angelique' bow tie thong! It was like Christmas!

Alison also insisted that I pose for the Faire Frou Frou Instagram, so I decided to let out my inner Vargas girl and give everyone a peek at my own lingerie :)

Dress & shoes: F21, garter belt: Victoria's Secret

I was feeling a bit lazy, so I didn't end up straightening my hair that day; I just styled it into victory rolls (left my hair curly/natural) and put the bottom half in a net. I find its quickly becoming my lazy 'do lol I wore the dress and shoes from my mom's wedding, with a hair flower that I bought at the market in downtown Huntington Beach. I absolutely love that flower. Its pretty realistic-looking for being so cheap! Lol!

Anyhoo! Hope you all around wonderful! Try to keep cool in the last bit of this summer sizzle! <3

xoxo Coco

P.S. Be sure to check out the official Faire Frou Frou blog, Frou Frou Fashionista to stay up to date on our brand new arrivals and all of the fun sales and promotions!

In my own little corner...

As I get settled into my temporary place of living for the next few months, I can’t help but dream of my own little home; where it will be and how it will look. Unfortunately, I have very expensive eyes (something I inherited from my mother) and it can be difficult at times living with champagne tastes on a beer budget. If you lined up five very similarly-looking items, I will never fail to pick out the most expensive one out of the whole bunch, but I guess that just means I have a keen sense of quality? Anyway!

I’ve been dreaming of how I want to decorate my little one-bedroom or studio apartment when I get it, and I already have my sights set on a particular community in historic Los Angeles, but I know that my apartment will likely end up looking more like an antiques store if anything, which I don't mind if you don't ;) haha

I've mostly been drawing my inspiration from old photographs of celebrities in their homes, and some modern takes on vintage furnishing...

I really can't wait to have my own little corner where I can dress it up to my heart's content. I love the idea of purple, or even powder pink or tiffany blue, but I also can't get over just how classic silver and white gold are. I love art deco, and even Rococo design, but I just want to feel like a complete glamour goddess when I get home from work and kick off my heels and slip into a silk dressing robe. Yes, that's the life for me. Speaking of which...

I already have the vintage Dior robe just for the occasion! Lol!

And I will faint dramatically into bed in it like so! ;)

Goodnight, all! Sweet dreams!

xoxo Coco

P.S. I am now on Bloglovin! So definitely be sure to Follow Me!

Adventures in San Francisco...

So I just got back from my trip to SF for my folks' wedding... Its been nearly 12 years and they're officially husband and wife; I love it! The ceremony at The Fairmont Hotel was beautiful, simple and tasteful, and the reception at the Tonga Room was so much fun. I felt very blessed to be a part of it, and to witness two of the most important people in my life dedicate themselves to each other in such a wonderful way. I'm also very jealous that they're heading to Italy in October, but I do get to visit for Carnivale so that should be amazing. Still, I'm gonna miss them...

I was so happy to have spent the time that I did with them. The whole weekend was a blast! We ate dinner at an amazing pub called Farley's, where I met a very cute Irish lad who bought me a beer and we talked for a while. Then the next day more of our family joined us for brunch, and then us ladies went to Macy's where my stepdad paid for us to get pampered and have our makeup done. I went to Benefit, one because I love the product, and two, because the girls there seem to have a really good grasp on the whole 'vintage/pinup' style. Or at least they should, considering that's the whole image/concept behind Benefit lol...

Anyhoo! Here are a few photos from Saturday's shenanigans getting ready for the wedding!

My delicious breakfast at Cafe Mason in San Francisco: Irish Benedict.

That's eggs over medium on biscuits and corn-beef hash with hollindaise sauce. So good! 

The counter at the Brown Bar at Benefit. I wish I could open up my makeup kit and see all of this inside!

The adorable kit (and lipstick) that I got with my makeup! It was so perfect for the whole theme/concept of the wedding and everything. I just fell in love! Its a good thing I got it too, because house-keeping threw away my bag of makeup by mistake when they cleaned...

The inside of the kit with a beautiful orchid!

I was really happy with how my makeup turned out. I also tried out a new 'do for the night. I was going for something a bit fancier, partly inspired by Sally Jupiter in Watchmen when she's in her formal attire for the dinner celebration in the opening sequence. I surprised how nice the rolls turned out, although I need to work on them a bit more and learn how to hide the pins a little better. Overall, I loved how it looked! Especially with orchids. I just wish I could look this put-together every day! Lol!

Anyway! My very talented friend Danny took photos of the ceremony and reception, so I'll definitely be sure to share those with you guys when we get them back! Until then...

Lots of love! Outfit post coming soon!

xoxo Coco

P.S. Check out this awesome shout-out that my friend and fellow blogger Kari Shipman of Juniper * James gave me over at the Thrift Town blog! It was so sweet! I only wish there was a Thrift Town here in SoCal for me to get my thrift on!

Surf City USA

Just wanted to post and let you all know that I made it to Huntington Beach (a.k.a. Surf City USA) safely! Currently, I'm sitting in Starbucks using the WiFi to my heart's content after a very lovely, very filling breakfast at the Sugar Shack. A part of me really wanted to make the drive out to LB and have some good eats at Harbor House, but I decided against it for the sake of gas efficiency. I had a pretty awesome time out last night on Main Street. It was my first official pub crawl, actually. It started with dinner and a beer at Sharkee's where I met some pretty cool people, and then we meandered to Beachfront, and finally on over to Hurricane's to literally dance the night away. It was 2 or 3 in the morning by the time we got out of there. It was awesome. Good music, great people. Anyhoo! I'm working already and waiting to get into my place, so until then my connection will be a bit sparse, but the moment I can do a good outfit post for you guys; I will! In the meantime, I hope you guys are having as wonderful a time as I am and soaking up the last bit of Summer before school starts! Love you all! xoxo Kailee

Howto: 1940s/1950s Makeup for Every Day Wear

On my tumblr the other day, I received an ask from an anonymous follower who wanted to see how I do my makeup. So I thought I'd put together a video showing my step-by-step beauty regime just in case anyone might be curious; or looking for a simple, natural, yet still glamorous 1940s/1950s makeup look :)

Also, my truck is currently packed and I'm currently trying to pass the time until I need to go pick up Jonathan so we can head out on our Southern California road trip :)

That being said, I may be MIA for a few days, or until I can get my computer or laptop working! Hpe you enjoy the video in the meantime!

xoxo Coco

What I wore: Tuesday thrifting with the sis

Vintage shirt: Goodwill, vintage skirt: Thrift Town, shoes: Converse

So this is what I wore thrifting with my sister yesterday. This is one of my favorite new(er) skirts that I picked up recently, coincidentally on the trip before last to Thrift Town. I picked it up, along with another pencil skirt that I adore. I love the teal color of this one and the button and accordion pleats at the bottom hem on the back. This tee shirt has been one of my go-to pieces this summer. I bought a few years ago at the Goodwill in Huntington Beach, which I'm excited to frequent again when I get back. I love this outfit, partly because its so casual and cute, partly because of the colors all together.

You can also how my hair turned out a lot better here than the pic I posted before. I love how it turned out! For this who are interested, I followed this tutorial that I found on youtube:

This video has given me the best results, by far, for the perfect, easy-to-do, low-maintenance 1940s style. Tash certainly knows what she's doing! (And she's absolutely gorgeous to boot!)

Now to finish packing things for my road trip on Monday with Jonathan!

xoxo Coco

Fun finds from Thrift Town...

I've got a week left in Sacramento, so I took my little sister to Thrift Town (one of our favorite places to shop) to get our thrift on before I leave. I bought the most adorable cream cardigan with a detachable fur collar, and a pair of high-waisted trousers in a lovely Burgundy color. I also came across some white little sneakers that I plan to DIY into two-tones later on this week when I've got the time.

I also tried a new technique with my hair today.

This photo doesn't really show the style off very well. I also took this pic after I'd worn it out all day in the heat, so its not an awesome example. I'll have to re-do it and re-post, freshly styled, so that you guys can see it : )

xoxo Coco

What I Wore: Chocolate-Covered Strawberry

Dress: Vintage from Freestyle Clothing Exchange, belt: Thrift Town

shoes: vintage borrowed from my little sister, butterfly pendant: family heirloom

Finally got around to wearing the new day dress I recently bought from Freestyle Clothing Exchange downtown. They buy, sell, and trade clothes, including lots of vintage, and I thoroughly enjoyed my very first visit. A part of me is really sad that I only now dropped in considering I've only got about a week and a half left here in Sac. I'm really looking forward to moving back to Orange County; I've missed it so much! I'm going to be living with a family friend who was kind enough to lend me a room for a few months until I can get on my feet, but I'll be staying with a dear old friend from way back (I'm talkin' middle school years here), and I'm also stoked to be road tripping back with my friend Jonathan. I'm definitely grateful that I won't have to make the trip alone...

But anyway! I love this dress. I traded some items for it, and couldn't be happier with said choice. Its chocolate brown with the cutest little antique pink pearl buttons and lace collar. I may re-furbish the lace and buttons though, namely because one of the original buttons is missing and they don't always stay put. I'm thinking some slightly bigger buttons will do a bit better (that way, I won't have to velcro the chest closed), and I may change the lace to match. I feel like a chocolate covered berry with my hair color. I wasn't sure that I liked it at first (it was an accident), but its growing on me, literally and figuratively. I've been getting lots of compliments on it surprisingly, one particularly awesome one came from 1/2 of The Fame Riot, who were in town to perform at Launch, which I unfortunately missed, but they promised to come back and play again!

Goin' to the chapel

So my mom and her long-time boyfriend (legally, domestic partner) are finally going to tie the knot before they leave for Italy in September; and I've been helping her with the planning. She decided she wanted to do something very vintage Hawaiian getaway, however she was very much at a loss of where she wanted to have the reception. At first she was just going to book a cabana at the clubhouse, but after a grueling deliberation we decided it just was not going to do. So then I suggested the Tonga Room, which I don't know why I didn't think of it from the get-go, but the point is that it did come to mind; and now my mom has officially set a reservation for her wedding reception/dinner party to be held there! I'm so very excited for her, and I'm glad she loves the locale as much as I do.

For those of you who don't know, The Tonga Room is this amazing tiki Lounge & Restaurant in San Francisco. Its located inside of the historical Fairmont Hotel; the actual restaurant itself is located where the Olympic-size swimming pool used to be back in the 1940s, which was frequented by celebrities and Olympic athletes of the day. The pool is still there of course, but its more for decoration than actual swimming--although I must admit, it would be a funny sight to see patrons diving in during dinner! Lol! The decor is just so beautiful though, the food is delicious, and I love the "hurricane" bar when they make it thunder and rain inside in the pool. Its such a fantastic spectacle, and I'm really excited that it worked out for what my mom wanted to do. I was so surprised she'd never heard of it too. I myself have always wanted to visit, but never have before now unfortunately...

So now that planning is fully under way (with only a little over a month to go), I'm helping her get together some of the other preparations before I move. We've got her dress picked out, flowers, and the menu all set. Now all I need to do is find a seriously awesome dress to wear to celebrate their long-awaited nuptials! I'm so happy for my folks; it's been a long time coming <3

The occasion gives me the chance to splurge a little, but at the same time I'm a bit wary on where to shop/what to buy. I mean, I'd love a Shaheen, but finding one for a reasonable price is kind of a laughable idea. To be honest, I would die for anything vintage Hawaii/tropics in general (I mean, what vintage girl wouldn't?), but again; it can get a little expensive. I've been lurking my usual vintage/thrift shopping spots, including etsy and haven't come across the right dress quite yet, and unfortunately Pinup Girl Clothing has sold out of the Dixiefried tiki wrap dresses again and has yet to re-stock them. Otherwise, I'd order the Malibu or Polynesian one right here, right now.

I have been looking at Whirling Turban however, which is an amazing vintage reproduction shop out of Bali. The owner, Katherine, whom I've spoken to on a few occasions, is a total sweetheart and a genius at her craft. I really love that gold lame number with bordeaux flowers; its seriously a dream come true! I hope I can find something like it for my mama's wedding!

xoxo Coco