The Dress, Veronica Slater, et moi: bloggers bond

Remember this dress? Fellow blogger Veronica of Veronica Slater Presents found the same style of Pucci-esque print silk dress in a thrift shop that I also thrifted. Doesn't she look fabulous in it? I love the chunky necklace accessory.

Veronica and I met yesterday, in the flesh, for the first time, after commenting on and following eachother's respective blogs for months and months. Not surprisingly, we got along like old friends. Look, we even look like kindred spirits here, with out short dos, oversize sunglasses and bracelets!

I love this photo of us. I hope I didn't freak Veronica out too much as I found myself opening up to her about all kinds of things going on in my life. Just goes to show that if you bond in the blogosphere, chances are you'll bond in 'real' life. I find thrift bloggers are of a certain ilk, to be sure - but Veronica, just so you know, doesn't just blog about her FAB vintage purse collection.

As you'll see from her blog and website Veronica Slater Presents, Veronica blogs about living better (in three languages to boot), and all the wonderful stuff that comes along with that. She shares her ideas for gifting, giving and living better weekly on the Boreal Express, a CBC Radio-Canada chaine premiere show. Here she is sporting a spunky jumpsuit and a wonderful belt from the 1990s. Quelle style!

Veronica was kind enough to snap a pic of me wearing a Franco Mirabelli dress I thrifted for about ten bucks, made of this gorg fabric which is the Toronto designer's signature.

Here's Veronica again in her lovely thrifted dress. Veronica, I had such a great time with you. I sure hope we hang out again (and maybe do some thifting too?)!

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Thrift blogger kudos for me n' my thrift bloggin' pals

100 percent thrifted outfit: American Eagle Outfitters blazer, MEXX top, Bongo Jeans, dollar store belt, and leather ankle booties.

Takin' a trip down memory lane with my style blogger shot from last winter. I'm feeling pretty stylish as Alex Deeds, creator of the website Associate Degree, an educational website, recently compiled a list of the Top-50-blogs-for-yard-sale-aficionados, and guess what? Yours truly was number one for the Top Style Blogs portion of the list (16th overall).

90 percent thrifted outfit: J Crew wool blazer, Teenflo miniskirt, Nine West booties, generic cotton stretch tee, and (not thrifted) vintage Nina Ricci chain with stone hearts by Toronto designer Rita Tesolin.

Well, thanks Alex for compiling the list! The cool thing: I blog with or at the very least have many of the blogs on my blogroll - the thrifting blogosphere is actually pretty small, if you can believe it!

100 percent thrifted outfit: Bionic dress by Toronto designer Marc Foreman, disco 1970s belt, white platform slingback shoes, vintage costume jewellery chain, and vintage faceted glass sunglasses.

So in honour of the posting I've posted some of my different seasonal thrift looks from the past. Enjoy, and check out the list for thrifting bloggers not featured on my blogroll - or I will, and I'll bring them back to you!

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Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club Show & Sale, Part deux

So the second semi-annual Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club Show & Sale April 24 at Leaside Memorial Community Gardens was a resounding success; we must have had at least 600 people through the doors throughout the day.

Here's Olga, club member who also sells at Toronto's St. Lawrence Antiques Market on Sundays. She's holding a bracelet made of Lucite, an acrylic resin that was a popular vintage costume jewellery material in the 1920s to 50s. There are lots of different types of Lucite - Bakelite is a more rare form that is often carved.

Lucite vintage costume jewellery isn't uber rare, from what I can tell, but Bakelite - often called 'fakelite' because there are so many bracelets and such masquerading as Bakelite out there - is more rare, and heavier. It was developed in the early 1900s for industrial use but became popular during the war for jewellery makers as it was relatively inexpensive.

For some reason there are more Bakelite bangles out there than, say, pendants, and most are a butterscotch hue but that can also range to orange, red, and green. Bakelite, fyi, is technically a trade name as it was originally developed by the Bakelite Corporation, but now the term seems to be used to describe any vintage piece that has the same chemical composition.

Jewellery buffs have different ways of identifying the stuff. One way to determine if an item is real Bakelite is to rub the piece until it heats up, then take a whiff. If it smells like formaldehyde it's real. Another tip I've heard from the club is to run the piece under hot water to see if it smells.

Here's a truly lovely piece by Miriam Haskell, an American designer who had her own company that still exists today under the name Miriam Haskell, though the designer died in the early 1980s.

Vintage Miriam Haskell pieces are highly collectible and are known for their beautiful handcrafted details, like the tapestry beading technique you see here.

Dealer and Newmarket, Ontario retailer Karla Wilson specializes in Miriam Haskell pieces in her decor and furnishings shop, Haven Contemporary Decor.

I can't recall the price of this piece exactly but I think it was around $400-$500.

Pictured here: a collectible Sherman set for $395. Gustave Sherman was a Canadian costume jewellery designer who designed from 1947-81. His Swarovski crystal brooches, earrings and pendants were always prong-set and for that reason have stood the test of time.

Though some Sherman diehards say that all Sherman pieces are signed there is a debate raging in the bling universe over that statement. Truth is, the designer's pieces were never documented so it's hard to tell.

All I can say: bewareth the fakes. I was in Value Village a few weeks ago and was drawn to a set of clip-on earrings made in the bright hues Sherman was so well known for. They were indeed signed "Sherman" on the back in a signature I identify with Sherman, but they 'gems' were plastic beads, not Swarovski crystal, and they weren't set using a prong method but rather had what looked like along pin going through the beads. Never seen a Sherman like this so I left 'em there, even though they were only $9.99.

According to dealer Melanie this brooch is by Coro, a popular maker of vintage jewellery from the early part of the 20th century to the late 1970s - though the Canadian branch existed into the early 90s.

Coro made various levels of jewellery, Coro Craft being on the high-end. The Coro Craft and Vendome lines are most collectible.

Melanie told me this brooch wasn't signed but is still a rare and well-known Coro piece - that explains the $300 price tag.



I can't comment on the Coro signature piece as I'm still learning, but that's the thing that I've learned with collecting vintage costume bling: a signature is desirable but not not always an indicator of value, and unsigned pieces can be valuable too.

TVJC Club founder and president Patricia Gostick, pictured here with an amazing chunky Lucite necklace from the 1980s, would concur, I think. This piece isn't signed but is lovely and original.




I always heed the rule that if you love it and can see it fitting into your life (and you're not necessarily in the biz to sell), buy it.

I fell in love with this chain necklace, which is actually made of tiny tiny beads. The dealer was really eclectic and didn't have uber 'collectible' pieces per se, but she just had an eye. Everything on her table was different, and had a certain look to it, if you know what I mean.

It was only $45 and I really should have picked it up as I have never seen anything like it - and it totally suits my rocker-inspired look these days. But I left it there, sigh.

I opted for this signed bracelet and choker set from the same dealer for the same price, marked "Sperry."

Can't find a ton of info on it online, other than the maker was known as the Sperry Manufacturing Company of Providence, Rhode Island that started in 1947. No details on how long the company lasted nor how valuable its pieces are, but apparently it's hard to find a set such as this.

No matter: I love it so well I've worn it every day this week. The necklace really popped against this Kelly green turtleneck.


I couldn't resist this retro carpet bag - only $25! I have a thing about vintage carpet bags since buying one two years ago at Toronto shop The Bead Goes On (a fave shop for vintage bling and bags off Mount Pleasant Rd. in Toronto). At the November TVCJ Club sale I bought another one from Patricia Gostick. Now I have a nice little collection going. And I do use them.

It says "JR Florida" inside. I'm off to Florida for my best pal's wedding in a month so I'm taking it as a sign from the Shopping Gods that this bag was meant for me.

I'm showing my bag off with my new pal Genny Iannucci, whom I met the week previous to the sale at a media round table event for Linea Intima in Toronto. Genny's a fashion contributor and spokesperson and you can see her on the Steven and Chris show on the CBC.

As you can see, Genny found a fab 1970s leather bag at the show that was made in Vancouver, British Columbia. It's bootiful, and Genny, you look marvelous modeling it!




All in all, the Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club Show & Sale April 24, 2010 at Leaside Memorial Community Gardens was a great success. We got shout-outs in the blog and online world from local journalist Nathalie Atkinson, style writer at the National Post; personal style coach and boutique shopping tour diva Wendy Woods of The Refinery in Toronto; Toronto fashion blogger extrodinaire Anita Clarke of I Want I Got; She does the City and Torontolife.com. Yay, thanks to every one for getting the word out!

One last look at my retro purple shades picked up at the sale for $5, and my signed Sperry set.

Last week I wrote about the Toronto Bottle Show
with Rob Campbell of Toronto's Dumpdiggers, and as you can see here Rob dropped by to check out the TVCJ Club Show & Sale. He's chatting here with club member Patricia Stark.

Rob's no stranger to vintage costume bling. In fact after I found those fake Sherman clip-ons at VV I Googled "How to spot a fake Sherman" and his Dumpdiggers site came up as he did a post on Sherman. Talk about blogging Karma! Looking forward to reading his take on the show soon.

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2010 Toronto Bottle Show and Sale

Well all I can say is, who thought a vintage bottle sale would be so darn interesting - even sexy?

When Rob Campbell of the Toronto blog Dumpdiggers invited me to the 2010 Four Seasons Bottle Collectors Club Show and Sale, a.k.a. the Toronto Bottle Show, last Sunday, April 18, 2010, I was skeptical:

Who was this Dumpdigger guy (below left, in the green), and why the heck would I, Kelly Gadzala, a.k.a. the Grunge Queen chic-is-cheap gal, want to troll around with him looking at dusty old bottles on a sunny Sunday afternoon?

Natch, my curiosity got the better of me, so Rob and I ended up taking the long trek to Humber College's north campus to 'cess out the show.

Before I delve into my story, you'll notice one thing, below: the bottle show is full of men, mostly middle-age.

Mmm. I'll be writing soon about the Toronto Vintage Costume Jewellery Club Show & Sale that was yesterday, April 24, 2010 at the Leaside Memorial Gardens.

That club is full of women, largely middle-aged.

Maybe the two clubs should get together. If they combined their show and sales they'd attract a more diverse crowd (ie: both genders), and heck, throwing a bunch of male and female collectors in a room could make for some interesting chemistry, hee hee.

I won't deny that there wasn't some good junking Karma between Rob and I (you know my thoughts on romance and thrift). He's definitely a guy who is entranced by the thrill of the hunt.

I was entranced by this table of old poison bottles like a shopping addict to a credit card.

So ironic, considering the bright hues were meant to warn people that the bottles contained noxious liquids.

But as collector Dwight (below) explained to me, often the bright colours attracted children to the bottles. Oops.

According to Dwight, before the 1860s bottles with toxic cleaning fluids and such in them looked like all the other bottles. After the 1860s laws dictated that bottles containing poison be not only coloured, but also textured, so people rummaging around for their medicines in the cabinet, perhaps in the dark or in a dimly-lit Victorian room, wouldn't swallow the bad stuff thinking it was their medicine.

Speaking of textured bottles, I was crushing on this old Crush bottle from the 195os (?).

I'm too young to know this but that little dude on the top of the bottle was known as "Mr Crushie" or "Crushie."

Poor Mr. Crushie. He didn't make the grade, did he?

While we're on the topic of pop logos, pop bottle collector Bill explained to me that 7Up used to have a "Bubble Up" girl on the label of the bottle - apparently she was there in 1949 but not in 1950. Seems at odds with our contemporary philosophy regarding sex and marketing, but back then, it seems, pop was all about being wholesome and healthful, not sexy.

Don't believe me?

Check out this 1937 Pepsi-Cola bottle.

Yup, Pepsi was marketed as "A Sparkling Bracing Beverage" ... "Refreshing" and "Healthful."

But I don't think it was just spin - soda was indeed considered healthful back in the day (see below for more on link between soda and druggists).

I guess I'm tainted by my own sexed-up modern sensibility, 'cos when saw the "Penetrating Oil" bottle below I wasn't thinking it was made for industrial use ....

Bad Grunge Queen.

I liked this collector's stuff as he kept the original liquids in the bottles and they were more valuable to him that way - though perhaps not as valuable in the rest of the collecting world.

It just adds another layer of history to actually see and smell what's in the bottle - no drinking or ingesting though!

This collector, Jamie, also has a thing for brightly coloured labels with interesting names and neat graphics on them.

Some of the products at another table, and the slogans on them, were a hoot.

Take this sample of Turpo "Turpentine Ointment," made from, you guessed it, turpentine!

Kondon's "Nasal Jelly" sounded pretty freaky/disturbing too, and I had to wonder what Lykes' "Comfort Powder" was meant to minister to? Yikes.

While we're on the topic of mysteries, any idea what this glass chain is??

I wasn't sure, but I just think the idea of a glass chain is such a neat paradox - fragility vs. strength.

Apparently these chains were made by glass makers for their friends and family, according to collector Jamie. They were never available on the market and were used as decorative hanging pieces in windows.

Needless to say the jewellery junkie in me thought it would make a neat necklace!

You'd have to be really careful wearing it, though. No jostling, please.

It was $175 so I had to leave it these, alas.

This photo of moi is courtesy Rob Campbell of Dumpdiggers.

The "Then & Now" display was totally cool - all those brands that you know, love and still use have been around for years and years and were once made in glass bottles ... Pond's face cream, Palmolive soap, HP Sauce, and more.


That was the uber neat thing about chatting with the collectors and looking at their bottles: so many of the bottles were tied to Toronto and Toronto-area companies. Hearing the stories behind the bottles uncovered pieces of Toronto's business history for me and made me hunger for more info.

I just had to show you this pic of Bill looking at a 1920s bottle of grape pop with the juice still in it - I loved it as all of his bottles still had the original pop inside.

He's looking for the date that's etched in the bottle. I really dug this bottle on sight for a few reasons: the funky bulbous top that is so uncharacteristic of the other pop bottles; the fact that it held purple (mon fave colour) liquid; the fact that Bill was such a good sport posing with it.

You may not know it but many of the druggists of the day also were, or eventually became, soda pop makers because soda pop was initially mixed and made at drug stores at the soda fountain - I'm a fountain of information aren't I?

Corny, I know.

This is my big purchase for the day, a teeny doll bottle with "A Reliable Doll" etched on it - for a buck.

I'm nothing if not a reliable doll.

A quick internet search reveals that the Reliable Doll Company was a Toronto-based company that existed from the 1920s-90s. This was obviously a bottle for a doll that dates way back.

I wonder if I should have given this to Mr. Dumpdigger, in memory of our day together? No, I like it too much ... and I'd like to think he needs no reminder of the Grunge Queen ....

But he did buy me a blue ribbed poison bottle with "Sulpholine" inscribed on it. Not sure what sulpholne was used for... hopefully I didn't make him think he wanted to poison me!!

All in all, fellow grungers, it was an intriguing day.

I learned a lot, met a new grunging pal, and I kept myself open to new possibilities and experiences I may not have otherwise tried or done - you only live once, right? I suppose I have Rob to thank for that.

Now I will always look at old bottles in a whole new way.

I'll be posting all my pics on Flickr soon so check 'em out.

You can read about the 2010 Toronto Bottle Show on Dumpdiggers too.

Jewellery Show & Sale post coming soon!!

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