Passion for Shoes ~ Hereditary?

If your grandmother had a pretty decent shoe collection for the era, your mother has an incredible shoe collection, and you do as well ~ now your children are totally obsessed with shoes, could this passion be hereditary??


As most of you know, when i was 9 i had my right leg amputated.. before that i was confined to wearing a brace and black high top ugly boy's wing tip oxfords... so of course i awoke to 13 pair of shoes after surgery! it was worth every stitch. Shoes in any color imaginable! And the addiction began. Everyone constantly spoiled me with shoes, and to this day, I never have enough shoes.

Now in retrospect, i realize my mother is worse than i am. It was a gradual thing, a new pair here and there. Now completely out of control, so much Dad actually found "over the door" racks that he put on the inside of every single closet in their home, and mom proceeded to easily fill each rack. And she didn't have to purchase new ones to do it.

Then we have my daughters.

My older daughter is a bit more bohemian. She prefers Crocs (ugh!) in every color and style imaginable, flip flops (same criteria, every color) and anything that glitters. Make it camo flats that sparkle? she wants them in every color please. I think she is part Crow, if it sparkles she loves it, especially in footwear.

When my youngest daughter left for college, a cousin visiting here offered to take her shoes to her, since we couldn't get them on the airplane. Imagine his surprise when we carried FOUR of the huge black Lawn & leaf bags to his truck. The expression on his face was priceless. Men just don't understand women & shoes.

So of course at any estate sale, I run for the bedroom. For lingerie, then shoes & purses. Not necessarily in that order... depending on what catches my eye. It never ceases to amaze me that people can posses these fabulous shoes, and never wear them! So many are classic styles that are just timeless, others very vintage that are fabulous and often trendy again!

You won't find many shoes in my shop~ but i do promise the ones you do find are fabulous! and know the rest of them went to a good home, my family!

Here are some in my vintage outlet ecrater store:

http://vintageoutlet.ecrater.com/c/312789/shoes-boots




50s aligator platform shoes 5AAA


classic Bass Loafers size 9




gray peep toe pumps size 8AA


Rocakbilly Hush puppies 6.5

And look what i found in Raia's Gurlz ecrater boutique in hard to find larger sizes :

http://gurlz.ecrater.com/c/753014/larger-size-sexy-shoes


fredericks strappy stiletto size 12


St. John Sparkles ~ size 11


red hot stiletto's ~size 10

If we don't laugh we would all go insane

Jimmy Buffet said it! and boy, was he right. Sometimes you just have to laugh, especially when things just cant seem to get any worse.

A week ago Sunday i booted up my computer. typed half an email, and boom. Fade to black. nothing i did could make it work.

A neighbor had brought over a little emachine he no longer wanted. Get that baby out, do all the plug & cord things.. and what? nothing?

surely its the plug? try another outlet. nope. a second dead computer.

Monday morning i did the mad search. Computer "illiterate".. i depend on salesmen. After a rude experience at Walmart, i head to Best Buy where all those guys standing around aren't very helpful. Next door to Office Depot. A bit pricey.. and what? they don't MAKE computers with modems anymore? really? i happen to have recently googled this and know there are 33% of the world's population still on dial up.

So down to Sams. Bundles. don't need that. and the "tv guy" wasn't very knowledgeable with computers.

Back In the car, frustrated and with limited funds, i decide to take the forty-five minute trip to Goodwill headquarters & training center. They take donated computers, hire people that otherwise wouldn't have jobs and train and employ them building computers.

What? they only build them, they don't know much more about them.. can't advise or recommend. Least expensive ~ $300 with a 30 day warranty.

Its one of those 104 degree days. Stick me with a fork. i'm done ~ emotionally & physically. I head back to "mom and pop" computer repair shop where i should have went originally. the $50/ 30 thing and all. I explain to craig i sell on line. lots of pictures, i'm on line probably 10 hours a day. need lots of memory, and the key word ~ dial up.

So he sells me a re built computer, carries it to the car and i spend 5 days trying to figure it out. it refuses my pictures, the USB port doesn't work, my card reader won't get read. Back to Craig, who informs me its ME, not the computer, but leave it and let him look at it. I'm scheduled with his "picture pro" for the next day to help me with pictures.

This is the first "you gotta laugh" part... the picture pro? she's never used a card reader. she has no clue how to re-name files. she has no clue how to right-click save. Her solution is to use the camera cord and load directly to the computer. Not a viable option when you sell on line. I'm totally self taught, but those are some very vital skills for me. ITMT Craig's had enough. he goes out front, selects another computer and tries to compensate me for all the aggravation. Slams in a modem and sends me on my way, as he closes for the weekend.

Did you guess already? the modem doesn't work. i feel like i'm in a comedy of errors by now. Back to the store monday morning. And Craig's pissed at ME? what? you're kidding. why? because i have dial up. Mind you he KNOWS where i live, knows there is nothing short of satellite available.. and is just a grumbling away about never working on dial up again. I'm thinking i have a 6 month warranty on this sucker.. ha! if it breaks he won't be happy, but he will work on it.

New modem, computer back in the car, and i'm on my way home. Still can't right click. still having issues, but i'll get it. Of course lost tons of pictures, programs and information in the old hard drive that was not backed up.. But i will catch up on blogging, listing or working for a week. its one thing to take a vacation from working, another to be forced into it.

But hey.. the cd player in the new computer works, i'm listening to jimmy buffet "Changes in Latitude" ~ and you just gotta laugh at all this drama or we'd all go insane!

A Hawaiian Shirt for Everyone!

My passion for Hawaiian shirts began in 1969 during this "yankee's " first trip to Key West. They were EVERYWHERE~ glorious floral print shirts on MEN! I fell in love with the islands and the wardrobe ~ you sure didn't see this in Michigan.

And men wearing them had a completely different "attitude" ~ they were relaxed, smiling and seemed to be having fun. There is something for everyone ~ subtle, demure, wild, flashy. And prints from surfboards, motorcycles, pin up girls, cars, birds, and of course the traditional floral.

As an avid Jimmy Buffet fan, I get to enjoy eye candy at every Buffet concert ~ parrotheads wearing Hawaiian shirts. A requirement for VLV, and any rockabilly fest ~ We KNOW the guys are definitely having fun then!

Recently, i discovered two local group homes were going to a luau. They were SO excited. When questioned, i learned they did not have Hawaiian shirts to wear to the party. So, I grabbed my huge rubbermaid tote of them and headed to the homes.

You would have thought it was Christmas! The young adults were even more excited now! Each grabbing, trying on and choosing favorites. Employees were offered shirts, hawaiian skirts and dresses as well, until everyone had the one they loved and were all ready for the party ~ which was a huge hit, and they looked so cute.

So.. my personal inventory of Hawaiian clothing, especially mens Aloha shirts is pretty wiped out, their happy faces were worth every single donation, and I know karma will replenish the stock. With so many estate sales coming up, surely there will be one from a well traveled gentleman who collected Hawaiian shirts.

In the meantime, here are a few I have left, and a ton of amazing ones from Raia, who even has one from the 1940s, shown above!!










to see my little selection:
http://vintageoutlet.ecrater.com/c/343502/hawaiian-rab-vlv-fun-shirts


and Raia's amazing offerings:
http://threads.ecrater.com/c/239695/hawaiian-shirts-more

Vintage Robes & Caftans ~ A Hard Habit to Break

The habit began early, and was probably "out of control" by the late 70s, early 80s. Working, going to school and a single mom in the days of panty hose and heels, i would come home totally exhausted.

I'd kick my shoes off at the door, drag myself to the bedroom and slip into a caftan. I fell in love with them. Completely comfortable, luxurious, "decent" if a neighbor or unexpected company popped in, just heavenly.

From caftans i progressed to zip front robes, again for the same reason ~ but available in "seasons" ~ what a find! Long sleeve velour robes for cold winter nights to curl up with hot chocolate and a good book in front of the fireplace.

Short sleeve, lightweight nylon for summer, in pretty floral prints. Ahh.. loungewear all year long! I was in heaven, until they suddenly were no longer available. This is probably about the time I discovered vintage. New designers were no longer making them, but the old faithful's were still available.

To find an estate where the lady of the house shared my passion was better than a gold mine! I had every color, style and shade imaginable. And amazingly, still have most of them 20 years later!

Absolutely! Vintage LASTS! Quality fabrics, excellent construction, amazing detail. And all these years later, i love slipping into a zip front robe when i get home, lounging in one on Saturday mornings with my tea outside on the back porch.. or just to get warm and cozy on a cold night.

I seek them out. Rarely will you find my shop with out one.. usually a nice variety, but they go fast as other's learn my secret. But, you will never find one in my size available in my shop~ finders keepers! :)

If you share my passion, check out my shop for caftans and zip robes for all seasons!

http://vintageoutlet.ecrater.com/