Let's play "Spot the Knockoff!"

So, in the course of packing up the apartment and jettisoning all the detritus of my impulsivity, I stumbled across another handful of imitation designer handbags at Goodwill today... and one super cute armchair that I got for half off due to an employee oversight (karma will get me for this one).

 I'm not a designer handbag expert, but I've done a little research (okay, I watched a bunch of YouTube videos...) on how to spot authentic and fake designer handbags. I don't claim to be right 100% of the time, but a good rule of thumb seems to be: when in doubt, it's probably fake! First up: this Burberry handbag. On first glance, it looks legit. On second glance, you notice it's made out of the nylon they make all weather gear out of, and the leather is actually vinyl. Look inside, and there's no Burberry label, just a blank one. And, again with the stiff water resistant fabric. Lastly, the hardware is cheap and the construction is... not good. Can I be SURE this is a fake? No... but I'm pretty sure Burberry has more pride than this.

Our next contestant: this Gucci bag. Logo stamped on the outside? Questionable, but not a complete disqualifier. The material felt like leather, but I've felt some very convincing vinyls before. Pleather has fooled me a time or two! Look inside aaaaand: no label, no hardware, cheap zipper:  FAKE!

Again: I'm no expert so what do I know... but I wouldn't buy these. Stay tuned for our next episode where I show you the vintage purses I found AND how you know they're real. What do you think about real vs. knockoff designer handbags? Would you carry one? 

-j

Ebay Dollar Sale, ya'll

So, I've got a ton of stuff clogging up my office that I want to get rid of. $1 and it's yours (before shipping but my shipping fees are fair to slightly less than what I'll pay to ship them to you).

Check out the eBay store here. Everything except the vintage stuff is $1 (but you can't use the coupon code for 15% off of these, sorry!). Help me clean this stuff out... I don't want to move it to the new house.

Handbag Gallery : The Non-All-Inclusive List

So, this is my collection. I've made a hobby out of making my own handbags & clutches. Some have been failures, others have come out pretty good! I made an Imgur gallery to get them all in one place, and you can check it out here. 

I've tried to sell them, but it's hard to break into a niche on the internet if you can't make things that absolutely look 100% perfect and professional. So, I make them for myself and give them away to friends. Mostly I'm just collecting them until they find their respective owners.

To see the lineup in its entirety, my Etsy page has them all: here.

-J

The Routine

Get up, zombie shuffle to coffee machine. Drink coffee, surf internet/email/etsy/ebay listings/etc, take pills. Make horrible face at bad taste. Get on with the day.

I bought a medi-set (pill organizer) to keep track of whether I'd taken my cocktail of pills in the morning. Some you have to take with food, some you can't take with B-vitamins... and so on, so they get spaced out throughout the day. There aren't that many of them, but a crapton more than I'm used to taking. I've never taken meds in my life except for PRNs (as needed). Also, they're mostly vitamins for preventative reasons which makes me feel a little bit better. The downside to having a medi set is:  mine's on my desk so I'm reminded of which days I cheated!

Every once in a while I ramble on about nothing. This would be one of those times!

-j

Super Easy, So Simple Your Husband Could Do It White Bread Recipe

So, I made my first loaf of bread from scratch the other day. Crispy outside, nice and soft inside. I was pleasantly suprised! It even managed not to rise too much at our high elevation (Flagstaff is at 7000 feet).

So here's a PDF I made of the recipe. In order to keep the file small I wrapped the text around the images. I tried to  put arrows to show which picture was being indicated. I hope it's not too hard to read! It takes about 3 hours from start to finish, but only because you have to let the bread rise, then beat the crap out of it, then let it rise again before baking. It's worth it!

You can play around with other ingredients if you're feeling crazy: garlic powder, honey, nuts (fiber!), etcetera.

-j

Addendum: Okay, so I can't figure out how to attach files to posts. If you want the PDF of this recipe, put a comment below and I'll email the PDF to you. Or email jessie at dark star vintage dot com.

Sewing Nerds, throw in yer links!

(Say this to the tune of, "BRING OUT YER DEAAAAAD" from Monty Python: Search for the Holy Grail. ;)

So, I love to sew. In my last sewing post, I talked about making my friend Ivy (see her link at the bottom of this post) a wall hanging in mustard-yellow linen with an "Om" symbol in it, and an oversized wristlet foldover  handbag out of vinyl and pink ticking stripe. I'm so in love with that thing... I'd make more if I thought they would sell.

Anyway, here's a link to another bloggeress who sews. Pass it on, put a link to your blog in the comments and let's have some link love circulating around. Happy Sunday!


-J

Footnotes:

1. Ivy Hutchison is a photographer from Arizona-formerly-Oregon and her website is here. 

I Am Jack's Hardcore Fangirl

Sooo, I love Jack Nicholson. I've been an even bigger fan than before ever since the Oscars a few months ago. I couldn't find a video of him presenting the Oscar with the First Lady, but I did find this video of his acceptance speech for Terms of Enderment, and this video of him crashing Jennifer Lawrence's interview. I would have had the same reaction!

OMG IS THAT JACK NICHOLSON OMG I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT JUST HAPPENED.

Ahem. Etcetera.  One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was a little boring but hilarious in select parts. And I LOVED The Shining.

So the Mister and I watched "Chinatown" last night. Jack wasn't hard on the eyes in earlier years! I have to say though, the film was long winded, the plot was sort of nebulous and it never really comes to a solid conclusion at the end. I liked Nicholson's (as Jake) part in it. There's a line toward the end of the movie when another detective is grilling him at a crime scene and said detective comments on the cut on Jake's nose which he got earlier in the film. Without missing a beat, Jake says:

"Oh yeah I guess your wife got a little excited and crossed her legs too quick if ya know what I mean!"

Then he flashes that signature grin as the other guy swings at him. I loved it! If anyone happens to know where I can find a clip of Mr. J  presenting the 2013 Oscars, let me know! The quick-and-dirty version is a comment he made to the effect of:

"I guess they didn't want me around those girls in their gowns... taffeta... heh!" ... and then again with that lecherous Nicholson grin, and I lost my shit laughing. Somewhere in the recesses of my id is a snarky, flippant little person that takes after the guy.

Love it! Anybody else seen any good Nicholson movies? (Also: he was the best Joker!)

-J