Happy 2012 Friends!

here is to a memorable 2011:
i moved to the san joaquin
had my gallbladder removed
got engaged
lost my grandmother
lost my pup

2012 is going to be unforgettable! WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!!!

xoxo Lo

the guity blogger

well 2011 has been a whirwind of a year; that is certain.

i started this here blog with great intention and well, my last blog was in august?! where the hell does time go. i made the move from the greater los angeles area to california's san joaquin valley. a.k.a. the land that wikipedia so gracefully dubs as an economy of agriculture, petroleum, and poverty. the positive side? we do NOT live in an area of poverty thank god, but we do live in an area of vast agricultural fields with cheap antiques and a knock out view of the sequoia national park. living here has taken some getting used to - and boy do i miss LA - but it visalia holds quite a special place in my heart. and truth be told i'm home enough not to miss LA too much.

this week i have lost my beautiful grandmother anselma and my boston spaniel baby bailey. my grandmother, or welita as we called her, lived two weeks shy of her 91st birthday. an immigrant from mexico in the 1960s she raised 8 boys and 1 girl. she was always an elegant well dressed woman who never learned how to drive and her english was spotty at best, and was she a great cook. she lived a great life of tragedy - losing her husband nearly 22 years ago and 5 of her 9 children to various causes. she died peacefully in her bedroom surrounded by her loved ones and as a nurse i know this is one of the best things in life you could hope for. i see so many terrible things at work and it really makes you stop and smell the roses. if that wasn't a low enough blow 3 days later one of my 8 month old puppies and i went outside to get the mail when for god knows what reason she jumped into the street at the precise moment a little ol' lady in a white volvo ran her over right in front of me. as i just mentioned: i'm a nurse. i see things no person should ever, ever have to see. but having my poor, sweet puppy killed right in front of me like that was one of thee most difficult things i have ever had to deal with. bailey was my pal: we swam together, played fetch together, slept in the same bed together and did just about everything else together. it is unfortunate that some life experiences have to be learned this way, and i will never, ever underestimate the pain of someone losing a 4 legged best friend again. i'd like to think that my grandmother has a new lil' doggie in heaven.

 

rest in peace my sweet girl

pinterest

i have developed an unhealthy obsession with pinterest.com.

i was scared i would turn into some awful bridezilla but i have found myself to be quite the opposite. i have been tagging ideas for our wedding on my pinterest account. my dad and step-mom informed me this week that they will be paying the site fee which takes a huge weight off of my shoulders and is quite a wonderful gift. we still have not set a date but i am aiming for august 4th, 2012 which will be my maternal grandparents 67th wedding anniversary.

since i am out of work and it's been a slow month for mike work-wise this weekend is an "at home" weekend filled with lots of netflix and avoiding the heat. tonight i am making burritos with homemade frijoles and arroz. my abuelita would be proud.

in the meantime, take a look at my pinterest board. i'm sure you too will find the site crack-worthy.

we're gettin' hitched!

that's right the mister finally gave in! *snicker* two weeks ago we took aubry on one last summer get-away to sacramento before the start of her fourth grade year. mike's cousin james and his wife carla were gracious enough to let us stay at their house for the weekend. sunday morning before heading out to old town sac i begged mike to let me go to my favorite antique mall as an early birthday present (in fact, my big two-seven is tomorrow!) to which he agreed. there i saw this cute little art deco ring which i "ooh'd and ahh'd" over while mike cooly told me he didn't care for it. unbeknownst to me he had carla distract me while he bought the ring. later that evening (8/7) he brought it out on a park bench after discussing things with aubry (she was ecstatic) and he didn't have to say anything, i just knew. so not much of a romantic story there but i thought it was sweet none-the-less. he said he was going to wait until my birthday until he realized i would notice the sum of money missing from our bank account. haha. smart boy, that one! so without further ado, the ring!

 

 

yay! i am so excited to be marrying my best friend and start a new chapter of our lives together. we haven't set a date yet, but i am aiming for 8/4/12 which will be my maternal grandparent's 67th wedding anniversary! so now here comes bridezilla. i am already scheming up some sort of 1950s rockabilly honky tonk meets tiki BBQ. i dunno how, but my daddy always told me: if there's a will, there's a way!

enchanted leaves

i must pay tribute to my good friend (and amazing artist) nedda szylewicz for helping me with my new blog background and header. after a four month hiatus due to relocating to central california we finally have the internet up and running. didn't nedz do a great job?! and what's more amazing is she whipped it up in no time. i've known nedda for years and am proud to call her a friend. her art, including her mediums have evolved greatly over the years into something quite spectacular. you can check out her enchanted leaves line of jewelery here (and i recommend you do!) and her beautiful graphic design stuff here. she also keeps a blogger for her jewelery too.

 

 

 

 

the prowler

uncle atom's last post reminded me that i never posted a pic of our "new" trailer! ta-da! here she is! nothin' fancy by any means but we are looking forward to family vacations at our little spot at the lake. think of her as the little house from the disney short: today she is sad and old but soon she will be moved and re-vamped by a new little family who will love her to death.

 

and so you know what the hell i'm talking about - disney's the little house

viva las vegas, procrastination, and a few photos

i don't really know what to say about viva this year. we had so many things to squish into a 3 day period that we didn't do nearly enough things we wanted to do. if you're looking for an in depth run down of viva you're probably looking at the wrong gal. we left for vegas late thursday and arrived at 4 something a.m. and because i was not sure if i would get time off for viva or not i did not reserve a hotel room so we winged it and stayed at some ghetto motel off the strip. this was no problem by me as i think seedy hotels are kind of neat and we were really only there to sleep. friday we spent the day drinking and roaming around the vendors and bands and spent the evening on the strip (i should mention now that every night was fueled by alcohol) where we walked 4 miles and ended up going to sleep at some ungodly hour. saturday was much of the same with the addition off the car show and it was coincidentally the same day mike's ex (aubry's mom) was in town to get hitched to her boyfriend. ahem. husband. we ended the evening at one of my favorite tiki bars, frankie's tiki room, with mike's friends (who happen to be his ex' cousins that were there for the wedding) and at the sahara. sunday was spent running around doing last minute things and picking up aubry. we got on the road around 5 p.m. and stopped at just about every kitschy spot on the 15 freeway from bass pro shop to peggy sue's diner. (you must remember - mike is a "man's man" who likes hunting and fishing and guns, so from time to time i have to endure trips to weird places like bass pro shop or pawn shops in exchange for him being such a trooper about going to zillions of antique malls and flea markets with me.)

i didn't take ANY pictures of mike and i (i'm getting worse and worse) sans one group shot of him and i with his friends lacey and tim at frankie's (they were both, by the way, awesome.)

 

and here just about the only picture you can see of my makeup. i left in a hurry and really only stuck to one shade of colors (my old stand bys) the whole weekend.

 

i also uploaded a zillion pictures of cars from the car show to my picasa account here if you are interested in seeing them.

and in other news i have 19 days to move while working 9 twelve hour days in between. whew! i have slowly started packing today. mike and i had a little too much fun this weekend and are both trying to battle off some mystery illness (i feel strep throat coming on... greeeeeat) so i have been going at a snail's pace today!!!

it's official... we're moving!

yep that's right! we were approved for the 1950s three bedroom track house and as of the 29th of this month i will no longer be a southern californian. well, i guess i will always be, but now i am a central californian too.

this month is going to be absolutely crazy. mike's birthday was on friday and per his request he wanted to go camping, so we've been at our trailer at pine flat since thursday. we bought this lil' 23 foot 1973 coleman prowler a few months ago with the hopes of turning it into our own little tropical tiki oasis. with moving and whatnot plans for the trailer have been pushed back but we're anxious to get the ball rolling before the 110 degree weather here in fresno starts to creep in. in fact today mike gets to spend a good part of the day weed wacking for fire safety! lucky him =)

with that i better get the ball rolling. today is probably going to be the only day for me to relax for the next month. we will be going to las vegas next weekend (for viva) and i have work and packing/moving every day between that. i am not looking forward to all this frantic packing that we get to do. oh well, on the bright side it will all be done and over with by this time next month!

goin' to the chapel and we're gonna get married... some day!

so it has been decided: mike and i are gettin' hitched! we have nothing planned out, so i really shouldn't even be talking about it quiet yet but i just can't keep my big ol' mouth shut! we have agreed to get me a ring before some sort of official announcement has been made.

as i've said before we're/i am in the process of moving to central california from southern california and i have been assigned the job of finding what type of engagement ring i'd like. this means i don't get to pick my ring per se- mike has made it very clear that he wants to pick it out for me and surprise me with some sort of real proposal. of course since i'm a vintage gal i opted for something vintage. i had hoped his grandmother's ring was still around but sadly it isn't. my grandmothers well, are still in use! one thing i've noticed is that i've been reading a lot of blogging about how buying vintage = recycling. well that's sort of the way i'm looking at my ring. i am a nurse so i don't want some big honkin' cathedral ring that's gonna get snagged on gloves (or worse - the patient!) and that's not really my bag anyway. i really would love an art deco diamond but i think i am going to opt for something more 1940s/simple - for now! i am not opposed to upgrading to a nicer ring but it just seems like at this point in our lives a $4000 ring is not practical. sure we could save up but right now i'd rather use that money to pay off debt or for a down payment to our own house! really when you think about it (or at least i look at it this way) a ring is just a ring. it's a nice gesture and sure i'd be upset if i never got one, but i don't feel like the three Cs are what my marriage should be based upon. mike pointed out i may be able to find something in a pawn shop and the thought of it made me wince but i gave in (this gives him an excuse to look at guy stuff too) so we've started making our rounds and much to my surprise i've found many nice sets hiding in pawn shops! i've also checked some antique stores around here in clovis/fresno but i think antique store generally =s higher prices. i haven't found anything in store that screams "Lauren!" but lord knows i'm willing to keep looking!

the good news on the hunt for an engagement ring i did get to throw in some antiquing too. i am a big pyrex fan and i can never decide on what pattern i like. yesterday i found a white pyrex casserole dish with the blue snowflake pattern with lid on the super cheap so i snagged it up. my kitchen has a bit of an identity crisis in that i have a lot of metlox california palm and franciscan starburst (my absolute fav!) dishes in blues and then lots of reds! some how this works for me so i'm happy to have a new dish to add to my collection. another thing that scares me is using all this plastic (hello cancer! or maybe that's just the worry wart RN in me) so a throwback to old glass dishes is fine by me!

also monday i am thinking about applying for a 1950s three bedroom house for rent up here in visalia - wish me luck! apparently i went from 4th in line to 1st in line based on my application. on one hand i am more than sad to be leaving my little apartment by the sea but i would gladly trade in a one bedroom with no laundry facilities for a three bedroom HOUSE! which also means - hello boston terrier! mike has promised both aubry and i that when we move we can get a dog. i've been patiently waiting for what seems like forever so i just keep reminding myself that. plus (at least for the interim) i will be keeping my job in so cal and living with my mom 2 nights a week until i decide that yes, i can hang with the san joaquin valley and move up here permanently (that was a big part of the "gettin' hitched" factor - i don't feel like i want to make that sacrifice without getting a ring on my left hand first - knowwhadimsayin' ladies? mmm hmm.) so without further ado: engagement ring pr0n! and don't worry, i'll keep it to a minimum.

here is what i like:

 

here is probably something along the lines of what i'll be asking for (maybe with less yellow gold? i'm not a big fan):

 

we also found this awesome mens ring that we thought just maybe instead of going the traditional route, to get something like this- we are both huge tikiphiles!

 

Truly missing in action

can it be true that i have ignored my new blog for a month already?! oh yes it's true! i do apologize for the lack of updates. house hunting is on in full swing in central california right now. that's right - i've decided to take the big plunge. well, sort of anyway. i will be keeping my job until thungs get settled here, and then i will start looking for a job. as a southern california native i find myself very resistant at the mere thought of leaving it's smoggy delights and mild winters, but as my momma put it best - it's good to spread your wings... and you can always come home! the best part of central cal?! the amount of freedom i have - not being surrounded by concrete jungle but instead the fruits of our labor and a vast sea of green earth. but the very best part?! an easy going man who takes me for exactly who i am, and the love we share and multipy on a daily basis... even as he snores loudly into my left ear, like now.

i do, however have some barkcloth curtains that need to be photographed and a midcentury modern antique roadshow extraviganza to share about!

happy trails to y'all for the time being!

rock-a-hula baby!

i finally decided "why yes: we should go to viva las vegas this year" after having many internal battles with myself. i have gone the last few years with the sort-of exception of last year. jenna and i waited too long to get tickets and they sold out. we still made a pretty good weekend of hanging out at pepper mill and circus circus with comedian josh thompson, seeing dita von teese' burlesque act at the crazy horse, viva las vegas car show, lobby shenanigans, and a romp around town with the guys from los creepers.

i don't care if viva has lost it's sparkle, mike is in for a treat... any reason to go to las vegas is fun enough!

 

tropical barkcloth, oh my!

i've been M.I.A. the past few weeks due to a busy schedule and a nasty cold. i have been hopped up on pseudophed for days now and still feel super stuffy! today was flea market day but i skipped it due to two doctors appointments and i spent some time with mike's brother, nick. however i did go last week and the week before. as previously mentioned i have been trying hard to stay within a budget for vintage non-necessities. within the past few weeks i picked up what i thought was to be a piece of midcentury tropical barkcloth but actually turned out to be a curtain. it was a great surprise! i was going to re-sew it as the print is upside down when hanging but then realized it would shorten it's length. so for now i will keep this semi-annoying upside down curtain. i also picked up a (midcentury of course) telephone stand and an orange box label for the kitchen. when i'm not feeling so miserable i will get around to taking pictures. i also went to my friend courtney's house in santa clarita last week and had a fun girls night in while her boyfriend jay pin striped a few goodies for me. i had him pin stripe a wallet for aubry's birthday, my digital picture frame (which i had him do in pink and turquoise. in hind sight it was a good idea but it came out looking a little too native american from the 80s for my liking. whoops!) and my new toaster that mike bought. boy, you know you're old when you get excited about getting gifts like toasters! alas, it is the thought that counts, right?!

 

this week was pretty great. i was off of work and got to catch up with some of my gal pals and do a little thrifting. i am really good at spending money and i've been working hard at budgeting myself, especially on things like little knick knacks. here are the items i picked up for $10: a kitchen carmen miranda like bobble head (my grandparents have a set like this lying around somewhere, but japanese... one day i will have to see if they will let these sticky fingers adopt them), a red "i will hold the tea bag" tea bag holder to match it's lemony cousin, and a piece of sheer fabric with a great atomic print that will be turned into a cute little curtain for the bathroom window. what you see behind it is what i get to see in my 'backyard' every day. beautiful!

 

 

 

 

 

i also picked up a copy of social distortion's new album hard times and nursery rhymes trying to give them the benefit of the doubt after i didn't like their last album so much. i am sorry to say that i like this one even less sans a few tracks. i was also amazed to see how much best buy's cd selection has dwindled, i guess cds are becoming obsolete thanks to downloadable media! i must admit that i am probably part of that problem - i download a lot of my music too, but every now and then i deem a 'special' album worth purchasing on cd or vinyl. i am however a huge fan of print media and non-digital recordings and would hate to see places like amoeba records go out of business.

and speaking of social d... we are going to see them tonight with our good friends courtney and jay. which means, i am off to clean house and make appetizers!

until next time,
xoxo Lo

it's 5 o'clock somewhere

 

ahh a lazy tuesday evening. today i did my re-certification for ACLS (which is just big fancy nurse speak for advanced CPR and the meds that go along with it) and now i have 5 more glorious days off to enjoy. tonight i have a date with myself: i will make myself a cocktail and finish painting the little kitchen shelf that i bought months ago and never finished. sounds exciting, doesn't it? tomorrow is flea market day so i plan on getting there early. the weather has been warm and sunny here in ventura so tomorrow should really be a treat. there is a good possibility of a move to fresno (i know, gross) in the semi-near future so i am really trying to take advantage of my costal living situation. i have never lived anywhere outside of the greater los angeles area and just the thought of leaving saddens me immensely. so in the meantime - i'll drink to that!

cheers!

ventura county fairgrounds swap meet

r.g. canning, the folks who do the rose bowl flea market in pasadena put on a flea market every other month or so at the fairgrounds here in ventura on sundays. it's no surprise that living in southern california is ridiculously overpriced. often times with the cost of parking and admission ($15 or so per person) i find it a waste of my time and my money if i'm not set out to spend 100+ dollars and to be honest, the rose bowl flea market is usually much better. that of course then leads me to spend an additional $20 or so on gas as pasadena is about 80 miles away from here. it's a snow ball effect you see.

the good part about being an RN with a "normal" hospital job is only working 3 days a week, however the bad part is that unless i'm fixing to work every weekend, one of my work days usually lands on a wednesday. this is unfortunate for me because right here in ventura we have a FREE swap meet on wednesdays also at the fairgrounds. yes that's right, free parking and free admission! i was skeptical as usually a "swap meet" around here means 50,000 mexicans (before you get offended, i too am one of them!) cramming into the community college parking lot trying to buy and sell a bunch of ugly knock off disney princess blankets, ranchero belt buckles, and fruits... but i was wrong! it was fabulous. i had attempted to go the week before but i guess due to the rain it was canceled so last wednesday, the weather was perfect and i drug aubry out of the apartment to go have a looksee.

we got a late start as coaxing an eight year old out of bed early on her winter vacation was no easy feat but we struck vintage gold none the less. the swap meet had a lot of different things going on but to my surprise i had no problem finding 1000 things i wanted to buy. okay, that's really no surprise but my pocketbook was telling me otherwise. i kept myself on a strict $25 budget and here are some things that caught my eye:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i of course am a sucker for anything mid-century and ended up taking that little sewing chair in the fourth photo home for $15. a lot of the things i saw there i didn't bother asking about pricing because they weren't things that quite fit into my tiny little tiki apartment but i sure wanted it all! look how cute those little clocks are! i'm guessing they're from about the 1940s? i always love researching the things i come across - you never know when you'll find a great score (like the kromex kitchen canister set i came across for $5 years ago) and to me that's one of the best parts about antiquing!

the big black hands on the clock tell me that it's time to rock!

i am a huge patsy cline fan and aubry discovered this song a few days ago on an old rockabilly compilation c.d. i have and asked me to play it over and over again for her. not only is it stuck in my car on repeat, it's stuck in my head on repeat. thank goodness it's such a good song... thought i'd share it with y'all.

eichler neighborhood of thousand oaks, california

i grew up in thousand oaks, california where tucked away off of lynn road lies a neighborhood of approximately 100  joseph eichler homes built in the 1960s. most of these houses have stayed true to their midcentury roots whereas others have been updated with terrible facades. gah. i would like to punch some of their owners. anyway... i remember mom driving me through there as a kid a zillion times and it wasn't until i became an adult that i too fell in love with these houses. you will have to please excuse some of my photos as it was a gray november day when i took these.

what is unique about eichler homes is that they typically feature glass walls, post and beam construction, and open floor plans in a style indebted to frank lloyd wright and mies van der rohe. 

eichler homes exteriors feature flat and/or low-sloping a-framed roofs, vertical 2" pattern wood siding, and spartan facades with clean geometric lines. one of eichler's signature concepts was to "bring the outside in", achieved via skylight patio gardens, swimming pools, and floor-to-ceiling glass windows with glass transoms looking out on protected and private outdoor rooms.

the interiors have numerous unorthodox and innovative features including: exposed post-and-beam construction, tongue and groove decking for the ceilings following the roofline; concrete slab floors with integral radiant heating, sliding doors for rooms, closets, and cabinets; and a standard second bathroom located in the master bedroom. later models introduced the famous eichler entry atriums; an open-air enclosed entrance foyer designed to further advance the eichler concept of integrating outdoor and indoor spaces. (all info taken from wikipedia)

what is extra cool about mr. eichler is that unlike most builders at the time, he established a non-discriminatory policy and offered homes for sale to anyone of any religion or race. 

if you're interested in learning more about eichlers www.eichlerhomes.com is a good place to start.

an intro!

ahh yes. the obligatory, boring details. my name is lauren. i am 26, a registered nurse, and live in sunny southern california with my boyfriend mike and my two cats zion and aunrea. we live in midtown ventura where it is currently 61 degrees, can't beat that for january! our apartment is part of a 6 unit complex built in the 1920s, complete with an ocean view (and on a clear day like today you can even see santa cruz and anacapa islands!) and 300 layers of white paint on the walls. wait, what do you mean i have crown molding?! both my parents come from large families - my mother's side is irish, father's is mexican - so family is a big deal to me. coincidentally i am an only child sans one older step-brother. mike also comes from a very large irish-italian family and has one beautiful daughter who is 8.


i love researching, finding, and talking about antiques - mostly 1940s-1960s mid-century modernism and am always happy to make new friends who share similar interests.