Do you have a question about vintage, blogging, sewing or anything else? Email me at brittanyvavoomvintage@gmail.com or check out my frequently asked questions below!
About my family and I
A little about me, I'm 33, married, two kids, I'm a stay at home mom and full time blogger. My natural hair color is brown but I've had it every color at some point. My husband, Pj and I have been together for 12 years. Pj is a carpenter and works all over St Louis. I became a housewife within a few months of our wedding. We both always wanted me to stay home with the kids so I stayed home for a while to see if we could swing it and we did! I've gone to work outside of the home for a few months here and there since I started blogging 5 years ago but I'm happy to be home, doing what I love most. My daughter, Olivia is 7 and my son, Rhys (sounds like Reese) is 6. We call them "Lulu" and "Beets". We live in the suburbs in a cute little 1930s house in a quiet historic neighborhood.
Where do you find your clothes?
Most of my clothes are from thrift stores or warehouses around St Louis. There was a big warehouse full of vintage that used to be open to bag sales and such and I took advantage of that whenever I could. I've bought a few things from etsy, ebay and sewn some stuff as well. Check out my vintage tour of Missouri page for local spots
Do your husband and kids wear vintage too?
Pj isn't into vintage at all! Well....he has a vintage jacket and a great Indiana Jones style hat that he adores but he's not into vintage. Since he's a carpenter, he wears work pants and tees that he can get dirty on the job and silly monty python tee shirts when he's off work. He's been known to lounge around in my Paul Frank sock monkey pajamas too but no, he's not into vintage, just me! I've bought 2 or 3 vintage things for each of my kids to take cute family photos in but I like to let them develop their own style. My little Rhys loves clothes with skulls or super heroes on them and he's currently obsessed with Minecraft and Five Nights and Freddy's so he basically lives in his Minecraft creeper hoodie or various Halloween costumes. Olivia loves rompers, dresses and things with sequins and jewels on them. She's starting to develop a great interest in buying vintage when she goes shopping with me but I'm a big fan of machine washable kids clothes. My kids love to play with my hats and jewelry and someday maybe they'll want to wear vintage too but I'll leave it up to them. Both of my kids are very much aware of the blogosphere and are avid You Tube fans.
When did you start wearing vintage?
When Olivia was just a few months old, I went to downtown St Louis and bought my first 1940s hat and 1950s shirtwaist dress. Over the years, I replaced my mom clothes and maternity wear with beautiful vintage dresses and separates and it quickly became an obsession
What is your favorite era?
I love the styles of the 1940s. How women made the most from what they had during the war and still looked fabulous- just amazing. I currently wear a lot of comfortable 50s house dresses and this year my 1960s obsession began.
Do you really wear vintage every day?
Pretty much, yeah! I've been collecting vintage clothes for 9 years and there's not much in my closet that isn't vintage or retro inspired. I have several cotton house dresses that I wear when I run to the grocery store and overalls to wear in the garden. Lately, I've been loving my retro inspired tees and comfy skirts.
When did you start blogging?
I started Va-Voom Vintage when Olivia was 3 months old. I needed my own space, my own creative outlet that was just for me. Since then, it has grown into a great community of readers and has allowed me to continue to stay home with my babies through ads and sponsorships.
Who takes your pictures?
These days, I take most of them by myself, with a tripod and remote in the woods or by a pretty building nearby. Most of my pre-2017 photos were taken by my husband and sometimes he still helps. I like to take them myself when my family is at work and school so when they are home, I'm not working on blog stuff.
What do you use to edit your photos?
I'm learning to use Photoshop and Lightroom but since the beginning, I've used Photoscape and Picmonkey. For instagram, I love VSCO or the mobile Lightroom app
I have a vintage clothing item that has a stain/weird smell/etc- can you advise me on how to clean it?
Check out my post on how to wash vintage clothing.
Will you ever make new bullet bra pattern sizes?
I get a lot of questions about new sizes but I don't release new sizes unless I can test them for fit on a live model and I don't currently have any models with smaller or larger bra sizes than what I have posted. Please check out the sew-along for re-sizing info and make a muslin before you cut out your fabric
What hair color are you currently using?
I've always colored my own hair. I use L'Oreal Feria Hair Color, Power Copper C74 Copper Crave Intense Copper. I use Overtone extreme orange daily conditioner when I wash it (about 3 times per week) to keep it vibrant. I keep it as dry as possible in the pool but I like waterslides and underwater races with Olivia too so in the summer I probably dye it a little more frequently than I do in the winter. The Overtone helps a lot too.
About my family and I
A little about me, I'm 33, married, two kids, I'm a stay at home mom and full time blogger. My natural hair color is brown but I've had it every color at some point. My husband, Pj and I have been together for 12 years. Pj is a carpenter and works all over St Louis. I became a housewife within a few months of our wedding. We both always wanted me to stay home with the kids so I stayed home for a while to see if we could swing it and we did! I've gone to work outside of the home for a few months here and there since I started blogging 5 years ago but I'm happy to be home, doing what I love most. My daughter, Olivia is 7 and my son, Rhys (sounds like Reese) is 6. We call them "Lulu" and "Beets". We live in the suburbs in a cute little 1930s house in a quiet historic neighborhood.
Where do you find your clothes?
Most of my clothes are from thrift stores or warehouses around St Louis. There was a big warehouse full of vintage that used to be open to bag sales and such and I took advantage of that whenever I could. I've bought a few things from etsy, ebay and sewn some stuff as well. Check out my vintage tour of Missouri page for local spots
Do your husband and kids wear vintage too?
Pj isn't into vintage at all! Well....he has a vintage jacket and a great Indiana Jones style hat that he adores but he's not into vintage. Since he's a carpenter, he wears work pants and tees that he can get dirty on the job and silly monty python tee shirts when he's off work. He's been known to lounge around in my Paul Frank sock monkey pajamas too but no, he's not into vintage, just me! I've bought 2 or 3 vintage things for each of my kids to take cute family photos in but I like to let them develop their own style. My little Rhys loves clothes with skulls or super heroes on them and he's currently obsessed with Minecraft and Five Nights and Freddy's so he basically lives in his Minecraft creeper hoodie or various Halloween costumes. Olivia loves rompers, dresses and things with sequins and jewels on them. She's starting to develop a great interest in buying vintage when she goes shopping with me but I'm a big fan of machine washable kids clothes. My kids love to play with my hats and jewelry and someday maybe they'll want to wear vintage too but I'll leave it up to them. Both of my kids are very much aware of the blogosphere and are avid You Tube fans.
When did you start wearing vintage?
When Olivia was just a few months old, I went to downtown St Louis and bought my first 1940s hat and 1950s shirtwaist dress. Over the years, I replaced my mom clothes and maternity wear with beautiful vintage dresses and separates and it quickly became an obsession
What is your favorite era?
I love the styles of the 1940s. How women made the most from what they had during the war and still looked fabulous- just amazing. I currently wear a lot of comfortable 50s house dresses and this year my 1960s obsession began.
Do you really wear vintage every day?
Pretty much, yeah! I've been collecting vintage clothes for 9 years and there's not much in my closet that isn't vintage or retro inspired. I have several cotton house dresses that I wear when I run to the grocery store and overalls to wear in the garden. Lately, I've been loving my retro inspired tees and comfy skirts.
When did you start blogging?
I started Va-Voom Vintage when Olivia was 3 months old. I needed my own space, my own creative outlet that was just for me. Since then, it has grown into a great community of readers and has allowed me to continue to stay home with my babies through ads and sponsorships.
Who takes your pictures?
These days, I take most of them by myself, with a tripod and remote in the woods or by a pretty building nearby. Most of my pre-2017 photos were taken by my husband and sometimes he still helps. I like to take them myself when my family is at work and school so when they are home, I'm not working on blog stuff.
What do you use to edit your photos?
I'm learning to use Photoshop and Lightroom but since the beginning, I've used Photoscape and Picmonkey. For instagram, I love VSCO or the mobile Lightroom app
I have a vintage clothing item that has a stain/weird smell/etc- can you advise me on how to clean it?
Check out my post on how to wash vintage clothing.
Will you ever make new bullet bra pattern sizes?
I get a lot of questions about new sizes but I don't release new sizes unless I can test them for fit on a live model and I don't currently have any models with smaller or larger bra sizes than what I have posted. Please check out the sew-along for re-sizing info and make a muslin before you cut out your fabric
What hair color are you currently using?
I've always colored my own hair. I use L'Oreal Feria Hair Color, Power Copper C74 Copper Crave Intense Copper. I use Overtone extreme orange daily conditioner when I wash it (about 3 times per week) to keep it vibrant. I keep it as dry as possible in the pool but I like waterslides and underwater races with Olivia too so in the summer I probably dye it a little more frequently than I do in the winter. The Overtone helps a lot too.
I've been reading your blog posts for a few months but tonight I'm enjoying your extra features. I love your story. It's similar to mine. When I became a stay at home mom I swore I wouldn't wear jeans everyday...but that did happen. I've been working on my daily style so it's fun to read your story!
ReplyDeleteLaurie
Hi! I just moved to St. Louis and am desperate for hairstylist! I wear my hair in a longish "Middy." I was lucky in Chicago that I could just go for shampoo/sets every week with the Rockabilly crowd. Here...no so much. The phrase "wet set" or "Middy" just leads to blank stares at best. Where do you go? Do you like it?
ReplyDeleteOh hi, Welcome to St Louis! I see Nikki at Lake St Louis Wigs and Cuts. Its not a fancy retro salon but she really knows her stuff when it comes to authentic vintage hair styling and cuts. She can cut a middy by the diagram very well but she's a great listener if you want something more modified. She recently cut a 60s style bob for me and did an amazing job, I've always been very happy with her work.
Delete