Vintage Jewelry by Elva Fields

In the spirit of vintage items this week, I bring you gorgeous vintage jewelry by Elva Fields.  Emily Maynard, the designer, has a great sense of color as well as a great eye for pairing vintage brooches and earrings with the right beads and textures. These are definitely statement pieces that want to be noticed!  I also appreciate the descriptions for her pieces since they provide detail of the beads’ origins and sometimes that of the vintage jewel(s) too.

I feel like a kid in a candy store every time I’m on her website!

At the After Party (Doesn't this remind you of jelly beans or speckled eggs?  Perfect for dressing up an Easter outfit.)

Must Attend 

Insta-Party

Fashionably Late

Some Kind of Shin-Dig (Love the shape of these African glass trade beads!  From far away, this necklace looks like it is made up of woven cords or rope.)

-Lana

Stanford Treasure Market

We just had a great weekend, which included a visit to the Stanford Treasure Market.  It is a biennial event held on campus at Stanford University for any antique and collectible lover.  The proceeds from the event go to the Cantor Arts Center, specifically to the Art Acquisitions Fund.  Not only can you find some really great deals on antiques (they price them ~30% lower than resale value, and usually by the last day of the event they are marked down even more), but you know you are benefiting the arts. Winning!

Unfortunately, I was just too excited during the shopping frenzy to take very many pictures, but I did manage to snap a few. 

Lauren bought this chair, which will be reupholstered and grace her vanity.  Stay tuned for the "after" picture, but here is the "before":

I thought this little horse was cute, but really did not need yet another horse sculpture in my house.

I did purchase this little strand of bells, but I only need a few of them.  You will definitely see them on our Etsy shop soon!

Wouldn't these duck floats be great in the right home?  They were marked down from $85 to $30 each. 

I just love a day of antiquing with the girls! 

-Katie

Vertical Gardens - urban gets green

Amazingly beautiful, amazingly eco-friendly, amazingly artful.  These vertical gardens are artistically grown by Patrick Blanc.  An article about him in SanFrancisco magazine can be read here.

Peep these.

 CaixaForum Museum, Madrid, Spain 

Musée du quai Branly, Paris, France

Marché des Halles, Avignon, France

I'd love to see these pop up in downtown San Francisco.  Cutting all the gray with some beautifull green, charteuse, yellow, and reds......can you imagine?

- Tina

Union Jack love

I am American.  I come from Irish and German blood lines.  I love the English and especially love the Union Jack.  Not sure what it is.  I have been to London numerous times and I love the city more and more with each visit.  There is something nostalgic about the Union Jack.  It reminds me of tea, royalty, the Beatles, and Coldplay.  I just purchased a Union Jack wall hanging from Urban Outfitters for $20 (it's no longer available, sorry)!  I can't wait to hang it.  See below for other wonderful Union Jack finds.

Decorative Things via Amazon

Classic Hottness

Wear Your Beer

Union Jack upcycled dresser done by Miss Mustard Seed (this is a great blog you must follow)!

- Tina



Japan Disaster Relief

I came across this site via Twig & Thistle and thought it appropriate to put up today.  Please give what you can, it all adds up.  They need our help and donations in general for Japan are starting out slow.  Let's treat them as they would us. 

You may donate here.

- Tina

Swarm Home

Here at Covet Collective we love anything upcycled and reclaimed.  I came across Swarm Home the other day and fell in LOVE with these bags.  Vintage post sacks, vintage table runners, vintage scarves.....all put together to make something absolutely gorgeous!  I want one, badly.

- Tina

Accented with Sequins

Pretty sequined items have been popping up everywhere!

Sequin Collar Coverup from White House Black Market

Merino confetti Stripe Dress from J Crew

Heritage Sequin Cowlneck top from Banana Republic

Jessa Scarf from Fossil

-Lana

Pixels

I am a big fan of Legos, so when my cousin showed me this great letterpress print by Physical Fiction (who used Legos to set up their print run), I thought it was totally genius.

Here is a close-up (so pretty!).

This skirt by French Connection made me instantly think of the print above.

And this Kenneth Cole silk dress also has a great pixel print.

-Lana

Pottery Barn's Vintage Finds

I was browsing the Pottery Barn website the other day and was happy to find that they have a Vintage Finds section stocked with some great products.  Here are just a few:


Eastern European Grainsack Pillow Covers

Romanian Pharmacy Bottles

German Beer Crates

Indian Kantha Throws

-Lana

Target Go International Dresses

In the past few years, I have always looked forward to the guest designer collaborations for Target's Go International line. Beginning March 13th, Target is re-releasing 34 of their most popular Go International dresses, from casual to cocktail.  Some of my favorites are:  


Tara Jarmon

Temperley

Proenza Schouler

Jovovich-Hawk

Rodarte

Thakoon

-Lana

Bottle Cap Table

While in Austin this weekend we dined on creole food and it was delish!  The restaurant had the cutest table decorated in a mosaic pattern with bottle caps.  It was very cute and I thought it'd be great on a patio.  So, save those bottle caps and get crafting!

How I would tacke the project is start by covering a wooden table with some grout (you pick the color) and then continue with your pattern by pushing down the bottle cap so as to get it to "stick".  Once your pattern is done, fill in the gaps with more grout.  Grout is really easy to use and it's water soluable so it's easy to wipe up when it's damp.

- Tina

Repurposing Vintage Rulers

Lately, any home goods, accessories, or crafting supplies with a sewing theme catches my eye. You can just image how I instantly fell in love with this vintage yardstick lampshade from Roost Living when I first saw it on Poppytalk.

At 320 GBP ($521), that puts it out of a price range for just about everyone I know.  But take a look at this cool DIY table also using vintage yardsticks from Country Living!  I’m sure you could apply similar principles from this tutorial to making the lampshade above.

-Lana 

Austin Texas - See and spend

I am headed to Austin, Texas this weekend.  I heart Austin.  It's fun, trendy, retro, and laid back.  Everywhere you look there's music, independently owned restaurants, fancy food trucks, second hand stores, small boutiques and can't forget the Tex Mex and cocktails.

For those that have never been I thought I'd share with you some of my favorite spots.  These are musts!

1. Austin is known for their fancy food trucks.  The array of food you can get off a truck is insane!  Check out this website for a list of great eats on four wheels.  Personally, I have tried Cutie Pies, Hey Cupcake!, Torchy Taco. 

2. Charming Charlie was introduced to me by my boyfriend's sister-in-law.  Think of it as Claire's Boutique on crack.  It's THE place to go for accessories - purses, shoes, scarves, jewelry, sunglasses.  It's a woman's dream, truly.  You can't purchase anything on their site (boooooo) nor do they have stores in Cali but let's hope that changes soon!

3. Bess Bistro on Pecan is a must!!  This restaurant owned by Sandra Bullock is amazing.  I have never had a fillet steak like the one served to me here.  It literally melted in my mouth and the glace.....oy!  The fried green tomatoes......to die for.  We had the best dinner and the wait staff and chef were super friendly.

4. Uncommon Objects is such a fun store.  You'll spend hours looking at the small stalls spilling over with antiques, tchotchkes, vintage finds, and more.  Every time I walk in here I walk out with something. 

6. Tesoros is fun.  All kinds of goodies from Latin America.  Great sterling jewelry, Dia de los Muertos goods, oil cloth bags, so much to list.  Super fun and expect to spend some time here!

This is just the very tipppy top of the iceberg as far as what Austin has to offer.  Get on the next plane and visit.  Oh, and a very cool, chic, and trendy place to stay is The Hotel San Jose.

- Tina

$3.00 (or free) cake stand - DIY

This entry will be short and sweet as I am feeling under the weather.  Weird saying....who is ever over the weather?  Ok, anyway, back to blogging.  I was decorating for a small shin dig at my work the other day and wanted to use cake stands for a cute display of cupcakes.  I sure didn't want to spend $20 bucks for a cake stand so I decided to make my own.  This DIY is super duper easy...........in fact, it's cake! Pun totally intended.

Hit up your dollar store for the following items....or use your own random bits around the house to make it for free.

Turn the glass upside down so the bottom is now the top, add super glue (or epoxy) to the top (what used to be the bottom), center the plate over the glue and secure.  Let dry per instructions and there you have it, your very own homemade $3 dollar (or free) cake stand!  You can also do this with a white dish, using a white bowl as the bottom.  It'll look clean and contemporary.  A tip, the taller the glass the smaller the plate should be as you don't want it to topple over.  Another tip, if your dollar store has it, use an ice cream dish (instead of a glass) like the one below.  It adds some curvature and looks phenom.

Well, that wasn't that short but it sure was sweet. 

- Tina