Vintage Hostess

I often scour the web for vintage and i find it so interesting how some items can go undetected and how other sell for hundreds of dollars or hit their reserve within minutes of going out to bid. As a business owner I often have to take my buying experience and build that into your shopping experience. The one thing that any online company will tell you, is that the product photos need to be clear and cohesive for a shopper to click on it. My best friend when shopping is that disgustingly bad photo that no one wants to click on. I live and breath for those ugly photos. Which is exactly why I choose this Dela-Ann Creations Hostess Dress to feature for this post. 

I will have to admit that at first, I passed this dress by. The photo was so bad and had a yellow tint to it but after a few minutes of searching something told me to go back to the dress. It had zero bids and just over an hr until the bid ended so I clicked and I am so glad I did. Look at how beautiful she is. 

I have lots of favorites when it comes to the Dela-Ann dress but my absolute favorite is the pockets. I am a sucker for a dress or skirt with pockets. I don't often want to switch out purses or even bring one so pockets are ideal. But in my experience pockets only work on heavier fabrics as the contents in your pockets stick out too far if the fabric is too light.

My second favorite part of this dress and yes even i am surprised its not my favorite is, the skirt. The colors are to die for. The colors and the design are bold and scream 60/70's. What may be difficult to see in the photos is that this skirt is quilted. So, its super soft and great for those cooler seasons. God bless Meghan for humoring me and wearing this dress in August. Love ya girl(kisses).

Now another neat detail is the detailing on the zipper pull. Its so retro and I can just imagine wearing this and having a dinner party with hard drinks that require olives or sugar cubes and music playing on the record player and finger foods being passed around. You know...when times were a little more simple and good conversation is all one needed to get dressed up and to have a get together. All without leaving the house. 

Another win, win for this dress is that its a size 16. Vintage is difficult to find in plus size or even a average size and this dress is true to size, even with todays sizing charts. It also has a built in belt that ties so its perfect for adjusting to different body types. 

So, as you can see, I love this dress and I am so happy that the original seller had lower quality photos and that I was able to gobble up this beautiful piece of history and share it with the world.

Thank you for taking time to read my blog. Please leave me a comment below and let me know if there is anything that you would like me to cover as a fashion blog topic.

xoxoxo

Rock Star

This entire outfit makes my heart melt and leaves me wanting to hug my family. I know you are probably thinking...okay weirdo this outfit makes you feel like that!? So let me just elaborate a little.....

This Rock Star outfit has bits and pieces of wonderful memories from my childhood and honeymoon. AWE LOVE.

This amazing faux leather puff jacket was purchased in London on my honeymoon, 7 years ago. I took one look at the puff on the shoulder and just had to have it. The vintage red gloves and purse were my mothers from the 80's and I remember her wearing them with some killer red boots. The black oversized sunglasses were a super sweet Goodwill find along with that amazingly bold vintage scarf....just imagine the creative ways to wear that scarf...we will save that for another blog post. AND...the black sequin dress was a dress that my older sister Brianna wore to one of our family Christmas vacation dinners when we were young teens. 

I grew up in a small Illinois town, made up of 3500 people and my parents felt that it was important to take trips each winter to the BIG City...aka Chicago, to help make sure that we understood that there was more to our future than a small town. We would get 2 rooms at the Palmer House and live like princesses for a day or two, walking all over Chicago and trying new types of foods and go to the theater dressed up like we were going to prom.  I believe this was the best thing they every could have done for us and it created wonderful memories year after year, after year. And because I love my family so much...watching Meisha model this outfit, just melted my heart.

How amazing are those EXTRA tall heels!? If you were in an environment where heels are not the best option or you are anti heels, I would pair this outfit with black suede wedges, sequin boots, combat boots or a cute pair of black or red flats.  

For Meisha's make up, we decided to keep it fun and bold. We drew attention to her beautiful eyes with gold liquid eye shadow around the outside, which highlighted her amazing bone structure and paired well with her bold purple hair.  

We also went with a smokey eye with black and a bright pink eye shadow and created even more of a rock star look by giving her a little wing with eye liner.

Because her outfit, hair, and eyes were so bold, we decided to keep her lips and cheeks neutral. With a model this beautiful, we could have done just about anything and she would have looked like a Rock Star!

The dress, jacket and scarf are available for purchase through our Etsy shop and Instagram page. Or just shoot me an email and we can chat about what you are looking for.  

XOXOXOX - Renee

Blue Skies Smiling At Me

When I saw this Amazing Blue Vintage Jumpsuit, I fell madly in love and had to have it. Not for myself....well kind of...I HAD to wear it once...ya know...make sure the quality is up to par. LOL. All joking aside, I had to have it so I can share it with the vintage community. I love finding vintage but it is not always my size, style or color but I still buy it. I think I may have a vintage shopping addiction. I truly hope to find this bad ass jumpsuit the perfect home.

This jumpsuit can easily be dressed up or down. It can also be used for many different styles. For this outfit we made it more late 80's early 90's by adding this bold pattern jacket with oversized shoulder pads and collar. This jacket will have a blog post all to itself. I just love it. but lets save that for another day.

If the jacket was removed, you would find two front breast pocket with snap closures as well as two front pockets over your thighs. I'm a sucker for pockets so this is kind of a big deal to me. The other big deal when it comes to jumpsuits is that is gives a good shape. This Blue Jumpsuit has an elastic waistband. Yes you heard me...ELASTIC WAISTBAND!! To me this means two things. 1) Because the band is elastic that means it will fit a wider range of sizes and 2) you will have a nice tapered waist. Which is important when working with a vintage jumpsuit.

If you haven't worn a jumpsuit before, its worth giving them a try. It may take a minute or two to find your ideal jumpsuit, but its worth the search. Jumpsuits can empower you while still making you feel femanine. You will feel like you can conquer the world and take on whatever it is life throws your way.  

For more information please visit my Etsy Shop https://www.etsy.com/listing/469566700/blue-1980s-jumpsuit?ref=shop_home_active_41

XOXOX

Renee

Girl Power Outfit

With over 3.5 Million people marching and supporting Women's Rights on 1/21/17, I have decided to highlight some of my most favorite vintage jumpsuits, to help those Girl Bosses out there and to inspire others. #womensmarch

I don't know who I am in love with the most, the model or the Jumpsuit.

Don't you just love the cut.

What I love the most about this Montgomery Ward Jumpsuit is the deep-v. Often vintage just does not fit us modern day ladies like we would hope. But with a deep-V you can adjust the top to fit our various shapes.

We choose to pair this blue and cream jumpsuit with nude heels, blue and gold costume jewelry, Vintage Red Blazer Style Jacket and Vintage Tooled Leather purse from Mexico. The best part of creating your Melange Style is that its all yours and you get to Mix - Blend - Mingle many different colors, patterns and eras.

You really want to know what gets me all hot and heavy when it comes to jumpsuits...vintage or modern..??? Man they make your best ASSets shine.

 Perfect Fit! Check out our Etsy Shop under @discovermelange for more vintage jumpsuits. I will be posting more throughout the next 30 days to support the strong men, women and children who believe in equality for all minorities.

And so it begins

My name is Renee and I am the owner of Discover Mélange; an online vintage and vintage inspired boutique

 I was raised by two amazing parents both with a passion for family, food, The Arts, being "BOLD" and being "YOU".  I truly couldn't have asked for two better people to gather genes from.

Like most children of the 80's, we were the poster children for bad trends. I know I am not the only one to fall victim to French rolled jeans, teased hair, applying WAY too much Aqua Net or the dreaded oversized shoulder pads! I think it is safe to say that we had to learn how to own, rock, and survive our childhood wardrobes.

Throughout my childhood, I saw my mom getting dressed in modern bright bold colors and patterns while paring them with her vintage hats, shoes and accessories. I always found it so fascinating how she could mix, blend and mingle different eras and trends and come up with this one of a kind style that seemed to make everyone gravitate towards her. She was truly the first #melangegirl and inspired what I like to call #melangestyle

Mélangestyle is about being BOLD and being YOU. Taking your favorite trends from the past and blending them into present day life, resulting in a Mélange style that you can call your own. The purpose of my blog and Discover Mélange is to provide exciting recipes, vintage fashions, home furnishings and entertainment, creating the synergy needed for a happy, healthy, well balanced soul.  

I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you! Keep checking back for more Melange Tips.

XOXO - Renee