How I Wore Vintage to a Surprise Birthday Pool Party

Hello and happy TUESDAY, vintage lovers!!!

I meant to share this post with you yesterday — but admittedly, the day got the best of me because all I did this past weekend was relax & unwind with absolutely NO work accomplished!

So while yesterday was major catch-up day [I’m sure many of you can relate to those Monday blues!] today is major summer weekend fun reflection day thanks to my experiencing wearing vintage to my roommate/best friend’s surprise birthday pool party!

I LOVE planning & attending surprise birthday parties — if I had my choice, they’d all be surprise “WOW!” moments for everyone to take part in. I just think that there’s something more magical and meaningful behind the spontaneity of a surprise. I would love to research the history of surprise birthday parties — my guess is that they became popular in the ’50s, when there was more disposable income and the organized family unite of the ‘burbs reigned surpreme.

While I can’t take credit for spearheading this particular surprise, I can take credit for wearing some pretty awesome vintage pieces to celebrate Jesse’s [my roommate] quarter-life-birthday in vintage style!

Keep reading after the jump for a glimpse of the vintage pieces I wore, and how we orchestrated this sensational summer shin dig!

Ask any of my friends “how much I work” and their reply would most likely be … A LOT! I’m the first to admit that the blessings of my energy can also be a roadblock to socialization, because I have a burning fire in me to “get things done” even when the day or time calls for R&R to live in the moment of this beautiful life.

While I’m probably always going to be a workaholic, I do cherish the memories of just being to simply …. be. This is something I am always coming back to: The understanding that no matter how hard we “work,” there will ALWAYS be more to do. So take the time you deserve to enjoy your friends, family and the fun they bring into your life.

I’m so thankful for my roommate’s positive influence in my life: His 25 years on this planet are full of such compassion, care and genuine friendship! I am always inspired by his example of work-life-balance, and I loved sharing an afternoon of poolside play with a best friend and group of positive people who reminded me to stop and smell the roses [in an itty bitty pink ’80s bikini, no less!]

Here’s to a happy rest of your summer and to experiencing the calm joy of just “being” for an afternoon [or more!]

xx, SD

CELEBRATING A QUARTER CENTURY OF LIFE!

1 / No birthday party is complete without cupcakes …. and the mini ones taste BETTER!

2 / I’m sure many of you are wishing you were in this pool RIGHT NOW!

3 / Jesse is the EIC and talent behind the Broadway show review site Stage Rush. One of his favorite shows of all time is Spring Awakening — he’s seen it nearly 30 times!

So we only found it appropriate to decorate the pool area with printed pictures of the cast in action, and to require that we all “dress up” as if attending a poolside Broadway show.

This was part of Jesse’s surprise: He was instructed to dress in his best suit, and to blindfold himself before being picked up by a friend. The blindfold obviously prevented him from knowing where he was headed. And when he arrived, he had no idea he was at his friend’s pool!

4 / Remember “Trolls?!” I do! I loved playing with their hair and those jewels in their belly buttons. So cute! We found these almost vintage Troll cone hats to strap on our heads for childhood nostalgia sake.

5 / Posing for a group picture with a photo from the Spring Awakening Broadway show. Literally a minute after the picture was taken, we all stripped into our bathing suits and jumped in the pool ASAP!

 

POOLSIDE PARTY IN VINTAGE STYLE!

1 -2  / To celebrate the “surprise entrance” of the birthday boy himself, I’m wearing a 1930s silk bias cut slip dress purchased when I went vintage shopping with Jessi Arrington at Guvnor’s Vintage & Thrift in Brooklyn.

The dress was a literal STEAL costing only $50. It’s a piece that I plan on keeping until I have a daughter of my own. And by then, it will be over 100 years old and considered antique! This dress is currently the oldest piece of clothing I own.

I found the 1940s pleated white turban at Hooti’s Vintage Couture, also in Brooklyn. It was on sale for less than $30 — another great vintage find at a fraction of its true value.

3 / No, my shoes AREN’T vintage … but I did thrift these shiny sequin shoes from one of my favorite Goodwill stores. The brand is by Payless, which I have remained a loyal fan of since my mom first took me shopping for shoes there in middle school.

 

SWIMMING STYLE FROM THE PAST

1 -2 / I didn’t buy this itty bitty hot pink vintage ’80s bikini … I CLOSET HAULED IT!

Ironically, this is Jesse’s mother’s vintage bikini that she gifted me when cleaning out her closet a few months ago. You can watch the episode here, and see how I gave away a few of her pieces to spread vintage love.

Jesse didn’t really have a comment on the fact that I was wearing his mom’s bikini. The more I type, the more strange I think it is … LOL!

But honestly, vintage lovers, nothing beats having an itty bitty bikini in bright pink. I felt a bit like Barbie! Now where’s my Ken?!

GET YOUR OWN! ’80s HOT PINK BIKINI

Available on Etsy, $16

GET YOUR OWN BIAS CUT DRESS!

Available on Etsy, $65

GET YOUR OWN WHITE TURBAN!

Available on Etsy, $38

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSE!!!

1 / Jesse and I have been NYC roommates for 3 years, and friends for 5! Sharing our lives as friends/NYCers together has been amazing these past few years — I can only imagine what the next 5 years will bring!!

2 / Jesse opening his card and gift as we anxiously crowd around him. Pressure’s on!