Oh Ana Originals

Covid-times has caused quite the disturbance in my family's life and company, just as it has for everyone else. Back in late March I found myself slowing down, no clients, no work, and suddenly home and stressed by the unknown. I borrowed a sewing machine and started figuring it out again, just needing a distraction. Growing up my sister and I always played with my mom’s old 1970s Singer, it was yellow from age. We made a lot of costumes, and honestly, I mostly watched my sister do the creating. She was so good at it and the sewing desk was right outside her bedroom door. Despite running a vintage shop and endlessing mending pieces I come across, I hadn't considered making *new* pieces until this year.

Introducing Oh Ana Original Dresses! My current labor of love combines my collection of vintage textiles, and the urge to work with my hands.

I started this project with a thrifted 1960s wrap dress pattern, and eventually added my mom’s patterns from the 1970s to the line. Patterns she worked with over 45 years ago and still had marking from her own alterations! Each garment is a puzzle, embracing my favorite prints on each vintage textile. Meticulously hand-cutting every section while maximizing how many dresses one tapestry can make, two-ish. These dresses are new construction using vintage fabric and vintage sewing patterns. Each one is 100% one of a kind and unique.

If you're interested in this Etsy hand-made collection, here is where I have them for sale .

shop update

this is an ad free blog, but you know what - i can totally advertise myself right?! :)

this was a hard week as far as buying a house goes. i found a great house, perfect! but then we did some inspection work, a sewage scope, and bam. the waste pipes don't really exist and this house has been leaking sewage underground for years! a pricey deal-breaking discovery. as sad as it is, i'm also instantly relieved of a lot of stress. stress has been haunting me for weeks, so much tension! but, here is one less thing to focus on... so there's that. and who knows, maybe i'll be closing on a NEW house by next month anyway! (my closing date HAD been Sept. 10th...)

long story short, i'm back to the beginning.... the house hunt continues.

this is great for everyone else though because i'm now offering a store-wide 25% off sale! woohoo! no code needed, all items already marked down. AND here is a 10% code on top of that, just use "somethingnice" at checkout.

Head on over here

Vintage Finds

Why a is a vintage wardrobe more interesting than new "fast-fashion"?

I've been working on maintaining and updating my lil shop more often lately. Warm weather brings out my thrifty side. I live with-in an hour of a big military base which makes for a lot of interesting ethnic finds. A lot of war-brides, lady's from overseas who married American solders after World War II. We also see the homes of a lot of well traveled families. Estate sales around here are often loaded with worldly bohemian finds! I'm endlessly fascinated piecing together the lives of the house you're going through. The story's they have to tell!

One of my favorite finds are vintage kimonos. They feel so boudoir and special. Even if they end up being wall decor, silk kimonos are a pretty thing. I pick whimsical and unusual pieces for my shop because this is my own aesthetic as well! I love fabric, pattern, embroidery... and of course sharing my find around the world! I've shipped to nearly every continent, that's crazy! This week it was New Zealand and Colorado! Sometimes it's shipping Japanese pieces back to Japan. Or Indian pieces to Sweden... Conquering the world, one vintage find at a time!

So, if you're ever interested in what i'm digging up - you can visit anytime over here.

The Oh Ana Shop, an update

thrifting has never been so fun now that i have a vintage shop to feed. i now think about all the wonderful pieces i've left behind before my little shop because of that voice of reason in my head... do i really need this? yes. now the answer is always yes. this is sort of a shameless shop promotion post... but i really love the pieces i've been finding lately!

this crazy amazing jumpsuit below is one of my new treasures! after some research, it turns out to be by a wonderful hollywood designer, Travilla (who also designed marilyn monroe famous white dress!!). i even came across a photo of julie sommars in the same outfit... i may not have a wild cat to go with it... but this was still a killer find.

i'm still working on how i want to curate the shop, i wanted it originally to be more whimsical bohemian like my own style... but i keep finding sweet wiggle dresses from the 50s and 60s... so i guess i'm targeting vintage from the 50s-70s for now. i really liked Astral Boutiques featured shop post on etsy.

"When I started my shop on Etsy four years ago, I tried to sell everything to everyone – all styles, all eras – but I noticed that I was getting the biggest response from the items that lit my own fire. Little by little, I found myself creating a customer base of people who were totally on my aesthetic wavelength, and my shop started to feel like an art project with a retail component, instead of the other way around. Now everything I choose and make for the shop is a part of my personal vision of beauty."

i'm taking great inspiration from that quote. this is my goal for my own shop now. :)

well, happy hunting to all, come visit the shop sometime!

my etsy shop is here!

Ahh! it's here!

after months of collecting, i finally created and launched my etsy vintage shop! my focus is on ethnic and mostly 60s and 70s pieces - items that fit my own style and esthetic. every piece has been lovingly washed (often by hand) and steamed back into shape. i also want to focus on fair pricing. any fan of etsy knows... well, it can be really expensive! i want to keep my prices reasonable, hope my buyers notice and appreciate this...

funny story of my very first sale last night: i listed this fun batik gypsy dress fairly low at $65, even after seeing the same piece on etsy for $150. the woman who bought it also had a shop... and sells these dressed for $200+! soooo fair to say she purchased the dress to resell for quite the profit... oh well... still don't think it was worth such an obscene price.

well, want to check the shop out? current items are only round one... i have a closet full for next week... i'm starting modest because i'm about to have a crazy production week at work... 17 hour days again! can't wait to list some killer 70s boots though! another funny shop struggle... i'm not the best model sometimes, maybe it's hard to tell through photos, but i'm small. only 5'2" - and maxi skirts and dress are sometimes a joke on my frame, but i'm trying to do my best! (with taller shoes...)

The Oh Ana Shop!
(pretty original name.. i know... ha)