Christmas Comes Each Time This Year

From our warm, glowing house, we at Alameda Vintage wish you a very special Christmas. Thanks to everyone who bought something from us this season. I hope your vintage gifts leave a wonderful, lasting impression on the ones you love.

As promised, I listed the vintage '50s Persian lamb/chinchilla fur coat I found last summer, in all its Old Hollywood glamour. No sooner had I clicked "Submit" that I already missed it. Whoever wins it will be one luckysonvabitch.

Have a great holiday, everybody!

xo,

Sabrina London

Someone Snuck In the Studio...

Mistletoe Vintage

It's a week before Christmas and we saved some of our favorite pieces for you last-minute Molly's. Here's a look at our holiday faves - from '60s minis to Pendleton cardis. Everything starts at $20 so don't miss out. Shop here.

Again, get your tookus to Alameda Vintage NOW! These won't last for long.

All Dressed Up & No Where To Go,

Sabrina London

Holiday Vintage

What a week.

I managed to model and list 30+ auctions, which will be ending on Wednesday. There is too much bomb-diggity stuff, so go forth and prosper, my space kittens.

The Myspace Holiday marketplace was kind of a wash. I brought the puppy and a rack full of vintage garb, but the majority of shoppers didn't seem like my usual clientele. I sold one dress; a really cute nautical '60s mini, which I hadn't listed yet. After I packed up my stuff to leave though, I found myself perusing a fellow booth babe's handmade jewelry stand.

Did I spend my one dress sale profit on a one-of-a-kind sailboat necklace? Maybe.

Oops.

Thankfully, my husbee's Christmas list is mostly Blu-Rays this year so I guess I can still afford to splurge once in a while. A girl can't help it.

December

It must be the holidays because I just sold half my inventory in one night.

I love this time of year. Christmas music, seasonal drinks at Starbucks, and the most elaborate light displays in West Hollywood (the gays do it right!). I finally mustered up the courage to cut off the fingers of my vintage '50s Saks Fifth Avenue calf-skin leather gloves I bought from an estate sale. I have a ton of them, and they're SO chic. Navy blue, cream, gray, red. Insane. The temperature dropped to the 40s recently so I've been wearing gloves, scarves, and wonderful thigh high sweater socks. It's becoming an obsession.

Last year, Alameda Vintage exploded over winter break. I'm looking forward to finally listing all those vintage coats in the back of my closet. I have a 1940's chinchilla trimmed coat I've been saving since summer.

My husband's colleague invited me to participate in Myspace's annual holiday market place, outside in their beautiful courtyard. Basically, a bunch of booths will be set up for employees to shop and pick up crafty goods. The event coordinator flipped when she learned from my husband that I sell vintage clothes. From 9 AM to 2 PM, I'll be manning my own vintage booth, just me and the puppy. I'm not sure if I'll be able to sell anything because Myspace is predominantly run by bros, but my husband assured me there are plenty of young girls there too. I'm looking forward to it.

Tonight at midnight, we're going to see "The Black Swan" at the Arclight. Must get dressed!

Ho Ho Ho,

Sabrina London

Winter Trend Alert

I predicted the sheer lace movement and was delighted by winter's heritage revival. Here are my trend alerts for Winter Twenty-Ten.

Roberto Cavalli wowwed the hipster elite when he sent a completely shredded taupe sweater down the runway and demanded $510 for it. He did a brave thing that day. He also inspired Urban Outfitters, Wasteland, and Willow & Clay to peddle much cheaper versions to a curious public.

I'm still not sure how I feel about dropping dough on something extremely DIY-able, but then again I'm seriously lazy. So it may come to that.

If you've been shopping for shoes lately, it's hard to ignore the plethora of mid-calf to thigh-high boots everywhere. Even the department stores are trickled with them in faux suede and rubber souls. I've already scoped out a pair from Target that I may require to exist.

But the boot thing, for all its fabulousity, is a little obvious.

If you really want to break with convention, the Next Great Shoe will be a revival on vintage '70s cut-out wooden platforms. This trend hasn't broken yet, but it's starting to appear in online exclusives and Los Angeles boutiques. I'm a big fan.

A quick search on Etsy led to some fabulous results "for any budget" as magazines like to exclaim. Again, I must implore you to pick up a pair of sweater tights when you rock these (they're open-toe, after all). So cute.

Time Bandits Vintage - $70

Moxie Vintage Apparel - $50

Mother Midnight Vintage - $35

Vintage Shoes and Boots - $65

HoneyComb Vintage - $300

Foolproofed - $35

Katamari Forever,

Sabrina London

Thanks Giving

Birthday Pup

This month, our little baby girl turned one year old. I can't believe how fast they grow up! For Sophia's birthday, we took her to Carney's for a scrumptious hot dog (her favorite) and the whole family watched Babe.

I can't explain my puppy's taste in movies. She likes animal movies, sure. But what she REALLY loves? Super gory horror movies with lots of blood and screaming. When my husband and I rented "The Human Centipede," she couldn't take her eyes off the screen. Same thing with "The Fly" and "Mortal Kombat."

Every now and then, she'll watch "An Education" but her favorite movies involve gross stuff. Go figure.

So here is a year in the life of Sophia, the teacup Chihuahua.

Nine weeks old.

One Year Old.

Her first day with us. We picked her up from LAX, where she was so tiny, she could fit in the palm of your hand. We bought her from AffordablePup.com.

It was love at first sight. Everything we put beside her just reminded us how tiny she was. Instinctively, this made us want to protect her. During her first week, we took her to the Farmer's Market, Target, Starbucks, Ralph's and just about anywhere we went. She became very fond of my Fendi Spy purse, where she fit quite spaciously.

Wherever she went, a crowd would circle. With her amber red hair and dark mask, people thought she looked like a little fox.

As time passed, little Sophia grew. Her short, chubby frame stretched out into a long, slender figure. But most curious of all, her ears got HUGE. Instead of looking like a fox, she quickly turned into a fruit bat!

To build her independence, we let Sophia sleep alone in her crate each night. But after a while, it became harder and harder to put her away to bed. She yearned to stay with us, cuddled in bed, watching movies and gnawing on chew toys. Eventually, my husband convinced me to let her sleep with us. Just once.

And now she's a regular fixture in our bed.

Easter time. Sophia got into the spirit with her bunny cape. Let me tell you: this is a little girl who LOVES clothes. I used to think dressing your dog was the sort of annoying Hollywood thing that dogs resent and owners relish. But the first sweater Sophia got kept her little body so warm, she would fight you if you tried to take it off. She now has a wide assortment of little outfits, and she just loves it.

Basking in the sunlight. It's a little known fact: chihuahuas LOVE sunbathing.

I learned this when I found Sophia curled up by the porch, laying inside the single ray of sunlight peering into our apartment.

Outside the Grove, in her Fendi purse. Sophia loves shopping. It gives her a chance to hang out with mom and dad, and sleep. Basically, her two favorite activities.

We entered Sophia to be in a coffee table book called "Hipster Pups." My assistant and friend, Michelle, made her this Lady Gaga "Paparazzi" outfit, or as we called her: Puppy Gaga. Sadly, she didn't make it in the book. All the winners were wearing black-framed glasses.

For Halloween, Sophia went to ZOOM ROOM, a canine social club that has puppy training classes and parties. On this particular day, they called it DOOM ROOM. Sophia was dressed as a pumpkin.

And finally here she is on her birthday. All grown up. 4 pounds, 7 ounces. We love her so much, and we're bubbling with excitement to celebrate Thanks Giving and Christmas with our special little girl.

Motherly Nostalgic,

Sabrina London

Come Here Fur A Minute...

I made a vow last year that I wouldn't sell fur coats again. They were heavy, cumbersome to ship, and a lot of people had different definitions of the word "soft." But then I looked at some of my favorite vintage stores' winter collections, and found myself quickly forgetting last year's mayhem.

Obviously, every vintage lover should possess a '50s mink stole, but this year what excites me are mixed calico pelts. Blending furs together can create a really modern, bohemian look. I'm also a sucker for mod fur collars and anything amber-toned.

Vintage '70s Arctic Silver Fox Coat - Bustown Modern

Vintage '70s Red Fox Fur Vest - Bustown Modern

Vintage '80s Shearling Trim Leather Coat - Bustown Modern

Vintage '60s Mink Collar Swing Coat - Bustown Modern

Vintage '60s Tweed & Opposum Fur Coat - Bustown Modern

Vintage '70s Rabbit Fur Bomber Jacket - American Archive

Vintage '70s Red Coyote & Fox Fur Coat - American Archive

Vintage '80s Fox Fur Trimmed Cape - Tinroof Vintage

Furried,

Sabrina London