This is the time of year when most of us in the Northern Hemisphere are warm (or hot) and could use a break.
First, if you don’t keep track of denisebrain on Facebook, I invite you there now for a cool break on vintage clothing.
Second, check out my August theme, which is fashionably late this month...appropriate to the theme:
I am OVERJOYED to say that the manatee fundraiser put on by Rosie and me reached our goal, on the button.
Of course there is no way we could have reached this goal without very generous support from many people: Customers who purchased from my denisebrain vintage shops, those who contributed directly on my YouCaring page, and all those who spread the word and offered encouragement.
My greatest thanks goes to the Save the Manatee Club for being the manatee’s constant advocate. I have just sent them the proceeds of our fundraiser, $1000.
Yes Rosie, we did it!! (photo of Rosie the manatee by William Garvin)
This is the time of year when I hand wash clothing that I’ve saved up for fair weather. I have two laundry lines and hang the clothes out to dry. Nothing quite like the smell of clean laundry-line clothes!
My July theme is a tribute to my clothesline and the summer breeze that dries everything so quickly and well. It’s a vintage technique that I can thoroughly endorse.
 |
And here I thought only my manatee understands me...I am bowled over by the understanding and support Rosie and I are receiving for Save the Manatee Club. Many thanks to those who have spread the word, donated money, or purchased from my vintage collections online. Bad hair day? I am having a bad hair life, so there’s nothing more handy to me than being able to compensate with a beautiful scarf. This look, glamorized by Sophia Loren, looks vaguely peasant-y while adding vintage je ne sais quoi.
I couldn’t resist adding the door knocker earrings...anyone need her fortune told?
 |
 |
 |
 |
If you read my blog, my Facebook page posts, my tweets on Twitter, or know me personally, you are certain to be aware that I have a thing about manatees. I love the gentle giants, and am deeply concerned for them as an endangered species that is terribly vulnerable.
Photo © David Schrichte
Last year was the worst on record for Florida manatees, with an estimated 829 perishing. With no natural predators, their adversaries are humans. Every year many manatees are killed or injured by boat strikes. In addition, we encroach upon and pollute the manatees’ vital habitat.
With humans so responsible for the grave endangerment of the manatee, we must also be responsible for their survival.
Save the Manatee Club is devoted entirely to the survival of the manatee and its habitat. Manatees have no greater friend than SMC, and I support them whole-heartedly.
That’s why today I am announcing that 25% of my sales for the next month (June 17-July 17) will go to Save the Manatee Club, with a goal of raising $500. I have also set up a YouCaring.com
page for those who don’t find any vintage to suit themselves but who would like to help.
$500 is a lot of money, and a sum I could never offer up on my own, but my customers have always come through, and I know will want to do their part for the manatees again.
In fact, I’m confident enough to pose as Rosie!
Appropriately, I have just symbolically adopted a manatee named Rosie as the honorary manatee of denisebrain.com and this campaign.
Rosie is a beloved manatee, known to all who visit Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. She is decidedly vintage, having first been brought into captivity in 1968. Rosie is not a suitable candidate for being released into the wild because she has an equilibrium problem that causes her to swim in right-hand circles. Instead, she is the babysitter to the orphaned and injured young manatees brought to Homosassa for rehabilitation, nursing the calves and shepherding them around the spring waters.
Rosie, photo © William Gavin
Rosie epitomizes all manatees, who are known for their great intelligence and gentle good nature. While Rosie may have a home safe from boats and other perils living at Homosassa Springs, most of the few thousand Florida manatees left do not.
For Rosie and all endangered manatees, please help me reach this goal. I know
We Can Do It!
 |
Any woman who was young in the 1950s probably had a chiffon scarf tied around her hair or her neck at one point. I chose Natalie Wood as my icon fort his because she had the perfect teenage look in that period.
The scarf I’m wearing today is a 1950s souvenir of Hawaii, and it could be worn the sock hop way, with a knot to the side of the neck.
Or I could go the headscarf route, which certainly shows off the design. (Darn, where is my convertible?)
I opted for a not-so-characterstic rosette made by twisting the scarf throughout its length. A pin holds the scarf together and a clip holds it in my hair.
 |
| Head wrap-tying icon: Rosie the Riveter |
Yesterday I was inspired by Grace Kelly’s iconic wrap, today I am tying my scarf à la Bianca Jagger.
I know you will recognize her white jacket, but she also wore a lovely choker made of a scarf with a pin front and center.
To emulate this, I took a small square scarf, folded it in half diagonally and rolled it to make a band. Because the fabric is on the bias, it has some flexibility and makes a comfortable choker. I added a pin to the front and tied the scarf in back.
