What the Art Teacher Wore #27

Monday in Paris: Well, not really. More like Monday-in-St.-Louis-Outside-of-a-Parisian-Themed-Shop. Which happened to be closed on Monday. Figures. But when I return (not on a Monday), I will venture into Gisele's, what with my current Paris obsession and all.  top: Banana Republic picked up at a yard sale; hanky skirt: made by me, tutorial here; belt: made by me; sandals: old, Target

Hey there, kids! This past week, while hubs was on vacation, we took a road trip to St. Louis to visit some friends. I had this nutty notion that it might be cooler in St. Louie since it's north of Nashville. Yeah, not so. It was 110 degrees. Hubs said he could feel his eyeballs roasting in his skull while I felt like I was walking around inside the mouth of a fire-breathing dragon. Thankfully that mouth was chuck full of great vintage shops...complete with air conditioning. 

I thought I'd let you in on some of my favorite vintage shops and restaurants in St. Louis. Sadly, we didn't stay long enough to visit all of the shops, so if I've missed any gems, please leave me a comment and let me know. I'd love to plan another road trip to this great city...once it's cooled down to a low 98 degrees, of course. I'll be sure to bring my sweater on that trip.

I hit as many vintage shops as I could including the gem Retro 101/Cherry Bomb. This place is packed full of vintage awesomeness and I spent close to an hour pouring over the racks and trying things on. I found their prices to be very reasonable and I walked out of there with a couple of dresses (one of which I'm wearing on Tuesday) and a beautiful full butterfly skirt with a matching butterfly brooch.

A peak inside the shop. I also hit the very cute Vintage Haberdashery but didn't manage to get a photo. That shop was just as lovely. Some of their cuter items were for rent as costumes only. Both places had the kindest of ladies working there which is always a plus. Ruth's Vintage was also on the same street as Retro 101 but was closed. Sad face.

Pizza by the Pound Tuesday: Hubs has decided to become a Pizza Connoisseur. As such, he's taken it upon himself to find the best pizza joint in each town we visit. In St. Louis, that meant we ate at Pi Pizzeria which had an amazing deep dish on a cornmeal crust. When driving home, we stopped in Paducah, Kentucky at Pizza by the Pound where the owners proudly displayed their vast Marilyn Monroe and Elvis collections. dress: vintage from Retro 101/Cherry Bomb

Sweet. Appropriate given that my summer began with a trip to Graceland.

Welcome Home Wednesday: On the drive home, hubs plotted out a path of thrift shops to hit along the way. This handmade peachy gem was one of Tuesday's finds. dress: handmade vintage, thrifted; sandals: Target; belt: Pinky Otto, New York

Now if you find yourself in St. Louie, there are two things you MUST do. You MUST go to Ted Drewes for the most amazing custard in the universe and you MUST visit TFA which stands for The Future Antiques. The best part? The two are right down the road from each other. So you can go get jacked up on custard and then shop your retro heart out. 

What I loved about this place was that it wasn't just random bits and pieces of vintage but entire sets. It was like a vintage museum. The owner explained that nothing in his shop dated beyond the 1950's.

This is totally where Pee Wee Herman shopped to deck out his Playhouse. Totally.

More Thriftin' Thursday: That's right, the fun never stops. And on this day, I had a total thrift score: a beautiful 1950's stripped dress AND a 1960's cropped pants/cropped shirt ensemble. I feel a little bad that I had to knock a kid down to get to it but ... well ... a kid's gotta toughen up sometime, right? dress: last season sale rack Anthro

Our friend took us to this great area in St. Louis called Maplewood. Gisele's, the french-themed shop in the first photo, is there as well as this incredible guitar heaven called Eddie's Guitars. I don't even play guitar and this place had me reeling. The owner's son was kind enough to take us into the basement of the shop which I swore I heard angels singing when we descended the stairs. I have my heart set on the turquoise AND the salmon pink guitars.

Pizza and a Matinee Friday: If only every Friday could be spent that way. We rolled with laughter at The Watch. dress: sale, Anthro; sandals and belt: made by me

Just a few of my favorite things from TFA.

Poodle Perfection.

Dude, seriously?! I think I feel a new collection coming on...

Thanks for reading, kids! I hope if you are in St. Louis you'll check out some of these hot spots. And, pretty please, if I've forgotten any, lemme know!