GPP.

After being stuck in a no jewelry drought for nearly a month i finally stumbled across some super cute vintage pieces that i have updated onto 'gary pepper pieces'. Can you believe i found all this amazing jewelry plus my seal necklace (which i decided to call 'dumpling' thanks to the adorable emma of Spin Dizzy Fall) in just one op shop? I don't think a lot of people realize how hard it is to find beautiful vintage accessories so you can imagine how amazed i was to find so many all at once! I'll also be uploading some adorable vintage bags onto GPP sometime tomorrow including a vintage Oroton backpack!

My lazy weekend has kind of extended into a lazy week so far. Usually, i'm frantically trying to prep and photograph over 100 new items as well as altering, sewing and sending out parcels for the store. But i've realized the only person pushing me is me and i have some pretty crazy deadlines with myself so for the past two days i have been focusing on perfecting the 'little things' that i have been meaning to finish for months.

If you guys haven't noticed, i finally put together a new layout for my ebay descriptions thanks to the help of my wonderful boyfriend who takes the time out of running his own graphic design business to help me out with mine :) At the moment there's some minor imperfections when you view it in Firefox so we're trying to smooth those out but other than that it looks beautifully simple and clean- the epitome of how i like my layouts & branding and nearly everything, actually.

I also finalized some of Chrissy's artwork today and sent them off to the printers so you will all be able to see my new swing tags and business cards in just 2- 3 weeks! I also hired my very first staff member, Jacquline, who will be taking care of all my alterations and sewing from now on so i can spend more time focusing on my own designs- how exciting! I'm in desperate need of more time as i feel my brain has been overflowing for the past two weeks with not only ideas for new products but also for new giveaways, promotions and photo shoots! I also have a very BIG exciting new competition that i will be launching on Sunday which i cannot wait to announce so i suppose in a way, i am quite thrilled to have finally had a productively lazy week!

The fashion editor of french FLAVOR kindly sent me this this morning. It's the spread i was featured in this month and i was so excited to see myself alongside fellow bloggers Sushi from Le Blog de Sushi and Zanita from Zanita- both incredible girls with an eye for beautiful things :)

{VISIT FLAVOR HERE: http://www.flavor-magazine.com/}

O X F O R D S .

{Pink blazer + pants + tee: vintage, shoes: orbit, necklace: vintage, bag: vintage annapelle.}

I'm so happy i finally found a pair of white oxford flats! Even after turning Tokyo upside down last year i still couldn't find any so who would of thought i'd come across a pair in Melbourne? They seem to go so well with every outfit i ever said 'oh, i just don't know what shoes to wear with this!?" and have me feeling all sorts of inspired, especially when i found my high waist black pants that i thought i'd lost months ago but it just so happened to be that i'd accidentally folded them as luke's and put them away in his draws... as you do. Anyway, i threw together this outfit when we went out on the weekend. A few of us decided to go out for Yum Cha where i defiantly ate way too many dumplings and deep fried goods that i had to unbutton the top of my pants just to breathe, which is always a good thing. This is also my new gold necklace that i found on my latest op shopping trip. It's so adorable with the face of a seal pup that i don't think i could ever bare to part with it, plus it's a personal joke between luke and i so you can imagine how cute he thought it was when i showed him. I feel like i should give it a name but i can't think of anything right now.

I do hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I'm drawing the winner to my march giveaway in just 6 days so please don't forget to enter! You can win a 1 year subscription to either frankie, RUSSH or nylon by simply suggesting our gpv facebook page to your friends list- so easy!

Oh, and genevieve and i also found this hilarious rack of dinosaur money boxes before lunch. Apparently, i'm daring and determined with the most ferocious fangs in town, who knew?

melbourne.

Four little words sum up my weekend: Melbourne, i adore you. I still can't believe how long it took me to finally make my way down there but after seeing how beautiful Melbourne is, i'm sure i'll be down there again very, very soon. The days unfortunately flew by all too quickly and i hardly got a chance to take any photos of our stay. Thank you to everyone who made a lovely suggestion, i think we covered alot of ground for just two days! We had an amazing breakfast & coffee date on Degraves Street, wandered down Flinders Lane and had a look at Retro Star (which provided alot of inspiration for my future en devours, it's bursting with amazing vintage!), made our way over to Camberwell Markets where i found some amazing pieces including a gold Escada jacket for the store, had japanese and gelato on Brunswick Street, Italian for dinner on Lygon Street, and watched the sun set from St Kilda wharf late Sunday afternoon. By Monday we were so exhausted that i think i used up all my remaining energy just running to the newsstand to buy FAMOUS so for the rest of the morning Laura and i just laid underneath a tree on the riverbank waiting for our flight out which was wonderful. Nothing like being in a new town with one of your oldest friend :)

Even though Melbourne is renowned for it's shopping, I didn't really buy a lot. I think i came home with just a few bits and pieces including a Woodford & Co tee and a pair of white oxford flats that i've been trying to find for nearly a year, as well as some cute vintage pieces for the store- how could i not? The highlight of my trip was defiantly St Kilda wharf on sunset. Even though i live over the road from the beach we really don't have anything like that around here. The feeling of being so far out to sea, the view, the atmosphere, the sun! It was absolutely amazing and extremely peaceful, i could have sat there for hours and hours as everything looked so magical in that light, even the fisherman! I will now feel a huge pang of jealousy every time i post something to St Kilda and wouldn't be surprised if i try to fit myself into their express post bag.

I stand by what i said before, Melbourne, i adore you.





{Shirt & Leather Shorts: Vintage. Tee: Sportsgirl. Rings: YSL/Samantha Wills}

print.

On Monday morning I quickly ran out of the hotel to try and find myself a newsagency, luckily there was one of those tiny little stands just outside the door! Gary Pepper Vintage was published in this weeks issue of FAMOUS magazine! I am so excited it's finally here, If you have your hands on a copy quickly flick to page 57 where you'll find a lovely little feature about the store :)

I don't look as happy as i should in this photo for some reason (?) but trust me, i was beaming ear to ear when i saw the store in print, and doesn't Charlotte look absolutely stunning once again? A big thank you to all the girls at FAMOUS, you really have no idea how much this means to me. I know i said it before but i really am still so amazed that people take notice of the store. In my eyes, i'm just a girl selling vintage to strangers doing something she loves, and that's the part that brings me happiness every single day... the rest is just a bonus.



{Dress & Jacket: Vintage. Socks: Topshop. Boots: Vintage. Bag: Claire Inc}

{Visit FAMOUS here: http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/famous/}

planning.

I'm here! Finally arrived in Melbourne this morning and can't wait to explore what this place has to offer, i've only heard amazing things! The trip has already started off pretty funny. I sadly discovered this morning that the 15 year old at macdonalds had forgotten to give me maple syrup with my hotcakes (how does that happen?) which laura thought was just hilarious. After i woke up from my delirious 5:30am state I got my revenge when i discovered she kind of had a fear of flying and 'surprised' her when we were landing :)

We plan on going to camberwell markets tomorrow morning, hitting up Fitzroy road and Brunswick, then dinner with a setting sun over the wharf at St.Kilda which i've heard is absolutely stunning. If you guys have any suggestions on where to go and what to see, good shops or amazing places to eat, please let me know! Any suggestion would be wonderful as i'm only here until monday.

But our first stop? Starbucks for a caramel mocha frappachino and warm plate of banana bread, yes please :)

F R A N K I E .

Morning everyone! I don't usually blog this early in the morning but i just couldn't wait. I am so excited to show you all the little mention Gary Pepper Vintage got in the new Frankie newsletter that was sent out to over 20,000 subscribers today! Seeing as i've been reading Frankie for so many years and absolutely adore their magazine, i can't believe they have taken notice of my tiny little store after only being open for 5 months, especially considering how many submissions they get every day! Next step? world domination! I mean, getting GPV into the magazine itself. They also may or may not have made a typo in my spiel so see if you can spot it and have a read here :)

Did you find it? It kind of sounds like i stock 'garage sales'? I couldn't stop giggling when i read it but honestly, if that's what Frankie says then i suppose i do!? It could be a pretty good niche in the market? In saying that, here is a preview of my few of my favorite things this week :)

IN STORE NOW:
1. Vintage blue floral garden dress.

2. Vintage 1920's black tassel dress.

3. Vintage white velvet cut out shift dress.

4. Vintage blue tye dye mini dress.

6. Vintage green pleated button dress.

7. Vintage nautical sheer pinstripe collared shirt.

8. Vintage pink taffata dress with bow.

9. Vintage CUE yellow high waist shorts.

10. Vintage LEE pale blue cut off shorts.

And just quickly, I'd like to thank the lovely ladies over at ModeRepublic.com. They informed me last night that i had won their fashionista contest and not only received $200 US but the spot on their brand new cover! I'm absolutely thrilled, what a wonderful way to start the week! Although, i'll be having a phone interview with them this afternoon and i am that nervous. I'll post it on here for you all when it's up.

If you guys aren't a member i would highly recommend joining. It's a 'International street fashion flipbook for the fashion forward' and they have just launched their new online contest that you can view here. $100, $50 and $30 US are up for grabs for first, second and third prize and seeing as i'm the kind of girl who never wins anything, it only means that you can to!

C L I M B I N G .

I was so happy to finally get some free time to play outside and shoot some photos of two of my newly acquired favorite things: my owl ring luke found in an opshop in LA and surprised me with, and this simple black tote the lovely belinda from Claire Inc so kindly sent to me the other week, aren't they both adorable?

After waking up yesterday morning to a warm plate of warm buttermilk scones with strawberry jam and thickly whipped cream, compliments of my dear friend Katie, i knew i was in for a glorious day! We decided that it was simply just too nice of a day to waste sitting inside working so we quickly ran down the road and had ourselves one of the laziest picnics i've had in ages. I spent the best part of the day relaxing under a tree with Luke and two of my closest friends eating cadbury bubbly mint chocolate, listening to music, taking photos on a purple lomo, reading books upside down and randomly deciding to do cartwheels around the grass (cue hilarious photos of us somewhat resembling upside down monkeys with our underpants showing!). We also found this amazing white tree with these little wooden steps leading all the way up the trunk. Even though i was dressed inappropriately to be climbing trees, how could i say no? I don't think i'll ever kick how much i enjoy climbing trees no matter how old i am or what i seem to be wearing. I did, however, forget that it's easy to get up but impossible to get down!






{Dress: vintage. Bow: DIY. Shoes: from tokyo. Bag: courtesy of Claire Inc.}

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! I have so many amazing things to share with you this week so expect a beautifully updated blog! I'm currently working on a massive 'Winter Wonderland' store update that you can see a sneak peak of on the GPV facebook page later this week. Expect embellished cardigans, softly knitted jackets, oversized floral jumpers and beautiful fur coats to welcome the colder weather here in Australia. I'm frantically prepping in advance and working over time this week as i fly out to Melbourne this Friday, how quickly did that come around!

Oh, and gary pepper vintage was spotted in the March/April issue of french magazine 'FLAVOR'! I've been in contact with the editor and they said they don't offer back issues just of yet so if any of you are reading this from France please let me know. I am currently trying to get my hands on a copy and would absolutely love if someone could help me find one!