Q&A Session

Kelsey asks, "Where did you get the idea to start a modest fashion blog?"

Bramblewood Fashion was started in August of 2009. When BF first began, it was just a random place filled with mostly sewing posts & patterns that had just came out. Oh, yes. And my High-School graduation gift - a trip to London, UK with my mom. In January of 2010 I made the decision to have the focus of BF be more of a modest fashion blog. {Back then there weren't many modest fashion blogs out there.} I wanted BF to showcase my everyday style and encourage other girls/ladies to dress modestly. To show that you don't have to dress frumpy to be modest. And that you can in fact, follow the trends and dress modestly - it is all about adapting the trends for your standards & style.

Lilic Bud Girl asks the following questions, "When did you first begin sewing historically/vintaged clothing?"

My first two articles of clothing I ever made was a pioneer dress {this was my first project & I made it out of an old 1970s sheet that was plaid}, and a costume I copied from Felicity: An American Girl Adventure {once again made out of a sheet}. This was in January of 2006. I was fifteen and a half at the time. I didn't sew any modern clothing until July of 2007.

Here is my first article of clothing I ever made.

The dress on the left is my first formal I made back in March of 2007. It was a 1800s regency dress. While the dress on the right is my 17th birthday dress {July 2007}, the 1950s walk-away dress.

Left dress is a 1914 afternoon dress that I made while on vacation in Florida back in Dec/Jan of 2008/09. The outfit on the right is one my Jamestown 400 costumes from June of 2007.

  My first 1860s outfit I made back in either 2006, or 2007.

"What is the craziest thing you have ever done?"

Maybe some of my food combinations. Like I adore Panera Bread's cinnamon crunch bagel dipped in Amy's mac-and-cheese. Yum. *grin* Oh, another crazy thing I've done is go to bed at 5 o'clock in the morning and then wake up at eight o'clock in the morning wide awake when I was 16.

"What is your very favorite thing to eat?"

Pizza, ice-cream, fried chicken, peach pie, buttermilk biscuits & gravy, coney dogs, milkshakes, pork tenderloin, rosemary rosted potatoes, whole chicken with lots of herbs. I could go on, but I'll stop for now.

Marie asks the following questions, "How did you learn how to sew?"

My mom taught me how to sew the basics. Hand sewing when I was about 5. Embroidery when I was 7 or 8. Then she showed me how to use the sewing machine when I was 8 or 9. I learned to sew clothing mostly from books, tutorials on-line, online classes given by Mrs. Chancey, and just by doing it.

My first sewing machine that received for my ninth birthday {1999}.  It was a Kenmore and I adored it until it blew up {2007}.

"What is your favorite era?"

I don't have one favorite era. {You will notice that whenever you ask my favorite I give a whole list.} *grin* But I adore the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s {and not just for the fashion, but everything}.

"How did you get into blogging?"

Back in 2008, our mom came up with the idea that us three older girls {Gabrielle, Hanne-col, and myself} could run a blog with her. It was called, Vintage Home Life and was hosted on Wordpress {the blog is no more, by the way}. Except, I was the only one who would blog on it. It was a good experience for me to learn the ropes of blogging, as not many people read it. In August of 2009 I started, Bramblewood Fashion and stopped blogging on Vintage Home Life. Then in October of 2009 I started, A Girls Guide to Home Life {it is the basically like how Vintage Home Life was}.

"What are your favorite blogging tools?"

Google Analytics, Google Alerts, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, Picnik....I think that it is all of my favorites.

Madeline asks the following questions, "Where do you find sewing inspiration?"

Period Dramas, Old Hollywood movies, TV Shows, Pinterest, Historical & Vintage fashion, Online Catalogs, and other Designers.

"What kind of camera do you use?"

A Sony Cybershot DSC-H10 8.1MP

Caroline asks, "What's your favorite place to find vintage jewelry?"

I buy all of my true vintage jewelry at Antique malls & stores. But I can also find vintage inspired jewelry at stores like: Forever21, Kohl's, J.C.Penny, Claire's, etc....

Lauren asks the following questions, "What is your testimony concerning your journey to the modesty standards you have today? Have you always held the same standards or has it changed, and why?"

Alright, I always struggle with how to answer this question when asked. As I've always had ingrained in me to dress modestly & do what God desires - even at a young age. I remember my mom talking to me about modesty & clothing when I was really young, about 5 or 6. We as a family have gone in phases of different standards. But we were just growing in Christ. Like there was a time I wore pants, shorts, dresses, and skirts all the time. Then we switched to only wearing pants on weekends and after church. There was also a phase when we only wore dresses & skirts. Now I wear skirts & dresses during the "school & work" week. Pants & shorts on the weekends & I'l wear them during the week when we are on vacation, or if the day calls for it. Also, I sometimes wear my more dressier pants on Fridays.

The one standard I've always kept is that if I don't feel comfortable about wearing something either out of the bathroom, or around my dad & brother. I know that it is not modest at all on me.

"How do you balance creativity in fashion with contentment with what you already have?"

This one that I struggle with right now. As I've had most of my clothes most of my teen years. And my style has changed a lot since then. So, I'm slowly changing out my old clothes with stuff that is more my style right now. Now next year, or even this fall will be a good time to see my answer to this question. As I'm almost done redoing my fall/winter wardrobe. Next up is my spring/summer wardrobe.

"What's your favorite era of fashion, and any special tips on achieving that look in real life?"

Like I said above, my favorite eras are the 40s/50s/60s. One of my tips on achieving a vintage life in real life, is to pick out clothing that has the same basic look/lines as the era you are wanting to replicate. For me, it is all about capturing the look/mood/feel of the era when copying vintage styles.

Maren asks the following questions, "What sparked your love for everything vintage? Or have you just always loved those styles?"

You know what, I grew up watching old TV Shows {50s/60s/70s} and old movies that I just fell-in-love with their clothing at a young age. So, I guess I've just always loved these styles.

"What are blogs YOU love to read? What do you recommend?"

  
Gosh. I read too many blogs to list all of my favorites. So I'll just list some of my weekly "must reads."

• What I Wore
• Someone Like You
• alltumbledown
• Kendi Everyday
• Marie Loves
• What I Wear, What I Do and Why I Did It
• Eager Hands
• Mrs. Amber Apple
• Elegant Musings
• Dreams of Frippery
• Virtuous Girlhood 
• The Pink Powder Room
• Marie-Madeline Studio Blog
• AmandaBeth Online
• Genuine Beauty