May 16, 2017

My First Blogger Meetup With Jessica of Chronically Vintage

Nicole outfits fashion, outfit, photo shoot, style, vintage

Sometimes life changes in the blink of an eye. When I first wrote this post, it was shortly after I had met Jessica. I wanted to write while the meeting was still “fresh in my mind” and before I forgot anything. Then, Jessica and I discussed back and forth as to when to publish the photos. We decided on publishing them on the same day in early November. This was in mid-September. And then, in October, as many of you already know and I mentioned before, Jessica lost almost everything that she owns, in an arson fire, on October 13th, 2016. In one day it went from excitement over wanting to post these pictures, to the shock of realizing that everything she owned was. . . gone. It is always hard to hear of someone suffering from a tragedy of any kind, but even more so when you know the person whom it happens to. It’s been eight months now, since Jessica and I had this lovely blogger meetup last September, and seven months since the tragic fire, and we have decided that it is now time to share the photos here on my blog. Since Jessica has made the difficult decision to now retire her blog, I hope that you enjoy this post, which I consider to be from both of us. 

—

Last July, when I posted pictures from a photoshoot my friend and I did, all dressed up in 1950’s outfits, I received a lovely comment on the post from Jessica, of the blog Chronically Vintage. She said that the post made her wish that “we lived nearby and could team up for a shared outfit shoot of our own” and that if she was ever out my way, or I was out hers, “it would be a blast to try and make that happen.” The thought had occurred to me as well, but even though it sounded like a fun thing to do, and despite the fact that we both live in Canada- we still don’t live that close to each other! I didn’t pin my hopes on such a thing happening. Fast forward a few months, though, and sometimes wishes do come true, in the form of my first ever blogger meetup!

A few weeks after that post, I received an email in my inbox from Jessica detailing her plans to visit Edmonton in September for a holiday. She so kindly asked if I wanted to meet up with her during her trip, since I live fairly close to the city, and it could make our plans of meeting in-person one day, a reality. Of course my answer was a resounding “Yes!”, and so a plan was made. It just so happened that I was going to be travelling through Edmonton at the same time she would be in the city, so we decided to have our blogger meet up that day. Originally, I had suggested meeting at the Old Strathcona Antique Mall, but as she had already planned to visit there with another friend, an alternate plan was made for us to meet at Rowena on Whyte Ave, the storefront of the Retro Glam online shop, and after we were finished there to continue up Whyte Ave and pop into any other stores we came across. We also stopped in at The Junque Cellar, which is, basically like it sounds, a vintage/junk store in a cellar. Well, I guess it’s a basement, but same difference. 😉

I love to go shopping at the best of times, but to go shopping for an afternoon, with a fellow vintage lover is really the best thing ever. Unfortunately, I didn’t find anything to buy (seriously, what is with the sizing of some things!? Everything went from too big, to too small!) but it was still so much fun to browse. We did discover that we have a lot in common, and it was really nice to put a face with a name, or well, maybe a person with the blog. You know what I mean. 😉 When we were finished shopping, we found a picnic table by some trees, to sit outside in the lovely fall sunshine and exchange some gifts. Jessica, remembering that in the past I have mentioned that I don’t own very many true vintage pieces, gave me the beautiful beaded necklace pictured here (it was so pretty I couldn’t wait to put it on, and the colour was perfect for my outfit!) and also a gold brooch of an artist’s palette (since my blog is called “The Artyologist”.) How completely special that, not only did she give me a gift, she gave me something so personally tailored! Jessica is such a sweet lady, and I am so honoured to have been able to meet her in person.

After we were done, we were able to make that wish of a few months ago a reality, with a photoshoot by her husband Tony. We took the photos in this walkway behind the Historic Train Station on Whyte Ave and Gateway, which is now a restaurant. As we were waiting for Tony to arrive, we saw only one person walk by, and thought that it would be a nice background for photos. Of course, as soon as he arrived, it suddenly turned into Grand Central Station, and everyone and their dog decided to walk through. It made for some lag time, but in the end we got these lovely pictures!

We didn’t plan our outfits to coordinate either, but I guess that vintage minds think alike! The colours of our outfits compliment one another splendidly, and are a perfect summer-to-fall transition. This day we were out and about, was a perfect early fall day, with the sun shining, but a crisp breeze on the air to remind us of the changing seasons.

It was a wonderful afternoon spent together, and it was also my first ever blogger meetup. Since then, Jessica and I have exchanged many emails back and forth, and I am truly thankful to have been able to meet her in person as well. This was my first time meeting up with Jessica- but hopefully it will not be the last!

Outfit details, on me:

Dress: Retrolicious, Nostalgia Dress, from Rowena/Retro Glam

Shoes: Hotter Shoes

Shrug: Second hand

Hat: Oh Dina! from several years ago

Necklace: Gift from Jessica

Purse: Bought in England