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Photo by: William Eggleston, "Untitled", 1975. Dye transfer print, 16 x 20 in. (40.6 x 50.8 cm). © Eggleston Artistic Trust. Courtesy Cheim & Read Gallery

When I first heard that William Eggleston has an exhibition on view at the Whitney, I think my heart literally jumped up into my throat for a brief second. I'll be spending Christmas in New York this year and this is seriously one of the best surprises Santa could have brought me for the season. I first started following Eggleston's work about 3 years ago when I saw a documentary about him, William Eggleston in the Real World. His experimental color concepts and use of everyday life and its surroundings as subject matter show the inherent surreal side of reality that I tend to find myself relishing in most of the time. I can't wait to actually see his prints in person!

Click here to see more information on the exhibition.

And here is the trailor from the inspiring documentary that hooked me on his work:

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NEW IN THE SHOP + A SNEAK PEEK!

Hello, Lovelies! We've got some seriously adorable vintage goodies up for grabs in the MouseVox shop right now with even more on the way tonight! Some of what's pictured above is already up and running and the rest will be up and running tonight at 9PM CST / 10PM EST / 7PM PST.

Please note: Tonight's listings will run for 10 days and I'll be subsequently listing 40-50 new items a week every Friday as 10 day listings. This way, I'll be able to list even more top quality vintage with a greater turn around rate, so get excited about that!

Hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving! XOXO

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A QUICK NOTE OF THANKS

The two fabulous pieces of jewelry depicted above were purchased last weekend at the Good Folk Fest in Louisville from my friend Katy at her booth for her company, Withering Elm. I've purchased a few pieces from her now and I'm never disappointed. It's hard for me to find jewelry that I like. I'm always atrracted to bright, colorful pieces with larger trinkets, but most of the time that doesn't go over well with my small frame. Katy's pieces always hang just right on me, though. BUT - if they didn't she'd adjust them to do so, as it's a service that she offers when you make a purchase with her! Using a mixture of vintage trinkets and unusual charms, Katy's creations are unique, curiously delightful and, most importantly, well made. So, of the many things I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving, having a seriously awesome gal pal with a talent for designing jewelry that I like and will actually wear is on my list. Actually, having friends like her and so many of the other special and talented people in my life that inspire me and fulfill me in so many ways is right at the top! That being said, happy Thanksgiving!

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DAILY WARES - IN THE STUDIO

Dress: Vintage/Thrifted
Purple Pumps: Vintage/Thrifted
Tights: Target
Sequin Beret: Target

Every once in awhile, I'll put a dress on with full intentions of photographing it and putting it up for sale in my store, but rather it makes its way into my closet - or on my body for the rest of the day in this case. Perhaps it's the bright colors and the vibrant floral print that caught my fancy in contrast with these cold, grey days we've been experiencing as of late. Or it could have been the ruffled sleeve cuffs that made me so happy that I forgot that my hairdryer broke, hence the au natural, out-of-control mess of waves that aren't quite curls atop my head. Regardless, it's mine now and my fondness of it isn't accompanied in the least by a twinge of guilt that I should have sold it, as I've been very good about not coveting too many things these days and haven't given myself a present like this in awhile. Afterall, I did replaced it on my racks with a dress I wore two summers ago and the purple pumps I'm sporting are going up for sale tonight, so all's fair, right?

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NEW IN THE SHOP + GOOD FOLK FEST

All of the items pictured above and many, many more were added to the MouseVox Shop this week. It felt great to get back on track and be able to list more than just a few pieces from my collection. There's over 50 auctions currently up and running and I was able to get a jump start on next week's listings this week, which is good since Thanksgiving is next week and I'll be doing lots and lots of cooking!

Tomorrow, I'm headed off to The Good Folk Fest in Louisville, KY to pay support to my friend Katy (she's one of the featured artists). Daniel Johnston is also playing tomorrow afternoon, as well as having his art featured in the festival. Sadly, I'm going to miss my friend, Ben, play on Sunday since I have to get back home Saturday evening to take care of my little beagle.

Hope everyone has a happy weekend! XOXO

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STEVE CROSS PHOTOSHOOT

Photography by: Steve Cross
Styling by: Rachel Combs (that's me!)

The pictures above are three of my favorites from the photoshoot I did with Steve Cross. Though, it was hard to choose, as they are all so good! I really just chose the 3 above since they are horizontal pictures from each of the 3 outfits we used and all of the other pictures in this blog have been horizontal thus far (OCD much?). Steve is a super talented guy and I feel very lucky to have been able to pin him down for a day of photo fun. Check out my Flickr to see the rest of the shoot!

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SHOES!

A round of adorable vintage shoes, including the ones pictured above, are going to be up for grabs in The MouseVox Shop starting tonight at 9PM CST / 10PM EST / 7PM CST. Be sure to take a look and see if you can find something cute for yourself.

Yesterday was my photoshoot with Steve Cross. We really had a blast! I styled and modelled about 3 different outifts for him and I think we got some really great shots (at least from what I could tell by looking at his camera). I look forward to sharing the results of my great fortune to be able to work with someone so talented. His lovely assistant/girlfriend, Megan, was a great help and she was sweet enough to dress up and pose in some of the pictures, too! Thanks Steve & Megan! You two are awesome.

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NEW IN THE SHOP + RANDOM FACTS ABOUT ME

Some super cute pieces were added to The MouseVox Shop this week. Be sure to peek in and see what's new! Things around here are finally starting to settle down and I'm not quite as busy as I have been in these past few weeks, so next week I'll be back to adding my usual 40+ items to the shop.

The lovely Dane tagged me in her blog to list 6 random things about myself, so here goes!

1. I'm highly addicted to coffee, pretty particular about my morning caffeine ritual and it takes me a really long time to wake up and get going in the mornings. I typically wake up anywhere from 6-7 AM and spend at least an hour or two drinking coffee and reading a book (right now, I'm reading Running With Scissors - I'm only about 50 pages in and it's an easy read, but so far so good).

2. I'm a closet science nerd. I have an unfinished degree in Cultural Anthropology that I consider completing from time to time, but I'm more interested in Biology these days.

3. I really only ever wear makeup if I'm doing a photoshoot for the shop or if I'm going out on the weekends. My skin used to break out pretty bad and I tried an array of incredibly expensive products and various peels at the dermatologist to "cure" it, but nothing seemed to work and I wore makeup everyday to cover it up. Turns out, I was just in a relationship with someone who really stressed me out because 6 months after I ended it, my breakouts ended, too. Now, I feel really confident just going out with a coat of mascara and some lipgloss if anything and it's awesome!

4. I love children, but I know that I don't ever want to have any of my own. I'm an only child, so the possibility of me being "Crazy Aunt Rachel" is out of the question. Good thing for me, I've got several friends with babies and children that I can babysit and return to their rightful owners at the end of the night.

5. I tried to be vegan once, but it only lasted about 4 days because of a cookbook I found at a thrift store with various recipes calling for goat cheese. I'm not really sure what I was thinking. I mean, I'm not really even a vegetarian because I eat fish (I guess that makes me a pescatarian) and if there's one food in this world that I just love, it's goat cheese.

6. I only own one pair of blue jeans that fit me (and a couple that are too small), but I rarely ever wear them. I wish I enjoyed wearing jeans more, but I'm really just more comfortable in dresses and skirts.

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DAILY WARES - THE BOOK NOOK

Dress: Vintage / Thrifted
Belt: Vintage / Thrifted
Tights: Target
Velvet Platform Maryjanes: Kenneth Cole / Thirfted
Glasses: Giant Vintage

The "book nook" is one of my favorite spots in my entire house. It's kind of ironic, considering how much I dislike clutter and how free of it the rest of my house is, but something about the stacks and stacks of books collected over the years is comforting to me. It's not uncommon for me to spend an entire afternoon curled up with a good read and a warm pot of jasmine tea, especially as Winter approaches. Art made myself and people that I love hang on the walls and the lamp on my side table belonged to my grandparents (for some reason, I was the only one who claimed it when the estate was settling). So, the book nook is a place where I can lose myself in the thoughts of others and surround myself with sentiment. The east coaster/west coaster coasters on my side table are not so sentimental, but they are made from 100% recycled tires and make me happy. I got them years ago at Elsewares, but I think they actually still carry them.

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Chicago + Louisville

I returned home late last night from what proved itself to be an amazing weekend spent with visits to two awesome cities - Chicago & Louisville. Both are homes to awesome people, killer thrift & vintage stores, a plethora of veggie/vegan restaraunts and record & book stores worth hours of your time.



My trip started off with a visit to one of my very favorite families in the world, The Traughbers. Both Katy & Ben (and their adorable offspring!!!) are such amazingly talented and sweet people and we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful afternoon in a more beautiful city. Louisville stole my heart and I'll surely be back soon.



Sequin Beret - Target
Scarf - Vintage / Thrifted
Coat - Urban Outfitters
Gloves - Drug store purchase in Chicago due to not being used to the weather there at all!
Skirt - Vintage / Thirfted
Tights - Target
Legwarmers - Target
Ankle Boots - Urban Outfitters
Hobo Bag - Vintage / Thrifted

Chicago is equally as amazing, but COLD, COLD, COLD! My southern blood was not at all used to the elements there. Temperatures in Chicago in early November are the equivalent to Nashville's harshest winters. Despite the coldness though, I had an awesome time. Most of it was spent wandering around Wicker Park, eating amazing food, ducking into various shops, thrifting (I found some seriously AMAZING coats - we're talking mink & cashmere here, ladies) and riding the trains. Chicago, you're awesome and I love you, but I'm afraid we're only going to be able to hang out in the Summer from here on out.

With all this having been said, I took lots of pictures this weekend. Here are some of my favorites...

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NEW IN THE SHOP + BUSIEST.WEEK.EVER.

All of the pieces above and many more are currently up for grabs in The MouseVox Shop, so take a peek & see what's new.

I was hoping to be able to list another round of vintage tonight, but this week has been another ridiculously busy one for me. In a very, very good way, though. Late last week, I was commissioned by a local dance studio to make a batch of customized shoe bags and was able to earn some extra cash for my trip to Chicago (I leave tomorrow!). Honestly, I thought I would make the bags and that would be it, but it turns out she really liked what I did, so now she's asked me to design and make costumes for her! This is the first paying design job I've ever had, so I'm pretty thrilled with the opportunity. Design has always just been something I've done for fun - I like making my own clothes and making things for friends, but I've always looked at it as more of an artful hobby than a potential career. I used to take a lot of photographs, but once I started selling work and participating in exhibitions, it felt more like a job than a fulfilled passion. I don't really want that to happen with design. And while I'm not really interested in making a career out of fashion design, I'm really happy about this. I'll be meeting with the studio on Wednesday of next week to discuss ideas and, I have to admit, I'm so nervous!

I also have a styling job lined up for the 16th with the amazing Steve Cross. I've been wanting to work with him for awhile now and he's been wanting to get into shooting fashion more, so I'm sure this will be a lot of fun for both of us. I'm still churning up ideas in my head for my collaboration with him and, though I've never worked with him before, I have a feeling that we'll mesh well artistically.

So, tomorrow it's off to Chicago for a few days of fun. After having worked 12 hours a day for the past 4 days, I seriously need it!

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WREN IN DOUBT

Last year, I created an account with www.haute-look.com that I have never used, but still look at from time to time to see what's currently being featured. Typically, I find myself pretty bored with what they have to offer, but every once in awhile I discover a designer/line that I didn't know about before and actually want to follow. Wren is one of those lines that really struck a chord inside of my fashion loving heart. All of this line's designs are so subtly subversive and the textiles soft & elegant. I highly recommend checking it out for yourself. Not only are there pictures of past & current collections, but there are a few beautiful films on the site that are worth giving yourself the time to enjoy.

(Pictures & text from www.wren-clothing.com) ///



Born & raised in the idyllic bastion of classic-American-chic Lake Forest, Illiois - home of Jean Harlow's all-girl's prep school and where F.Scott Fitzgerald turned socialite-chasin heartbreak into the priceless inspiration that fueled The Great Gatsby - Wren designer and founder Melissa Coker's ascension to helming her own line was the fruit of over a decade's worth of materialized dreams in East & West Coast fashion industries....

Wren was founded in 2007, and named after Jenny Wren, a sadly winsome little creature who makes dresses for dolls in Dickens' Our Mutual Friend - only the first ina long line of muses that embody the label's dedication to perfect imperfection. From the beatific lost girls of British photographer David Hamilton's lens to the indulgent Angeleno culture of the Sexual revolution-era ingenues Shampoo...In the end, these are emblemized in the line's air of free-spirited exuberance, restrained elegance and low-key sophistication.

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HALLOWEEN!

Dress: Vintage / Thrifted
Tights: Target
Black Sheer Jersey T: American Apparel
Ballet Flats: Target
Beehive: April Eubank

Originally, I had intended on being Judy Jetson this Halloween, but I didn't have the time to make my costume and decided to change it up rather than going with the pre-fab "sexy" Judy Jetson costume from Party City since sexy costumes of things that aren't really supposed to be sexy (i.e. bees, cats, Judy Jetson) are pretty cheesey, in my opinion. After I nixed the Judy Jetson idea, I was going to be a martian, but being the procastinator that I am, it was impossible for me to find antennae on Halloween day. Instead, I just bought some tensil with stars in it and wrapped it around a beehive hairdo courtesy of my awesome lady friend, April, and called myself "Outerspace".

My friends, Shawn & Mandy, hosted their "Hallowedding" reception at The Basement (they dressed as Frankenstein's monster & the bride of Frankenstein!), which followed their actual wedding earlier that evening. Here's a montage of Halloween fun from the night...

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