Vintage shake-up

After a much needed break after holiday craziness, Crooked River Couture is back in action! Hopefully everyone enjoyed our full coverage of Shop Local 2013. All of my Christmas gift recipients LOVED their all-local presents and I loved having a story behind each goodie.

One local purchase that may have been overlooked with all the holiday shopping posts was my new, too-perfect cocktail shaker from Flower Child. I was on a mission to find a legit shaker for Thanksgiving as I decided to make an after-dinner dessert drink that consisted of pumpkin pie vodka and Baileys. (YUMS.) After finding less than impressive cocktail gear at the likes of Ikea and Target, I knew I had seen cool vintage shakers at my favorite Cleveland vintage shop. Little did I know I would find EXACTLY what I needed, and for a great price!

If you've ever been to Flower Child you know the store is packed inch to inch with fabulous vintage finds. After scanning the drinkware shelves for a few minutes I spotted it - the perfect shaker! The kit includes a stainless steel cup paired with a glass pint glass that is adorned with classic cocktail recipes and measurements - quite helpful for the rookie mixologist. Complete with a long mixing spoon and strainer the whole set cost just $15! I added a lone double jigger for $2 just to make it all complete.

The shaker was a hit at Thanksgiving and I loved telling my family the story behind it. And yes, the pumpkin pie martini was delicious, thanks to my new vintage kitchen addition. Although browsing Flower Child's rooms and rooms of vintage clothes is always a good time, they have such a great collection of housewares, from unique housewarming gifts to fresh fun additions to your own place.

Be Cool. Shop Local. (last minute!)

We are days away from Christmas and that means it's time to wrap up those Christmas lists and get the gifts for the stragglers on your list! We put together a guide of our favorite local shops and boutiques, complete with hours and locations, to help you on your final holiday shopping push!

These are obviously not even near all of the CLE's small businesses, so feel free to comment with your favorite place you think people should hit up this weekend or send us a message on Facebook or Twitter!

Banyan Tree
Mon-Fri, 11am-9pm
Saturday, 10am-9pm
Sunday, 11am-5pm
2242 Professor Ave., Tremont

City Buddha
Mon-Fri, 11am-9pm
Saturday, 10am-9pm
Sunday, 11am-7pm
1807 Coventry Rd., Cleveland Hts.

Cleveland Christmas Village Pop Up at Crocker Park
Mon-Sat, 10am-9pm
Sunday, 12pm-6pm
Next to Coach in Crocker Park, Westlake

CLE Clothing Co.
Mon-Sat, 11am-9pm
Sunday, 12pm-6pm
342 Euclid Ave. (E. 4th & Euclid), Downtown

Collective Upcycle
Thurs-Sat, 12pm-8pm
Sunday, 10am-4pm
6202 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland

Crafty Goodness
Friday, 1pm-7pm
Saturday, 12pm-6pm
Tuesday, 1pm-5pm
15729 Madison Ave., Lakewood

Deering Vintage
Mon-Sat, 12pm-8pm
1836 W. 25th, Ohio City

Flower Child
Mon-Thurs, 11am-7pm
Fri-Sat, 11am-8pm
Sunday, 11am-5pm
11508 Clifton Blvd., Cleveland

GV Art + Design

Friday, 11am-7pm
Saturday, 11am-5pm
Monday, 11am-7pm
Tuesday, 11am-3pm
17411 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Lion and Blue
10am-6pm

15106 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Native-Cleveland
Friday, 1pm-9pm
Saturday, 12pm-8pm
15813 Waterloo Road, Collinwood

One World Shop
Mon-Fri, 10am-7pm
Saturday, 10am-5pm
Sunday, 12pm-5pm
19321 Detroit Rd., Rocky River

Paper Trails
Mon-Wed, 10am-6pm
Thurs, 10am-8pm
Fri-Sat, 10am-5pm
19146 Old Detroit Rd., Rocky River

R/S Boutique & Made in the 216 Holiday Shoppe

Mon-Sat, 11am-8pm
Sunday, 11am-5pm

2078 W. 25th, Ohio City

Salty Not Sweet
Mon-Fri 11am-7pm
Saturday, 10am-7pm
Sunday, 11am-5pm
*Check Salty's Facebook and/or Twitter pages for up to date extended hours!
2074 W. 25th, Ohio City

Star Pop
Tues-Sat, 2pm-9pm
Sunday, 12pm-4pm
15813 Waterloo Rd., Collinwood

Small Business Saturday 2013

Our favorite day of the year is here! Small Business Saturday is November 30 and we can't wait to hit up some of our favorite local spots. Of course we all should be patronizing these businesses all year round, but something about having a day dedicated to them makes it special.

If you don't know where to start or where to go, Crooked River Couture is here for you! Below is our list of special events going on Saturday as well as details on some of our favorite Cleveland area small businesses!

These are obviously not even near all of CLE's small businesses so feel free to comment with your favorite place you think people should hit up this weekend or send us a message on Facebook or Twitter!

Winterfest Holiday Pop-Up Shop
Saturday, November 30, 2-7pm
Public Square

Be a part of the Downtown Cleveland Alliance's annual Winterfest bash! Browse the locally made goodies and stay for the other Winterfest activities, including the Holiday Lighting Ceremony.

Made in the 216 Holiday Shoppe

11am-6pm

R/S Boutique

2078 W. 25th, Ohio City

Banyan Tree
10am-9pm
2242 Professor Ave., Tremont

City Buddha
11am-9pm
1807 Coventry Rd., Cleveland Hts.
10am-10pm
Cleveland Christmas Village Pop Up at Crocker Park, Westlake

CLE Clothing Co.
11am-9pm
342 Euclid Ave. (E. 4th & Euclid), Downtown

Crafty Goodness
12pm-6pm
15729 Madison Ave

Deering Vintage
12pm-8pm
1836 W. 25th, Ohio City

Flower Child
11am-8pm
11508 Clifton Blvd., Cleveland

GV Art + Design

11am-3pm
17411 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Lion and Blue
10am-6pm

15106 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Native-Cleveland
12pm-8pm

15813 Waterloo Road, Collinwood

One World Shop
10am-5pm
19321 Detroit Rd., Rocky River

Paper Trails
10am-5pm
19146 Old Detroit Rd., Rocky River

Salty Not Sweet
10am-7pm
2074 W. 25th, Ohio City

Star Pop
2pm-9pm

15813 Waterloo Rd., Collinwood

Be sure to use #ShopSmall or #ShopSmallCLE hashtags Saturday to share all of your Small Business shopping adventures!

Calling all vendors!

One of our favorite local boutiques, Ohio City's Salty Not Sweet, is looking for new vendors! If you or anyone you know has artsy, fun handmades or other items to sell, send an email over to saltycleveland@gmail.com to be considered.

The holiday shopping season is right around the corner, now is the time to get your name and goodies out there!


To learn more about Salty, check out our blog post from their grand opening in 2011.

Fall Funky Prep

Well Cleveland, today's high temperature was right around 50°, which that means summer is officially over and we will likely not see warmer temps until March. Maybe April. All right, probably May. But hey, with all the positives we have in this town, we have to accept some negatives right?

Although we may be hesitant to accept the cooler weather, at least we have fall fashion (and pumpkin spice lattes!) to keep us happy and warm inside. Let's take a look at my #OOTD...

I am all about the infinity scarf. Even scarves I've bought recently that aren't of the never ending variety I tie up the ends to make them that way! H&M has perfected this trend with their jersey tube scarves. The best part about this scarf is that there is so much material bunched up around your neck, you could, hypothetically, make it a blanket, a lap warmer or even a seat cushion!

Denim shirts have been in for a few seasons now which means they're easier and cheaper to find than ever. Old Navy has a wide variety from your basic light wash denim oxford to cute patterned ones, including always irresistible polka dots.

Fashion is nothing without comfort, especially here in the midwest. Comfy pants and jeans are now as accessible as ever. I have two pairs of these Jennifer Lopez pants and the black are a perfect pair for any denim shirt. Plus they fit like a dream and feel like a second skin on top of being cute, flattering and on-trend!

I resisted the oxford shoe for long enough before I spotted a pair for a cool $15 at Marshalls with hot pink accents. You have to commit to these and accept that they're a little masculine and a little preppy but their super cool and make you feel like a hipster (even if you're not into that whole scene ;).

Although this outfit may be fun and funky, color wise it could use a bit of a pick-me-up, and that's always where accessories come in! Multi-colored jewels are very in and easy to come by. Pair any denim/black/grey/brown ensemble with eye popping color jewelry to brighten up the cloudiest of fall days!

Stay tuned for more fall fashion #OOTD (Outfits Of The Day) all season long! The best way to honor the beautiful Ohio fall foliage is to suit up with fabulous fall fashion!

Fall is in the air...

It'll be here before you know it. The most wonderful time of the year. Not Christmas, AUTUMN. If the weather continues as it has been here in Northeast Ohio, Fall 2012 looks to be absolutely, perfectly gorgeous! And with the lovely weather of my favorite season comes, of course, the fall fashions! During the next few weeks I plan on previewing some great fall looks you can get for cheap right here in the 216! (Or 440. Or 330.)

There's nothing quite like a good day of shopping. Amidst viewing the new movie "Sparkle" and getting some hilarious and awesome goodies for the Jersey Shore-themed bachelorette party I'll be attending in Columbus this weekend, I got a chance to soak up some fall fashion.

Last year, I miraculously found my favorite pants. It was at Southpark Mall during a half-off everything sale at the Gap. While looking for a new pair of jeans, I came across one single pair of black pants in my size. They were soft and stretchy and fit like a glove and gave made my bottom half look like Kim Kardashian's. I was thrilled and definitely got my money's worth wearing them this year.

Fast forward about 12 months and colored jeans are all the rage! Bright blues, greens, reds and even patterned pantalon are must haves. Jeans are fine but I wish all my pants were as comfy as my favorite black Gap ones. Well my friends, I got lucky. On quick trip to the Westgate Kohl's I found them! BRIGHT, SOFT, STRETCHY Lauren Conrad Skinny French Terry Pants! I simply had to buy two pairs, one in trendy cobalt blue and another in fall friendly faded red.

Lakeside Labor Day

These both looked adorable with a black and white striped Elle peplum top and my new $11 silver boat shoes. Top it off with my favorite Target fedora and voilà! A great outfit for the end of summer and start of fall with a touch of nautical. This would be a great Labor Day weekend outfit, perfect for chilling at Voinovich Park watching the Air Show.

"Cock your hat, angles are attitudes."

As I tweeted last week, I got to go shopping the past two weekends! A rarity these days, on account of my shallow bank... account. But I had some spare change and thought I'd have a little me time at Great Northern Mall and Crocker Park. I even got into a kind of "what the hell, I'll buy it!" kind of mood. Don't worry I didn't go too crazy, just crazy enough. And by crazy enough I mean crazy enough to buy THIS hat!

Ohhh yeah. Here's the story... Remember when I went to LA last month? My friend and I did a little shopping in Old Town Pasadena and took a pit stop at H&M. There was this GREAT maroon fedora kind of hat with a black band and feathers on the side. It looked fun so I put it on and kept it on for the remainder of our browsing. When it was time to leave, bestie said to me, "aren't you getting that?" I told her I didn't think so, it was $17 and I didn't really need it. Turns out it didn't matter that I didn't need it because I totally bought it when I saw it here back home. I wore it the rest of the day at the mall and I felt so baller. It fits so nicely and honestly feels down right lovely on my head! I have thusly dubbed it my new fall hat and will be really mad at myself if I do not wear this thing OUT. I hope to be known as the maroon hat girl all around Northeast Ohio.

Speaking of hats, I also bought a new straw hat at Kohl's. It's replacing one I got there a few years ago that was actually from Guinness and had a fun shamrocky patterned band around it. But due to excessive wear and tear, my good ol' chapeau has just about run its course and it was time for a new one. This one is a bit more structured and has a very nautical red and navy band. I've already worn it on a few bad hair days this week!

Back at H&M, I also bought a great new bag. Remember my white lace bag I bought on eBay? Don't get me wrong, I love that purse but it's a bit small and honestly a little too springy/summery, so when I saw this Givenchy look-a-like in a nice rose tan I had to snag it. 

The other thing I fawned over at the Pasadena H&M was this feather-patterned scarf. The past two autumns I've bought a new scarf there and I absolutely love them. I usually get a really fun and colorful one, big and comfy that I can throw on with any outfit between now and March! Keeping with this tradition when I saw the feather scarf I did not buy in Pasadena I, you guessed it, bought it here. Can't wait when it gets really fall-y and I can wear it with my trench coat and drink pumpkin spice lattes. And wear my maroon hat, of course.

Skip a week to a quick outing at Crocker Park. I hadn't been in the new Anthropologie yet, which is probably a good thing because that place is down right dangerous. I want EVERYTHING but can afford NOTHING, with one wonderful exception - SALE ITEMS! This blue striped dolman sleeved top was marked down twice - from $78 (ridiculous) to $39 (obnoxious) to $19.99 (fairly reasonable). And now it's mine!  It's kinda funky but also kinda awesome and I can't wait to wear it.

I hope I didn't bore you with my shopping sagas. I just really haven't really been for a while. And honestly, even if I hadn't bought anything it would have been fun. Just being around fashion when I haven't for so long was plenty to tide me over! So here's to retail therapy, or, giving that whole "I'll go window shopping without my wallet" thing a go :)

*Title quote by Frank Sinatra