The Word from the Bird

Lately, I've been on a serious true-vintage kick. I'd been searching through Etsy for a while and adding lovely midcentury dresses to my cart, but the love affair really started in earnest with my trip to Vintage Garage in May. I snagged three amazing dresses for a song and realized that there's something extra exciting about finding a unique dress with a history of its own. When I set out to narrow down my Etsy cart and take the plunge on a few more dresses, this Word from the Bird number was at the very top of my list!

I've said it before, but there seems to be something in the water in Australia or something, because some of the most amazing vintage sellers, pinup girls, and vintage-reproduction companies I've come across are based there! My favorite hair flowers? They travel almost 10,000 miles from Daisy Jean Floral Designs to my head.

So of course, I've kept a weather eye on Word from the Bird's Etsy shop ever since I realized that it was where one of my favorite Instagrammers and all-around awesome human Missi snags a ton of amazing true vintage. And when I saw this adorable butter-yellow cotton sundress with the cutest little collar in my size, I knew it was the perfect choice for my first Australian vintage piece!

Seriously, this is the cutest novelty print I've come across in my size, and the lavender, teal, and sage in the print make styling and accessorizing this piece super fun and easy. Well, it'll be easy once I have a waist again. You wouldn't believe how much of a miracle it was to fit that skinny little lavender belt between my baby bump and my bustline! (As you can see above, it gets swallowed whole when I pose in certain positions.)

I was so ridiculously excited to get this dress that I checked the tracking a gazillion times a day. All seemed to be going well, until suddenly, something went wrong. The Postal Service website said it was delivered, but...no dress. I was baffled. Then I was worried. After a few days, I filed a missing-parcel form online, and messaged Word from the Bird. She kindly commenced sleuthing from the Australia Post side and triple-checked the address.

After a few more days of waiting for some sort of information from the online USPS form I'd filled out, I started calling post offices. Several conversations at several different branches later, I'd lost hope: I was told it was sent back to Australia. Sulking ensued. Barely twelve hours later, it turned up! I didn't even have a chance to message her between calling the post office and receiving the package. Miracles happen, people!

It was such a massive relief to see the package on my desk at work. It's one thing to lose a dress that's still being mass-produced and sold, but to lose a one-of-a-kind vintage dress in the mail would be a serious bummer!

In any case, I highly recommend ordering from Word from the Bird. She's conscientious, ships quickly (and refunded me the difference between what Etsy charged for shipping and what it actually cost), responds to messages in a flash, and went above and beyond in helping me to track down this dress from the other side of the world. Oh, and have you seen the gorgeous pieces she finds? I'm also a big fan of her layaway program, because it's such a nice change of pace to not lose out on a one-of-a-kind piece just because you're waiting for payday.

Obviously, I'm thinking Deep Thoughts right here!

I've already snagged another Word from the Bird dress for post-baby wear, and it arrived in picture-perfect condition with no delivery issues whatsoever. (And it has strawberries all over it! My life is complete.) I've got one more on layway at the moment, and can't wait till I can share more Word from the Bird dresses with you! If you're in the market for gorgeous vintage, be sure to check them out -- unless your measurements are roughly 39/40"-30", in which case you should stay away and let me buy everything in that size!

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