My Vintage Clothes & Accessories Paradises...

Hello Ladies and Gents,

Firstly let me apologies for not blogging for a while...with the absolutely stunning weather the British Isles has been having I have been more outside than in but today is to be a day of relaxation and recovery so an-in day it is... plus I see grey skies! I thought I would share with you my latest vintage finds and where I found them... I love finding out about new hidden gems so thought I would share them with you all. 

Dress & bolero - Vintage Fashion Fair

Vintage Fashion Fair - http://www.vintagefashionfairlondon.co.uk/
A good friend of mine told me of this vintage fair... it takes place once a month at Cecil Sharp House, near Primrose Hill. I went to the fair in May and it sold an assortment of clothes, jewellery, shoes and homewares - plus other bits and pieces. Its a snip to get in at £3 with a select range of original vintage stock with a lovely tearoom and by being indoors you can go come rain or shine - well worth a visit. 


Pop Up Vintage Fairs - Islington
Another great vintage fair is the Pop Up Vintage Fair. I visited an event held in the Islington Town Hall. It has a wide range of original vintage clothes, jewellery, shoes, homewares plus it has pop up hair and make up booth, repro items, artists, card stalls, tea and cake stand and probably other wonderful stalls that I can't remember! From memory I think it was £3 to get in and runs every month, but I'm not sure if it in the same place every month. They have a facebook page with full details and if you goggle 'Pop Up Vintage Fairs' it will tell you when the next one is.

Pepper Lane Vintage, Ludlow - http://pepperlanevintage.wordpress.com/

Dress & bolero - Pepper Lane Vintage

This little gem of a shop was stumbled across by pure accident! Husbandy and I were in Ludlow and I was hunting through the charity shops. One of the ladies in the shop said you would love the shop down the road called 'Pepper Lane Vintage'. I rushed out the shop and went on the hunt...when I found it it was like a vintage dream selling original vintage clothes (for both men and women), jewellery, shoes, homewares and furniture.  They have an online shop but going to the shop itself opens your eyes to all the stock the place has - perhaps Ludlow is now the holiday destination of choice?? 

Cardi - Pop Up Vintage/ Skirt - Blackout II

Blackout II - http://www.blackout2.com/
This hidden gem in the centre of Covent Garden is a delight for all those original vintage items. This shop is stocked to the rafters of original clothes (mens and womens), jewellery, hats, handbags and shoes ranging from the 1930s to the 1970s. This shop is over two floors and after some hunting you will find an outfit you wondered how you lived without. 






Ooh La La! Vintage Swap and Sell Shop - Facebook
This site is run through Facebook. Lovely people list vintage items of women's clothes, jewellery, shoes and handbags from all over the world  (a picture with some description on the garment) and if you want it you leave the comment 'interested' - this then ensures you get first dibs on the item. I have purchased some ear-rings and handbag from this site and have been delighted with them!

I'm sure you all have you own little favourite places to find your perfect vintage items.... please do feel free to share them with us and if you pop to any of them listed above let me know what you think!

Top Tips when shopping vintage style:

• Take a tape measure...I always find this useful as original vintage clothes are on the small size and to avoid disappointment I give it a quick measure up
• Examine the item thoroughly... this takes minutes and can save disappointment and frustration later
• Take cash... seems a simple thing but the amount of times I've gone with just a £5 in my pocket and then had to scurry the streets is countless!
• Taking care of the garment... now this is on a case by case basis. If an item is cotton I do risk putting it in the washing machine on a cool, low spin cycle. However this is not the case for everything as my dry cleaning bill proves so make a judgement also what the worth is before washing the garment
• If buying a vintage item online don't be afraid to ask for more pictures or more information - at the end of the day you need to know the quality and make sure you are happy before buying 

Happy Shopping x

Minnie Moons and Seamed Stockings

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

My vacation started with a bang (or should I say victory roll) by having a successful and fabulous trip to Rockalily Cuts. So how was I to match this on day two? By going to What Katie Did and having a moonicure by Minnie Moons of course! The last event I attended at What Katie Did with Lipstick and Curls was a real delight so when I saw 'Vintage Manicures with Minnie Moons' advertised I just jumped on it. I've always wanted my nails like this as it was a big part of the 1940s/ 1950s look. I've looked at many websites and blogs for inspiration - a great blog is Fashionable Forties: The buildings of a 1940s wardrobe (link: http://fortieswardrobe.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/1940s-nails.html ) so without hesitation, I looked what was on the menu and went for the 'Full Moonicure (extensive cuticle work, buffing, shaping and painting with half moons/tips)'. With this in mind, I started to grow my nails and look after them like they have never been looked after before.

Nails on my honeymoon (2008)

From a young age my nails have had a battering - the main reason was netball. I started playing netball at the young age of 10 and continued until I was 25. Netball being an alleged non-contact sport required short nails otherwise they were deemed as a lethal weapon (well, they are the way we played in the West Country!) so at the beginning of each game out came the nail clippers and snip snip they were gone. With this and the added bonus of having weak nails my nails have been constantly ignored. The only time they have looked any good was when I got married...and they were not even mine! Anyway, I thought I would treat myself and have these adorable nails done and embarked on growing them for two weeks.

Nails before...plus a slipper

The day arrived, so with my new hair, I left my home wrapped up to keep away the arctic hurricane and went to What Katie Did, Portobello Rd. Now, as you all ready know, I totally love this shop. It just sells the finest vintage lingerie, well fitting and beautiful stockings, glamorous Besame make-up, stunning Bernie Dexter dresses and now Miss L Fire shoes as well - I don't think this shop will ever stop pleasing me. I arrived at the door and was welcomed in by the friendly staff. Sharon from Minnie Moons was there - so I went in and started to have my nails beautified.

Sharon from Minnie Moons

Before starting on my nails, Sharon (aka Minnie Moons) discussed what colours I would like on my nails. There was a wide range of colours from red to green, but as it was my first time I went for the classic red (OPI Big Apple Red) and silver moons. Once the selection was made Sharon dipped, creamed, buffed, cuticled and filed my little nails before starting to paint. As she was doing this we talked about everything and anything from foxes to nails (obviously)! Sharon told me some great tips about how to look after my nails - none of them which I do but from now on I will! 

Red with silver moons

After an hour in the hot seat my nails were complete... gleaming and sparkly in all their moonicure glory. Now comes the hard bit - not to touch anything to stop them from smudging - and I'm pleased to inform you I was a good girl and did not smudge any of them! On my way out I was handed a little goodie bag of some What Katie Did black seamed stockings and a Lindt Easter egg - perfect!

I'd like to say a massive thank you to Sharon of Minnie Moons and to all at What Katie Did for a wonderful morning. Please, please, please get together again, I will be first to book. 

Happy Moonicures x

P.S. I'm writing this 4 days on and they still look as good as when they were done!!

Beginning on the Vintage Hair & Make Up Journey....

Hello Ladies and Gents,

The other day one of my good friends was going to a 1940s/50s party and asked me for some hints and tips on how to achieve this style. I was flattered that she asked me and sent her an email with lots of useful links for hair and make-up. I then thought I could share these tips with the wider community so I copied the email (minus the gossip) and here we have it! I still use these tutorials today as although I wear it as often as I can I still sometimes get in a tangle - quite literally with the hair - and need a quick reminder on how to get the perfect victory roll. 

So, for the hair....  the best piece of advise I can give (and being tip 1) is don't wash your hair!  I know we all love clean and shiny hair but for vintage hair it makes it virtually impossible to style and hold sooo please don't wash your hair! Dirty hair makes styling so much easier and definitely creates a much better hold. My hair (being fine and blonde) needs a lot of encouragement to stay in place so I usually don't wash it and put my hair in soft rollers. This leads onto tip 2...do try and curl the hair either by using rollers or a curling ironing or some sort of item. It is not essential and not all styles need this, but the majority of them do. If you use rollers I would recommend setting them with mousse or something. I use Lottabody which I think works really well on my hair - it does pong a little but by the time it has dried it's hardly noticeable. I don't necessarily put the rollers in any order - I just make sure all the hair is in and rolled over the roller and put in a headscarf overnight or for as long as possible. And the final tip, tip 3, please allow time and be patient! Initially, these styles will take time and with practice become easier but I always allow an hour (this usually is for three victory rolls - see piccie below) just in case one of the little buggers decides to be particularly awkward!

Trio of Victory Rolls

Now the tutorials I rely on are any by Classic Retro Glamour on You Tube. They're easy to follow and not over complicated - simple is the key! Below are some of her links:

'Victory Rolls' - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFEyhADnAv4

'Rolling with Pin Ups' - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZTF8cGliqY&feature=fvwrel

'Glamourous sweep to the side' - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9h2MnA-elA&feature=plcp

A great thing about these styles is that you will be able to recreate them without spending a fortune on new items. If you're like me, you'll have tried and tested many styles before and have bits of hair wax and hair grips just lying around. To create these fabulous styles you'll need: a hairbrush (what ever you usually use), hair grips, hair wax or pomade (I use Layrite as it is amazing and takes care of all those pesky fine hairs) and hairspray (I use TRESemme Freeze Hold Hairspray). I use a lot of hairspray as I  like my hair to hold even if hurricane Bill arrives but I know that the rock solid look is not to everyone's taste. It maybe an added bonus to curl the hair first either by using rollers or curling iron (or if you're clever by using your hair straightners) - but this is not essential.

As for the make-up most ladies are armed with a mascara, eye-liner and an assortment of eye shadows not to mention a red lipstick that you bought but not sure how to wear -  so now is the opportune moment to use it and use it glamourously! Again the tutorials I rely on are any by VividMakeUp on You Tube (she also does great hair tutorials too). They are clear and easy to follow - piccie below of me after following the tutorial and here is my fav link:

'Authentic 1950s Make Up' - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvOOhTgWa8s

Vintage Make-Up

When it comes to make up I use a mixture of brands from Benefit to Clinique. I adore the Benefit's mascara and as soon as my eye shadows run out I'm going to treat myself to the new 'Most Glamourous Nudes' set. I use MAC Blitz & Glitz Fluidline for my eyeliner as I find this the most precise to use and get magnificent flicks. I also wear their Cherry red lip liner and Ramblas Red lipstick (as well as my newly purchased Rockalily Sailors Beware lipstick).

The best advice I can give is practice. You don't need to shell out on new gadgets or products - you can use what you have to hand and add items as and when you want. In a short time you will be looking like a 1950s glamour puss and wonder why you didn't rock this look before!

Happy Glamourising!