Sunday 31 August 2014

Gingham, Pastels & Metallic Brogues

I didn't get to wear these gingham pastel jeans in Cornwall as planned, because it was too darned hot, so I paired them with a pastel pink jumper and some metallic brogues to go blackberry picking, now that the weather's cooler.

Gingham, Pastels & Metallic Brogues

Thursday 28 August 2014

Second-Hand Bargains Galore

Back to what I know best - the bargains of the boot sale and charity shop!  I have been on a SPREE!  I mentioned in a recent outfit post that I had a bit of guilt in wearing an all-new outfit, so here's what I've been buying, and hence 'recycling' to help save the planet.  At least that's what I tell myself, to assuage a new kind of guilt that comes with having too-many-dresses, even if they are mostly secondhand.

Anyway, you just want to see all of the bargains I picked up, so here they are - it's very photo heavy, I warn you!  The majority is high-street, but there's a smattering of vintage.

Charity Shop Finds
Vintage novelty brooch, £1.  My best find from my recent trip to Bude in Cornwall.  I'm unsure about the date, it's got a c clasp closure and little jewels in the dangly lemon.  The colours make me think 1950s, what do you reckon?

Vintage brooch

Tuesday 26 August 2014

Hartland House Retreat Spa Review

If you’re planning a holiday to Cornwall or Devon, or aren’t too far away, then consider a trip to the wonderful Hartland House Retreat on the North Devon coast.  In a stunning location, with rolling farmland views down to the sea, this countryside idyll comprises a complex of pretty stone holiday cottages and a well-equipped spa.  I was staying half an hour’s drive away, in Bude, Cornwall, and went to the spa with a family member to celebrate their special birthday.

Hartland House Retreat

Sunday 24 August 2014

A Retro Spin on Jeggings

These photos are from the start of the summer, just before the weather went baking hot, so I didn't end up posting them.  Now that it's cooling down again, I thought I'd dig them out for you.  It shows me wearing the polkadot trainers and bracelet that I wore in my last oufit post with a denim skirt, and the vintage bag that I used as part of a festival look here - all accessories that I have worn over and over, because they're so versatile!

I know jeggings are regarded with horror in many a vintage circle, but I tried to make them a little bit '50s with the cat eye glasses, hair and colour palette.

Retro Jeggings

Friday 22 August 2014

Book Review: Popular

In 1959, Betty Cornell published 'The Teenage Popularity Guide'.  Fast forward to the modern day, and American teenager Maya Van Wagenen decided as part of a school project to follow the advice in it for a year, chapter by chapter, and her book 'Popular' is the result of her challenge.  Her family were in on it, but Maya kept it secret from her friends and peers in order to guage their genuine reactions to her increasingly extrovert - and sometimes plain weird - behaviour.

Popular
 

Wednesday 20 August 2014

Vintage Guide to Bude, Cornwall

In the first week of August I was lucky enough to be invited on a family holiday to Cornwall, and we were fortunate to have a week of the sunniest, hottest weather I've ever known by the British seaside!  We stayed in Bude, a beautiful little town on the north coast of Cornwall, and I was pleasantly suprised at how much there was to interest the vintage and/or history lover.  Here's my roundup of the best bits.

Vintage Bude

Sunday 17 August 2014

Pale Denim Pencil Skirt & A Leotard!

This outfit was supposed to be 1950's inspired when I started dressing, but somehow, by the end of it, it had lost any sense of that.  I started with the denim pencil skirt, but instead of the retro shirt I'd laid out to go with it, I changed my mind and went with a leotard.  I then chose to leave my hair loose rather than doing the intended quiff, as I was short of time.  And there you go, it's a bit more '80s.  My other half's comment was "like Jane Fonda".  I'll take that as a compliment!

Pale Denim

Friday 15 August 2014

Book Review: Peggy Angus - Designer, Teacher, Painter

I recently had the pleasure of reviewing a wonderful coffee-table book by James Russell on the hugely gifted artist Peggy Angus.  A skilled painter, having studied at the Royal College of Art in the 1920s, Angus also created designs for wallpapers and ceramics.  I know her best for her tiles, as I am a secret tile-obsessive, and spent hours wandering the Victorian streets when I lived in Cardiff, marvelling at the individuality of each tiled porch and crossly muttering whenever I saw that the tiles had been ripped out and replaced with plain Farrow and Ball paint.

Peggy Angus

Wednesday 13 August 2014

Ruby Shoo and Lindy Bop Collaboration

That's right ladies, Ruby Shoo, a vintage inspired shoe line - that's a bit like a toned-down version of Irregular Choice - has now started a collaboration with Lindy Bop vintage inspired clothing!

You can find the full collection on the Lindy Bop website, but here are my top picks to get you started.


My absolute favourites are 'Drew', in teal green with ruffle trim (£37.99)

Ruby Shoo

Sunday 10 August 2014

Example 1930's Interior

Hello there, and first up an apology for the 'radio silence' of late.  I have been rather busy at work and then was lucky enough to go off to Cornwall for a week!  The weather was smashing, and we were quite disconnected from technology with patchy wi-fi and phone connections.  I have an absolute tonne of catching up to do now, but hope to respond to comments, visit your own lovely blogs, and generally re-establish myself in the blogosphere over the next week.  I can't wait to hear what you've all been up to as well.

Following on from my zoo outfit, I thought I'd share some more photos from the Black Country Living Museum the other weekend, where we wandered into an apartment that they've decorated entirely in keeping with the 1930s.  I was really impressed with their attention to detail and wanted to share my photos with you all!  The apartment, whilst decorated in a 1930's style, is housed in a Victorian terrace, and so you will see some details - one of the fire surrounds in the bedroom for example - that reflect that earlier era.

The Lounge
1930s Interior

Thursday 7 August 2014

An Outfit for the Zoo!

The other weekend it was a warm day for a walk around Dudley Zoo!  I wore sensible trainers, had to cover my shoulders for sun protection, but wanted to be cool and comfortable, so I went for this little outfit.

An Outfit for the Zoo

Monday 4 August 2014

The 1930s House: Interiors on a Budget

What's been happening in the 1930's house then?  Well, a few small things since the installation of the art-deco inspired shelving and the dining table refurbishment.  I think I mentioned before that this is going to be a slowburner of a house and garden makeover, as we have a teeny-tiny budget and limited time outside of our respective work to fit it all in.

1930s home and garden

Friday 1 August 2014

1940's Weekend at the Black Country Living Museum

The other weekend I had the abssolute delight of attending my first 1940's Weekend, at the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley.  Tickets for the event were cheap as chips (£25 per adult for the weekend), and the sourcing of a budget hotel within walking distance meant that it wasn't going to break the bank.  The weekend promised two days and one evening of events, with music, air-raids, displays and acting.

1940s weekend Black Country Living Museum

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