Saturday 20 June 2015

Beautiful South Coast

Yesterday, I had a day off work and wasn't sure how to spend it to make the most of the lovely weather that we've been having.  In England, you never know how long the good weather will last so you always feel you need to make the most out of each day.

And it isn't just about making the most out of the day, I have to make the most out of my summer wardrobe!  I do prefer vintage summer wear and therefore have more of it than colder weather clothes.  So as soon as the weather becomes nice, the challenge is to wear all your summer clothes as you will never know when it will be warm enough to wear them again!

I chose yesterday to wear this beautiful pale yellow sundress.  I purchased this Jeanne d'Arc dress deadstock from a trader at Viva Las Vegas this year.  I had seen the dress there each day but it was only until the Sunday when it was reduced (and so cheap!) did I decide I really needed it in my life! 

 
I am also wearing a recently purchased deadstock necklace and clamper bracelet from Bow and Crossbones.  I always feel a little sad cutting the tags off deadstock items, as they are no longer deadstock once you do that but I don't see any point in buying something if I'm not going to wear it.  At least I know I will look after it.
 
 
We went to Hengistbury Head which is only 45 minutes from where we live and walked along the coast and then back down along the beach.  A great day to spend on the beautiful South Coast.
 



Dress: Vintage deadstock from a trader at VLV
Bag: Vintage from eBay
Necklace and Clamper: Deadstock from Bow and Crossbones
Earrings: Vintage from Etsy
Sunglasses: Vintage from Vera Mode
Ballet Pumps: New Look

Saturday 6 June 2015

"The Big One"

So here is my Viva Las Vegas 18 post after all... I decided just to post all the photos in one mammoth post rather than split them up into different parts (all my day outfits have been shown in previous posts!) 


We arrived in Vegas after a 4 hour drive from LA and the first thing we did was to stop at the 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas' sign.  The last time I went to the sign in 2008, there wasn't much there other than the sign but now they have made more of a feature out of the place and there were photographers ready to take that famous shot!

 
Next stop was Frankie's Tiki Room.  I heard that this place gets busy and not long after we got there and found a table, a bus load of VLV-goers turned up!  (And by bus load, I do literally mean an actual bus full of people!)  I'm not a big drinker and one drink was enough to be very tipsy!  We were happy to get some cool tiki mugs to bring home.
 
 
We weren't lucky enough to get a room at The Orleans and instead stayed at The Gold Coast. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be and the shuttle buses were regular enough that we didn't miss any bands that we wanted to see. 
 


 
The Wednesday night was a Pre-VLV show and we really enjoyed The Pringles - what a riot they were!  Although this wasn't included in the weekender wristband, I would definitely recommend going to the Wednesday night pre-party.
 


On to Thursday and the Vendors rooms.  I had mentally prepared myself for the hectic shopping but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  I still managed to break the zipper on my dress and break a fake nail whilst trying on items in the toilets!  I did get a few good things too over the four days of the event which you will start to see on the blog.


Thursday daytime outfit!

I am so happy we got to see both of the Charles Phoenix shows - he is hilarious!  And has such a great slides to share with the audience. 


Jai Malano was part of the Rhythm Bomb showcase and was fantastic!  I had seen her previously as part of the The Royal Rhythmaires at Rhythm Riot in 2013 but she is now a solo act. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


OK, lots and lots of really cool cars!  And this is just a small selection of the photos I have.  The Car Show was HOT and I heard that it wasn't even as hot as it had been in previous years.  I didn't see a lot of the music acts but made sure we caught Dion who was really good - Rock 'N' Roll royalty!
 
I got to meet Lynsey, the owner of Miss L Fire!


I also got to meet some of the people I follow on Instagram, including Lyndsay who always has the best hair!  And this time a FABULOUS hat too!
 
 
 
On to Saturday night and Big Sandy - it was great to finally see him after hearing great things from friends.
 
 


The Pool Party takes place all weekend but Sunday is the day when most people attend.  I found this 1950s Cabana set last year on the Facebook group Ooh La La.
 

 
The Cavaleros provided some great early 1960s surf tunes to get us in the mood.




This lady had an amazing hat!



Check out all the fabulous outfits!  It was great to see everyone in their vintage swimwear and pool party attire!

 
And we got to meet Charles Phoenix after his Sunday afternoon show. 
 


It was so great to finally meet Laurence and Sylvain (not pictured)!  I have been following their blog  Lost in the 50s for a few years now and they do have fantastic vintage style and are so friendly too.

And that is it for the VLV photos!  We had a great time but it was pretty exhausting!  Although I would love to go again, I also want to explore other parts of America and go to other weekenders.  This was my third time to Las Vegas and next time, I would like to go somewhere else...

 

After VLV, we moved to The Mirage to stay there for a few days so we could experience The Vegas Strip.  We also went to The Grand Canyon West Rim.  This was my third time to The Grand Canyon but first time visiting The West Rim.  On the Skywalk, Alan popped the question... and I said yes!  I absolutely love the antique ring and 1950s ring box.  Now to start planning a 1950s wedding!
 

Sunday 17 May 2015

Downtown LA

On our last day in Los Angeles, we visited some landmarks in Downtown LA, including The Bradbury Building, Olvera Street, Union Station and City Hall.



 
Union Station and The Bradbury Building have some significance to me as they were used as filming locations in my all-time favourite movie Blade Runner.  I had been to these places on my last America holiday but it was still so fantastic to go back.  We also got to see the Ennis House later in the day which is also used in the movie.
 
 
 


This yellow dress and purse were recent purchases.  I just love yellow and I can't say that enough!  I also really like the fit of this dress and it is very comfortable to wear.

 
These photos were taken in the park outside City Hall.  City Hall is also featured in another of my favourite movies, L.A. Confidential.  Los Angeles has some really amazing buildings and architecture and it really is great to walk around the city and see so many recognisable filming locations.
 
 

You can't see in the other photos very well but the earrings I am wearing match the bracelet, I love a good matching jewellery set. 

Dress: Vintage from Etsy
Bolero: Vintage from Dreamtime Vintage, London
Purse: Vintage from eBay
Jewellery set: Vintage from eBay
Sunglasses: Vintage from Vera Mode
Shoes: Vintage but so old I cannot remember where from!
Ballet pumps: New Look

Sunday 3 May 2015

Beautiful Santa Barbara

One of my favourite places that we went to whilst on holiday was Santa Barbara.  Even though it was a 2 hour drive from our hotel in Los Angeles, it was definitely worth making the trip out of the city and up the scenic Pacific Coast Highway. 

Our first stop was the County Courthouse, chosen because of the beautiful location!  I loved seeing all the Spanish buildings in this city.

 
 
I admit that I didn't get many good photos of this outfit, sometimes you are just too busy having fun to remember to take "outfit photos."  I purchased this dress from Crush Vintage but through an Instagram preview.  It is perfect for Summer and I am glad that I decided to find out more after spotting it on the Crush Vintage Instagram page.  Sometimes it really is worth enquiring when you see a photo on Instagram!

We also visited Shoreline Park where we watched dolphins jumping over the waves!


We went for lunch at a great Mexican restaurant - Los Agaves - which I had found whilst doing some online research.  They have two restaurants in Santa Barbara and I really would recommend visiting if you like Mexican food - it was delicious and inexpensive!


We of course managed to fit in a visit to an antique mall on our trip and we stopped off at the Antique Center Mall.  The dresses were surprisingly rather expensive but I found a lovely 1950s charm bracelet and some very cool cufflinks (to go on a dress that requires some!) 

Dress: Vintage from Crush Vintage via Instagram
Sunglasses: Vintage from Vera Mode
Bag: Vintage from Etsy
Headscarf: Vintage but no idea where from