The Last of the Summer?

If I have done this correctly, then when you read this, I shall be enjoying the sunny South of France! 

Today as I write this, however, I am looking back to the first Monday in September when I went to Portsmouth for the day and it was probably my last day off in summer weather in the UK.

If I had to choose just one "favourite dress" it would probably be this one... 

It was purchased from Fox and Bear on Etsy last year but I have only worn it twice now because I am worried it will get ruined in some way or another!  I don't always feel that way about my vintage dresses but this one fits like an absolute dream and because it is a pale colour, I've only worn it to places where I don't think it is likely to get ruined. 

I just love the daisy detail around the edge and even the matching belt is in good condition.

I purchased this straw hat in Brighton a couple of weeks ago. I had wanted one for the summer but hadn't found one that I liked and when I stumbled upon this in a vintage shop - and for only £5 - I could not resist!  I shall definitely be taking this on holiday with me.

We went up the Spinnaker Tower at Gunwharf and although I had never been too fussed about going up the tower, the view was great! 

Dress: Vintage from Fox and Bear Vintage on Etsy

Necklace: Vintage from This is Vintage, Bournemouth

Shoes: Aldo

Bag: Vintage from Etsy

Hat: Vintage from a random vintage shop in Brighton

Gloves: Vintage from Scarlet Vintage in Bath

That was the summer we went to Kellerman's...

Last Saturday, I went to London with my Mum for Future Cinema presents 'Dirty Dancing.'

Future cinema specialise in bringing film to life and immersing the audience into the world of the film that they are watching.  They had previously showcased Casablanca, The Shawshank Redemption and Saturday Night Fever but this was my first event and I was excited, albeit a little apprehensive, not knowing what to expect.

All I knew was that I was going to be transported to Kellerman's Resort circa Summer of '63.  Initially the location was kept secret but nearer to the event, they started releasing little details here and there - the location, what we needed to bring, what will be going on.  It was only on for three nights, starting on Friday, and I admit I had looked on the Facebook site to see what people had been saying about the Friday event and a lot of the comments were very negative, which had worried me a little. 

We got to Hackney Downs Park early (as advised) and from my point of view, it was very well organised and we were let in to the park slightly before the entry time, which meant we had a lot of time to check out what was going on and to take photos.  There were lots of activities and we did a bit of dancing and some hula hooping (with my Mum putting me to total shame!)  They had set up Kellerman's Lodge and guest cabins around the edge of the park, with Johnny's cabin on one side.  There were watermelons for sale (of course) and people sneaking into the Staff Quarters.  There were lots of people in vintage too and lots of people emulating Baby and Johnny's style from the movie (there was even a small area selling vintage!)

This was actually not my first choice of outfit but I wanted to wear something a bit brighter.  And there were lots of white plimsolls being worn by the girls!





Someone even brought their Chevy Bel-Air, which is the car Johnny has in the movie (although he has a black one!)



I even met the Houseman family!



I apologise for the poor quality of the next few photos but they were taken by my iPhone...

 



The atmosphere of the crowd really made the event and everyone got up to dance at certain points during the movie.  There were also actors who re-created key scenes in time with the movie and I thought that this was a great touch and really made me feel that I was at Kellerman's! 

I thoroughly enjoyed this event and would definitely go to another Future Cinema event, if it was a movie I liked!  I would love to hear from anyone who went to this event and find out what they thought of it.

Top: Vintage from Etsy

Skirt: Vintage from my Grandma

Bag: Vintage from Retro & Jukebox Fair

Plimsolls: Primark

Vintage Fairs are like buses...

... You wait ages for one, then two come at once!

This happened to me a few weekends ago as the Bows and Braces Vintage Fair in Lymington coincided with the Yellow Vintage Fair taking place in Southampton.  This was the first time for the Yellow Vintage Fair and they said it was set to be "the vintage event of the summer."  Sadly I did not find this to be the case but at least the Bows and Braces Fair was good as usual!

I am trying to get better at remembering to take more "detailed" outfit shots for you to enjoy!  I don't usually wear a lot of pink in my vintage outfits because I sometimes feel that with my 50s outfit being very girly anyway, to throw in some pink just makes it a bit too girly!  However, I do really like the colour pink and thought it would be nice to match this dress with some pink accessories.

So I guess you want to know what I bought at these fairs?  Well, we went to the Bows and Braces one first as that opened at 9am and you have to get to these fairs early to snap up the vintage goodies!  I made a bee-line for the 'Pret-a-Vintage' stall as I had heard many good things about this trader and I was not disappointed!  I ended up buying a very cute pale yellow 1930s knit jumper which has little beads on it.  As soon as I saw that it was my size and in very good condition, I jumped at the chance to buy it.  This lady has a really good selection of vintage items and they are mostly well priced.  She has a shop in Farnham and also sells online (I would add the link to her website but I still can't post links!)  Go google her! 

I also got a cute 1950s brown suede handbag from Flash Harry Vintage and I used my £20 voucher which I won from the previous "Best Dressed" Competition to get this.  Flash Harry also has some great 1940s-1950s accessories and jewellery.

As I said, I did not find The Yellow Vintage Fair to be very good, even though it was incredibly busy.  I did not  buy anything vintage but I did see these awesome "fast food" cupcakes from Nom De Plume Cupcakes.  I bought the hamburger one and my boyfriend bought the spaghetti one!

Although the shopping wasn't very good (or at least not if you want vintage items pre 1960!) there was some entertainment from The Cadettes (a local vocal harmony trio, singing songs from the 1940s) and there were also some scooters on display!!  As you can see, the lovely owner of this scooter saw me eyeing it up and asked if I wanted to get on it.  I felt like I was in Roman Holiday! 

Dress: Vintage from the 'Crikey! It's Vintage Fair' in Exeter
Gloves: Vintage from Judy's Affordable Vintage Fair in Spitalfields
Shoes: Vintage from Beyond Retro
Bag: Vintage from Etsy
Hat: Vintage from The Little Vintage Shop, Lymington
Necklace: Vintage from This is Vintage, Bournemouth

Casual Sunday

This is what I wore yesterday when we went to have lunch at my favourite South Indian restaurant and we also went to the cinema afterwards.



It was pretty quiet at midday in Southampton, so these photos were taken outside The Guildhall entrance.  Although I love putting a whole vintage outfit together (complete with hat, gloves, etc) sometimes it is nice to just be able to throw on a 50s summer dress if you are having a more casual day out.

Dress: Vintage - eBay

Shoes: Rocket Originals

Bag: Vintage from the Retro & Jukebox Fair in Brighton earlier this year

Necklace: Vintage from The Vintage Parade in Winchester earlier this year

Earrings: Vintage from the Bows and Braces Vintage Fair in June this year

A Day Trip to London

A few weekends ago we made an impromptu day trip to London.  Originally we had planned to go to Bath for the day to visit Carter's Steam Fair but the weather forecast did not look good enough to enjoy vintage fairground rides so we opted to go to London where it was meant to be a fine day - and it was!

I haven't been vintage shopping in London for some years now but was keen to check out a few of the newer shops that had opened up in Brick Lane.  Unfortunately The Vintage Emporium was closed (I don't seem to be having much luck with shop opening hours!) but we visited Hunky Dory Vintage and there was an adorable war time crepe dress with faux bolero which I would have totally snapped if it hadn't been £145!

I love the fit of the dress that I chose to wear and I was also wearing my new-to-me vintage half hat which I recently purchased from The Little Vintage Shop in Lymington - Gloria, the owner, has an awesome selection of vintage hats!

We also visited Judy's Vintage Fair which was taking place in Spitalfields and I scored a cute peach 50s blouse and some pale pink crochet wrist gloves.  I also got photographed by them as they loved my outfit and I took the opportunity to take a photograph of the girl promoting the Fair and I absolutely love the print of her dress!

We had lunch at Kua 'Aina which is a Hawaiian burger place in Carnaby Street.  I am a big fan of anything sweet potato and their fries are delicious!

In the afternoon we treated ourselves to desserts at Ladurée in Harrods - I am big fan of their macaroons.  I also had an Apple Mojito mocktail (even though it was ridiculously priced!)

Dress: Vintage from Etsy

Bag: Vintage from Etsy

Shoes: Aldo

Hat: The Little Vintage Shop, Lymington

Rally of the Giants Car Show

Last weekend we attended the 'Rally of the Giants' classic American car show at Blenheim Palace.  I had never been to the Palace before or a specifically American car show and this was advertised as the "Best American car show in the UK" so I was really looking forward to it and it certainly did not disappoint! 

The cars were arranged by era and my favourites were easily the '50s!  I don't actually drive (would really like to learn in the future but have never been able to afford it!) but I have now decided that one day I would like to buy either a Ford Thunderbird (one of the first generation ones!) or a Chevrolet Bel Air.  We saw a few of these and the colours were just dreamy! 

I love going to car shows and it does make me hopeful that I can own one of these beauties in the future!

So a little word on my outfit... This is my new-to-me Bobbie Brooks dress which I love.  There were two being sold on Etsy when I looked - one appeared to be my measurements essentially but was just too short in the bodice, so I opted for the slightly larger one which was being sold and had it altered to fit (though it wasn't altered enough and I still had to do my own adjustments!)  I have also seen this dress featured in a blog post from Vivian de Violet (unable to post links at the moment) and she looks lovely in it!

Although generally I do not care if a dress is a particular brand or designer, when I find a dress with a style or fit that really works, I do like to seek out more from that brand and I am keen to do the same with Bobbie Brooks. 

We didn't explore the Palace as much as we would have liked to but the gardens were amazing!  We walked by the side of the lake and saw the beautiful cascade.  Above is a photo taken in the Rose Garden and below is a photo taken inside the Palace Chapel with me standing at the Pulpit!  All in all a thoroughly enjoyable day out!

Dress: Vintage Bobbie Brooks from Etsy

Shoes: Next

Bag: Vintage from Etsy

Necklace: Vintage from This is Vintage in Boscombe

Hat: Vintage from Etsy

Gloves: Vintage from Scarlet Vintage in Bath

Hot Hot Heat

These photos were taken during a recent trip to Southsea.  At the time, it was during a heatwave but the weather has since cooled down a bit. 

I love playsuits and I own a lot of them.  Most are 1980s and this one is actually from Urban Outfitters, so not the least bit vintage but I just love the cut out bits and it does remind me of a 1940s style.  I am desperate for a 1940s two piece playsuit/ swimsuit but they are so expensive on Etsy!  And especially as there would be a very small window of time when I could wear this type of outfit, I feel that I couldn't justifying spending a lot.  I really need to move to a hotter place so I can justify spending a lot on a 1940s playsuit!

 

As it has been so hot, I have been a bit reluctant to wear some of my vintage outfits for fear that I will end up a hot mess and ruin them.  Does anyone else have this worry?

Luckily as it has now cooled down a bit here, I will be taking every opportunity to wear my 1950s summer dresses!

Playsuit: Urban Outfitters

Parasol: Vintage from a trader at the 'Crikey! It's Vintage' Fair in Exeter

Bag: Vintage from a trader at the Retro & Jukebox in Brighton

Sunglasses: Topshop
Earrings: Vintage from a trader at the Bows & Braces Vintage Fair
Headscarf: Vintage free with a purchase from Etsy!
Shoes: Next