My Mum's Vintage Wardrobe Pt I

I grew up, recalling my mum wearing an Afghan coat and rose tinted glasses, right into the eighties. She never has conformed, neither have I, so maybe it's hereditary!

Growing up part time around these two (I actually lived with my grandparents, brought up on a healthy dose of classic films and Jim Reeves records!), I don't think I was destined to blend in!

My mum and step dad on their wedding day.

Her dress came from Kensington Market.

They came round on Andy's birthday weekend and as they left I took a mental snapshot of what they were wearing ...

Her: simple white top. Long black gothic skirt. Black and white long striped socks. Black strappy biker style boots.

Him: He still has long hair can I point out. Short sleeve floral shirt. Black jacquard style jacket with velvet collar. Black trousers and very elaborate cowboy boots.

No, they simply don't conform!

This is my mum aged fourteen.

As an aside, look at that slide!

I have a few bits and bobs that belonged to her from when she was younger. She was born in the mid fifties, so was a teenager in the late sixties, early seventies.

This is one of her dresses. I used to wear this in my teens and early twenties. I tried it on again the other day and it fits, almost. I can get it past my hips (no mean feat!) and it zips up to about my bra strap, but won't zip up over my bust. hey ho.

It's midi length, well it is on me, is made of seersucker and still has its label.

Vix? Any information on Step Ahead London? I can't find anything. 

If it weren't for the label, I'd think it was handmade, as it's looking pretty tatty on the inside. Stitching is all over the place and there are raw edges a-plenty, which makes me think it was possibly tampered with in the past. It doesn't seem to matter when on though, as it's all hidden.

It is very pretty I think, though doing up shoulder tie straps in a mirror is an absolute beggar!

This is first in a series I shall be sharing here on my blog, putting up a new post each time I unearth something which was hers. We're sorting the bedroom out, so I'll see what I can find!

I'll also scan a few more photos I have of her.

Family Fashion Parade!

I thought I would share some family snaps!

This is my maternal grandmother Sarah.

Aged sixteen.

I believe I have the necklace she's wearing.

Holding my mother

  

 No idea who that girl is.

  

 

She's second from the right here.

Second from the left here and apparently my family knew Grandpa Munster! Who knew 😉

On the right here 

On the left holding my mother with three on her sister in laws. Guess this explains my curls!

My granddad is in the middle and that's his sister, June I think, on the left and that's my nan again on the right.

Seriously, how cool is my granddad? I rarely use that word but he looks like a rockabilly here! I'd love for Andy to have a sleeveless cardigan like he's wearing here but alas, I don't knit.

My granddad again, in Germany.

My granddad's brother Ray marrying wife June

My mother

and her again, aged fourteen

and again, marrying my step dad aged twenty three I think.

Fabulous wedding photo isn't it.

My biological father at the Isle of White festival.

My Scandinavian, paternal great grandparents

Great uncle Bert, my nan's brother.

And I saved the best for last.

The In Crowd.

My nan's brothers and sisters plus girlfriend.

That's Bert again second from the right.

Birthday Girl!

Today is my birthday!

First came yesterday though, with a surprise visit from our friend Loren, who had remembered it was my birthday today and brought a card. Then a visit to Meirionwen followed by a visit from my mother and step dad with gifts for today.

Gifts! Yay!

In the evening we watched Bad Santa, nice bit of Billy Bob Thornton goodness to start proceedings 🎔

So, to today. A day spent on my lonesome, as Andy is a postie and working. Booo! He did pop in to wish me a happy birthday though 😍 Even though he left for work at 6.15am, I don't expect him back till 5pm.

As I do, I like to spread the birthday doings, so opened my cards first over a cuppa. There were obviously flamingos and bunnies amongst the cards! My friend Tara sent me a Wrendale hare card! Wrendale artwork is so beautiful, I love their ragtag portrayals of British wildlife and her card made me melt a little bit as the hare reminds me so much of my lovely boy Bob.

Then I slowly, at regular intervals opened my gifts.

I have two beautiful Lindy Bop dresses from Andy, one damson in colour which almost exactly matches the shirt he wore when we got married.

The other is emerald green.

He also got me a beautiful vintage diamante necklace and a wee dolphin brooch.

The bunnies got me a bunny brooch:

and a couple of faux fur collars to pop on over jackets and coats, one dusky rose and the other leopard.

My sister got me a wooden flamingo brooch, so pretty! Do you know, I didn't have a

 flamingo brooch until now.

Also in the box, nestling amongst the packing was a teeny wooden hedgehog brooch 🎔

She also sent me a little Jareth figure, hehe, so funny! Lordy I love the film Labyrinth so, so much, so much that I wore out my first VHS video tape of it!

My mother and step dad got me a charm bracelet complete with a starter charm.

It's incredibly pretty.

My brother in law and his girlfriend sent me the matching purse to my flamingo handbag! How fab is that!

And sweet Kezzie sent me a beautiful brooch. Flower? Starfish? Not sure, but it is so pretty. Thank you Kezzie!

I have been utterly spoiled! Such lovely gifts. I feel all warm inside 💝

So far, between eating bagels and opening gifts, I have been amusing myself with Christmas tunes which means I may play my favourite Michael Bublé Christmas song. Over and again.

I was doing just this on Saturday and managed to irk Andy who was trying to talk to me.

Conversation went thus:

Me, proffering my little Bluetooth speaker cube in his general direction: I can happily play this over and over and over!

Andy: Okay. So ...

I am at this point blissfully bouncing around in my seat listening to said song.

Andy: Are you listening?

Me: Bublé!

Andy: Would you just listen?

Me: Don't buy me Bublé if you don't want me to listen to Bublé!

Andy is peeved and likely rueing the day he got me both the CD and cube speaker.

I really don't care if no on else shares my love of this particular album, I absolutely love it!

Live and let live says I! 

It is though, my only album by him.

We also have, in direct contrast, Bob Dylan's Christmas album. It sounds exactly like a drunken soul staggering home drunk on Christmas Eve, singing festive songs. The only thing that would make it better would be Tom Waits joining in. Now that would be quite something.

This evening I have Pizza Express pizza and garlic bread to look forward to. And, National Lampoons Christmas Vacation! Chevy Chase! Woo hoo! Just so you know, the loft ladder scene makes me laugh so much, I shall in fact be rewinding on repeat just to watch that bit again and again!

What I Wore: Cerise

 

Hairband - retail

Faux Vintage Pearls - nan me down

Cerise knit top - retail

Black Circle Skirt - Lindy Bop
White Organdy Petticoat- eBay
Black Ballet Flats - retail

❤
 
I decided to go pink for my next series of outfit posts.

I still haven't heard from my aunt, it's been a month, so I'm assuming she doesn't want to help.
Me and those bloomettes: on our own.

I thought of asking in the sewing shop in town but they hold classes and
I can't see them giving free advice when they can make people pay.

Oh yes! I tried Pimms again and managed to get through the whole glass without
repercussions ... huzzah!
And of course the bunnies had Bunny Pimms too.

I hope your weekend was a good one 

❤

Put A Bow On It

 

❤

Red Vintage Hair Scarf - nan me down

Diamante Hair Grip - gift

Faux Vintage Pearls - inherited

Cream and Red Crepe Blouse - charity shop

Black Vintage Elastic Belt - gift

Black Circle Skirt - Lindy Bop

Red Organdy Petticoat - eBay

Black Wedge Sandals - retail

❤

 Can you believe it's July already?

Hasn't this year gone fast.

I am still struggling with my nightclothes pattern, those pesky bloomette bottoms have beat me. 

I asked Andy if he could make sense of it and after looking it over and having 

a play with the pins and pattern pieces, he threw his hands up in defeat too.

So, I wrote a letter to my aunt who is a very proficient sewer, to see if she could help me. 
(I don't have her phone number and my entire family situation is complicated) 

As of yet I haven't heard back ... I'm not sure she wants to help :/
It's been two weeks now.

Be My Honey Bunny

Happy Valentine's Day to you all! 

We went to an antique and collectibles emporium in the week and I got to choose a gift, well gifts. My magpie instinct was tingling as there was so much! Vintage gloves and clothing, vintage hats and costume jewellery. It was a hard choice and I even spotted another lady (and her husband) going back and forth between the same cabinets as I myself was, deliberating as to what she wanted. As it turns out, I had already chosen a brooch but another much showier brooch caught my eye and then so did two more. I even plucked one of them down to have a better look but it didn't look as sparkly in my hand so I put it back. The showy brooch was in the cabinet so I didn't get a chance to handle that and see how glittery it was up close and even the other lady had her eye on that, but I decided my already chosen one was prettier and then overheard the lady admiring a necklace near to a necklace I myself had been pondering over. I sidled over to see if it was my choice she was after (a 1950's green glass one). It wasn't, it was in fact prettier, but honour among magpies, she had in fact seen it first and I would have been sad had she swooped in on anything I had vocally been ready to buy. I waited to see if she was going to purchase and as she didn't, she picked out a brooch, I swooped and it was mine. The necklace is 1950's and the brooch ... no idea, but how pretty.

Anyway ...

 

Two significant things happened to me when I was seven. As a brief back story, I grew up with my grandparents. I adored my grandad and thought of my uncle as my big brother. 

In the June of my 7th year, my grandad died and in the October my uncle got married. He moved out. How dare he????

Oh how my life was turned upside down.

In the February of the following year, the hardship was lessening and I thought it would be fun to send my uncle an anonymous Valentine Card.

 

 I picked one out that was pink with bumble bees on it from the local shop.

I carefully wrote out the card in my eight year old handwriting.
What fun this would be!

My nan then walked me to my uncles house where I dashed up to the front door, posted the card and then scampered away with a giggle ...

... and then later found out my handwriting was not perceived as that of a child, not guessed to be mine, oh no, in fact it caused quite the kerfuffle to the newlyweds.

Oops.

Have you any memorable valentine stories?