Vintage Outfit Post-Mid Century Modern Madness in the Bernie Dexter Kelly In The Kitchen Dress

I've always dreamed of living in a 1950s ranch house:

with a perfect mid century modern kitchen.

However, living in the New York City area makes this a practical impossibility.  So I've had to settle for the next best thing, the Bernie Dexter Kelly in The Kitchen print dress.  Bernie Dexter always has the most amazing novelty prints and this is one of the best.  It's so sunny and adorable with a perfect happy house wife feel.

This dress really has a very 1950s style print but I styled it with a mix of 1940s and 50s accessories, I have to thank vintage blogger Jessica Cangiano at Chronically Vintage for this idea when she pointed out on my blog that 50s dresses often have a 40s look when you forgo a crinoline.

I added a 1940s style snood from Arthelia's Attic.  This is my first snood and I really enjoy wearing it.  It's easy to put on and is a simple way to get vintage looking hair with minimal effort (hair styling is the bane of my vintage obsession.)  I love that the snood gives a sort of vintage cafeteria lady vibe to the outfit. 

 My shoes are also 1940s style Remix's I've had for a few years.

The rest of the accessories are pretty 1950s.  The purse is pretty awesome, its one of the best in my novelty purse collection and is either 1950s or 60s with cool fruit and veggie appliqués:

The cute hand drawn vintage stand mixer brooch is from fellow vintage blogger Housewife Chic by Ruby who has an Esty shop.  The brooch looks like it was made for the dress with is pretty cool.

My red polka dot stockings are from vintage style lingerie and hosiery brand What Katie Did.  I'm not sure if they are a really authentic vintage item, I've never seen dotted hosiery in vintage images, but they really are cute and I've never been a stickler for authenticity.

The perfect final touch, is my beloved 1950s rhinestone cats eye sunglasses.  They are so much fun!

So I may never have a 1950s kitchen but I have a 1950s style kitchen dress, and thats almost as good.  What is your dream home?

Outfit Details:

Kelly in The Kitchen Dress-Bernie Dexter
Snood-Arthelia's Attic
1940s Style Wedge Sandals-Remix Vintage Shoes
Fruite and Vegetable Novelty Purse-thrifted
Bakelite Bangles-Various Sources Including Brighter Bakelite
Polka Dot Tights-What Katie Did
Novelty Mixer Brooch-Housewife Chic by Ruby
1950s Cat's Eye Rhinestone Sunglasses-thrifted

Sci Fi Saturday-Star Trek: The Starfleet Academy Experience at The Intrepid Air and Space Museum

As every trekkie knows this year marks the 50th anniversary of the greatest Sci-Fi franchise of all time.

There are many things in the entertainment world I'm passionate about (Harry Potter, Dr. Who, Mystery Science Theatre Three Thousand, Futurama,etc.) but my love for Star Trek surpasses everything else.  This probably sounds completely ridiculous to a non-fan but for me Star Trek goes way beyond a television show, its an entire fictional world that has had a major influence on my life.   

I really love the philosophy behind Star Trek, the idea that humanity can better itself through science and exploration, that isolationism and fear of the unknown is destructive and limiting, and that people from different backgrounds can work together.  It might sound hokey, but that is a message that we are sorely in need of today.   The world is in turmoil, just as it was in 1966 and  Gene Rodenberry's message is more relevant today then ever before.   

Now I'll step down of my Star Trek soap box and get to the point of this post.  Last Saturday I attended the Star Fleet Academy Experience at the Intrepid Air and Space Museum.  This is an interactive exhibit that allows fans of the show to have many hands on experiences.   I really thought it was a lot of fun.

There were plenty of attendees in Star Trek uniforms, but I wore my Trashy Diva sci-fi rockets dress and a small Star Trek pin.  This dress is one of the first vintage style things I bought about 4 years ago and it remains one of my favorites.  My purse is a metal Star Trek lunch box that a friend of mine whose brother owns a hobby shop gave me.  It contained a plastic Spock model but I'm not a model builder so I  use it as a purse.

The exhibit wasn't actually inside the Intrepid museum, it had a separate entrance. The fee was twenty five dollars which I think was pretty reasonable.

The first thing you see going in is a model of the original Enterprise ship

and a fictional time line of Star Trek history.

There are different uniforms and costumes displayed which I really liked since Im a huge fan of Star Trek style.

A Ferenghi costume for the Grand Nagus.

 One of the sexy 60s looks from the Original Series.

 Comander Tuvok's uniform from Voyager.  Of course I loved this one since he is the name sake for my own Mr. Tuvok.

Captain Kirk's uniform from the Original Series!

A uniform from Voyager and Captain Picard's Robin Hood outfit from a Next Generation episode.


There where also plenty of props on display:

What I loved about this exhibit though was that it went beyond costumes and props, it was set up like the ship with different sections for the different areas of Star Fleet: Engineering, Medical, Science, Tactical, Communications, and Command.  In each section there were interactive displays and games and at the end of the exhibit they told you what area of Star Fleet you were best suited for, I got communications.

Each section had a hall of fame with pictures of characters who worked in that area:

I'm one of the few Trekkies who love the Wesley Crusher character, he had the best sweaters, so I had to take my picture next to his hall of fame  section.

There were also different games and tests for each section:

In  command you watch videos of different captains from the show and read about how they make decisions.

Engineering had quizzes and displays about parts of the ship.

Another section had a planet you could scan so you could see where to land during an emergency.

I particularly liked sick bay where you scanned and diagnosed an injured Klingon.

And of course there was a transporter

The last and best part was the bridge.   

You could take the  Kobayashi Maru.  The famous no win Star Fleet test Kirk won by reprograming (I lost twice)

Sit in the science, tactical, and navigation stations:

and of course the Captain's Chair:

All  in All I really thought this was a great exhibit and a must for any Trekkie who can attend.  Live long and prosper.  

Vintage Outfit Post-1950s Bernie Dexter BBQ Dress

Many of my favorite mid century images involve picnics and barbecues 

So its not surprising that when I saw the Bernie Dexter BBQ print last year I feel head over heels.   Bernie Dexter is one of my favorite repro companies and a big part of the reason I've been moving towards more 1950s looks.  Her dresses are always  comfortable and you can't help but smile in the fun prints.   They don't come cheap, but they are very well made and if you join her mailing list there are tons of coupons and sales.  I watched the website for some time and shortly after Christmas I was rewarded, I scored my dream dress for 50% off.  I had to wait all winter to wear it, but it was well worth the wait.  This dress is divine! 

 It can be casual or a little more dressy.  The day these pictures where taken I wore it to an afternoon wedding.  I dressed it up with a Daisy hair band from Chatter Blossom and  one of my Amazon petticoats.  I love how a petticoat can completely change the look of a dress.  

I also wore my Remix penny sandals, some bakelite bangalls and a 1960s novelty purse that has fabric flowers beneath the clear plastic.  I'm crazy about these purses.

I finished the look with one my all time favorite mid century pieces my white rhine stone cats eye sunglasses.  They always make me smile:

We even got a rare shot of  my husband and I together at the wedding, he is usually behind the camera.

A fun dress for fun times!  Thank you Bernie Dexter!



Outfit Details

BBQ print dress (sadly sold out)-Bernie Dexter
Petticoat-Amazon
Daisy Hair band-Chatterblossom
Bangles-Thrifted
1960s Floral Purse-In The Year Vintage
Black Penny Sandals-Remix Vintage Shoes 

Silent Film Sunday: Bumping Into Broadway 1919

In the trifecta of male silent comedy stars (Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd) Lloyd typically gets the bronze, but he's my favorite.   




Lloyd's films are sweet, funny and charming and for silent comedies they hold up well.    His glasses character exemplified a be-spectaled go-getter embodied the can do attitude of the 1920s.   Lloyd first played the glasses character in a 1919 short comedy Bumping Into Broadway.

 

In the film Lloyd plays a character known simply as the boy a would be musical comedy writer in dire financial straits:

He lives in a Boarding house populated by theatrical types, including of course, the girl, a chorus dancer, played by Bebe Daniels.  

The boarding house is run by a stern land lady and her beefy tough guy   The guys job is to toss out any boarders who have gotten their third notice to to pay the rent.  Both the boy and the girl have just received theirs.

The heroes troubles continue.  The boy continues to fail to find a producer for his play

and the girl gets fired from her chorus dancing job.

After a number of adventures the boy and the girl north wind up at a club where the girl is on a date with a wealthy play boy and the boy is gambling in an attempt to win the money to produce his play.

a few more antics the boy wins big at gambling and love!

The entire film is less then a half hour long and can be seen on you tube (here is the link).  It's essential viewing for all Harold Lloyd fans.