A Staycation Week of Vintage Outfits

I had my winter break from work last week and John too off too.  I spent it doing my favorite things spending time with the dogs and cats, eating, watching Star Trek and Mystery Science Theatre 3000, and of course dressing up.  

As I mentioned in previous posts I have been selling off a lot of my clothes in order to fund new ones.  I have decided that in order for me to keep it an article of clothing needs to fit several criteria:

1. It must be fun.  I'm old enough I'll dress as I like and I only want fun, happy clothes that make me smile.
2. It must be comfortable. Despite what people thing full skirts and petticoats really are comfortable.  Nothing, not even sweat pants, are more comfortable then full skirts.
3. Preferably it will be something I can wear while biking.  This isn't a total must but its a big plus.  Thankfully, most things can be biked in.  I find biking in high heels easier then walking in them and petticoats are a breeze to bike in.
4. I have to love it.

Most of these outfits I have featured on here before, but some I have, the one's I haven't will get their own posts eventually but I thought it would be fun to record the week (actually 9 days with the two weekends.)  This was a very unusually warm February with temperatures in the 60s, hello global warming, so that is why so many of these outfits are spring like, and no I didn't wear them any place special.  I wore them to go out to lunch, to get bubble tea and to bike with the dogs.

Outfit Number , Saturday:  Jumpsuit from Maria Guye and Mexican Tourist jacket from Girl In A Whirl:

I bought this jumpsuit to wear to the NYC commicon but then we wound up not going due to massive lines that meant even ticket holders like us would have had a 3 to 4 hour wait in the rain.  I was very upset, but at least I love the jumpsuit! It, and the jacket, will get their own outfit post eventually.

Here are the accessories:

 

1950s gold tone poodle scatter pins, a red Chatter Blossom hair flower, cat's eye sun glasses, and my poodle purse (oh and of course pug and cat hairs).   The shoes are remix flats.

Outfit Number 2, Sunday:  Bernie Dexter Kitten Dress and Doll Me Up Cardigan:

Accessories: A pink snood from Arthelia's Attic (I love her snoods), a little 1950s or 60s  mink cat brooch with googly eyes (I think this was someone's craft project which is why I love it so much, pastel bakelite braces, Remix Baby Doll Pumps in ivory, a pink crinoline fro Amazon, pink dotted What Katie Did seamed panty hose, and my 1950's Siamese cat purse).

Outfit Number 3, Monday: This was my only outfit that consisted primarily of true vintage pieces.   1950's vintage western shirt, 1950's vintage western wool jacket and Freddies of Pinewood jeans.

Here is a close up of the embroidery on the blouse

Accessories: 1950's Western Barette, Luxulite Western Novelty Brooch,  Bakelite Bangles, and 1950's Novelty Horse Purse.

Day 4, Tuesday-A  1930s Winter Drindl by the Black Pinafore:

I did a full post on this outfit here.

The accessories: A 1940s Deer Brooch, Chatter Blossom Hair Flower, 1930's Embroidered Gloves and 1920's Needlepoint bag.

Day 5, Wednesday-Bernie Dexter Dress in Let Me Entertain You Print:   

This is my first Bernie Dexter dress in her long sleeved Nichole style and I love it!  This, along with short sleeved Kelly, is probably my favorite style of Bernie Dexter dress.

The print is super fun movie theatre themed novelty print that called for equally fun accessories. A chiffon hair scarf, primary colored bakelite bangles, a red crinoline from amazon, Miss L Fire shoes, and luxulite earrings and necklace.

Day 6, Thursday-Rocket Skirt from Girl In A Whirl and Swell Dame 1950's style Blouse-

This was my 38th birthday outfit last year, you can read about it in this post.   The skirt is a copy of the cover of my favorite children's book, a Trip to The Moon, by M. Sasek.  It's about the early days of NASA in Cape Canaveral.

The accessories for this outfit where a Chatter Blossom hair flower, gold remix shoes, a white crinoline from Amazon, lucite purse,  and bakelite bangles.

Day 7, Friday- Bernie Dexter Kelly Dress in Ticket to Ride and 1960s Pale Yellow Cardigan:

This dress is in my beloved Kelly style, short sleeves and zip front, with a nice full skirt.  The print is adorable, different tickets!   I also low the color of the cardi, such a pretty soft yellow.  This is an outfit I definitely plan to post in more detail soon.  

Here are the accessories:

 

Yellow Chatter Blossom hair flower, pastel bakelite bangles, 1950s or 60s novelty train brooch, 1960's flower purse, Miss L Fire pumps, and a green crinoline from Amazon.

Day 8, Saturday-Mexican Dress and Jacket by Maria Guye:

This is actually a bit of a sneak preview.  I purchsed this dress as my gift to myself for my upcoming 39th birthday.  It was so beautiful though I couldn't resist wearing it early.   Like all of  Maria's clothes the construction is exquisite.
I'll definitely be writing more about it.

The accessories I paired with this are my beloved 1950s horse novelty purse, red Chatter Blossom hair flower, and Remix sandals.


Day 9, Sunday-1950s style Zip Front Jump Suit by Kim Clark 

Kim did such a great job with this jumpsuit!  It is so comfortable and the fabric is  a gorgeous sea foam green with gold thread, real vintage fabric.  I wore this is in August to Star Trek Mission New York and had my picture taken with LeVar Burton, see this post.


Accessories: 1950's Cat's Eye Sunglasses, Gold Belt from Amazon, 1950's Novelty Cat Purse and Remix flats.

I dress in vintage style every day for work, but I definitely take it to the next level on weekends and vacations.  I had so much fun dressing up this week. I definitely think I'm getting younger, and crazier, in my style with age!

Happy Birthday Jean Harlow! And a Review of Besame's Vanilla Rose Brightening Powder

Tommorow, March 3,  the 106th anniversary of the birth of actress Jean Harlow:

who I think embodied the decadent glamour of Hollywood's pre-code era more then any other star.  With her pencil thin dramatically arched brows, cupids bow lips and halo of platinum curls, Harlow's look was nothing if not distinctive.  Clearly she was a girl who loved her cosmetics, and her appearances in numerous 1930s beauty adverts show that her fans where playing close attention to her look.

One cosmetic that Harlow sees to have been particularly devoted too, powder

 

Considering the platinum goddesses's devotion to the cosmetic I figured the anniversary of her birth would be a good time to do a review of my own personal favorite powder.

Besame Vanilla Rose powder.  

Now Harlow was tragically young, only 26, when she died of kidney failure, so she never had to contend with the problem that has made me leery of powders: aging skin.  In less then a month I'll be 39 and powder is one cosmetic that gets tricky with advancing age.  Powder can settle on wrinkles and dry patches making the more noticeable.   For this reason I used to avoid powder completely.  

However, I wear a very creamy foundation, Burt's Bees CC cream.  I love the creaminess and lightness of this foundation, but it can sometimes get a bit greasy and shiny or rub off completely.  That's why I decided to give the Besame Vanilla Rose powder a shot.  I love Besame, but I had previously tried their Lavendar Brightening Powder and it was the only one of their cosmetics that I underwhelmed me.  I really felt it left a chalky texture on my skin.  So I wasn't prepared to love Vanilla Rose, but I do!




It's a very, very faint pink that suits the fairest of skin tones.  The website says it corrects green and blue tones, I find I have more redness, but I still think this works well for me.  It really doesn't impart any color, just brightens and sets make up!



The video below is from Besame and shows how to apply the powder and then set it with their finishing brush:

I take lighter approach.  I don't have the finishing brush so I just tap the container, while closed of course, against the edge of the sink and then pat on a tiny bit with the puff.  I'm  very careful not to overdo it.  I certainly don't follow Harlow's advice and count my whole face, and no way am I following her step 2 press powder into tiny lines!  

The effect of powder application is definitely subtle, but I think I see a difference:

Here I am minus powder (and yes I was taking a selfie with a can of Spam, I occasionally love to indulge in some spam):

Here I am on another day with powder:

Now all I need is a glamorous boudoir a la Harlow to apply it in!

Besame Vanilla Rose powder retails for $22.00 and can be purchased on the Besame website.

Vintage Outfit Post-A 1930s Style Drindl Dress From the Black Pinafore For A Trip To Mitsuwa Market

Recently I have been in the process of selling off a lot of my vintage wardrobe.  I'm certainly not giving up vintage, rather I want to fund new outfits, and I wan't to make sure everything I own is something I really love.   That's how I feel about this amazing 1930s style Drindl that Deborah From The Black Pinafore made me.  It just couldn't be better.

I emailed Debora some pictures of 1930s and 40s Drindl's I found online 

and asked her to make something similar, but with a hooded capelet, lately I've been really into hoods (see my amazing 1930s hooded robe).  The result is wonderful, very 1930s or 40s Disney Princess, or Hobbit!,  in the best way possible.


The artisan-ship on the Drindl is amazing.  The hooded capelet is hooded brow velveteen.  The sleeves are trimmed in the same velveteen as the cape and have zip closures.   The apron ties on and the white section is faux blouse trimmed with brown ribbon.  The entire dress zips up the back.  

Amazing Craftsmanship!

I paired the drindl with a 1930s deer brooch, 1930s gloves, thick winter tights from Amazon, my trusty American Ducess oxfords, a 1920s petite point purse and a hair flower from my beloved Chatterblossom.

I wore my Drindl to the Mitsuwa market place which is seriously one of my favorite places in the world.  Not only do they have the most delicious ramen:

But all of the Japanese supermarket items are incredibly cute:

And there is an amazing bookstore with tons of adorable animal books

and toys like this Ponyo puzzle.

I got a pug key cover that was sold out the last time I was here

and some super cute dog and cat buttons.

Here they are on my Freddie's of Pinewood jeans jacket.

Perhaps I should have left the pug life button though because it may be a bad influence on Fry and Weasley as they could be embracing their inner thug.   On Wednesday there was a drive by shooting less then a block from our home and I was in the back yard with all of the dogs.  Tuvok was terrified and ran toward me, but Fry and Weasley ran towards the gate and the sound of the shooting.  It was very scary but we got inside safely and no one was hurt.  (The bullets missed whoever the intended target was.)   There are definitely downsides to living in the city, but Mitsuwa Market is an upside.

My Top Ten Vintage Outfits of 2016

Admittedly as we are now a month into 2017 this post is coming a little bit late, but I was inspired by my lovely blogging friends at Silver Cat Tea Party and really wanted to contribute my own outfit roundup post (see her's here its great!).   After all time flies (I can't believe I'll be 39 in two months) and this year really flew buy, some of these pictures feel like yesterday.  So here they are: my 10 favorite 2016 looks.

1) 1960s Cocktail Dress

This is an authentic vintage piece and one of the only 1960s pieces in my wardrobe, as well as one of the few evening/cocktail dresses.   I got the dress from Fab Gabs for a friend's wedding and accessorized it with a Chatterblossom hair flower, lucite box purse, and Remix vintage shoes.  Sadly this dress was very delicate and it really only survived one evening before the lurex started to tear.  It was a vintage tragedy because not only is the dress beautiful it fit like a glove.











2) 1930s Style Winter Dress

This dress is a reproduction from Sew Vintage Seamstress.  It has a classic late 30s silhouette with puffed sleeves and a notched collar.   The best part is the fabric, thick warm Burgundy colored corduroy.  This is a warm dress.   I accessorized it with an authentic 1930s hat I've had for year's and a 1940s ice follies brooch.  The gloves are a thrifted pair, I think from the 50s, and the shoes are from American Duchess.

3) Rocket Skirt from Girl in A Whirl- 

This skirt was my 38th birthday outfit.  I wanted something that would combine a sci-fi element with vintage, and thought of space travel.  I've always admired the optimism that pervaded space exploration in the 1950s and 60s. Girl in A Whirl can take any image and use felt to put it on a 1950s style circle skirt.  So I asked her to put the cover of the This Is The Way to The Moon by M. Sasek on a skirt.  

She did an amazing job depicting the family visiting Cape Canaveral on the skirt.   I paired it with a 1950s style blouse from Swell Dame, and old grey cardigan, thrifted bakelite bangles, gold Remix shoes, atomic earrings and a brooch from the Alamo basement and a Star Trek pin a blog reader sent.

4) Sunny Stripes from Hey Day

This is a really nice casual dress from Hey Day Vintage that definitely demonstrates the power of a print.  The casual tie on style of the dress is very comfortable and easy to wear and reminds me of dresses from the 1950s and early 60s.  The print is super versatile and lends it self to accessories in lots of different color combos.  I wore 1950s gloves and a head scarf in bright aqua and lots of bakelite bangles, but plenty of other colors would look smashing too.  The shoes, like most of my shoes, are Remix again, playtime canvas wedges. My favorite accessory in this outfit though is the purse it is a 1940s or 50s children's doll shaped purse.  This is my second one, the first one a cow girl broke sniff, but I think I like this tropical lady with her big sun hat even better.

5) 1950s Fun with Flamingos: 


 I've always loved fun kitschy stuff and nothing is more delightfully kitschy then pink flamingos!  I planned this outfit around a pair of flamingo vans, I saw a fellow vintage love wearing them on face book and set out to get my own pair.   I loved the mso much I got a Flamingo purse on etsy, make from a genuine pink garden flamingo, to go with them.  I love the color combo of pink and green so I wore the purse and shoes with a pretty green and white check Bernie Dexter dress and a 
Luxulite Audrey 2 Brooch.  The final perfect touch is my amazing 1950s style Coolie sun hat that was made for me by the vintage style milliner Tanith Rowan, she did an amazing job.  This outfit is so great because its comfortable, fun, and sun protective!

  

6) 1940s Style Mexican Play Suit:

My friend Kim Clark made this 1940s style sun suit and placed it up for sale on the Facebook 1930s and 40s costumers group.  As soon as I saw the amazing lime green vintage Mexican fabric I knew it would look amazing with the 1940s style Mexican sun hat I had, had for awhile.  Seriously these pieces look like they where made for each other!  The pay suit consists of a halter neck sun suit and a boxy over jacket with a tie waist.  The lime green 1940s style sandals are from Remix and I've worn them so much I need to replace them. The final perfect touch was the 1940s style brooch of a Mexican man in a Sombrero from Mrs. Polly's Lucite.   This is pretty much my ideal beach outfit, covered up, flattering and fun!

 






7) 1950s Style Gingham Top and Denim Peddle Pushers:

I'm always saying vintage style doesn't have to mean dressed up and this outfit is proof of it.  It's just a simple 1950s style gingham top from Swell Dame and 1950s style Pedal Pushers from Freddies of Pinewood.  The hat is one of my favorite things ever, a foldable 1960s beach hat, and the cat's eye sunglasses are fun too.  I got the sandals from Remix, like nearly all of my shoes, and I've had the cherry pin since I was a kid.  The purse I'm holding in the second picture is one of the most amazing novelty purses I have ever sen it has a horse on it!  I think I wore this outfit more the anything else this summer.

8) 1950s Style Western Dress From The Black Pinafore:

 1950s style western wear is a long time favorite of mine, but I didn't really have any pieces until fall of 2016 when I had Debra from The Black 
pinafore make me this dress.  It's a simple 1950s sundress in a western novelty print with rick-rack trim, I'm crazy about rick-rack.  I really love the neckline on this dress.  I wore it with a red hair flower from Chatter Blossom, bakelite bangles, a vintage belt, a western novelty brooch from 
Luxulite and my 1950s horse purse.

9) Bernie Dexter Winter Wonderland Dress-

I have quite a few Bernie Dexter dresses but this one is really special.  It is a popular print and it was sold out in my size for a long time but I finally nabbed it and on sale!  I'm not sure if you can call this a traditional vintage look but I don't care.  It's such a fun print and so festive and the skirt is made for a petticoat.  I wore it with a Chatter Blossom hair flower of course, sparkly silver tights, Ivory remix pumps, and my lucite purse.










10) Kitschmas Cat Skirt from Girl In A Whirl

I love clothes but there are two aspects of vintage style dressing I'm particularly crazy about: seasonal dressing and stuff with dogs and cats on it.  This skirt has both!  Girl In A Whirl made it for me based on pictures of vintage Christmas skirts we found online and she made the cat look like my darling Spot.