Catching up, Christmas & Chilling out!

Eeeek I have neglected my blog sooo badly over the last few months. This past few weeks I haven't even been keeping on top of reading all my favourite blogs either! It's crazy how easily you can fall out of the blogging loop and quite overwhelming too... I'm looking forward to see what everyone has been up to!

We stopped work on the 23rd and don't go back til the 4th so I still have a few days left off. Ant & I are our own bosses now and this week is our only proper time off (apart from bank holidays) so I have spent it doing absolutely nothing! We still have to do some work on our accounts and some other important bits for the shop, but I am holding it off for as long as possible!

So christmas was as uneventful as always for me, I missed big sis terribly and was super pleased we could get a little chat in on christmas morning. I got some lovely gifts from my nearest and dearest - my favourite has to a Mitford Sisters book from my aunt as it is something I have wanted to read for an absolute age and hadn't spoken about it to her or anyone come to that, she must have read my mind. Both myself & Ant got a copy of the Keith book, as did everyone else I know!  I also have a copy of the Bowie book I've been pining for on it's way (snow delayed!) from Ant, so that'll be a lovely treat to look forward too when it eventually turns up! 

Mitford Girls Book, Kitschy Breakfast Set, Celia Birtwell Hot Bot, Gorgeous Fortnums Smelly Cushion thing, Owl Candle

Nails Inc Set ( I looooove Nails Inc - best varnishes I have ever used), Fashion Book (has a pic of a pair of 70s Quant shoes in that I have!), Weird Eyelash Enhancer Stuff from my friend who swears by it (I'll let you know if it works!)

Very fab Funk & Soul Cover Art book, Smellies galore, Keith (who didn't get this for christmas?)

I'm really looking forward to New Years as a dear friend of mine is holding a party and I'm planning to wear a champagne satin Biba number which has only had one outing before (at Snowy Stylista's wedding no less!). Random Geek Fact - the same dress is in an early (I think 1971) episode of The Liver Birds - it is worn by their posh friend Victoria who has come to visit from London, and for the life of me I can't find a clip of it online anywhere - I'll make sure I get a couple of snaps of it on Friday. 

Some more things...

...I am currently loving listening to, watching, using and pining for.

 

1. Zara Camel Wool Flared Skirt   2. Nite Flights by The Walker Brothers   3. No7 Exceptional Definition Mascara  

4. The Walking Dead on FX   5. Gucci by Gucci Eau de Parfum   6. Marie France Dress from Vintage-a-Peel  

7. Dents Silk Lined Gloves in Charcoal   8. Young Americans by David Bowie   9. Liz Earle Superskin Concentrate

Treasured Possessions - David Bowie

My other half and I have been overdosing on David Bowie recently, which to be honest is pretty normal for me anyway, and I personally don't think you can ever listen to too much Bowie. Firstly I decided to get the great Labyrinth on DVD, which was just fab to watch, I don't think I've seen it in almost 20 years! The only disappointment for me was that the bit with the Fire Gang in where they throw their heads about, I always found this terrifying as a kid, now looking at it the graphics are pretty shocking by todays standards. The Henson puppets are amazing tho! 

So whilst on my Bowie trip I'd thought I'd share one of my most prized possessions with you all. This is the programme from the infamous Ziggy Stardust Tour 1973. This obviously belonged to my Mum, who was lucky enough to see him in June 1973 in Chatham Central Hall. I'm pretty sure I have the ticket stubs somewhere too, and some 70's fan club items, I must try and find them!

You should be able to click & enlarge.

Front Cover

Inside Cover & Page 1

Centre Spread

Last Page & Inside Back Cover

Back Cover

Wish List - Winter Boots

I have been such a bad blogger lately, I just haven't been able to think of a single interesting thing to post about! I guess I have been a bit distracted as I have just given up smoking. I smoked at least 20 a day (!) and I haven't had one for almost 3 weeks. I'm very proud of myself! I've still got a way to go I know, but the patches are doing their job quite well at the moment..... 

So I think it may be time to treat myself and if there is one thing that always gives me plenty of inspiration it's shoes of course, and in particular I need some new boots. If you have read any of my old shoe posts or if you know me, you will know I used to be devoted to 60's and 70's footwear but their age and dried out glue makes them very tricky for daily wear. I have found that finding shoes in that style is quite easy at the moment, there are still plenty of low heeled mary janes and also fantastic platforms too. But boots is a whole different matter. The sort I have been after really need to be 60's styled, I'm talking round or almond toe, and a 1-2" matchbox heel as I want them to wear to work and drive in. I have trawled all the usual shoe stores and all I see are 80s styles or very pointed toes and stilettos, and that just isn't me. 

One brand I have admired for sometime is Chie Mihara, they do really lovely shoes and some stunning boots, unfortunately even when they go in the sale they are out of my price range, but just have a look at these suede lace up granny boots, they are just perfect, especially in purple.  

Quecha Boot in purple from chiemihara.com - €338 / Quecha Boot in black suede from Toast - £325

My next stop was Yoox, upon browsing I found two brands which both carry some rather delish boots. First up is CAFe'NOIR, they are very reasonably priced and I love the moddy look to the black ones too, I just wish they were in leather. This is an italian brand I think, the rest of the range is not  very exciting. I really love the heels and toe shape on the brown pair. Luckily for me they are both only available in size UK4.

Black Suede & Patent £98 / Brown Leather with Studs £54

And finally we have L'Autre Chose. Just look at the perfect, perfect little heels on the pink/blue & green pairs, over the knee too, LOVE. Hello! grey suede platforms, thank goodness they only have size 2 left, or my credit card would have to be taken away from me! Aren't the snakeskin detailed ones just divine, I don't know which I prefer, probably the brown, I always buy brown clothes and footwear for some reason. Once again most of these are too pricey for me, if the first brown leather pair were in black they would be my perfect day boot.

Brown Leather £148 / Grey Suede £140

Suede over the knee in pink or blue £148

Black suede with snakeskin £195 / Brown suede with snakeskin £195

Green suede £180 / Plum Suede £225

I still haven't seen anything in black leather, oh dear.

RIP Reg King

I was terribly sad to hear of the passing of another 60s legend. 

Former lead singer of mod icons The Action, Reg King died earlier this month aged 65. 

You could do a lot worse than to have a listen to his 1971 self titled solo album which is one of my all time faves.

Dreamy Looks for Autumn

I think I may be the only person wishing for the cooler weather to come, even though I'm a summer baby, I have never liked hot weather. I'm much happier wrapped up in a coat and legs clad in tights & boots!

Here is a gorgeous ad for Wallis from Vogue 1973 (sorry can't remember the month!) Browns and earth tones are my absolute favourite colours to wear, which I guess means autumn is my favourite season. I just love the liberty deco prints and billowy sleeves and tight cuffs poking out of the jacket.

I really struggle to find the right skirts and trousers to suit my style. I don't wear jeans and do not do skinnies. I really love skinny flares but I am not the tallest gal in the world so these can be quite tricky to find and are usually a bit jean-like, and I cannot abide any type of trouser with pockets on the back, it really bugs me for some reason.  So, my fashion mission for now is to search out vintage crepe knee length skirts, oh yes and a 30s style cloche hat. 

What are you looking forward to buying and wearing this season?

Ps - aren't the T bar shoes in the first pic delish?

Boutique London

Just found out about this book called Boutique London by Richard Lester, the description below is from Amazon

To any style conscious Londoner in the sixties just two places mattered: the King's Road and Carnaby Street. By the end of the decade the whole world came to see and be seen, to take part in the theatre that played out of the new boutiques and onto the street. From the sleek modernist tailoring of 'Top Gear' and 'His Clothes' to the nostalgic dressing up box style of the World's End boutiques, at the heart of it all were the young designers whose conviction to make and sell clothes on their own terms generated an explosion of talent which lasted and evolved over twenty years, leaving an indelible mark in fashion history. 'Boutique London' follows the journey of the first risk-takers like Mary Quant and John Stephen, to the celebrity salons of Ossie Clark, 'Mr Fish' and 'Granny Takes a Trip', stopping along the way to include the weird and the wonderful, the glamorous and the bizarre. With in-depth profiles of over thirty retailers and lavish illustrations, the clothes, interiors and characters of 'Boutique London' are as diverse as they are colourful, vividly bringing to life a vanished London, which changed the way we shop forever.

Find out more here: Boutique London

Looks pretty good no? No release date as yet, but it's going straight onto my wishlist.

songs for saturday pt1

Jackson Browne - Rock me on the water

My my Jackson Browne was a handsome fella, and still pretty dishy 30 odd years later. I bought a few of his albums after hearing These Days (sung by Nico on The Royal Tenenbaums soundtrack), this song is one of my faves from the album Saturate Before Using (1972)

Pic via Tumblr - can't remember who tho!

Tea for Two

This weekend I met up with my sister (snowystylista) for a cuppa and a chinwag in Rochester, for those who don't know her blog she is about to leave to start a new life in The Alps and her move date is getting ever closer, I can't believe it is less than 3 months away.

I snapped her "street style" as we met. First off we popped into a little deli/cafe to share a delicious cheese plate and I had a glass of yummy kentish apple juice. We were going to order dessert but it took soo long to get service we decided to wander down the high street and try somewhere else. 

Next we went to Rochester Coffee Co. a place I have been wanting to try for ages, next time we are definitely going to have to try their signature afternoon tea! We opted for a slice of carrot cake each and I had a cup of the most delish Fortnum & Mason Afternoon tea, seriously I was in heaven! After lounging on their super comfy leather couches for probably longer than we should of we left to have a browse some shops before we went home, unfortunately my favourite antique store was closed by this time, last visit I scored a victorian bolero for £15! 

We always go to the same card shop which has such a lovely selection of birthday and occasion cards, to stock up. Whilst there I spotted these fab vogue cards featuring early 70s fashions, and we had a giggle at the animal rockstar selection, ad I'm not ashamed to say that the Snoop Doggy Dog one had to come home with me, oh and of course I couldn't leave out the Aladdin Sane Guinea Pig could I!? 

I had such a lovely afternoon, we both had a good old moan and she made me laugh with her press up man story (see her blog for more). I'm going to miss her ever so much! 

(E - I hope you didn't get a parking ticket!)

Biba on Sky Arts

I was just flicking through tonight's TV listings when I spotted some vintage fashion shows tonight on Sky Arts 1. One is the 1970 film by the Centre of Information called The Pacemakers: Biba, the synopsis is as follows "The Central Office of Information goes behind the scenes with Biba founders Barbara Hulanicki and Stephen Fitz-Simon at their legendary superstore on Kensington High Street in 1970."

The airing times are: 

Wednesday 11/8/10 at 22.40

Thursday 12/8/10 at 10.40

On further inspection of their website it seems that this Friday night (13/8) they are showing Beyond Biba, the recent film made about Barbara Hulanicki. Biba is my all time favourite label, I'm rather excited to see these shows. You gotta love Sky Arts they really do show some interesting and varied programmes, just the other night they played a Small Faces film, and quite often repeat the awesome 30th Century Man (about Scott Walker) and a rather good documentary called A Technicolour Dream about the legendary 14hr Technicolour Dream happening in 1967 at Ally Pally.

Anyhoo here's is the links to the Biba programme & film, oh yes and some obligatory Biba loveliness!

http://www.skyarts.co.uk/art-design/article/the-pacemakers-biba/

http://www.skyarts.co.uk/film-docs/article/beyond-biba/

All pics are scanned from the fabulous "Fashion in the 60s" by Barbara Bernard.

Blog Sales - A little plug...

Tomorrow, Sunday 1st August, a few bloggers are partaking in a one day blog sale among them are my big sis at http://snowystylista.blogspot.com and the lovely Sharon at http://lookingfabinyourforties.blogspot.com from what I hear there are going to be some fabulous bargains to be had, so do stop by their blogs and check them out!

Vintage Crush

I have been thinking a lot today about Fleetwood Mac, rather Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac and more specifically Danny Kirwan, who along with Scott Walker (more on this to come soon!) is my current vintage crush. I'm such a sucker for a pair of baby blues poking out from under a floppy fringe. Danny is said to have been an emotional, quite neurotic young man at the time, and was so inspired when playing it would bring him to tears. Forget the weeping though, I do like a chap in a nice tight sweater! I wish I could have found some better pics...

Danny's story is though a rather sad one, after leaving the band in the early 70s  and releasing a couple of solo albums he sadly succumbed to the all to familiar downward spiral of alcoholism and has spent the last 30 odd years living in homeless shelters, he was last tracked down a few years ago to a specialist alcoholics clinic in South London. 

Like Crying is my favourite song of his and it's been in my head all day, and pretty much sums up how I have been feeling today. I usually feel super depressed on my birthday but this year I was rather cheerful for this first time in years, I think actually the b'day blues have been delayed a week and they've really got to me today. 

* Damn you pms, somebody pass me a bar of green & blacks....

So, who are everyone else's current crushes?  

Pics from lastfm, fleetwoodmac.org & fleetwoodmac.net

New Hair & Birthday Treats

Well first off I have to apologise for the lack of posts recently, my other half and I have recently bought the business we work at and things have been rather stressful for me lately! We are soo pleased to finally be working for ourselves, it has taken us many years to get there and it's finally done. It does mean we have a tough couple of years ahead of us, but we think it will be worth it!

I finally had my hair cut last week, and it couldn't have turned out better. I was dead nervous at the time but I love it and it takes me like 5 mins in the morning, which means I get an extra bit of sleep, which if you knew me you would know that's a good thing. Not a morning person, no no.

It's actually my birthday today and here are some of the lovely gifts I received. From my dear sis got me a Vogue from June '82 which is the year I was born, such a cool gift! Along with some Benefit lip tint, and from her recent travels the most divine smelling pure olive oil soap and a box of very yummy authentic Turkish Delights that come from the very shop in Istanbul where the turkish delight originates! My other half actually looked at my Amazon wishlist and got me the Fantastic Mr Fox (can't wait to watch this later tonight!) and Up The Junction DVD's. 

Also the Bus Stop book, which has a pic of my Lee Bender dress in it (it's the velvet one, which I never knew came from a mail order range). As Miss Peelpants mentioned in her review of the book, it's quite an odd one and a shame that more original images weren't used, but there are some loverly pics in there indeed. It's a quiet night in for us tonight as I already had a birthday dinner on sunday with sis and her hubby, so I may crack open the turkish delights, just to test them mind! ; p