Diary of a Vintage Girl | Vintage Fashion & Lifestyle

Fleur does the Flicks

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Wed, 23 May 2012 20:25:00 +0000

I don't often get to go to the cinema, so it was quite unusual for me to go twice within two days recently. One of the trips was a rather special event, to which I was invited, along with the Vintage Mafia and some other top bloggers... and the other was a trip we planned ourselves, which turned out to be extra wonderful!

Let's start with the latter.

The Flicker Club was Lisa's discovery. They were showing the Red Shoes, a film loved by many a vintage girl, and one I had never seen before. The site looked good, the film did too, and so we booked tickets and toddled along to Stoke Newington Town Hall. Not only was there some deliciously flavoured popcorn (I had white chocolate) and the film prefaced by a reading of the original Hans Christian Andersen The Red Shoes, which was excellent; but on every seat there was a rather lovely goodie bag!

I do love Hackney, it's true... but I also love the copy of War of The Worlds from the new Penguin English Library collection that I got inside said bag! The new Penguin book covers are gorgeous.

Just when we thought it couldn't get any better, when we traipsed out of the screening, we found a little stand displaying cards, plus lovely carved ink stamps and old Soviet postage stamps! They offer a hand-delivery service of your own art creations to any address in the East London locality... and best of all, to the Weybridge area, which just happens to be where my best friend lives. Receiving my little card made her day when it arrived the following Saturday. What a delightful thing! Our trip to the Flickr Club was an amazing night, with an amazing film and just generally an amazing time was had... we'll be back again for certain.

The second trip was a much swankier affair, and too right too, because it was all to promote a new series of events at One Aldwych - a fancy hotel in London!

We got to eat salted caramel brownies, popcorn (of course) and drink champagne... and fool around in the lift (and why not)! But most importantly, we got to watch My Week With Marilyn in our own private cinema! I'd already seen it... and *shh* hadn't enjoyed it all that much the first time. But I think the second time was much better, strangely enough!

It was all to promote One Aldwych's new Martini Movies experience, and I'd love it if you'd visit the Vintage Mafia blog to read more about it and see some photos of my glamorous fellow attendees! For now, here's what I wore in more detail...

This was the very first vintage dress I ever bought, in San Diego, in 2005! I still adore it, and hope I can indeed still pull it off with my new modern hairdo. Accessorised with my favourite bangles, some Office brogues and a One Negroni! I love Negronis, or anything with Campari in it, in fact. As my Grandad used to say, the best thing about drinking Campari is when you've finished. ;)

I have so very much more coming up on here in the next few days... and finally, some time to do it! Don't go anywhere, will you...

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

A Tuscan Adventure: Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:24:00 +0000

Hello, and welcome to the second part of my Italian Adventure, this time with more burning rubber and gleaming chrome! And wood!

My outfit is a two-piece from Pinup Parade... gypsy chic!

The second day of our trip was the Big One. This was the day that we (and by we, I mean I) were going to be driving one of Andrea and Guiseppe's magnificent vintage Fiat 500s throughout the Tuscan countryside. The 500 Touring Club was go!

Everything about the 500 Touring club is cute and small, from the kitsch clubhouse to the cars themselves. The fleet is in a glorious rainbow of colours... and choosing which one was simultaneously hard and easy, for there could only be one choice for us two vintage mavens, innit.

Naomi's shorts (& earlier jeans) are Freddies of Pinewood

After a quick lesson on double-clutching in the open topped (and open-backed... and engineless) practice car, it was time to pick our ride. As mentioned, there was only one choice, really. So... Paola was our companion for the day! Lipstick red and equipped with such futuristic gadgets as a screen-wash pump, she was created in revolutionary late 60s Italy... so she's over 40 and certainly doesn't look it!

As the only driver in our pairing, it was me, rather nervously, behind the wheel. We were joined by a friendly American couple, both Italy enthusiasts; and a British couple celebrating their wedding anniversary.

My fears soon disappeared (not least because I managed to drive her straight up the hill to the Villa, whereas the American chap driving yellow Giacomo had more trouble.. and he is a classic car enthusiast! First stop on our little tour of the area was an amazing viewpoint, site of the San Miniato church. The inside of this magnificent 11th temple was too dark for me to snap anything worth showing off, but it was breathtaking. Naomi spent a fair bit of time soaking up the atmosphere, where I tried to capture the amazing Florentine vista before me. The cars, far down below, were attracting a lot of attention, as you can see here!

From the church, we took to winding and extremely narrow country roads (much easier to navigate in a teeny weeny Fiat than a normal, modern car, let me tell you), only to be greeted by amazing view after amazing view.

Andrea is full of interesting stories, and as we stopped at this breathtaking view, she told how the great frost of January 1985 killed almost every single one of the hundreds of thousands of olive trees in Tuscany. A dark time for all, and even now, the trees are small. No less beautiful for it, of course! And the dome you can just about make out behind Naomi belongs to the Arcetri Observatory. Though Noms looks like the bigger star if you ask me...

The best bit of the whole ride was when we (well, not me) were allowed to stand up out of the cars to take pictures. As the red caboose, bringing up the rear, this afforded us some good photo opportunities before parking up back 'home', at the marvellous Villa Le Piazzole.

The second part of the tour, you see, was yet more delicious food and wonderful wine!

The Villa produces its own small batches of wine and olive oil, both of which are to die for. Whilst indulging in yet more meat, parmesan cheese, bruscetta and Florentine chicken liver paté (which was sublime), Guiseppe gave us a tour of the cellars and the facilities, as well as the whole skinny on the red and white wines... chardonnay, pinot blanc and cabernet sauvignon - unusual wines for Italy, and amazingly good even to my relatively untrained palate.

I can't recommend the tour and tasting enough - it was an utterly brilliant day from start to finish. It's a sheer pleasure to spend a day being taught new and wonderful things about the area and about food and wine by such knowledgeable people. Andrea and Guiseppe, I salute you!

A short burst of pool business later...

Playsuit from good old Matalan

(always time for a little bit of posing), and Naomi and I headed into Florence to watch the sun set on the Ponte Vecchio, like the tourists we are/were. I'm going to use the word magnificent again here, as there's simply no other word for it!

Tourists-are-us, looking at nude statues of gods...

Outfit facts: Naomi's skirt is vintage, my outfit came from Pinup Parade! See sponsors at the side...

... and Andrea and Beppe were horrified to hear that on this evening, cured meat and cheesed out, we actually went for *shhhhhhhh* a Chinese meal! It was lovely. Don't tell anyone.

I leave you for today with one of my other favourite things of the day, the famous Florence Martini sign. In the day, this looks like nothing so much as a rickety old relic - dating from the 1950s and still going strong in an era when large, illuminated signs are no longer allowed. But at night, it's like a beacon of vintage cool, beaming out between the buildings near the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. Which we sadly never had time to visit. But this was a wonderful sight all in itself.

Until next time, when I regale you with our final day in Tuscany, arrivederci! And do have a shufti at the 500 Touring Club, both their site and their Facebook page... I honestly couldn't rate it any more highly.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Lido lady

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Sun, 13 May 2012 14:24:00 +0000

Today, I went with the rest of the Vintage Mafia to shoot some photos for The Retro Festival, which, if you've noticed the rather large advert to the right there, is one of the latest and most exciting sponsors of my blog! You'll be hearing lots more about it on here over the next few weeks... and I cannot wait to see and show you the photos from today!

But never one to pass up an outfit post opportunity, here's what I have on for the rest of today! I'm off to see the Bauhaus exhibition at the Barbican, which I'm hoping will be as amazing as it sounds!

My fab skirt came from Pinup Parade, and the top is a humble number from Primark SS'11 ;)

The scenic location is Tooting Bec Lido, thanks to them for letting us pose

Shoes by Miss L Fire, the style is called Monterrey!

I went for an accent nail kind of thing, check me out and my trendiness! ;) Both are by Revlon - cherries in the snow and whatever their mint shade is called...

Bamboo bangles and earrings bought from Bow & Crossbones!

Go and check out the Mafia blog for a sneak peek of today's shoot! The sun even came out for us!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

A Tuscan Adventure: Part One

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Fri, 11 May 2012 20:26:00 +0000

Ciao! And happy Friday from an England that has suddenly gone all bright... not sure what is going on as it's not something I can even remember. It's, like, warm and everything has gone all light, the sky has blue patches and everything. I do believe we might be experiencing the phenomenon known as 'spring'! Amazing.

Anyway, it's a good thing, really, since my previously restored vitamin D levels took a battering in the last week since returning from my trip of a lifetime to Tuscany. And the week has rushed by at a rate of knots, leaving this first day blog languishing in the Drafts section for far too long. But after several days of doing All Sorts, I am now finally sitting down and finishing it. The biggest challenge was narrowing down the photos. Be warned... this is a picture-heavy post. And with that, let's begin!

After a fairly painless, albeit extremely early flight, followed by a punctual and scenic coach trip from Pisa through the Italian countryside to Florence; two weary travellers (Miss Naomi Thompson and I) were greeted by the smiling face of Andrea, head of the 500 Touring Club, gorgeous lady, brilliant mum, keen dressmaker, vintage addict... and our hostess, tour guide and entertainer for our three-day stay. We didn't look like the vintage queens we were meant to be at that point, being all travel-stained and crumpled, so it was into a nearby ladies to spruce up slightly. There was nothing I could do with my hair by this point, so a top-knot it was. I think we pulled it off though, shh.

The famous Fleur dress does Florence

Today, we were being treated to a 'taster' session (excuse the pun! No don't actually, you know I love a pun) from the Touring Club's Sister company, Florence Food and Wine. These tours of Florence's culinery high points are run by Guiseppe, husband to Andrea and all-round food and wine guru. Guiseppe lectures on the subject at the nearby university and he really, really knows his stuff. And, perhaps more importantly, he has a brilliant relationship with many of the stallholders in Florence's main food market.

We stopped for a quick coffee before the fun began. Now I have recently become a bit more interested in coffee. I've always liked it, but it wasn't until a month or so ago when I had my first truly exceptional cup that I've dug out the Bialetti moka pot I was given years ago and never really used much and got stuck in. Italy is the home of the espresso, the cappucino, the latte, right? It should be good! It wasn't. More on this later, but for now... San Lorenzo Market!

The riot of colours and textures is amazing to behold. The fresh produce positively glows, and gourmet offerings greet you at every corner. After a short look round, I began to dribble slightly, and when we stopped at our first food sampling of the day, I was certainly not disappointed by what awaited me.

I am a huge fan of cheese. And meats. And wine. Oh, and bread. So, as you can imagine, I was in a kind of rapture by this point. Laid out before us was a selection of all of those things. Parmesan, pecorino and raschera with a mustardy dipping sauce; salami of cinta, culatello and capocollo, with little breadsticks and a generous sampling of a €44 bottle of red from Poggio Argentiera winery. Every single thing was delicious. But we had lots more left to do! Outside, we sampled something at the other end of the scale. Florence's most traditional and most popular street food, Lampredotto.

Lampredotto is made from the last of the cow's four stomachs, cooked with tomatoes, onion, parsley and celery... then doused heavily in chilli oil. I always claim to detest 'innards' - memories of disgusting school steak & kidney and liver dishes are still painfully clear in my mind. But when in Rome... or Florence. It's the texture which often puts me off, and the lampredotto does feel a bit funny to eat - a mixture of soft and chewy. Am I selling it to you yet? It doesn't taste bad, though... it doesn't taste of a huge amount bar the chilli, but it's definitely not unpleasant at all. Though I am glad I tried it, I will probably leave it to the peasants of yore though.

The next stop quite possibly blew the rest of the tasty comestibles out of the water, as we headed to the historic Procacci café/deli for prosecco and panini tartufati... truffle sandwiches.

This amazing little place has been selling truffle-based foodstuffs since 1885. The tiny fingers spread with a cream cheese and truffle paste were absolutely unbelievable, I had two and would happily have eaten twelve. The accompanying prosecco was also divine. I actually prefer many proseccos to champagnes... especially given how much more reasonable it can be.

After all that hard work eating, Guiseppe took us to a place for us to exercise another of our senses - smell. The Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is one the world's oldest pharmacies, officially opened in 1612, but selling toiletries based on recipes created by Dominican friars as early as the 13th century.

Everything looked and smelled sensational. It was an olfactory extravaganza! I couldn't snap too many pictures of the shop itself, as it was undergoing some much-needed restoration. But it will be magnificent when finished!

Hello Guiseppe! And the tongue of Naomi!

New friends!

After all that food and farmacia fun there was only one thing left to do... fashion. So we paid a quick visit to the famous and indeed celebrated Cavalli Cafe for a cup of cappucino coffee! Phew!

This coffee was much better than the first (though the milk makes it taste a little funny), and the cinnamon biscuit and tiny chocolate shortbreads were the sugary cherry on the food tasting cake. The photos on the walls of past-it celebs are also a treat.

And with that final coffee, we were whisked away to our Villa. And oh, what a villa it was. And still is, given that it was only last week!

The Villa le Piazzole is a seventeenth century residence, transformed into a luxurious bed and breakfast, high in the Florentine Hills. It's as countryside as you can get and still be within walking distance of the city (a stunning walk Naomi and I did on our second night). There are apartments and rooms (including the fabulous Royale Suite which I somehow managed to bag), a swimming pool, beautiful statuary of the commedia dell'arte figures... even a miniature amphitheatre. They make their own wine... which is something I will be covering in my next blog post.

There are uncovered and restored frescos on the walls (look out for Naomi's post for a snap), original flooring, vintage bits everywhere... the most amazing atmosphere. The prices are VERY reasonable for what you get... and the breakfasts are to die for. I somehow failed to capture an image of the outside... though I did phone-snap the view from my room in my last post (along with the breakfast!). Highly, highly recommended.

My room also had a juliette balcony that was was simply calling out for a posing session though...

My shorts: Vivien of Holloway, Naomi's outfit: Freddie's of Pinewood

Despite the summer sun making a brief appearance today, the shorts are firmly packed away for now, so it was nice to get my pins out momentarily!

For the rest of the afternoon, we did a little bit of lounging by the pool, digesting the day's food before heading back out to eat the MOST FILLING MEAL I have ever eaten in my life, at Il Latini. I'll spare you yet more food descriptions, but if you ever find yourself in Florence and wish to sample the most traditional foods of the area - Florentine steak (three fingers thick of T-Bone, completely raw in the middle), ribollita, pappa al pomodoro (bread soup), and more... oh so much more, then GO. The picture of me devouring my steak can also be found on my last post.

Here's a picture of me before I put on the 1,657 pounds that *somehow* crept on over three days...

Bikini from Ashley Dean Swimwear, I believe now defunct - boo!

Back next time with tales of vintage cars, churches, chardonnay and er.... olive oil. But if you're at a loose end this weekend, please do check out Florence Food and Wine and the villa... and book yourself a holiday. ;)

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Running vs Tweed

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Bon-journo, as Del Boy would say!

Yesterday was a game of two halves and no mistake. It began at 6am with a rude awakening, a bowl of lukewarm pre-prepared porridge and some mild stressing, all because I was running my third half-marathon. At this point let me say for the record that I realise I did claim that I would try keep the sports stuff off this blog, but as reader after reader emails or comes up to me at events saying that I inspired them to either start or restart running (or other exercise), it's going to remain dotted around the other bits. Variety is the spice of life after all (though I do apologise once more to the exercise phobics among you)!

Anyway. It was an early one for a race - 8:30am; and I was not in any way feeling it the night before. Dreading it, in fact. I was not only going to have to run a really, really long way; but I was also going to miss something very fun (as you'll see below), but I am not one to cancel when I have made a commitment. So that may have been making me look forward to running said 13.1 miles in the cold even less... but the Run Dem Crew motto states, 'Go Hard or Go Home'... so there was only the one thing to do. At least I did it in some sort of style (I hope)!

In this picture you will observe: Exhibit A, which is some kind of semblance of retro running steez. Well, a pin curl and a bit of colour, anyway. I have my fringe in a miniscule roll, my RDC tee, my pretty turquoise Nike Lunareclipses, and the pièce de résistance - my Saucony jacket (which resembles nothing so much as Dazzle Camouflage. Tres WWI). I have no idea where these jackets can be bought as it was a gift from a very lovely person. Exhibit B is the 'gunfingers' pose, which should be busted out at every opportunity when running. Exhibit C in this image is the man in blue, who is giving me the typical 'WTF' look that all RDC members attract at events, because we don't look like 'proper' runners.

Anyway, I proved I am, in fact, a proper runner (aside from the pasta stains on my tracksuit bottoms), because I ran those 13.1 miles in 1:47:47, nine minutes faster than my previous PB set in February, and actually did my last mile the fastest of them all! I hit a bit of a wall at 10 miles and refuelled on jelly babies, rallied and stormed to the end! Chuffed is not the word, and next time... next time... I vow to wear red lipstick and break 1:45! Still want to get a group of red lipsticked vintage ladies together to do a race... let me know if you're up for it. ;)

After returning home after an unexpectedly long walk to my car (note to self, when finish line is nearly a mile from the start, park car close to former instead of latter), bathing, washing, blowdrying and styling, I went to catch the end of the a very different kind of run... the Tweed Run!

I'm a HUGE fan of the Tweed Run as you all undoubtedly know, and was, as mentioned, gutted to miss the main event. But it was announced after I had booked the half, and I am not a quitter. I wasn't going to miss ALL the fun though, so off I headed to the end party... Slowly, rather gingerly and cursing every flight of stairs as I went.

It was, by all accounts, an amazing day and a slightly odd one - not very many people we knew had managed to score a place in the lottery (though a very old school friend did!), and obviously I missed the ride itself, so my photos are few! I did capture my pal Pandora, who won the Best Dressed Dame prize for her amazing home-sewn tweed outfit (brilliant trophy, too)!

I got to spend a few magical moments with the fab Lady Velo, as pictured here with her chap and a friend. That girl has style by the bucket load, I tell you.

My dear Jeni Yesterday and her beau Hanson were there, of course.

Beloved Bethan looked a dream, as she always does. Especially with an enamel mug of tea. I, on the other hand, needed something slightly more isotonic after my exertions. So ale (and a pie chaser) was the only thing that would do!

I'm wearing my Jitterbug Bybee dress, with a vintage plaid jacket over the top, the only shoes I could get on without pain (gold sandals from Office), and a tankard of the aforementioned ale. Once we'd got this shot, Bethan continued to snap me as I walked toward her. Hilarity ensued (well, it was hilarious to us anyway)!

Thank you a million to Jacqui and Ted of the Tweed Run for having us, and rest assured, I will NOT be missing it next time. I leave you with my face as it so often looks, captured by Bethan in all its close-up, snaggletoothed glory.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

iPhone Italy

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Sun, 06 May 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Well hallo there!

If you follow myself or Naomi on Twitter, over the last few days you might have seen us plastering the internets with photos of our trip to Tuscany. Despite the fact that I went and came back, I'm still in mild disbelief that I got to have such a wonderful time, enjoying (read: overindulging) on so much amazing food, wine and LIFE!

There will be write ups, oh yes there will (and so very many photos); but in the mean time, here are some Instagram snaps.

Stand by for a proper review of this most marvellous excursion, but because I can't say it nearly enough: THANK YOU to Andrea and Beppe of the 500 Touring Club of Firenze for having us. They're the most fabulously kind and wonderful people and I am honoured to have met and spent time with them.

Three days and two nights of delight! I hope you'll come back to read the full story!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

House proud

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 03 May 2012 10:57:00 +0000

Just a quick thank you to one of my more recent sponsors, and a sometime writing client of mine too - the lovely company that is Vivien of Holloway.

Hopefully, summer is on its way, and for those of you out there who favour a more casual look, there are some seriously cute and comfortable housedresses in the Viv shop these days.

There's the Peggy Lee, which is perfect for running around in, pretending to water some already completely waterlogged plants... ;)

It's made of a textured, linen-y cotton mix that's easy to wear. I paired it with navy blue... a little bit patriotic and certainly Jubilee friendly!

In honour of the late, great Peggy Lee herself, here's my all-time favourite songs of hers. Also featured on the Fallout New Vegas soundtrack. Bit melancholy, but it's a nice contrast to the bright frock!

If you're more of a button-down kind of gal, the Tea Dress is pretty and practical.

I love the shoulder pads (I'm all about shoulder pads at the moment), and the seersucker type fabric didn't need any ironing. Massive win, since I hate ironing, and yet am chained to my board most of summer.

Modern hair meets vintage repro... what do you think??

Do visit Vivien of Holloway to see all these casual classics and of course her ultra glamorous partywear ranges. Thanks to Ms Viv for being such a lovely sponsor. :)

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Hall of Kings

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:20:00 +0000

For this month's King's Ginger expedition, I journeyed to the Far East, and the furthest corners of the Empire. Hackney, to be precise. The... er... Hackney Empire (d'you see what I did there?). To the music hall, by Jove!

In the 1800s, music hall used to be a form of entertainment for the working classes, and they alone. The shows were bawdy and considered highly inappropriate for lofty ladies and gentlemen of the upper and middle classes alike; and the performers themselves were deemed the very lowest of the low. Sounds like a whole lot of fun to be honest, especially when one compares the noise, colour, greasepaint and laughter that must have abounded in such establishments compared to the straight-laced Victorian values that would have epitomised the theatre of the time! But there was one particular, fun-loving upper crust sort who was around back then, and it was he who began to change the way that the rest of the world viewed the music hall. You guessed it... his Majesty King Edward VII!

It was during his rather long tenure as the Prince of Wales that our friend Bertie got into the more risqué end of the entertainment spectrum. Wednesday 19th, 1868 was the historic date, and the event was Lord Carrington's party in Whitehall Gardens. The playbill itself can, rather fascinatingly, be seen here, on a site dedicated to Arthur Lloyd. Mr Lloyd himself appeared and indeed managed the performance, alongside music hall legends Alfred Vance and Jolly John Nash. It's easy to picture the affable Prince laughing along with the performers, and the Royal seal of approval meant that Polite Society began to sit up and take notice of the genre for the first time.

It may be pure coincidence that his Highness also had a soft spot for the ladies of the music hall (I'm sure it wasn't!). But there can be no doubt that his fondness for the famous Lillie Langtry helped many other starlets dream of royal patronage. The venue I chose to visit for this article is therefore one linked with La Langtry and so by association with Edward, though I am not sure if he ever visited it himself. But it's a fascinating place nonetheless!

Believe me, the day was as dismal as it appears in this photo, but the building itself is enough to hold a gaze even in the sweeping rain. The new section does draw the eye, but the majestic old parts have a real grace. Not to mention a patina from their century standing proud in the grimy East End.

Well these drizzly photos are quite possibly the most uninspiring ever, but it's much more impressive in person, I swear! Built in 1901 by one Frank Matcham, the most renowned of the theatre architects at the time, it was (and still is) incredibly grand. Fifteen hundred seats, a Grand Vestibule, marble staircases, and even a sliding roof to allow ventilation had it on a par with some of the most lavish West End venues.

Unfortunately, they opened for a matinee (the Tina Turner musical looks so much fun!) just as we arrived and so quick and 'arty' snaps as the punters came pouring in, it was.

Old meets new London!

I wish I could have had a look around inside the auditorium, but alas, even after asking politely on the phone beforehand, it was not to be. Stood outside on the still-vibrant mosaic tiles was nearly as good, though!

My super cute strawberry dress goes by the name of Runaround Sue!
Dress c/o my sponsor Vivien of Holloway

Bolero from Etsy

Shoes from the mists of time, via Freed

Revlon Cherries in the Snow to finish!

Miss Langtry was, of course, not the only star of the Hackney Empire stage. Charlie Chaplin, Marie Lloyd, Little Titch and (much) later, even the great Liberace have trodden the boards there. I'm not sure if that most famous showman of all - Dan Leno - ever appeared, but he was surely King Edward's favourite (non female) star, having been summoned to perform for him at Sandringham soon after the latter's coronation. But even if there's no clear record of his Majesty having visited the Empire, I feel sure he'd have been right at home relaxing on a fauteuil (or fancy French armchair - the word on this door panel) in the Grand Circle.

'scuse the slightly rain-ruined 'do!

By this point, it was getting rather chilly in the drizzly rain, and if Bertie had in fact graced the Hackney Empire with his presence, there's no doubt he would have headed back into Town for a slap up meal afterwards. Since I'm following in his footsteps, I did just that!

It may have sunk on its maiden voyage, two years after Edward shuffled off his mortal coil, but work began building the RMS Titanic in 1909. Selfridges, another grand relic of the Edwardian era also opened in that very year, and given that this is the centenary of that most famous of maritime disasters, it was appropriate that a memorial meal was being served there.

Here's the epicurean friendly menu:

Four Lindisfarne rock oysters
Wye Valley asparagus vinaigrette
Duck liver parfait with toasted brioche and Kingston Black jelly

Poached Loch Duart salmon with mousseline sauce and stonecrop
Spring chicken sauté with morels and wild garlic
Chargrilled lamb cutlets with cucumber and mint

Waldorf Pudding with cider brandy ice cream
Peaches in Chartreuse jelly
The Iceberg

... suffice to say, I had to have the Ice(cream)berg, and finished it off with a little snifter of digestive King's Ginger. Delicious, and so tasty and dare I say Regal, that Edward would most definitely have approved.

Now for a little giveaway!

They didn't have cocktails back in the 1900s, but if you could go back in time and invent one, what would your suggestions be for a Music Hall concoction? Something that involves copious champagne (sparkle) sounds like something that would get my (and Kind Edward's!) vote, but anything goes! Leave suggestions below and the most delicious sounding will win a bottle of the ginger nectar.

I'll close the competition ONE WEEK TODAY (8th May).

Unfortunately, only UK residents can enter... unfortunate booze laws and stuff. But comments welcomed by all!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Identity Crisis

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:14:00 +0000

Hello from a sunny England! I was overwhelmed by the appearance of some sunshine after the biblical rain we've had for the last... well, it seems like years. So shocked was I, that I even got my pasty legs out! But before I show you, I have a bit of a confession to make.

Like a mid-2000s superhero, I'm having something of an identity crisis.

Vintage style has been my life for over five years now. Ever since I discovered there were other people who dressed in such a way 24/7 and decided I wanted to do that too, it's been an all-consuming passion. But then, last year, my frankly anal adherence to my aesthetic started to be slightly tempered by my new-found love of running, and I started to scour the 'net for skin-tight lycra and performance fabrics... then found myself wearing my huge, fleecy tracky bottoms around the house instead of my 40s style pyjamas... what a phony I have become! I am semi joking - vintage has been my image, but I'm the first to admit that I've never been a lifestylist or a re-enactor. I listen to modern music, hanker after the latest gadgets and am generally a thoroughly modern girl in every other aspect of my day-to-day life, other than my clothes and general love of old-fashioned design.

But my recent, spur-of-the-moment decision to get a fringe cut has thrown me into the aforementioned crisis. For I have discovered that I only like it straightened, and there's nothing remotely 1940s about it any more.

Behold! The damage done by years of hot sticking! ... and the fringe.

I can't claim to be drawing inspiration from the 40s collegiate look, as it would need to be more of a pageboy. If I was channeling Paulette Goddard or Barbara Stanwyck then I'd need a bit of a wave. And Bettie Page rip offs needs curls and more length.

While the old me has stuck rigorously to my chosen look, even writing guest posts about how one should always wear the right hair to match the outfit (within reason, I've always paired 50s and early 60s frocks with 40s hair for example), I'm now stuck with a 'do that only looks good (to my eyes) straightened into ultra-modernity, even dare I say trendiness; but yet I still love my vintage wardrobe. Kind of. I'm also finding myself yearning to be a little more... sexy.

I have been secretly buying little short dresses since I got my first one a few months back for my 'ice skater' outfit. I discovered I really like having my legs out... these gams have carried me strong for miles and miles of running - they are toned and taut... they might not be physically perfect but they are darned awesome in what they can do. And they do come out in the summer, when I wear playsuits, but not for a long time have I worn a short skirt in public. And there will come a time, in the not-too-distant future when I will be too old to wear them. I always intend to push boundaries, but not to the point of being mutton (luckily a Young Person told me he thought I was 23 the other day, so hopefully I'm not too haggard yet). And I discovered something that most other women have known for years... men like short skirts! I have lost count of the compliments and chat up lines I have had from the chaps since going out three or four times in this type of dress. And as someone who's been extremely unlucky in love and is yet still a hopeless romantic, then perhaps this is something I need to make the most of this summer, unless being a spinster is my destiny as I'm starting to fear...

But let's face it: with the hair, and the short frock, it's all starting to look a lot like, well. Not me. Not the old me, anyway.

As my readers, it's important to me that you don't abandon me in droves because I've changed my image slightly and become, being deadly honest here, a vintage style hypocrite (NB. I almost put hairpocrite here, but it was a pun too far... even though I have still made it!). Because I will be continuing to wear my beloved vintage dresses as well as these modern styles, but with my new 'do 'ruining' the authentic effect, at least for the time being. And some other, slightly different looks are going to start creeping in. Because I'm at something of a crossroads, both in my life (for various reasons) and my look. But nothing really stays the same forever... can it? Maybe I am just convincing myself here...

If nothing else, after all this time blogging, I have realised you can't always please everyone all the time (read the comments on my last entry to see this in action!) and this is, as it always has been, a document of my life and the trials and tribulations therein. But ultimately, if no one reads my blog because it's lost its way, then it's all a little bit pointless, innit! Whatever happens here, it will be an interesting journey, and it will always involve lots of lovely vintage. This blog will ALWAYS be called Diary of a Vintage Girl, I will ALWAYS wear clothes that come from or echo the eras I love (and which suit me best). And I will ALWAYS do my best to inform and entertain. I do have some really fun projects coming up soon, too. I'm quite excited about this new phase, actually!

But please do let me know your thoughts in the comments. :)

Lots of love,

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Get Happy

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:42:00 +0000

Two years ago, I was pretty miserable. I was reminded (not that I had exactly forgotten) of this recently, when I was rooting out an old picture of me with a particular hairdo. I just look a bit, well... sad. It seems to shine out of my eyes. I don't ever want to be that sad again, and so far, touch wood, life has been a lot kinder to me in the last two years. Not perfect, but not nearly so mean!

I've posted on here several times before about the things I do to cheer myself up if I'm feeling blue - physical things like putting a flower in my hair, wearing red lipstick. You know, superficial things. Don't get me wrong, they absolutely do work. But I recently watched a DVD of The Secretand while some of it was pretty silly (if you worry about the big bills you're about to receive through your letterbox... they'll materialise! No, actually your racking up of said big bills is what will make them materialise, duh!), and it did inspire me quite a lot. Well, enough to write a blog about it, anyway. But there's such a lot to be said for thinking, speaking and acting positive to manifest positive things in your life, and I feel like sharing my newly acquired pearls of happiness wisdom.

In my experience thus far, if you're feeling a bit mopey and someone you know and love (who's aware of said mopeyness) asks you how you're doing, you have two choices. You can open your heart and spill out the sadness therein, and then spend the next few hours going over and over the things that are dragging you down, lamenting that this has happened to you, aren't you awesome like your friends all say you are? When will it all end? Oh woe! Or, you can get it off your chest and then close that chapter for the time being. You draw a temporary line in the sand, step over it and move swiftly on to talking about something more positive, something that will bring smiles and hope. The first option will ensure you'll spend all your time with your beloved friend being all sad, keeping you down, bringing them down, it's just a big down-fest. But the latter leads to sharing, sympathising yes; but then getting the hell out of...er... Down-ge. Trust me, it works. I've been made redundant, been dumped, carelessly lost stuff, broken things, crashed my car, been made to feel a fool, and so on, many times over the years. I'm sure we all have experienced some or all of those things. But my new strategy, when faced with a blow, is to wallow in it for ONLY a set and indeed short amount of time, and then move the heck on. Which is not to say that the self-pitying thoughts won't creep back in quiet moments. But try your absolute hardest not to dwell on them. Acknowledge them, but then let them pass. Focus on your ambitions, your dreams, that party, even the awesome dinner you have planned! Write a set of positive affirmations and repeat them to yourself every night before you go to bed. It really works, promise.

As ever, please note that I am not a qualified counsellor and all my advice is anecdotal and subjective, but if it can make even one of you lovely readers feel a little bit brighter when the world is conspiring to make you a misery guts, then I am happy. Hurrah for happy!

I'll leave you with some photos of me in my namesake Fleur dresses. These make me pretty happy at the moment! And now the word 'happy' has lost all meaning as I've written it too many times. Oh well!

(Above shoes from Rocket Originals)

Till next time!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Poncho chic

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 17:29:00 +0000

Last week, I had the distinct honour of being invited to Future Cinema's much-hyped presentation of Bugsy Malone. The invite came through the fantabulous Bangs and a Bun (thanks Bangalang!) and she got a little group of us Run Dem Crew running ladies together for the occasion.

Now, I've obviously heard of Future Cinema and its big brother Secret Cinema, but I've never been to any of their productions. I have, however, been to the venue before. The Troxy is a magnificent Art Deco gem, fully restored and tarted up inside. It's strange and nice to see an deco interior so pristine... nearly too pristine! I like a bit of patina, after all.

The night began in the alleyway behind the Troxy, where characters roamed around, talking to each other, to us and to everyone. We were being called in to 'audition' for Fat Sam, and there lots of other chorus girls around, a reporter, a shoe shine guy, several gangsters and so on. I'll be honest, I often find these immersive theatre things a bit trying. I adore the scary, Punchdrunk type things, but somehow the lighter-hearted ones are a wee bit painful. That said, all the actors were enthusiastic and the atmosphere was well and truly made by their often slightly-dodgy Noo Yawk accents.

A commotion on the rooftop and a dramatic photo opportunity!

Inside, and we grabbed a table in prime position, and watched the performances on stage. Songs from the movie (which I've never seen), scenes and skits, plus lots of dancing, it was all fantastic. I consumed my body weight in macaroni cheese around this point in the evening.

Fizzy the cleaner took a bit of a shine to Candice!

The film itself soon came on, and I enjoyed it a lot! I felt like I'd badly missed out on a childhood classic, but it was still super fun as an adult. And I had absorbed most of the songs without realising, it seems! It was joyous to hear everyone singing along, and small bursts of live action took place all the way through. I say small... until...

A sudden scramble under our table to find our complimentary, and very stylish, plastic ponchos, which we all had to fling on with utmost haste. Because any second now, a devastating splurge gun massacre was about to take place! Elle, Candice and Bangs were rocking them.

I managed to protect my deco finery (also known as a jumpsuit from ASOS!), but my phone got very heavily splurged. Luckily, shaving foam isn't too damaging! ;)

Pure carnage.

The show closed with a huge, poncho-clad, mass dance-off on the stage and on the floor (gets very hot dancing in plastic, let me tell you), and then we all dispersed into the wilds of Limehouse. It was an absolutely brilliant event, and I encourage you to get dressed up and go along if you can - I believe it closes at the end of next week. But I do hear that they're doing La Haine next... though how the gritty urban film will work in the deco splendour of the Troxy, I can't imagine! But I'm very interested to find out.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Hair today, gone tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 15:26:00 +0000

Sorry for that rubbish pun title. But I've had the chop! It was inspired by the mini shoot I did last week, for which I fashioned a faux bang for the first time in ages. My hair had reached that stage where the bottom three inches were basically dead. I permed it two years ago nearly to the day and the split ends were just getting worse and worse. I also had a completely frazzled front part from when I bleached it for my 30th birthday, the best part of a year ago. It didn't look too bad though, at a casual glance. Allow me to now show off these pictures!

These fabulous black denim capris are by Bernie Dexter, though a word of warning. I got these in the blue in a size small and they are absolutely perfect for me, but there is much less stretch in the black colourway. As a result, they are under much more... um... strain, shall we say. If I replace these in the future, I'll go up a size. But they are so fab and so flattering... they work wonders on your bottom, ladies. Mine is pretty ample, too.

But what about the hair? Clearly a fringe suits me... I even had a real one for a year or so when I was about 24.

Well, I'm being a bit of a cliche, but I decided to make some changes in my life, to go forward with a little bit of transformation, so it was time for a drastic haircut. And here it is, straight from the hairdressers (and no proper pics yet, only phonecam!).

It's not quite a Bettie Page - it tapers down slightly at the sides instead of up. I haven't played much with vintage styling yet and I am definitely still adjusting, and am not 100% sure... I hope it'll grow on me!! Grow! LOL etc ;). Touch of 'fremorse', you might say.

Anyway, let me know what you think. Unless you think it's horrible, then don't let me know at all. ;) One thing's for sure, I can certainly make it look totally unvintage - rather extremely East LDN trendy!

Oh, and HAPPY EASTER! Hope you're all overindulging in chocolate, as is traditional.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Angel things

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:37:00 +0000

Last Monday was no ordinary day in the life of me. For one thing, I touched up a tree...

No but seriously, I had some really exciting things to do. The first was to film a very important piece for a forthcoming documentary. By important, I mean silly, and by documentary, I mean it's a spoof one, following The Chap Magazine's Olympic Committee as we made plans for the summer's Games. The Chap Olympiad this year is rather special, for there's a rival event in town and therefore we've had to seriously up our own game (pun intended). We're extending it to a rather bonkers two days, over the 7th and 8th July, with the second day informally known as the Para(lytic) Olympics. I may be running a race the morning of the second day. Should make it... fun.

It was super amazing to be doing some acting, and it was quite a challenge for me to talk about how dreadful sportswear is and how I'd never dream of wearing it; all the while plotting a trip to Nike Town to buy some new running shorts. Anyway, I won't spoil it any more - I'll of course let you all know when the film is out. But my outfit, for the record is very un-athletic - my amazing Jitterbuggin Bybee dress, lots of bakelite and Rocket Originals shoes. Perfect for our spring weather.

I'm posing outside the Zetter Hotel, where I went afterwards to accompany my dear mum to a launch event. You may know, if you're a long-time reader, that my mum does angel stuff. Well, the talented chap who did all the artwork for my mum's books, Richard Rockwood, has put his hard work, well... back to work. He's teamed up David Watson to produce a line of silk scarves, each one using one of his lovely illustrations. It's not exactly standard Diary of a Vintage Girl fare, but worth mentioning, both to support my mum and her friend, and in case you have friends that do like such silky wonders. The website is called Epiphany Angels and you'll hopefully be seeing the scarves in a department store near you - each one coming in a lovely box with a feather inside.

Here I am showing you how to model a green Nadiel scarf in a suitably vintage way.

Grace Kelly eat your heart out! ;)

Have an angelic Monday everyone.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Gardening leave

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 21:45:00 +0000

First of the month and time for my eighth trip to obscure yet interesting places for The King's Ginger. I've been wanting to do this one for a while, and with the arrival of both some unseasonably lovely weather, and some almost unreasonably nice new frocks, it was time. West Dean House was my destination!

Now, we've established before that our dear friend King Edward VII had something of an eye for the ladies. Beautiful, feisty, witty and Scottish, Alice Keppel was the last in a long line. She was Edward's favourite mistress from the moment he met her, in 1898, to his death in 1910, and was known to have supported him immensely, both in his personal and political life. While Edward's mistresses were never kept a secret (royals having taken them for centuries), the couple were nonetheless not welcome to stay in the King's haunt Goodwood House, and so, an alternative nearby venue was sought, and found, in West Dean House.

West Dean manor has been around at least as far back as the Domesday Book, which was 1086, fact fans. But the flint mansion you see before you was built in 1804 by Sir James Peachy, who was also responsible for planning and planting the arboretum and the earliest incarnation of the amazing gardens. But the period we're interested in begins in the last days of the 19th Century. William Dodge James made his fortune from American industries, married a wealthy Scottish socialite and settled in West Dean, extending the original house and filling it with treasures from across the world, taxidermy and paintings.

William Dodge James also knew how to throw a hell of a party, all year round; but especially during the partridge and pheasant shooting season. It was these parties which King Edward, who never could resist a good shindig, would regularly attend with Mrs Keppel.

The House itself is now a college, and tours are only rarely given. I was allowed to have a look in the foyer, but no further, and it meant I couldn't check out the infamous King's Room, which is now nothing more than a conference room, but which once housed Bertie himself. There's apparently a small door concealed somewhere, which is where his lady friend would be smuggled in... how I'd loved to have seen it! But imagining it is fun, too.

Outside of the House is the main attraction these days, from the stunning Victorian pleasure gardens, to the walled Kitchen Garden and the arboretum.

Everywhere we turned there was a wonderful ancient orchard tree (wild or trained into a fabulous shape), a lovingly tended bed, or some gorgeous wrought iron from the time when such things were designed for aesthetics as well as function.

This little museum of a gardener's cottage was full of interesting bits!

There were some beautiful Victorian glass houses and hothouses too, holding vines, orchids and more.

And while I don't imagine King Edward strolling around the kitchen gardens, there's one place I can easily picture him: the 300-foot pergola, which absolutely captivated me (besides being the perfect place to pose!).

Willie James's son, Edward James, was King Edward's godson. He had something of a troubled relationship with his mother Evelyn Forbes. She was the one who gave the enormous house parties so typical of the Victorian super-rich, attended by King Edward (both as king and as Crown Price); often with a full orchestra playing music for dancing into the night. Evelyn was, by all accounts, something of an unconventional lady for the time - aside from being a complete party animal. I found this fascinating biography, which relates a story of how, in 1896, she was 'reported to have bicycled through the night with twenty-three of her house guests to watch the sun rise over the Downs. One of the male guests had to offer his jacket to stop her from freezing, as, it was noted, she was wearing "next to no clothes."' The article also tells how, when asked by her maid which of her children she'd like to accompany her to church, she replied, “Whichever goes best with my blue dress". Not the most loving of mothers then, and no wonder Edward James was not entirely immune to scandal.

He inherited the estate in 1912 at the tender age of five, two years after Edward's passing, so you might be forgiven for thinking that that is where our quest for knowledge ends. But James Junior apparently later claimed to be our King Bertie's grandson, born of a dalliance between the former and his grandmother, Lady Helen of Newe. If Evelyn's mother was anything like her daughter, it's not too difficult to imagine that she was a high-spirited lady of exactly the type adored by his Majesty.

Anyway, all that promenading was thirsty work, so we retired to the lovely West Dean House cafe for a thirst-quencher. I picked the rather appropriate Fentiman's Victorian Lemonade, and blow me, if it doesn't contain a hint of ginger. I happened to have just the thing to perk it up a little bit further still...

My day out at West Dean House was interesting, revivifying and just plain wonderful, just like our old friend KGL itself. Do visit the King's Ginger website if you have a mo, and treat yourself to a bottle to mix up with lemonade this summer. I'll be giving another bottle away soon, too! How exciting is that? I'll show you...

Springy, gingery love to you all!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

PS. This is indeed the second of the two new Fleur dresses in their classic floral gingham stripe. This time, it's PINK! I took lots of lovely photos (the backdrops helped), and they will be posted on here and the Heyday site in the next few days. So forgive seeing the same outfits again, twice. You'll just have to let me off for being so proud! :)

Happy snaps

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:59:00 +0000

So the other day, I got an exciting text from Shona Heyday, telling me that the latest incarnation of our Fleur dresses had just been delivered. She had to remind what they actually looked like, since we've got SO many exciting fabrics up our sleeves (both literal and figurative), that I was no longer sure what was coming next. The two that just dropped have a very classic floral/stripe/mini gingham print that's incredibly authentic for a late 40s to early 60s housedress. It was used in a black colourway on the skirt of our Green & Gingham version, but this time it's an all-over print and in a beautiful mid-blue and a dusky pink.

When the parcel arrived this morning, I whipped it out of the packaging and let out a little squeak. I also happened to be heading to my parents' place this afternoon for a work project tomorrow, and there was room in my heavy suitcase for one little frock. And, as the sun went down, we popped down the road so I could take a couple of impromptu pictures.

Unfortunately, my mum doesn't believe in ironing, and thus doesn't own one. These photos, therefore, depict a dress that has literally come out of its packaging, been folded into a suitcase and then put straight on. So please forgive the creases! I'm actually surprised how *uncreased* it seems to be though. Not that I should be, Shona and I only choose lovely quality cotton... ;)

Proper photos will be coming soon... some will be taken tomorrow, in fact. But the light was just too nice to ignore!

I had very boringly unstyled hair, so I whipped up one of my patented faux fringes (link is to tutorial!), and paired it with my beloved (but as yet unworn this year) pair of Rocket Originals Nancy in cream. Supporting British repro brands all the way!

A little bit closer on the lovely fabric... excuse my golden skin (again), but it does lend a beautiful warmth to the lighting here.

Do go and check out the brand new Fleur dresses on the Heyday site (and her other great wares of course) - we've got plenty for now, but they won't wait around. Thanks, as ever, to my lovely mum for taking the pictures. I'll have lots more (uncreased) pictures to show you soon!

Bye for the noo...

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Springham

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 08:34:00 +0000

A-well-hello!

A straightforward outfit post for you today, with a few more on the way... I've been slightly neglecting the fashion side of my blog recently. Consider that worked upon, beginning now.

We've been having some rather glorious weather over here in the UK, not exactly as scorchio as some of the outfits I've seen on others would suggest, though. At the appearance of even the merest ray of sunshine, many British men experience an inexplicable urge to take their tops off and wander around half naked. Other people get their pasty feet out in flip flops and generally make ill-advised outfit decisions, usually resulting in them shivering at 9pm, when the temperature drops back down to zero and they wantonly left their coats at home. Anyway! It has been genuinely lovely, and, I'm delighted to say, warm enough to get the first Swirl dress of spring out. Worn with tights (I've run out of stockings - sad face) and a cardigan, I was at the perfect temperature for posing in the golden, late afternoon sunshine on Saturday.

Vintage gingham wrap dress, peach bolero from a 40s pattern
(sadly gone all baggy now, but I still love it), white canvas pumps...

Side note: I may have had to whiten my teeth slightly here, as the golden sunshine effect also made said teeth appear rather on the golden side...

I do love a bit of embroidery! My lipstick is Boots No. 7 in Classic Rose. It's a classic for sure!

That's all from me today, nothing more insightful shall emit from my typing fingers, but when does it ever? ;)

Hope you're all having a smashing week!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Play Time

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 19:56:00 +0000

Writing this here blog, I get invited to lots of things, most fabulous and others, not so much. I go to some, and turn down still more. But the occasional invite makes me do a little jig of joy, and this was such a one. Last week, I got to go and see the acclaimed West End Show One Man, Two Guvnors. This play has received rave reviews, from when it opened at the National Theatre with prime time comedian James Cordn as the eponymous Man Francis Henshall, to now in its latest incarnation at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. The lead role is now played by Corden's understudy, the very Welsh and very, very funny Owain Arthur; and he's so good, I can't even imagine James Corden playing it. I don't find the latter very funny at all, usually. So I was pleased even before I'd sat down!

What was even better, as we did sit down, a skiffle band was playing live on stage! Excellent.

The story goes, that Francis Henshall has been booted out of his own skiffle band, and starts a new career as a henchman to a dodgy gangster type named Roscoe Crabbe. Crabbe actually turns out to be his own sister, disguised as a her brother, who is trying to extort some money out of said brother's former fiancée's father... who has her own lover... who ends up hiring Henshall to be a minder for HIM... and it all gets hugely complicated, farcical and rip-roaringly funny.

The acting is impeccable, and the accents (both real and put on) are perfect. The characters are all wonderful in their own separate ways, from the major to the minor. Posh public schoolboy Stanley Stubbers was definitely my favourite after Francis himself - he had some great lines, too.

The scene with the doddery waiter as shown above is widely regarded to be the most hilarious in this brilliantly funny play... though between you and me, I thought the slapstick went on just a tiny bit too long. I was just as amused by the guffaws of laughter coming from the people around me, though!

The wonderfully upholstered Dolly is definitely the best of the two (technically three) female characters, with her amazing hair, feisty ways, and perfectly fitting Vivien of Holloway ensemble! Made me covet a new pencil skirt, I can tell you.

Hannah from S Club 7 is perfect as Pauline, the unbelievably simple (thick) former love interest of the dead gangster (confused, much!), and her boyfriend Alan Dangle is an over-the-top, polo-necked and winkle-pickered wannabe thespian who had me laughing and cringing at the same time.

You all know, I hope, that on this blog, I only endorse things that I genuinely enjoy. And from beginning to end, One Man, Two Guvnors is an absolute triumph and I actually really, really want to go and see it again. Perhaps for my birthday! Do, please try to catch it if you can - there are some brilliant deals on seats for £25 according to the official website, but even if you can only stretch to a £15 seat all the way up in the gods, go, go GO AND SEE IT!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Fast forward

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:25:00 +0000

Hello and welcome to another slightly rambly update on my life at the moment!

To coin a cliché: what a difference a year makes. Yesterday afternoon, at about 4pm, I was walking along the seafront in Portsmouth, talking life and business plans with my dearest friend Naomi, after spending the day doing a promotional photoshoot for a very exciting project (which I will come to very shortly). The day before, I'd finished my third long-distance running race - a ten-mile scarper through a World War Two aerodrome and the nearby, rural Surrey town.

I'm not naturally an early riser, so to be greeted by this, at 6:30 on a Sunday morning is rather nice.

Dunsfold Aerodrome was built by the Canadian Army in WWII. Now it's home to the most
laddish of TV shows, Top Gear. And some planes. Which I saluted.

I finished it in an all-time personal best of 1:24:44, which means I ran at an average pace of 8 minutes 30 seconds per mile, 15-seconds per mile faster than my pancake-flat half marathon a few weeks back, even despite the hills, even though I had a stinking cold. My dedicated training over the last few weeks paid off and no mistake (my brother pacing me also helped!).

I'd chosen to do that particular race for a few reasons: the picturesque and indeed historic location (which also happened to be in fairly close proximity to my parents), and the fact that it nearly fell on my running anniversary. My runniversary, if you will. Because, at 4pm yesterday as I gazed out to sea, the ghost of my running past was pulling on a pair of borrowed running shoes, a t-shirt and a pair of American Apparel shorts; and heading out the door to see how far I could go. And how fast.

The answer was, of course, not very, and really not very. I think I did a total of two miles around the block, the first in a very slow and painful time, the rest punctuated by stops and walking. I sweated, I puffed and panted, it hurt. But there was absolutely no doubt that after I got in, collapsed on the sofa and had a bit of a breather, I was extremely proud of myself for taking that first step. And many more continued. I went a little further each time, felt a little fitter, puffed a little less... hurt a little less, too! It wasn't long before I'd got myself some properly fitted trainers and some lycra (because clammy cotton is not fun to run in) and started ~~evangelising~~ boring all my vintage enthusiast readers about my newfound hobby.

It's not that running and vintage style are mutually exclusive - they're not. I've done training runs in lipstick and with my hair pinned in a sort of retro-esque updo. This fabulous lady, Sheryl Yvette manages to go running and look amazing from start to finish. So does Sofia Hedstrom. But I always seem to chicken out at the last minute. I think that despite everything I've just said, I don't know if I feel like a 'proper runner', and that once I crack 8 minute miles, maybe I'll do it then. When I can run a half-marathon in 1:45 or something. Once I'm doing so well that people will be judging me on the start line for wearing lipstick but then see me fly past... or maybe I'll keep these two parts of my life separate forever. Who knows! I do know that I intend to get even better at running, I just need to keep reminding myself that it's only been one single year since I started. I've always been the kind of person who will unfortunately put absolutely no effort into things that don't inspire, move or motivate me. Put me in a boring job with nowhere to go, and I will underperform. But when I get it into my head to do something, I work and work at it until I have achieved my goal. From passing my driving test within months when I decided I wanted to, to getting into my chosen field after uni (then finding it cripplingly dull, but that's another story), to forging my current career, to building my vintage wardrobe, and now running. Improving at running is a metaphor for chipping away at any of your goals in life - you get out what you put it. It's also, as my mum would say, like eating an elephant. You can do it, but only in small bites.

Maybe this is a little tangential here, but indulge me for a moment. Because I've been thinking recently about how well-suited running and vintage are as lifestyles, and am surprised more don't do it (though I know I've inspired lots of you, and that's why I keep including it instead of moving it elsewhere).
The fact is, that most women who wear vintage each and every day are strong minded, thick-skinned, fierce and quite frankly bad-ass ladies, who do as they please. Sure, there are plenty of more gentle girls who claim to simply long to be old-fashioned housewives, and that's absolutely fine too, but on the whole, the act of simply wearing these weird old clothes every day requires a certain confidence and single-mindedness. Otherwise we'd all be nervous wrecks, frankly. Above all else, running has made my clothes fit better. When you've got a natural girdle and waist-cincher, everything hangs as it should. We won't talk about my monstrous calf-muscles though.

My friend Bangs and a Bun recently started a site aimed at bad-ass ladies of all sartorial persuasions, Spikes & Heels. Her intent is to take the pink/fluffy/weightloss aspects out of ladies' fitness; and I'm finding it super inspiring. But I won't lie, I'd like to feel more fabulous on race days as well as rest days. But having followed her life for the last couple of yearsm I keep thinking that maybe I can learn (or rather borrow...or even pinch) from her and get a group of amazing vintage running divas together for a future half-marathon... I keep thinking about how I'd feel so less self-conscious if I was in a starting pen with a group of other girls in indelible red lipstick and a tightly pinned victory roll or two. We could get Maybelline to sponsor us with some 24-Hour Superstay. 13.1 miles of red-lippied smiles. What do you think? ;)

Anyway, back in reality, as I celebrate my year of running, I'm starting to knuckle down on the others things I really want to make happen in the next year. I have a particular goal that is in sight and I look forward to filling you all in with my progress as and when it happens. And don't worry, it's actually got nothing to do with running!

But after nearly three years of being self-employed and doing things I enjoy and am good at every day, things are starting to happen. It's a struggle at times and I could do with any number of tips about hustling for work. I'm great at networking and making friends, but less good at approaching people and asking them to hire me. It's also definitely time to add some new business strings to my bow. But when I'm working, it's joyous. Take yesterday, I was hired to do some modelling, for promotional materials about the new Victorious Vintage festival that's going to take place at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard on Jubilee Weekend. I'll be posting more about this as details are confirmed, but here's a sneaky peek of the photoshoot!

I'm wearing a playsuit/skirt set by Miss Hussy, which I believe is sadly defunct. Miss L Fire shoes!

Finally, I'm going to leave you with what is probably going to be my new favourite outfit for the spring. I rarely buy new clothes these days, so when I do, I like to really treat myself. I've wanted a pair of Bernie Dexter Pin Up Capris for absolutely ages, and finally, a couple of weeks ago, I gave in. I am SO glad I did as they are absolutely amazing! I asked Bernie herself about sizing and went for the small as my measurements are 26 waist and 39 hip and she said the 26/36 would fit. She was right! But crikey, I better not put on even an inch. Sorry for the rubbish backdrops...

Plain outfits allow loud jewellery, of course (not that I usually follow this rule, the louder the better!), and I LOVE this Carmen Miranda inspired necklace that was generously sent to me by Bow and Crossbones. I've actually bought a number of their lovely bamboo bangles in all different colours in the past, and I'll be digging the credit card out soon, to buy the matching pieces of the fruit range as well. So THANKS B&C for enabling me so perfectly with your 'kind' gift. ;)

Actually, I'll leave you with a different thing: my favourite Instagram picture since, well, the last pug I photographed. My neighbour's 11-week old pug puppy. I am dead from the cute.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Legs Eleven

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 16:20:00 +0000

Well I had meant to post this on the 11th, but it's now (lucky for some) the 13th. Always full of good intentions, me.

Great minds in the vintage word often seem to think alike, I've noticed. Probably because we've all got such super fabulous taste... ;) But another awesome coincidence popped up the other day when I posted a picture on my Facebook page. I took a couple of outfit shots for a forthcoming article in my regular spot in Milkcow Magazine. All winter, I've been hankering after one of the little Skater dresses that are oh-so-trendy at the moment, with the aim of putting together a sort of 1940s ice-skater look. But getting ones pins out is quite daunting and so it took me a while to take the proverbial plunge. Lots of pictures were saved to my inspiration folders, these two in particular...

...forgive me, but I've no idea where these came from. Anyway, I happened across a cute dress in high street shop River Island the other day, and I had to have it.

Here I am wearing it, and posing in a silly bugger fashion.

River island dress, Topshop tights, super old boots,
handmade scarf/hood and belt from another dress!

You'll have to read my article in the forthcoming Milkcow to see what I'm going on about in regards to this outfit, but while I love it and plan to get several different versions of it (RED must be next), I was delighted to see Solanah from Vixen Vintage post this very picture on her own Facebook page only one day later!

Hurrah for something a little different, even if I did find it very odd having my legs entirely on show. But it's good to step out of your comfort zone, after all. What have you done to challenge yourself lately?

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Bit Bobs

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 10:59:00 +0000

Yoo hoo! I did plan to put this up yesterday, but the cretinous people at o2 Broadband ruined that plan. I'd love to have a full day of internet connection at some point... but enough about that.

I'd like to announce the winner of the Vintage Trudy card giveaway, before regaling you with some more tales of my exciting* life recently, so imagine, if you will, a drumroll ringing out...

Comment number 60 was left by one Miss Polly Garter! Congratulations Polly! Please can you email me: fleur@diaryofavintagegirl.com, with your address and I'll forward it on to the Trudy team! Thank you all for taking part, I'll have more little giveaways soon!

So what else have I been up to? Well. There was a wedding, at which I got the opportunity to wear my smashing sarong dress from Miss Bamboo again.

Now in colour!

My fab red shoes were bought from Shelley's, which you may or may not know is owned by Miss L Fire... which brings me neatly onto my next point! For at the tail end of last year, I was hugely honoured to have been asked to model for none other than shoe brand of dreams, the same Miss L Fire!

We shot this summery picture in a diner near owner Lynsey Hand's amazing house... it got me more than ready for the warmer weather, I can tell you! I'm modelling the gorgeous Monterrey in Red here, and I also sported the Carnivale style, which is a SHOE with BUNTING on it. Could there be anything better?

Do head to the Miss L Fire Facebook page to see the full and AMAZING range. It's painful to see, frankly.

Ooh my calves are a bit big these days, aren't they... that's what running does for you, I guess. And with that razor-sharp segue, I'm going to mention running again briefly. Feel free to switch off now...!

Last Wednesday, it was, of course, Leap Year Day. My thoughts weren't on proposals though, but on 'Making it Count'. Nike, who support my running club, Run Dem Crew had put on a mind-bogglingly big event to mark this extra day, with over 400 members from all the different Nike Run Clubs in London setting off from their individual HQs, wearing custom t-shirts and high-viz bibs, ending up at the Southbank. They'd turned the London Eye green for the occasion (it's usually blue) and had all sorts of activities laid on. It was amazingly good fun, not least because I got to run with super cool people from the crew who are usually in different (read: faster) groups. We all ran together through the highways of London and the skyways of Barbican. Just glorious.

Mubi CT and my actual back, from the 1948 Instagram

Watch this super slick video and see me jogging on the spot on the far right at 0:36. Away away away!

NIKE 29.02.12 – An extra day to #makeitcount from NikeRunningUK on Vimeo.

Just awesome. Really.

Back with more vintage for those of you mentals who don't like running soon. ;)

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Tuxedo Row

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:33:00 +0000

Number seven in my series of gingery jaunts for The King's Ginger, and I thought it was time to pay a visit to that most famous of Rows... Savile Row! Take it away, me!

Savile Row isn't a place I've had much occasion to visit until now. A street of huge sartorial and historical significance, no doubt; but one which is very much for the gentlemen. Gentlemen of considerable means. It's most famous for being the home of bespoke tailoring, with most of the longest-established tailors in England having their headquarters there. In times gone by, commissioning a bespoke suit from a Savile Row tailor was an even more exclusive affair than it is today. You had to know someone, who probably had to know someone, who would be willing to make an introduction or recommendation to the tailor of your choice.

Henry Poole was (purportedly) the first tailor to open on the Row, when he added a new entrance to his father's shop, which was technically situated on Burlington Street. Other tailors soon flocked there, with many having never left.

Both as Prince of Wales and later as King, Edward was a dedicated clothes-horse. As with his food, cigars, sports, cars and women, he adored fine tailoring and was never less than perfectly turned-out. He and his entourage made Savile Row properly fashionable for the first time, and his favourite tailor of the many inhabiting that Mayfair strip was the aforementioned Henry Poole. And, as well as that Royal Warrant (and many in the proceeding years), Henry Poole & Co has another, very significant claim to fame: they are the original designers and creators of the Tuxedo... actually for Edward when he was the Prince of Wales.

Click to read!

Prince Bertie commissioned Henry Poole in 1860 to make him a short evening coat in the standard midnight blue silk of the time's longer formal eveningwear, something that had never been done before. Legend has it that 26 years later, a Mr James Brown Potter, native New Yorker and dashing gent with a beautiful wife, was invited to dinner at Sandringham. Potter ordered a short evening jacket in the same style as the Prince, and, when he returned to New York and attended the highly fashionable Tuxedo Club, the style took off and was ever more referred to as a Tuxedo. The above booklet from Henry Poole does slightly question this apocryphal story, since the Club's actual founders were Poole customers at the time of the original commission... but it makes for an interesting anecdote nonetheless.

But the short evening jacket is not the only sartorial flourish made famous by His Royalness. The origin of the custom for chaps leaving the bottom button of their waistcoats undone is often attributed to Edward. Two theories abound: one that his fondness for fine food and good living, and the resultant expanding waistline, was to blame. And the other is that as a chap who was far more obsessed with his clothing, even than most fashion-devoted ladies today, he used to change his whole outfit up to six times a day; and would forget to do up the bottom button. Looking at these theories objectively, neither makes much sense - he had so many garments made, they would have fitted him like a glove, despite his er... stately embonpoint... and his valet would never have allowed him to leave his room without being fully buttoned. Not only that, but many, many pictures survive of Edward fully fastened. Either way, though, it was a craze that caught on, and endures to this day.

The above photo, snapped with the kind permission of Anthony Rowland at Henry Poole, also explains the story behind Prince of Wales Check cloth - originally adopted by the Seafield family, and later favoured by Bertie, who adapted it and added a coloured overcheck.

Anyway, I know you're all DYING to know how *I* dressed while on this little excursion to the spiritual home of gentleman's tailoring, so I shan't keep you in suspense any longer.

Spring has very much sprung in London (for the time being, at any rate) so I was plenty warm enough in my Heyday trousers, white vintage-inspired blouse from H&M in the mists of time, and my pinky peach hand-knitted 40s bolero. White plimsolls (very impractical), carefully curated bangles and a miniature bottle of King's Ginger (of course), finished it off. Do please go and visit the KGL site today, as it's just been relaunched after a mini-facelift, and I think that, much like its namesake, it's looking really smart.

Soon going to be time for summery, gingery drinks, and I really can't wait! For now, why not try KGL with a drop of tonic - refreshing and warming!

Thank you to Mr Rowland at Henry Poole for letting me chat all things Bertie with him.

I leave you with my new mode of transportation... I wish.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

What a card!

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:47:00 +0000

Just nipping in with a little giveaway for you all. I was emailed a week or two ago by artist Twinkle Troughton with a really interesting little story about her Nanna Trudy, who moved to the UK in 1951 from Holland, after it was devastated by WWII. Here is some blurb, lifted straight from the press release (sorry for being a lazy, or rather time-poor sod today)...

Born in Amsterdam, Trudy’s childhood fell apart when in World War 2, her father joined the resistance movement and the family had to live under assumed names, in hiding, often eating no more than tulip bulbs.

At the age of 19 Trudy came to study nursing in Rugby, England and within months met the man she soon married. No guests at the wedding, just two witnesses, no honeymoon, but a trip to London Zoo. Pale, beautiful, thin, afraid of the sound of planes, in a foreign country, slowly Trudy saw a life that held promise and joy. Her pictures, all originals, drawn in 1951-52, reflect the life she so wanted to live.

Years later after Trudy passed away, these drawings by a much loved Nanna resurfaced. The family felt the drawings were too beautiful to be hidden away in an old sketchbook. In honour of Trudy and her dreams, and for thousands of women like her in those post war years, these drawings have been given new life. The drawings are not nostalgic reflections of an era gone by, but were created at the time and are as authentic and original as any vintage artefact you might find.

Vintage Trudy includes greeting cards and gift tags, aprons and cushion covers. The range will be expanding with new lines added as the venture grows. Vintage Trudy merchandise will be available online at http://etsy.com/shop/VintageTrudyOriginal

I thought it was a lovely story and I really like helping out little companies, so in return for a couple of the cards (which I'm going to frame), I said I would host a giveaway. One lucky reader will win a set of all eight Vintage Trudy Cards, worth £20. Perfect for the upcoming wedding season, or birthdays, or just in time for Mother's Day!

To enter, you know the drill, please leave me a comment below! If you'd like another entry, please follow @VintageTrudy on Twitter and do a tweet mentioning the Prize Draw on my blog. Leave me a second comment to say you've done this (though I will check!). This is simply to spread the word a little bit, and get more people buying these cute cards with their awesome backstory.

Yes, it's open to anyone in the world!

I'll announce the winner on Monday 5th March.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Run, Walk, Party.

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 18:15:00 +0000

Oooooooh, what a week it's been since my last post! I honestly thought it had been a few days, so I was quite surprised to see it had been an entire seven. Let's have a quick recap of all the things I did in that time, mostly in picture form.

Last Saturday I ran a half marathon! It was at Dorney Lake, near Eton: home of the Olympic Rowing venue for London 2012. It was a relentless 4 laps in an equally relentless wind. Here I am in my ninja gear, ready to run!

My goal was to cross the line in under two hours, to beat my previous best (at my first half-marathon back in September last year) of two hours, two minutes... And I did! Final chip time was actually 1:56:14 (the silly Garmin auto-stopped a couple of times as I paused to gulp a drink). Pleased as punch, I was!

Later that night, following lots of stretching and refuelling with pasta, was the Vintage Mafia's Ric Rac Club. It was, as mentioned in my last post, a launch party for Style Me Vintage: Clothes, by my dear friend Naomi. It was an absolute triumph, and despite feeling my self-inflicted weariness, I performed my usual duties as the Ric Rac Raffle Mistress of Ceremonies and sent many guests home clutching prizes.

Viv the Spiv lent me a helping hand with the ticket jar (and in this shot I'm holding our infamous Pork Pie). You may also be able to see that I was, in fact, wearing my medal. I kept it on for most of the night! What you can't see are my leg-healing compression tights, which I wore underneath my gown. I wore the long gown on purpose, obv.

Find a lot of photos of the night on Hanson Leatherby's site, and look out for the official portraits which will be coming soon!

Accessorising is everything!

On Sunday, I had to give my mum her car back. I crashed mine last week, you see. My fault (even though it wasn't, a silly woman stopped in front of me). So I drove to the sticks and treated my aching gams to a scenic, countryside walk. They didn't thank me during it, but they loosened up a lot after. I highly endorse a recovery stroll.

Isn't England beautiful sometimes?

On Monday and Wednesday, various members of the Vintage Mafia were taking part in a slightly secretive project... one which we hushed up mainly because we didn't believe it would actually happen... but it did. The VM will be featuring in a forthcoming edition of Marie Claire Taiwan, in both a fashion editorial and an interview! We shot a mixture of our own clothes and some of the very, very latest designer gear, including the above Prada outfit, as seen on the front cover of this month's Vogue! I loved it, with its cut out lace and shirred, pleated, full skirt. I posted this composition on Twitter asking who wore it the best, and everyone was kind enough to say me (although several people said they hated the outfit). I'm just hoping someone designs a high street version that I can actually afford to buy.

On Tuesday, as every Tuesday now, I ran with Run Dem Crew. While last week, I thought I might be ready to step up into the Baby Cheetah pace group, this week I actually went down again to Fast Hares, to give my battered legs a slight rest. We ran to the 'secret' graffiti tunnels under Waterloo Station, and got a real buzz from tearing up the tunnel to cheers from the other groups, plus a buzz from the solvent fumes as well.

Photo stolen from cedric_sneer - I'm sure you can spot me, in my pink and throwing my horns. There is some really fun stuff happening in my life at the moment, and much of it is down to joining the crew. Nothing but immense amounts of love for RDC right here. If you're a runner, a Londoner, and a wannabe-RDCer, then please come and join us all on the special Leap Year run next Wednesday the 29th. It'll be super fun and only 3 miles, so perfect for beginners. Get involved!

Last but not least, I went with my brother to a book-signing given by the legendary Chrissie Wellington - reigning Ironman World Champion and unbeaten in any race she has ever done. She is an absolute machine (and my fingers can vouch for that after her handshake), but is so tiny, friendly and smiley. She told me she loved my Jitterbuggin dress and I told her I loved her (not really, but I thought it). I did declare my desire to do a 'vintage' triathlon in a swimsuit and flowery cap, Pashley and so forth. She told me to let me know when I did... now I had better do it!

So that was my week. How was yours?

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Now taking BOOKings...

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

Always one for leaving things to nearly the very last minute, I think it's about time I filled you all in on a very exciting thing, a very wonderful person, and a very fabulous event that's taking place this weekend.

If you're on Twitter (and even if you're not), you will probably have heard about one Miss Naomi Thompson's first published book, Style Me Vintage: Clothes. I may even have mentioned it on here before (mind like a sieve and no time to check!), but if I haven't, here's the skinny. And the large.

The cover features Miss Jeni Yesterday in a delightful 50s dress. Jeni also models a less usual 50s look inside as I will show you shortly...

La Thompson herself, looking radiant...

Oh! It's me! In the intro bit...

There are sections on looks - formal and informal - from the 20s, all the way to the 80s. Check out the painfully lovely Miss Annie Pancake, flapper extraordinaire.

Jeni in the aforementioned 50s capri look. Each section is replete with swatches of fabrics from that era. The one on the left is one of my absolute favourites.

And the whole Mafia feature. Miss Gemma King looks like a 30s starlet on her page....

Bethan looks absolutely stunning as a 70s girl...

And Lisa looks flawless in 40s formal wear.

Finally, Noms' sister stars in the 80s section... by far the most stylish 80s recreation I have ever seen (and I mean that!).

I realise I'm biased, but this is a stunning book. It's got absolutely everything a vintage newbie could need to know, as well as tips even we old hands would find vastly useful. I'm just so proud of Naomi, I could burst. So it's been an honour to have been working my behind off for the past month or so, helping her create the launch party of her dreams! It takes place this Saturday, and everyone can come along!

We've been running these shindigs for a while, but obviously this one is a little bit special. We've got some truly amazing raffle prizes to give away, many based around our highly tenuous 'literary theme'. *deep breath*

FOUR signed copies of Style me Vintage.

A year’s subscription to BBC Homes and Antiques Magazine.

A bottle of The King's Ginger Liqueur.

Two bottles of bubbly from Freixenet.

Hair flowers from Now Voyager.

A stunning hat from Yellow Bird Hats

Another gorgeous hat from Strumpet Hats

A copy of Am I A Chap? The essential guide for every modern gent!

A pair of What Katie Did seamed stockings and a CD of songs from Fiona Harrison aka Evette the Spivette.

A copy of Learning to Live out Loud by Piper Laurie (of Twin Peaks fame)

Plus lots of food items and other bits we've rustled up on the night. But the raffle is FREE for every Ric Rac guest. We're also planning a 40s DJ set by MOI, a 50s set by Jeni and our famous 60s and northern soul set by All Fringe, No Knickers.

Plus free drinks for everyone at the start of the night, courtesy of our sponsors King's Ginger and Freixenet! Yippee!

Mmm..fizzy!

There's no pretension at the Ric Rac. We like to think of it (and it has been described thus), as a house party in a pub. There's a fair few people coming on their own, too, so we're going to be mingling like the devil and introducing everyone to everyone else. A truly social occasion for all like-minded folks! Anyway! If you'd like to come, head over the the Vintage Mafia site and follow the links to buy tickets. We will have some on the night, but not many... and the event is Critics Choice in Time Out this week. Eeek!

Hope to see some of you there..and winning those amazing prizes!

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com

Beaus & Arrows

noreply@blogger.com (Fleur) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:26:00 +0000

Not to jump on a topical bandwagon or anything, but it's Valentine's Day. Did you notice? I certainly did. As virtually the only single one left of all my friends, from school mates, to college buddies, university housemates and all the people I hold dear in my adult life, this occasion does wear on one rather. I made the decision very early in 2012 to do everything in my power this year to 'make things happen'... a deliberately vague resolution! In terms of finding love, it's more that I'll ensure that instead of wasting more of my own time on pointless things, instead I'm a free spirit, doing my thing and ready for that cupid's arrow when it finally strikes both me AND the object of my affection. As opposed to the singular stabbings I've had to endure over the last few years. But said stabbing scars are nearly healed, plus I've read two very useful blogs in the last couple of days. Ladies, if any of you are suffering from badly implanted arrowheads, I encourage you to read this post by Bangs and this blinder on HelloGiggles. They both contain so many truths for me as over the last 3 years I have managed to fall for a succession of massively unsuitable and/or emotionally unavailable men. Not even their fault in most of the cases, but mine for not looking after number one. Never again! It's way better to be single than torturing yourself, say I... And if you're lucky enough to have a mutual adoration this V-Day, for gawd's sake go and snog/grope your man/girl/undetermined. Now! FINE, when you get home then. ;)

I'm going to the special Love Dem Crew tonight so I won't be at home moping. And throughout today I will be saying a silent thanks to the relationships I do have, that make my life better. My family, my pals, my previous lovers who are now friends and confidantes. I'm even thankful to those I have loved and lost for making me realise both what it's like to feel love and what it's like to hurt so much you can barely go on - it just means I will know and when I do, I'll be even happier than I could have been before!

Let me leave you with some photos that make me happy and thankful for my life and my friends this Valentines. As I said a few posts ago, on Friday night, all six of the VM girlies got together in our rainbow frocks for the first time this year and put our skills to work on the hair and lips of visitors to the Churchill War Rooms after hours event. We left lots of ladies feeling like beautiful 1940s starlets. Lovely! Who needs a man when you have that in your life, I ask you.

As you can see, we even sneaked (with permission) into the cabinet room itself, and posed being Winston Churchill's chair. Fun fact, that wire behind my bum is one of the most important in the whole bunker - it called the tea lady!

All photos by Hanson Leatherby Photography and more can be seen on the Vintage Mafia blog.

Fleur xx
DiaryofaVintageGirl.com