The Swinging Sixties Are Back: Monochrome

Didn't I say there were but TWO huge 60s inspired trends hitting our high streets this Spring/Summer? Well! Hitchcock Heroine you may well be, but if you want to be a little groovier this season then monochrome is for you.

Moschino, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs

Louis Vuitton Escalator Catwalk

Monochrome. A recurring trend, it comes back every few years but this time it's different. It's pure retro cool with bold graphic prints and classic 60s shapes. It first emerged with the rise of Mary Quant and her daring mini skirts, freeing women from the full skirts and tight wiggle shapes of the 50s. Below are two amazing examples of Quant's designs, there's no mistaking where Marc Jacobs got his inspiration for the latest Louis Vuitton collection. 

So let's go shopping! The high street is positively riddled with monochrome beauties...

Breton striped dress H&M
Monochrome loafers Office

Monochrome coat Zara
Geomettric spot top New Look

60s vintage dress Rokit

Tights Henry Holland
White Satchel, The Cambridge Satchel Company

If you're after the real deal, you'll be hard pressed to find a real Quant shift dress (well I found it tricky!) but I did find this Quant-esque shift on Etsy for a cool 30 Euros. You've just got to do some virtual rummaging.

love

Gina x

The Swinging Sixties Are Back: Pastels

Two huge trends on the horizon for this Spring/Summer stem from that favourite fashion decade of mine, the 1960s. Say a big hello to the first of these with the prim wardrobes of the elegant early 60s.  With Hitchcock hitting our screens soon, 60s leading ladies should be our go to for style inspiration with pretty pastels, twin sets, lace frocks and cat eye sunglasses. The catwalks were awash with 60s prettiness.

Oscar De La Renta - Christopher Kane - Oscar De La Renta

Tata Naka

For some Hitchcock glamourous outfit ideas, look to the beautiful Grace Kellly and for a more recent revival of the style look no further than the women of Mad Men as they grace the new decade with some serious style.

Here are a few ideas to get you into the Spring spirit, a lace dress as a base can be embellished with a multitude of prim accessories. 

Cat Eye sunglasses: ASOS

Blue Jumper: New Look

Nude Lace Dress: Ted Baker

Vintage 60s clip on earrings: Etsy

Embellished Floral Collar: Marni

The next trend comes tomorrow. Can you guess what it is?

Gina x

The Ossie Clark Revival

First there was Biba for House of Fraser and now there is Ossie Clark for Debenhams. Famous for his flowing dresses, billowing sleeves and Celia Birtwell prints, the Clark revival brings us vintage style shapes and 70s inspired prints. The prints originally used by Clark were more often than not designed by his (eventual) wife, Celia Birtwell, one of the most famous collaborations in 20th century fashion! But is this revival all we could hope for from a collection under the famous Ossie Clark name?

Clark and Birtwell

Inspired by the ballet dancer Nijinsky, Ossie Clark wanted his designs to allow movement and not to restrict the wearer so in came the maxi dresses and the angel sleeves of the 70s. His designs were were incredibly influential, you could say he styled the 70s, well, I say so...! He dressed the rich and famous including Mick Jagger, The Beatles and Liza Minelli and his designs were sought after world wide.

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Emma Watson wore vintage Ossie Clark to a 2009 film premiere which pricked up a few fashion lovers eyes and ears to the rebirth of the cult British designer, but it's unbelievable that it's taken four whole years for a range to hit our high street!

So let's have a look at my top picks from the new range of this Ossie Clark revival. Admittedly, I wish they had been a slightly more brave in their designs, where are the huge sleeves? The iconic prints (or at least hints towards Birtwell)? I can't help but think the spirit of Ossie Clark is missing, there's no spark...however, there are some lovely things and all are between £49 and £189. You can view the collection here.

Black Moss Crepe Maxi

Blue Floral Maxi

Chelsea Day Dress

Watercolour Print Day Dress

But...I'm going to be honest, the originals are far superior in design and if you can afford a splurge then invest in an original. This stunning Peekaboo Ossie Clark maxi, by (coincidentally) Peekaboo Vintage is a fabulous example of one of Clark's Moss Crepe dresses.

Oh and at our Shoreditch Vintage Fair, we had an entire rail of Moss Crepe wrap tops and dresses by the man himself. Maybe you'll get lucky at one of our fairs? 

Gina

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Kimbra: More Than Somebody You Used To Know

Kimbra is one of my ultimate musical inspirations. In my humble opinion, I think she's everything Jessie J wishes she could be and more. You may recognise her from Gotye's Somebody That I Used To Know video, but she's just so much more than a cameo in a one hit wonder. Can you tell I'm a fan?!

"I describe my style as bold, youthful, feminine and creative"

And although I could bang on all day about her incredible vocals, super clever pop writing it's her wardrobe I reckon you'll be pretty interested by too! And though I'd love to say I nipped to New Zealand to interview the songtress, I really, really didn't! But I did find a great style focussed interview with Kimbra from Refinery29 which gives a real genuine insight into her thoughts on fashion, so all quotes are from this interview. But before I go any further, here is one of my absolute favourite Kimbra live videos singing Settle Down at SingSing studios. 

Oh my LORD the girl is good.  Just looking at her in that video shows her boundless confidence and eccentricity. But with her bold features, jet black hair and ruby red lips juxtaposed against her whimsical Disney inspired stage outfits, visually, she's created something really very special.

 "A great stage outfit for me, comes from an inspired compliment of patterns and colors – even if they clash at times! – and a strong sense of movement and creativity. I like people to feel transported by what they see on stage in conjunction with the music. Outfits can really add another dimension of depth and fantasy to a concert."

 "I like a lot of Japanese street fashion and get inspired by a lot of old Disney films. Nowadays, I get inspired by film directors like Tim Burton, photographer Tim Walker, and artists like Salvador Dali." 

The video below gives us a little insight into Kimbra's stage outfit prep and it makes me super happy that the girl loves her thrifting! Second hand, vintage and supporting "under the radar" designers are Kimbra's go tos for her stage and day to day style. I particularly like that she looks at the fabric of the dress first and then thinks "how can I make this work for me?" That DIY attitude is something I need to take on!

Here is my idea of a Kimbra-esque stage outfit complete with red tambourine! Layering this high necked vintage inspired blouse under a crazy sequin prom dress adds a fantasy quality and the heels can't be too high, a girls gotta dance! Oh and don't forget your MAC lipstick. Have you got any ideas?

Sequin dress Rare at ASOS

Black shirt Miss Selfridge

Turquoise sandals Next

Tambourine LP Music

Lipstick Russian Red from MAC

Love

Gina

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Vintage Is Driving Me Up The Walls

Not really! Well, it's driving me to look at wallpaper...not quite the same. I've just bought a set of old wooden drawers that I intend to decorate in vintage or vintage influenced wallpaper. It's all well and good painting old wood, but papering them will make even more of a statement! But of course, you can stick the stuff on your walls too...

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I've tried to find an array of styles to suit all tastes and budgets, but if you think I've missed something really special then please share a link to it below! I'm a fan of a statement wall in a living room or bedroom, but sadly, I'm renting and I have little to no decorative control. Boo and hiss.

eBay is a great place for bargains, so if you're on a budget I would head over here. This print is available in three colours and only £8.99 a roll, nifty.

Not On The High Street is home to a tonne of kitsch wallpapers. This 50s housewife monochrome print is kooky cool. Also comes in a whole range of products and home furnishings.

Going subtle and traditional? Laura Ashley is fabulous. The sale is still currently on so many of the prints are under £16 a roll. This is my favourite print and it is produced in a range of colours. 

Wallpaper Direct is crammed full of wallpaper, as you would expect by the name. In the same vein as the previous Laura Ashley print this dusky pink is a great alternative to the brighter florals that are everywhere at the moment. Having said that, I love this clashing pink and yellow floral design too!

The Vintage Galaxy is a new find for me! Boy oh boy, it's a find. Genuine unused rolls of wallpaper from the 50s onwards. This childrens' bedroom paper is so cute and to say it's decades old is only £25 per roll, definitely worth it.

Cath Kidston are the obvious go to for kitsch patterns and this circus print is no different. For kids bedrooms and grown ups rooms alike! £25 per roll.

William Morris is THE name in wallpaper design. A classic designer who won't suit all tastes, in fact it took a lot of umming and ahhing for me to decide on a pattern I wanted to share with you, but since I'm a sucker for birds, it had to be "trellis" at £49.95 per roll. 

Sticking with the famous names, Orla Kiely at John Lewis echoes the 70s with this famous print. Great for a feature wall and available in a range of different colours. £49 per roll. 

If you're not in the decorating mood, maybe you don't have time well pop on over to

 Not On The High Street where you'll be astounded at just how many wall stickers there are! My goodness I struggled to whittle it down to just three examples for you. Some are not quite as...stylish as others (!) but they're a much more affordable way of creating a statement in your home. 

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Do you have any incredible wallpapered walls to share with us? Gimme! pop an e-mail to blog@thevintagefair.com or leave a comment on our facebook or below. What can I say, I'm just nosey!

Love Gina x

Bésame Cosmetics Giveaway: Part 2

I'm feeling generous today dears, I was going to save this giveaway for another time but what the hell, you deserve it. Special thanks goes out to the ever growing number of followers and wonderful comments on this blog and all the different posts, we really appreciate it! 

So then! We've already told you all about Bésame Cosmetics in our previous giveaway, but just in case you missed out on that one, here is a bit of info on the vintage inspired cosmetics company. "Besame Cosmetics was a culmination of the passion for design and desire to create an original cosmetic with details and formulas that make women feel glamorous and unique. Bésame are also used by some of our vintage hair and make-up salons including The Vintage Hair Lounge."

The Giveaway!

Now you're up to speed, let's get onto the best bit. This time around we have a very indulgent product to give away. The Brightening Violet Powder is a translucent face powder that gently illuminates the complexion giving a lifted appearance. It suits any skin tone and can be worn alone or over foundation or on targeted areas such as tired looking eyes. 

 "How do I get my hands on this fabulous product?!" I hear you cry. You have two chances to enter...

1) Follow this blog and comment below.

2) Share the blog post link on Facebook from any of our pages, main page or individual pages. 

This giveaway ends on the 29th January (next Wednesday) and is open to UK residents only. 

Good luck ladies (or boys, this would make a splendid Valentines' day present!)

Gina xx

Get Your Skates On

The snow may have left the likes of me stranded at home with blankets and endless cups of tea (woe is me) but those of you who have waded your way into work like a trooper, bravo!

It didn't take long for me to hear "back in my day school didn't close blah blah blah" but it got me thinking about all the pretty retro snow outfits from "back in the day". Ice skating and skiing has never looked so fashionable than during the 1940s and 50s. We must be thankful for the birth of the skater dress, it has never left the high street and has become a wardrobe staple. Nipping in at the waist and flaring out over the hips, it flatters pretty much every body shape out there.

I could have browsed vintage snow photos for hours, everything seemed so much more glamorous, even winter sports! Chaps skiing in shirts and ties, ladies frolicking in fur, splendid stuff. I've narrowed it down to this bunch of retro snaps to share with you.

If you are a vintage purist then I advise heading to Etsy where you can find America's best vintage, especially rare and beautiful dresses from the 50s and earlier. I found this gorgeous ice skater dress with mink sleeve cuffs and I'm so sorry to say it has been snapped up! But it's so stunning I have to share it with you. Swoon. Etsy is also a fantastic place to buy vintage sewing and knitting patterns, the skater style is quite common so grab an original pattern for your very own original skater dress! 

  

Over the years the basic skater shape has not faded out of fashion and can be found in a range of fabrics and patterns with with various lengths, sleeves and necklines to suit every body shape. The original super short flippy circle skirt used in figure skating dresses seen in the example above has (thankfully) lengthened over time making a more practical, wearable dress. I've picked out four very different dresses for you to nosey at...

Black 80s skater style dress from Hoy Boutique

"The Figure Skater Dress" for the very brave from American Apparel

A gorgeous velvet, low scoop back example with a print that's out of this world at Urban Outfitters

More of a swing shape, flaring at the bust in a very modern print from Oh My Love at ASOS

Love

Gina 

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