Making Your Rented Room a Vintage Haven

Oh hello everyone! It's been a while and for that I can only apologise. But it's been super busy at LouLou HQ! But I'm back with lots of vintage ramblings for your wardrobe and home. 

Now we've all been there, blue curtains, blue carpet, MFI furniture, white walls. The standard student bedroom has never been the cool kooky haven we envisaged in our daydreams. But what can you do when you're skint and let's say, well, prioritising your funds for other things?! We've got a few ideas for you to style up your bedroom vintage style without running too far into yopur overdraft!

Photos
Now instead of plastering your walls with photos from last Saturday night, how about pegging them up on a long piece of string? They could drape across the entire width of a wall or criss cross down and alcove or across your door. Not all of us have polaroid camera, but lots of us do have Instagram! You can get these printed off fairly cheaply, have a look here. They look so much more decorative.

Tailors Dummy

Now, it took me quite a while to not get scared in the middle of the night, but my tailor's dummy has a different outfit on all the time, and I get to display my favourite vintage dresses and accessories! Usually it's because I can't quite fit into them...! But at around £35-£30 you can get on off eBay and it makes a big statement in a blank room. Look at this example from A Harem of Peacocks.

Bed Linen
A tidying your room cheat I learnt at Uni, is that if your bed is made, it makes the room look ten times neater! You can have that one for free. But if the linen is pretty and vintage inspired, it'll look even better! We love french toile prints, (it's even the wallpaper in our office) and this Ikea set is on eBay for a cheapy cheap £24.95.

Tins and Teacups
Vintage tins and mismatched teacups are simply everywhere at the minute. Nip to your local vintage fair, antiques centre, charity shop or even on ebay and you'll be sure to stumble upon a wide range of them. They do so much more than just look pretty. Teacups make for lovely little dressing table ornaments that can hold your earrings and rings, loose change etc and tins can hide so much mess on your desk! Pop all your stationary in them. Plus, they're dead cheap.

Suitcases and Trunks
You may consider them a little overdone, but vintage suitcases and trunks are fantastic DIY projects for the home. We even did a blog post on all the uses we could think of, take a look here! But if you just need a quick and easy storage solution, stacking a few of these in the corner of your room for files, shoes, or just junk is a great and affordable space saver. Get searching in charity shops, flea markets and car boots.

Door Knobs
If you have a little time on your hands, it's worth rummaging at car boots, markets and hunting online for pretty vintage drawer and door knobs. If your landlord's furniture is a little, um, crap then a new set of screw on door knobs is a lovely little way of putting your own stamp on your room. Plus you can keep the original ones and replace them when you move out. No damage done.

Lampshade Mobile
This idea came to me when I was out on a charity shop spree. I saw a little pile of mini tasseled lampshades, you know the ones, Nannan definitely has a fair few! If you simply attach string to the centre of the lightbulb fitting inside, you can then hang them from the ceiling with a bit of tape or a thumb tack as they;re ever so light. Hang between 3 and 5 at differing heights to create a quirky feature to your room over your bed perhaps. Obviously, there are no lightbulbs in our little idea, but here's a bit of inspiration to give you an idea.

Flower Garlands

Not only did they look superb in your hair at Latitude fest, they look very pretty draped over your bedhead, on your wardrobe, fireplace or round your window. eBay have lots to choose from but Live Laugh Love have a great selection of other vintage inspired decor too. If you struggle to find any, search for wedding garlands as they're often used for these too. You could mix them up with fairy lights too!

Mismatched Walls

Now, before you tell me that your landlord doesn't let you hang things on the wall, I know, it's rubbish. But do ask! If you're super lovely about it, there's no harm in asking. Because who doesn't want a feature wall, such as your chimney breast, full of random bits and pieces! Clocks, taxidermy, photos, postcards, mirrors etc look so cool all bundled together. I love what Lereese from GIRL STOLE VINTAGE has done with one of her walls. I love the orange 70s clock.

(If you really can't use a hammer and nails, use posters, vintage postcards and magazine cuttings. You could even cut our paper picture frames to put them in - use your imagination.)

So there you have it, lots of little, affordable ideas to help get you stylin' it up in your first rented room. We'd love to see who can rise to the challenge! Send us your pics of your kitsch decoration ideas and we'll feature them on our page!

Love

Gina

x

GIRL STOLE

We talk to fashion blogger and vintage boutique owner Lereese Atkinson about her newest adventure, GIRL STOLE. We've been following Miss Atkinson for nearly two years now and have loved watching her blog evolve into a mini universe of London, tiny dogs and #wiwt posts. So I'm pretty excited to see this girl grow into her very, very big ideas.

What does vintage mean to you and your wardrobe?

Individuality and creativity.

Whose blogs do you browse for style inspiration?

Garry Pepper Girl, Cherry Blossom Girl, Miroslava Duma, Steffys Pros and Cons, Frassy.

I know you're a singer too, does your love of music influence your style? 

I like to sing classical music which I love,  but it doesn't inspire me fashion wise, I listen to a lot of rock and roll and 60s music which absolutely influences my style. 

Top three vintage shops: GO

BEYOND RETRO

FREE P STAR (PARIS)

PORTOBELLO MARKET

Top three style icons: GO

DAVID BOWIE

KATE MOSS

COCO CHANEL

Talk us through the GIRL STOLE journey Lereese. Firstly, for those who are GIRL STOLE virgins, what is it? And how have you got to where you are?

A pure love of vintage, buying, making, sewing, photography, reading, writing, modeling, selling vintage. I never get bored of finding things for my customers, I started out on eBay and then moved to ASOS and have now partnered up with my friend Lauren, otherwise known as The Girl Who Stole London to create GIRL STOLE which is a trend led site, allowing you to incorporate vintage with new and modern styles.

One of my favourite dresses is from your ASOS Boutique. Does GIRL STOLE mean this is the end of GIRL STOLE VINTAGE? 

Absolutely not, I've recently relaunched my own vintage boutique on ASOS Marketplace called "Peggy's Dresses"' A one stop shop for the perfect vintage dress'  Dresses only from any era in any shape and size. Peggy's dresses will be my own little vintage baby that can one day partner up with the big boss that is GIRLSTOLE.COM 

What's the big plan?  Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Splitting my time between L.A and London. running both businesses, living in a beautiful house filled with vintage, TAKING OVER THE WORLD ONE DRESS AT A TIME.  

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We hope that you'll click on all the linkage in this post to find out more about Lereese and her projects, girl gives good dress. 

Twitter: @GRLSTOLEVINTAGE 

Instagram: @GRLSTOLEVINTAGE

Facebook: LINKAGE

xxx

Get Your Thrift On

If you're into vintage it's also likely that you're pretty thrifty with your dollar and careful with how you spend it. So now the sales are here! Hurrah for us all! I've done some of the hard work for you and put together a guide from the high street and vintage stores based on a few of our favourite things! Paisley, platforms and down right cheap frocks!

The High Street does Paisley for Pennies
A classic vintage inspired print

£22.50 Vero Moda

£20.00Topshop

£25.00 Urban Outfitters



ASOS adds Height for Half
Get a bit of 70s in your wardrobe

£28.50 Holland
£22.50 HELTER SKELTER



Must Have Metallics
Shimmer in your discounted disco gear

£17.00 COW
£5.00 HOLYSMOKES
£15.00 ASOS




Dirt Cheap Vintage Dresses
These are just the beginning - keep searching! There are masses of vintage shops with clearance sections all year round and here are three starting points for you! Good luck and dig deep.

£49.00 Lovely's Vintage Emporium
£7.00 Godiva
£25.00 COW



Gina
xxx

The 90s: Do or Don't?

Vintage is a term generally given to pre 1970s fashion, anything afterwards is considered retro. So how do you feel about this new love for the 1990s? From a love affair with denim, bomber jackets aplenty and slogan t-shirts and rucksacks in their heyday, the 90s have resurfaced on the high street. But do you love it or hate it? We have a nosey at what the high street are saying...

Saved By The Bell: Crop tops, high waists and whole lotta denim.

ASOS have put together this pinboard of their take on the 90s revival, it's more about pastels apparently, keeping it pretty rather than grungy. Frankly, a jumper around the waist just isn't going to look pretty. However, I do quite like to idea of the dungaree coming back into fashion play. I've seen some lovely tailored ones from River Island and Topshop, but denim is still winning it seems.

Talking of jumpers around the waist, Rihanna's debut collection for River Island was launched today. And boy. That girl be loving the 90s. Denim, dungarees, crop tops, neon, slinky long dresses and yes, skirts and dresses with in built waist sleeve things. A couple of the pieces I can see myself wearing, but on the whole I was expecting something a lot more exciting and well, not a 90s revival. But hey, the fash pack will love it no doubt. What are your thoughts?

Anyone seen the new Wildfox lookbook? Clueless. The ideal American 90s reference with spaghetti straps, tartan skirts, slogan Ts and just look at that hat. Personally, I'm just not convinced.

The Wasteland lookbook for 2013 is full of zany Bip Ling inspired graphics and yes, more denim, more dungarees and even pigtails. Oh and blue lipstick. And platform trainers. And camo. Argh! Tell you one thing though, I'm more than happy that good old Doctor Martin will be back on the feet of our youth, a good sturdy shoe! You can often find colourful DMs at our fairs from sellers like The Vintage Scene.

Here is a peek at the sort of DMs you can expect to find at our fairs and at a very reasonable price!

One seriously grungy 90s style icon has to be Drew Barrymore and if you click on that link you'll be forwarded to a 90s Drew Barrymore tumblr (just to warn you there is some semi-nudity on this blog). I love this photo for Drew and her circular sunnies but also the classic flippy floral dress her mate is wearing combined with that big Julia Roberts style hair. 

So. We've established that the 90s comeback is officially here in one form or another, but what is your take on it? Are you happy for it to be mingled in with vintage? Are you going to go all out 90s this Summer or just pick and choose the best bits? 

I'd be very interested to hear from you.

Love

Gina

x

101 Uses Of A Vintage Suitcase

Not long ago I posted 101 Uses Of A Teacup as we seem to be swimming in them at the moment! But you can pretty much guarantee that there will be a stack of suitcases at our next fair and the one after that and the one after that etc...so let's think about how we can bring these babies into the 21st century. I've gathered together some ideas to inspire you and please feel free to pass on yours too.

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A wonderful  South African based designer Katie Thompson upcycles old unused furniture into covetable, unique feature items for your home. This suitcase chair looks so luxurious, I can hardly believe somebody came up with such a glamorous idea from an old suitcase. Genius. You can see the rest of her designs here.

Got an old chest of drawers lying around? Breathe new life into them just like the examples below. You could place the entire chest in each drawer, or create drawer fronts from the handle side of the case. It's a lovely way to store things you mightn't need on a regular basis I guess, like this bed side dresser too.

James Plumb for Rossana Orlandi

Painted Home Designs

This has to be my absolute favourite idea! Suitcase shelves from blogger, Red Hen Home. Acting more as kooky artwork than shelving, it's a very impressive display! She has also created a tutorial for you to follow as well as her progress on this particular project. 

Now, this is adorable. Vintage suitcase cat bed. Who would have thought it? Very similar to the way in which you'd make one into a table, but so much cuter. You can find the tutorial to make this very bed at Mouse Breath which is a blog written by cats, for cats. 

The Boom Case have made a name for themselves over the pond for very stylish boomboxes. Yes my dears, that's right, suitcase speakers! They look incredible and sound just as a sweet. I've yet to find a UK seller, but if you know somebody PLEASE get them in touch with us! If you fancy having a go at your own Boom Case, Apartment Therapy have a DIY tutorial for you. 

The humble table will never be the same again. Whether you use a stack of suitcases to put your table top upon as in the first picture from Apartment Therapy, or you use a little more of that DIY spirit and add wooden table legs to a sturdy case just like this example from Salvage Love which also has a very simple tutorial alongside it. Remember, you can keep your cases in working order to store unsightly mess such as magazines or post, or just bits and bobs. 

If you would much prefer to keep your suitcase as a suitcase, but would like to, well, liven it up a bit, there are endless ideas out there. The classic collage effect is probably a little bit out of date (says she, vintage lover over here) so have a couple of ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

A Beautiful Mess floral fabric

Oh So Lovely polka dots

Lace chevron design from Ruche 

If you just can't see your suitcase being something pretty enough to add to your home then why not your garden or balcony? I'd love a suitcase herb pot myself! This link to My First Garden has a whole list of ideas for creative flower beds and planters, but look at his face! Perfect for kids. 

So there you have it. A fair few ideas to get you thinking about what you might be able to do with that old dusty suitcase. And I bet there are a tonne of other ideas just waiting to flow into the comment boxes below (go on!). 

Gina xxx

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 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

x