Vintage on the Web – March 2015

Oh dear, this has arrived a couple of days late but I promise I do have a good excuse, I’m on holiday this week! I haven’t gone away anywhere amazing, unfortunately, but I have been very busy. It was my mum’s 70th birthday yesterday and, because she’s been going through a tough time lately, I decided to take the week off to make sure she could really enjoy herself over her birthday week.

On Monday I took her vintage shopping in Bournemouth (post coming soon), on Tuesday I had my haircut (see my Instagram if you’re interested to see what it’s like) and then yesterday we went out for a surprise meal with some of my mum’s family. On Saturday I’m taking her to William Morris’ house, Kelmscott Manor, which she has been wanting to go to for ages and then on Sunday we’re going out for another meal with some other members of the family. Phew, I’m going to need a holiday to get over this week!

Anyway, back to the purpose of the post. I’ve come across some amazing bits and bobs on the internet this month, so many that I may have to leave some until next month! So here’s my vintage on the web finds for March.

A Damsel in This Dress: Corsetted Victorians and others – myths and reality

Although this fantastic post about the myths of corsetry has been around for a while I hadn’t come across it until it appeared on my Twitter timeline during March. Whether you are a seasoned corset wearer, or someone who thinks wearing a corset is dangerous, oppressive or unpractical, I would highly recommend reading this. It takes real life comments that people have made on social media about corsets, and corset wearers, and tells you the real truth.

I personally have two corsets, both from What Katie Did, and love wearing them. I have a 27″ waist and my most favourite, and the first corset I bought, is a 22″ waist. It was fitted at WKD after trying on several sizes but the only time I’ve ever worn it that tight was when I tried it on (Rachel at WKD is amazing at lacing you up!). I have never had surgery to remove a rib to wear them (seriously, who came up with that?!), I feel incredibly confident in it, mainly because it gives me amazing posture and I can still do everything I normally do whilst wearing it.

Chronically Vintage: How to Wear Navy Blue

This post from Chronically Vintage is just perfect for me. I love wearing navy blue and have a lot of pieces in it, such as 1930s style high-waisted trousers, a circle skirt, several tops that have navy in them, three pairs of shoes, two handbags and a pair of leather gloves. However, I always team it with red and/or white. This is, I admit, a beautiful combination but I need a variety to spice up my wardrobe and this post has given me lots of ideas.

I can’t wear any citrus colours next to my skin as it makes me look incredibly ill but having a splash of yellow or orange against navy really appeals to me. I’m now on the look out for brooches, belts and handbags in these colours so I can mix and match them with the clothing I already have. And I love the idea of mixing burgundy (my new favourite colour) and copper with it for the winter. That I will definitely experiment with.

Wearing History Blog

You may or may not know that I studied for a fashion design desgree at university. For years I was really, really into sewing and making my own clothes, even spending the whole of Christmas day afternoon one year making a pair of trousers to wear out to a party that evening! However, I became disillusioned when I ended up spending all of time doing alterations for other people and eventually packed my sewing machine away. Roll on ten years and I am just beginning to get back into sewing again, especially when I see so many of you making such amazing vintage style clothing.

On my search for new patterns I came across the incredible Wearing History blog. Lauren, who runs it, is my idol! She makes the most awe-inspiring pieces based on all sorts of eras from the 18th century right up until the 1950s, with the Edwardian era and 1930s being her favourites. On her blog she showcases the pieces she has been working on, as well as offering patterns you can buy. This has led her to open up her own online shop, which can be found at http://wearinghistory.clothing/, where you can search through her entire collection of patterns, as well as purchasing from a small range of clothing she makes and sells.

The Vintage Pattern Files

And talking of patterns, I came across The Vintage Pattern Files on my search for some simple vintage knitting patterns. If you’ve read my I Wish I Could Knit post, you’ll know that knitting is something I’ve never really gelled with but I am now on a mission to correct this. I’ve taught myself (thanks to Google) how to cast on, do a basic knitting stitch and a purl stitch. Yeah me! Now I want to have a go at actually making myself something, so think a simple turban style headband will be my first project.

However, I dream of one day being able to make something as beautiful as the 1930s jumper above, although I can’t ever see me getting that good. In the meantime, I will stick to the many sewing patterns, both vintage and vintage inspired, that are also available on the site.

The Dig For Victory Show

I featured The Dig For Victory Show blog on February’s roundup but since then they have released this brilliant promo video for their show on the 13th and 14th of June 2015. I’ll let the video do the talking as it is just so good.

I was going to go to this last year but life just seemed to get in the way. However, this year nothing is going to stop me. I’ve also booked my tickets to the Air Tattoo in Fairford in July, so do let me know if any of you are planning to go to either because I’d love to meet up and say hi!

We Heart Vintage: Vintage Perfumes – The Fragrances That Defined Each Decade

The wonderful Mim at Crinoline Robot recently wrote two fantastic posts about vintage perfume, Victorian perfume reborn: Grossmith Phul-Nana and How to look after and shop for vintage perfume (inspired by little old me!). Both of these posts made me realise just how little I know about perfumes of yesteryear and they inspired me to go searching for more answers online, mainly because I wanted to know the sorts of perfumes people actually wore over my favourite decades. This was when I came across this enlightening post on We Heart Vintage.

I’ve now decided that Joy by Jean Patou, brand new, not vintage (can you imagine the price?!), is the next perfume I’d like to get. My lovely dad buys me a new perfume every year for Christmas so I’ll know exactly which one I’ll ask for.

Nora Finds Blog

I actually can’t remember how I came across the Nora Finds blog but I’m so glad I did. I love finding new blogs to read, especially when they are written by someone who can be a real inspiration to you. Nora is not only a vintage blogger, but she’s super stylish with her own unique approach and a molecular biologist (where does she find the time!). Brains, class and beauty. What more could a girl want? Oh yes, she also has a pixie cut!

I’ve had a pixie cut three times in my life, once when I was 9, then again at 22 and finally again at about 37. I loved my hair like this but it’s not for everyone and Nora has done a great video post about the things you should consider before taking the leap. I have to agree with every single one!

Have you come across any interesting blogs, articles or online shops in March? I’d love to know what you’ve discovered, so leave a comment below.