VINTAGE LIFE

HER

58

LIFE

ISSUE

FASHION

HATS OFF TO PRETTY SEPTEMBER 2015

HEADWEAR

FABULOUS

1950S

& LIFESTYLE

SEPT 2015 ISSUE 58 £4.25

PERFECT YOUR MARILYN MONROE EYES

DANCE & FIND

LOVE

DRESS UP FOR AUTUMN

GLAMOUR

SEPT 2015 ISSUE 58 £4.25

THE VOICE OF VINTAGE Cover 58.indd 2

STUNNING REVOLUTIONARY REPRODUCTIONS THIS SEASON

PLUS: Jean Muir / Tiki-Tastic / 70s Style / Hair Street Style / Tea Time / Music / Food / Reviews 18/08/2015 10:22

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Issue 58

Sept 2015

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Contents MY STYLE

14. jean muir Find out more about this influential designer.

17. trouser styles A look at different trouser trends across the decades.

20. Your street style Out and about in Hyde Park.

23. getting the 70s look Channel this year’s hottest vintage trend!

30. my style VL reader Erin Colleran invites us to take a look in her wardrobe...

31.Dolly and Dotty Showcasing the designs from this cute clothing range!

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37. House of foxy A sneak peek at the Autumn collection by vintage favourites House of Foxy.

41. 1950s glamour Style suggestions on getting the mid-century look.

44. Hats off...

The materials and inspiration behind milliner Gina McAdam’s headwear.

47. Tiki-Tastic!

Haili Hughes examines the popularity of tiki fashions and homeware.

MY LOOK 51. Vintage at Vizcaya Make-up and hairstyles to take you through the late summer heat.

54. Beauty Queens The duo answer your beauty dilemmas!

56. The marilyn Look Tips to get the Hollywood starlet’s make-up style, with Diablo Rose.

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Issue 59 on sale Thursday 24th sept 2015

57. Fun Forties Create a hardwearing and durable hairstyle with a 40s twist, suitable for any occasion or season.

MY Health 61. Dancing through the decades The first of a series of articles that takes a look at the evolution of dance.

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CONTENTS

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40 MY Life

Save &

78. Vintage Academy Keeley Harris and Kate Beavis discuss the importance of websites...

91. Make it cook’s apron An essential for any home cook or baker.

MY HOME

MY FOOD

70. Pioneer woman Amy Johnson – record breaking female pilot.

79. Step Inside The home of vintage lover, Rachel Hinchcliffe.

95. Drink Tea... and carry on The importance of tea in wartime Britain.

74. It’s a fair day’s work!

Ria Chambers talks to VL about running her own vintage business.

84. Sewing in Style Transform a sewing box into a useful piece of furniture.

67. Handbags and sewing patterns One reader talks about her vintage obsessions...

75. Curves and Pinup style Meet Instagram sensation and vintage enthusiast, Miss Amy May.

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Subscribe Turn to page 50

97. WIN! A Hope and Greenwood tuck box worth £30.

85. Through the keyhole Take a look at the former home of novelists Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte.

99. Jubilees tea room A traditional tea room in East Yorkshire.

90. Good Clean Fun Vinegar to the rescue!

100. Sweet inspiration A look at favourite foods.

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CONTENTS

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Issue 59

115. Belle Noir Meet the beautiful London based vintage trio.

124. nashville boogie A look at the new event held stateside – with Ashley Westmoreland.

119. Thoroughly modern musical How musicals have progressed through the decades.

122. High society A review of the recent production at the Old Vic theatre in London.

126. The great seaside vintage fair A recent event in the lovely town of Whitby.

127. It’s a Date!

Fair and event listings this month.

FASHION

HATS OFF TO PRETTY

HEADWEAR

FABULOUS

1950S

& LIFESTYLE

SEPT 2015 ISSUE 58 £4.25

PERFECT YOUR MARILYN MONROE EYES

DANCE & FIND

LOVE

DRESS UP FOR AUTUMN

GLAMOUR

SEPT 2015 ISSUE 58 £4.25

THE VOICE OF VINTAGE

117. Joe stilgoe VL chats to this up-andcoming vintage singer.

LIFE

123. It’s fair to say...

A report from Lou Lou’s vintage fair.

SEPTEMBER 2015

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114. Tootsie takeover The girls discuss plans for their new music video...

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112. My Top 5 reads Liza Hollinghurst shares her favourite reads...

MY Society

ISSUE

107. The review The delightful Great John Street Hotel in Manchester.

113. Reviews Stick your head in a book!

HER

MY Culture 101. Spotlight: The isle of wight What vintage gems lie in store off the south coast?

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STUNNING REVOLUTIONARY REPRODUCTIONS THIS SEASON

PLUS: Jean Muir / Tiki-Tastic / 70s Style / Hair Street Style / Tea Time / Music / Food / Reviews

Cover 58.indd 2

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Sept 2015 / Issue 58 Image from the A/W Collection foR House of Foxy

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MY STYLE

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WELCOME

Editor’s Letter

A

utumn is here at last. I have to admit, I love this time of year – the colours and scents in particular. Pumpkin pie candles and the garden full of colourful trees, not to mention all my favourite vintage dresses in browns, oranges and reds teamed with dramatic long scarves and comfy tall boots. Pass the hot chocolate and I’ll just sit here by this (imaginary) fire.

This issue is rather packed, covering many decades and many different areas of interest. It’s the one thing I love about the magazine, the variety we cover – it makes our jobs extremely interesting! Delve in and find the bits you like, or indeed it may be everything!

This month the team and I are off to Twinwood Festival – we cannot wait. It’s always such a highlight to our calendar.

If you’re making your way there, do pop over to the large Vintage Life tent in the main arena – facing the main stage – you can’t miss us! Come and say hello, chat, hangout, grab any issues you may have missed and most of all, enjoy the view of the main stage and soak in the wonderful atmosphere.

I will let you get down to reading and looking at the fabulous images in this issue. They are beautiful.

Until the next issue...

Rae Egglestone-Evans Editor in Chief Follow me on Twitter @iamsimplyrae Image of Rae: Photographer - My Boudoir (www.myboudoir.co.uk) / Hair & Make-up - Michelle Sisson / Dress - Sharon Bowen Designs

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My

Our readers rock!

VL Facebook Fans Posteropolis: Love the page and the magazine! Keep up the good work!

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Reader of the

Issue

Time for Tea? Always!

@EveRay1: Happiness today is reading the new @VintageLifeMag If only I’d known about the reader discount at Lindy Bop before buying my lovely new dress! @andy2heart: @VintageLifeMag wahay wahay I picked up my copy of new Vintage Life mag the other day and, as always, highly delighted with contents. @GgirlVtg: @VintageLifeMag I just got my copy of your magazine. Perfect Saturday read. đ&#x;˜€ @vintageguinea: Time to sit down and read @VintageLifeMag #FriYay!

Dear Vintage Life, I hope you like this. Your magazine inspired me to do a vintage tea party and get my friends to dress up.

Kind regards Joanne Davis

A Fabulous 50s Fan!!!

@TheDaisyChains1: @Retro_Daisy We love a bit of @VintageLifeMag â?¤ď¸?đ&#x;Œ¸ @SadieRoberts14: Brilliant article about the amazing Mary Quant in this month’s @VintageLifeMag. Everyone go read!â?¤ď¸? @churchybabes: Feeling very sorry for myself after putting my back out this morning but @church197 has brought my @VintageLifeMag up for me to read. đ&#x;˜? @LeCurvyKitten: Oh my goodness! I’m in @VintageLifeMag đ&#x;˜ąđ&#x;˜ą @VintageTewks: @VintageLifeMag We love this month’s mag. Especially the tips on creating 1940s styled #vintage hair, we’ll be trying this out!

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Hello Vintage Life, Thought you might like this photo of me with your magazine. My home is styled 1950s with a Darling Buds of May / Only Fools and Horses kitsch twist. I’ve always dressed in vintage style (from age 15) and am a huge fan and collector of all things 50s.

I really love your magazine and would be super happy if you thought this photo was good enough to feature in it.

Sadie Walker

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Sources en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Muir www.jeanmuir.info design.designmuseum.org/design/jean-muir www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/j/jean-muir

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MY STYLE

Jean Muir

An icon of British fashion design...

“The clothes in themselves do not make a statement.

The woman makes a statement and the dress helps.”

Slaven / Shutterstock.com

J

ean Elizabeth Muir was born in London on 17th July 1928 to Scottish parents Cyril Muir, a draper’s floor superintendent, and his wife Phyllis Coy. Her parents unfortunately split up while she was very young and her mother took Jean and her brother Christopher to live in Bedford, where she attended the Bedford Girl’s Modern School. Here, she showed a particular talent for needlework and dressmaking, which would stand her in good stead for her future.

Jean left school at the age of 17 and went to work at the electoral registration office at Bedford Town Hall. Seeking a new job, she moved to London where she briefly worked at a solicitors’ practice before securing a stockroom job at Liberty & Co in 1950. Jean quickly moved up positions at Liberty and was soon selling over the counter in the lingerie department. Soon afterwards, she was given the opportunity to sketch in the ready-to-wear department, which served as her apprenticeship, and where she learned valuable information about designing, fitting, manufacturing, selling, retailers, wholesalers and export, amongst other things. In 1956, Jean left Liberty & Co and got a job as a designer for Jaeger.

In the early 60s, Jean left Jaeger and was soon headhunted by a mass-market jersey dress manufacturer David Barnes, who wanted her design talents. Muir initially said no, however Barnes persisted, eventually offering to fund Jean’s own label. As a result, the Jane & Jane label was launched in 1962 where a range of understated and easy to wear designs were produced. In 1964, Jane won her first Dress of the Year award for a dress printed in Liberty silk.

Jean left Jane & Jane in 1966 to launch Jean Muir Ltd, with her husband Harry Leukert in partnership. Her previous label Jane & Jane was sold to another label, Susan Small, but it petered out and eventually disappeared around 1970.

Jean Muir Ltd was a success, using the best fabrics such as silk, cashmere, jersey and crepe, which Jean preferred to source from British suppliers. Her designs focussed on form and fluidity and were aimed towards women of any age who wanted to wear a more mature look. Jean liked to use certain colours such as dark and deep greens and blues, purples, oranges and saffron yellows. Printed fabrics or unnecessary embellishments and decorative items were rarely used – Jean wasn’t attracted to fashion ‘fads’ and preferred her clothes to be understated with long fluid lines and skilful tailoring.

She particularly cared about how women felt when they wore her designs.

Jean Muir Ltd went from strength to strength and Jean won Dress Of The Year twice more in 1968 and 1979. In 1984, she was awarded a CBE. Sadly, on 26th May 1995, Jean Muir died of breast cancer. She had kept her condition private and only a few people knew about it – she had continued to work through part of her illness. After her death, Jean Muir Ltd continued under the directorship of Leukart and designs were produced under the supervision of Joyce Fenton-Douglas. In 2004, the first Jean Muir Ltd shop opened in London.

In 2007, Jean Muir Ltd announced that it would be closing its doors and did so after its SS collection. Although it was the end of a very successful era, Jean Muir’s understated elegant designs remain an important part of fashion history.

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MY STYLE

Trouser Styles Across the Decades

by Second Hand Rose (thesecondhandrose.blogspot.co.uk)

shutterstock.com/ MJTH

A

lthough many women had been wearing a form of trouser under dresses for modesty, warmth, or for outdoor work, French designer Paul Poiret first designed trousers for women in the early 1900s. He was inspired by Eastern culture and costumes from the opera Scheherazade, a collection of legends from the Middle East called The Arabian Nights. The trousers were loose fitting, wide-leg harem style trousers.

It was only when World War I started that a lot of women began wearing trousers to do physical work whilst doing traditionally male jobs. Women who worked with the public still wore skirts but many wore trousers and overalls to work in factories. After the war ended women were reluctant to give up the freedom of being able to wear trousers but they were still seen as a male dominated look.

Coco Chanel then stepped in with her trousers designed for women to wear doing sports and other physical activities such as horseback riding. Coco often dressed in her boyfriend’s suits and whilst at the beach resort Deauville, she wore sailor’s trousers instead of a swimming costume. Chanel played an integral part in bringing trousers to more women and helping them have more freedom of movement whilst being active.

During the 1930s the two-piece beach trouser outfit was available for women. Chanel introduced the design as a stylish and comfortable option for boating and named them yachting trousers, pairing the very wide leg design with a matching jacket. They were also a great cover up whilst relaxing at the beach.

Before WWII, more upper class women wore trousers. The style was wide legged with a front crease or very wide flowing culottes with a high fitted waist, made of durable cotton and wool or twill for winter. Even though the frequency of women wearing trousers increased, many did not actually buy themselves trousers – they either borrowed them from the men in their life or made some themselves.

They were worn with white shirts, vests, blazers, and sometimes

neckties. Trousers were seen on glamorous actresses such as Marlene Dietrich, Lauren Bacall and Katharine Hepburn, who was a fierce supporter of wearing trousers.

In 1939 the US and UK editions of Vogue featured a lady on the cover wearing trousers purely as a fashion item. They did this to prove that trousers didn’t just need to be worn for playing sports or for covering up at the beach, and that they could be part of a woman’s daily wardrobe. Some publications still perceived the look to be masculine and unnatural. It was written that wide leg trousers hid the curves of a woman’s legs, which was a form of beauty men needed to see to keep positive during tough times.

As World War II began, trousers once again got a boost in popularity and were a staple in any woman’s work wardrobe. Land girls and munitions workers were unable to do their jobs in skirts; everything had to be functional and safe. Due to the rationing of clothing, many women took to wearing their husband’s civilian clothes to work while they were away from home serving in the armed forces. They were practical and allowed women to keep their own clothing allowances for other uses. As the years went on and the men’s clothes began to wear out, replacements were made, specifically designed for the all-women workforce. By the summer of 1944, sales of trousers designed for women were five times more than they had been in the previous year. However, the trousers weren’t very figure flattering and the design was the same as for men’s trousers. They were a straight wide loose legged style – tight around the waist, with a wide waistband and a belt. They often had a single pressed line down the front. They were made of wool blends, cottons, gabardine, corduroy and seersucker in black, blue, grey and brown. The only difference was that they were fixed at the side with buttons, and later a zip. They were usually uncuffed and had large slit pockets on the sides.

Overalls and dungarees made of blue denim or heavyweight cotton in brown or blue were worn. They were loose fitting and had buttons down the middle of the front. They also had lots of pockets VINTAGE LIFE |

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to keep things in and were worn with a cotton blouse underneath.

Shirt sleeves and trouser cuffs were tied tight around the wrists and ankles to keep them from being caught in heavy machinery.

In the US the character Rosie the Riveter was regularly seen on government posters and advertising to encourage women to volunteer and take up jobs in factories as part of their patriotic duty. Rosie was always pictured wearing overalls and trousers; similar images of women war workers appeared in other countries such as Britain and Australia.

Jumpsuits or ‘siren suits’ were also a useful clothing item to have during the war. They zipped up the front and were made of soft flannel or cotton. They were cuffed around the ankle and were hooded to cover hair, and were ideal to throw on over pyjamas during an air raid.

As the 40s wore on and the war ended women began to wear trousers as everyday attire for home and public daywear. New patterns started to become available such as plaids, wide stripes and checks. Trousers were part of a woman’s signature style worn with blouses or jumpers. A suit was even available for work and casual wear. The trousers came with a matching shirt that was buttoned up, a look that was very versatile.

In the post-war era, trousers became acceptable casual wear for gardening, the beach, and other leisurely pursuits. Women enjoyed the freedom of wearing them on a daily basis and without any animosity. Styles were now a lot more feminine, with Cigarette style trousers being worn the most often. They were high waisted with a wide waistband and had flat fronts with full hips. They were slim fitting through the legs and had a side or back zip. They ended just above the ankle, were always lined and often worn with a thin belt.

Another trouser style that was worn was Capri trousers. They fit like the Cigarette style but ended mid-calf and had a slit on each side. Audrey Hepburn helped to make these trousers iconic. Her signature look was a pair of these dressed up with a black cashmere turtleneck and black ballet flats. After showcasing this outfit in the 1954 film Sabrina, women adored the elegance and simplicity of the style. It was the antithesis of the full on fabric wide skirted dresses worn with heavy foundation garments that were around at the time.

Heavy dark denim jeans began to emerge and were worn by stars such as Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn. They fitted high on the waist, wide over the hips and tapered down to the ankle or were rolled up to a wide cuff at mid calf (Capri length.) They had extra large pockets like the trousers in the 1940s, but the trend was to outline them with contrast stitching.

The classic casual way to wear these trousers was with a white, plaid or solid colour blouse and a pair of loafers. The brand Wrangler created jeans that had a front fly for women and the original style of jeans that were around are still available today.

Along came the swinging 60s when women wore bright trousers with tunics, shawls and jackets. Trousers now came in a variety of styles: narrow, wide, below the knee and above the ankle.

During the late 60s and 70s the Women’s Liberation Movement was focusing on gender equality and trying to eliminate forms of oppression. By adapting men’s styles and wearing trousers, women used them as a symbol to voice their gender equality to men.

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There was a new style on the block and they were high waisted, hip hugging and ultra-flared at the bottom. They were often made of polyester, the fabric of choice for the decade and came in bright colours and eye-popping patterns. As the years went on trousers were flaring wider and wider. It was a normal thing for a pair of women’s flares to have 32 inches of fabric around the bottom of the leg hem.

That’s an awful lot of static polyester to contend with.

Bell-bottoms are a symbol of the decade. They came in a variety of styles including denim, bright cotton and satin polyester in richly coloured fabrics and designed with outlandish patterns. Blue jeans were part of the everyday look for women of all ages. There were so many styles women could choose from including flared, bell-bottom, wide legged, hip huggers, high waisted, embroidered and embellished. Denim suits were also available.

Trousers were constantly worn for casual wear and were now finally accepted for the workplace.

Suits were emerging as a big trend and many women were wearing them, in particular female executives in the workplace. Designers such as Yves St. Laurent created gorgeous trouser suits for women to wear. More casual suits were around with leisure suits being worn in a variety of colours, fabrics and patterns.

Women loved trousers because of their practicality, comfort and versatility. They continued to be part of a woman’s daily look in the 1980s and were an integral part of any sassy lady’s power dressing style. They were also a key part of a woman’s casual or going out wardrobe.

Over the years women’s trousers went from fashion forward to a necessity and back to full on fashion. They are practical and are a great way to keep warm and stylish.

shutterstock.com/ MJTH

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. . . e l y t S t e e r t S r You MY STYLE

e Carousel (streetstylesnaps.com) Words and images by The Street Styl

Name: Alice Donnelly Location: Peterborough Style: Dress & bangles: vintage Hat: Betsy Hatter ulite ch: Lux Broo20 | VINTAGE LIFE Shoes: Rocket Originals

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Name: Danielle Cameron Location: Reading Style: Dress, hat & accessories: vintage Shoes: Rocket Originals

Name: Daisy Ann Lloyd Location: Brighton Style: Skirt: Pinup Girl Clothing Top: New Look Brooch: Luxulite Bangles: vintage & Bow & Crossbones Shoes: vintage

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The sun was shining on Hyde Park when a gaggle of vintage beauties descended for The British Belles’ Pinup Picnic in the Park. It was a really fun afternoon; I had a wonderful time getting to meet lovely people and everyone looked amazing!

Name: Bethan Gwinlan Location: London Style: Top & skirt vintage Sunglasses: vintage Shoes: Rocket Originals

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Name: Betty Biffa Location: Margate Style: Dress: Vivien of Holloway Bangles: Bow & Crossbones and Splendette.

Shoes: Rocket Originals.

MY STYLE

Name: Holly Jay Foster Location: Kent Style: Dress, scarf, bag and shoes: vintage Belt: Vivien of Holloway

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Your Street Style...

Name: Lauryn Swift Location: Brighton Style: Dress: vintage Shoes: off eBay Hair Flowers: H&M 22

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Names: Daisy Clark & Chris Read Location: Kent Daisy – jeans: Freddies of Pinewood Top: charity shop, cardigan: River Island, shoes: Matalan Bag: vintage. Chris – jeans: Burton Top: Topman. Shoes: Dr Martens

Florence Carousel Photography The Street Style Carousel: streetstylesnaps.com www.facebook.com/florencecarousel

Name: Ellen Bowden Location: Brighton Style: Hat: B Millinery Top and skirt: handmade Shoes: charity shop Bangles: Splendette

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MY STYLE

Flamingo Vintage’s Guide to...

Words by Jo Pedlar

Getting the 70s look

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t Flamingo Vintage we have always been in love with the 70s. Bringing with it strong influences from the 60s, 70s fashion expressed femininity, individuality, empowerment and freedom. It had elegance and glamour, but remained fun and unpretentious, which is why we love it so much. The early 70s inspired our summer photo shoot when fashion was relaxed and bohemian but not at all lacking in extravagance.

Maxi-mise your Impact The maxi dress, a contrast to the already popular mini and midi, appeared in the very late 60s and as far as we’re concerned, was perfected in the 70s.

Famously worn by the likes of Joni Mitchell and Stevie Nicks, prints were fabulous and floral, sleeves were voluptuous, they came in beautiful bohemian, peasant and folk styles, but most importantly they were floor length and flowing. This Flamingo Vintage folk-style maxi dress is a favourite of ours; its velvetlaced bodice, balloon sleeves and cool paisley pattern are all so typical of the 70s. The maxi is an essential piece for anyone’s wardrobe this year.

Do the Hippie Shake Widespread travel in the 70s meant that fashion was influenced from places all over the globe, like Morocco, Mexico and India. Both men and women wore hippie-style tops in cheesecloth material, and caftans and tunics with beautiful ethnic embroidery.

In our shoot, Saranne wore a vintage Mexican peasant blouse with a denim mini skirt and 70s suede waistcoat. Lily wore a vintage folk-embroidered blouse with big 70s collar, with a 70s suede mini skirt and tassel waistcoat.

Flare Aware Fashion wise, one of the most iconic 70s trends was undoubtedly the flare. Typically, the 70s silhouette was tight on top and wide on the bottom. From the boot cut to the bell-bottom (worn by men and women), or the palazzo trouser (a classy wide leg worn by the ladies), low rise or high waisted... flares were in; the wider the better! Wear them relaxed with flat shoes or sandals, or glam (rock) them up with heels and platform shoes. I know I couldn’t live without my flares!

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“The 70s was a time of beauty and freedom, when femininity was pushed forward” Stefano Pilati - Yves Saint Laurent

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Credits: Laura Peters Photography www.laura-peters.co.uk Make up by Suddi - Facebook: Makeup-by-Suddi-Freelance-MUA Models – Lily, Saranne and Ciaran.

Easily Suede Suede sashayed its way back onto the catwalk this season, influenced by the 70s trend. 70s-style suede tassel bags have made a big come back, most high street stores are reproducing them now – of course there is nothing like getting your hands on an original, vintage 70s suede, and leather bags continue to be one of our best sellers at Flamingo.

Suede waistcoats were cropped, or tunic-style, often with fringing. Skirts were panelled and came in mini and midi. Add a vintage suede waistcoat to your outfit for a signature 70s look, rock a suede, fringed jacket with flared jeans or wear a boho blouse with your vintage suede mini.

Bohemian Beauty Thanks to the hippie movement of the late 60s, the early 70s fashion was relaxed, feminine and bohemian. Trends carried forward from the 60s included long flowing dresses, bell sleeves, empire waistlines, flower power prints and embroidery. The Flamingo Vintage dress Lily wears on page 27 creates an effortlessly elegant feel, with bohemian statement jewellery and a hippie headband.

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Seeing Double Denim, along with suede and leather, was a huge part of 70s fashion. Denim shirts, waistcoats, jackets, hot pants and of course jeans all played their part, often simultaneously; no-one was scared of double denim in the 70s!

For the ultimate 70s bohemian look, team a denim waistcoat with a summer maxi dress or skirt. In our shoot Lily wore one of our cute vintage denim waistcoats with a cropped hippie blouse and a high-waisted vintage maxi skirt with bold floral print.

Most of all, 70s fashion was fun; it was a time for creativity and non-conformism! So, grab your oversized sunglasses and embrace the 70s, people!

Written by Jo Pedlar – Owner of Flamingo Vintage at The Custard Factory in Birmingham All of the clothes featured are from the Flamingo Vintage summer collection, to see the rest of the collection visit www.flamingovintagebirmingham.com

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MY STYLE Up Close Erin Colleran shares her wardrobe favourites! @Misshauntmouse

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PINK DRESS This airy pink chiffon dress is very special to me, as it was my grandmother’s maid of honour dress that she wore to her sister’s wedding in the 50s. Sadly, my Grandmother recently passed away, so being able to wear this was definitely a tribute to her and her fabulous sense of style! My look and accessories were chosen to evoke a very familiar fashion icon – Barbie! I received many compliments the day of my event, Spring Dapper Day at the Magic Kingdom!

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BLACK CAPRIS Travelling to Disney calls for classic style and a little inspiration from Minnie Mouse! My vintage red blouse and my Deadly Dames capris make me feel vampy and cool, not to mention comfortable!

My Swarovski crystal bow personally customized Mickey ears are a must for this kind of trip, and complete the look!

TROPICAL DRESS Carmen Miranda eat your heart out! My favourite pair of Miss L Fire shoes featuring bunches of grapes on the toes went perfectly with a thrifted dress for a family wedding. Fishnets, big gold hoops, and a lime green wrap tied it together...

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POLKA DOTS I found that this hat matched my aunt’s Lanz of Sailsberg polkadot sundress! I chose my super cute Miss L Fire cherry shoes, three family collected silver charm bracelets, wicker purse and navy sheer gloves to complete the look.

This outfit makes me feel so summery and I can’t help but pose like a 50s catalogue model with my fabulous hat!

HARLEQUIN DRESS A trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter called for a quirky magical dress. Pinup Girl Clothing made it happen with their Jenny dress in purple harlequin. I paired it with my green lucite earrings with black cats, long sleeve collared shirt and spats.

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A preview of the Autumn Collection by House of Foxy, all made in Great Britain! www.20thcenturyfoxy.com

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MY STYLE

Autumn Fashion

by Emma Griffin

1950s glamour Be on trend for the Autumn... www.griffin-photography.co.uk

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new fashion season is upon us. If you are like me, you may be wondering what this season’s fashion trend is and how can I shop vintage but still look in style.

I have analysed the best collections from New York, London, Milan and Paris to bring you the top trends that will be making the biggest impact on our wardrobes this autumn.

There is always a decade that reappears on the catwalk as inspiration and this season I have noticed that there is a big 1950s theme happening, which happens to be a favourite vintage look of mine.

This style is based on old Hollywood starlets, with 40

a soft feminine look. The complete set of a skirt, gloves and cinched in waist makes for the ultimate feminine sensibilities for the autumn-winter season.

Tailoring and red lips signify a style that's more like that of Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn.

This trend is all about luxurious indulgences from fabrics to 1950s shaped dresses, full skirts, and prints and patterns that mimic the wallpapered hallways of legendary hotels with ditsy florals that play up glamour.

Colour wise, there are soft shades like powdery blues, lilac, vanilla, and pale pink mixed with deeper jewel tones.

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OUTFIT ONE: A beautiful 1950s day dress with matching bolero, worn with cream gloves and pumps.

OUTFIT TWO: I love it when you find that one dress in the back of a vintage store that is almost falling to bits – it holds such a story and this is exactly that dress, worn with an original 1950s tweed fitted jacket, peep toe heels and handbag.

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OUTFIT THREE: Texture plays a big part in this season’s look to add an element of glamour. This coat worn with a fitted tweed pencil skirt and a nude silk blouse with the most stunning detail on the neck.

OUTFIT FOUR: As well as shopping in your favourite vintage stores, try searching charity shops to find your dream vintage outfit – it is surprising what people give away. This whole vintage look was created from a charity shop – a bright pink tweed suit worn with a mushroom colour chiffon blouse, a vintage neck collar and those cute gold pumps.

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OUTFIT FIVE: This is probably my favourite outfit and really shouts out the theme! This stunning blush pink satin 1950s dress is to die for.

OUTFIT SIX: I just adore this vintage hat; I love how you can make a statement with just an accessory. Here it is worn with the tweed pencil skirt, cape and a vintage handbag. A perfect look for any autumn day. * The views in this article are not necessarily those of the publisher. The magazine (or staff) does not support the fur industry and are advovates of animal welfare organisations.

CREDITS: Model: Lottie Richardson Make-up artist: Emma Giles Hair Stylist: Liam Dawson Vintage fashion stylist: Jo Chatterly purpleport.com/portfolio/ladyc/ Clothing and accessories: Mainly stylist’s own supplied by Daisy Potter Vintage Clothes, Foundry Shopping Village, Hayle, Cornwall 01736 754836 Location: Port Pendennis Marina, Falmouth, Cornwall PortPendennis.com Photographer: Emma Griffin www.griffin-photography.co.uk

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MY STYLE

Sourcing materials for Headpieces

By Gina McAdam, images by Lara Doherty

Hats off...

Gina McAdam discusses the inspiration behind her headpieces, and the materials she uses for her creations.

Feathers My husband James works for a local gunsmith company and has developed very good relationships over the years with the local gamekeepers in and around Surrey and Sussex. The gaming season runs from the 1st October through to 1st February each year and excess birds are ethically shot during this time, which include pheasant, wood pigeon and partridge and the gamekeepers donate the feathers to me. Estate owners and gamekeepers also donate 44

woodcock, jay, peacock and crow feathers to me. In addition I help out voluntarily at Busbridge Lakes at their open days and am allowed to pick up and keep the feathers that are found lying around on the ground from their exotic ducks, swans, geese and wildfowl.

Feathers are just so incredibly beautiful and what you can do with them is amazing. I am passionate about recycling and love being able to source native

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UK bird feathers so naturally.

Jewels I source the jewels that I use on my designs from markets, car boot sales, charity shops, antique dealers, friends and family. The jewels from my recent collection were sourced from a 1920s flapper dress with a frayed bottom that sadly had perished over time and the material was turning to dust. The dress had a wonderful collection of rhinestones, crystals, pearls and beads that I have been able to recycle and use in my latest designs.

I also buy seed pearls, black and copper beads to complement the vintage beads.

UK-made felt I am only interested in using UK-made felt derived from British wool. I buy this from a variety of sellers in different colours and shades depending on what type of headpiece I am creating.

Vintage blocks I use traditional millinery methods and tools to construct each piece; I tend to work on wooden hat blocks, sew and decorate by hand and also use a sewing machine. I am currently using a vintage

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hat block from the 1920s. For the new collection I have used this block base to form the shape of the headpiece and free form by hand, wet felting, then hand stitching each feather from the bottom upwards so that the feathers fall naturally and flow downwards and don’t disturb the barbs of the feathers.

The way I’m working on a wooden block is very similar to how someone would have been doing it 100 years ago.

What I am working on now I am currently working on a range of vintage inspired timeless, graceful cloche hats, but bringing them up-to-date with embroidery, Liberty ribbon, Harris Tweed and different fabrics, making them iconic and identifiably British pieces.

How I decide on a design Depending on whether I am creating something bespoke or developing a new collection, my ideas develop and evolve over time.

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I have different inspiration for each of my collections, but I particularly love the golden age of Hollywood in the 1920s.

For the new collection, I was inspired by the Hollywood starlets and divas of the 1920s like Bette Davis and women like Margot Fonteyn, women with strong character roles.

My aim for this particular collection was to create sensational female headwear that creates a character when it is worn. Glamour and appeal go hand in hand; a transformation takes place each time a woman puts on one of my designs.

With bespoke pieces, I usually have a session with the client where we get together and look at what they are going to be wearing. We discuss what they want, and – just as importantly – what they don’t want. It’s quite a collaborative design process and very organic.

I want my client to feel like she is the centre of attention and will feel amazing in what I have created.

For more information, visit: www.ginamcadam.com

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It’s Tiki-tastic!

Words by Haili Hughes

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hen it comes to following Mid-Century fashion, it can be a bit of a minefield. Like any ‘scene’, there are certain trends that vintage gals tend to flock to, be that the Western ware, Mexican patio squaw dresses that everybody is raving about, or the hallowed fur-trimmed Lilli Ann princess coat. But one trend that refuses to go away… all things tiki and tropical.

Who wouldn’t love it? With bright, bursting colours, beautiful hair flowers, parasols and bamboo accessories, everyone can feel like they’re sipping a Mai Tai on a beach – even when it’s a wet, windy day in Grimsby.

Tiki or Polynesian culture is inspired by traditional Tiki carvings and Polynesian mythology, but it first became popular in the 1930s, when the ‘Don the Beachcomber’ restaurant was opened in Hollywood. This then led to the California World Fair choosing a theme of the ‘Pageant of the Pacific’ later the same year.

After World War 2, soldiers brought back souvenirs from the islands and with the rise of wages and introduction of cheaper airfares, people were able to travel to the beautiful places that they could previously have only dreamed about.

Hawaii also became the 50th state in 1959 and of course there are all of those famous Elvis movies… so began the tiki explosion.

My first experience of tiki was the amazing film South Pacific. I remember watching it as a child and being mesmerised by the beau-

tiful scenery of ‘Bill’s Bath Club’; the azure sea washing against the golden sand, fringed with palm trees. Not to mention the outfits and fabulous hairstyles. I knew that when I grew up, I wanted to look like them! The iconic “I’m gonna wash that man” song also came in handy later, when trying to get my son to have a bath!

Fast forward to today and a large proportion of my wardrobe is made up of repro tropical prints, bamboo accessories and carved Polynesian-style heels. I don’t yet own any original pieces, although I have been close to buying a few Alfred Shaheen’s that are getting like gold dust to find. I do, however, boast a tiki-style spare bedroom, complete with bamboo furniture and tiki mugs. Nevertheless, my modest collection is nothing. There are some ladies who love the style so much that it has become a huge part of their lifestyle.

Emma Edwards from Manchester is one such lady. Emma runs Miss Bamboo (www.missbamboo.co.uk) and has been in love with 40s/50s Polynesian style since she was a teenager. For Emma, what attracted her to tiki was its glamorousness but with the more fun kitsch elements thrown in. She says: “My interest in the history of tiki and rum culture grew from this and since starting my business Miss Bamboo selling 40s/50s inspired American and Hawaiian clothing, it has really become a whole lifestyle for me as Miss Bamboo!”

Emma’s interest has also led to her becoming friends with some great designers and collectors in the UK/European tiki scene. In fact, VINTAGE LIFE |

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one of her best experiences was going to Paris last year to ‘tiki guru' and historian Sven Kirsten's Tiki Pop exhibition and pre-opening party. “It was amazing to meet him personally and see the best collection of 20th century tiki artefacts and ephemera in world!”

It isn’t just tropical fashion that influences the Mid-Century tiki fan. Hawaiian inspired home ware has also become big business, with tiki inspired pieces being sold in lots of mainstream high street stores. Emma is no different! Her love of the tiki style has influenced her home style massively and she likes to mix the kitsch elements with Mid-Century modern 50s style. “I have three bamboo tiki bars, a tiki deck in the garden complete with tiki water feature, vintage tropical wallpaper, a whole variety of Hawaiian and Polynesian ephemera and my growing collection of tiki mugs on display of course!”

For other ladies, their love of a bright print has led to the start of a passion for collecting vintage pieces that others would die for. Lori Jade Barker of Greyhound Vintage (www.etsy.com/greyhoundvintageuk), has a collection of Hawaiian style prints that could clothe a small island. For her, the appeal of Polynesian-inspired fashion, culture and decor goes hand in hand with her love of the 1940s and 1950s. As well as being aesthetically pleasing, Hawaii is exotic and in parts mysterious, which she adores.

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Her first purchase was one of the Holy Grail of 40s and 50s collectors, a green ‘Fern Frond’ Alfred Shaheen sarong dress. However, they don’t come cheap and Lori had to pay for it in five monthly instalments…the wait must have killed her! Her thrifty eye has also led to a few bargains, with her snapping up a Watumull’s Pake Muu on Etsy for £15; they usually sell for in excess of £250.

Like Emma, Lori’s home has also been tiki-fied, “I have a lot of bamboo in my bedroom, along with tons of leopard print and huge original barkcloth curtains. I have a lot of Polynesian/tiki chalkware that sits alongside Nubian/African art too.”

So why do people love tiki so much? Simply put, it just looks beautiful! It's colourful and bright and the patterns and designs are far more interesting than anything you can find today in the insipid offerings of high street brands. Also, the quality and workmanship that went into fabrics of that time is second to none, with many designs being hand drawn before printing or screen painting.

But overall, it brings a little taste of the exotic into your home and wardrobe, allowing you to escape into a glamorous world of exoticism and cocktails – which is much needed in dreary England!

Clearly, tiki is a trend that is not going to go away. So if you’re going to invest in some original pieces it’s a great area to start collecting.

So come on ladies, grab your cocktail and let’s go and have a luau.

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MY LOOK

a y a c Viz vintage at

don Rudich All Photos by Bran of BRP Studios ith

by Jenna Beth Sm ds or W

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Credits: Photographer: Brandon Rudich (BRP Studios) Brandon Rudich Photography www.brudichphotography.com Some of the wardrobe and accessories from and assisted by Lauren Arkin of LA Boudoir, Miami Wardrobe items: Jenna Beth Styling, hair and makeup: Jenna Beth

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MY LOOK

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t’s summer in south Florida in the United States. The skies are clear and the sun is HOT (The heat index was about 105 degrees F (40 degrees Celsius) that afternoon) and I was headed to the beautiful Vizcaya Museum and Gardens located just south of Miami. The Vizcaya estate was designed by James Deering and Paul Chalfin with architect Francis Burrell Hoffman Jr. and modelled after grand Italian villas. The main house was completed in 1916 and gardens in 1921.

The first of the three ensembles of the day is a custom made dress from local designer and owner of LA Boudoir Miami (a vintage boutique), Lauren Arkin. It’s based on a 1950s French pattern by “Mrs. Depew”. The dress is mainly Taffeta with a horsehair understructure and worn with a petticoat for extra fullness. The look is finished off with pearls and vintage hat with netting (shown with pearl and rhinestone head piece.

Hair and make-up for all three ensembles was kept fairly clean and light, to be worn outside in the heat and be able to go from 1920s to 1950s.

Normally I do a wet set in rollers for my hair to get smooth waves that will last in the Florida heat and humidity, but today we had to go with a cute bob wig that could go from the 20s to 50s. For longer hair you could do a faux bob made by curling the hair to add texture (either hot rollers, form curlers or pin curl wet set) then pinning up and under creating a bobbed look. The second look was a vintage 1920s/ 30s sheer blush-pink dress with beaded appliqué details, worn with pearls and a cloche hat. Hats are a great idea in any weather, providing shade from the sun or keeping your hair looking nice in rain and humidity.

The last look was a vintage 1930s dark blue silk velvet floor length gown with vintage deco brooch and netting “halo” hat. The same make-up was used in each of the looks. Make-up was kept very matte: no shimmer needed here. Starting with a good oil free moisturizer, oil foundation and set with a loose mineral setting powder. The 1920s to 50s weren’t really known for the contouring we do today, so a simple light plum blush is applied to the apples of the cheeks only. Neutral colours on the eyes with liner all the way around, lightly smudged with a little dark brown shadow for the 20s and 30s looks. For the 1950s look use only liquid liner on the top lid creating a clean cat eye.

Lips were lined around the outside with a nude pencil and smudged with a finger; this prevents the lipstick from bleeding and spreading in the heat. Then a deep neutral plum was applied to the lips and blotted.

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Beauty Queens image: Rebecca Bruce

MY LOOK

Beauty

PHOTO BY REBECCA BRUCE WWW.REBECCA-BRUCE.COM

your

Questions ansWered Q Q

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THE BEAUTY QUEENS ARE A PROFESSIONAL MAKE-UP ARTISTRY TEAM, FOUNDED

BY GINA DOWLE & LAURA HUNT

Q: As I’m getting older I’m noticing the skin on my face changing quite a bit. Uneven tone, uneven texture, slight pigmentation – how depressing! I don’t really want to go down the cosmetic surgery route. I just wondered if you’ve come across any products that could help me with these issues?

Q: I would like to start using a heavier foundation, as I want more coverage, especially after the summer where I have gained unevenness and brown spots. I am always super rushed in the mornings before work so I don’t really want to invest in a liquid/ brush combo, more like a compact/sponge.

A: A product that we have tried recently is Liquid Gold by Alpha-H (£33.50 www.cultbeauty.co.uk). You pop it on a cotton pad and wipe over a cleansed face and neck at night, building up usage to every other night. You can choose to use your night cream and eye cream alongside it or for a more concentrated result, use it by itself. After a couple of weeks, skin appeared brighter and smoother and after a few weeks pigmentation had faded slightly.

A: The Tom Ford Traceless Foundation Stick is your new best friend (£64 www. selfridges.com). Although it may seem a little pricey, know that a little goes a long way and it is so easy to blend with your fingertips that you can save your pennies from investing in a brush (although for an occasion, we would suggest a brush for a more flawless, velvety finish). This stick can be used as an all-over full-face foundation, as a concealer, or just as a sheer base to cover up redness or uneven tone on the t-zone. It’s a beautiful creamy consistency so the product can be really built up to a heavy coverage or buffed down to a lighter one.

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MY LOOK

Q

Q: I find that when I put my foundation on it accentuates my uneven skin where I used to have acne on my cheeks. Is there anything I can use under or over my foundation that could eradicate or help this?

A: One of our favourite primers we use in our kit is the Smashbox Photofinish Primer (£25.50 www. smashbox.co.uk). Not only is it great to smooth over fine lines, but it’s great to use over general unevenness. Its ingredients include vitamins A and E and extract of grape seed, which is great for hydrating and plumping out the skin making it look refreshed and hydrated. It is also oil free, so takes away any added shine. I hope you find this makes a difference to your skin texture!

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Q: I have lots of hair, but it is very fine and I like to blow-dry it with a bit of volume and body. I have used a variety of thickening mousses and serums but I’ve yet to find one that doesn’t make my hair feel sticky or weigh it down too much. Please can you suggest something for me?

A: We have discovered this product called Phomollient Styling Foam by Aveda (£15.50 www. aveda.co.uk). It’s fantastic as the foam is so lightweight so doesn’t weigh limp hair down even more – it’s also great to define curls without making them look greasy or frizzy! You work the product from root to tip after washing, then blow-dry your hair as normal. This product adds volume and hold to your style without that stickiness that lots of products give you. We will be using this a lot from now on!

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vintage Beauty READER OF THE MONTH

Beauty CroWns This month’s “Beauty Crowns” are two products we can’t get enough of!

This month’s featured reader is Bianca Nicholas from the group Electro Velvet.

Kryolan Matt Lipstick – Regular readers will know we love a good lippie and this beauty will have all vintage girls rushing to buy it! This super intense, matte colour stays perfect all day and the added vitamin E makes it soft and comfortable to wear, unlike some matte lipsticks that can feel quite drying on the lips. Lipstick Matt is priced at £16.50 and is available now at Kryolan’s London store and www.kryolan.com.

Suffering from Cystic Fibrosis can be exhausting, and I certainly don’t always feel my best, but I find vintage hair and fashion cheers me up! If I’m having a bad day with health, or even emotionally – a victory roll and some red lipstick can make the world of difference, and give me the confidence to take on the world, no matter what the future may hold!

If you would like to be featured in next month’s column, tell us why you love vintage beauty. enquiries@thebeautyqueens.co.uk

Katherine Daniels Micellar Eye Make-up remover – If you are a fan of eye make-up, it can sometimes be tricky to find a good cleanser. One of our favourite brands has released this lovely, soft Micellar water that will have your skin feeling fresh in no time!

The Cornflower Water ingredient makes it super gentle around the delicate eye area. Available from www.katherinedanielscosmetics. com, priced £19.00

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n y l i r a M e h T

k o o L

i'm fascinated by marilyn monroe and her long time make-up artist, ‘Whitey’ snyder’s intricate makeup routine. the pair worked closely together throughout her career, so close that he even did her make-up for her funeral at her request. his make up tricks enhanced her natural beauty to become one of the most iconic beauty looks of all time. these tricks have inspired my new makeup series where i’ll be sharing the key points of her make-up looks for you to use to bring out your own inner monroe!

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Create a brighter, wide eyed look with a few smart applications of white eye liner pencil or eye shadow; you can wear these tricks separately or team them together for a gorgeously bombshell look.

• Line your lower waterline with white eye liner, a trick still popular today for an easy way of brightening the eyes.

• Use white eye shadow or blend pencil eye liner into the inner corner of the eye to create a fresh eyed look. You can even use a subtle shimmer to glam the look up for the evening.

• Whitey would draw a triangle with the white eye liner pencil in between Marilyn’s upper and lower lash line on the outside of the eyes (see picture for an example!) and blend outwards.

By combining this technique with a classic eye liner flick along your upper lash line you can create a subtle but effective wide eyed look!

Next month I'll be sharing more on Marilyn and Whitey’s eye make-up tricks and brow routine.

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MY LOOK

fun forties Create a fun and flirty 1940 s hairstyle

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Credits: Article, hair & make-up: Sarah Dunn owner of Sarah’s Doo-Wop Dos www.doowopdos.co.uk Model: Nicki of My Favourite Things Photography: Jez Brown Nails: Get Nailed By Keely

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his is a great look and it’s hardy enough to survive a weekend in a tent too, making it a great one for festivals Step 1: Brush the hair through so it’s tangle free, then section it so you have two front sections from the back of your ear to your face (these will become victory rolls). This should leave a good amount of hair at the back of your head. Divide this into two and plait each tightly. Use a ‘snag free’ band at the end to secure the plaits, as they will be easily hidden in the final style.

Step 2: Take the two plaits and tie them together like you would with a shoelace. This needs to be quite tight. Pin it in place – a few pins on top of the knot and a few below – so the hair is held in place when you take your hands away.

Step 3: The ends of the plaits will now be hanging down from the knot. Wrap one plait over the top of the knot and tuck the end in so it’s hidden, then pin it in place to secure it. Now repeat with the other plait, this time going under the knot. The back section is now complete.

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Step 4: Backcomb the two front sections at the roots.

It’s best to do this with a rattail comb in small sections, as this will create a neater look with more structure. If the hair is freshly washed or feels slippery you can add in a spritz of dry shampoo or plumping spray to help create more texture and make the hair easier to work with.

Step 5: Roll one section down tightly so it forms a neat roll. This may take a few attempts and requires some patience and nimble fingers. If the roll doesn’t hold well or seems loose, try re-backcombing the section to create more structure. Secure your roll in place with a few hairgrips.

Step 6: Repeat step 5 with the other section so you have two victory rolls at the front of the style. Finally, fix the whole style in place with a good spritz of hairspray.

If you are going to need to keep this style in for a few days, use a hair net to cover it all and tie a chiffon scarf over the top, then pin it with hair grips so it covers the hair and protects it at night as you sleep.

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V.E. Day...

commemorating the 70th Anniversary

A

fter a chance meeting with our model and re-enactor Ophelia Wollny at Mapledurham at War, Chris White and his wife Charlotte, both re-enactors RAF / WAAF themselves, approached friends and frequent collaborators Jez Brown (of Jez Brown Photography) and Sarah Dunn (of Sarah’s Doo-Wop Dos) with the idea of putting a VE Day photoshoot together, to commemorate the 70th Anniversary. The idea came about when Chris noticed how much Ophelia bore a resemblance to a young Queen Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth.

Coincidently, Ophelia had actually been an extra in crowd scenes shot in Trafalgar Square for the film A Royal

Night Out. The film depicts how on VE Day in 1945 the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret escaped the palace to join in the VE Day celebrations.

Jez’s specialism is vintage photography and with him on board, as well as Vintage Life’s own hair expert Sarah Dunn designing hair and make-up, the team set about creating the images. Chris organised the props and location (a charming local pub in Bedford) and both he and Charlotte joined in on the shoot wearing forces uniforms. Ophelia wore an original 1945-dated ATS (Women’s Auxiliary Corps) uniform, as the Princess Elizabeth had in fact served in the ATS herself at the age of 19 during WWII from February 1945 where she had trained as a driver and a mechanic.

Credits:Models: Ophelia Wollny, Chris White & Charlotte White / Photographer: Jez Brown / Hair and make-up: Sarah's Doo-Wop Dos / Stylist: Chris White / The DVD / BR release of A Royal Night Out is the 21st September.

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MY HEALTH

Part One: Introduction

Dancing through the decades: A guide to partner dancing in the 20th century

AXL/Shutterstock.com

It would be impossible to do justice to the entire history of worldwide-partnered dance in one magazine article, clearly! So we will be covering the dances considered most relevant (by me!) to readers of Vintage Life: European ‘Society’ dances and American vernacular jazz dances that eventually lead to Rock ‘n’ Roll and Jive – danced by many vintage fans today. For the fashionistas, we will be peeking at dancers’ outfits from across the decades too!

D

By Velody

ances served – and still serve – a very important purpose in our communities.

They provide a welcoming environment for people to meet, mingle and let off steam. During social dances throughout the ages there was sometimes close, if brief, contact with the opposite sex, and in ‘proper’ society circles – up to and including the Edwardian Era – this was

one of the few places one could (with some measure of freedom) interact with those outside one’s direct family or household. We might call partner dancing the original ‘speed dating’!

Before the Waltz, dances were mostly done communally, in a pre-set sequence; a ‘Master of Ceremonies’ would call out moves to the dancers as the music continued. We now have ‘callers’ at Barn Dances VINTAGE LIFE |

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and Ceilidhs who perform much the same role. The ‘Gay Gordon’ is a well-known dance of this kind.

Quadrilles, Cotillions or ‘square dances’ consisted of two couples that ‘faced off’ with each other, forming a square or ‘quad’, they had a pre-defined vocabulary of moves, and were danced to a particular series of musical numbers. Often a ‘master couple’ began with a set of moves, and the ‘side couple’ would then repeat those same moves. This was the beginning of improvisation in society circles, with some element of freedom to select the steps one did.

These dances, where the entire dance floor would be moving as a collective entity, were fading from favour by the close of the 19th century. They were almost entirely superseded by partner dances where couples moved independently of each other such as the One Step, Two Step and Tango, within a generation. More on those in future editions!

The Scottische, involving walking and galloping steps, was very popular between 1890-1910 in the USA and is still popular in Sweden today! Search ‘Henry Ford Scottische’ online and you’ll find a YouTube clip of the car magnate demonstrating The Scottische to his factory staff!

The Viennese Waltz and The Scottische were examples of dances where a single Lead and | VINTAGE LIFE

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The rich musical genres of blues and jazz were developing and would consistently gain in momentum and popularity for decades to come...

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Follow couple remained together throughout the dance (rather than ‘called’ dances where you would often change places with other dancers). The ‘Lead’ chose the steps he would use to progress in the intended / accepted direction of travel around the floor. Though the couples had begun to ‘social dance’ to their own choice of moves, they would still – and still do at Ballroom dancing events – progress around the dance floor in a particular direction at once, and it still is considered bad form to overtake another couple.

In the 19th century, a tradition of ‘Prize walks’ began in the Deep South. Plantation owners could ‘showcase’ their slaves and later slaves could enjoy a brief respite by strutting their stuff to win a prize. It continued after slavery was finally outlawed in December 1865.

Accounts vary but it is understood that the walks involved parodies of plantation owners and some

Charleston moves still echo this playful spirit.

Not quite the grandeur of trophies and competitions such as Strictly, but nonetheless coveted titles in their day – dance prizes became cakes and the name ‘Cakewalk’ – strutting one’s stuff for a prize – came into more popular use.

The banjo was the most likely instrument to be seen on the plantations and enjoy continued popularity well into the 20th century, though the guitar eventually eclipsed it. The European countrydances would be accompanied by fiddle and bodhran (drum) at Ceilidhs. Waltzes were often written for piano and then played by string quartets at dances, with little or no percussive or rhythm section added.

Composers such as Franz Schubert composed many waltzes intended for purely social dancers, rather than virtuoso musical performances.

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blues and jazz were developing and would consistently gain in momentum and popularity for decades to come. They would also inspire innovation in solo and partner dance well into the 1950s, and arguably beyond.

As the 19th century drew to a close, dancers, just like musicians, were increasingly getting a taste for improvisation. In Europe, appreciation of the merits of social dance was widespread and in 1899 the Tower Ballroom opened in Blackpool!

Velody is an internationally touring Swing Dancer & Torch Singer.

Find out more about her at Facebook.com/VelodyOnline Twitter: @VelodyUK www.velody.co.uk

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The benefits of such dances meant that participants not only had the opportunity to exercise, but also improved their emotional and mental wellbeing too!

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MY LIFE

My Vintage Obsession

Handbags & Sewing Patterns Words by Emma Bourke

I have been interested in vintage fashion for nearly 10 years, but have only been collecting vintage handbags and sewing patterns for nearly three years. I really don’t know what took me so long, somehow they just hadn’t come into my eyeline!

When I start collecting something though, there's no stopping me…

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The first bag I bought was a Kelly-style handbag, and although I've tried out a few other styles I just keep coming back to them. I'm definitely a bargain hunter (to be honest I justify many of my purchases by assuring myself that I'm rescuing them!) and usually pick up each bag for under £15. I sometimes stretch higher for something special though! I try to make sure each bag has something special about it – something that will make me pick it to use over another on the shelf. As time has gone by there are some extra things I look out for, such as a pristine suede lining and a shiny Elbief frame, and brands that I know I love such as Ackery and Waldybag.

One of my favourites in my collection is the Ostrich skin (not sure if it's faux!) as it's one I've missed out on many times. The cream and tan bag is a favourite because it's the biggest and can hold everything I need for a day out in London. I also struggled to get the black Kelly bag – they kept turning out to be a very dark blue!

The sewing pattern collection began when I started sewing more seriously a few years ago. The patterns just make me so happy to look at, and hopefully I get around to making up most of them! The styles of clothes are beyond some of my wildest dreams, things you could never hope to find in a vintage shop (and definitely not to fit).

My collection of true vintage patterns is around 70 at the moment, with about another 30 vintage reprints. I have them all stored in plastic pockets with cardboard supports to keep them protected. In the pictures you can see some of my favourites, though it's like choosing between your children!

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MY LIFE Pioneer Woman

aviator

Amy Johnson pioneering female pilot Words by Louise Jenner

Amy Johnson was born on 1st July 1903 in Kingston upon Hull in East Yorkshire to John William Johnson and Amy Hodge Johnson.

John William Johnson was a successful fish merchant, having taken over his family’s business, Andrew Johnson, Knudtzon and Company. Amy’s grandfather, William Hodge, was a prosperous mill owner who was Mayor of Hull in 1860.

A

my was the oldest of three daughters and she was brought up in the Methodist faith. She studied at Boulevard Secondary School before attending the University of Sheffield, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics.

Amy had a brief relationship at the age of 18 with Swiss Businessman, Hans Arrager. She had hoped that they would marry however the relationship didn’t work out and Arrager married another woman.

After University, Amy moved to London and worked as a secretary to William Charles Crocker, a solicitor. Whilst in London, she began a new hobby – flying. In July 1929, Amy had gained her pilot’s ‘A’ License No. 1979 under the tutelage of Captain Valentine Baker at the London Aerodrome Club. Later that year, she became the first British woman to obtain a ground engineer’s ‘C’ license.

Amy was yet to own her own plane so her father, who was a strong supporter of his daughter,

offered to help her buy an aircraft. With his funds – and those of Lord Wakefield – Amy purchased G-AAAH, a second hand de Havilland DH.60 Gipsy that she named ‘Jason’ after her father’s business trademark.

It was flying Jason that Amy set her first record in 1930. Leaving Croydon on 5th May, Amy set off for Darwin, landing on 24th May. In doing so, she became the first woman pilot to fly solo from England to Australia. For her achievement, Amy received the Harmon Trophy and was awarded a CBE. She was also honoured with the No.1 Civil Pilot’s License under Australia’s 1921 Air Navigation Regulations. Jason, the aircraft that carried her on her record-breaking journey, is now housed in the Science Museum in London.

A year later, in July 1931, Amy and her co-pilot Jack Humphreys became the first pilots to fly from London to Moscow in just one day, taking 21 hours to complete the journey of 1,760 miles. From Moscow, Amy and Jack then flew acrosss Siberia to VINTAGE LIFE |

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MY LIFE

Tokyo, setting another record – this time for flying from Britain to Japan.

Amy’s record breaking continued. In 1932, she set another solo record, this time for flying from London to Cape Town in South Africa. In the same year, after a whirlwind romance, Amy married Jim Mollison, a Scottish pilot.

With her new husband, in 1933, Amy aimed to break a record as a duo by flying from Pendine Sands in South Wales across to the US. Unfortunately, the mission didn’t go to plan as their aircraft ran out of fuel and they crash-landed. Amy and Jim were both injured, however after their recovery, they enjoyed a tickertape parade in New York for their achievement.

Amy and Jim entered the Britain to Australia MacRoberston Air Race in 1934. Together, they flew from Britain to India but were forced to retire from the race after their aircraft experienced engine trouble.

Amy completed her last record-breaking flight in May 1936, and regained her Britain to South Africa record. Although she continued to fly, not all of her exploits were successful. In 1938 for example, Amy was flying in a display at Walsall Aerodrome but overturned her glider after landing. Fortunately, she came away unscathed. In the same year,

Amy and her husband Jim divorced, and she took her maiden name again.

After the outbreak of WWII, in 1940, Amy joined the Air Transport Auxilliary, which was responsible for transporting RAF aircraft around the country. She passed through the ranks and soon became First Officer.

On the 5th January 1941, while flying from Prestwick via Blackpool to RAF Kidlington near Oxford, Amy’s aircraft went off course. It is believed that she ran out of fuel and bailed out as her aircraft crashed into the Thames Estuary.

Crew members of HMS Haslemere spotted Amy’s parachute and claimed that they saw her alive in the water. The commander of the ship, Lt Cmdr Walter Fletcher, dived in to save Amy but due to the heavy sea and strong tide, as well as snow and freezing temperatures, both unfortunately died.

Amy’s body was never recovered.

There is some mystery surrounding Amy’s accident as it is still a government secret. In 1999, a theory came about that her death was potentially the result of friendly fire.

Although her life was cut short, Amy achieved many accomplishments during her career, which were well received by dignitaries and the public.

Sources sciencemuseum.org.uk/onlinestuff/stories/amy_johnson.aspx?page=2 www.history.co.uk/biographies/amy-johnson www.hullhistorycentre.org.uk/discover/hull_history_centre/our_collections/hullpeople/amyjohnson.aspx

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MY LIFE

Occupation

It’s a fair day’s work!

Ria Chambers Owner of Ria’s Rosy Lee Tea Room www.riasrosylee.com

How did you become interested in vintage?

I was brought up by a child of the 60s – my mum – who was always telling me stories from that time and exposing me to the 1960s culture via music, fashion and television.

I was fascinated by my grandparents from the war and looking at their picture albums. One of my earliest memories is my Gran trying to teach me how to put in victory rolls. I was always taken to places of historical interest on days out as well, so with this combination of influences my love of vintage just organically grew.

How did you come to set up your tea room?

In January 2013 I was unhappy with my job, which was also making me ill… I knew I had to make a change. I had always baked as a hobby and taken cakes into work: the running joke was if I ever got bored of my job I should sell my cakes for a living. At the time I had the resources and no personal commitments, so I thought, ‘If I don’t do it now I never will’.

I also knew there was a need, as I was already a customer at the tea merchant who supplies me, who told me their customers were looking for a good establishment in the area to go for a drink, so I knew the client base was there.

How does your work compare to a ‘modern’ job?

Being self-employed is a double-edged sword as with the flexibility of hours and being your own boss, comes the responsibility of paperwork and worrying over job security if the takings aren’t hitting targets. However, working in ‘vintage’ brings a certain freedom, as there are no constraints when you can move through the decades, and it 74

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drives a creativity that is not attainable when stuck in the modern world. Also, as it is an extension of my personal interest I can talk about what I am doing with a greater passion and knowledge than normal, which brings a stronger connection with the customers.

What are your upcoming plans?

Continue to build the customer base of the tearoom and establish it as a venue for events. In July we celebrate our second birthday. In September we are holding special events to mark the centenary of the WI.

What advice would you give to someone trying to set up a business in the vintage scene?

1. Know your product and service, if you don’t then research it. Those on the vintage scene know if someone is genuine and whether to accept them, so don’t try to wing it. This will also ensure you get the client base you want.

2. Remember you are your brand and are representing it at every moment, so look the part and act responsible. Portray the image you want to be seen as.

3. Find other like-minded people in your area who you could work with and consider cross-promotion.

4. Be willing to do something for nothing. Offer to supply editorial and pictures to newspapers and magazines for free, it gets you exposure and only costs your time.

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MY LIFE

Curves & Pinup Style Miss Amy May is a British blogger known for her love of curves and the pinup style, as well as being immensely popular on Instagram. Who better to talk about the pinup style and gain social media guidance from?

Words by Blaire Amy

How did your pin up transformation begin?

What attracted you to the style the most?

I have naturally curly hair that got so badly damaged from one attempt at using wet-to-straight straighteners in 2012, that my own curl would no longer form, so I began to experiment with wetset pincurling. At the same time I had a couple of events coming up that I liked the idea of wearing 50s-style swing dresses to. The coinciding of those events sparked the realisation that I could adopt the style that I had always pined for but previously considered a modern impossibility.

Despite the fact that my own transformation began with my hair, it’s the flattering, chic, timeless style of the clothes. The voluminous skirts and celebration of womanhood, visible in an impeccably-fitted wiggle dress, oozes femininity and grace to me. It wasn’t until I began to dress in this style that I began to feel like a woman rather than a young lady.

What did your friends and family think of the change in look?

At first there was some confusion about why I was beginning to overdress for simple things like going to the supermarket! Over time though they got used to the change and saw how happy it made me; they have been nothing but supportive of everything it has entailed and brought since. Only occasionally do they tease me about knocking things over with my giant skirts.

Anyone that you take style inspiration from?

It’s easy to list Marilyn, Audrey and every siren of the time as inspirations, because of course they are, but I love seeing modern women living and adapting the fashion of those past eras to our modern life. Micheline Pitt and Rachel Jensen (chicagochicblog) both inspire me to be sassier with my style, Miss Winny makes me ache with every picture I see of her, whilst Dita’s street style (and every other kind of style, really) is pure perfection.

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How do you feel about inspiring others?

It both baffles and flatters me. It’s incredibly sweet and blush-inducing to think there are ladies I don’t know out there who draw inspiration from something I choose to wear. Since I am inspired by so many dozens of women, I feel proud and humbled to even consider that someone else may feel that way about me. Especially when one considers that if I’m not wearing my fullest of skirts then I am probably in my pyjamas, real talk y’all.

You started a new hashtag this year.

How did #LOVINGMEIN2015 come about?

I’ve never been a girl who’s found it easy to maintain a slim size, but several years ago I went from being my heaviest ever weight to my slimmest ever, adult, weight. Last year I gained a decent amount of that weight back and constantly found myself saying ‘I’ll lose some of it again soon because I should,’ yet never quite committing to it. Why? Simply because I wasn’t unhappy.

If anything, I noticed that my confidence grew massively. I also realised that the more open and honest I was about my journey towards body-acceptance, the more I heard from other women that it was making them feel better about their bodies too. With #LOVINGMEIN2015 I wanted to create a space, even if it was just on Instagram, where people could focus on being happy, kind and healthy to themselves both inwardly and outwardly.

It’s something I want everyone to do more of.

What are your favourite aspects of social media?

The community feel is a massive part of it. Finding people across the world that you can share and talk with is a joy. Add in how convenient it is to have a magic rectangle in your pocket that allows you to draw immediate make-up, hair and outfit inspiration from and social media starts to sort of sound better than a lot of things in the real world… Except that a picture of a doughnut doesn’t taste as good as a real doughnut, no matter how many times you lick the screen. Obviously I’ve never done this. Obviously.

Do you think this community aspect is what encourages people to share so many images?

For a niche like the vintage community, yes. Finding like-minded souls online, when you can’t easily access those people in real life, is going to be a huge draw, and an asset. It’s just nice when you can share something you’re feeling excited and proud about and have people reflect that back to you.

Any tips for Instagram pinups hoping to gain more followers?

• Use the right hashtags that are specific to the things you post. There’s nothing more annoying than scrolling your favourite hashtags and finding something unrelated.

• Post regularly in good quality and with decent lighting.

• Reply to people when they leave you comments. Being online doesn’t mean you get to skip being nice to people.

• Don’t use hashtags like #followme #f4f or #like4like. It screams desperation and that’s off-putting.

• And don’t believe the hype that a big follower count actually means anything. The meaning falls in its ability to connect you with people who, presumably, like the same sort of things as you.

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My Vintage Business

Do I need A Website?

Business tips from Kate Beavis and Keeley Harris of the Vintage Academy

A

ny small business should have a base, a place where customers can make contact. We’re not necessarily talking about a bricks and mortar shop or an office, more a virtual space that the world can fi nd. If you want to get ahead, get a website.

You may not feel a website is your top priority when you start up a vintage business as it’s easy to set up a Facebook page, Twitter and Instagram without any start-up costs.

However, we believe that it’s the really crucial starting block in the race for vintage business success.

Recently, we asked a sample of vintage businesses if they had a website and 50% said “No”, many saying, “I don’t need a website as I don’t sell online” or “I just have a Facebook page and that’s enough.” But is it?

Here are three top reasons why getting yourself a website is vital to your business growth.

Visibility

Customers, potential business partners, press and perhaps even investors can quickly and easily fi nd out more about your business and the products or services you have to offer.

Credibility

Your shop window

It gives you a chance to show how great you are, what you sell or offer, your brand values, great customer service and it allows you to build a customer database.

Plus, if you get your search engine optimisation right, as well as your key words, people will find you easier than stumbling across you on social media.

So if you don’t have a website; make this a priority. You don’t need to spend a fortune on web design. Get a domain name and perhaps look at simple off-the-peg websites that cost from as little as £3 per month. Remember, even if your website lists little more than your location, what you do and where, maintaining a web presence will give you the edge over your more technophobic competitors and shows you mean business!

Vintage Academy is run by Keeley Harris and Kate Beavis, who have both made vintage their full time business. They have two more 1-day workshops for 2015, on 19th September or 21st November.

For more information visit www.vintageacademy.co.uk

You look serious and professional about what you are doing; a proper business and a person who people will trust and spend money with, as well as potentially to sell vintage items to.

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MY HOME

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STEP INSIDE

Rachel Hinchcliffe’s eclectic labour of love...

How did you become interested in vintage styled interior design & homewares?

My husband Dave and I both love old furniture, cars and clothing. We met through 1950s music and regularly attend our local rock ‘n’ roll club and many weekenders.

Although we tend to dress more 50s, our home is a 1930s semi and as we also love the 1940s and Art Deco, we decided to decorate it in that style.

It started with one room and spread! I love being surrounded by pieces of furniture that could tell a story! Our kitchen has a 50s diner kind of feel.

Home owner Rachel Hinchcliffe

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I love being surrounded by pieces of

Furniture that could tell a story!

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MY HOME

From where did you draw inspiration?

We were inspired by looking at books on houses from the Art Deco era and memories of relatives’ houses (showing our age here!). Our neighbour offered us some furniture, and when we collected it from her mother’s house we were inspired by the interior decoration. The walls had edging decorations that we hadn’t seen before. We found out it was lincrusta, however we were unable to find it manufactured in strips so we decorated the edge of the rooms with window lead to encase the wallpaper.

Did anything prove particularly challenging?

Our main challenge was our own fault. We bought an eau-de-nil bathroom suite and it was left outside until we were ready to put it in.

Unfortunately, the toilet was damaged by the frost. The replacement we got meant changing all the drainage system from the toilet. Not an easy or pleasant job.

What was your favourite part of the project?

If you like a certain style/era then introduce pieces you like into your decor...

Our favourite part... was sourcing everything.

I also enjoy knowing the history or a story behind our purchases, or knowing who has kindly given us things. I also have some crockery and cutlery from both my grandparents that I love being able to display.

Any advice that you would like to share?

Our advice to anyone wanting a vintage styled home… well, our house isn’t done to be exactly as it would have been in the 30s/40s, it’s our take on that era. We are a family of four and it’s a home to us. If you like a certain style/era then introduce pieces you like into your decor. That may mean just one piece or if the bug catches you, like it did us, then be prepared to revamp your whole house!

I should also add that Dave has done all the work on the house. He’s plastered, fitted fireplaces, done all the wallpapering, fitted a bathroom and shower suite and did all the tiling... He is very talented; I’m a lucky girl.

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Sewing in Style

by Beth Swallow

W

hen you are a lover of vintage, then you are sure to be a lover of all things haberdashery... What can't you do with a bit of French lace, an oversized button or a neon green zip from the 80s? And, because we love to transform and create, what better place to house all our collections, than in a fabulous sewing box that would look glorious sitting in any vintage crafter’s home?

Get the size and style that’s right for you and your decor.

Tiny cantilever boxes look great on a worktop sitting neatly to the side, or a larger model, like the one I have transformed, would be the perfect companion sitting snugly alongside your favourite armchair.

The look of this piece, with its bold lines and structure, deserved a paint job that would match its character. It wouldn't look right if I'd have introduced pastels to this, so be brave, hover your finger over the brightest colour chart you can handle, close your eyes and pick. Have fun. I think items like this can handle a touch of the crazy.

After a good clean up with warm soapy water, let it dry and then give it a good undercoat with whatever you are happy using.

As my box was originally a dark wood, I went for a dark grey.

It’s tried, tested and never fails in giving a good even layer for my coloured paint to grab on to. I chose a really vibrant blue for the

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main body, picking a zesty orange for the drawers and a subtle grey for the under shelf, all in matt emulsion. You can keep it all one colour or mix the palette to suit your taste. You don't even have to use it for its original purpose. I think this would work well in a kid’s room for extra storage or in a bathroom for all those extra bottles we accumulate. You can even go the extra mile and paint the inside if needed, maybe the devil in you could come out, and you could try a bold colour inside for an instant 'pow' every time you open it up!

Get your sandpaper out and go heavy or light depending on how you want the finished look to be, or simply leave it.

Not everyone wants to rough up their paint (especially if you have put a lot of time and effort wiping up those runs and drips) – these structured pieces look great with a flat matt finish. If you are thinking of leaving it then be sure to get some clear wax and give the piece a good couple of coats to seal in all that lovely work.

These types of items really do add a touch of nostalgia to the home: the classic form will never go out of style, and by adding the perfect paint job, you will have it sitting in pride of place in your home. It also doubles up as a retro entertainment centre for the little ones... who doesn't remember having a rummage around Nan’s old button tin?

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PEEP THROuGH THE

KEYHOLE Who lived here?

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MY HOME

BrontË Parsonage:

Home of the brontË sisters

Set in the picturesque village of Haworth against the stunning landscape of the Yorkshire moors, Haworth Parsonage was the home of the Brontë family from 1820 to 1861 and the place where Charlotte, Emily and Anne wrote their great novels: Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Now the Brontë Parsonage Museum, it houses the world’s largest collection of Brontë manuscripts, furniture, clothes and personal possessions.

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atrick Brontë was an Anglican clergyman who moved to the parsonage in 1820 when he was appointed as incumbent of Haworth. Patrick brought with him his wife Maria and their six children, Maria (b. 1814), Elizabeth (b. 1815), Charlotte (b. 1816), Patrick Branwell (b. 1817, known as ‘Branwell’), Emily (b. 1818) and Anne (b. 1820). Sadly, Patrick’s wife died of cancer in 1821 and her sister, Elizabeth Branwell, came to live with the family to help care for the children.

Patrick, keen to give his children a good education, sent his four eldest daughters to a charity school for clergymen’s children, the Clergy Daughters’ School at Cowan Bridge, in 1824. Conditions here were particularly harsh and a year later, Maria, the eldest of Patrick’s children, was sent home with ill-health. She died shortly afterwards, as did Patrick’s second daughter Elizabeth, who had returned home not long after her sister. Charlotte and Emily were withdrawn from the school, but not before it left a lasting effect on one of them – Charlotte used the conditions at the Cowan Bridge school as the influence behind Lowood in her novel Jane Eyre.

The remaining Brontë children remained at the parsonage, pursuing knowledge at the encouragement of their father and reading extensively as a result. The children created their own miniscule books for their toy soldiers to read and created their own imaginary lands.

Later in life, the Brontë sisters each trained as governesses and had the idea of setting up their own school at the parsonage. Unfortunately, this never came into fruition.

The sisters continued to write and in 1846, a collection of the sisters’ poems was published under their pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. This wasn’t successful so the sisters turned to novel writing, which proved to be a good venture – the continued popularity of their books is testament to this today.

The sisters’ happiness was short lived. Their brother Branwell became ill with tuberculosis and, already ailing due to his abuse of alcohol and opium, sadly died in 1848 aged 31. Anne and Emily were also ill. Three months after the death of Branwell, Emily passed away in December 1848 aged 30, and the following May, Anne died aged 29.

Charlotte continued to write and eventually married her father’s curate, Reverend Arthur Bell Nicholls, in 1854.

Tragically, less than a year after her marriage, and in the early stages of pregnancy, Charlotte died. Her father Patrick had outlived his wife and all six children.

Visitors to the museum can view a range of rooms, including the entrance hall, Mr Brontë’s study and bedroom, and also the dining room. The Brontë family dining table, which was sold by auction following Patrick Brontë’s death in 1861, returned to the Parsonage recently thanks to a generous award from the National Heritage Memorial Fund. It is the table where Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall were written and where the Brontë sisters shared their work with each other. A real writer’s table, it bears ink stains and candle burns and, as one of the most important literary artefacts of the 19th century, is a must see for anyone interested in the Brontës and their work.

The continued popularity of their books is testament to this today...

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MY HOME

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Visitors are always fascinated to see how tiny the sisters’ handwriting was...

Visitors to the Brontë Parsonage can also see various items relating to the Brontë family, including letters, notebooks and household artefacts. Visitors are always fascinated to see how tiny the sisters’ handwriting was, with the ‘little books’ being a favourite exhibit for many. Personal items on display include Emily’s paint box, Charlotte’s sewing box, pebbles collected by Anne, a comb used by Emily and the bonnet worn by Charlotte on her wedding day.

The museum presents a regularly changing programme of exhibitions, contemporary arts events and family activities.

The current exhibition, The Brontës, War and Waterloo, explores the Brontë family’s fascination with war and presents a number of intriguing items, including a fragment of Napoleon’s coffin and a letter to Patrick Brontë from the Duke of Wellington. It will run until 3 January.

The museum runs an award-winning education programme and can also offer walks, talks and tours as part of a group visit. Dedicated Brontë enthusiasts can even spend time in the Library looking at some of the treasures of the collection at close quarters.

During 2016 the Brontë Society will be celebrating the bicentenary of the birth of Charlotte Brontë and is working with a wide range of artists, writers and organisations to mark this special occasion. This will be a very special year in the history of the museum and we look forward to welcoming thousands of visitors to Haworth.

The museum is open daily except 24-27 December and during January. Full details can be found at www.bronte. org.uk or you can follow the Brontë Parsonage Museum on Facebook and Twitter.

Sources: Information provided by the Brontë Parsonage Museum Other sources: www.bronte.org.uk/haworth-and-the-brontes/family-history www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/bronte_sisters.html

VINTAGE LIFE |

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MY HOME Tips & Tricks

Good Clean Fun: Vinegar to the Rescue!

by Seren Evans-Charrington

Cheap and cheerful, vinegar is definitely a clean home’s best friend. Besides being economical and effective it is non-toxic, has a long shelf life and is much safer to have under your sink than bleach, ammonia, or other toxic cleaning products, which is always a good thing when your home is shared with children or pets.

Sparkling Clean Windows Mix two tablespoons of white distilled vinegar with a gallon of water, and dispense into a spray bottle. Give it a good shake and then spray on the windows before buffing with good old fashioned (black and white) scrunched newspaper. A word of warning: don’t be tempted to use paper towels or J-cloths to buff the windows as they cause streaking.

Grass Stains If those lazy days lounging on the grass enjoying a glass of wine and a picnic have left you with lingering grass stains, don’t worry, vinegar will come to your rescue. Make a mixture of 80ml white vinegar and 160ml water. Apply the solution to the stain and blot with a clean cloth. Repeat this process until you’ve removed as much green as possible and then wash as usual.

JANA GUOTHOVA / SHUTTERSTOCK

The Colours are Calling you...

When your washday comes around, toss in a capful of white vinegar to make your colours come out bolder and your whites whiter.

Wash Those Veggies!

Vinegar helps to remove bacteria and pesticide residues from fruits and vegetables. Mix three parts water to one part white vinegar, and dispense in a spray bottle. Then rinse with water.

Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall...

For a mirror that sparkles and gives you a dazzling reflection, combine equal parts of distilled, white vinegar and filtered water and pop into a spray bottle. Spray your mirrors and buff up with a soft, lint-free cloth.

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*This article is based on the writer’s own experience and neither the writer or Vintage Life Magazine are responsible for any outcome that arises from following the article above. The solutions produced may not be suitable for the materials used in your home.

If you decide to try for yourself, patch test somewhere discreet.

Dusters at the ready for some good clean fun!

| VINTAGE LIFE

17/08/2015 11:00

AN ESSENTIAL ITEM FOR COOKS!

Stylish Home Sewing

by Torie Jayne, published

by CICO Books (£14.99), Photography by Sussie Bell, © CICO Books VINTAGE LIFE |

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Make it

Cook’s Apron Choose two coordinating fabrics for this classic butcher’s apron. The style is a perennial favourite with cooks, probably because it is long enough to provide adequate protection against splatters. © CB873 SEW PRETTY The apron wraps around to the back, and the crossover straps don’t put a strain on your neck. It can 22 - apron look pretty and feminine, or sharp and punchy, depending on the fabrics you use. Once you’ve made one, 07875 243 960 summer 2014 © kate.illustrator@gmail.com PRETTY you’ll find it easy to sewCB873 more in SEW different fabrics or colours, to give to friends and family. kate.illustrator@gmail.com 07875 243 960 summer 2014

22 - apron

You will need One 39in (1m) square of cotton canvas fabric A for main piece

1

One 11 ½ x 6in (29 x 15cm) rectangle of cotton canvas fabric B for band One 11 x 5in (27 x 12cm) rectangle of fusible interfacing for band

METHOD

One 12 ½ x 8in (32 x 20.5cm) rectangle of cotton canvas fabric B for pocket

2

Matching sewing thread 2 ¾ yd (2.5m) of 3/8in- (10mm-) wide crochet-edge bias tape (bias binding) One 12 ½ in (32cm) length of 3/8in-(10mm-) 2wide cotton trim Four grommets (eyelets) with 3/8in (10mm) holes Two 59in (1.5m) lengths of 1in-(25mm-) wide cotton tape Two ¾ in (2cm) beads

Dimensions The finished apron is 35 ¾ in (90.5cm) long and 33 ½ in (85cm) wide excluding the straps.

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1

1. Using the patterns for the main piece and band, cut out one main piece from the canvas A square, one band from the canvas B rectangle, and one band from the fusible interfacing. With a water-soluble marker or a dressmaker’s pencil, mark the pleat lines on the right side at the top edge of the main piece. Make a narrow inverted pleat, treating the central fold as the placement line, using pins rather 1 than paperclips to secure the pleats on the top edge. Machine baste the pleat in place, ¼ in (5mm) from the top edge.

CB873 SEW PRETTY 22 - apron

3. Following the manufacturer’s instructions, iron the interfacing to the wrong side of the band so that it is 3/8in (1cm) in from the top and centred on the width. On the bottom edge of the band, press a double 3/8in (1cm) hem to the wrong side, pin, and stitch, as in step 2. Centre the band at the top 2 of the main piece, with right sides together, the long raw edges even, and 3/8in (1cm) projecting beyond each side edge of 3 the main piece. Pin in place. Stitch a 3/8in (1cm seam) along the long top edge. Flip the band up, away from the main piece, and press.

2. Along the side and bottom edges, press 3/8in (1cm) and then a further 3/8in (1cm) hem to the wrong side. Stitch close to the inside fold all the way around this double hem. Use the crochet-edge bias07875 tape243 (bias 960 summer 2014 © kate.illustrator@gmail.com binding) to bind both curved armhole edges.

3

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SEW PRETTY

on

© kate.illustrator@gmail.com 07875 243 960 summer 2014

MY HOME

CB873 4SEW PRETTY

© kate.illustrator@gmail.com 07875 243 960 summer 20

22 - apron

4. Fold the band in half, with right sides together, so that the hemmed edge just covers the seam; pin in place. Now stitch a 3/8in (1cm) seam at each end of the band. Snip off the corners of the seam allowances.

5 5

5. Turn the band right side out, ensuring that the raw edges of the seams are tucked inside; pin in place. Topstitch the band ¼ in (5mm) from the seam joining the band and the main piece.

6 PRETTY

© kate.illustrator@gmail.com 07875 243 960 summer 2014

6. On the top long edge of the pocket rectangle, press under 1¼in (3cm) and then a further 1¼in (3cm) to make a double hem; pin. Topstitch in place 1in (2.5cm) from the top folded edge. Pin the cotton trim to the wrong side of the hemmed edge, so that it projects beyond it. Stitch in place. Stitch © kate.illustrator@gmail.com 07875 243 960 sum CB873 SEW PRETTY another line ¼in (5mm) below this, starting and stopping just over ¼in (5mm) from the side edges of the pocket. Press under 3/8in (1cm) on the 22 - apron remaining three edges.

7 7. Pin the wrong side of the pocket to the right side of the main piece, in the position shown on the pattern. Hand baste (tack) in place, then topstitch close to the edge down one side, across the bottom, and up the other side, pivoting the fabric at the corners. Repeat, stitching ¼in (5mm) inside the first stitching lines, starting and stopping at the middle 7 row of horizontal stitching across the top. Remove the basting stitches.

6

8 8. Mark the positions of the two grommets (eyelets) at either side of the top band and the two grommets on the main piece just under the armholes, as shown on the pattern. Following the manufacturer’s instructions, insert the four grommets. Attach one end of each length of tape to a grommet at the top of the apron. Thread the other end of each length of tape through the grommet beneath the opposite armhole, so that the straps cross at the back. Thread a bead onto each of these ends, and tie a knot in the tape to hold it in place.

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MY HOME

Templates: Main Piece inner fold line

outer fold line

Enlarge to four times this size.

Cut 1 from canvas.

3/8in (1cm) seam/hem allowances included.

grommet (eyelet) position

place on fold

fold line pocket position

Band Enlarge to twice this size.

Cut 1 each from canvas and interfacing.

3/8in (1cm) seam/hem allowances included.

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MY FOOD

WE LOVE

TEA TIME

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MY FOOD

Drink Tea... & carry on Words and images by Seren Evans-Charrington

Tea is a great British tradition. In times of crisis we put the kettle on, and we brew up to ease the pain of a broken heart, dampen the effects of a shock; numb the pain of loss and calm frayed nerves. Tea has seen us through war, peace, joy and sadness and it is undeniably the nation’s drink of choice. Whilst coffee shop chains continue to spring up on the high street and whilst we may all lap up their exotic offerings of air-filled milk foam and a dash of coffee, tea remains our drink of choice.

W

hen the Second World War broke out there could be no doubt about the importance of tea to the British people. Many leading figures have talked of the restorative properties of tea; according to journalist, George Orwell, tea is one of the mainstays of civilisation (A Nice Cup Of Tea, an essay written by George Orwell, 1946) whilst William Gladstone noted, "If you are depressed, it will cheer you".

The government acknowledged the importance of tea during both World Wars, but during the Second World War, the government took drastic action to safeguard this essential morale-booster. Just two days after war broke out, it took control of all tea stocks, and ordered that the vast reserves then stored in London be dispersed to warehouses outside the capital in case of bombing. When during 1940 enemy blockades prevented ships from getting through, the Ministry of Food introduced a ration of 2oz of tea per person per week for those over the age of five.

For a nation of tea drinkers 2oz of tea was not a lot, being only enough for two or three weak brewed cups a day.

George Orwell published his essay called A Nice Cup of Tea in the Evening Standard newspaper, in which he listed his eleven 'golden rules' for tea making which included sensible advice to make the 2oz ration go as far as possible, with tips including using water that is still at the point of boiling, in order to make the 96

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strongest brew from the least tea. For those that still struggled to make the tea ration stretch sufficiently it could be eked out with some dried blackberry leaves, known as blackberry leaf tea.

This traditional British recipe for making tea from the dried young leaves of a blackberry (bramble) bush was popular in wartime Britain. When picking blackberry leaves for drying select the youngest green leaves then split the leaves themselves from the spiny mid-rib and chop roughly. Arrange on a paper towel or some kitchen towel and place in direct sunlight for an afternoon to dry. Alternatively arrange on baking trays and place in an airing cupboard for up to five days. Once dry, place the leaves in a jar, seal and store.

To make the tea, place a teaspoonful of dried leaves per person in a warmed teapot, pour over the boiling water then set aside to infuse for five minutes. Pour through a strainer into a teacup and sweeten to taste.

If you were a coffee drinker in wartime Britain it may have come as a relief that coffee was not rationed, however, as the war advanced it became increasingly difficult to obtain! Even today, in times of frothy coffee and flavoured latte, nothing can rival the ritual of tea making. It is certain that tea has seen many a Briton through a crisis and I have always followed comedian Billy Connolly’s advice of, "Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea cosy, doesn't try it on."

| VINTAGE LIFE

14/08/2015 16:30

WIN! A Hope and Greenwood Tuck Box in aid of the RAF Benevolent Fund

T

his year marks the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, when ‘The Few’ took to the skies and defended the UK from the attacking Luftwaffe. To mark the anniversary the RAF Benevolent Fund, the RAF’s leading welfare charity, is launching the Great British Sunday Lunch - the new national fundraising event aimed at getting families and friends back around the dinner table.

Whether it is a full-on roast dinner with all the trimmings or a favourite curry, the charity is asking supporters to get together and host a Sunday lunch on Sunday 13th September to raise vital funds. What better way to pay tribute to those who have served their country than by serving up some delicious food?

By supporting the RAF Benevolent Fund, diners will be supporting work to assist veterans, serving personnel and their families who are facing challenges in their lives. The Fund receives no government grants and last year spent more than £18 million supporting 40,000 members of the RAF family, from the youngest child growing up on a RAF Station to our WWII veterans.

We do hope you’ll join us in making the first Great British Sunday Lunch a great success. For more info – www.rafbf.org.uk/gbsl Award-winning confectioners Miss Hope and Mr Greenwood share their tips for hosting a vintage Great British Sunday Lunch:

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• Dress for the occasion. You could make it a Forties theme in honour of 'The Few' and break out that twin set, put on some pearls or wax your moustache.

• You eat with your eyes and delicate sweet treats for after lunch look beautiful in a glass dish or on a special plate with a paper doily (although not for sticky sweets, no-one wants paper nuggets in their sherbert lemon mallows).

• You don't have to spend hours at the stove, there are some lovely traditional treats that take no cooking at all. And everyone likes coconut ice, it's just so pink!

To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and the launch of the Great British Sunday Lunch fundraising event, Hope and Greenwood have teamed up with the RAF Benevolent Fund to offer readers of Vintage Life a fabulous retro confectionery Hope and Greenwood Tuck Box worth £30!

To be in with a chance of winning, answer the following question: What is the anniversary of the Battle of Britain?

To enter, visit our website at : www.vintagelifemagazine.com.

14/08/2015 16:30

Love to take a good selfie?

SHUTTERSTOCK/ DarkBird

Snap one with your copy of Vintage Life Magazine, and we’ll add you to our reader wall!

contents.indd 5

Send your selfie to lisa@dragoonpublishing.com

15/12/2014 13:13

MY FOOD

Jubilees

Vintage Tea Room

Jubilees Vintage Tea Room, located in Hessle in East Yorkshire, is a traditional English tea room with a vintage theme. The establishment has a love for the 1940s era and all things royal, a style that they like to call ‘Royal English’.

T

he tea room has been running since February 2014.

The idea came about when owner Sophie Kemp noticed that there was a real niche in the market in the Hull area for somewhere that specialised in afternoon tea. Sophie says, “My family and I were always going out of the area to visit establishments that served afternoon tea to places such as York or Harrogate. I wanted to create something very traditional, that celebrated being British with my favourite era of the 1940s and I wanted to create something where people could listen to 1940s music, drink from dainty china cups, eat tiny sandwiches and scones with clotted cream and jam, enjoy traditional home made baking and surround themselves in British history with a quirky but charming atmosphere. What better theme than our very own Royal Family?

“The tea room has made a perfect setting for baby showers, elegant hen parties, birthdays, leaving dos, anniversaries, ‘stitch and b***h’ evenings, bake off nights, psychic nights and vintage movie nights. Luckily it has gone down a storm with the people of Hessle and surrounding areas, and we couldn't be more thrilled!”

Jubilees Vintage Tea Room’s mission is to bring back traditional afternoon tea to the general public, and this aim is reflected in the carefully selected menu. As expected, afternoon tea is the main choice, and there are three different types for patrons to select from: ‘The Queen Victoria Selection’ featuring a selection of sandwiches, a pot of tea and a scone with jam and clotted cream; ‘The Kensington Palace Selection’ that features all components of ‘The Queen Victoria Selection’ but also with a choice of an indulgent treat or

two and then the ‘Diamond Jubilee Luxury Selection’, offering more indulgent treats and a glass of bubbly from the champagne drinks selection, as well as a ‘bottomless’ pot of tea. All afternoon tea choices are served on tiered cake stands and can be for one or two people.

The tea room offers a variety of teas to choose from, including traditional breakfast tea and Earl Grey, as well as Ceylon, Green Tea and Oolong. There are other hot and cold drinks on offer such as coffee, hot chocolate and delicious tisane combinations.

For those who wish to sample something other than afternoon tea, there is a great sweet selection with many different cakes and desserts to choose from, and the tea room also has some light bites on offer, such as eggs in various ways, sandwiches and jacket potatoes.

Jubilees Vintage Tea Room is a great place to relax and enjoy time with family or friends – there are a number of party packages available and the tea room sometimes promotes different offers – keep a look out on their website for further details! www.jubileesvintagetearoom.co.uk 13-13a Swinegate Hessle East Yorkshire HU13 9LG 01482 627770 VINTAGE LIFE |

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MY FOOD

Sweet Inspiration Words by Nina Faull

The other night I relaxed on my best friend’s sofa and ate a bowl of chocolate ice cream, generously accented with peanuts and two pieces of homemade brownies.

The ice cream and nuts combination was all I could hope for, it was sweet and salty, cool and crunchy, in a word – delicious. plete sensory experience. The fact that they’re so light and airy makes eating the entire bag seem like a relatively healthy choice. My relationship with Cheetos has seen highs and lows. I’ve been known to binge on Cheetos, devouring an entire bag throughout a single day only to abandon them for months out of dieter’s remorse. I always come back, though, and Cheetos accepts me, because our love is mutual and true.

I have even turned the word “Cheeto” into a verb for my workout mantra, “I Cheeto, Therefore I Run.”

1 – Brownies (preferably) with Walnuts – Topping the list of inspirational foods are Brownies… but not just any brownie. In my world, it has to be a soft, chewy brownie – there is no such thing as a “cake-like brownie.” Those are just cake and therefore a lie. With most evidence pointing to the origins of the brownie being a cookie recipe turned “cookie bar” around 1905, the story of brownies is relatively young in the vast world of food history. I truly haven’t found a “from scratch” brownie recipe that I enjoy as much as the consistent rich flavour of a box of Betty Crocker Brownie Mix (with walnuts), a mix that seems to have entered the market around the mid-1900s, that is until my best friend’s other daughter, Peyton, turned out a batch of “The Best Homemade Double Chocolate Brownies” from sweetasacookie.com. The only modification she made was adding a splash of milk because the batter was a little too dry. She baked the brownies longer than the estimated 30 minutes, testing with a toothpick every 5 minutes, thereafter.

As I mentioned earlier, biting into one of these non-cake-like brownies put everything in perspective, and all was right with the world.

At the end of my reflection, I realised four things about myself: 4 – It’s a wonder I’m not 5,000 pounds.

3 – I have the diet of a 14 year old.

2 – Whenever I have to spell the word “dessert” I hear my mom saying, “Dessert has two s’s - the extra ‘s’ is what makes it fattening.”

1 – Never underestimate the power of your favourite foods.

Brownie Reference: thenibble.com

And topping the list of My Most Inspirational Foods is...

Shutterstock/Tom dotshock

I

chipped away at the ice cream as it melted in the late summer heat, all the while making sure that my brownies were safely atop the ice cream, so they didn’t get soggy and crumble into the pool of chocolate cream at the bottom of the bowl. Saving the best for last, I sank my teeth into the perfectly soft, chocolatey, decadent brownie and for one moment all was right with the world.

This got me thinking about the foods that truly inspire me, so I made a list. It was a short list, only 4 foods, but foods I absolutely love and, more often than I care to admit, have had one of these as either breakfast, lunch, or dinner at some point in my recent adult life.

4 – Baked Brie Pops – I was introduced to this recipe by my best friend’s oldest daughter, Madison. Brie is one of those foods that has been around for so long, you can only rely on legend as evidence of its origins. I couldn’t seem to find any information about the origins of baked brie so I’d like to give a general “Thank You” to the connoisseur who combined fruity sweetness with the subtle depths of Brie and then wrapped it like a present and baked it. Baked Brie Pops come to us from Joy the Baker (joythebaker.com). The recipe is simple, and I’ve found that you can use the stick, or not. Either way, you have a perfect, bite-sized portion of Baked Brie.

3 – Crème Brulee – It is weird for me to see Crème Brulee on my list at Number 3, especially since I find this dessert to be among the finest delicacies. To me, Crème Brulee is an example of dessert sophistication.

I have tried and failed miserably to make Crème Brulee at home – yet another experiment that ended up with soup rather than custard… but it was, perhaps, the most delicious soup I had ever accidently made.

The creamy richness of custard topped with a sweet, hardened top has descended through the centuries, sweetening the tables of the finest restaurants and the smallest pubs.

2 – Cheetos – In 1948, Frito-Lay was changing lives… lives of people who hadn’t even been born yet… namely my life. With Crunchy Cheetos leading the way in 1948, Frito-Lay launched Cheetos Puffs in 1971, and my personal favourite, “Simply Cheetos Puffs” came along in the mid-2000s. The airy crunch that disintegrates on my tongue leaving only a cheesy flavour, makes eating these little puffs the com100 | VINTAGE LIFE

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Fun At Festivals

Culture 58.indd 1

1 th . D te e Is ig o th mb le ut fa e V er. of W you h mi en If i r Sw ad ‘ ly f tno you ght fest e K r Sw in id st F lik Fe iva in g C C iva rin e t stiv l fr g ir re l R ge o a oc an cu o h F ke l i k d s’ le a yt es ep n J an La as n hm tiv i un d tin th d t T al t sm e ro D eir he C ree in A al and ck! isc m o i l G o ai co n J ugu and Bes o to n nu uly st, ch tiv lar a th ct ts , w o il al ge e m s… ’ a h r o le in w d as br nd ich ur , th Sep ith se in ‘T th fa e s. gi h is vo n t H ng e E y ur ry oo R le ea it ra ev ctr r e y! iv ic al

Words by Marianne of Hubba Hubba Vintage

T th he I e o s sl m f f t ha e o la in he pe f W w nd utes So of ig b ith . T b ut a ht m oat W he y fe h C dia – a d ou ca ig be rr oa mo n id ay, th n b htli st w y fr st, nd isla o e nk a om a si nd it ay a as s no br wee r L cau Fe y to th me tua in to a st ea ke ym g rr re e re ted in wn ch alg k. nd in ht f ies, ach ma 45 sc g s ild ic, Th or gto ro wh u ina n m er s i to ene ret and ” c “I e ta vi , m ro, b ha us isla pro fo Por e a s e a r m ed n p r H ge sit a d er t t s in ub rep all kin vint che , w to r h h b s ha th a ro ye g i ag a ith go eta ol- e d e nd s th in m ve e H u ar t a te ost liv sce ubb ctio ro p an a eas ere s e d n n th id V 20 ed ic a V n d und rfe in y o W in re . ct mu riv- e t a ea n ge rs th est tag ss b My pla sic W . H e i W e i us v i ce ig er sla igh s b ine nht e n t a ss sh ar d f an sed ar e m or d es y a I . to lp

Sp ot lig ht on ...

MY CULTURE

Frocks, Shops & Retro Rock!

Vintage fun Isle of Wight style

Check out our festivals, they are quite spectacular!

101

18/08/2015 12:46

3 Ry . Ste E d p th ngla e Pi bac e T n nd er, k i fre ea o foll (n the n ti w sh f c ow ow old me ich ly ak i o e a es -ba es, t w ver st s nd at ke m ith 2 eas wa Th d s eri a 00 id lk e R con ng Ro ye e p alo oy es ues, yal ars ier ng al an pa A old in H d d ti fte ) ot a sse rn an el, in ri oo d Ve ty s es, n nt an no dr.

2 O . Go h se S t fo lect o V to sh r T l io in o Be rave adie n of tag p? T es tty l n s a g e! h fo pec , a ort nd enu in V en h o r V ia vin h ge ine en ea de f an int lly f tag to R nts vin tno d to 1 ca tiq ag or e c yd at ta r f so 980 des ues e bo wo olle e fo gre ge c or a b m s f fr an ut me ct r at lo on ut s e tim ash om d v iqu n, a ion Wit pric thin e o hh e ion Vic int e s nd cu h L es. g f o hhh in . D to ag elli th rat ov ur , w on on ria e th ng e D ed e be e e o ’t f n to ro a m ig st did f o or t ug ix ke n ur ge he h pt ’t l ch t t ea th se et ar o s rly e cr yo ity pe ets u n ... in sho d

on ps ,

Vintage

Culture 58.indd 2

Oh So

Ryde Pier & The Royal Hotel

18/08/2015 12:47

Shutterstock/mariematata

6 th . Oo cl e D h ca ass on Err H rd ic al M ar e sp s fr hum d M iss p tw e om o c us 12 ostc ork nt h th rou Gill ! G h ,0 ar s is e s B M et tin is d 00 d in for life earl rit us sau ch cti eat po du the cr y 2 ish eum cy ee ve h i stc st th eat 0t po o at ky o n ar ry en in h st f hu bse 196 ds cre th g c cen m rva 2 fro ati riv om tur ou ti w m ng in ic y. r. on ith 19 o g al h 0 ve an is 4 u r d dis n of - til te n

4 sp . W e o c hy W rgan ial e no ta ig is ve t p ra ke ht V ed a nt a lan a ng ca in nd nd a de nd h eme re o tage sty ha a co om nt f a ? le ve vin ll in rati em s, fr ll th The d w it ta the ons ad om e a y c ith ge b a e r a ta est nd cak chin - n ste p fa e a of oss vo s to co ibl urs ur e , se !

5 at . Le to T a by nnu he 1 ff s R T al 94 om te ailw he rev 0s e J ‘T rta a Isl iva Ex itt da he inm y ev e of l ev per erbu o nc Th en er W en ie g be ppo ing ree t th y Ju igh t h nce stea W ef rtu an B is ly t S os , a m in hy has nit d j elle yea . Liv tea ted n of g w no h a ies itte s’ s r in e e m th ith t t nd to rb ing cl ne d t ry s sa ug er ud ay he som pam mp gin s, t ed ? ha e f le g, ea ir v ri co w an in tte rn ith d tag rs. ed fa e sh st io ylns

MY CULTURE

wight Vintage

Wight Steam Railway

Culture 58.indd 3

The Isle of

Donald McGill Museum

18/08/2015 12:47

Untitled-2 1

18/08/2015 16:13

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Conflict, History & Remembrance Museum

Hubba Hubba Vintage

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Win a classic break on the stunning Isle of Wight Courtesy of Wightlink Ferries and Hubba Hubba Vintage The Isle of Wight is not only one of the UK’s most beautiful islands, circled with spectacular beaches, dotted with historic towns and buildings, and blessed with rolling green countryside producing some of the best food and drink to be found anywhere, it is also a treasure trove of unique shops and also a home to some superb vintage finds.

Wightlink Ferries (www.wightlink.co.uk) is very much part of island life, offering regular, and quick (less than 45 minute), ferry services from Portsmouth to Fishbourne or Ryde and from Lymington to Yarmouth.

Wightlink is a champion of all there is to enjoy on the island from classic beach breaks to vintage glamour, and is the best way to get fashion lovers across the Solent and exploring all there is to see.

Hubba Hubba Vintage is an island-based online vintage fashion business, with a serious eye on glamour with its collection of 1940s to 1970s-inspired Hollywood-style reproduction dresses. Owner and designer Marianne is not only inspired by the Isle of Wight, but by some of the other wonderful vintage businesses on the island including Oh So Vintage! and Vintage Vacations.

Hubba Hubba Vintage, together with Wightlink Ferries, is offering readers of Vintage Life the chance to win a two night stay on the Island, including crossings for a car and two passengers, two nights luxury B&B at the picturesque Rockstone Cottage located 2 minutes walk from Colwell Bay and only 3 miles from Yarmouth on the western side of the Island, and a £100 voucher to spend on any dress or gown from the Hubba Hubba collection online at www.hubbahubbavintage.co.uk

To be in with a chance to win this vintage lover’s dream mini-break, simply answer the following question: Queen Victoria had an entire fashion era named after her and her favourite home was Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. What would have been an essential part of any Victorian lady’s wardrobe? [a] Tights [b] Corset [c] Stiletto Shoe Visit www.vintagelifemagazine.com to enter!

Vintage Life Competition Terms & Conditions: 1. Entry is open to all UK residents excluding employees of Wightlink Ltd or anyone professionally connected with the administration of the draw. 2. If you are under 16, please check with your parent or guardian before signing up to receive more information. 3. The prize is two night stay at Rockstone Cottage on a B& B, crossings for a car plus two passengers from Portsmouth-Fishbourne or Lymington-Yarmouth only, £100 voucher to spend on a spectacular Hubba Hubba creation. Excludes mini-buses, coaches and commercial vehicles. 4. The closing date for entries is no later than insert date. The winner will be announced on insert (e.g. Facebook, a partner’s website, edition of newspaper) on the insert date and will be notified within 28 days. Please allow up to 28 days for receipt of your prize. 5. Prize must be booked by 1st December 2015, and all crossings and hotel bookings are subject to availability. 6. The judges' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into regarding the decision. 7. The prize must be accepted as a whole and no alternative full-cash or other prize is available, in whole or in part, except that in the event of circumstances outside of its control the promoter reserves the right to substitute a similar alternative of equal or greater value. 8. Unless otherwise agreed in writing by the promoter, the prize will only be available to the winner and cannot be sold. 9. The promoter reserves the right to amend, alter or withdraw the promotion as necessary due to exceptional circumstances outside its reasonable control. 10. Participants are required to supply complete and accurate details. In the case of incomplete or incorrect details being provided, or the Promoter being unable to contact the winner within 28 days, the promoter reserves the right to award the prize to a reserve selected at the same time as the original. 11. By entering this competition you agree to your name and entry details being used in any required publicity material. Winning names may be displayed on our website after notification; a paper copy of winning names is available. Please send a SAE to: Marketing department, Wightlink Ltd, Gunwharf Road, Portsmouth, PO1 2LA. 12. By entering the competition, entrants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by these terms and conditions. By entering this competition your contact details will be added to Wightlink Ltd mailing list for marketing purposes. If you are under 16, please check with your parent or guardian before signing up to receive more information. To unsubscribe, please write to us at: Marketing department, Wightlink Ltd, Gunwharf Road, Portsmouth, PO1 2LA.

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MY CULTURE

The Review

Great John Street Words by Lisa Harrison, images by Attila Kemenyfi

Manchester

T

he Great John Street Hotel – The Old Schoolhouse – is a lovely retreat hidden in the midst of Manchester’s city centre.

Its convenient location makes it the perfect place to stay when visiting the city’s attractions, which means it is easily accessible to the many shops that Manchester has to offer, the Lowry Centre and Salford Quays, and more.

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The hotel was originally a Victorian school and the owners of the hotel have kept this as an integral theme throughout. Many of the rooms have references to its history, such as ‘Headmaster’s Office’, ‘Library’, ‘Boys’ Classroom’ and ‘Girls’ Classroom’, which are all rooms that can be hired for events. Images taken at the location when it was still used as a school are displayed in The Kitchen and Mezzanine. The area that was originally the boys’ playground is now home to a rooftop bar, which is a great place to enjoy a cocktail or two. Granada Studios then used the building in later years – Great John Street is in fact opposite the site that was once used as the Coronation Street set!

The interior of the hotel is far from what you would imagine a Victorian schoolhouse to look like. From reception, guests can enter the stunning Oyster Bar complete with comfy armchairs and sofas in which to relax, and a gorgeous chandelier hanging overhead. Afternoon tea is served here, which also comes in a ‘Gents’ Version’ for those who may fancy a change from the norm.

The Oyster Bar also serves a range of drinks and is open until late. Breakfast is served in the aforementioned Kitchen and Mezzanine, with a choice of varied continental and cooked options available. There is even a small gym!

The hotel maintains a cosy yet chic décor throughout, which is in keeping with the building but also combines modern elements. The result is a stylish look that is comfortable yet still containing opulent features.

Great John Street has a number of rooms and six of these are duplex suites, including the Baby Grand, Eclectic Grand and Opus Grand. Rachel was lucky enough to be placed in one such room, featuring a sleeping and dressing area on the first level and a bathroom and lounge space on the second. The room was tastefully decorated and featured all the amenities that one would expect from a hotel of this standard – mini bar, TV, stereo, toiletries and more. Staff members are also on hand to provide items that are easily overlooked when packing, such as toothbrushes and toothpaste. In fact, nothing was too much trouble for the staff at Great John Street.

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MY CULTURE If you are planning ahead, Great John Street Hotel hosts a number of Christmas events with a vintage theme...

The Vintage Years: Shake out your tassels and unfurl your feathers and step back to the glamour of the vintage years. Arrive in full 1920s – 1940s dress, step back in time to the era of bootlegging and speakeasies, and experience an evening like no other. Hidden away from the watchful eye of the prohibition agents, start the party spirit with the foot tapping and hip swinging sound of the Charleston Charlie’s whilst sipping classic cocktails from vintage tea cups before sitting down to a festive three course meal. As the evening progresses, head to the dance floor where the live band will take you from the Charleston to the 40s swing before handing over to our resident DJ playing party classics and modern day dance floor fillers.

• Arrival cocktail at 7pm • 3 course festive meal at 8pm • Music entertainment until midnight • Last orders 1.30am Dates & ticket price per person for December: Thursday 3rd – £45 + VAT Saturday 5th –£ 55 + VAT Tuesday 8th – £40 + VAT Monday 14th – £30 + VAT Wednesday 16th – £50 + VAT Friday 18th – £55 + VAT Saturday 19th – £55 + VAT Tuesday 22nd – £45 + VAT

The Retro Years: Possibly the ultimate party decades with an eclectic mix of music genres taking centre stage from disco, country and pop to hip hop R&B and dance. With a live band and our resident DJ, the retro years will be an electric atmosphere from start to finish playing songs that everyone from your junior apprentice to the CEO will undoubtedly know (with some modern day dance floor fillers thrown in too!). Like the music, the fashion from these decades does a full circle, some radical or perhaps cringe worthy images come to mind. You may wish to re-live your youth and dust off your flares – we know you just can’t bear to let them go, however we equally understand that you may have worked hard to ensure such images never come to light and for those who wish to come in more traditional modern day fashion, you will find fun themed props at your table for those essential Christmas party selfies.

• Arrival drink at 7pm

• 3 course festive meal at 8pm • Live entertainment until midnight • Last orders 1.30am Dates and ticket price per person: Wednesday 2nd - £30 + VAT Friday 4th - £55 + VAT Wednesday 9th - £45 = VAT Thursday 10th - £55 + VAT Saturday 12th - £60 + VAT Tuesday 15th – £45 + VAT Thursday 17th - £60 + VAT If you would like to reserve your place or request any further information please contact the event’s team on 0161 831 3211.

Rachel would highly recommend Great John Street for a stay in Manchester. Visit their website for further details and also offers. www.eclectichotels.co.uk/greatjohn-street Great John Street Hotel Great John Street Manchester M3 4FD 0161 831 3211 info@greatjohnstreet.co.uk

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Books

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N Ed ella i an te L Re d S d b ast’s fu ad us y R W po nny ing ie F ich ar O ign , c N lem ard br bse an hatt ella’ ing Br ou rv t W y s i oa gh ati W an nsi d t h on II d o gh er di M fte tfu to ary as n l, lif en s e f tr or ies m e.

Books to

INSPIRE

With blogger Liza Hollinghurst I’ B mw Fo y Pa ith Pa r a m th re me ro ela e B c gr ou la’ ck De and ro oup nts s m fan s B Ji ll l ie he em lik arr M mm umi acti r 19 oir e m es siv ick y P nar on 60 wh e, M e r Ja ag ies wi s a ere is ea gg e a lik th nd sh s di er, nd e ro 7 e ng is t L ck 0s . pu he ed n re Sto Ze ’ co ne p’s m s’ pu l-

MY CULTURE

18/08/2015 11:22

Reviews Stick your head in a book!

before marilyn

A Scream in soho

by John Brandon Brandon’s detective novel paints a murky picture of Soho in 1940 when the fog and war night blackouts hid the murky gang goings on of the local ne’er-do-wells. Detective Inspector McCarthy knows the area like the back of his hand, a skill that comes in handy when he hears a scream in the early hours of the morning and races to find where it came from. The light from a fire leads him to a blood stained knife and it’s then a race against time to find the body and the culprits before more harm is done.

A Scream in Soho was written at the beginning of WWII before The Blitz rendered the capital’s streets no-go zones at night. Rather stereotypically in DI McCarthy’s patch, it’s the foreigners such as the Italians who are the villains, whilst English miscreants like ‘Danny the Dip’ can be relied upon to help the police out with their cause.

Plus is there more to the glamorous Austrian aristocratic refugee than meets the eye?

If so, DI McCarthy will squirrel it out, in this entertaining portrait of Soho’s underworld from the golden age of British detective fiction.

Review: Penny Batchelor

by Astrid Franse & Michelle Morgan Featuring original black and white and colour photographs, this book takes a look at the life of Norma Jeane Baker before she became the Hollywood icon of Marilyn Monroe.

The authors, who between them have an extensive knowledge of the star, discuss how Baker joined the Blue Book Model Agency, headed by Emmeline Snively, and how she strove to get noticed amidst the many other models on the agency’s books.

As the narrative progresses, accompanied by the many images, the gradual change from girl-next-door to screen siren over the 40s and 50s is evident. It is fascinating to read about Marilyn’s rise to stardom.

The History Press

Don’t pass me by by Julie McGowan

When a gas explosion rips her Bermondsey house apart and renders her husband Billy unconscious, Lydia Dawson seizes the chance to escape his abusive and violent behaviour, taking her four-month old daughter Grace with her. Travelling to rural Wales on a train carrying WWII evacuees, Lydia, under the premise of being a war widow, takes a housekeeping job for the village doctor. Here, she finally finds happiness and the love that she craves, until the appearance of Billy threatens to shake her world…

As well as following the story of Lydia, the narrative also follows two of the evacuees and the trauma that they endure in their new circumstances. Although many of the themes throughout are unpleasant, there is the idea that justice will always be served in the end.

Sunpenny Publishing Group www.sunpenny.com

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The Tootsie Takeover...

W

e’ve not looked back, bringing songs we adore from the past to the widest of modern audiences: from the British Royal family to Hollywood royalty, CEOs to OAPs, Dubai to Bombay. The music has always been well received. Delighted to find that the tunes inspiring us were widely appreciated, we quickly saw the link between the hit parade of yesterday and the chart toppers of today: sentiments marry, and if a song has the ‘X factor’, there’s no escaping it – whatever era it’s from.

So, having experimented with mashing the old and the new together, proving the gap between now and then isn’t necessarily as large as it may appear, we now broach the ultimate, yet most exciting challenge to date: the launch of our first original track!

Yes, you heard us right – we have camped out in the countryside for days at a time, in a studio, tinkering and tweaking, recording our band, then making them ‘big band’, arranging harmonies, then layering on more harmonies. Inspired by everyone from Aretha Franklin to Judy Garland, and the harmonious sounds of great girl bands throughout the ages, we wanted the feel of our first single to be harmony heavy, and rich with live instruments. The dynamism of busy brass and percussion creates a sense of the explosive fun with which we attack all our Tootsie endeavours. We think we finally have it: totally Tootsie tracks that pay homage to our inspirations.

Our first single needs a video, and our favourite aspect of Tootsie life is the people we meet along the way. So we have launched our “Make Me a Tootsie Competition,” giving one vintage-loving individual the opportunity to feature in the music video. In fact we’ve used the video as an excuse to bring together a number of brilliant, inspiring people: names to be revealed…

We are shooting in Cahoots, a fabulous 1940s themed underground bar off Carnaby Street, Central London – well worth a visit if you haven’t been already!

We gigged there last month and felt so at home in the vibrant 40s décor that it seemed like the perfect backdrop for this track. We can’t wait to meet the competition winner, get glammed up, and get the cameras rolling. Such excitement is brewing in Tootsie Towers!

So there you have it readers, we’ve let the cat out of the bag, you heard it here first.

The Tootsie Rollers first single will soon be found on iTunes! But, you’ll have to hang on a minute while we make this video! Pop the kettle on, we’ll let you all know when it’s available to download, and we hope it has you tapping your toes and singing in the shower!

With lots of love from, The Tootsie Rollers Head to our Facebook and Twitter for updates @thetootsies / www.thetootsierollers.com

Credits: Hair by The Painted Lady, Dresses by The Pretty Dress Company, Photographer: Adam Robertson

We have been singing together for six years, taking our Tootsie sound around the world.

Inspired by confident and glamorous icons, and with a passion for a time when music was the main means of escape (ahead of television, telephones and travel), we sang Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree by The Andrews Sisters and audiences loved it.

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Be th M ae

h ic la ot

Ph og ra y

ph

we’re

Belle

listening to...

Noir

Vintage Life chats to this London vintage trio!

Thank you for chatting...

We are the all-era, vintage revival group. London’s freshest vocal harmony trio! Our aim is to harness the charm of the 40s and 50s with a glamorous, yet fresh image and transcend the decades with our music. Each carefully chosen song is a little fusion of modern day and vintage – the best of both worlds!

How did you start performing?

We are all professionally trained actors and singers, each having trained for three years at drama school before starting the band. We share the same passion for music with Jazz being our initial influence, right through to Swing, Soul and Blues all of which provide the foundations of Belle Noir’s musical style.

What aspects of the vintage scene influence you?

As vintage, according to definition, ‘denotes something from the past of high quality,

especially something representing the best of it’s kind’ (www.oxforddictionaries.com/ definition/english/vintage), we uphold this, whether it’s hunting out a piece in a vintage store or deciding on a new arrangement.

What we love about vintage clothing is the classic tailoring, elegant female silhouettes and finding unique pieces that have their own story. What we love about the music is the haunting and romantic melodies, whether played on a lone piano or by an epic big band… we could listen to them all day.

Who are your icons?

Amongst so many of the wonderful icons throughout the 40s/50s, we absolutely adore Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly and Sophia Loren. Their elegance and beauty are captivating and we have been hugely inspired by their style.

Describe your performances?

Our performance is designed to take our audiences back to a bygone era. Our

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Ruthless Images

MY CULTURE

vintage set is homage to the golden age and all things old Hollywood. We transcend the decades with the rest of our set, from 60s to modern day. We love to take both well-known classics and lesser known tunes and re-work them with intricately woven harmonies, putting our Belle Noir twist on each arrangement.

If you could perform for anyone, who would it be and why?

We’d love to perform for the cast and crew of Roman Holiday on the Spanish steps in the Italian sun, as that’s one of our favourite films. Then naturally, we’d be asked to come and perform at the film’s premiere in New York!

Upcoming plans?

We have a monthly residency at a fantastic speakeasy bar called The Lucky Pig right in the heart of Central London in Fitzrovia. We are always releasing our latest recordings on YouTube and are filming an upcoming video complete with a vintage jazz trio of musicians, so keep your eyes peeled!

Where can we find out more about you?

Readers can find us on our website at www. bellenoirband.com or follow us on Twitter: @bellenoirband Facebook: Belle Noir Band Instagram: Bellenoirband

Derrick Santini

We transcend the decades with the rest of our set, from 60s to modern day.

My top tunes We asked singer Andra Day about her top 5 songs... # 1: “Gold” This is a true story about being unfaithful to someone who was good to me, and realizing in the end that the honesty and devotion he gave to me was far more valuable than the “charm” I was enamoured by. # 2: “Rise Up” ...is the person I want to be for the rest of my life, someone that stands in the face of adversity and fear, and loves others selflessly and sacrificially. # 3: “Gin and Juice” This song is just cooler than the North Pole so I had to choose it, haha. # 4: “City Burns” This track is so special to me, because the lyrics were literally just spoken to me in a moment of prayer. "Now I search for the ground underneath my feet as the city burns," is simply saying remember your foundation in the midst of turmoil. # 5: “Not Today” I chose this song because the music alone is so classic, but the message is also timeless. It's about love that endures storms and doesn't quit.

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MY CULTURE ag Im e by Be in am nj ur m A e

we’re

listening to...

Joe Stilgoe

Between the matinee and evening performances of High Society at the Old Vic, Vintage Life caught up with Joe over a cup of tea…

Joe Stilgoe has been super busy – not only performing at the Old Vic but he is currently doing the summer festival circuit and has also managed to release his new album, New Songs for Old Souls.

Thanks so much for taking the time from your hectic schedule to chat with us. You come from a very musical background, when did you realise it was jazz you were most passionate about?

I actually found jazz on my own: lots of friends who are jazz musicians had parents who were really into it, sat them down and gave them a jazz education and played them important records. Mum and Dad were doing music for a living, so didn’t really listen to a lot of music outside of work and if so, it was opera. I remember finding a Sinatra record in my dad’s collection and loving that big band sound, the swagger of it. At school, I used to run down to the record shop at lunchtime, rifle through all the LPs and

have just enough time to run back. My education was my own adventure really. When I got to university and started playing in various jazz bands, I realised that this was something I could do. It took a long time to work out that was my life.

Who are your musical influences and heroes?

I always put on Ella Fitzgerald, when I can think of what to listen to, she’s basically my surrogate mother. Who else? Nat King Cole was an early influence, Mel Tormé... going back further songwriters like Cole Porter, Noel Coward and Johnny Mercer. Cole Porter wrote an incredible collection of songs, I could happily perform a three hour gig of only his music. I’m not just stuck back there; I love the Beatles, Randy Newman and Carole King. My Harry Connick Jnr and his big band tour VHS was worn out in certain places! Harry Connick was a bridge from past to present, looking back and doing his own thing at the same time.

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I’ve always wanted to look like Gene Kelly, he was a proper man – he could dance like an angel.

Can you describe the new album’s musical style and what inspires your song writing?

New Songs for Old Songs sounds like a concept album, but that was never intended that way. Title aside I would describe this record as a jazz record for people who are afraid of jazz, everything I love from the jazz of the last century weaved into my own songs and the cover of I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times.

Since becoming a solo artist, I usually play as a trio, myself on piano and vocals with double bassist Tom Farmer and drummer Ben Reynolds, I’ve always wanted to the big band thing, so this album has been really special. When writing I normally begin with a melody, sitting at the piano, which is a nice way of doing it as the music dictates the lyrics. The song Two Tones was inspired by my love of wearing two toned shoes, it’s kind of my thing. My personal favourite is Rainbows in my Teacup, written about my daughter and knowing we were going to have her. I think the song I would listen to most is probably Roll or Nobody Cares About Me.

How did you become involved in High Society? Is this your first foray into theatre?

It’s my first professional theatre production. I had dabbled at University and loved it but never thought it could be a career because music was what I wanted to do. I knew Maria Freedman the producer through the jazz circuit, we were doing a radio show and she saw me interacting with the audience and she said, “I want that in my show, and I want you to be the Louis Armstrong figure”. I’ve always loved theatre and I’m basically playing me, but American! There’s

something intoxicating about going to the theatre and it being a different audience and different thing each night. I’ve learnt a lot to take back to the gigs.

One of the highlights happened about a month ago, when asking the audience for song suggestions, this voice cried out My Old Man’s a Dustman. When I turned round it was Barry Cryer, my idol comedian. I managed to sneak it into the show and he sent a note the next day to say he loved it!

Who are you listening to?

Lianne la Havas. I’m obsessed with her! Her music is very modern but she is borrowing a lot of Motown women in her vocals, songs she’s writing are bits of Edith Piaf.

Do you have any favourite vintage fashion tips/labels for our gents?

I’ve always wanted to look like Gene Kelly, he was a proper man – he could dance like an angel. At most gigs I wear nice 50s baggy trousers with braces and a waistcoat from Rokit. I pick vintage stuff wherever I can. I love classic tailoring from Daks in Jermyn Street who’ve been around since the 1890s and Loake make the most incredible shoes.

What is next for Joe Stilgoe?

Straight after High Society, I’m up to the Edinburgh Festival for the last week doing a show called Songs On Film – The Sequel which is the second instalment of a show all about films that shaped my musical education and formed how I think about life. Then a holiday… am I allowed? We’ll then start touring again at the end of September all over the UK for the new album.

Visit – www.joestilgoe.com

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Fer Gregory/shutterstock.com

Thoroughly Modern Musical The History of Musical Theatre September has a particular sense of nostalgia – that back to school feeling, combined with the final days of summer sun and the dreaded realisation that the year has, once again, flown by so quickly – especially when the mention of the winter holidays is already on people’s lips. September also marks the start of a new showbiz season: theatre companies return from the Fringe and summer touring schedules, closed theatres reopen, rehearsals begin and the glitz and glamour of the stage is reborn.

W

Article by Kathryn Levell

alking through the West End recently, it seems that the theatrical world is currently dominated by revivals of classic musical theatre shows such as Gypsy, High Society and Miss Saigon to retro inspired new writing like Memphis to biographical productions celebrating well-loved performers such as Beautiful based on Carole King’s writing background, Sunny Afternoon – The Kinks Musical and Sinatra at the London Palladium. The upcoming productions of Guys & Dolls, Motown the Musical and The Rocky Horror Show are set to continue this hugely popular trend.

Although music and dance has been an integral part of drama since ancient times, the ‘musical’ as we know it, is a fairly recent development. The Black Crook was first performed on 12th September 1866 at the Niblo’s Garden Theatre on Broadway, New York and is regarded by many historians as the first ‘musical theatre’ production. The Black Crook formed the model of the modern musical: with songs and dances developing and moving the storyline forward performed by the actors themselves. This production is the perfect example of how musicals differ to opera. In opera the emphasis is on song rather than spoken dialogue, and even when the principal opera singers do speak, they do not dance – the dancing is left entirely to the ballet corps. There are also major differences between the musical and vaudeville/music hall performances, where there is a lack of a continuous plot line and shows are a collection of songs, sketches and short scenes. The Black Crook ran for a record-breaking 474 performances with an audience capacity of 3,200 per night despite the fact it was five and a half hours long!

In 1890 the Gaiety Girls took the West End by storm! When George Edwardes became manager at the Gaiety Theatre he realised that the masses wanted an alternative to the highbrow, political satires of the Savoy Operas and so created a light hearted, family friendly musical with popular songs and modern dress. He replaced the ‘lewd’ burlesque dancers with a chorus of respectable, polite and ‘well behaved’ young women. The Gaiety Girls

became the symbol of ideal womanhood: beautiful and talented they also modelled the latest fashion designs from London’s top couturiers who were also designing for the stage by the late 1800s.

Nicknamed the ‘Stage Door Johnnie’ their admirers waited at the Stage Door in the hope to wine and dine the girls. Many Gaiety Girls successfully married into society, a few lucky ladies into the nobility and one gal even married a Baron of Norway!

On both sides of the Atlantic significant steps were being made towards the modern musical art form between 1870 and 1910.

Harrigan and Hart’s variety shows and Gilbert and Sullivan’s comic operas led the way. These two major writing partnerships and forefathers of the musical, influenced and inspired many great musical lyricist and composer teams, and very distinct styles of musical theatre developed: frivolous musical comedy, charming romances and the dramatic musical play.

The Roaring Twenties saw the musical established as a light hearted entertainment led by star actors and actresses such as Marilyn Miller and Fred Astaire. These productions focused on flashy dance numbers and popular songs. Popular music became dominated by great American musical song-writing teams of George and Ira Gershwin, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, and Cole Porter. Many songs from this era became standards and part of the Great American Songbook including Someone To Watch Over Me, Night and Day, Look For The Silver Lining and Tea for Two. Lady Be Good transferred from Broadway to London in 1926, Fred and Adele Astaire brought their slick, polished performance with infectious energy to the British musical theatre scene in comparison to the laid back performance style of British musical theatre stars such as Jack Buchanan.

In 1927 Show Boat changed the history of musical theatre by moving away from the frivolous comedies and sentimental operettas. Show Boat portrayed a more realistic story by addressing social issues such as racial prejudice, poverty, the effects of gambling and alcoholism. The hit song Ol’ Man River, sung in the London cast by Paul Robeson, became an anthem of black oppression.

Several dramatic musicals followed suit but, the trend returned to VINTAGE LIFE | 119

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MY CULTURE comedy and political satire during the Great Depression. In 1931, the first Pulitzer Prize for Drama given to a musical was awarded to a George and Ira Gershwin’s political satire Of Thee I Sing. Only seven times since has a musical won this prestigious award, including South Pacific (1950), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1962), A Chorus Line (1976) and Sunday In The Park With George (1985).

During the 1930s and 40s, Noël Coward and Ivor Novello were both writing musical revues and operettas, in addition to hundreds of popular, witty and satirical songs. Coward’s fame and extensive works have somewhat overshadowed Novello’s own lengthy list of accomplishments. Novello wrote and starred in his flamboyantly romantic stories, including the big budget extravaganza Glamorous Nigh’, Careless Rapture and The Dancing Years. In order to show off the technical possibilities of the Drury Lane stage he included scenes with earthquakes and sinking ships! As a young man Novello wrote the song Keep the Home Fires Burning which became one of the most popular songs of WWI and later he became a silent movie star.

It was not until 1943, that the next successful attempt to produce a musical with serious dramatic plot points to stir genuine audience emotion aside from laughter was fully realised. Oklahoma! perfected the book musical style with fully integrated songs but also gave equal weighting to dance that expressed the emotional journeys of characters – not just an excuse to parade scantily clad women on stage. The 15 minute Dream Ballet sequence was choreographed by Agnes de Mille to represent the heroine’s torment and confusion. Rogers and Hammerstein chose not to cast actors who could sing (as was the norm at this time) but singers who could act, and as a result no star names were hired – another unusual decision. Following the success of Oklahoma!, Rogers and Hammerstein continued their collaboration, creating many more well-loved classic musicals exploring dramatic themes of murder, abuse, suicide and mixed marriages to name a few in Carousel (1945), South Pacific (1949), The King and I (1951), and The Sound of Music (1959). This summer the film adaptation of The Sound of Music has been celebrating its 50th anniversary, when Julie Andrews captured the world’s heart as the beautiful Maria.

Rogers and Hammerstein had firmly established the Golden Age of the musical inspiring their American contemporaries, who then in turn created the masterpieces Cole Porter’s Kiss Me Kate, Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun, Lerner and Lowe’s phenomenal success My Fair Lady and Frank Loesser’s Guys and Dolls. American

musicals dominated the British theatre scene for the next 30 years.

However during the 50s and 60s several small scale British musicals became hit shows including: Sandy Wilson’s The Boy Friend – a pastiche of 1920 music comedy in which leading lady Julie Andrews became a star upon its transfer to Broadway; Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds’ Salad Days – the musical fantasy about a magical piano; Lionel Bart’s Fings Ain’t Wot They Used To Be and Oliver!

The influence of popular music on musicals has continually pushed the genre forward, as early as 1935, Gershwin Brothers fused folk, jazz and operatic styles in Porgy and Bess, which no doubt influenced the operatic musicals West Side Story (1957), Sweeny Todd (1979) and the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar (1970) originally a concept album, which became Lloyd Webber’s first hit production with Tim Rice.

During the 1970s old-fashioned musical plotlines, with fairytale endings, big tap routines and showstoppers were embraced wholeheartedly in such hits as Annie, 42nd Street, My One and Only. Audiences also relished musicals that varied in form and style. In Cabaret, Kander and Ebb explored the rise of Nazism in the Berlin club scene in combination with Bob Fosse’s innovative choreography, which has proved to be an enduring favourite. The clever use of vaudeville techniques to tell the tale of murder and the media were used in Chicago set during Prohibition-era.

Historical eras continued to inspire composers, varying from Stephen Schwartz’s Pippin set in the Middle Ages (bizarrely with a 1970s pop score – the show was partially financed by Motown Records) to Maury Yeston’s Nine set in the 1960s based upon Federico Fellini’s autobiographical film 8½. The epic successes of Evita and Sweeney Todd were to set the scene for the next decade. The 1980s saw the return of musicals with dramatic plotlines and sweeping scores, but this time with blockbuster style big budgets, huge cast numbers and featured special effects of giant proportions, such as Starlight Express performed on roller skates on a track around the audience, The Phantom of the Opera and its falling chandelier, Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil’s Miss Saigon with a landing helicopter and Les Miserables, the longest running international musical in history!

There’s certainly No Business Like Show Business, we’ve barely peeped behind the scenes of the history of the musical and it’s already time for the final curtain. Personally I love any chance to get to the theatre, and step into that magical world of make believe. Whether you’re here for the dancing Chorus girls, the romantic ballads, tap extravaganza or epic sets, here in theatre town Anything Goes!

Rogers and Hammerstein had firmed established the Golden Age of the Musical inspiring their American contemporaries...

History of Musical theatre Playlist 1. Fred & Adele Astaire Fascinating Rhythm from Broadway Melody 2. Gertrude Lawrence Someone To Watch Over Me from Oh Kay! 3. Chet Baker Look For The Silver Lining from Sally 4. Artie Shaw: Begin the Beguine from Jubilee 5. Julie Andrews: I’ll Follow My Secret Heart from Conversation Piece 6. Gertrude Niessen: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes from Roberta 7. Paul Robeson: Ol’ Man River from Showboat 8. Ann Miller: Too Darn Hot from Kiss Me Kate 9. Ella Fitzgerald: My Man’s Now Gone from Porgy and Bess 10. Original Cast Recording: One from A Chorus Line

11. Original Cast Recording 42nd Street from 42nd Street 12. Original Cast Recording: Cinema Italiano from Nine 13. Original Cast Recording: Mein Herr from Cabaret 14.Original Cast Recording: Evita/Oh What A Circus from Evita 15. Original Cast Recording: Tonight Quintet from West Side Story 16. Original Cast Recording: Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat from Guys & Dolls 17. Annie Ross: Everything’s Coming Up Roses from Gypsy 18. Anne Ziegler & Webster Booth: We’ll Gather Lilacs from Perchance to Dream

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MY CULTURE

High Society Words by Rebecca Lipkin, images courtesy of the Old Vic

As the last show of Kevin Spacey's 11 year tenure as Artistic Director of The Old Vic, Maria Friedman directs a fitting farewell to the man who has put theatre south of the river back on the map, not to mention providing audiences with a ravishing tribute to the glamour of the 1950s Hollywood musical.

T

his flamboyant production is based on the 1939 play, The Philadelphia Story, by Philip Barry and the later Cole Porter musical film version, High Society, telling the story of the wealthy American Lord family who are making final preparations for their daughter Tracy's society wedding on their Long Island estate. Barry originally created the part of Tracy for feminist Katherine Hepburn who starred in the 1940 motion picture of The Philadelphia Story opposite Cary Grant, with Grace Kelly taking up the role in the 1956 colour musical High Society alongside Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra.

This time around Kate Fleetwood gives a confident performance as Tracy and avoids falling into the trap of imitating either Hepburn or Kelly, creating her own highly comical take on the haughty socialite who drinks, rides, sails, travels, plays golf and collects art. Intending to marry the wealthy but dull George Kittredge (Richard Grieve), whom her family make no bones of intensely disliking, whilst we might initially loathe Tracy for being spoilt and demanding, the more rebellious she becomes with champagne, the more likeable she is.

Jazz musician Joe Stilgoe, who plays the Frank Sinatra role of Joey Powell, opens the show with a terrific piano improvisation and, considering he relies on the audience to shout out hits he can merge, it's impressive how well he made Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and The Moonlight Sonata work together. From tap dancing on a piano to a vibrant

night before the wedding party scene, Nathan M Wright's choreography ensures energy levels increase rather than dip, with more than a helping hand from the live swing band who make the Porter classics, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, True Love' and Just One Of Those Things, really come alive.

Robert Young is Tracy's dashing ex-husband CK Dexter Haven, determined to set the wedding plans awry, and Ellie Bamber is captivating as her young sister Dinah – definitely one to watch. Other memorable cast members include Barbara Flyn as mother and the vocally impressive Jamie Parker as journalist Mike Connor, who is gatecrashing in the hope of getting an exclusive scoop on the wedding of the year but ends up enjoying a cheeky embrace with the bride in the swimming pool.

A fantastical peek at the lifestyle of the idle rich of America's East Coast, this version of High Society is swellegant and elegant, complete with stunning Dior-inspired 1950s costumes set off by Peter Mumford's versatile lighting and Tom Pye's myriad props which succeed in making this in-the-round production a full-on spectacle. Champagne corks fly (courtesy of the sponsor, Tattinger) and there's even a real stove which a footman uses to prepare the family's breakfast of bacon, pancakes and maple syrup, providing the audience with their first Smell-O-Vision theatre experience. This show really does have it all – even the kitchen sink.

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It’s fair to say...

Lou Lou’s vintage fair is a fabulous day out!

S

Words and images by Emma Ellson

ituated in Northampton’s Guildhall, at Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair I was surrounded by beauty. Not just the magnificent interior but by the vast collection of vintage clothes, crockery and accessories. Not only were there stalls selling the most ornate pieces, there was a lovely café area and vintage hair salon. Every corner of the impressive ‘Great Hall’ was filled to the brim with memorabilia from many decades, ranging from original 1930s and 40s dresses on one stall to handmade 50s inspired outfits on another.

Voted “The Best Vintage Fair in the UK” for two years running, Lou Lou’s is famous for serving 42 cities across the nation. It all began in Sheffield in 2008 and now is the most sought after space for vintage traders.

Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair incorporated the general public greatly. There was a Facebook plea for waitresses to assist with the ‘Tea Party’ and for other backstage roles which was a great opportunity for vintage lovers to participate! I certainly would have volunteered if I wasn’t too interested in buying as much as I could.

Hayley Shaw from ‘Frocks in Spring Time’ spoke about her time at Northampton’s Vintage Fair. “I had a wonderful day at Lou Lou’s in Northampton. The Guildhall was the perfect venue for the fair; above my stall was a stunning painting of two beautiful 1920s ladies – very apt! I very much hope to be part of the next fair in Northampton.”

Shaw,who has a great selection of 1950s reproduction and genuine 1950s swing dresses, told me some of her most memorable moments. “Two ladies came rushing over to my stall and exclaimed “Now that’s more like it!” Another lady was thrilled to find and purchase my true vintage Bourne and Hollingsworth swing dress from the 1950s which fitted her beautifully.”

Another stall holder Faye Kingston from ‘Throw Back Vintage’ only had good words to say about the fair. “It was a great day, with a mix of people who’d never purchased a vintage item before to people who were really into vintage. [There were] A lot of rockabilly customers which is always nice. The men’s military 40s wear got a lot of interest!”

For the practising vintage beauty, ‘Chez Titine’ was on hand to pamper and preen you into your favourite classic icon. Appointments were available to pre-book online with styles varying from beehives to victory rolls. There was also a ‘Best Dressed’ competition with the winner’s photo uploaded to Lou Lou’s Instagram page, and a competition to win free entry and money to spend at the next vintage fair.

It was an absolutely fantastic day and I really enjoyed looking at all of the vintage products on offer. The staff were very welcoming and the traders were very helpful. The only downside was that even though there were over 40 stalls, it would’ve been amazing if there were even more.

For more info on Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair, go to www.thevintagefair.com. So what are you waiting for? Check when Lou Lou’s is near you and I promise you won’t be disappointed!

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Nashville Boogie The

Words by Ashley Westmoreland Images by How! Imaging, Nashville, TN

I

n theory, a Tennessee-based festival that celebrates accomplishments in country and rhythm and blues, should have long since become a part of the landscape. After all, wasn’t Rock ‘n’ Roll (debatably) born in Memphis Tennessee? Wasn’t – and isn’t – country music celebrated as an integral part of Nashville’s culture and contribution to the entertainment industry? Sadly though, Tennessee has not been successful in bringing fans of those genres together regularly in many years. The Rhyman auditorium still proves to be one of the best venues for live music in the south. Sun Studios still cranks out wonderful recordings from a variety of acts.

And yet, fans of this music in its purest forms still had very few options for enjoying their favourite traditional acts in a festival environment.

Then came Jason Galaz. Jason, a California transplant with a passion for great music and a gift for planning, committed himself to creating a Tennessee Festival that would appeal to Americana fans worldwide. Now known affectionately as ‘The Mudfather’, he put his heart, soul and strength into adapting this event to fans and artists alike, making it enjoyable for all. Thus, the Muddy Roots Festival was born, and has continued to grow over the years, gaining popularity among enthusiasts as the best, purest, grittiest celebration of Roots music ever. The event expanded to include Muddy Roots Europe, the intimate Spring Weekender, and other well-received ventures along the way. It was after Jason saw certain success in these intentionally small rural showcases of talent and tradition that he began to consider another event, one with a slightly more specific slant: The Nashville Boogie.

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MY SOCIETY

Quite suddenly, hints of the upcoming festival started to trickle into the stream of social media. Bands began to promote their participation and voice their excitement over the concept. The Car Show, which was to be held primarily indoors, was also much discussed, especially since it began to be rumoured that the George Barris creation, The Munsters’ Coach, would be showing, and that Butch Patrick himself would be present.

The Weekender approached suddenly.

Some argued that its May 1st date being too close to Viva Las Vegas, which is usually set for Easter Weekend, would undoubtedly affect its attendance, but the kick-off show at the Nashville Palace boasted ‘to capacity’ crowds and an extremely warm response.

The legendary Planet Rockers were set to headline, and their performance was nothing less than extraordinary, as could be expected. Preceding their set, the Palace was fairly bursting with enthusiastic folks enjoying the square dance, the company, and more great music. Lucky Tubb and Hillbilly Casino also delivered standout performances that set the standard for the weekend.

The Opryland Hotel provided an elegant and festive backdrop for the occasion. The hotel is famous for its extravagant conservatories (complete with cascading waterfalls), many restaurant options, and huge ballrooms. While the prices were expectedly high for food, sundries and libations, the general feel was both welcoming and relaxed. At least, it was relaxed after one got their bearings in the midst of so much enormity and splendour.

Friday and Saturday fairly flew by, leaving attendees wanting more, but the performances and events were enjoyed by all, making the first year event a huge success! Friday’s performers, from the traditional sounds of JP Cyr and his Radio Wranglers at the Jack Daniels Pub, to the contagious joy of Big Sandy and his

Fly Rite Boys in the Ballroom, were all at their best. Everyone seemed to respect and appreciate the potential of a Nashville based event, where so many of their biggest inspirations hung their hats.

Saturday morning, after a rousing set by the great Don Maddox, the Western Roundup Fashion show proved to be one of the highlights of the weekend, showcasing designs from some of the best and biggest names in classic western wear. Even legendary Manuel, the Rhinestone Rembrandt himself, presented his work amidst thunderous applause. The Car Show was comfortable and classy, showcasing an intimate array of beautifully restored and custom automobiles as well as a great selection of vintage shopping options. The climate-controlled showroom was perfect for enjoying the event out of the humid stickiness of our Tennessee Spring. Shopping options in the vendor room were varied and offered an unexpectedly wide range of vintage and reproduction clothing, as well as accessories.

The weekend drew to a close all too soon as ladies and gentlemen in their finest filled the ballroom to enjoy legendary performers like Sonny Burgess and Larry Collins, as well as the electric sounds of Nikki Hill, the Paladins, and the B-Stars.

Those who were lucky enough to attend the earlier classes with Sophia Wolff, or already blessed with musical feet, danced the night away as DJs spun them through the wee hours.

So how do I personally feel about the event? As much as I love Viva Las Vegas, I can’t even express how happy I am that something like The Nashville Boogie has finally arrived for, not only Tennessee residents, but any who love our state’s entertainment history. It is my hope that it will continue to thrive and become one of the world’s leading festivals in the vintage culture we all hold dear.

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The

Great Seaside Vintage Fair

Images by Rose and Brown Vintage, words by Caroline Brown

I

n July, we were back in the gorgeous North Yorkshire coastal town of Whitby with our event, the Great Seaside Vintage Fair, held at Whitby Pavilion since 2011.

We love this event. It’s Rose & Brown’s ‘vintage fair with a sea view’ and it lasts the whole weekend. There are nearly 50 stalls of quality vintage fashion, homewares and collectables in Whitby Pavilion which is perched above the beach and has enormous round windows looking out to sea.

There’s something magical about the atmosphere of Whitby, and you can feel it in the air over the weekend at our vintage fair. These events have captured people’s imagination from the beginning and we are so proud that they have grown and grown. The Northern Lights Suite was full to capacity with stalls and once again, the visitor numbers increased on last year.

We get lovely comments about the diversity and quality of the stock, which ranges from Edwardian fashion to 1980s jewellery and all the frocks, hats and handbags in between, Mid Century to industrial furniture, toys, haberdashery, homewares and so much more. This year we included a very popular specialist menswear stall, two vintage vinyl stalls (and a record player / radio stall), and stalls with antiquities with an Eastern flavour. So many people left the Fair smiling – there was something special for everyone.

We can’t wait to be back in Whitby for our October Seaside Vintage Fair on 10 and 11 October 2015, again at Whitby Pavilion. A slightly smaller event with up to 30 stalls but it still has a sea view, the same buzz and many of the same marvellous stallholders.

On 19 and 20 September, we have a Saltaire Vintage Home and Fashion Fair – these were established in 2007. Held in the beautiful Victoria Hall, this particular event is part of Saltaire Festival’s finale weekend – an extra reason to come along to this lovely World Heritage Village in the heart of West Yorkshire.

We return to Whitby in 2016 on 16 and 17 July and 8 and 9 October, and to Saltaire on 5 December 2015 and throughout 2016. Other forthcoming events include the Collectors and Record Fair at Caroline Social Club in Saltaire, West Yorkshire on 7 November; an event with 20 stalls of cool collectables aimed at film fans, vintage design buffs, music lovers, nostalgia geeks, retro-futurists and more…

For more info visit: www.roseandbrownvintage.co.uk

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It’s a date!

Want your event featured?

Email: kathryn@cabbell.co.uk

Don’t miss: 12th september

26th september

Vintage and Craft Fair Burgess Hill. Marlets Hall, Civic Way, Burgess Hill, RH15 9NN. 10am - 4pm, £2 Entry, kids free.

An abundance of quality traders selling all things vintage, handmade, antique and collectable, live vintage-inspired entertainment, vintage beauty, vintage tea party plus lots more. helsbellesboutique.co.uk

Vintage and Craft Fair. Blackfriars Priory, Ladybellgate Street, Gloucester, GL1 2HN. 11am – 5pm, £1 Entry, kids free.

An abundance of quality traders selling all things vintage, handmade, antique and collectable, live vintage-inspired entertainment, vintage beauty, vintage tea party, BBQ, classic cars plus lots more. helsbellesboutique.co.uk

13th september

27th september

Pop Up Vintage Fairs London, Alexandra Palace Antiques and Collectors Fair, Alexandra Palace Way, London N22 7AY 9.30am – 4.30pm Entry normally £6 but only £3 with 2-4-1 entry on our website. popupvintagefairs.co.uk

Craft and Vintage Fair, Chalon Court Hotel, St. Helens, WA10 1NG 10am-4pm, Free entry, Live Music! craftandvintageboutique.com

6th sep Bath VA. Green Park Station, Green Park Road, Bath, BA1 1JB. 9.30am-4pm. vintageandantiques.co.uk

6ZT. 10am-4pm, £4 admission. decorativefairs.co.uk

19th sep

Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair. The City Hall, Hull. 11am-5pm. thevintagefair.com

Nantwich Town Square Antiques Market. Nantwich Square, Nantwich Town Centre, Nantwich, Cheshire, CW5 5DH. Public: 9am-3pm, free admission. vandafairs.com

13th sep

19th sep

12th sep

Park Royal Hotel Antiques and Collectors Fair. Park Royal Hotel, Stretton, Warrington, Cheshire, WA4 4NS. Public: 10am-4pm, trade: 8.30am10am (free with card). £2 adult entry. vandafairs.com

Pop Up Vintage Fairs London, Old Spitalfields Market, 16 Horner Square, London E1 6EW 11am – 5pm FREE ENTRY! popupvintagefairs.co.uk

13th sep

Saltaire Vintage Home and Fashion Fair. Victoria Hall, Saltaire, West Yorkshire, BD18 3JS. 9.30am-4pm. Tickets £2 in advance from Rose and Brown Vintage Home. Under 16s free. roseandbrownvintage.co.uk

Frock Me! Vintage Fashion Fair. Chelsea Old Town Hall, King’s Road, London, SW3 5EE.11am-5.30pm. frockmevintagefashion.com

13th sep The 21st Annual Manchester Vintage Fashion and Textiles Fair. The Armitage Centre, Fallowfield, Manchester, M14

19th-20th sep

20th sep Lou Lou’s Vintage Fair.

The Corn Exchange, Brighton. 10am-4pm. thevintagefair.com

24th sep Nantwich Civic Hall Antique and Collectors Fair. Civic Hall, Beam Street, Nantwich, Cheshire, CW5 5DG.Public: 10am-4pm, trade: 8.30am10am (free with card). £1.50 adult entry. vandafairs.com

26th sep Cardiff’s Affordable Vintage Fair. Portland House, 113116 Bute Street, Cardiff, CF10 5EQ. 11am-4pm. £2 entry, under 12s go free! judysvintagefair.co.uk

27th Sep Retro Sundays. Leaf on Bold Street, Bold Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, L1 4EZ. Last Sunday of every month, 11am-5pm, free entry. pillboxvintage.com

27th sep Southport Antiques and Collectors Fair.

The Dunes Leisure Centre, The Esplanade, Southport, Merseyside, PR8 1RX. Public: 10am-4pm,

OUT & ABOUT IN SEPT 2015

trade: 8.30am-10am (free with card). £2 adult entry. vandafairs.com

27th sep Bath VA. Green Park Station, Green Park Road, Bath, BA1 1JB. 9.30am-4pm. vintageandantiques.co.uk

18th oct Red Rose Vintage Events Fashion Fair. Stanwick Village Hall, Northants, 10am-4pm.

Fashion, hair, personal stylist, seamstress, photography, tea and cake. Find us on Facebook!

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LIFE

Editor-In-CHIEF Rae Egglestone-Evans Deputy Editor Lisa Harrison Features Editor Hazel Young Production Editor Judith Evans Designer Skitt Ze Kaatt Art Editor Hannah Salisbury development Director Lisa Harrison Social Media Manager Rosie Astbury Advertising Manager Cartier Fraser Advertising Executive Kathryn Levell Advertisement Design Nic Glossop Finance Director Mark Evans Finance Manager Pam Carey Distribution Manager Keiron Jefferies Intern Lou Webb Staff Photographer Ali Poulton

Editorial: +44 (0)1260 291536

lisa@dragoonpublishing.com

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judith@dragoonpublishing.com

Marketing: +44 (0)1260 291536

rosie@dragoonpublishing.com

Advertising: +44 (0)20 3603 7948

kathryn@cabbell.co.uk

Vintage Life Magazine, Dragoon Publishing Ltd Dane Mill Business Ctr, Broadhurst Lane, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 1LA UK Managing Director /Publisher

Rae Egglestone-Evans

Publishing Director Lisa Harrison Production Director Judith Evans Finance Director Mark Evans Operating Officer Jonathan Egglestone Digital Strategy Officer Richard Evans

Image by Emma Griffin

Printed in the UK by Pensord /Distribution by Warners

Flannelpluckers 58.indd 2

Contributions in the form of articles are welcomed. Whilst every care will be taken of submitted material and/or photographs the publishers cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage which may occur.

The material in this magazine (including ad design) is copyright of Dragoon Publishing Ltd 2015 and may not be reproduced in part or whole without permission of the publishers. Any individual providing material for publication must ensure they have obtained the correct permissions before submission to us.

Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders. The editor and publishers apologise for any unwitting cases of copyright transgression. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the publishers. No political affiliation is implied or intended.

ISSN 2052 8825 Vintage Life Magazine is published twelve times a year.

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MY VINTAGE LIFE

Final

by Ellie Connor-Phillips

word Rose and Vintage - roseandvintage.blogspot.co.uk

A

s a generally superstitious person, it took me several years to get over the idea of taking on someone else's belongings before I could start buying vintage. My first piece was a white and navy wool jumper from Spitalfield's market, and then a big camouflage jacket. I then began to love the concept of repurposing a thrown-away item and adding to a piece's story of who owned it. I started visiting Brick Lane and Camden market on an almost weekly basis, using my pocket money to collect an eclectic mix of vintage items, which I experimented with before starting to settle into my own style a little more.

I now seem to have reached a state where I'm no longer copying one decade; I've learnt what I like about each, and combine them to create my own little, pattern-clashing style that is vintage in nature but sometimes hard to place as to era. I adore the success of finding a bargain in a charity shop or saving up for a beautiful original 50s two-piece. I'm really into authenticity; it's hard to be completely original these days as the Internet exposes you to so much inspiration, but I feel with vintage it gives me a way to stray from the high street and create my own look in as much of an authentic way as I can. There's also something I find comforting in a community that shares my love of vintage – so many people

who also wear my kind of clothes seem to like second-hand and vintage for the same reasons, like the same things and have the same approach to them as myself; so it's been a great way to meet like-minded people and be able to gauge how much we have in common.

Recently I started to stray from what the word 'blogger' has come to mean. The blogs I started reading age 14 and 15 were teenage diaries, filled with film photos, memories, poems, artwork and inspiration, with no link to consumerism or commerciality in the slightest. They were truly authentic, and that's what led me into starting my own, as I wanted to use it to help build my own sense of identity in a way that I could see it and manage it. The blogging world however is ripe for the picking when it comes to businesses using them for advertisements, reviews, etc., which I don't condemn – it's simply that there have been points that my blog has felt hollow and as if it had lost its authenticity, just because I was turning out posts about products or places that didn't really mean anything to me. I now know that whilst working with businesses is great, it has to be right – if I don't like the product, I won't write about it. If the item of clothing isn't what I would usually wear, I wouldn't wear it. It sounds harsh, but I'm not paid for my work, and I would much rather my readers hear authentic writing about things I am genuinely passionate about.

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