A Little Bit of Vintage Bling

I love rhinestones and things that sparkle so it fits me well when I can wear 50's rhinestones.   Today I am wearing a Schiaparelli sweater that I picked up for probably less than half of what they normally go for. It's in great shape and I love all the sparkles.  The skirt comes from a black suit set that I got really cheap off of ebay.  Sometimes if you don't like a top or bottom of a suit set, you have to think about the practicality of the other parts and it can still make it worth it to buy a suit for either the top or skirt.  Of course, in this case, I love the whole suit but I also can use the skirt for other outfits.

The shoes are vintage 40's.  Earrings are Eisenberg clip ons.

I took a trip to the local cosmetics store and the lady did my make up for me and of course, I bought quite a few NARS things.  The one that I found the most interesting is the lipstick.  You sharpen it like you would a liner and I actually like it quite a bit, I find it doesn't come off too easy and you don't end up with lipstick teeth.  The brand I bought is called Cruella (image below).  It sounds so 101 Dalmatians lol.   I also bought some nifty eye shadows and a bronzer.  I've never used a bronzer before but they quite appeal to me.

I started with my hair down but decided I liked it up best.

NARS Lipstick.  It is called a lip pencil but it really acts like a lipstick.  It has got a thicker consistency to it.  Go check it out at your local NARS counter.

Sunday Blossoms

This Sunday we decided to take a walk at our local arboretum.  We were happily surprised with all the lovely blossom trees and flowers in bloom.  Also, I was amazed as we walked through one part of the park and could smell the fragrance of flowers in bloom.  I think I could have sat there all day.

I was having great difficulty finding a top to wear.  I think this is something I'm going to have to try and focus on, some summer cotton or knit tops.  I settled on a 50's blouse and just tried to keep it simple.  I also wore a pair of Juliana earrings.  I don't own any other pieces of Juliana but it is certainly a designer for the future.  Do any of you have any favorite vintage designers?


Sunglasses-vintage 40's Manhattan Vintage Show
Earrings- vintage Juliana
Blouse -vintage union label (thinking 50's)
Jeans-Freddies
Bracelet-vintage
Watch-vintage Elgin, love that it's wind up and still works

Lovely bright tulips!

Capturing some petals on the blossom trees:

Lovely Lilli, Lill Ann

Yes, faithful blog readers, it be that time again....Lilli Ann time..

Here is the 50s glam Lilli Ann suit I mentioned about here.    I've posted a couple of similar ads below that I think are from the same time period, maybe one day I'll find the exact ad.  It certainly is a pleasure to wear and it's actually perfect for the slightly chilly weather lately, although this may change daily.

You can see why I had to hit the sale button pretty fast on this beauty.  All the elements of Lilli Ann charm the nipped waist,  pelum edges to the jacket, and of course I need not mention the tailoring and the speckled wool detail is fabulous.  I love the skirt length.  This suit is in great condition and I don't think it was worn that much.   I'd love to know the history of who these ladies are that wore some of these garments.  I'd also love to hear from you if you are a Lilli Ann collector too.  I know there are quite a few of you out there since Lilli Ann's are high on the commodity list.  I was trying to decide with or without the scarf but I think my inclementation is to go with the scarf.

I thought you'd also get a kick out of this hat.  The feathers imbedded in the top are so interesting and grand, you only see it when you tilt down, pretty cool eh?  I'd say a total "New Look" hat.  I'm really impressed with the way they were able to mold and press these feathers into shape and think about how long it's held up too!

I've been reading The Thoughtful Dresser almost through this book too (still reading the Gloria Swanson autobiography).   Overall, I like the book and an interesting approach to how fashion is a cornerstone to a woman's character.   It's kind of sad how in the part of the book how the "New Look" was looked on as old school and confining by the next generation.  But, I get it as well as it was all about mini's and free flowing maxi dresses for the next generation.   It's also brings up the thought of the Gloria Swanson interview below.  She comes into the interview with a skirt about the length of mine in the pictures and is slammed by Janis Joplin and the Dick Cavatt (because it's the 70's and mini's and maxi's are in) for what she is wearing, watch the YouTube clip and let me know what you think.

Outfit details-
Lilli Ann Suit -50s (1954-55)
Scarf - Hattie Carnegie
Hat- 50's velvet cartwheel hat lined with feathers on the top, no label
Gloves- gifted from a lovely friend
Umbrella -50's Saks embellished with red roses
Earrings -Eisenberg
Shoes- 40's/50's slight peep toe bought as NOS through Etsy
Blouse-vintage shear pintuck

A similar but not quite the same ad from a Lilli Ann  ad 1954 originally listed at Dandelion Vintage.

Lilli Ann ad via Pinterest..

Gloria Swanson interview mentioned above...

Vintage Shopping

I had to be in the city today and it just happened to be on the day that the Manhattan Vintage Show is on.   I haven't been before and I'll certainly go again in the future.   This is a very well run show.  My problem was that I had to bring my children and their attention span is very limited so it was a bit frustrating because I really wanted to spend some time relishing in the details and this wasn't possible.  It's difficult for me to make it into the city and I don't go very often so I wanted to seize this opportunity.  I figured even if I had a quick look around, it would be fun anyways.

I had to be quick and fast with my looking.  As one vendor pointed out, "Boy, you are brave."   I think she was right.  I knew going in my expectations were low as far as me being able to spend quality time there but once inside I really wanted to take everything in and wasn't able too.   My two kids were about as good as any young kids could be but they didn't want to be there and kept asking when are we going and of course arguing with each other lol.  So, I gave up and had to leave but not before getting a couple pair of really great sunglasses, a dress, and a shawl.  They had to be quick purchases without too much thought.  I'm really happy about the sunglasses because this is something that is difficult to buy online.

I got a few pictures in and I hope you all enjoy seeing a small sampling of this event.  It really beat my expectations.  Some very amazing things.  You do have to ask the vendors if you can take pictures as some are pretty weird about it.   I have no idea why.  I asked one lady if I could take a picture of her vintage beaded bag table and she was pretty snotty about it and said something like  "No, you aren't going to take pictures of my bags."  Boy, I would never even think of shopping with a vendor like this!

But, for the most part, most vendors were really nice and friendly.   I wish I could have spent time talking with them but it was a whirlwind just trying to walk through the 90 vendors and get small glimpses of the stock.  There was EVERYTHING thing there that a vintage girl would love.  All eras were represented.  Many, many, many (infinity) amazing things.   So many great dresses and jewelry.

I saw this lovely pink and white bow patterned dress from the 40's and I proceeded to make a cash offer for the dress I was running low on cash funds and they counter offered I think an additional $10. The dress was in the $90 which was a premium anyways.  Then, I said okay and then they started to add sales tax onto the price and it ended up being hardly any deal.  I said all I have is this $90 and thats it.  They had bagged the dress already and they said no.  I thought it was a little weird how they walked out on a sale over around $7-$8.


This was the first display I passed.  I asked the vendor if she minded me taking pictures and she didn't. Nice, nice lady.

I have been wanting a pair of vintage sunglasses and this was a great opportunity to find some.  I found this great pair of 40's sunglasses that I'll share a picture of along with the other things I bought in my next post.

How fun are these glasses?  These are not the ones I purchased but I thought these were awesome.  This is the stall I found my great 40's glasses at and the vendors were really nice and sweet and lived very close by.   They've even wrote a book check it out...

Another really nice vendor where I found a great pair of netted type gloves that fit!

Another eyeglass vendor, I thought this was interesting 1790 sunglasses.

This vendor I found a great 30's dress that I hope to wear to the summer Jazz festival and I also found a lovely shawl.  I thought this vendor was very reasonably priced.  I wish I could have really looked more.  Maybe next time!

Finished my NYC excursion at ToysRus:

My son took this picture upon us entering the show, bless his little 8 year old heart, and I think I'll just leave it as is lol.  I love the slide effect.   If you look too long, you'll see me slide away with the mannequins.

Hodge Podge of Vintage

I was happily surprised to see this baroque style Hattie Carnegie necklace pop up on ebay at a BIN price of $28 shipped.  I'm thinking it's a 40's necklace.  You don't hear much about Hattie Carnegie nowadays but she was a major presence in fashion up through the 50's.   I wrote a small bio on her here.  I have a few things by this designer and I love the style.  I'd love one of her gowns, maybe one day:)  She certainly had a sense of glamour about her.  How could she not?   Vogue thought the same thing and had her on the cover in 1940.  My coat is Lilli Ann.  Purchased for the bargain price of $80 and it is really one of those coats that you can use daily.  I also like that it has the long sleeves.  I'm not quite used to coats with the shorter sleeves.

Also, I recently picked up these gems.  I'd say they add up to a per price of $3 per glove, factoring in a couple pairs that were too small in the batch.  Great deal for unused gloves!  I think I'll offer up the smaller size gloves on the next giveaway:)  It isn't easy to find colored gloves, especially unused.  I'm still on the hunt for a nice pair of brown gloves. Gauntlet gloves are also high on my list.

As some of you know, I like to dance through the pages of vintage fashion magazines that are filled to the brim with glamour.  While doing this, I came upon the name Printzess.  Printzess appears to be a well known brand towards the end of the Edwardian period and into the 40's war years.  I think they were even around in the 60's, although not as big of a presence.  I'm not quite sure of the history of the company.  If anyone knows, please fill me in.  This would be a great company to research.   They were what appears to be a high quality coat maker.  They also made suits as well.   In looking them up, I also discovered they liked to advertise in the way of match books.  Really cool eh?  You can see all sorts of fashionable styles on other matchbooks as well.  There are a couple for sale right now on ebay with different styles.

Here is matchbook that I picked up because I thought it was such a novel item, sure I'll take anyone of these fine ensambles:

In The Family

I thought I'd share with you today a lovely blazer that my aunt knitted for herself at least 35 years ago. She made this blazer based upon a pattern from the 40's.  You can tell that this yarn would have been difficult to work with and require a lot of skill to knit with.  I love the stories behind clothing and my aunt  told me that the cashmere blend came from the Yorkshire Dales and the buttons and gold mesh are from France.  She told me of the times she missed her "pub" outings to finish making this blazer and she had it lined so that it would wear more easily.  It really is a lovely blazer and I'm happy she decided that I should have this.  The beaded blouse is also vintage but I'm not quite sure if I like them together or not.

The USA site of Orla Kiely is having a 50% off sale on Pre-Spring.   Her clothing has such a retro appeal love the dresses.  Stay tuned to see what I splurged on!   I'm just waiting for those latest knit wear  SS13 ensembles to go on sale, love the Flower Spot Half Milano Dress but I'm sure either Kate or Pippa will wear it and forget finding it on sale lol.