Stevie Nicks Remixed

I'm not normally a huge fan of remixes, particularly when it comes to legends such as Stevie Nicks but this one's lovely...

Recently Sold

One of the hardest things about being a vintage trader is selling your favorite pieces. I often find myself hiding my best dresses at the back of the rack so nobody will buy them which obviously makes for excellent business practice! Well, two ladies recently discovered my prized pieces and I now find myself mourning the sale of my two favorite dresses.

My beautiful 1930's silk wedding gown was bought by a goddess who seemed to have time-travelled here from the 1940's. It fit her like a glove and couldn't have gone to a lovelier lady (1940's goddess if you're reading this I'd love to see a picture of you in it). And my favorite dress of all, my 1950's prom dress, was sold to a contemporary dancer who will be wearing it in an independent film production of Cinderella which I can't wait to see.

With the sale of these two beauties I've leant an important lesson - to hide my other favorites even deeper in the rack next time!

Clerkenwell Vintage Fashion Fair

Now that the days are getting colder and darker La Belle Poubelle is retreating indoors to the Clerkenwell Vintage Fashion Fair on Sunday November 14th.

The Old Finsbury Town Hall is jam-packed with the finest vintage wares in London to buy your Christmas party outfits, and the alterations booth allows you to get the perfect fit making it the one-stop shop for the perfect outfit.

And there's one more thing that makes this fair worth visiting....CAKE!  Miss Stephane Ware's Tea Room serves tea and cake whilst serenading you with songs on her ukelele. Shopping, cake and a ukelele, what more could you ask for!

The fair opening times are 11am-4pm. £4 entry

The Urdang

The Old Finsbury Town Hall

Rosebury Avenue

London

EC1R 4RP

New Favorite

This 1930's pink silk dress would make a perfect bridesmaid or even wedding dress.

It has a gorgeous diamanté clasp to the waist and matching detail to the shoulder. Would best fit approx UK size 8

The Ink Spots

If you're looking for some music to listen to whilst cosy at home during the winter period the lovely harmonies of The Ink Spots should do it.

If I Didn't Care is my favorite song of theirs which was also their first hit back in 1939. Incidentally Tennessee Williams played this song on repeat whilst writing A Streetcar Named Desire, so I like to think that if I play it over and over again during my creative endeavours it may help me produce some kind of masterpiece one day....I'll keep you posted on that!


 

New Favorites

Here's another three beautiful pieces from my recent NY haul.

Gorgeous hourglass silhouetted  floral print 50's dress

This lovely pink 60's dress is overlayed with white lace and finished wih its original bow belt. It would make a divine cocktail dress or wedding guest outfit. Approx UK size 16-18  

I love his litle 50's shift dress which comes with a maching jacket. It would make a chic office outfit. Approx UK size 10-12

The Super Talented Tomihiro

I recently worked with a hairstylist called Tomihiro Kono on a recent shoot. As he was making my hair look half decent we got talking about our mutual love for anything vintage and he told me of his hand made, one-of-a-kind head pieces he makes using all kinds of weird and wonderful vintage items he finds. It sounded lovely but I didn't realise just how unbelievably incredible his head pieces were until I checked out his blog. They are simply stunning works of art.

The headpiece pictured is one of my favorites, I can imagine seeing this on the models in a Galliano show. But this is one of Tomi's more tame creations, you really must see his blog to see the full extent of his creativity. http://tomihirokono.blogspot.com/

Miss Mac's Street Style

At last Friday's Portobello I had a visit from my best friend, the very talented singer and actress Miss Mac. Whilst she was rifling through my offerings of the day style snapper Mr Newton, whos pictures regularly feature in the street style sections of Vogue and Elle, practically tripped over himself running through the market to request a photograph of her in my 1920's confirmation dress she had just bought....Well it was probably 40% dress and 60% of her beauty which piqued his interest. Never-the-less here she is looking rather ethereal in the car park under the Westway, as you do!

Pick of the Week

This incredible 1960's Duster Style coat is one of my recent New York finds. I was so excited when I found it as I have never seen a vintage coat as beautiful as this before. It is encrusted with sequins throughout which sparkle as you move  and finished with silver beading to the collar and edges. It is in pristine condition and looks like it has never been worn.

This coat would look great teamed with jeans, a simple t-shit, flats and a slick of red lippy or would make a perfect finish to a wedding guest outfit. It fits a range of shapes and sizes due to the Duster style as there are no seams on the shoulders it hangs nicely irrelevant of your shoulder size. But I would say it would best flatter women who are around sizes UK 12-16. I wish it fitted me otherwise there's no way I would be selling it, it's a real show stopper and would effortlessly glam up any outfit.





New Favorite (for me!)

Look what turned up to cheer my day up this morning!

This dress is possibly one of the most beautiful 1920's gowns I've ever seen. The photo just doesn't do it justice. It has the most beautiful details, from the chantilly lace neckline which continues around the back to the delicate little flutter sleeves. The black crepe chiffon, lace and original belt are all in pristine condition throughout which is very rare for such an old delicate dress. And the way it drapes on the body is just amazing, dresses just aren't made this way anymore. Infact it's so perfect that I'm keeping it for myself. Sorry!

July Flame

I discovered this lovely lady a while ago on my favorite radio station Resonance fm. I can't reccomend this station enough to those Londoners who, like me aren't fans of modern mainstream fads and the never ending plethora of generic 'The......' bands. In between bizarre interviews and physics lectures weird and wonderful music discoveries can be made, which often ends up with me swerving the car to a dramatic halt in order to write down the name of the latest artist to give me goosebumps.

Every single song on the album July Flame is simply stunning so I couldn't narrow it down to one. Here's a couple of my favorites....

The Vintage Emporium

I was wandering down Brick Lane on Sunday afternoon when I stumbled across possibly the best vintage shop in London!

The Vintage Emporium is any vintage lovers paradise. The shop is jam-packed full of the most beautiful pre-50's clothing and collectables with not a single 80's monstrosity in sight! These people really know their vintage and have obviously painstakingly hand-picked only the finest pieces available. There's no rumaging through rubbish to find that one gem as everything you see makes you gasp.

But what makes this shop even more unique is the cosy tea room  upstairs which morph's into an events space at night. Open mic nights are very popular and Marques Toliver is known to make an occasional appearence which makes it even more worth a visit.

I can't reccomend this place enough. Even if you're not a vintage fan a visit to the tea room alone is a must. After a long day trawling Brick Lane and Spitalfields it's the perfect place to unwind with some tea and cake.

The Vintage Emporium

14 Bacon Street

London

E1 6CF

Floaty Delicates

I know it's raining cats and dogs here in the England and the sensible option would be to stock up on winter attire but I have personally never bought on season and I have an almost magnetic force propelling me towards anything delicate and floaty. So here are two of my favourite delicate dresses new in stock. I believe one would look rather fabulous flouncing around on a beach during your winter holidays in one of these!

My best friend actually has first dibs on this gorgeous slip.

The transparent lace panels would need to be layered with a nude coloured bandeau slip or just slip it on top of a bikini. Would fit between a UK size 6-12.

I just think this rare 1930's crochet and silk georgette slip is simply divine, it's so feminine and delicate. It would fit a range of sizes from a UK size 6 for a loose look to a size 14 for a more fitted look.

The waist can be cinched in with a changeable ribbon or belt





My Pick of the Week



This 1930's velvet, apricot dress was previously owned by an American showgirl.
It needs a lot of tlc as the velvet on the torso area is very thin and delicate and there are a number of tears around the neckline which need mending, but it doesn't detract from the beaty of the dress. Any vintage collector can appreciate how unique this dress is.



Just look at the gorgeous diamante back detail!



The dress would best fit a UK size 10.



My (not so) Secret NY Vintage Hotspots

Hell's Kitchen flea market

I've just returned from a quick trip accross the pond with a suitcase bursting at the seams full of amazing new pieces which I'll be posting on here soon.

Now, I NEVER give away my sourcing secrets, but as NY is almost 3000 miles away from me I suppose I'll let you in on a couple. So, for any of you vintage lovers heading to NY you should make sure to visit my favorite spot, the Hell's Kitchen flea market on 39th x 9th. This market is a vintage lovers delight. It's so great that I spent my entire budget here before I could go anywhere else! Not only do they have amazing clothing, they also have the most gorgeous homewares and bric-a-brac which thankfully I couldn't fit into my suitcase otherwise I would have spent a small fortune.

If you're slightly more restrained than me and manage to save money to go elsewhere, be sure to visit the plethora of flea markets throughout Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Flea http://www.brooklynflea.com/ is particularly notable. And if you stroll down Bedford Avenue, which is worth a visit in itself,  you'll see signs here and there directing you to various different fleas. There really are far too many others to mention throughout Brooklyn and I have to keep some of my secrets to myself! But if you have a wander you're bound to stumble accross a treasure trove along the way. Just be prepared to blow the budget though, the vintage delights in NY are far too good not to!

Marques Toliver

Walking down Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn today, above the bustle and din of the city I heard the most beautiful violin playing. I followed my ears to find this rather dashing chap busking on the street. I've certainly not heard a busker like this in the UK, this guy is truly talented and different. I hope he goes far.

70's Maxi Dresses

Blue print cotton maxi, very BIBA-esque. Approx size 8-10.

 Black long-sleeve maxi. Approx size 10-12.

Very Marilyn Monroe. Approx size 12.

The Legendary Mata Hari

I find Mata Hari hugely inspirational, not only stylistically but also for her joie de vivre. I have desperately wanted a picture of her for years but am yet to find the perfect one.

Mata Hari was of course the self-styled exotic dancer and most notorious female spy in history who was in fact probably not a spy at all!

Due to a tangled web of love affairs, jealousy and prejudice against a highly educated, independently wealthy and single woman who chose to ''Satisfy all my caprices'', Mata Hari was arrested in Paris on charges of espionage without a single piece of evidence against her. On October 15th 1917 she was excecuted by firing squad choosing not to be bound or blindfolded, bravely facing her executioners with complete calm.

Mata Hari travelled wherever and whenever her heart desired, spending money with abandon and slept with whomever she pleased, although often not just for pleasure. Some of Mata Hari's choices may have been questionable, but it could be argued that she merely seized the only opportunities available at that time in history for her independence and freedom, allowing her to ''live like a colourful butterfly in the sun''. And that she certainly did!

Stevie's Magic

Fleetwood Mac are another sound from my childhood. The Tango in the Night album was always on loop for every single car journey and even to this day I still go into a trance-like state whenever I hear their music. God forbid if they ever come on the radio now that I'm the one at the wheel!

Although I love all of their songs, it is Stevie Nicks' beautiful voice that always gets me. Here's a little bit of Stevie's magic....

New Favorites

Delicate 1920's confirmation dress. Approximate size 6.

1970's Beaded chiffon flutter top. One size.

The most beautiful 1930's belt I've ever seen. 

1930's Lace dress with original belt. Approx size 10.

70's Coney fur coat. Approx size 10-12.

1940's Snakeskin bag.

Vintage Wedding Gowns

1930's Silk bias-cut wedding gown. Approximate size 10-12.

The gown is cinched in with the original belt and has lovely pleat detailing on the chest.

The sleeves drape around the shoulders and come together to form the back detail

1940's wedding gown with 40's leg-o-mutton arms. Approximate size 12.

The Champagne coloured, textured silk is delicately pleated from waist to shoulder

This 1950's prom/wedding gown is amazing, the picture really doesn't do it any justice. I have never seen another one even compare to this one. It has 6 layers of perfect tulle and a sequin embelished boned top. Approximate size 6.

I Love Múm

A little dose of escapism...

Lovely Day Dresses

I love this delicate 1930's day dress. It looks best on a size 12 - 14 lady with a bust. 

Unique collar detail with studs to close the center lace column. Can be worn open or closed.

The most beautifully detailed 1930's day dress. It doesn't fit my mannequin so you can't fully appreciate how lovely it looks on. It looks best on a size 12 hourglass shaped lady.

The knee-length dress comes with its original matching belt. Would make a lovely wedding guest outfit.

Turquoise velvet knee-length dress with ruched shoulder detail. Looks elegant dressed down with pumps and a belt and easily translates into evening wear.

Back detail

New Additions

1950's Kimono.

1930's Bias cut gown with original underslip

1940's Silver Fox fur

The Wonderful Miss Bush

I simply love, adore and secretly desire to be Kate Bush. No one compares to the genius that is Kate (bar Morrissey but more on that another time).

I grew up listening to Kate Bush and still feel the same way now as I did then when I hear her songs, she transports you to another place where you can't help but daydream. I love the lyricism in Kate's music which urges you to escape. She doesn't sing about love and heartbreak like most others, she is a storyteller. From an entire B side apparently inspired by the Fastnet yaghting disaster and Celtic mythology of The 9th Wave to 'Breathing' the song about a nuclear Holocaust written from a foetus' perspective, there's no lazy song writing here.

My favourite story told by Kate is that of her interpretation of 'A Book of Dreams'.  In this song she tells the true story of the inventor of the cloudbuster and Orgone accumulator sung through the eyes of his son who still dreams of living at home in Organon after his Father is taken away and all of his work is destroyed  by the govenernment. I remember staring at the picture of Kate Cloudbusting on her album cover in awe as a child wondering what the strange contraption was. If it wasn't for Kate Bush I probably would never have known about Cloudbusting and the fascinating story behind it .

But my favourite song of all time still remains 'Running up that Hill'. I'm not a fan of remakes but due to the melodic and lyrical genius of this song I'm yet to hear a bad cover no matter how terrible the artist. The song is so beautiful it's simply impossible to ruin. Well almost. See Kiki and Herb's attempt at destroying it, they do a very good job but I can still hear Kate's beauty within.