I thread up my needle and then...

...gonna sew my soul back together again.

Well, I can't say my soul requires any mending, but I do have a big pile of clothes in need of attention.

 

 

 

 

And since the skies changed from blue to grey this week, I took advantage of a break in the sunshine to tackle some mending and amending.

 

First up;

 

 

this 1970s homemade dress and a 1960s knit top.

I did try to fix the dress by replacing the spent elastic at the top and the waist, but the shape was unflattering and I don't like spaghetti straps, so it became a skirt instead. 

 

It has an elasticated waist, but I added darts front and back to stop Pouffy Arse/Belly Syndrome, and made the A line shape a little narrower. I love the faux patchwork print, it was too good to remain unworn.

The top was virtually as wide as it was long, so I reduced the boxiness by taking in the sides and trimming off the excess.

 

Et voila!

Next;

 

I have been intending to shorten this 1970s nautical print skirt since I bought (in Brick Lane, London, about 3 years ago. I know - for heaven's sake!) It only took a few minutes to sort it out.

 

 

 

 

This little striped top is modern, but has a 1970s vibe going on; it must be the elasticated ruching which reminds me so much of my childhood. It had a Knockers Ahoy effect too, which can't be a bad thing, and it goes with everything. 

50p well spent.

 

Left-right clockwise;

 

1960-70s maxi - a fallen-down hem fixed.

1960s shift dress - I let down the large hem to make the length more comfortable for me.

Austin Reed silk dress - the lining was annoyingly long and showed underneath the dress; now taken up and invisible.

1970s dress - buttons replaced and hem fixed.

 

Darling Helga sent me this 1970s maxi dress ages ago, and I could do with her magnificent boobage to fill the bodice out properly. 

As it is, I took it in so it fits more snugly.

 

And Clare (Miss Simmonds) gave me this silk-blend Monsoon cheongsam about a million years ago, but it was too big.

Nothing deeper darts couldn't fix; it's now a much better fit.

And there are my delicious 1970s platform shoes, which actually aren't as hard to walk in as I thought. I might not be able to dance till dawn in them, but I could definitely do a night out. Another well-spent £1.49!

 

I had completely forgotten I had the gold Charles Jourdan espadrilles.

Shameful. 

Another charity shop find, of course (£2.99), and getting some wear now I have rediscovered them. 

 

So that's been productive, and I'm feeling inspired to continue. There are more unworn treasures waiting to be altered to fit.

I'm currently puzzling over taking in the bodice, and replacing but shortening the sleeves of a 1970s maxi dress; and I'm wondering whether I can add panels down the side of a wiggle dress to make it bigger.

It's taxing my brain and my skills, but I am really enjoying the challenge!

 

What about you? Any making, mending or refashioning going on at your house?

 

xxxx

Lavender's blue

Ahhh, what a lovely first week of the school holidays; the delight of waking up naturally, rather than at the beep of an alarm, cannot be underestimated.

Small pleasures.

Several bags of clothes have been donated to the nearest charity shop; the kids took a bag each, I was laden with three, and we tottered along the road in a line like Mother Duck with her ducklings, with varying degrees of complaint.

I was too hot, so I complained the most.

I find myself accepting all offers of kids' clothes, and as a result rarely have to buy anything for Owen and Nina (although I do for Claudia, as sadly we don't have a handy teenager passing things on to her).

This is great, of course, but it does mean I end up with far too much, more than they could possibly wear, so a judicious edit was overdue.
 

I really appreciate the circuit of children's clothes which goes on amongst my friends, and the fact that my kids have no problems at all with wearing secondhand clothing. I can't imagine the prohibitive cost of dressing three kids at normal retail prices.

It's always a risk to stop and have a look around the charity shop to which you have just donated...

Especially this particular Barnardo's, where everything is priced at £1.49.

Couldn't resist!

I assumed they were new (there is no label), but underneath they are stamped Made in England. 

Nothing cheap and cheerful is made in England these days, so could they be vintage? It doesn't much matter, I just love them - can't walk far in them, but who cares?

The darker patch on the platform is because I had just sponged off a patch of pink glitter. If that doesn't say 1970s glam rock, I don't know what does.

1970s Debroyal maxi skirt - vintage fair

Top, shoes, bangles, flower, and blue beaded necklace - charity shopped

Turquoise heart necklace - gift

Floral reversible tote bag - made by me

I can't claim that I thought very carefully about the combination of this new-to-me top (yes, also £1.49) and the 1970s maxi skirt, but in the event, I find I like the dainty floral of the top against the bold splashy print of the skirt. 

 

Same colours too.

The cats are loving the warm weather, and have become real outdoor creatures. Jess always was, she roams far and wide (look at her trotting along, so purposeful) but Min and Willow are homebodies and usually like to be in the house. Not any more, they are all out enjoying the sunshine. Charlie likes to stretch out on the table, doing his Dead Cat impression.

 

Tomorrow, I'll be having a browse around the Sheffield Vintage Fair, and I'm also participating in a focus group run by the University of Sheffield and the University of the Arts London about shopping for fashion and purchasing energy . 

Apparently alternative viewpoints are welcome, which is just as well; I know nothing about current fashion, and my purchasing energy is limited, and directed at vintage sellers and charity shops. But I'll let you know how the discussion goes!

Have a great weekend!

Edited to add - I'm taking my hair flower over to Judith's Hat Attack!

xxxx

Rock-a-hula Baby

    

Have you seen darling Vix's post, where she challenges those of us experiencing what seems to be an endless winter to throw off the woollies, the fur and the boots, and wear something inappropriate?

My lovely friend Tania and my favourite supermodel Tamera have both done it.

So have I!

OK, so I didn't follow the instruction about floatiness, but I thought a vintage Hawaiian frock would flick a cheeky two-fingered salute to the wintry conditions which have continued to engulf the UK.

And I can tell you that leopard print faux suede t-bars were definitely inappropriate footwear, my feet got soaked in the snow. How I suffer, just for you.

Flowers and feathers? Yep, and not a woolly hat in sight. 

Ooh, a little bit of sunshine? Yes please!

Love the scooped back of this dress and the extra fabric in the pleat detail.

And because it seemed like a good enough way to spend Good Friday, I had a play around with my hair (I have limited skills in this area) and the new effects on PicMonkey (easier to manage than hair).

It's my natural radiance.

Littlest liked it, so she got the same treatment!

Don't let the angelic look fool you. She can be a holy terror. 

 

No doubt my mother would say the same of me.

1950-60s Hawaiian dress (flea market, worth every penny of the £1.70 I paid for it)

Shoes, feather fascinator, wool shawl, 1950s carpet bag, 1980s cats' eye sunglasses - Ebay

Bangles - charity shopped

Tights and chartreuse flower - retail

Orange flower - gift from fabulous Melanie Coconut

The camellia has buds, and the mini daffs are surviving the snow.

Spring will come. Eventually.

I am fondly imagining that I look a wee bit like the beautiful Brodie of Camelias and Crinolines in these photos. 

Maybe Brodie's mum...

Or older sister, let's settle on that.

Anyway, she's gorgeous and she sews like a dream and you should check out her blog if you haven't already.

Now banish the winter blues with a burst of hula-ing Hawaiian fun from Elvis.

Go on, really move the grass around!

   xxxx

        

   

Jumbles, and muddles, and frocks, oh my!

                                   The jumble sale I went to on Saturday morning was an odd affair.

I have to say it was a very poor effort - inconsistent pricing, not much stuff, but the advantage was that it had been so badly advertised, there weren't many people there, and most of those who were, I knew, which made for a sociable time of it! See, I looked for the silver lining and there it was.

That rather set the tone for the day in terms of bargain-hunting. I had confidently predicted we would come home from our charity shopping trip with bags a-bulging... But I only bought a pair of shoes, and Patsy just one pair of trousers. Oh well, sometimes that's just how it goes.

                       The scarves in the photo below were jumble finds, the only vintage clothing items there.

                                                              

Office red leather 40s-style shoes, hardly worn, for £7 in Oxfam. Funnily enough, I bumped into the friend who had had her colours done and now refuses to wear anything which isn't in the Autumn (or is it Spring? I forget. Because I don't care) colour palette. She said these shoes are hideous.

She wears Per Una. I need say no more (at least for UK residents and shoppers. For my lovely international beauties, how to describe the Per Una range at Marks and Spencers? Lots of knitwear, lots of pastels/"soft" shades, lots of floaty-flowiness, corduroy, embellishment - in short, what my mum would think was "fashionable". But she's 86... Ooh, I'm being a real bitch! It may have improved, I haven't been in an M&S for ages.)

                                    Anyway, I bought the hideous shoes for my hideous trotters, OK?

                           Patsy and I having coffee. She bought her zebra sweater when we went to London.

After an afternoon of charity shops, the kids needed a brief let-off-steam session in the Botanical Gardens before tea.

                                                                    Poses copied from our girls...

                                                          Then on to Zeugma's Turkish restaurant.

If you are wondering who that pale and ghostly figure is on the right, it's the seldom-seen Boy Child. He was winkled out from his all-but-permanent attachment to the XBox for the occasion. It's a miracle.

                                                    Note Eldest LB taking the piss out of me.

Speaking of which, I feel I should just clarify that expression, mainly for my American readers. Taking the piss is entirely different from taking/having a piss. I laughed until I nearly did the latter at Terri's comment on my last post. I think she was worried that I would be wantonly urinating in my lovely frock. No no! To take the piss means to joke, tease or mock. Among friends, it's a harmless, amusing activity, though it can have a harder edge, meaning to criticise, fool, or deliberately try to undermine or ridicule.

Patsy and I have a relationship which is sturdy and longstanding enough to withstand much piss-taking. I have never taken a piss with her, near her, or on her. For which we can all be very grateful.


                               Having sorted out that linguistic muddle, let me show you a new frock.

                                              Your thoughts, ladies? I do love it, but I'm just not sure it's me.

Orange? Yes. With green? Yes. 3/4 sleeves? Yes. Square neckline. Yes yes yes. So is it the embroidery that's too girly, or the scalloped hem, or the flowers, or what? Is it.... a bit Per Una? Nooooooooooooooo!

                                       That's better, all my dresses look decent with my trusty denim jacket.

But help me - what can I do to de-girlify this dress? Wear boots? Or is it just not me? And yes, I know it's weird that I am asking a group of women who have never met me to tell me whether something is me or not. But I trust your judgements, and you've seen my style, so I'm interested to hear your thoughts.

                                        I look forward to hearing from you. Just don't take the piss, alright?
                                                                                    xxxxxx

Odds, sods, bits and pieces

                                     I've found all sorts of odds and sods in charity shops this week.

Some of my blogging friends have been struggling to find much in their charity shops of late, and pricing remains an issue.

Here in Sheffield, there is a definite hierarchy, with Oxfam usually the most expensive. But it also depends where the shops are. Oxfam in a posh area charges more than Oxfam in a less well-to-do neighbourhood. I don't mind particularly, it didn't take long to work out that they clearly have a policy of targeting their prices at the local clientele, and I'm happy to hit the cheaper areas!

Sheffield's hospice shops, St. Luke's, are my favourites. I have visited 3 out of the 4 this week and found treasures in each one, at reasonable prices.

                                                      
                                                              1970s (I think) gold tone brooch, 49p.

                                                          
                                                                      Large fringed shawl/throw, £2

                          
                                       Gorgeous 1950s souvenir South of France/Monaco silk scarf, £2.50

     Fabulous 1960s crimplene frock still with its original tags, £5. It's sadly too big for me so it's destined for Ebay.

                                   

 
                                                Super-kitsch 1960s Dalmatian salt and pepper set, £1.50 

                                                               3 unused 1970s linen tea towels, £1

 

1972 children's hardback book, "366 Goodnight Stories" (perfect for this leap year then) with wonderful illustrations throughout, 30p                                      

     

My biggest spend (about my limit) at £10 - but how could I leave them behind? A pair of 1970s claret-coloured leather stack-heeled slingbacks. They are a Ladies Shoe of Quality, you know.

Fabric remnants, £1 each. The tapestry fabric (top left) is going to be a tote bag with the gold fabric (top left) as a lining. The green floral cotton is already a skirt with a zip from which someone has removed the waistband; I might reinstate it or make it into something else, who knows? And the 50s print (bottom left) just caught my eye, no plans for it yet. Don't hold your breath for these projects though, I am painfully slow....

                                                                   So - I'm happy with that.

I'll put a photo of what I wore yesterday, though I wasn't going to bother as it was dark and the quality is even worse than usual. Oh well... Yes, I was twirling. Sometimes you've just got to, and wearing a fringed shawl is one of those times!

                                 Bit of Stevie Nicks going on, I like to think - wouldn't you love to love her?!


                                             Hope the charity shopping gods smile on you all soon.

                                                                                  xxxxxx