Beautiful Vintage Fashion Photography

 A beautiful slide show of elegant and refined vintage fashion by Norman Parkinson.
This just mellows out my day!

A Necklace Good Enough to Eat

All I can say about this 1950s vintage costume necklace is - scrumptious!

It's a double strand of pink and cream bubble gum. The colors are so mouthwatering I want to pluck a bauble off the strand and see if the taste matches the shade.

Now available $26

Veronica

WELK-come to Family Hour

Would you be surprised if I told you that I loved watching the Lawrence Welk show?  No, I'm not a grandmother, nor the age of one.  Back in the 1970's, my family and I gathered on the sofa to watch the hourly show that was full of "champagne music".  It was such a pure, family-oriented show with great examples of singing, dancing and instrumental playing. 

If you watch it today, you might recoil from the rather scary hairstyles, the heavy make-up and strangely matching costumes.  The women were often dressed in chiffon and feathers.  The men looked somewhat dashing in their ruffled tuxedo shirts and jumbo sized shirt collars.  Powder blue was probably the most popular of all the colours both in clothing and make-up.  Because the show aired for more than 31 years, the audience got to see such a array of fashions from the early 1950's to the 1970's. 

The group seemed like a really loving family.  The music was very smooth and easy listening.  Like the Carol Burnett Show, this television program brought together our multi-generational family to watch something that exuded innocence and fun.

My husband thinks it's scary that I still remember the show's closing tune.  I still hum it in the shower.  Maybe I am supposed to be from another decade!  "Good night, sleep tight, and pleasant dreams to you,

Adios, au revoir, auf wiedersehen to you,

And now, 'til we meet again,

Adios, au revoir, auf wiedersehen...."

Have a look at all the "vonnerful" women of the Lawrence Welk show...

 

  

Look at all that's vonnerful, vonnerful...

Classic Episodes of the Lawrence Welk Show: Volumes 1-4

Vintage 60'ss Cyan LACE Chiffon POUF SLEEVE Maxi Gown Dress L



Vintage 70's Ruffled Tuxedo Mens Dress Shirt Blue 15 1/2 34





Jumping The Shark

Photo Source: Wikipedia

When I was a teenager, one of my favourite television shows was Happy Days.  This homage to the 1950’s was funny and cheesy and it produced a lot of iconic characters like “The Fonz” and “Potsie” and made famous the often-said expression – “Sit on it!”

 “Jumping the shark” is an idiom, which originated from Happy Days.  During one of its episodes, the Fonz actually water-skied on a ramp and jumped over a shark.  This marked the climax or high point of the series.  Now this phrase is used freely by the television industry to describe a show that has reached its peak and become desperate for a ratings boost.

The Fonz was at first forbidden to wear his leather jacket.  The producers thought that it represented too much gang association for a squeaky clean family show.  But the jacket became an integral part of the character’s persona and a sign of things to come.  The 1950’s were “jumping the shark” because that decade marked the peak of conservatism and old style family values.  The next 2 decades led the way to freer, more turbulent times of the sexual revolution, more revealing fashions and bohemian lifestyles.

Do we miss the sock hops, drive-in burger joints and poodle skirts?  I think that a part of us will always long for that seemingly simpler way of life.  And if we forget, we can always Leave it to Beaver to remind us of those times.

Vintage 1950s Wool Plaid Skirt with Floral Detail

 Kay Windsor Cotton 1950s Swing Dress

1950s Poodle Skirt

1950s Cable Knit Sweater

1950s Pink Cardigan

Taking Time to Smell the Roses

I live on a lovely lane by the sea, and on my morning walk I pass by a home with a beautiful rose garden. Roses fill this yard and the owners have made sure to plant a row of roses right by the fence so people walking by can appreciate the smell. In this yard I see crimson, peach, yellow and white and some colors are divine mixes of two or three.

This made me think today about our love affair with the rose, and how it has been translated into fashion. Some roses are bright and bold and others are dainty and delicate. There are tea roses, cabbage roses and wild roses. We've managed to represent just about every type of rose into the garments we've worn over the years and I've selected a few lovely rose adorned pieces of vintage fashion for your enjoyment from members of the Vintage Fashion Guild. http://www.vintagefashionguild.org.

For cocktails in a swanky bar, we have this divine late 1950's rose print hourglass cocktail dress in a delicious mix of greens at The Vintage Vortex, http://www.thevintagevortex.com. She is in near mint condition and a definite head-turner!

If the beach is your destination, check out this adorable 1960's black and white stylized cabbage rose print swimsuit, available at http://www.propervintageclothing.com.

When dancing is on the agenda, this sultry 1940's black rose cocktail dress from Posh Girl Vintage will have you doing the Tango in high vintage style! http://www.poshgirlvintage.com.

A night on the town in this stunning 1950's rose creation from DeniseBrain Vintage will earn you a basket full of compliments! http://www.denisebrain.com

And finally, you will be a vision in white chiffon as you walk down the aisle in is rose adorned confection on your special day! Exquisite 1950's ruffled wedding dress available at http://www.coutureallure.com

Style Icon: Grace Kelly Exhibit

Everyone knows who she is. One only needs to whisper her first name and an image of cultivated beauty arises. An exquisite style and integral woman of Hollywood, she embodied elegance and well fulfilled her namesake.

I am speaking of course, of the charming Grace Kelly.

The Victoria & Albert Museum in London is exhibiting a spectactular collection of her wardrobe. Dresses from some of her movies, High Society and Rear Window, as well as couture gowns from her own personal wardrobe. Her favorite designers were Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy and Yves St Laurent.

This exhibition explores, through her surviving clothes, the story of her transformation from Hollywood actress to a princess of one of Europe's oldest royal families. Examining her enduring appeal as a style icon, it features her film costumes, the much-publicised dresses made for her trousseau and wedding, and the French haute couture - a different kind of costume - that she required for her subsequent role as Princess of Monaco.

I hear the ash cloud has dispersed enough to allow air travel again in Europe. I would go just to see this!