SUMMER OPEN GARDENS

We enjoyed a beautiful day at the annual Open Gardens event in our village this weekend. It was so lovely to see everyone out and about exploring the fabulous gardens. Cream teas and other refreshments were served in the church and we couldn't have asked for better weather.

It's a village tradition to create scarecrows each year and this time round the theme was well-known characters from children's books. Among the highlights was Harry Potter on his broomstick playing Quidditch and The Tailor of Gloucester, complete with sewing machine and busy little mice.

All in all, a very special village day...

 A village affair: Magnificent Gunnera, triffid-like aeoniums and vintage
troughs, interspersed with storybook scarecrows

WANSTEAD VINTAGE FASHION & BROCANTE FAIR

It's that time of year again! 

We're heading off to East London on Saturday for the Wanstead Vintage Fashion & Brocante Fair. Celebrating its third anniversary, the event keeps going from strength to strength and is well-known as the go-to for genuine vintage wares. 

I've got a few things on my shopping list and I'm looking forward to seeing Graham Leonard, of Green Parrot Collectables, and his display of vintage perfume bottles. He's at the fair for the first time and he has a fantastic collection of flacons and factices, plus an encyclopedic knowledge of the history of the bottles and fragrances. I'll post a piece on him shortly, as I had the pleasure of visiting him at his HQ with Cary Whitley, who organises the Wanstead Vintage Fashion & Brocante Fair. I thought I had a lot of perfume bottles, until I saw Graham's line-up, not to mention his wife's collection of miniature perfume bottles...  

If you haven't been to the fair before, then here are a few image to wet your appetite from the this Spring's show. Hopefully see you there...

Fabulous vintage hat box from Lock & Co in St James'

DORIAN LEIGH INSPIRES AMANDA WAKELEY'S SPRING/SUMMER 2013 COLLECTION

Just finished a post for my Harper's Bazaar Vintage Spy blog. It explores the influence of the legendary model, Dorian Leigh, on fashion designer Amanda Wakeley's current collection. A great example of the synergy often found between vintage and contemporary styling. 

According to Amanda, it all started with a feeling for hourglass waists, feminine tailoring, Couture draping and the silhouettes of the Golden Age of Fashion in the 40's and 50's. Images of the elegant Dorian Leigh, often credited as the original super model, are the backbone of Amanda's wonderful mood board (below) for S/S 2013. The shots of Dorian Leigh include editorial and advertising images for Harper's Bazaar US, Time and American Vogue, shot by several of the leading photographers of the era, such as Richard Avedon and Irving Penn. These sit happily alongside a montage of tear sheets of modern day muses, including Kate Moss, plus striking close-ups of pleating and other expert atelier techniques. Who wouldn't be inspired?

The Amanda Wakeley Spring/Summer 2013 mood board 

  

MARY JANE BAXTER - THE MODERN GIRL'S GUIDE TO HATMAKING

Milliner and author Mary Jane Baxter's inspiring new book, The Modern Girl's Guide to Hatmaking (Kyle Books), features a wealth of vintage millinery projects for the novice hatter. Her down-to-earth approach to creating jaunty confections, often using hand-me-down hats, is enchanting and she is quick to stress that you don't need expensive tools and materials to create and customise hat designs. 

Mary Jane's mission is to get Britain hatting again! She has honed her skills as a milliner by researching the construction, fabrics and trims of vintage hats, and uses these timeless millinery techniques to create her own hats and headdresses. The easy-to-follow projects featured in the book are perfect for anyone wanting to personalise a much-loved hat or for creating a design from scratch. Many of the projects can also be adapted for weddings and other special occasions.

With a collection of over 15 vintage hats, Mary Jane finds it hard to pick a favourite, 'I’ve got a 1950’s headpiece that’s covered in artificial flowers in various pastel colours. It’s just so over-the-top!' she explains, 'I made my own ‘modern-with-a-vintage-twist’ version covered in tiny white lilies and when I wore it, I was stopped over and over again by people wanting to talk about it. It seemed to spark all sorts of memories!

'I’m also a big fan of the Vintage Millinery and Fashion section at the London College of Fashion library,' continues Mary Jane, 'There’s a wonderful selection of old hatmaking books there – and I find them fascinating. I love reading about the way hats used to be constructed. Many of the methods used in bygone years have fallen out of favour and these books are a fabulous resource.'

Mary Jane's own book is beautifully illustrated with many images featuring her collection of vintage hatstands and hats, plus photographs of her hatmaking projects. I love the image of the wooden hatstands, below, topped with beautiful 40's and 50's hats. Shot against a floral picture painted by Mary Jane's father, the image perfectly sums-up the ethos of this unique book.

You can read my Vintage Spy Q&A with Mary Jane for Harper's Bazaar at: 
http://www.harpersbazaar.co.uk/blogs/vintage-milliners-tale_

Photography by Claire Richardson

Divine inspiration; highly collectable vintage hatstands with
covetable 40's and 50's hats

SAINSBURY'S MAGAZINE - SWITCHED ON!

Sainsbury's Magazine has introduced a new page to its editorial mix, focusing on favourite websites, downloads and apps. Editor Helena Lang, who I worked with at 19 Magazine, very kindly included my blog on the inaugural page in the May issue. 

A big thank-you to Helena and her team for their kind words!

 

COUNTRY LIVING SPRING 2013 FAIR

If you love unique pieces from the past, then the Country Living Fairs are the shows for you. They are always a great hunting ground for inspiring vintage treasures, plus finishing touches such as ribbons and trims, and there are bargains to be found. The recent Country Living Spring Fair proved rich pickings, and a friend and I unearthed some beautiful French display mannequins from the 1900's and a couple of gorgeous hatboxes from the 20's. 

We always make a beeline for Garden Brocante and we also came across Plum & Ashby. We  fell in love with their gorgeous leather pouches and bags, discretely embellished with a Fox Terrier, depicting the company's mascot Bertie. The bags and homeware are new, but with a quirky twist. Check them out.

The stock at the fair constantly evolves, so it's also worth returning to favourite exhibitors throughout the show, just in case something wonderful has emerged from the stockroom. If we hadn't backtracked, I would have missed out on a couple of lovely 1940's paintings on the Garden Brocante stand, which weren't there first time round. 

Located at the Business Design Centre in Islington, the Spring Fair is just around the corner from the vintage market and the eclectic line-up of independent shops, cafes and other delights of Camden Passage. So its a great day-out. 

The Country Living Christmas Fair (30/10-3/11) is at the Business Design Centre in Islington and also takes place in Glasgow (21-24/11) and Harrogate (28/11-1/12). 

Here are some of my favourite images from the Spring Fair...

Vintage 1940's Novita Liane plaster mannequin for Christian Dior 
at Garden Art & Design 

1930's plaster display bust by Lube Paris at Garden Art & Design -
also a regular exhibitor at The Chelsea Flower Show

CHANEL SPRING/SUMMER 2013 EYEWEAR COLLECTION

Chanel has chosen the French model and actress, Laetitia Casta, to front the campaign for its Spring/Summer 2013 eyewear collection. Shot and styled by Chanel's Creative Director, Karl Lagerfeld, the black and white images show Casta wearing a selection of  frames from the new eyewear range, plus accessories featuring iconic Chanel touches, such as full-blown camellias and woven leather gilt chains. The wide transparent Perspex hats, first seen on the catwalk at Chanel's Spring/Summer 2013 ready-to-wear show, add a halo of light to the polished and futuristic imagery.

The legendary Coco Chanel wore cat eye glasses and Lagerfeld is rarely seen without his trademark black sunglasses, so eyewear is definitely part of the fashion house's DNA. For this season, Lagerfeld has embellished his bold cat eye and butterfly silhouettes with chains, pearls and scrolls of metallic lace. Square, oval and rectangular shapes are also available in both glasses and sunglasses and the frames showcase signature Chanel symbols, such as the double C and rich quilting. Available in classic tortoiseshell and black, the designs also come in a rich colour palette of summer brights. These are definitely glasses to save-up for!

Casta, who was the face of Chanel's Allure and recently appeared in Arbitrage with Richard Gere and Do Not Disturb with Charlotte Gainsbourg, stars in a short video of the shoot. She has also modelled couture and ready-to-wear for Chanel's catwalk extravaganzas on numerous occasions and appeared in Karl Lagerfeld and Carine Roitfeld's Little Black Jacket book and exhibition of photographs, currently on show at the late baroque Rotonda della Besana in Milan, until April 20th.

Enjoy the latest Chanel eyewear collection video, plus a selection of Lagerfeld's images and a trio of back stage shots, below.