What I Actually Wore #0078

Serial #: 0077
Date: 01/08/2012
Weather: 15°C, a cold day with fitful sunshine
Time Allowed: 15 minutes

It took me about 10–15mins to get dressed this morning, what with searching frantically for my ‘Sweet Cherry’ sky-blue cashmere jumper, only to find (when I finally located it in my darning pile) that it didn't suit the skirt at all, being loose and floppy. So I tried on a strawberry pink silk and wool knit, and that didn't look right either. Finally I went with the layering option.

It wasn’t going to be warm, I knew, so I wore a striped long-sleeved tee from Free People underneath an old well-loved top – a diagonally-striped blouse from one of my favourite Aussie labels, Veronika Maine. The double layer turned out not to be nearly enough, so it was lucky my new ‘Sunset Sails’ cardigan arrived in the post that day. It is so soft, so cosy, so comfy! All the girls at work admired the new arrival. The cardigan is by Anthropologie which I purchased on eBay. I love this label, but it is pricey, so I shop for older season stock in eBay stores at a much-reduced rate.

The 1940s wool felt hat was also purchased online on eBay (the seller has a store, The Mad Hat Lady, on Etsy now), and I absolutely adore its little bows, the cutouts at the back, and the robins egg shade of blue. The colour is such a lovely contrast with the orange stripes, and the shape creates such a lovely silhouette. (Looking at these photos nearly a year on makes me excited that it is autumn and time to bring out the cool weather hats again.)

I’ve matched my jewellery to the hat this time: blue chalcedony earrings made by myself, a chalcedony pendant necklace, my charm necklace and my blue turquoise stone ring bought in Barcelona. The shoes I have deliberately chosen because they are green and don’t match – I love to break conventional fashion rules as much as possible.

Items:

Tee: Free People
Blouse: Veronika Maine
Skirt: Veronika Maine
Cardigan: Lill’s Closet for Anthropologie
Coat: vintage 70s
Hat: vintage 40s
Stockings: Columbine
Earrings: handmade
Necklace: Melbourne jewellery boutique
Rings: souvenir

The Volcano Hat

Last year a cream and navy straw hat from the 1940s exploded into my life. I say ‘exploded’ because the online seller at Another Time Vintage Apparel called it her ‘volcano’ hat. I thought this quite an apt description, as the little hat seems to tilt up out of itself, with the navy grosgrain ribbon placed tumbling out of the well in the centre, somewhat like lava pouring out of a volcano.

The tilt hats popular in the 1940s are perhaps my favourite style just because the precarious angle at which they are worn is quite jaunty – and rather saucy! The downturned brim of some of them allows one to perfect the coy upward glance gentleman find so intriguing.

I also love the way the tilts seem to defy gravity and stiff breezes alike – it’s all down to bins and elastics securing these confections to one’s head. This was a lot easier to do when I wore my long hair in a French roll though – there was something to anchor the hats to. Cloches suit my current hairstyle more, but there’s no way I’m giving up my tilt hats any time soon. My flirting technique would be completely crippled.

The Last Word in Shoelaces

Look at these fancy-schmancy take on gladiator shoes! Aren’t they delightful? I positively languish over them. A beautiful light dove grey, they are made from buttery soft leather, and have a real wooden heel. I love the little triangle cut out of it too – what a great detail. They are like great pieces of sculpture in fact.

And how about those shoelaces, eh? They are the ultimate. In fact, they were a little difficult the first time I stuffed my feet into them (like one of Cinderella’s less attractive sisters) because the laces were pulled too tight, and I couldn’t figure out how to disentangle them! A work colleague, observing my struggles, was amused and remarked that one perhaps needed a science degree just to get into them. I didn’t care about her clever remarks. Not at all. I took them home and a little patience soon sorted those recalcitrant shoelaces out.

… one perhaps needed a science degree just to get into them

These wedges are by British label Finsk – I’d never heard of them before until I bought them online a few months ago from sale site, Ozsale. They were an incredible bargain too, costing one tenth of the retail price (I can’t normally afford to spend $500 on a single pair of shoes).

I’ve been drooling over their latest collection online – check them out. Those shoes are for modern urban warriors, made for STOMPING! Those barbarians better watch out for their toes …

If the Cap Fits …

Celebrating the Roaring Twenties in a Special Series

The Vintage Hat Series: 1920s red velvet pixie cloche by S. J. Maughan of Convent GardenAnother hat in my collection is this red velvet pixie cloche, an original chapeau from the 1920s.

I purchased it on eBay, from a UK seller. They had photographed it completely flat, so it was difficult to visualise how it would look on, and the measurements were suspect. However, they simply couldn’t be bothered answering my queries. (Note to any online sellers reading this: service is important.) Annoyed by their inability to reply to emails, I sadly decided not to bid. (That would punish them.)

However, months later I happened upon the hat again: it had been relisted. 1920s … cloche … red velvet, extremely low asking price … It all added up to one thing: I couldn’t say no. If I recall correctly, I believe I won the auction for a measly £7 or so.

When the hat finally arrived, I fortunately found it did fit me even though the original supplied measurements indicated it was an inch too small. It took some time for me to work out the correct way to wear it though. Because this looks ridiculous:

Looking sillyI look like one of those red-hatted garden gnomes (how apt that the cap was designed by a milliner based in Convent Garden), and I strongly suspect this is the reason why the seller ignored my polite request to see the hat on a model. Worn this way, however, looks very very cute, don’t you think? There is a positive WORLD of difference between a pixie and a gnome! 

Looking demure

Take a Bow

Yet another reason to look forward to autumn when it eventually arrives: a pretty 1930s seafoam green wool hat to wear. It has two dear little bows that sit just above the temple, and tiny diamond cutouts at the back.

I purchased this from an eBay store that sells hats only intermittently, which is probably lucky because I’d be flat broke if they featured a constant stream of lovely vintage pieces like this.

So come on Melbourne, stop being hot!