May 5, 2013

You can't put a price tag on nostalgia


 It will likely not come as a shock to anyone who has known me for at least five or so seconds, that I am a nostalgist. I can (and on plenty of occasions, have) wax poetically about the past - be it experiences from my own life or memories of a world long before I ever entered it - and as a lover of history and yesteryear fashion, it's safe to say that I live, so to speak, in days gone by a fair bit of the time.

This doesn’t mean that I see the past as some kind of glorious safe haven of an escape from the modern world or that I eschew the present, not in the slightest, but rather that my heart has a tendency to get very sentimental and attached to things I remember (or wish I'd been there to live firsthand and then later recall) and hold dear or meaningful.

I believe that many of us in the vintage community are the same way, and it's no doubt a substantial part of why we adore embodying so many yesteryear elements in our daily lives right here and now in 2013. Nostalgia is a powerful force and one that has been with humankind since the dawn of time, whether helping us to recount tales of earlier times around the fire's glow at night when were just beginning our journey towards civilization or accounting for the reason why so many people find themselves enthralled with the study of their own family's genealogy.

The word nostalgia sometimes tends to carry a bittersweet connotation, and indeed one can feel a powerful longing in our heart for moments and faces once near and dear to us that now exist only, at least in that precise form, in the halls of our memory.

When I think of the word nostalgia, I'm often reminded of the beautiful lyrics from John Lennon's classic song In My Life, which say…



There are places I'll remember all my life,
though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places had their moments
With lovers and friends, I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living In my life,
I've loved them all

For me, no other lines I've ever read so succinctly summed up or expressed my relationship with nostalgia. Yes, it can be bittersweet at times, but ultimately it's a far more positive feeling than a negative one for me, and I'm truly grateful that my past experiences continue to play such a roll in my everyday life right here and now and in the present.

Like many, I have a special fondness for my youth - a point which some may find a touch fascinating because my childhood was often a million miles away from being an idyllic bed of roses, and there's a great many things I wish I could forget about those formative years, too. That said, glass half full kind of gal that I am, I tend to like to focus on the elements of my upbringing that I enjoyed and adored, and it is these that I most often feel a longing in my soul for.

Thusly, every now and then I come across a garment that really reminds me of an item of clothing I had as a little girl. From my earliest memories onward, I've loved fashion with an unending passion, and even as a youngster, there were certain pieces of clothing that I held in the highest regard, favouring and treasuring them most amongst all those in my dresser drawers.

Once such piece was a solid Cerulean blue summer dress with a swingy a-line skirt and a row of purply-blue buttons up the front that I had around the time when I was six years old. I went hunting through my childhood photos for an image of me in this particular frock, but none were forthcoming unfortunately (hopefully one will surface some day).

I adored this dress and wore it often, including one time when my little brother and I turned part of our backyard into a giant mud puddle, splashing around and digging for worms in it for hours one overcast afternoon. I can recall vividly in my mind how spackled and stained that dress looked when we emerged, but my mom - laundress extraordinair - was unphased and delighted in how much fun her kids had been having. Clothes, she asserted, could always be cleaned, and indeed she was able to bring my cheerful blue dress back to it's former glory with a good sudsying.

As with all of my favourite childhood garments, I'm sure I wore that dress until it was simply impossible to fit into any more. Some of my clothes we saved for my little sister, and some were either binned if they were threadbare or passed on for others to enjoy, and no doubt one of these things happened to that particular summertime frock.

I've recalled my vibrant tropical ocean hued dress often over the years, and thought on numerous occasions how absolutely lovely it would be to find a vintage or vintage appropriate frock in the same colour and a similar cut. Much to my absolute delight last month, while perusing some vintage listings on eBay, I did just that when I spied the following frock.



{Image via eBay seller Bohochick's auction listing.}


Though it was a bit big for me (size wise) and a bidding war drove the price up far more than I'd usually have paid for a similar 1980s does 1950s style dress in another hue, the fact that this garment was the exact same shade of Cerulean blue and in a strikingly similar cut (complete with almost identical buttons) as the dress from my youth, meant that I was going give winning it my fighting best.

I have an annual tradition of buying a new dress as a birthday present to myself. Even though my actual birthday falls in July, it's not uncommon for me to pick up my lovely gift earlier on in the spring if I find one that sets my heart on fire. I usually set a generous cap of $100 to spend on this treat to myself, though I never feel obliged to actually max out that budget.

Seeing that the auction price was quickly skyrocketing on this dress, I justified it's (potential) ding on my pocketbook by telling myself that if I won, it would be my birthday present to myself this year. As you may have already guessed, I'm pleased as punch to say that I did indeed come out as the lucky winner of this sweetly pretty dress, and I didn't even have to use up my whole budget (the winning price, before shipping, was $68.99 US) to do so!

There are many memories that are priceless to each of us, and which - as the title of this post says - you really cannot put a price tag on, but I rather love when you find something that reminds of your past which you can afford, and my new frock falls squarely into that camp. I have no qualms with saying I would have spent the whole hundred - and perhaps in a little bit more - on this dress, because I knew it would be a good long time in all likelihood before another one like it came along and the flood of memories it brought rushing back the moment I saw it made it more than worth every last penny.

This dress is so classic and endlessly summertime perfect. Its swingy, generously sized circle skirt helps turn a single item into a whole outfit, especially if you tuck a crinoline underneath.

It's safe to say that I love my new blue summer dress every bit as much as the one I wore day in and day out as a child, and that I'm eagerly looking forward to making scores of new memories in this frock as well - many of which, I'm sure, I'll look back on in the years to come with that familiar, important feeling: nostalgia.

45 comments:

  1. You hit the mark with this post! I never thought about it this way but now it makes sense. I get very attached to things and want to have them all close to me. I wish I could buy my childhood home and my grandparents farm. :)

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    1. Thank you very much, Kim. I know exactly what you mean. While I don't have a childhood house that I'd be too keen on buying, I would purchase my paternal grandparent's old house (the one they lived in when I was growing up) in a heartbeat.

      ♥ Jessica

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  2. It is a beautiful and vibrant shade of blue. I think its a pretty uncommon color too, as far as dresses and clothing. I'm glad you prevailed. Now every time you wear it or even look at it, you will be transported back to those sweet memories of your childhood. So worth the price; yes, its priceless.

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  3. What a beautiful dress! Its design and shape are adorable and the vibrant color is so appealing.

    I'm with you on nostalgia. In fact, I get more sentimental as I age and see more change. I miss many things which have disappeared.

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  4. Oh Jessica I very much understand what u r saying about nostalgia - in fact, I slightly changed the name on my own blog, to include the a foreign word that means 'sadness at happy memories' ... indeed, I am a very sentimental and nostalgic person ... and I love your dress! I wonder if I could find my go-go dress ...

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  5. Oh, what a beauty that dress is! The color is fantastic and I hope you get a lot of wear out of it this summer :)

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  6. What a wonderful and well written post, Jessica.. (as always!) I love your blue dress! It's fabulous, and i'm so happy for you that you have it to call your own. Yay! :) And you're so right about the beautiful nostalgia and memories. It's great time travel without having a time machine.

    I hope your recovery is progressing well. And Happy Spring to you!

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  7. it's fab and I'm so glad you won it, with that heart warming tale to accompany it. I'm just as you describe - I remember much of my personal past with rose tinted spectacles, fading out the unpleasant bits, which is good to a point, but becomes dangerous if comparing an ill remembered past to the present and being dissatisfied. I am also sure you are right that it is the appeal of yesteryear and our ideals of what life would have been like then that attracts us to vintage, but it is important to remember the hardships as well as the good points.

    I love old fashioned children's clothes - one of my biggest pleasures has been dressing Girlie in some of my old dresses that my Mum saved (and which I in turn am saving, with Girlies full approval for her future daughters) - I also loving finding dresses that remind me of some of my favourites from my youth - for her or for me! Hope you are continuing to make a good recovery and lovely to have you back posting again xx

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  8. That dress is lovely! And I really liked reading your story about your youth!
    This dress will be so meaningful for you, bringing back all those childhood memories.

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  9. wonderful story!
    I also want to forget most of my childhood. but there are some sweet memories too.
    a garment i remember, which i still would like to wear is a dirndlskirt in dark turquoise/white novelty print, rococo palais´and parks in a freehand drawing style....... nice thick cotton. it was an heirloom from my aunt from the 50´s.
    can we see pictures when you play in the mud again ;-) ?

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    1. Dear Beate, that sounds like an absolutely beautiful dress. I so adore dirndls and anything that even subtly resembles this classic style.

      I don't foresee too much time spent in the mud (unless it's a facial :D), but I will definitely be sporting this dress and taking snaps in as the weather warms up and I'm back to feeling well enough (post surgery) to get out again (can't wait!).

      ♥ Jessica

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  10. It's great that you found a dress similar to the one you had. It's a gorgeous dress and the color is amazing! Can't wait to see how you wear it.

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  11. This is amazing! I certainly do feel the 'all dressed up' feeling in my wardrobe today that I enjoyed so much when I wore dresses in grade school.

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  12. When you posted the lyrics by John Lennon, it brought butterflies to my soul and actually a twing of tears to my eyes. It's actually not because so much of fashion that I had a heartfelt moment. It is because I also thought of my father who passed away suddenly almost 9 years ago. He had this tremendous ability to savor life and also knew the art of telling a great story so your thoughts on nostalgia all intertwined in my thoughts:) This is such a great post. I think we both think so much alike in terms of nostilgia so I really enjoyed reading this post. There are so many great thoughts that what came into my mind is that "Boy, there are so many memoriable Jessica quotes in here!" I think this would also be a great post, some of your favorite thoughts. You have such a magical way of words. I hope that one day you might find time to write a book:)

    I love hearing about your personal journey of nostalgia and of course, it makes a difference that the outcome was a happy one:) What a grand dress and I can't wait to see the next step in your journey where you show us wearing this gem:)

    A toasted cheer for such a great post!

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    1. Dear Joanna, thank you deeply for sharing the touching feelings and thoughts that this post stirred in you, my sweet friend. I'm very sorry to hear about your father's passing nine years, but am deeply touched to know that his outlook on life was in keeping in the spirit of this post. Yes, I completely agree, you and I do share the same sense of nostalgia and I think it's a definite part of why we're so wildly passionate about the past and preserving the elements of it that we bring into our own lives.

      Really and truly, thank you for your beautiful comment. It long remain warmly in my memory.

      ♥ Jessica

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  13. Beautiful post,Jessica!The dress is perfect for summer and a lovely shade of blue.

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  14. That post was beautiful :). I have dresses from my childhood that I wish I could find or re-create. Not so much because of what it looked like, but because of all the fond memories I made while wearing them.

    That dress is so lovely, I am so happy you won it! (and I am sure it looks amazing with your complexion!)

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  15. When you feel better please post some photos of you wearing your new dress :-)

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    1. Absolutely! I'm really looking forward to it. This is the kind of dress that just sings on its own, and won't need too much jazzing up, but it will be fun to pick an accessory or two to compliment it's beautiful shade and classic cut. I can hardly wait! :)


      ♥ Jessica

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  16. Great post! Congrats on the Ebay win!! I always get bummed when I get outbid at the last few seconds! The dress is beautiful and a great color!

    My mom put all my little girl (age 1 to 5) dresses in a cedar chest for me. Cute little pinafores and eyelet dresses, also a few matching bonnets. I love seeing pictures of me wearing them. Not sure what I will do with them but it makes me very happy to have them!

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    1. How tremendously lovely that your mom saved all of your early childhood dresses, what incredible treasures of your past to have. My mom saved one that I know of (a lovely pink frock from when I was barely older than a newborn), but I don't believe she has the blue one mentioned here. I wish it was still around, I'd love to take a photo (to post here) of my wearing the new one and older up the old for comparison. :)

      ♥ Jessica

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  17. I agree, there's nothing quite like nostalgia! That's such a beautiful blue dress and I can't wait to see where/how you decided to wear it. You and that dress were just meant to be!

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  18. Aw, I loved this post. I feel the same way about clothing.

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  19. That shade of blue is gorgeous. I wish there was glass available in that exact shade for me to make beads from.

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  20. It's funny, I've just been talking with my mum about dresses I used to wear when I was little and how they're similar to what I like now in terms of prints and fabrics. This blue dress is so perfectly lovely, it's a birthday present you should most certainly indulge yourself with!

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  21. A beautiful dress - shame the price ended up so high but it's probably worth it for something you'll really love and get the most out of!

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  22. I'm so glad you fought and won it! I'm sure it will be your favourite frock of the Summer. I must say that I had a few favourite pieces growing up, that I wore over and over again...it's funny-as much as I cherish and love my clothes nowadays it's not the same as the love I had for the clothes of my youth. Perhaps it was because we had no way of exploring or knowing who we were except through clothes...or maybe because I had so precise few that were nice. Happy Cerulean dreaming! xx Shauna

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  23. That is adorable! You'll have to show us how you dress it up when you get it!

    Cheers!
    ~Paige

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  24. Thank you for sharing. Your mama was a switched on lass...clothes can be washed. Sometimes kids just need to play in the mud! (my kids are partial to running around in the rain). I am so thrilled you won the dress and I just know you will have that beautiful nostalgic feeling whenever you slip it on.

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  25. Three cheers for a beautiful dress that was meant for beautiful you! :)

    ~ Kymberlee

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    1. Thank you very much, dear Kymberlee! I'm bursting with excitement for when I'm feeling well enough to go out again and take my first snaps in it. Perhaps, given that it was my birthday present to myself this year, I'll sport it on/around my b-day in July and posts photos in the same time frame (or sooner, if I can't wait - we'll see! :)).

      Big hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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  26. What a pretty blue dress, I can't wait until you model it for us!

    I do wonder if this is where my love of overalls comes from? I did like frilly things now and again, but I was a fairly rough-and-tumble kid, so overalls were often something I'm seen wearing in photos of my pretty early years. While I don't wear them *all* that often now, I have several pair, and always feel at home in them!

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    1. You know, I have a penchant for overalls, too, and I think it likely stretches back to my childhood as well, come to think of it. Between the cute ones my mom put me in as a wee tyke to the baggy styles that were all the rage when I was in middle school, surely that must at least partially explain for love of this garment (the fact that I have a secret inner cowgirl side definitely plays in, too). It's so fun to learn what garments people remember most fondly from their childhood, thank you very much for sharing one of yours, sweet gal.

      Big hugs & happy Monday wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  27. Jessica- what a great colour! I love to wear blue- my DH claims it brings out my blue eyes ;)
    I honestly understand the allure of this beautiful dress- and I cant wait to see it on you!

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    1. Thank you very much, dear Rachel. Blue can do amazing things for many peoples' eyes, so I doubt for a moment that they help yours sparkle even more. I have green eyes and shades of blue often really help their colour pop (especially, I've found navy and teal).

      ♥ Jessica

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  28. You are such a talented wordsmith, Jessica! Loved your portrait of nostalgia, and I would second it in a heartbeat. I've never been one to say "out with the old, in with the new", and when one of my friends tried to convince me that material things only weigh you down, and it's better to get rid of one's entire home and live minimalistic, I was almost angry. Sure, one need to let go of the things that can live just as well in memory (and of course of meaningless clutter, but that's an entirely different thing), but certain items connects me just not to my past but to my family's past.
    Anyway, it's a lovely story and a lovely dress! I'm glad you got it to a reasonable price, and wish you many happy summerdays in it =)

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  29. What a lovely story! I am so pleased that you were able to win the dress!!! It must be so exciting to win a dress so similar to the one that you loved many years ago - and I'm sure you will feel really happy when wearing it! :)

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  30. I am so glad that you managed to win this dress, it is a gorgeous colour. It was lovely to read your thoughts on nostalgia and your memories of your childhood clothes. It made me think of one of my favourite childhood dresses that my mum made me. It had a fitted bodice with frills round the armholes and a slightly lared skirt with a waist sash. It was made of white fabric which had a tiny strawberry print all over it. I loved my strawberry dress!

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    1. I was thrilled to that I won it, too! It's my favourite eBay win of the year so far bar none. How wonderfully lovely that you have fond memories of a beloved childhood dress, too. It sounds precisely like the kind of frock I would have adored as well (I'm wild for fruit prints of all kinds, always have been, with strawberries being my very favourite). I hope you're able to find a dress that reminds you of your treasured childhood one some day as well, dear Kate.

      ♥ Jessica

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  31. Congratulations! It is a true beauty and I will look forward to seeing you wearing it. Now you have to hunt for some matching accessories. ;)

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  32. Oh Jessica, I can totally relate -
    It's like a piece of me holds on to special moments by having something physical. It's like a connection.
    I wish I could have bought the building my grandparents and i lived in while i was growing up. I recall crying myself to sleep when I knew that we had to move from that 1940s building.
    I hold on to the past and tend to think things were better before.

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  33. It's such a beautiful color and style, it's certainly easy to see why you aspired to have one similar to your childhood dress and what a lucky duck you are for finding one!

    I have a blue embroidered smock that belonged to my grandma that she would often have me wear (more like be draped in it, actually) when I was little, especially when doing something like dying eggs for Easter. Although a little worn in spots, I still wear it after all these years!

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  34. i love your writing. nice post

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  35. Well done! So glad you got it! There is a jubilant feeling when they tell you that you won the auction, especially when you've already attached so much value and memory to the item you're bidding on. So happy for you and can't wait to see it!
    -Jamie
    ChatterBlossom

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