Saturday Snapshots: July 16, 2016

{Quote image source}

{Pin curls, fab outfit, adorable kitty cat, and a mile-wide smile? Yep, this delightful mid-century gal officially wins at summer.}



{"Lois Duncan Steinmetz playing the accordion aboard the shanty boat Lazy Bones, c. 1947", because Lois was just awesome like that.}




{One look is all it takes to know that this 1940s pair - and their beautiful dog - were a blast to hang out with. Plus, don’t his shades look they could have just walked off the spring/summer 2016 runway? Proof positive that designers today take styling cues from the past right, left and center.}




{Group fun in the sun while at the beach in 1937 - love the lady at the back's classic folding parasol. It reminds me a lot of the gorgeous Disney themed hand painted ones that my dear friend Janey, from Atomic Redhead, has been creating and sharing on her blog this year.}




{No convertible? No problem! Just make like these two cool c. 1940s gals, in their matching shirts/play suits, and put the trunk (boot) of your car to good use! :)}




How much do you love this beautiful 1950's woman's fabulous ombre striped strapless swimsuit?}




{Teenagers being teenagers and having a blast at their local Tallahassee drive-in burger joint back in August of 1957 (you just know the milkshakes there would have been to die for!).}




{In a perfect world every single day of the summer would be as fun, carefree and sunny as the one depicted in this fabulous American beach snap, which was taken during July, 1952.}




It's never to early in life to ensure that your warm weather style game is squarely on point, as the young misters Larry and Louie Poggenburg kindly demonstrated for us during the spring of 1965.}




{Okay, it's official, seeing these two lovely c. 1950s synchronized swimmers has got me yearning to hop into the nearest body of water pronto!}

{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, 

please click on it to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}

♥ ♥ ♥


Soooo, it's been a really long time since the last edition of Saturday Snapshots occurred here. Like, a really, really long time. I went digging around through my achieves and it would appear that the last such post was in May 2015, some fourteen months ago.

Wow, I'd been thinking it was last fall, but such appears not to be the case. There's no set schedule or timeframe for these posts of course, but as I - and I know, many of you as well - really adore them, I do like to get one up periodically. Today, in the middle of July, seems like a great time for new edition of Saturday Snapshots, don’t you think?

I read the quote that kicks off today's post for the first time ever a few weeks ago and it instantly resonated with me. Though I am generally a million miles away from lazy, I don't per se think that work related activity (or lack thereof) is the sort of laziness that the man who penned it, American author and philosopher Sam Keen, had in mind when he wrote those words. No, I highly suspect that he was referring to one's pace of life and how much, from sun up to sun down, we're able to get done in a day during the peak of summertime.

I'm a major workaholic and I will burn the midnight oil like no one's business, but during these glorious dog days of summer, even I tend to scale back a little. How on earth can one not? These few brief weeks of truly hot weather will vanish with the first tumbling leaves of September and with them, any hope (short of a vacation to a far-flung destination where the sun shines all year 'round) of feeling truly warm from the sun until next spring arrives.

Summer, to my mind, shouldn't be about merely staying busy nor doing next to nothing at all, no, it should be a happy marriage of two. If ever the expression "play hard, work hard" was at home in a chapter of the year, summer is it.
 
I may still bust my hump during for most of the week, but while the temps are near (or at!) triple digits and the sunshine seems to stretch on from here to eternity, you can bet that I'll be sinking my toes into the sand, talking peaceful strolls in the early morning hours, and lapping up froyo like its going out of style, while I still can.
 

As we sit now, there's just over two full months of summer left. Fall weather often begins before that point though, so I think that's all the more reason to go along with Sam's take on things and revel in the fact that this season not only allows, but frankly encourages us, to slow down, stop and smell the roses, and practise the time honoured art of slow living for a brief while amidst our usually frenzied, fast paced modern lives.

Here's to the rest of summer and all the relaxation it has the potential to afford us!

Now, where did I put that beach umbrella? All this talk of taking things easy has me champing at the bit to spend the weekend under the open the sun. Care to join me? :)

Flickr Favourites: August 17, 2014

{1950s orange juice advertisement ~ Christian Montone}


{Summer School Spanish Language Program Festivities, 1951 ~ Duke Yearlook}


{Farm fresh ~ Magalie L'Abbé}


{Rose 'Love' raised in USA ~ naruo0720}


{57 Ways of Summer Eating with Heinz ~ alsis35}


{Beach Blanket Bingo 1930s ~ Vintage car nut}


{Vegetables ~ katinthecupboard}


{Beach Bum ~ Ross Harvey}


{Montgomery Ward summer 1959 catalog ~ Capricorn One}


{Sarasota Sun-Debs training at Lido Beach, Florida ~ State Library and Archives of Florida}

{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, please click on its title to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}

♥ ♥ ♥


It's human nature to find ourselves constantly looking forward. Even the most die hard of nostalgists amongst us are prone to setting their sites on tomorrow far too often sometimes. I count myself amongst the guilty there at times, but this week isn't one of them. No, as we savour these last few weeks of summer, the worst of the dog days behind us now, though the temperatures still feel warm enough to bake a cake on the sidewalk, I am incredibly content to live right here in this glorious moment, the sizzling August breeze that blows off of Okanagan Lake some days tickling my skin through the open bedroom window.

Soon enough, it will be my favourite season, autumn, but as much as I madly adore it, I have no desire to turn my thoughts in that direction yet. I'm too busy buying succulent peaches and late season cherries, walking barefoot on the dry summer grass as the heat baked straight into the earth rushes up to caress my soles, and flat out delighting in the fact that I only need to wear one layer to be more than warm enough when I go outside.

I'm star gazing, yard saling, watching Annie jump merrily through the sprinkler, feasting on barbequed foods like there's no tomorrow, sitting in the sand at the many local beaches and holding my darling husband's hand as we gaze at the almost hypnotic little waves lapping eagerly at the shore, enjoying sunlight well into the early evening still, and reminding myself to soak up every last precious moment of summer while it's still here. That famous Canadian winter sets in swiftly and rarely shows mercy, and when it does, though I love that season in many of its own ways, I know that I will pine for these days immeasurably.

They, like fall however, are not now, and I am very grateful for that. No, now, is alluring, resplendent, and scented with wisteria, honeysuckle and generously sized roses. It calls for ice cream cones, boat rides, long walks as the wind rustles and plays with the still green leaves, and as many memories created in the great outdoors as humanly possible.

All of these things are reflected in today's Flickr Favourites images, which serve as a powerful visual reminder to let tomorrow be tomorrow. You and I and all of us need to just enjoy, appreciate and savour today. Glorious, sun drenched mid-August gem that it is. And on that note, I'm off to take my beach towels out of the dryer, pack a picnic lunch in advance, and spend another magnificent day out enjoying the Okanagan at its very best and most beautiful while summer is still here.

Looking back at July 2013

There are certain times of the year when one still has the instinctual feelings of a child. Holidays are typically such, as are, I find, things relating to the school calendar. As a youngster this day, for all intents, marked the middle point of summer vacation. There was month and a few days behind us, precisely the same in front, and I can recall with vivid clarity the desire to pause time right here, right now for the rest of eternity.

For better or worse, life has no pause button and time always marches triumphantly onward, another August, another Labour Day weekend, and then the start of the school year once more. Long gone are the days of brand new duo-tangs and freshly sharpened pencils, but I still stop and find myself wishing at times that I could slow down this portion of the summer. 


{Surf, sand, sunshine, cute beachwear, sky high temps, there are so many reasons why July is every bit as fun as the charming vintage postcard pictured here and why one can't help but wish they could freeze this month in time for far longer than its actual thirty-one days. Image source.}



Yes, we're immersed in the thick of the dog days, steamy, sultry, sizzling creatures that they are, but we're also surrounded by an endless horizon of verdant leaves, sunsets so delectably lovely they deserve an award, and nights that still see daylight long after the dinner dishes have been cleared away.

A few blinks from now, we'll be sitting here ushering in September, then October, and summer will already begin to fade from our memories like the chlorophyll in the aforementioned leaves, but for now, right this very instant, we're still touching July, ready to embrace August and savour each delectable moment that the second half of the season holds in store for us.

July was a somewhat busy month for me, though rough health from start to finish did put a cap on how much I was able to get done (especially offline). Still, there were some marvelous moments, such as Canada Day, my 29th birthday back on the 10th, and a few really great mail days - including the arrival of items from three recent blog giveaways that I've had the awesome fortune to win over the past couple of months (from Emileigh, Anthea, and Teresa's fantastic sites) and some immensely lovely birthday gifts from dear online friends around the world.

Here on the blog things were jumping with activity throughout July, with a really diverse array of topics being covered. How diverse you may ask? Well, we looked at everything from The life and work of Foncie Pulice: Vancouver's best-known street photographer to 29 things I love about the 1980s, discussed The lore of the sasquatch, as well as some of the important life lessons I've learned the older I've gotten.

This month saw plenty of vintage outfit posts as well! It kicked off with a charming red, pink and green 1940s look sported at Three Mile Beach in Naramata (a snap from which is pictured below), summery vintage plaid and straw accessories on a windswept pier, and towards the middle of the month, an elegant beaded cardigan and black 1950s platter hat ensemble (that also duked it out with the wind).





In the later part of the month, I had the great pleasure of sharing a fabulously cute, superbly well made 1940s reproduction sweater that was knit for me by the immensely talented Regiane Trainotti from Vintage & Cool Knitting. And just yesterday, as the month neared ever closer to the end, I posted about the festive vintage ensemble (complete with darling totem pole brooch) that I wore for Canada’s birthday back on July 1st.

Throughout July we also got to know two of Chronically Vintage's newest sponsors better: stellar online vintage and reproduction clothing shop Blue Velvet Vintage, and the absolutely lovely blog Vintage Frills.

We also enjoyed some regularly occurring posts and two new vintage recipes recipes (including the terrific thirst buster that is Raspberry Mint Crush), and are currently in the midst of an awesome giveaway for a $25.00 gift certificate from etsy jewelry and accessories shop, ChatterBlossom

See? I told you it was a busy month full of a wide range of different post topics - just as I like things to be here most of the time. One of the best components of having a personal blog is getting the opportunity to discuss such a broad array of subjects - something that's absolutely perfect for an eclectic soul such as myself.

Elsewhere online, I was thoroughly touched to be included in posts on We Heart Vintage (in one of their delightful "This week I wish I was wearing..." posts), Powder Blue with Polka Dots (who included a photo of me sporting Regiane's wonderful cherry sweater in one of her inspiring style posts), Fairy Filigree (in a lovely post devoted to summer hair flowers), and most recently I had the tremendous honour of being illustrated by talented artist Lorena Balea-Raitz on her beautiful blog.

Lorena's portrait of me is, without a doubt, one of the most meaningful, touching, incredibly lovely gifts I have ever received, as well as being a sincere boon for myself esteem, as I delved into in this post last Friday, in which I spoke candidly about some of the body image and self-esteem issues I've battled throughout my whole life. A great many of you left extremely sweet, uplifting comments for me on that post, each one of which, no word of a lie, helped to further bolster my self-esteem and how I view myself when it comes to my appearance, and I truly cannot thank you all enough. ♥

In the weeks to come here on the blogging front, numerous other varied posts are slated to appear, including a look at some of the more eyebrow raising questions/comments I've received from strangers over the years (in regards to my vintage style), the history of tennis wear, a wonderfully tasty watermelon salad recipe, and oodles of snaps from this year's Peach City Beach Cruise (our town's annual classic car show). 




{Hot as a toaster, cool as a vintage Jantzen swimsuit, and filled with the sort of heavenly breezes one waits the whole year for, August is a solid, exciting month that always seems to whisper of possibility and great fun still to come before summer waves goodbye once more a few weeks later. Image source.}



August is an activity packed month around our town, in no small part because the local economy has long relied on the summertime tourist industry to help it afloat the whole year round, and this means it's time for everything from a beloved square dancing festival (it's been going on for decades), which is part of the bigger yearly Peach Fest, to Challenge Penticton, a grueling triathlon that is going to be replacing the Ironman competition that Penticton had previously hosted for many years.

It also sees the return of both Tony and Stella's birthdays, as well as my mom and step-dad's anniversary, a total of five possible weekends on which to yard sale (so far this year has lagged behind 2012 big time on that front, both in terms of the number of sales and the amount of vintage items to be had at those that I've been to - but you never know, August might be the month things turn around), and a succulent array of locally grown fruit (chiefly cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and early season pears towards the end of the month).

Yes, it might be nice to pause at July times and hold onto the sparkling sweetness of that month, but if we did that, we wouldn't have the amber sunshine, bathtub warm (lake) water, or the abundance of fresh produce that August delivers, and you know what? The year just wouldn't be the same without those exquisite things and the many other much loved elements of summer that only the eighth month of the year houses.

So here's to August, every last glorious warm, beguiling, endlessly inviting day of it!!!