Pretty Link Roundup {September 28, 2009}

Happy start of the week, sweet dears, how are you each on this last Monday in September. All is right as rain on this end, in fact it is raining, which often sets my moods off on a rather chipper note (I was born in Vancouver, what do you expect? ;D). I love a rainy day (or two, when it heads into twenty plus days of rain in a row like I experienced occasionally when I used to live in Ireland, well, that is something of another matter), the sound of falling precipitation, the cigarette ash hue the sky often takes on, the way the world seems to be given a good scrubbing for a little while, all of these things add up to more than enough reasons for me to extract joy from a rainy day



{This photo of Times Square in New York taken in the 1940s speaks directly to my love of a cityscape glistening with rain. The vibrancy and sense of motion in this shot is so intense you almost want to grab an umbrella - lest the drops starting hitting your head - just looking at it. Photo from the pages of Straatis' Flickr stream.}


Coolers days have always brought me greater mental clarity. In this sense I’ve come to learn I’m not alone, other too (including my husband) agree that they feel their brains function more sharply once summer has hightailed it out of town. When I lived in the western part of Canada, I can’t say as though I noticed this seasonal affect as deeply, but when the ravenous Ontario humidity came into the picture along with the toasty heat of summer, my mind suddenly felt as though it had turned into pabulum. It is not just the ol’ brain either, my entire body generally feels more up to snuff when the mercury refuses to climb above the low twenties. Anything between minus twenty and plus twenty five and I’m a pretty content camper, or should I say “blogger”.

I had a busy and wonderful weekend. My favourite part of it was on Saturday when we went to the Ontario Science Center for their 40th anniversary celebration bash, admission was free (hard to beat that price!) so naturally the place was crowded to the rafters, but we had a marvelous time despite the crowds and (among other activities) took in a screening of the IMAX film “Under the Sea”, which was narrated by Jim Carrey.

The entirely funny thing about our attendance that day though, was that we were planning to go to the Science Centre that day anyhow! We had wanted to go for some time, but various reasons had kept us away all summer long. Fortunately I wasn’t feeling too rough that day, so we figured we better jump on the chance to visit the Science Centre while we the opportunity to do so. We didn’t find out about the fact that a party was going on there until moments before we left the house (darling hubs wanted to check online how late they were open) – talk about a neat little slice of serendipity!

On the blogging front numerous interesting and exciting links have popped up lately – and much like our admission on Saturday, enjoying the afternoon with all of these stories is entirely free :)


♥ ♥ ♥


* Fashion Extremes: While fashion runaways often spill over with garments that are, in one way or another, excessive, this trend certainly didn’t start recently. Here Poke Salad Annie takes on a visual journey through some mid-twentieth century looks that veered towards the extreme, while still somehow managing to look infinitely more wearable than most of what comes down the catwalk today.


* What’s happened to our bodies?: Via the ever-wonderful Beauty is a thing of the past, an interesting article that compares the way women’s bodies have transformed in size and shape over the past six decades, from UK newspaper The Daily Mail, recently came to my attention. The piece looks at some of the medical, dietary and sociological reasons behind the change in body shape amongst British (and while not stated outright, American) woman and certainly provides some interesting food for thought.


* 1930s fashion plates: Sarai brings us a dose of visual loveliness via numerous (coloured) fashion plates from the 1930s. Each plate is a joy, but I especially like the one of the two women in navy blue dresses with coordinating jackets. Which look is your favourite?


* Betsy McCalls Paperdolls in publication from 1951-1961: While I was born decades too late to play with Betsy McCall paper dolls as a child, I’ve long admired the detailed beauty in these fragile paper gems. Here Alana takes us on a historical ride through the history of the Betsy McCall dolls, complete with several colour images of these adorable vintage playthings.


* A vintage kitchen cupboard medicinal: The dear soul behind A Stitch In Time is feeling a bit under the weather at the moment, but that didn’t stop her from putting together a thoroughly lovely – and useful – post highlighting several classic medicinal remedies such as baking soda, citrus juice, and salt for common ailments that have been plaguing humanity since the dawn of time. (Heartfelt wishes for a very speedy recovery to you, Analiebe!)


* The Value in Tailored Vintage: Melody from A Vintage Ramble raises some excellent points in favour of why tracking down vintage pieces that were once custom tailored can be well worth it (especially given the absurdly high prices modern hand-tailored pieces often fetch).


* Peter Pan Collars: Adore Vintage takes a quick peek at the adorable, rounded style of collar known by the name “Peter Pan”, which can look so lovely on a variety of vintage (and modern) styles.


* Retro Clocks at Target: Atomic Addiction corrals a list of some absolutely wonderful vintage/retro looking (think Atomic Era/Mad Men), reasonably priced wall clocks that are currently available from US retailer Target.


* Silver Screen Sunday {Pin-up Girl}: Recently Andi B. Goode began a weekly series of posts in which she highlights a vintage era movie and then rounds up fashion pieces that you can find today, to help you recreate the film’s iconic style. Most recently she shone the spotlight on Betty Grable’s classic “Pin-up Girl”, with fashion and hair ideas to help you recreate the curvy blonde starlet’s classic bombshell look.


* Beauty tips for red heads: Over at Time Machine to the Twenties, Amanda has been dishing up some fantastic old school Good Housekeeping beauty advise for redheaded gals this past week. A trio of posts on the subject cover skin care, lipstick, and what colours to wear, and are a wonderful read whether you were blessed with ruby locks or not.

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I wish to present this week’s Your Blog is an Inspiration award to my lovely, effervescent, delightfully creative friend, Maggi (~*Just Add Glitter and Stir*~). From the moment I encountered her wonderful site (seriously it’s bedecked with red sparkles and polka dots, what’s not to love?), I knew I had found a soul with which I had a lot in common. From a passion for vintage to an adoration of crating (she’s especially talented at scrapbooking), as well as a mutual love of Pullip dolls, I knew that she and I we would hit it off, and we certainly have.



Maggi, you and your site – and the marvelously cool creations you share with us – are a perpetual source of inspiration. I always leave your blog with a smile on my face and the urge to be intensely crafty all of a sudden in my heart. Thank you for being the amazing, artistic, friendly, caring, sweet person that you are!

♥ ♥ ♥

Inspired by a yummy Indian meal I cooked last week to celebrate autumn’s arrival (something about the saturated, earthly tones of many Indian spices and ingredients correlates with fall in my mind), I thought it would be fun to share a clip featuring numerous scenes of enchantingly pretty women from various vintage and retro Bollywood films with you. I admit to knowing little about specific Bollywood films and so cannot begin to tell you where the clips in this video hail from originally, but what I do know is that the ladies it features each possess a captivating and alluring sense of glamour that is as timeless as India itself.


{Beauties of Bollywood Past}



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I began this post much earlier in the day, since then night has rolled in, but the drizzling rain remains. As I type these words it occurs to me that this is the first night in many months I’ve felt the need to put on cozy autumn-appropriate socks and wrap myself up in a blanket. And so I did both things, Stella curled up in a state of feline slumber by my side, no doubt hoping for the return of her winter coat, and smiled even more than I had when I awoke this morning to rain. It’s the simple joys of the season that have the most impact on my soul.

May you each have countless reasons of your own to be happy this week!

Can you help me find plastic bobby pins?

One of the single most important – fundamental really – components to creating a true plethora of vintage hairstyles is the humble, time-honored bobby pin. In the days before every pharmacy, beauty counter, and hair salon was jam packed with more styling products than you could shake a curling iron at, bobby pins were one of the most important items in a women’s hairstyling arsenal.

Goodness knows I adore these simple metal grips (and the beautiful packages vintage examples often came complete with), however, I fear the relationship is not one of mutual adoration.

The issue lies deeper than with bobby pins themselves, it rests in a particular metal by the name of nickel. Yes, like many amongst us, I am allergic to nickel. And by allergic I mean ridiculously, insanely, have to avoid nickel like the plague lest I develop a horrid case of contact dermatitis within a matter of minutes (of coming in contact with a nickel containing product) allergic.

Nickel, sadly (for myself and others with a sensitivity to it), appears in countless metal items. It is readily available, relatively inexpensive, and easy to blend into alloys with other metals. Over the years I’ve gotten pretty good at knowing when and where to avoid coming in contact with nickel, and I’ve developed ways to get around using a lot of nickel based items (or finding nickel-free alternatives to them). However there are a few nickel items that don’t seem to have a ready alternatives, one of them being bobby pins.

Though the skin on my scalp is a bit tougher than say that on my neck or arms, if I wear metal bobby pins for even just an hour, I almost always start to develop a red itchy rash(thankfully my hair hides this though!). Yet in order to achieve many different hairstyles, bobby pins really are a key element, and so I’m steadfastly determined to find a either a metal-free alternative or a metal based one that does not contain nickel. I’ve been on this hunt for a number of years and in that time I have only ever found one product that fit the bill.

One delightful day while browsing etsy I chanced upon a seller (Vintage Goodies) who had a package of plastic bobby pins for sale! Once I picked my stunned jaw up off the floor and realized that for the first time ever my keyword search for “plastic bobby pins” had actually yielded a true match, I couldn’t purchase the pins fast enough. (Since finding these pins, shown below, I’ve searched up and down for info on vintage “Magic Grip” pins, but haven’t found anything out. Have you ever heard of this brand before?)


I got them for a song (making the find all the more fantastic!) and though they are clearly a few decades old, I can happily report they work well. I use them with kid gloves (so to speak); the plastic they’re made of has held up well, but you can clearly feel that that it doesn’t have the strength or resiliency of metal. As such I’ve taken to using only a few of my dearly prized Magic Grip bobby pins at a time – and only on days when it’s imperative that I sport a hairdo requiring the use of bobby pins.

I know that chances are that no matter how careful I am with these precious plastic pins, over time they’ll break, the cat might somehow steal one, I might lose a few...you know, just like with regular metal bobby pins. Finding this one package of pins was truly awesome, but the simple truth is that I need a viable alternative to pins containing nickel that I can use without having to treat them like they’re my last bottle of water in the middle of an arid desert.

Internet searches, real world searches (malls, craft stores, beauty and hairdressing supply shops, drugstores, etc) and asking every hairdresser I’ve come in contact with since I was a child have all left me empty handed (save of course for the one pack of Magic Grips). Yet, I have this distinct feeling that plastic bobby pins must exist...somewhere.

My dear readers, in my ongoing search I am turning to you. Have you ever encountered – or do you know of a modern day source for – plastic bobby pins?

By this I mean a plastic version of the standard metal type. Not decorative clips (pretty or fun as they may be), oversized plastic hair pins such as the type sometimes used to achieve a French roll, heavy-duty Scunci brand grips (which are a bit big to be discretely used for some styles, though they are probably the closest thing to a solution thus far), or enamel coated metal pins. Alternatively, a brand of metal bobby pins that is guaranteed to be completely nickel-free would be A-OK, too! (I live in Canada, but have no qualms with buying online if such an item happens to hail from a US or international source.)

This quest to find plastic pins is extra important to me because I happen to have ludicrously sensitive skin in general. As a result there are literally only two or three brands of (organic, sulphate-free, dye-free, perfume-free, etc) hair care products that I can use without, again, breaking out in an unpleasant and very itchy rash. I don’t say this to sound negative, but only because it means that as a result I have very few styling products at my ready (Cliniderm hairspray has proven to be the "safest" solution for my ultra sensitive skin I’ve found so far), making most hairdos even trickier for my bone-straight, ultra fine hair to achieve. Finding a nickel-free alternative to bobby pins would be like opening up a whole new realm of hair styling possibilities to me.

I thank you each for reading this post; I hope I didn’t bore you to tears! I would be greatly appreciate for any light you could help me shed on the search for plastic or nickel-free metal bobby pins, and am in turn more than happy to help any of you hunt down items that may be alluding you.

Humongous heartfelt thanks in advance, everybody!

Packaging makes perfect: vintage bobby pins

In an era of gift wrapping rooms, designer shopping bags, and Ikea-meets-Mac box streamlined packaging, it might seem that we’re spoiled for riches when it comes to the decor that surrounds the goods we purchase, give, receive and pine for. On one hand there is an element of truth to this, yet there is little denying the by-and-large, the artistic style (fonts, images, slogans, etc) that comprise the wrappings on modern items is far cry different from that of the past.

As an avid fan of vintage and antique design, I’ve decided to start a series of posts (that will sprout up from time-to-time) about some of my favourite types of vintage packaging and the products they were created to showcase.

For this introductory “Packaging Makes perfect” post, I’ve opted to highlight the exceedingly pretty paper cards on which bobby pins were sold during the mid-twentieth century.

While bobby pins (or hair grips, as they are sometimes known outside of North America) are can readily be found at most any drug store or shop that sells hair accessories, their use nowadays is not as common as it once was. In order to achieve a majority of the hairstyles – from simple to highly intricate – of the 1920s through to the 1960s, bobby pins were called into play. Interestingly, these simple metal hair grips took their name from the fact that they were used to help ladies of the twenties keep their “bobbed” hairstyles in place.

Fundamental to achieving many vintage hairstyles, bobby pins were used prolifically through the middle of the last century (in the days before the myriad of styling products we have today were available) and are subsequently often utilized today to achieve many vintage up-dos, rolls, curls and other lovely looks. Though WW2 metal rations sometimes made bobby pins harder to come by during the war years, even then most women were able to find some of these humble little hair grips.

While they were sometimes sold in metal tins, just as with modern day versions, vintage bobby pins frequently came on a paper card. Though it’s not uncommon to find bobby pins in packs of fifty or more today, in the past they were often sold in lots of ten to thirty.

The paper card backs upon which the pins were tucked featured an array of lovely designs. Some used illustrations, others photos of women wearing stylish hairdos. Some were elaborately shaped so as to be cut like the shape of a part, or all, of the picture they depicted, whereas others came in more common shapes like circles, half-moons, or rectangles.

The following are a selection of vintage bobby pin packages from Flickr, all of which I think are absolutely beautiful. They’re like miniature works of art that depict so many elements of style from the 30s, 40s and 50s.


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{Sta-Rite brand bobby pins featuring pretty Ginny and Lou. Were these gals made up or were they real women?}



{Wearing one heck of a wiggle dress (and bullet bra!), the cute girl on this Bobbie Smith brand package is certainly ready for a night out on the town!}



{The doe-eyed, blonde beauty on this card for Flamingo brand hair grips looks like she just stepped out of Hollywood.}



{Sporting the slogan “Fits any purse”, this font and image style on this card of Victory brand bobby clips would indicate (to me at least) that it was from the 1930s or early 40s.}



{While I’m not sure I’d be swayed by the brand’s name, “Scoldy Lox”, the dainty pink rose and Good House Keeping seal of approval on this bobby pin card might win me over.}



{Simple and sweet in shades of royal blue and peachy-pink, this card from DeLong appears to have held up even better than the pins it still houses.}



{With eyebrows to match the height of the rolls in her golden blonde hair, the lovely lady on this card for Campus brand bobby pins embodies the red lipped woman of the 40s and 50s to an absolute tee.}



{Defined on this card from Curly Lox as being “hair snaps” these cleverly designed pins appear to have encircled a roll of hair to hold in neatly in place. I for one this is a splendid idea and wish that I could find hair snaps like this stores today!}



{As this photo illustrated card from 1952 for Flamingo brand bobby pins shows, it wasn’t just the front of the package that looked pretty!}

{All images above are from Flickr. Please click on an image to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}


Given the very delicate nature of paper, it’s such a joy that numerous examples of vintage bobby pin cards have survived to this day.

If you’re interested in picking up a sample or two of this delightful type of package (or to use the pins they come with – though to be honest, I would want to preserve them exactly as they are, pins and all), both etsy and eBay seem to stock a steady supply of vintage bobby pins at surprisingly reasonable prices (generally between $3 and $15 dollars). The following selection of vintage bobby pin packs are currently available on etsy.



{Gayla brand pins from 1947. $9.99 (US) from etsy seller Stella Ranae Vintage.}



{Rubber tipped hair grips produced by Solo. $3.95 (US) from etsy seller Regina’s Studio.}



{These pins appear to be very straight and simplistic in design, but no less lovely thanks to the colourful red and yellow card back they come on. $4.00 (US) from esty seller Boomerville.}



{An adorable pair of kittens grace this pack of First Prize brand bobby pins. $5.00 (US) from etsy seller Innocent Painting.}



{These hand painted bobby pins hail from the late 50s or early 60s and would be used for more ornamental purposes than their plain metal counterparts. $2.75 from etsy seller The Automat.}


The packaging on vintage bobby is a delight to behold. Full of style and whimsy, it speaks to an age of womanly beauty that many of us now strive to recreate with our own hair and wardrobe styles. Whether you want to use the actual grips themselves or not, old school bobby pin packages are an affordable way to bring a cheerful dose of vintage design art into your home.


*PS*

A terrific and inexpensive way to keep track of bobby pins and other small metal hair accessories is to store them in magnetic paper clip dispenser.

Pretty Link Roundup {June 20th}

As if striving to drive home the very topic I was waxing poetically about on Monday, the weather this week has hopped like a frog in a lily-pad pond between rainy/drab and hot/bright-as-a-new-penny. Yesterday night was magical though. The sort of perfect, not-quite-dark-yet evening that you wish you sit in a comfy deck chair and soak into the very pores of your soul for the rest of time. I had to pop out to the post office and grocery store, and was so glad to have errands to run, as waiting for buses gave me a chance to relish the beauty of a (temperature-wise) perfect mid-June evening.


{Whenever I look at elegant 1946 Life photo on myvintagevogue’s Flickr stream, I’m struck by how intensely, serenely relaxing the fading sunlight looks as it ripples across that little pool. This same feeling washed over me at dusk on Friday in the perfectly 22° air.}

On the blog front things have been busy as a hive of bees here this week! Chronically Vintage now has its own domain name (but will remain on the Blogger platform). You can read more about how my husband surprised me with a url as a gift here, and for details on ensuring you’re able to continue receiving the feed for CV, please take a moment to read this post.

From around the blogsphere I’ve lassoed up a fun array of links that span everything from packing for a holiday to a peak inside a vintage Fredrick’s of Hollywood catalogue – ooohhh la-la! :) Make-up tutorial fans take note, this week’s clip comes via a talented UK make-up artist who does a thoroughly good job of showing you how to achieve the sultry, heavily lined eye look that Sophia Loreen often sported early on in her famous career. I hope you all enjoy these links - don't hesitate to share your own terrific finds in the comment section.


* Dustbowl Dames: Darla takes an insightful look at how fashion evolved out of the flapper-era and into what it became during the Depression ridden world of the 1930s.

* The Lucy Fashion Chronicles: If you’re a fan of TV’s most entertaining redhead, be sure to swing by MissRedLip’s fab blog for the first installment of an ongoing series devoted to Lucille Ball.

* How to Thrift with Success: A Typical Atypical offers up four handy tips when it comes to getting the most out of your thrift store shopping experience.

* Rose McGowan by Ellen Von Unwerth: Modern day Hollywood starlet Rose McGowan dons some intensely gorgeous vintage looks as she posses for photographer Ellen Von Unwerth, as highlighted on Blond and Red’s lovely blog.

* Holidays ahoy, how to pack only the best and not the rest: Mademoiselle Robot lays out her best tips on how to efficiently pack for just about any trip. A perfect read if you’re planning a summer getaway!

* Vintage Mommy and Me Dresses: Growing up did you ever have a miniature version of one of your mother’s dresses or outfits? I can’t say as though I did, but I do recall a charming set of three floral print aprons my mom sewed for herself, my sister and me. If you’re a fan of matching outfit for moms and daughters, pop by Couture Allure for a selection of vintage ads featuring just this kind of look.

* The Collins Girls Annual 1958: Though largely out of fashion these days, for decades upon decades “annuals” were a common element the magazine and publishing world. In this post on I Luv Retro, readers are treated several absolutely charming pages from a copy of the 1958 Collins Girl annual.

* 1964 Fredrick’s of Hollywood catalog: With a cover page that confidently proclaimed “Get that marry a millionaire look!” you know that whatever follows in this vintage 1964 catalog is sure to be fantastic! Check out six pages of old school FoH style via this post on Found in Mom’s Basement.

* Wardrobe Staple: Beach Coat: Not the biggest fan of caftans or muumuus, but looking for something more stylish than oversized t-shirt to wear as a beach or poolside cover-up? If so Curve Hugger may just have the vintage answer for you, a beach coat! For lots of info, images of sewing patterns, and pretty photos surrounding this once commonplace item of clothing, be sure to check out this cool post.


Revered even to this day for her seductive, exotic Mediterranean features and sophisticated style, Sophia Loren’s face is as timeless as the Italian culture she hails from. If you’re looking to recreate her sexy, alluring look, be sure to watch this week’s video clip from Youtuber pixiwoo.

{Sophia Loren inspired make-up tutorial}



What’s mother nature up to in your neck of the woods? As June tumbles onward, I’m predicting less rain and the advent of far more humidity than I care to even think about (Amazon rain forest eat your lush, verdant heart out, Toronto has you beat no questions asked when it comes to humidity :D). Before the “melt like the Wicked Witch” days kick in though, I’ve got my red nail polish tipped fingers firmly crossed that we’ll have many, many more evenings that were as gorgeous and serene as last night was.

Wishing you each the best and prettiest of weekends!

Absolutely beautiful photo booth friends

Sometimes I find myself thinking about all of the incredible pictures – whether for their subject matter or skill level – that have been taken since the invention of photography. I would venture to guess that most of them were taken with the hope of preserving a moment in time for as long as possible. This common thread amongst photos is a large part of why people adore taking them so much. We all want to grasp onto the present, however fleeting it may be.

Many of the photos taken over the decades – and now centuries – have been lost to the hands of time, but thankfully (and perhaps almost amazingly given the very delicate nature of photo paper) some of them have been preserved. I adore old pictures even if I haven’t the slightest clue who the people in them are. In fact sometimes not knowing is part of the joy. You can write your own narratives for the faces – and the lives behind them – of the people in these wonderful snapshots of history.

Such was the desire I was struck with as soon as I chanced upon the photo below. The two women in this seemingly simple photo booth shot are undeniably gorgeous. Their hair, make-up and outfits appeal to me on so many levels. Yet I am equally struck by how happy – content in the moment, perhaps – they both seem. There is a glint of flirtation in the brunette’s dark eyes, a sense of worldly wisdom in those of the blond. Each woman is strikingly attractive on her own, together they are even more majestic.

I wonder, looking at this decades old photo, who were these gals? Were they friends, sisters, cousins, classmates, coworkers? Had they been in each other’s lives for years or only recently meet? Were they taking the photo to remember they day themselves or to pass it along to someone else? Could they have possibly known at the time how wildly stylish they were?


{Vintage photo discovered via Hastingsgraham’s Flickr stream.}

I like to think they were lifelong BFFs. Deeply similar in many ways and starkly opposite in others. Through the good and the bad, the rough and the incredible, they were always there, with perfectly coiffed hair, for each other. Their unwavering bond preserved forever in this moment as photo booth friends.

10 awesome vintage related Flickr groups

It’s scarcely a secret that Flickr is one of my absolute most beloved websites in the universe. Long before I got my first digital camera and began uploading photos of my own last February, I’d been perusing its myriad of pages for a couple of years. To me Flickr is the stuff inspirational dreams are made of. From favourite photographers to the incredible results keywords can deliver, I am never bored or at a loss for creative muses when on this site.

On particularly fun way to find a bounty of images of a given subject is through Flickr groups. Being a rather eclectic soul (with more interests than you can shake a feather duster at), I’ve personally joined a ton (seriously, a ton) of them. While I cannot admit to staying abreast with the latest uploads on all of them, there are many favourites that I try to check on a frequent basis. Not too surprisingly, a good chunk of such frequently visited groups centre around a vintage related theme.

As such I thought it would be really fun to share a selection of Flickr groups – and a sampling of images from them – with you that never fail to deliver a wallop of vintage inspiration. The ten groups below are just the tip of the iceberg though, there are dozens – if not hundreds – of other groups all with a penchant for the past, just waiting for you to discover.

1930s and 1940s: Rich in everyday types of family snapshots (most of which are in black and white), this group also features some images of the era from Hollywood, magazines and popular culture.


{1. Happy Lipstick [739], 2. WWII -4, 3. 1936. Gimnáziumi kirándulás, 4. 1944. N.}


Vintage Illustration: As the name implies this group is devoted to the true art which is vintage illustration. Sporting over 2,000 members and more than 20,000 uploads to the group’s pool, this is often the first place I run to when I need a vintage ad or drawing.


{1. The winds of grace ..., 2. 1943 Parker Quink Ink (with Solv-x) Advertisement, 3. Pepsi - 19581122 Post, 4. Sunny Side 3}


Vintage hair: Loaded with more inspiration than you can shake a stick at, this lovely group is filled with photos and illustrations that have an emphasis on women’s hairstyles from days gone by, as well as lovely modern gals sporting vintage dos.


{1. Movie Classic Magazine cover, Myrna Loy, 2. Untitled, 3. HTMUSAMI_1948F002, 4. flapper2}


Vintage Clothing: This group is (primarily) for photos of modern folks decked out in vintage attire. Though you may have to wade through the group’s pool a little bit to find mid-century looks, but there are still plenty of these sorts of styles there to help inspire your own wardrobe.


{1. Playful, 2. Jacques Fath for Halpert 50s dress, 3. Kaila in her grandmother's dress., 4. The Girl Can't Help It.}


Vintage shoes: Whether its pumps, flats, oxfords or sandals, you’re sure to find oodles of beautiful and diverse vintage shoes among this group’s many photos.


{1. 1940's Kedettes, 2. 1940's shoes, 3. shoes, 4. 1950s chocolate brown nubuck pumps}


Vintage Pinup: Bursting with vintage pinup photos and illustrations, as well as shots of modern ladies in pinup styles, this group is a terrific spot for both eye-candy and inspiration.


{1. It's a Snap (Pretty Snappy. Snap Judgment), 1958 GIL ELVGREN, 2. IMG_5408.tea.L, 3. Modern day Pin up, 4. Josie Raven}


Fabulous Fifties Heaven (1950 – 1959): Celebrating all things fifties, this group teams with vintage advertisements, photos and illustrations that convey the wide-eyed optimism, suburban lifestyle and marvelous fashions that ruled the decade.


{1. Bell Telephone System Ad, 2. Armstrong Flooring Ad, 3. Family Circle - August 1955, 4. Coca Cola - 19581122 Post}


From Kitchen Past – The Vintage Kitchen: From Pyrex to aprons, turquoise hand mixer to ads for counter tops and furniture, this group is jam packed with a wonderful assortment of photos and illustrations relating to old school kitchens.


{1. Kitchen Curio, 2. 1950's Kitchen, 3. Vintage Sifter, 4. Glimpses of my kitchen}


Vintage Cookbooks: From timeless classics to recipes that should probably never have seen the light of day, amongst the many pages of this charming group’s pool you’ll find scads of vintage illustrations and photos pertaining to the culinary arts.


{1. Jack Benny Jell-O Pamphlet '30's:), 2. frontispiece, 3. Sunkist Recipes for Every Day, 4. Kellogg's All-Bran Ad}


Wedge Heels & Wartime – Forties in Print: Chronicling illustrations and advertisements from the twentieth century’s fourth decade, this group has more than 1,500 uploads to inspire and entertain you with (I’m especially fond of the amazing fashion styles one sees in such images).


{1. True Story October 1941, 2. koala-paca 1944, 3. Modern Beauty Shop - March 1944, 4. Harper's Bazaar 1942}

{To visit an individual image, click on the corresponding link below each collage.}

Putting together these mosaics and scanning through a bevy of amazing vintage images has kicked started my Thursday off the cheeriest of notes! To keep that sort of happy feeling going, I’m always looking for new places to source inspiration from and would love to know what some of your favourite vintage related Flickr groups are.

Five extremely helpful vintage related YouTube channels worth following

Over the last few weeks of spring I’ve probably watched more YouTube videos than I did in the past year combined. What spurred on my clip viewing frenzy, you might ask? A desire to better hone my vintage hair and make-up abilities. While I don’t feel like the novice that I did as the lone vintage wearing teenager in my high school, I have no problem admitting that I have more confidence in my “modern look” make-up and hair skills than my forties and fifties ones.

While I’m not sure if I’ll ever reach the level of mastery that some of the deeply talented ladies on YouTube (and within the vintage community as a whole) have, I definitely feel that through watching clips from the five channels below, I’ve both learned a lot and improved some of my skills.

I’ve highlighted one video from each stream and also linked to the video creators’ respective channels. Should, like myself, you be looking to improve, brush or beginning learn from scratch the secrets, tips and techniques of gorgeous vintage make-up and hair experts, I can’t recommend these channels highly enough!


{The vintage hair and make-up looks Casey produces in her extremely easy to follow, detailed videos are every inch as lovely as her vintage blog – which I also recommend you rush over and check out!}


{Sweet as a button and wonderfully skilled at reproducing classic hairstyles (and make-up looks) from everyday life and movies alike, Aya of Strawberry Koi is a huge vintage inspiration of mine.}


{A whiz at forties and fifties hairstyles, Ashley’s video stream (LisaFreemontStreet) is a treasure trove full of fantastic vintage hair styling tutorials.}


{With her beautiful voice and excellent instruction giving ability, Super Kawaii Momma is a joy to watch. Not only is she a masterful vintage blogger and dresser, but she’s an expert on achieving old school hairstyles.}


{Iris of the romantically titled ilovegerardo channel knows more than a little about hairstyles of kinds, but it’s her stellar series of Pinup tutorials that really have me hooked on her helpful videos!}


I want to take a moment and extend my heartfelt thanks to each of these five amazing women. You’ve each helped to boast my confidence on the beauty front and provided me with oodles of inspiration. I hope, dear readers, that they’ll be able to do the same thing for you!

Snip, snip, snip, went the hair

♪ Zing, zing, zing, went my heart-strings! ♪


{Charming Swiss hair salon shop sign, discovered via Dom Dada’s Flickr stream.}

Last Friday after popping by the bank, I headed across the street (albeit to a budget-friendly chain type of place) to get myself a ridiculously long overdue hair. I can’t even muster up the courage to admit how long it’s been since my last one, but definitely more than a year. I wasn’t procrastinating in the “just haven’t been bothered to get around to it sense”, but I will admit to delaying the inevitable due to a chronic tailbone problem I have that makes sitting extremely painful. Sadly that means that even the most simple of things like enjoying a meal at a restaurant or sitting in the hairdresser’s chair can be a huge challenge that I need to plan in advance for.

Yet my hair, straight as a rod, fine as a newborn baby’s and thin (aka, there isn’t a lot of it), simply does not have the natural density and volume to pull off bra strap or waist length styles, love the notion of Rapunzel/Jane Seymour like styles as I do.

By sheer luck I picked a good time of the day (noon) to hit the salon, as soon as I walked in I was whisked over to a stylist and my hair was being shampooed in no time. The stylist, who I’ll call “K” was a friendly middle aged woman who seemed to have an uncanny ability to know things about my hair.

“It’s been a long time since your last cut, hasn’t it?” she asked, her fingers flying through my sudsy hair. To which I couldn’t bring myself to cop to how long it really had been and gave the vague answer of “several months”.

Later on she said rather point blank, “You’re hair is thinning, isn’t it?” This is absolutely true; since I was 14 years old my hair has been falling out in disturbing quantities. I’ve sought medical advice, had tests run, tried increasing various vitamin intake levels, but nothing has helped and doctors just seem to shrug and say produce the favourite cop-out of medical practitioners everywhere, “it must be genetics”. Perhaps, but I wish there was so way to know for sure!

Granted working with and understanding the mechanics of hair is her job though, so she really wasn’t getting all Derren Brown about what lays atop my scalp ;) It was just nice to have someone who seemed to understand my hair for once, as I’ve had a really lousy string of hair dressers – and some awful cuts – over the years.

Once shampooed, we discussed how short I wanted to go and I explained that I wanted to still be able to pull it back (how many times have we all heard that now on reality make-over shows, it sounds almost cliché to say at this point) and that being able to curl it, especially in pin curls and hot rollers, was of the utmost importance to me. K proceeded to lop off a good four inches (perhaps more), which brought my hair up to my shoulder blades. She then worked in some layers (I’ve been getting layered cuts for years, but my layers had all but grown out and were in dire need of reviving), blew dry it and rubbed in a palm-ful of volumizing lotion.

The whole experience went much quicker than I’d been dreading it would and I was out of the salon in under half an hour, giddy with my new cut and wishing I’d taken the plunge – or should I say “cut” – ages ago.


{Delightful vintage illustration of a stylish lady getting her hair done. Image care of Kitschy Kitschy Coo’s awesome blog.}

Since then I’ve washed it three times (I generally wash my hair every other day, opting for a shower cap the other days), worn it down, partially pulled up, and in a sort of deconstructed victory roll style. On Monday I picked up some pin curl clips and a rat tail comb (both Goody brand http://www.goody.com/) at the drug store (I was also looking for perm papers, which are useful when doing pin curls to help tuck the ends of the hair sections into the curl with, but it seems that drug stores and even Trade Secrets, which I also checked, do not sell them these days, home perms having gone the way of the dinosaur), and I think these tools will make pin curls significantly easier to do then how I’ve been working them thus far, which was with a brush and bobby pins.

I’m not a pin curl expert though and have never attempted them on shorter hair, but I plan to do so soon. It might take a few attempts, but I don’t mind at all. I’m so pleased as punch with the length of my hair right now, that I find myself looking in the mirror more often and actually smiling!

Last Saturday I posted a helpful pin curl instructional video by Lisa Freemont Street, but thought that I’d share some more of my favourite pin curl how-to clips, produced by ladies far more talented than I am in this arena and from whom I’m hoping I will be able to become a pin curling extrodinare.


{From the uber talented Super Kawaii Mama comes an awesome, straight forward, very easy to follow video entitled “Perfect Pin curls”. If you haven’t done so already, I highly encourage you to follow her Youtube Channel, it’s bursting with helpful vintage styling related clips.}



{The lovely Amanda of MistiqueMake-up shows you how to do flat pin curls, which as she points out, can be a lot easier to sleep in overnight than “upright” or “standing” pin curls. After checking out that clip, be sure to see her video “Styling ideas for pin curled hair”.}



{I love this pin curls for beginners instructional video from Strawberry Koi and have watched several times before. Now it takes on a new meaning to me though, as her hair is very similar in length to my own now. I whole heartedly recommend all of Strawberry Koi's videos, and love her gentle voice and thorough manner of teaching things in a very easy to follow manner.}

In my nearly 25 years of life on this rock, I’ve never had a hair cut that I was more pleased with – and there’s no way I’ll ever go so long again without a trim. As this experience proved, sometimes enduring a bit pain in the name of style is worth a huge gain!


{Yikes, now that that looks rough! Photo of a woman getting a cold set perm from Donna Lethal’s Flickr stream.}

Do you love/hate your hair? Have any stories of trips to the beauty parlor that put a smile on your face?