Ironing today, large piles of crisply washed shirts and sheets that I wish I could say were line dried, but alas, were rid of moisture care of an electric dryer. (Unfortunately along with about 839 other things you can’t do in our rented apartment, placing a clothes line or any form of outdoor drying rack on the balcony is out of the question.)
{From the apron to the head-kerchief, the stripped linens to the smile on this lovely woman’s face, this gem of a photo so perfectly captures a moment in 1950s time. Discovered via Signs and Wonders Flickr stream.}
In general I enjoy housework (no, really, I’m not off my rocker ;D), and ironing is certainly one those tasks that I like quite a bit. There’s something soothing about the repetitive back and forth swoosh of the iron as it makes contact with the fabric, the gentle poofs of steam that rise up, the way a little elbow grease is all it takes to transform a blouse from looking like a bulldog into a sleek greyhound.
In between button-downs I thought I’d take a few moments and compile this week’s pretty link roundup, as I’ve spotted so many fantastic posts over the past few days that more than deserve a mention.
Before jumping head first in to our (freshly pressed) pile of links, I just wanted to extend my sincere thanks to two wonderful gals. For starters I want to thank the incredibly sweet-souled GypsyFox, for creating my first ever Chronically Vintage blog graphic (which you can check out at the bottom the right hand sidebar of this site). She surprised me out of the blue with it a few days ago and I’m still getting over her magnificent generosity. Secondly a huge thanks to Maggi for mentioning Chronically Vintage in her Friday Night Fab Five post this week. What an absolute honour to get a write-up from this creative, kind, wonderful lady.
From gorgeous mid-century eye glasses to reasons why it’s wise to don a slip, there’s a terrific assortment of cool posts and fantastic images to check out in this Saturday’s gathering of links. Be sure to scroll down and take a peek at the video of the week, too, it’s all about creating a vintage hair style with a modern day product, Hot Sticks.
* Summerfrische (Summer Fresh): I’ve always been particularly fascinated by vintage photos that were shot with colour film before it became the widely used norm. In this post on a German blog by the name of “Dotti’s Dots”, the author highlights photos of a number of absolutely wonderful, “every day” women engaged in various of summertime activities. It’s well for a look both for its historical context and for some awesome styling inspiration.
* 10 Summer Dresses: One can never have too many options when it comes to pretty, vintage inspired summer dresses, and this post from Betsy highlights ten such frocks that are sure to have your pulse racing and your wallet opening.
* Gratifying Glasses: Over at the Retro Ways, Darla has rounded up a slew of beautiful and affordable vintage eye glasses that are bound to have both spectacle wearers and non-wearers alike dreaming of calling a pair of these beauties their own.
* Modern day pin-up photos from Vanity Fair: Annually for the past three years Vanity Fair magazine has been putting out a series of utterly incredible, gorgeous modern-day up and coming starlets in classic pin-up styles. This week three lovely blogs (The Cupcake Diary, Glamour Splash, and Dustjacket Attic) have highlighted some of their favourite shots from this amazing VF photo spread.
* Exclusive Interview with Bernie Dexter: Undeniably one of the best known and loveliest of all modern pin-up models, Bernie Dexter is an inspiration and style icon for many vintage fans (and models) the world over. In this article, Queens of Vintage quiz the brunette beauty on fashion, modeling and her love of vintage.
* Charm Magazine: Vintage magazines fascinate me. From the ads to articles, photos to the advice given to their loyal readers, I am both drawn to and completely captivated by old school glossies. So you can imagine my delight when over on Sweet Sassafras I spied a post – complete with numerous images – from a long defunct ladies magazine by the name of Charm.
* Old School Flapper Undies: Have you ever pondered the types of undergarments that ladies in the 1920s wore under their flapper styles? If the answer is “yes”, or if you’re now curious about that point, hop over to the Perpetual Flapper for an itemized list (complete with modern day sources) of what sort of skivvies one should don when doing the Charleston.
* Why should you wear a slip?: Once as much a mainstay of any woman’s wardrobe as her nylons, the humble and very useful slip has fallen out of vogue over the past couple of decades. In this post Couture Allure explores some of the reasons why it really pays to vive the wearing of slips.
* The Fleet’s In: The nautical look is a perpetual favourite of many vintage lovers, and this week Letters From the Home Front pays homage to navy inspired styles in particular in this lovely clothing filled post.
* Gimme Gingham: Joyful as a perfectly sunny day, timeless as an cheery pie, gingham is a stylish, laid back pattern with timeless appeal. Here Holly highlights some of her favourite gingham fashion finds (with a follow-up post containing more gingham goodness here.
* Wardrobe Staple: Sportswear: Thoroughly put together and teaming with tons of great information, images and links, this post from Diana explores the fascinating topic of how to encorporate vintage sportswear into your modern day workouts.
This week’s fantastic video comes care of the absolutely, stunningly beautiful Fleur, who many of you may know from her fantastic blog, Diary of a Vintage Girl. This handy how-to clip is Fleur’s foray into Youtube, and I must say that I think she did a terrific job! I don’t have much experience with hot sticks, but after seeing this video, I definitely would like to pick up a set (who knows, maybe they’ll be the magical device that will actually create a lasting curl in my bone-straight, ultra fin hair).
Before I get back to my trusty ironing board and toe-tapping music (I have an ongoing tradition of listening to rock and/or Motown music, in particular, when I’m ironing), I want to take a moment to wish each and everyone one of my American readers an absolutely, positively wonderful July 4th! I hope that however you celebrate, you have a day that brings a smile and some beautiful fireworks your way!
{Celebrating Independence Day with 1940s zeal and style. Photo from the pages of myvintagevogue’s Flickr stream.}
