HRF is giving away a custom snood from Arthelia's Attic

Like many who follow a large number of blogs, I often encounter - and frequently enter - posts for giveaways, but it's not everyday that I spot one that seems so serendipitously well timed.

You see, as of late, I've had snoods on the brain big time! I've been finding that one of the best ways to help my wig look less wig-ish (which to be fair, this one honestly doesn't to begin with, but this is handy advice in general, so I really wanted to share it) is to use hair accessories.

Nearly every day that I've worn my wig so far, I've partnered it with a hair accessory and/or hat of some kind. Barrettes and hair flowers have been the most common to date, but right around the new year, I started to get a mad hankering to sport my snoods. I have a few, but they're all made from inexpensive rayon and must not be colour fast, because I've had the dye on two of them run when they got wet (one wrecking a beloved white blouse when this occurred on a rainy summer day last year), so I very rarely wear them (and honestly, may repurpose them as craft supplies one day after I've got some better snoods).

I adore the classic look of snoods however, which, for us vintage gals, channels instant thoughts of the 1940s first and foremost and really want to get into wearing them, especially after seeing how incredible fellow vintage fashionistas like Laurence look in their stylish examples of this timeless hair accessory.

Now that I'm sporting a wig fulltime, interestingly enough, it works out even better for me to wear snoods because I have more hair to fill them with (before, even when my hair was fully curled, it often didn't look very voluminous inside of a snood).

After an evening spent hunting for snoods on eBay, etsy and elsewhere, and finding a a few potentially good sources, I asked on Facebook for some recommendations for snoods and Laurence replied with a recommendation for etsy seller Arthelia's Attic.




{Arthelia's Attic offers high quality handmade snoods (made using a pattern from 1942) in an array of beautiful colours. Amongst which the lovely navy blue pictured above is definitely one of my favourites.}



I'd learned of this seller some time ago and just rediscovered them that day myself, so it seemed to be a really good sign that they were the first snood seller recommended to me. I'm budgeting and watching my spending exceedingly carefully at the moment, so tempted as I've been, I haven't bought a snood from Arthelia's Attic or anyone else so far (but, boy, am I itching to do so!).

You can imagine my delight then when, earlier this week, I saw that the the blog Haute Rockabilly Fashion was offering readers a chance to win a custom Arthelia's Attic Snood. I just about jumped out my seat with excitement when I discovered that and couldn't enter fast enough. I know that many of you are big time snood enthusiasts, too, so if you'd like to enter, all you have to do is post about the giveaway on your blog on, or before, January 14th; follow HRF, and leave a comment on the giveaway post letting her know that you entered.

I'm smitten with the snoods from Arthelia's Attic and am keeping my fingers, toes and curls crossed that I maybe, just maybe, the snood gods will smile on me and I'll end up being the winner of one of Arthelia's gorgeous offerings (I can just imagine how cute they'd look with my wig!).

The great wig unveiling!

Outfit details

1940s black felt hat with red and light pink bands: eBay
Silver hop earrings: dollar store in Kelowna
Black turtleneck sweater: Thrifted (Salvation Army)
Vintage silver tone arrow rose brooch: eBay 1940s style grey a-line skirt: Thrifted (Value Village)
Red bangle bracelet: Forever 21
Black carved bangle bracelet: Ten Thousand Villages
Leopard cuff black velvet gloves: eBay
Red vintage purse: etsy seller I Love Vintage Stuff
Black opaque tights: (probably) Arden
Black 1940s style shoes: Thrifted (Salvation Army)
Lip colour: MAC Russian Red
Photography by Antonio Cangiano    
                 

                              ♥ ♥ ♥

In many respects, the title of this post assumes that you read last week's post here, in which I discussed the fact that, due to many years of ongoing hair loss, I've recently started wearing a wig for the first time in my life. If you didn't get a chance to check out that post, you may want to do so quickly, and then scurry back here, as it really goes into far greater detail on the subject that I'll be delving into in today's post.

The photos here were the first that we took of me in this wig after I received it, and stand as my favourite prior to when I trimmed the bangs. As mentioned in my recent intro-to-the-wig post, after three shoots, the last of which the length of the bags bugged me the most, I trimmed them a bit and am so, so glad that I did!

There wasn't anything overly wrong with them as they were, but I don't have a very large face over all compared to many other adult women, so the bangs sat pretty low down on my forehead before I cut them, nearly obscuring my eyebrows. If I was going for a Zooey Deschanel/Katy Perry/Olivia Wilde/Taylor Swift kind of look, this would have been perfect, but I'm not. As much a pre-styled wig will permit, I'm trying to keep my hair looking as vintage appropriate as I can, so I'd much rather my bangs channelled someone like, say, Bettie Page, and that's who I kept squarely in mind as I (super carefully - wig hair, after all, doesn't grow back if you cut too much off!) trimmed my wig bangs a few days ago.

Autumn lingered on, rather delightfully, well into November here in Penticton. Even after the leaves had lost their golden luster and the hours of daylight dwindled, the temperatures were kind enough to remain above freezing. In early December though, as is so often the case, all that changed and winter really and properly showed up, brining scads of snow in tow with it as it did.

Naturally, as many of us who regularly take outfit photos know, snow can make grabbing snaps outdoors a bit tricky sometimes, but unless you're dealing with gale force winds and/or blinding snow, it doesn't have to be a deal breaker entirely. On the damp afternoon when Tony and I popped down to a stretch of land beside the marina at Okanagan Lake to take these photos, both the wind and the snow were howling, but amidst the flakes, we were able to get in quite a few photos (albeit quick ones!), many of which we were really happy with once they were uploaded.

Turtlenecks are an interesting garment to me. I've always enjoyed wearing them, appreciate their warmth, and doubt I've ever gone a whole winter without sporting one, but I'm also the first to admit, that they aren't always the most flattering item of clothing on many people. They tend to swallow up your neck, give you the an additional chin or two, and can also snag on longer length earrings. Nevertheless, they're a winter wardrobe must for most folks, myself included, so I figured it was high time I busted out my trusty black one and sported a turtleneck on camera.

I suppose I'm resisting winter's chill in a way, because, so far, I've been dressing a touch more like it was still October then December or (now) January. I love winter, I truly do, but as I discussed in this post last fall, my warm weather clothes far outnumber my cold weather ones at the moment, so I've not got as many snow appropriate garments to turn to as I do ones to, for example, wear to a picnic in June.

To partner with this black turtleneck, I opted for notes of silver, grey, and red. I've always loved this colour combo, and find I reach for it most often during the coldest months of the year. Long after the last Christmas decoration comes down, there's just something about red that makes it seem so very well suited to winter, if you ask me. Perhaps it calls to mind thoughts of flames dancing in a fireplace on a bitterly cold eve, or of rose hips poking out of the snow in the garden, and of course, there's always the abundance of crimson that Valentine's Day entails come February. Whatever the case, I love love to enliven winter's palette with red, and opted to do so with this outfit in the form of the purse, one of the bangles, and as an accent colour on my vintage hat (on top of my usual vibrant red lipstick, that is).

Though, admittedly, it can be a wee bit bone-chilling indeed, I actually love shooting outfit photos in the snow. The cool palette of icy whites, greys, bleached browns, and delicate, almost melancholic blues can make for a fantastic backdrop against which to highlight the true colours of your ensemble. They can also be very flattering to one's skin tone. If you've been on the fence about taking outfit photos in the snow, I highly recommend it to one and all - just make sure you wear sturdy footwear with good tread/grip on the soles, as you don't want to risk injuring yourself in the name of fashion by slipping on the ice or snow.

I was thoroughly impressed with how well this wig stayed put that day (just as it's continued to do each time I've worn it since). We got hit with a few mighty big blasts of powerful wind, and it really didn't budge an inch (I should note, I'm not wearing any wig glue or tape underneath, the wig is merely resting on my scalp). That hat wasn't holding it down either, if you were thinking as much, it was just gingerly resting on top, and would have been far more likely to have blown off than than the wig itself, I think (luckily neither happened).

Suddenly wearing a wig fulltime is a change for sure, but not an unpleasant one at all, and - especially once I trimmed the bags - I'm continuing to be very happy with this cute, inexpensive topper. I sincerely appreciate all of the thoughtful, caring, supportive comments that I received on my post about the wig last week, they really meant a lot to me as I adjust to life sans natural hair.

This is a fun, exciting journey and development to my personal style, and one which I'm eager to share with all of you throughout the brand new year that lies ahead of us - and beyond.

A super easy vintage recipe for Tomato Rarebit

A little over two years, back in the equal frosty days of January 2010, I decided to start posting vintage recipes here on a relatively frequent basis. Prior to that time, I'd been sharing some of my own beloved dishes with you, as well as the occasion yesteryear recipe, but it wasn't until then that I'd began writing about some of the many classic, sometimes zany, often dead simple, almost always taste bud pleasing vintage recipes I'd been bookmarking and favouriting over the years.

Long time readers my remember that said post featured a recipe for good old-fashioned Welsh Rarebit. As a way of celebrating two plus years of fantastic vintage recipes posts, I thought it only fitting that today's recipe be, once more, for a rarebit filled meal.

Unlike the original - and very traditional - recipe from a couple of years ago, this one from the 1950s calls for the inclusion of canned tomato soup. To said soup, one merely adds milk, shredded cheese, dry mustard and two eggs. It really does not get any easier than that, in my books.

This is the kind of inexpensive recipe that you can whip up at a moment's notice, and which is both filling and warming in the same go - an absolute must for most lunches and dinners during this especially chilly stretch of winter.

{Like the tagline on this great 1950s recipe for Tomato Rarebit says, they'll cheer when this delicious, easy dish comes on the table...rosy and piping hot!" In my experience, this has proven to be the case with everyone I've served it to, and suspect it will be enthusiastically embraced by your table guests, too. Vintage recipe via thenoirkitten on Flickr.}



If you're not a fan of mustard, by all means forgo it. You could instead add some paprika, chili powder, curry powder, freshly cracked black pepper (I'd add pepper no matter what), oregano, marjoram, basil, thyme, or chervil. Have fun and play around with the cheese. Why not channel a pizza vibe and use mozzarella, some fresh basil leaves, a little garlic, and perhaps a handful of sliced black olives or fire roasted red peppers?

You can certainly serve this tasty rarebit over crackers, as suggested, or branch out and try it drizzled atop everything from cornbread to (savoury) waffles, fluffy buttermilk biscuits to hefty sized slices of dense focaccia bread. You could also keep it warm in a fondue pot or chaffing dish and spear little cubes of bread, biscuits, crepes, or Indian naan into it for an extra fun twist on a great vintage meal.

I personally make this for myself with Campbell's Tomato with Basil and Oregano soup, which is gluten-free (very few Campbell's soups are, but this one is and is clearly identified as such on the label), forgoing the eggs (I'm allergic) and cutting the milk (or milk alternative, such as rice milk) down to no more than 1/4 of a cup.

I like to serve it over Glutino brand gluten-free Table Crackers, as they're egg-free and somewhat similar to a classic saltine. Sometimes, if I have any on hand, I've also dipped fresh homemade gluten-free savoury scones into this flavourful sauce in the fondue manner described above. Tomato soup has always been a favourite of mine, so I love that with some tweaking, I'm still able to enjoy this quick, flavourful take on rarebit.

In my experience, rarebit, be it the traditional or tomato version, is a hit with dinner guests of all ages, from toddlers on up, and the perfect thing to make on the fly if you suddenly find yourself with unexpected company during these freezing cold days of January on into February (especially since most people have canned soup, milk, eggs, cheese, and crackers on hand almost all the time).

It's been nothing short of a joy to share two years of vintage recipes with you, and I eagerly look forward to many more years of fun, memorable old school eats to come!