Lets Talk Horrockses...

In conversation with... Pat Albeck

Date: 24 September 2010

6.30 - 8pm

Pat Albeck is an inspiration to anyone interested in textile design and print and she was one of the key designers for Horrockses in its 1950s hey-day.

This is a rare opportunity to hear Pat discuss her work in those early days with FTM curator Dennis Nothdruft. She will be talking about some of her designs that feature in the exhibition as well as her work after Horrockses.

Price: £12 / £9 concessions including a glass of wine and exhibition entrance. Attendees wishing to view the exhibition should arrive early. Book now to avoid disappointment.


BOOK HERE! - A real treat for any vintage fashion fan.
Information from the FTM website.

Love Art London's Victorian Walking Tour Complete with Monocles!

Time to fetch your parasol darling and get your chap's moustache waxed! Love Art London is taking to the park. On August 11th 2010 London's Hyde Park will be the scene for a victorian walking tour where you can eye spy the sculptures in Hyde Park. Love Art London is an independent art membership club and the creative team behind LAL organise fabulous and exclusive events around London for you and your friends. The Victorian Hyde Park tour promises to be another spectacular event where you will discover secret treasures by George Frampton, George Frederick Watts and Simon Gudgeon as well as checking out The Victoria and Albert Memorial and The Wellington Monument.

Expert story tellers will be bringing all the stories to life as you wander around Hyde Park. Better yet, everyone is encouraged to dress VINTAGE. Fabulous...like we needed an excuse!

Event Details: A Victorian Sculpture Walk through Hyde Park
Wednesday 11 August
6:30-8:30pm

Meeting point: The Statue of Achilles
Nearest Tube: Hyde Park Corner Tube
BOOK HERE

Its My Birthday and I Will Post About Jon Hamm If I Want To

I am still away for my birthday, but this does not mean that you have to miss out! Here is a picture of Jon Hamm aka Don Draper from Mad Men. Enjoy and don't say I don't give you anything, but great blog post content!

Birthday on Burgh Island

I am away for my birthday! I have known I was going somewhere and that it was a surprise, but Mr.B has only just revealed the surprise. He has been giving me a clue a week leading up to my birthday...so I have only just found out where we are going and my gosh it is GOOD.

Key clues included; two sea views, 4/5 hour road trip and the one that tipped me over was that we could not get to the birthday destination by car, boat or plane but we would have to go over water... (which scared me as I hate water, boats, idea of small planes, helicopters etc). Then I remembered SEA TRACTOR and that you can only get to the infamous BURGH ISLAND by sea tractor and by george I had it and that is where I am!!! Best surprise ever.

I have gone on and on and on about Burgh Island for a long time. A friend was lucky enough to attend a wedding there last year and it was visited and documented on and used for inspiration on Kirstie Allsopp's Homemade Home programme. Burgh Island was built in 1929 and has been restored to all it's original 30s glamour and glory and is the perfect setting for a vintage obsessive.You can only get to the island by sea tractor whilst the tide is out. I just hope it does not break down in the middle!!!!

Well if you see another post again..I have made it safe and sound. Check back for all the pictures and goings on on my birthday retreat to Burgh Island. Just found out an episode of Poirot was filmed there, thanks to Frankie of SwellVintage and her British murder mystery knowledge.

My Hipstamatic Scrapbook #2

1950s Vintage Apple Prom Dress, £95: Just added to NBVCC

Just added to Natasha Bailie Vintage Clothing Company:

1950s Vintage Apple Prom Dress 8/10

A UK size 8/10 and covered from shoulder to hem in green apples on a bright red cotton. Doesn't this dress just make you want to go pick your own?

Bloggers and Drunken Monkeys

So Friday I raced up to London to eat, drink and gossip about Twitter, blogs and fashion with my favourite bloggers and members of the Twitteratti. Shoreditch was the location and The Drunken Monkey was the venue of choice. I love meeting with these ladies and Nik...some I had met a couple of times, some just the once, some I had never seen in the flesh, but stalked on twitter. You get the picture.

We ate Dim Sum, drank cocktails, danced to Snoop Dog and sang along to Vogue whilst striking a pose. "One flew over the cuckoo's nest" was also playing on a TV in the background. (surreal). This was not just any other night out. This was a bloggers night out.

You would not be the only one to think that these nights mainly consist of business card swapping, mass tweeting and text speak. LOL. I am here to tell you otherwise..far from it.

I have met Fi from SaveOurShoes & Frankie from SwellVintage only twice before our Friday gathering, but every time we meet we end up giggling till something hurts and start chatting about small kittens in bags, vintage and life.

The thing that always surprises me the most from these meetings is how refreshingly nice it is to talk to like minded people about what you are doing and trying to achieve, where you want to go, be and how to do it. Everyone is really supportive of one another and surprisingly so. You hear stories all the time about bloggers behaving badly and there is nothing worse than meeting a blogger who you idolise only for them to be rude and disappoint you, but this has not happened to me yet. Fingers crossed it never does.

It was great to see Jenny from TheStylePA...whose blog I read daily and so upon meeting Jenny I waved rather too enthusiastically as if I had known her for years. Luckily for me she waved back...I am pretending that she knew who I was instead of just being polite to a crazy lady. (me).

I finally met Alex from AlexLoves who I follow on Twitter and blog stalk...she is officially awesome. If you are not following or reading all about Alex then I will need 140 characters on why on earth not? Dang the girl can dress to impress too...I was lucky enough to meet her in her very new and colourful My Sugarland dress. (Jealous). Alex also brought a fabulous friend along called Kate who runs FabricOfMyLife and now I don't know how I have lasted so long without Kate's blog in my life. Have a **look **

Other blogger powerhouses included the stunning Reena Rai from FashionDaydreams the best looking blogger you will ever meet. Nik Thakkar from Mediacation who can dance as good as he blogs! Kristabel from IWantYouToKnow, Lira Leirner from ThePortmanteau who was wearing one of her own designs!!! I also got to stroke Lucy of SnippetsOfShinyThoughts new Mulberry bag whilst shaking our tail feathers on the dance floor, but I was gutted I never got around the table to chat with the fabulous Tor of FabFrocks :(. Also spotted was Mariana from Sketchbook who lucked out and had to share my room in the ever so glamorous Shoreditch Travelodge and the lovely Katie Antoniou of LondonPlinth fame.

With planning for the next bloggers night already underway I cannot wait to meet the creative writers, fashion designers, journalists and stylists behind these great blogs again! Who knew meeting strangers could be so good?

Tom Ford loves Nicholas Hoult

Nicholas Hoult is being cast and directed by Tom Ford again...this time for Ford's fall menswear and eyewear collection. I have loved watching Hoult's career go from strength to strength...'About a boy' is still one of my all time favourite movies, but it seems paired with Tom Ford, Hoult can still do no wrong. What a dream team. I love this picture...very Hitchcock! What do you think about Ford's choice of model?

Source HERE

Serena's Green Dress #GossipGirl

I know, I know...my Gossip Girl problem is getting out of hand...

With most of the cast over in Paris filming and pictures being released daily of Serena and Blair's outfits it is hard to escape the Gossip Girl fever.
After all most of us are just checking that Chuck Bass is alive to tell the tale in the new season of GG...aren't we? Aside from the sneak peaks of Chuck walking with a cane (phew) I have been eye spying all the outfits.

Blake Lively has been spotted on the streets of Paris wearing this fabulous ruffle green dress by Haute Hippie and it is making me green with envy.

What have you seen? Heard? I need my gossip...girls.

She Once Was Mine

Another fabulously dreamy vintage inspired editorial! I had to blog these pics...so pretty and completely inspiring. I love it when you find photographs so beautiful you want them to adorn your walls. What do you think?

Copyright belongs to Coute Que Coute (My Faves)

by The Ones2Watch

Photography Andoni & Arantxa

Styling Irene De Santis  


Makeup Thais Bretas  


Hair Michele Qureshi

Models Lina Navickaite & Ella Kandyba at Next Milan

A Vintage Horrockses Dress: Just Added to NBVCC

Horrockses Fashions Limited was the manufacturer of one of the most well-respected ready-to-wear labels of the 1940s and 1950s.The company are best known for their full-skirted dresses which were sought after by women everywhere and were even worn by Queen Elizabeth II.These dresses were relatively expensive and were popular with members of the Royal Family. Working women would save up to buy one, often as a honeymoon outfit and I have just added an immaculate Horrockses dress to Natasha Bailie Vintage Clothing Company>>>>>>>>

If you love Horrockses dresses then you will want to know all about the current London Exhibition of Horrockses Fashions. Read my last post on Horrockses with all the details of the must see exhibit. Click HERE

A Summer Dress

Anyone would think I had got confused and thought I was a fashion blogger of sorts...especially if you have read my last few posts; Louis Vuitton this and Gossip Girl that. Honestly I will try and get back on the beaten vintage track after just one more fashion post!

Now I don't know if its just summertime or the 70% off sales or the fact that autumn and winter looks are just hitting the high street ready for A/W2010, but the streets have started turning into catwalks. Everyone is looking swellegant at the moment...well not everyone, but the majority are pulling out all the stops and making it look easy.

For example this photograph of Drew Barrymore in NYC. (I had to look twice). I am used to seeing Ms Barrymore looking more rock n roll/scruffy, but here she is sporting a fabulous floral frock teamed with simple accessories and FABULOUS shoes. This is the way to do it.

A dress is great for summer, its lightweight and glamorous. Wear with flat shoes for skipping around town and wear with high heeled peep toes like Drew for cocktail hour.

Gossip Girl

**NEW** Gossip Girl pictures are turning up everywhere today. The GG team are currently in Paris shooting for the fourth series of the fabulously fashionable Gossip Girl. I love this picture of Blake Lively and Leighton Meester and hell if these outfits are anything to go by I cannot wait for season 4 to kick off! xoxo

Making of: Louis Vuitton Fall Collection 2010/2011

Last week I gushed about the campaign ads for Louis Vuitton: The fall collection for 2010/2011 designed by Marc Jacobs. Well ladies here is Marc Jacobs telling us all about his fabulous collection and you also get a sneak peek behind the scenes of the campaign photographs. Can you believe Christine Turlington is about to turn 41!?

I dream of Mulberry....Neely Bag LOVE

The Mulberry Neely bag is NOW available to buy today and it is even prettier than I remembered...

Now you may recall Mulberry bags are my weakness...see my last Mulberry post where I was drooling all over Mulberry's Alexa bag. The Neely is my new bag obsession...I am fickle, but when it comes to Mulberry it is LOVE.

I am lucky enough to have a Mulberry Roxanne and I can honestly say it has not left my side for over two years and the quality and shape is THE same as they day I got it. I cannot say that about any other bag I have.

The Neely bag named after the lead character in The Valley of the Dolls comes in cream, black and red and is available to buy at www.mulberry.com and www.my-wardrobe.com

Gabby Young NEEDS YOU!

DOWNLOAD HERE

Do you like music? Do you have 49 pennies?

Click HERE to go straight to the Amazon website where you can purchase Gabby Young's fabulous new single "We're all in this together".

How fabulous is Gabby? Gabby Young was chosen to perform at this years BAFTA awards party...and if its good enough for red carpet ears?! Glorious Gabby also performed at the legendary Glastonbury festival this year and hey, even Julien Macdonald has downloaded this track...need I go on?  

Visit Gabby Young's website for more information; http://www.gabbyyoung.co.uk/ 

As part of the chosen 40 of STORM THE CHARTS

The Cosmo Bloggie Awards 2010

This is Cosmo and she is my 2 year old shih tzu....look at her she is far too busy to be reading magazines (also no thumbs so turning pages is tricky). Today the interweb is a buzz with The Cosmopolitan blog awards...so this is like that except completely made up by me. I give you...The Cosmo Bloggie Awards!

Cosmo wishes she could wear hats like Carrie from wish,wish,wish

SwellVintage is the only place Cosmo likes to go to for her vintage reworked accessories

Saveourshoes is awesome, but what about save our paws?

Cosmo often enjoys a London event or two and keeps up to date with LondonPlinth

Cosmo wishes she could wear a frock on fridays like Lottieloves

These five blogs are awesome, reguarly updated and worth a daily read. Click on the links and follow immediately and ENJOY!