What Katie Did Flash Sale!

My one and only supplier of stockings, What Katie Did, is having a flash sale right now!!

Don't forget to register on their page and get an additional 5% off!

This is what WKD writes in their newsletter:

Last Friday we had a delivery of 10,000 pairs of Retro Seamed Stockings so it's no surprise that this week's flash sale is for Retro Seams! Our basic Retro Seamed Stockings are continuously the best selling item on our site and it's easy to see why: they're hardwearing, comfortable and affordable. Well, now at 40% off (45% for account holders) they're a real steal! The flash sale extends to our Contrast Retro Seamed Stockings and our new range of Retro Seamed Tights.

The Flash Sale starts now, and will be finishing approximately 3pm UK time on Friday 1st July. 

I have now stocked up on my favourite seamed stockings!

Darhling

xoxo

Jazz Picnic in the Secret Garden in Norwich

Saturday evening the chap and I attended a jazz picnic set in the Secret Garden in Norwich, also called the Plantation Garden.

 The beautiful fountain

The Plantation Garden is a grade II English Heritage registered garden established 143 years ago in an abandoned chalk quarry some 600 yards from the city centre. It comprises nearly 3 acres in all, and includes; a huge gothic fountain, flower beds, lawns, Italianate terrace, 'Medieval' terrace wall, woodland walkways, a 10 metre long Victorian-style greenhouse and rustic bridge.

The Jazz Band

The garden was all originally created in 1856 by Henry Trevor in a chalk quarry, but was forgotten after his death. Rediscovered 25 years ago when it was virtually a total ruin, it is now one of Norwich's great treasures. It is also known as the Secret Garden, many people know it exists but have never found it. It's actually very easy to find, right beside the Roman Catholic Cathedral on Earlham Road. 

We had such a lovely evening, the band played from 7 pm to 9.15 pm, there was set up a lovely barbeque at the entrance to the garden, in front of the local pub.

We were also joined by the lovely Retro Chick, Gemma who brought the most amazing picnic basket and portable drinks cabinet.

 The lovely Gemma and Pete

The chap and I both fell completely in love with the place and the chap had many visions for the Secret Garden and how he could help out, since he is The Bygone Gardener!

 The chap and I!

I can wholeheartedly recommend a trip to the garden, it is a lovely, tranquil place that I am sure you will love as much as I do.


Darhling


xoxo

Miss L Fire's amazing range of shoes!

In my quest to find amazing, vintage appropriate shoes from the 40s era, I have finally stumbled across Miss L Fire. I know, I am very late in the L Fire game.

Miss L Fire shoes are not cheap, but far from expensive and so worth the money! They can be purchased from Miss L Fire's own website, on Amazon and in shops such as Black Truffle. More stockists can be found on Miss L Fire's own webpage.

Their range of shoes range from quirky and colourful to elegant with a twist. My favourites so far are the Lanai, Havana, Hibiscus and Vee Eight.

The Lanai has the perfect 40s heel and a tiny peeptoe, making it suitable for both summer and autumn, but I wouldn't risk it in a British winter. The have contrast sticitching and a little bow on the front. The red has white stitching, the blue has white stitching too and the black has brown.

The Lanai in red will be a pop of colour to your basis wardrobe if it consists of black brown, and it is not too flashy but will compliment your red lisptick perfectly. It will also look lovely with lighter summer clothes and look beautiful with tanned summer legs.

 

The Lanai in blue are my absolute favourite, if any admireres will want to surprise me, thi sis the pair to get me! They will be perfect with ,y recent additions to my wardrobe, which amongst other things, consists of the HeyDay Mary dress in chocolate brown, a new yummy, matte colour.

The black with brown sticthing will serve as a classic in your wardrobe, even though it has brown sticthing, it will still match other colour in your wardrobe, the brown will only add depth to the shoe design.

The Havana is close in design to the Lanai, the peeptoe in slightly different design and instead of a big bow, it has a smaller bow of grosgrain ribbon and two small cherries.

The red Havana is absolutely stunning with the grosgrain ribbon in purple and with purple piping.

 The Havana in mint is perfect for summer and matches so many light coloured summer clothes.

The Hibiscus in white is a pretty summer sandal with a t-strapthat makes it perfect for dancing too, the heel of the foot is made out of pretty leave, withstitching and the front of the shoe has a lovely flower. These come in black with multi coloured flower too.

Now I know what to spend my money on the next few months!

Darhling

xoxo

Radio Days Vintage Shop by Waterloo

"RADIO DAYS opened on 15th of November 1993 and is run by Chrissie and Lee.

Appealing to all ages, gender and collectors, Radio Days offers a wide selection of vintage clothing, collectables and memorabilia dating from 1920's through to 1980's.. Radio Days also buys from the public and offers prop hire for stage, screen and shoots .

"We are the only vintage shop to sell clothing, magazines and household goods in London. It has been a roaring success and we have been featured in many top magazines and papers over the years."

Well established in Lower Marsh's unique and thriving market community, Chrissie and Lee hope the shop will go from strength to strength in the future when they will open the basement for furniture and hire goods."

I have just moved offices to Waterloo and was out browsing the area a few days ago. just a few minutes walk from our corporate headqueaters I found Radio Days and I was thrilled! Everywhere you turn you see dresses, telephones, cups, hats, brooches that you have to get a closer look at. The atmosphere is incredibly friendly and relaxed, lee,the guy who runs the shop now is quite possibly the friendliest and most enthusiastic vintage shop owner I have come across! Always ready with an offer to know a little of the price, if something catches my eye and a knack for putting on records he thinks will suit the customer.

Lee Williams

I found some lovely pyramid bakelite telephones, but a little out of my price range, I opted for this lovely little pale blue trinket box, with the lid in the shape of a shell. It will go perfectly in the boudoir, with the dressing set I bought at Heydon Vintage Lover Fair last weekend and I will use it loose powder with a big fluffy powder puff put in the inside of the lid.

They have an amazing collection of brooches, cufflinks and compact mirrors and compacts and I haven't even started looking at the back room where they keep all the clothes! I am sure this shop will be the destination for many of my lunch breaks.

I have my eyes on the ivory pyramid telephones in bakelite, cigarette holders, emerald green turbans and 40s platform shoes.. to start with! And there might be a little left over for a gorgeous cravat for my chap too.

Radio Days

87 Lower Marsh
Waterloo
London SE1 7AB


Tel: 020 7928 0800

OPENING HOURS
Monday to Saturday 10am - 6pm
Friday Closing at 7pm

Darhling

xoxo

Little Vintage Lover Fair in Heydon, Norfolk

On Sunday the 5th of June, the Little Vintage Lover Fair made it's way to the little village of Heaydon in Norfolk. The chap and I went to Heydon to visit friends who live in the little village, but also to see what the fair was all about.

The entrance was only £1 and that was a very good deal! There were many lovely small stall more focused on home and kitchen ware from the Art Deco period to the pastel colours and kidney shapes of the 50s. There were also many lovely small stall with vintage clothes and accessories at very good prices, especially prestine shoes and fur stoles in amazing shape and great prices too!

I came across one of the stalls that had a lovely dresser set laid out in a lovely, clear, light blue consisting of a mirror, a hairbrush and a clothes brush for only £8. At the same stall they had the most lovely Art Deco-y teacup, saucer and plate one set had light yellow onthe inside of the cup/black on the outisde and yellow on the saucer and plate, the other set was similar but with babypink instead of yellow. I made the typical mistake of not getting them immediately, only to return later to buy them and find out they had already been snapped up by a lucky vintage lover!

After being dissapointed in loosing out on the china tea cups, I had my sights set on getting a tea or coffee put and got my mittens on a half pint Beryl tea-pot for just £7. The design is lovely and very robust and very easy to collect since it is so wide spread. I will have to save my bone china dreams for a later date.

 It felt more like a big picnic with lovely small stalls and tea served in bone china cups to enjoy on the lawn.
Both the chap and I got stopped so many times by lovely people who only had great compliments for our attire - even though I was in my Land Girl dungarees and hair set on lazy victory rolls.


Dead Men's Spex had a big stall and I had been needing a new pair of glasses forever! I narrowed it down to three pairs and settled on a pair of Luxury Lady in silver, which is not quite 40s and not nearly 50s.

The Luxury Lady is the top pair, also shown here in detail above.

I can't wait for this fair to pop up againsomewhere when I am up in the Norfolk area!

Darhling

xoxo

Vintage Remington 2 Typewriter

As an amateur writer, I have been wanting a vintage typewriter for a long time, but the right one at the right price didn't show itself for months on end. I find itwuite romantic in a way, to sit and type on a lovely typewriter, to get som nice, heavy ivory paper and start typing away. I am not sure when it is from, I don't have a date, but I am guessing it is from the 1040s, but of course I could be very much wrong.-

It is in perfect condition and allI have to do, was to replace the original ribbon with a new one (use gloves for this, my dears!) and it was good to go!

I have used it for a few loveletters so far and I have this idea of typing loveletters to my sweetheart, but the letters are set in the 1940s. So they will be a little fictitious and filled with events, big or small, that happened during WW2. The book, Operation Mincemeat which I read after coming up with the idea, also have a similar fictitious loveletter theme through out the book. I won't spoil the book for you, but it is a lovely little romantic red thread in an otherwise macabre story.

Another thing I am using the typewriter for, is writing my childrens book on it. It might be a pain to edit, you can't copy/paste but the it has so more soul to it and history. I always wonder what letters might have been written on this typewriter, where it has travelled to in it's traveling case and what events it might have recorded.

There is nothing like the sound of those keys tapping away.

Darhling

xoxo