Ruskiye Dyevushki (The Russians Girls)

Inspired by my own illustration of a pair of Russian village maids on a country walk that ends in tragedy, I hauled my cousin Amelia-Jane off on a real-life re-enactment. (Well as real as it gets without actually sauntering down a muddy road in Belarus.)

I had been collecting assorted printed garments for quite some time, sourcing them from all over the world via eBay and vintage boutiques. Some items even came out of my own closet. What fun we had mixing, matching and clashing – although the resulting outfits complement one another beautifully.

I wear a Forties cream silk blouse embroidered in red, while Amelia-Jane’s new embroidered blouse is much more rustic. Both aprons are vintage, and both are from England; the white lace apron is original 1920s. My white linen vintage kerchief, embroidered in red and trimmed with pompons matches the blouse delightfully.

My necklace is also made from pompoms. Despite the fact that it was filthy and looked like it had chocked a mouse hole for twenty years, I took a chance and bought it for $2 at a charity shop. I thought it would be perfect for this story. It is very fragile, the string threatening to disintegrate. Being far too lazy to restring it, I merely washed it very carefully (a tedious job), but my diligence was rewarded: the colours came up spanking new. You can read about A-J’s necklace here.

The skirts are by Obüs (the puce) and Obi (the red); Australian and New Zealand labels respectively. Amelia-Jane’s Cactus Jam boots were an expensive present from her husband; my beautiful suede boots topped with fur – from me. Fortunately the mud is entirely post-production!

You can see the original illustration that inspired it all below.

Thanks to Max Mitenkov for the background image of the forest. … And don't forget to keep an eye out for some additional Out-takes & Extras in the next few days.

From Kazakhstan to Melbourne

I love vintage textiles, especially ones that put me in mind of my Slavic heritage, like this beautiful, antique short-sleeved robe. This rich piece is redolent of an exotic history, and it tantalised me for weeks as it hung in the window of a vintage boutique.

Finally I ventured inside, only to learn that it is a child’s garment and would be far too small for me. That was bitterly disappointing considering at $85 it was well within my budget.

As a ceremonial robe from Kazakhstan, I can at least daydream about its fascinating origins in the days of the Russian Empire – and marvel that it has ended up in the window of a Melbourne boutique. 

Another Naked-Lady-Winning Performance

Scrolling back through the SNAP archives recently, I came upon these photos from my Oscars-inspired story earlier this year. I had another good giggle and decided to share the outtakes and extras with the world.

Give me a long gown, a naked lady statuette to grasp, and a post-production mike, I could (and did) ham it up for hours making tearful speeches and waving my arms about histrionically.

Click on image for larger version

The gown in question – in true Oscar-style – has had only one outing to my cousin Naughty Amelia-Jane’s evening wedding a few years ago. I love its completely backless elegant 30s style. The heavy black satin falls beautifully, and the draped boat neckline folds over the shoulders prettily, giving a little glimpse of plum-coloured lining.

The rhinestone earrings and bracelet are vintage, and came from a long-gone Sydney boutique called, appropriately, The Jazz Garter. A vintage Russian squirrel fur completes the picture.

And that’s a wrap.

These Boots Were Made For…

Me. These boots were destined for me. Buff coloured nappa leather, over-the-knee lace-ups. Sexy, but stern. They mean business (in a Diana-the-Huntress kind of way, not the Elvira-the-Dominatrix way that the black version implied).

I spied them in a shop window last weekend, and the very sight of them made my heart palpitate. I promptly forgot about them – until yesterday. I panicked: the shop was having a close-out sale, and I feared they had sold out, or they wouldn’t have my size. Would fate fail me after all? But no, these beauties would be mine!

And amusingly, it was cheaper to buy two pairs of shoes (spend $150 get $40 off). The second pair? Harmless flat white summer slides, the complete antithesis of the boots.

Mad Millinery

The Vintage Hat Series: 50s feather hat.

Hats constructed entirely from feathers are completely mad. Not to mention utterly impractical. I am not talking of a bit of sedate marabou trim, or pheasant feather here or there, but a veritable frenzy of feathers. Observe:

Vintage feather hat with matching fan…… modern feather hat with matching fan.

Crazy, right? These hats are for showoffs: exhibitionists who strut their stuff and puff out their plumes; the peacocks of society. But, but … they are so much fun!

So inherently airy and light, feathers are full of life. Plucked out of the natural world and sculpted into fantastic creations by artists, they adorn the heads of human birds of paradise.

And you need to be a little exotic to dare to flutter out of the house in one of these numbers…

(L-R) Designer unknown, Getty Images; Philip Treacy, V&A Images; vintage 60s conical hat.

These hats are for showoffs: exhibitionists who strut their stuff and puff out their plumes…

When feathers are dyed such vivid colours as the pink above, or whimsically transformed into signage (below), it is easy to forget their origin, but they certainly do not look any less wild for that. The natural properties of quills and vanes combine strength and flexibility, as well as a delightful frivolity that must easily capture the imaginations of mad milliners, both past and present. Philip Treacy patently adores them, as did his muse, Isabella Blow.

Mad hats by Philip Treacy and all worn by Isabella Blow.Historically, feathers were not merely a fashionable accessory, but like jewellery an indicator of rank. Juju hats are traditionally worn by village chiefs in the Cameroon region of central Africa, and are made from brightly coloured feathers sewn onto a raffia base. A continent away, feathers again are utilised to signify leadership in Native American tribes, to create headdresses that are both fierce and beautiful.

I want them all, delicious and impractical as they are. There speaks my frivolous, exhibitionist little soul!

Juju hat in vivid pink. Popular with interior designers today as wall hangings.Made from 2000 Ginni feathers, this beautiful hat is traditionally prepared, wrapped, and hand sewn by artist Sunshine Stam, an Apache/Cherokee Elder.