Choppity-Chop (Part 2)

Celebrating the Roaring Twenties in a Special Series

Ta-da! Here it is! The new, bobbed and banged me. What do you think of my homage to Louise Brooks? It’s a little longer than hers, and I haven’t managed to flatten the shape as well as my hairdresser did (no surprises there – I need some sort of new flattening product) but I am thrilled to have short hair again.

It feels so good – nor more running my hands through my hair endlessly, trying to ease out knots.

I had it expertly cut by Alex at Lady Marmalade in Prahran, Melbourne – with thanks to Virginie for a great blowdry (and Brittany for the head massage!). I asked Alex if it was satisfying to cut off so much, and he replied it gave him more satisfaction to cut such a classic style, knowing exactly which angles to snip, and what suited his client.

Bobbed, mid-way :: Americana // DC // No flashAll the staff there were very excited at a client chopping off such a length of hair in one fell swoop, so I had an audience for a while, which was quite amusing. Alex asked if I would like to keep my hair; I thought about it – perhaps it would make an funny photograph – but decided that there was no sense in holding onto the past. “Bin it,” I said firmly.

I can’t recommend Lady Marmalade enough for such a warm atmosphere and fabulous service (coffee, wine, cheese and biscuits!). Need a cut? Go there!

Excuse me now while I go practise the Charleston.

Check me out in colour on Facebook.

Bobbed, all the way baby! :: Americana // DC // No flash

The Last Longhaired Day

All week whenever I have thought about my upcoming haircut appointment I have been clapping my hands in delight, squealing with excitement and skipping with glee.

I’ve been longhaired for quite a while now but the time has come for the Big Chop. That’s right, it’s all coming Off. I like to go to extremes. I’ll dither for a little while and then suddenly the urge to chop consumes me entirely. I’ve reached that stage now. I think I’ve done all the photoshoots with long hair that I need to (and besides, I’ve smashed my camera into oblivion and won’t have it back for up to six weeks [sob]), so it’s … Off with my hair!

Today is my last day that it can waft in the breeze and I can shake my hair that clichéd way those girls do in the movies, all slow-mo and Vaseline-lensed. It’s my last hurrah … Hurrah!

From Mess to Less

Mess :: Lucas AB2 // Dylan // No flashRather ambitiously, at about 9.30 tonight I decided to sort out all my vintage hats. I was running short of space in my hatboxes to store them all, and I knew there were some among them that ought to be culled. I had another purpose: spring has truly sprung and it was time to do the seasonal wardrobe changeover. The winter hats should be put away and the summer ones brought out.

I retrieve the hatboxes from storage and turfed out the contents – my living room looked like a milliner’s boutique had exploded. I managed to weed out about ten hats, most of which will go to charity, but there are one or two worthy of being offered up for sale on eBay.

Less :: Lucas AB2 // Dylan // No flashA few big summer hats perch on my hatstand for easy access, and the rest are in hatboxes. The winter hats have been lovingly wrapped in tissue and gone into storage to hibernate over the warmer months. I feel quite pleased with my industry. Less is more.

Summer Hats :: Lucas AB2 // Dylan // No flash

They Want You in the Navy

CELEBRATING THE ROARING TWENTIES IN A SPECIAL SERIES

Forward view: 1920s navy straw hat trimmed with velvet piping and pearls, from the Vintage Hat Series

I rarely wear navy. Probably because it has such dull, conservative connotations of business suits and sensible court shoes. That’s not me, you won’t be surprised to hear. Recently though, I’ve discovered a few special pieces that have made me like navy more.

The hue inherited its name from the dark blue and white uniforms worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748. Navies around the world subsequently followed suit. Initially the shade was called marine blue, but close association with the navy soon changed that.

Woman in navy uniform, 1919; vintage 20s military jacket1920s bathing suit and bathing boots(Clockwise from top left) A navy interior; vintage inspired nautical dress; 1920s Remington Monarch typewriterNavy and white was a classic combination for swimsuits in the 1910s and 20s, and of course there is the sailor-inspired dress that will never, ever go out of fashion entirely.

As for my little 1920s hat, I saw it on Etsy and immediately fell in love with it, especially the tiny pearls scattered in an orderly (one could even say military) fashion across the top – they’re like polka dots. Navy is actually part of the winter colour palette (which is me), so I might just fall in line and join the ranks.

Aft view: 1920s navy straw hat trimmed with velvet piping and pearls, from the Vintage Hat Series

Find them at: Vintage photograph from Two Digging Divas; vintage 20s military jacket image sourced from My Fashion Power; framed bathing suit image sourced from Bronson Design; see the bathing boots at Salon of the Dames; navy interior sourced from Daily Design Elixir; Fedora nautical dress still available in some sizes; typewriter seen at Fab.

Clara’s Bow

CELEBRATING THE ROARING TWENTIES IN A SPECIAL SERIES

Silent Screen star Clara BowI’m thinking, with my change of do on Thursday night, I’m also going to have to rethink my makeup. Doing a little research I discover that the popular colours of the time are actually not much different to the colours I already wear – except much more of it.

Check out Clara Bow’s dramatic eyebrows, (above). I wonder if that famous cupid’s bow of Clara’s was fake? I am not sure if I could be bothered drastically changing the shape of my lips or brows, except perhaps for a party. Just imagine how much concealer would be required – yuk. I wear the bare minimum as it is.

A 1920s collection :: Americana // DC // No flashAt Return2Style you’ll find a very succinct guide to colours and shapes of the era. Fortuitiously, I just bought an orange-red creme blush and a lovely red lipstick (above) that is somewhere between lipstick and gloss. Here is also a little tutorial on how to obliterate your twenty-teensies brows and vanquish a modern pout to create a 20s rosebud instead.

Scroll down for some more inspiration from a vintage British Marie Claire (no idea which issue, sorry, but hey look, there’s Christy, Shalom and the inimitable Linda sporting a 20s bob).

That would be Clara Bow and Louise Brooks in the top leftThe inimitable Linda Evangelista