Out With a Bang!

Well another year has ended, so quickly too! Where on earth did 2013 go? It just flashed past like that. Did you have a fabulous year, or are you glad to see the back of it? Whichever it was, here’s to a wonderful evening celebrating what’s past and looking forward to what is to come. I’ll be dancing into the night in this vintage 70s silver lurex polka-dotted backless maxidress – it’s the perfect party dress.

Happy New Year to you!

What I Actually Wore #0093

Serial #: 0093
Date: 12/09/2012
Weather: 22°
Time Allowed: 10 minutes

It is always wonderful when spring gives us a beautiful sunny morning, because it means at last the long coats can be put away. Only a short jacket is needed. I like this outfit for its graphic simplicity and bold colour. The red wool jacket I bought in a charity store for less than $10, although I did need to replace the buttons as one of the originals was missing. The red wool beret – also a charity store find – is a perfect match.

The patent and wooden heeled wedges are another old favourite – these were purchased on eBay before Aldo opened any stores in Melbourne. There is something I very much like about wooden heels – is it the considerable weight that adds gravitas, or the satisfying sound they make walking along? They are also a potential weapon in self-defense!

Items:

Jacket: vintage
Blouse: Veronika Maine
Skirt: Anthropologie
Hat: vintage
Necklace: souvenirs
Earrings: hand made
Rings: (onyx) souvenir, (silver) Roun
Watch: Kenneth Cole
Shoes: Aldo

The Perfect Shade of Blue

Some time ago I came across this Indian kameez (tunic, normally worn with trousers called shalwar) in a charity store, and was immediately attracted to it because it resembled Wedgwood jasperware in traditional blue. I adore lace – particularly guipure and Battenberg – and it is delicious in combination with this particular shade of blue. The kameez is in fact embroidered in white on blue. 

It was in 1759 that Joseph Wedgwood opened his own pottery business, but it was not until 1765 that his new earthenware style became popular throughout Europe, and was dubbed ‘Queen’s Ware’ with permission of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the British Queen consort. 

Wedgwood experimented with more than 3000 samples [to achieve this shade of blue] …

Jasperware was inspired by the Portland Vase, a Roman cameo glass vase that is dated between AD 1–25, in a time when the mythologies depicted in artifacts of the ancient world was inspiring artisans all over Europe. This particular shade of Portland blue was the first jasperware colour, and to achieve it Wedgwood experimented with more than 3000 samples. Somewhat of a perfectionist, Joseph Wedgwood.

His legacy of lovely dishware lives on centuries later and continues to inspire designers of all kinds. Scroll down for a few more examples and references. 

References

1930s shoes from Road Less Travelled 2
Broken pottery earrings from V Belle Jewelry
Wedgwood jug (out of stock) from Oxfam
Hazel Atlas glasses from Old Cape Cod Vintage
Embroidered trim from A C Afterglow
1950s cocktail dress from Maeven On Etsy
1950s gloves from Karen Elmquist Vintage
Wedding cake seen on Style Unveiled
Wedgwood bud vase from Lilpicker

Something Blue

I fell in love the first time I saw this vintage 1950s necklace on Etsy: sparkling rhinestones in a favourite shade of periwinkle blue, and a darling bow tie with dangles. But priced at around $75 – far too high for something only 60-odd years old I thought – I regretfully had to pass it by.

One day, after finding another much sought-after item at The Cat Eyes Vintage (a red beaded shell top), and looking through the seller’s other items, I saw another necklace exactly the same for only $16! And it had a matching pair of earrings too. It was really meant to be.  

Hairpin Dragon

Hairpins are the most practical of hair accessories, but in ancient China hairpins hold far more meaning than the humble bobby. They symbolise an important rite of passage, marking, upon her fifteenth birthday, a girl’s advent into adulthood. Prior to this age, a girl wore her hair in braids, but afterwards she would comb her hair into a bun decorated with pins. This also signified she was of marriageable age.

Chinese hairpins were made from many different materials that proclaimed social status and wealth. The women of rich families wore gold, silver and jade hairpins, inlaid with precious stones or kingfisher feathers. Poorer women had to make do with wood or bone hairpins, and perhaps would only ever own one silver hairpin in their whole lives. Sometimes an entire hairpin collection could be shown-off at once, inserted into a bun in a sunray shape, or as part of a headdress.   

Chinese headdressIn a charming reversal of the Western tradition of giving an engagement ring to the bride-to-be, a Chinese fiancée would take a hairpin from her hair and present it to her fiancé as a pledge. After the wedding, the new husband would place the pin back into his new wife’s hair.

I purchased my dragon hairpin in Hong Kong, from an antique store in the Cat Street Market. I love the little dangle hanging from the dragon’s muzzle. I’ve no idea of its provenance, but it is probably made of brass. It’s quite sharp enough to double as a weapon too, à la the film Crouching Tiger, Hairpin Dragon (teehee).

Find out more about Chinese hairpins at the Hairpin Museum.

Two hardstone-inlaid silver floral hairpins, Qing dynasty, 19th centuryGold plated silver hairpin with phoenix, Liao Empire (907–1125)