Bettina presents to you : Stop Traffic Clothing

Ladies! are you after a new dress for the up and coming Christmas parties? I came across a fab company that stocks American clothing brands such as Bettie Page Clothing, Stop Staring as well as many British companies such as Miss Fortune. They are none other than Stop Traffic clothing, they stock 1950s reproduction clothing for all you aspiring pin up girls out there.

Inspired by women of the golden age of Glamour such as Grace Kelly and Marilyn Monroe, Stop Traffic clothing has a dress for every lady, I was just looking on their site and have already made a mental list of what to buy, bad huh?!

If you want to go all out for an event you may have coming up soon, go have a browse at some of the delights they have in stock.

Now how glamorous is this? Hell for saving this for the staff party,

 I'd wear it to uni!

Owner and all round vintage lover Rebecca McWattie hunts high and low for these beauts, from all over Britain to the other side of the pond in America, now if that isn't personal service, I don't know what is!

Rebecca says:'For some women they want a special occasion dress, others want to incorporate Retro into their lives. Lots of our customers love to wear the 50s dresses dancing, especially the 50s style petticoats. Since the hit TV series 'Mad Men' there has definitely been a huge interest.'

The fact that Rebecca knows what her customer is looking for makes this site extra special and shows that she isn't just another company jumping on the 'vintage bandwagon'.

glamorous Rebecca has an interest in everything retro since she was a teenager

after watching the timeless MGM films

Some of the latest designs instore by Stop Staring
As well as seeing glamour gals wearing these dresses
celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Nicole Kidman have been seen spotted

wearing their designs so you know you're getting high quality glad rags.

Stop Traffic clothing are currently running a competition for all their customers in collaboration with

The Powder Room

The prize is you get £150 to spend online at Stop Traffic Clothing, a vintage make-over at The Powder Room and a signed copy of Style Me Vintage: Make-up by Katie Reynolds.

To enter just email your full name and telephone number to sales@stoptrafficclothing.com

Competition closes December 31st 2011 and winner will be drawn at random on 2nd January 2012

 

You know I think I might have to enter this one, sounds a bit too good to be true! So ladies go for it, you never know you might be able to get your self kitted out for the up and coming seasons, Gents why don't you send your ladies name in, she'll never stop thanking you if she wins!

Until Next Time

Toodle Pip

xxx

Summer styling~

Oh blog, How I've missed you! Third  year is well and truly underway and once again you've gone to the back of the line whilst I attempt (important word there!)

But I've come back and and thought I'd show off some of my new styling work that I did at the  beginning of term back in September, gosh doesn't that seem ages ago already, it is quite scary that I'm going to be twenty two soon!

Anyway back to the topic at hand! I got an email months ago from a photographer I had modelled for last year asking if I wanted to style a shoot for her and a jewellery designer, of course I said yes!

I didn't know what we were doing, what the style was or anything, I just got asked to bring dresses. So I raided my wardrobe and just took pot luck hoping they'd work!

Katie (of Katie Blench photography) picked me up at Chatham train station along with the beautiful model Alice and Sian of Sian Bostwick Jewellery  and away we went. We only went to the outskirts of Chatham but it seemed like we were a million miles away from the darn place, in a gorgeous park in the middle of nowhere! Here are some behind the scenes snaps I took on my phone!

This image and Chatham doesn't connect right?

our gear for the day! I love shoots and how much stuff you always have to take!

The girls left all of the set design and styling in my fair hands... whether this was a good thing or not I don't know! I think they were going for some kind of Alice in Wonderland, fairy tale style to a degree

so this is what I came up with!

Using all the bits and bobs Katie brought in her car, how it all fitted I will never know!

But I quite liked this, its quite Quaint English countryside!

As well as having all this Katie even managed to have some cupcakes designed by a local company

HoneyBunz and lordy lord they were beautiful, how anyone could put that much attention to something so tiny gets a round of applause from me!

How adorable are these? They also tasted AMAZING,

 shame to eat them really but someone had to!

I was also hair stylist for the day too and gave Alice a 1940s ish inspired hairstyle, hairstyling isn't my forte but I tried my best and I was pleased with the result

And the shoot begins!

Alice wearing a vintage dress Sian brought along

Some of Sians jewellery she makes by hand, I want some!

And now for the actual shots from the day...

I adore all of these shots, I think their so natural and effortless, I hope to work with these lovely ladies again on a shoot sometime as we were a damn good team!

Until Next Time

Toodle Pip

xxx

London calling at Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair

Wow, I cannot believe how behind I have got on my blog, slap on the wrist for me! University has now completely took over my life and it will for the next six months... sad times ahead!

On a more positive note, last month I went to Anita's Vintage Fashion Fair where I got invited to blog about the event(I failed at that clearly ha!) because they were celebrating the four capitals of style with the fact that the fashion weeks were going on at the time, as part of my blogging I had to pick a city of my choice, and being patriotic I chose good ole London town.

Here are a few of the things I found which I thought were suited to London :

Farmer tweed caps, lovely stuff

I adore old suitcases, imagine some of the stories they could tell...

 Handbags like this are my favourite, so pretty and you can fit EVERYTHING in them, what's not to like?

I loved the way the store holders put so much detail into their displays, this reminded me of Miss Marple with the fox fur and the hat!

Winters coming! I did consider buying it but my eyes wandered elsewhere... It reminded  me of the 1940s land girls and is also so on trend with some of the printed jumpers on the high street currently.

 

This was from an alteration stall that was just outside the fair, make do and mend is as strong as ever!

Anita picked this out for me, 1930's nightwear and also very Alexa Chung, don't you think?

I saw these illustrations and fell in love, their from the late 19th century/ early 20th century

and I thought they were so quaint! I do love a good illustration.

Rule Britannia!!  I Wish British companies would make tins for their products like this today,

their so sweet and really collectibles!

Fellow blogger Jen of JJ noir, also a UCA student, great to meet her and we loved sourcing goodies!

These are some flyer's of one of the stalls, Rhapsody Rags, I had to snap them because of the London Mod imagery they had on their cards!

I made a friend don't you know! I wanted this mannequin so much with old newspaper cuttings plastered all over it, and the 90s Moschino jeans!

The fair itself, lots of busy shoppers having a rummage!

I shouldn't have tried this dress on because I fell in love, a reproduction 50s dress.

It fitted like a dream but was a little out of my price league, maybe next time!

The royal jewels, you've got to love a bit of bling.

The lovely DJ spinning the wax with music from the fifties and sixties, I was in my element!

Women even got to have their hair styled, I got asked if I'd had my hair done by them, I wish!!

London Style

These are just a few shoppers I snapped because I loved their style, what London is known for!

Loved this ladies outfit and the mismatch of prints, it worked so well!

This lady was trying this original Victorian dress on, you have to have a lot of confidence

to wear something like this, and she looked great!

anddddd finally these are my two little goodies that I picked up, I apologise for the rubbish quality image  but I purchased a vintage 50s beaded sweater and repro cats eye glasses, both for just over £30! Can't complain with that one even if I do say so!

I adored working at the vintage fair and would love to have the chance to do it again, all being well I'd be a bit more on time with everything by then! If you love a good bargain check Anita's fairs out, you never know what you might find, the garments, jewellery and handbags range from over 80 years, you can't get more vintage than that can you?!
Until Next Time

Toodle Pip

xxx

The secret to success... It's all in the recipe!

I love going to the theatre, the formality of it all, dressing up then sitting down with a nice drink and relaxing for the evening, being away from all the troubles that go on day to day, well that's what I think anyway.
So when I heard of a 1950s inspired stage show opening at the Charing Cross theatre last week I had no excuse but to go, 50s and the theatre?! What more could this girl ask for.

Me and Sarah before the show

The show was Recipe for a Perfect Wife. A cute hour long performance Produced and written by Christina McCulloch, set in the midst of the 1950s when women were known for their housewife expertise and frankly not a lot else.

The year is 1956 and  British Television is reaching out to the masses with it's witty and charming game shows. Cue Berty Baxter (Matt Houlihan), the host of new show 'Britain's best housewife' and his wife Betty (Antonia Reid) who between them have to find the lady who treats her man like the god he apparently is, because isn't that what women loved to do during this period?  Five ladies compete to win the title of the show,while reflecting on their thoughts of when they were once happy (apparently being a housewife isn't always what it is cracked up to be). With one by one dwindling down until the winner is revealed, the 1950s version of X factor some of you might think, well yes this is correct because there's singing and dancing as well as finding out the best dish to cook your husband.

Recipe for a  Perfect wife is a non stop giggle from the start to finish, a camp parody of the stereotypical 1950s housewife and how sweet and innocent our times once were, or so you'd think. The cast seemed to be having a lot of fun through out the show with their own individual personalities from a lady of the Women's institutes to a young wife that wouldn't dare say boo to a goose. There is a strong emphasis on the quaint British accent and makes you somewhat quite proud to be British because of the delightful mannerisms this show had.

I loved the simplicity of the show, the little innuendo's that popped up here and there that made me chuckle to myself through out. The cast was a mighty small number of 10 with the characters of the game show and also the ladies who were the 'Kitty and her Cats' a three piece girl group that greeted the 'gameshow audience' with witty advertisements showing washing powder amongst other things and singing harmonies that reflect the innocent era such as Stupid Cupid and Mr Sandman.

The cast were lucky enough to have my lady friends the Vanity Box on board creating vintage inspired hair styles to help give the show that stand out feel from all the rest and boy did they do a good job, all the ladies in the show had perfectly curled do's that would have suited any show in the 50s. As for the costume, most of the dresses were made by an Islington costume designer and friend of the producers, unfortunately my only negative comment against this is that the ladies looked very similar to one another not saying that they were not nice dresses, oh no, I would certainly wear some of them! However after speaking to PR beaut Olivia Farnesy of Moon on a stick PR, I found out there is talk of having vintage retailers Beyond Retro on board for the show, I think this is a great idea  because it would give the show that bit more of nostalgia and make the individual personalities stand out that bit more.

Verity and Gemma of the Vanity Box

The show has come from  a sold out season at the Kings Head theatre straight to the Charing Cross theatre which is a cosy little place that makes you feel you are really included in the show instead of having to sit in the gods with a pair of binoculars trying to figure out which ant is which on stage. I recommend the show to anyone that wants to take a step back in time for an evening of fun and frolics from the 50s because it will have you singing along as well as dancing in your seat thanks to the London Swing Dance society who jived their way into the hearts of the audience at the beginning and end of the show.

After the show there is a 50s inspired party full of cupcakes and dancing until late so make sure you get to see it, it is running until December so get in while you can.

Until Next Time

Toodle Pip

xxx

Photography by Christopher Allen