2012 You've Been Grand, but here's to 2013.

Afternoon all on this fabulous Friday the 28th December 2012. We have but a few days left of what I think, has been an amazing year, but how about you? I'd absolutely love to gather as many reviews of 2012 as well as hopes for 2013 on my blog from as many people as possible. Let's all share the good stuff! 

I'll start the ball rolling...

• My new years' resolutions for 2012 were to run a 10K and to begin my own vintage clothing boutique. In February I did my first 10K and figured, well that's too easy, so I entered the Sheffield Half Marathon and completed that in May. My own ASOS Marketplace went live in April and though it hasn't exactly taken off, it's been a learning curve and I hope to expand on it in 2013. 
• In 2013 I would like to dedicate more time to this blog, beat both my 10K and half marathon run times and though I don't want to bang on about it, I wouldn't mind losing a few pounds too! But in general, I hope that at the end of 2013 I feel a lot more secure in my life, with plans and ideas for the future because currently, I'm a little lost. 

You don't have to go on like I did, just a bullet point for each one 2012 and 2013. If you would like to contribute to this post - and I really hope you will spread this idea far afield into the social networking stratospheres and beyond - then you can do so in many ways:

• Tweet me @PUT_Vintage
• E-mail me prettyusedthings@gmail.com
• Leave a comment below on this post 

Make sure you leave your name, bullet points and your twitter name and website/blog so we can find you and what you're all about too. Please try and get these to me by January 1st so I can post the blog!

Looking forward to hearing from you guys.

Gina x

A ridiculous weekend

Once a year, a group of my friends gather in a remote cottage and bring lots of food, booze, pyjamas and pretty much turn off our phones and ago a little mad. And this year there was a hot tub.

But at some point in this past mini break we decided to dress up and look seriously swish. There was the loose theme of the 1920s but I'l be damned if I'm going to wear a flapper dress, these curves weren't made for that era! So here are the girls, Lydia, me, Annie, Revis and Kate. As you can see, black was the colour of choice, accidentally!

 I'm wearing a 70s black maxi that I got from Bang Bang Vintage, a mink fur stole I nabbed on eBay a while back, Wolf & Moon art deco inspired earrings and my Gok Wan glasses (I lost my contact lenses the night before, frustrating!). The show stopping dress Annie is wearing is from Mango and it looked absolutely stunning on her, she stole the show most definitely. Revis kept things simple and added a pretty headband as a nod to the era. Kate kept things 1920s in a beaded flapper and curled her short blonde bob. And naturally, we all went for a dark red lip.

But it wasn't just the girls who made an effort, oh no. The boys outnumbered us in both actual numbers and fancy dress points. Oh by the way, I have a boy now (go me!) and I pretty much dragged him along to this messy weekend, he's at the far right wearing some fabulous Dead Mens' Spex and now I've got my Gok Wans', we match. And I'm more than OK with that. But don't these guys look handsome? Such a sexy bunch of friends.

If you want to read more about Annie's style and how I look to her for style inspo you should check out this blog post I did about her a while ago. I wish she would blog too!

It then started to go a little down hill...but I'm saying no more than the following photos! 

Fur and Glitter

It's been too long guys, I know I know. Hopefully over Christmas I will be able to get back on the horse with my own blog, but if you want to see any of my Vintage Fair blog posts (which I do daily) then head over here to have a look see. The latest post is a very exciting giveaway!

I'm wearing:

 A black 1950s fur capelet,

 A sequin shift dress from a charity shop

 Pearl earrings from my Nannan

My hair stayed put all day! Well,m it started to unravel a tad, but I was pretty pleased with it. People always ask how to do rolls...greasy hair, back comb, hairspray and hair grips! Oh and practice.

It's the very last Vintage Fair of the season tomorrow in Nottingham. See you there?

Gina x

Wolf & Moon

At The Brighton Vintage Fair we had the usual awesome bunch of traders and cake and music but my eyes were drawn to a jewelry stall a dozen times during the day. Any fans of Tatty Devine will adore Hannah Davis's hand-made designs in glittering perspex and kooky, graphic designs.

 Ladies...I bring you Wolf & Moon.

Hannah takes inspiration from art deco stained glass, Egyptian and Morrocan artwork and mixes metallic perspex and wood to create a variety of accessories from big statement necklaces to kitsch art deco earrings. They're all reasonably priced and Hannah cleverly think outside the box with her designs, they're a refreshing take on the medium.

Hannah set up her very pretty stall at our fair in The Brighton Dome and having looked online, most of her stock is not yet up, which is a shame. The website is beautiful though, hopefully it will keep getting restocked - especially in time for Christmas! The cute fox necklace below is a must. Hannah will be trading at The Shoreditch Vintage Fair on November 17th at Shoreditch Town Hall. 

Oh and here are my gold perspex and wooden art deco style fan earrings. I adore them!

So go on, check them out online here stalk them on twitter @wolfandmoonshop. I certainly need to get me some more. 

Gina x

The Dressing Up Box

I've always liked to think I know what suits me and I've always been one to try and stand out and not be a slave to trends. But this eccentric wardrobe has recently diminished as has my confidence with style, fashion and clothes in general. Not so helpful when you write a fashion blog.

It was actually this post by Fleur De Guerre that got me thinking about my own style and who I was or who I was portraying. In fact, who was I even dressing for?

Often I feel I should be dressing like a 50s girl all of the time or I should be going authentically 60s but the beauty of vintage to me is the vast array of styles on offer to us in the 21st century. And then, one of the traders at The Vintage Fair turned round to me at the weekend and said "You're always changing aren't you?" and it all fell into place. If I want to go all out 40s, I can. If I want to look like I've just walked out of Topshop, I can. My wardrobe is a dressing up box and it's about time I just got over this preoccupation with should and just wear exactly what I bloody well want to.

 So I've attached some of my favourite outfits from this blog to prove all of the above. Hell. I think I look good in any era. 

Polka Dots and Feathers

Good evening daaaahhhhlings. The Vintage Fair requires a bit of dressing up and since our fair in Bristol was the biggest one to date, I figured I'd make an effort. It's always a little bit odd getting this dressed up at 8am, but I'm slowly getting used to it! The red lipstick is a Revlon liquid lipstick that really does stay put for hours and hours, so it's fab for fair days. We were in Cardiff the next day and I can't say I looked quite as made up, and it was so busy I never got round to taking any snaps anyway.

 Dress: 80s repro

Tights: Primark

Shoes: ASOS

Belt: Vintage

Head piece: Chapeau Claudette @ Topshop

Love
x

It's Always Summer Somewhere

This is my band's new single, Summer Somewhere. It would mean the world to me if you would give it a spin. Have a look at some of the gorgeous snaps taken by Georgina Martin who deserved her 2 hour nap that very early morning in the Peak District. We were there by 7am and the weather was incredible. The clouds had descended into the valley over the village of Hathersage so the backgrounds to this video add a certain eerie atmosphere. I am so lucky living on the edge of Derbyshire.

The box is from an antiques fair in Sheffield, I paid £13 for it. And now it holds Summer. Big task that. I'm wearing a dress from Peacocks that was £7 in the sale and clock earrings from Topshop. Vintage belt. Sodden leopard print shoes. 

Love.
x