Love Vintage Fair Frolics

Friday the 15th March, and I race out of work to join my mother Sandra and vintage partner-in-crime Jill, who have everything in the car ready for a quick(ish) change into vintage out at the Horden Pavilion.

I love these shows – whether I come away with one item or armfuls, there’s always a lot to see. The three of us have a pretty good idea of what we’re looking for, and whenever we’re shopping we’re keeping an eye out not just for ourselves, but for others in our extended circle. Sandra and I even took my then six year old niece out to a fair at Randwick – I’d say that was too young for most children, but she is a bit of an old vintage soul and adores watching us when we’re sorting out vintage wardrobes, so we gave her control of the sum of $20 and started teaching her the art of looking for pieces…not to buy something just because you could afford it, how to give the room a quick once over before refining your search, etc – you’re never too young to learn!

1920s wedding dress in the Cavalcade vintage clothing display

Anyway, we arrived out at the showgrounds and joined the queue for entry – feeling just that lovely bit of frisson of excitement, because treasure awaited just beyond the doors. First thing was to get changed, and it’s a good thing the ladies is generously sized, as there were plenty of girls at the mirror doing their hair and makeup! A great atmosphere, though – one girl, thinking I was looking for a space at the mirror, very kindly called out that there was room. It’s a nice vibe to have everyone laughing and talking.

Disaster as I changed – I have a step in teddy, 1920s washable silk, that I use under a lot of 20s dresses…it’s tough as nails, feels good, and has the right 20s shape – and reaches to my knees! But as I pulled it on, one of the straps broke – I realised it was attached to the lace at the top and not the fabric. Sandra usually has emergency pins and sewing equipment, but no luck this time – so she ducked out to our friend Dianne of Online Antiques who had a close-by stall, and she came to the rescue with a safety pin – crisis averted!
I immediately spotted a celluloid dance purse in Coutura that I knew I’d have to have, but first the general sweep of the room and quick catch ups with friends. There were some gorgeous 1920s dresses in Coutura, and Online Antiques had a lovely pink silk dress with lavender beaded fringe/chequer patter at the hem that was just back from the ABC studios after being used in an episode of the Phryne Fisher series – we immediately sized it up as a possibility for Jill.

1920s garments on display at Coutura vintage

I managed to somehow lose the other girls, so was doing laps of the hall hoping to catch them (we must have been circling in the same direction) – finally I found my way to the middle, figuring they’d have to wind up there. As I did my circles, my eye kept being drawn by a girl in the most gorgeous, chic, classically beautiful 1920s ensemble. Not just the dress and accessories, but how she’d styled it with the hair and makeup –it was the essence of the lovely, lithe, sleek lines of 1920s style, elegant and so very soignée. I was trying not to stare like a stalker and wanted to go up and ask her about what she was wearing and take a closer look at it, and see if she’d mind if I took a photo, but as she was always engaged in conversation it felt intrusive. I tend to veer between being utterly ebullient and confidently outgoing and not a little shy, and the shyness gripped me.

Nora – epitomising 1920s style (photo used with permission)

Of course, I’m a ning nong – I found her blog when I was looking for photos of the opening night, and sent her a note asking if she minded me using a picture from her page showing her in the dress. Nora is an absolute darling! I should have guessed – I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone in the vintage community that wasn’t gracious and warm when you approached politely to ask about their ensemble. I missed an opportunity that night to talk with Nora and learned a lesson – obviously you don’t crash into conversations or behave as if you’re entitled to someone’s time, but people who love vintage love to share that passion with fellow enthusiasts. Nora was there as a greeter at the doors and a judge in the show.

I was so engrossed in chatting to some of the booth holders about the history of my headpiece and their lovely collection of Whiting and Davis bags that I missed the start of the Charleston lesson and had to tap my toes on the sideline…I LOVE Charlestoning. I once proved a theory that you can Charleston to anything when attending a sea shanty singing session late one night below the deck of the tall ship James Craig – the band, using traditional instruments, played their version of Gloria Gaynor’s “I will survive” and I Charlestonned happily along. Anyway, I joined the group later when they were filming a segment for a live cross to The Project – tucking myself up the back, as I’m so tall in heels that I look like a plump ungainly giraffe with long limbs!

This girl had put together her 1920s look from more modern pieces, and had done a beautiful job on hair and makeup

Then the fashion show – I tumbled up there late as I’d finally found the girls, and Jill shoved a glass of sparkling wine into my hand as I somehow blundered backstage. I love entering vintage fashion comps because if you’re  in them you get to see everyone else up close and can examine the detail. And there were some great outfits – one of the girls in particular had a beautiful 1920s dress that perfectly complimented her lovely nutbrown hair and fresh complexion. She naturally had a beautiful vintage look and had accessorised everything perfectly – in particular, she had a fabulous example of a 1927-28 coat that was very popular in the era but of which one doesn’t see that many extant today. She was also an absolute sweetheart – I spent the time backstage chatting to her and another girl in 20s attire who had the most fabulous makeup and finger waved hair and Hugh, whom I’ve met before at Vintage Shows and is always a delight to talk with.

A photo that doesn’t nearly do justice to this outfit, but the only one I have of it – this ensemble was beautifully put together

The parade was a lot of fun – it creates a great atmosphere to have an MC who knows and loves vintage and who can highlight the features of each outfit in a really a positive way. I didn’t envy the judges who had to make the decisions, though – I was trying to guess who would win in each category and it’s so difficult with so many wonderful styles, everything from a gorgeous 60s gal who looked like Dusty Springfield to a beautiful auburn haired lass in a 50s prom dress. I did win first place, but I think it could also have gone to the runner up – we were both expressing different facets of the era. I’d gone with the Gatsby theme and had chosen the most exuberant, sparkling elements of the decade I could find, whereas she had chosen a lovely, soft romantic day look. I wanted to photograph her afterwards and she’d kindly agreed, but I became caught up in the having a drink with Jill and the last minute shopping, so I missed her. If by some chance she reads this, or if anyone knows her, I’d love her to know that I really do want a photo of that coat for reference!

A frock to wear to a West Egg party!

After that, it was racing around to do the last minute shopping. Sandra works night duty as a nurse so she’d had to miss the end of the fashion show which was a shame, given how much work she put into restoring the dress – she would have dearly loved to see it win. I found out that, cheeky thing, she’d snuck off and bought the pink dress for Jill from Online Antiques and grabbed the celluloid dance purse from Coutura to give me for my birthday!
Coutura also had a collection of deadstock 1920s bandeaux with pearl beading and diamantes – obviously for use in weddings (this style of bandeau went out by mid decade or so for evening wear, but they continued to be advertised for weddings, both bride and bridesmaid wear, into the early 30s). We spent a while picking out one of them. Then I chose my prizes with the gift voucher from Recycology, which meant a lovely chat to the owner (I went with some vintage style Deco-vibe sunglasses and a red necklace). I dropped in to chat with my friend Jessica in Coco Repose – she’d kindly sent me tickets for the opening, and she always has such beautiful gowns. I grabbed one of her framed 1920s prints from the Atelier Bachwitz, hand tinted…she has more, and was selling them for around $100, so if anyone is looking for amazing Deco décor I suggest getting in touch with her.

We then went back to Online Antiques so Jill could buy a very pretty little white marabou feather capelet (we use the black 1930s marabou capelet all the time, so we know it’s a versatile piece). I’d been pining all night for a pair of Art Deco bookends she had, and gave them a mournful farewell, telling Dianne that if they didn’t sell I’d want to put them on layby. I just couldn’t justify it that night as I’m moving soon.

1920s dress used in Phryne Fisher series – can’t wait to style this as part of a complete look

We game back to Jill’s, and within an hour and a few glasses of champagne I was getting antsy thinking about those bookends. Jill laughed at me – “You won’t sleep…you’ll be waking up in the middle of the night thinking about them!”

I knew she’d be right.

I dived for the computer and fired off an email to Dianne, asking if I could put a deposit on them. She got back to me the next day with an affirmative, and on Sunday Sandra and I headed back out for a final look at the fair and to pick up the Deco Darlings. While there, another 1920s dance celluloid dance purse called out to us from the cabinet, as did a carved bone and black beaded sautoir. So they came home with us as well.

1920s Art Deco bookends

All up, a very successful fair – thank you to the organisers, stall holders and other fair goers for making it such a wonderful experience!

Sneaky Sandra slipped in and bought this for me before I could get back to it – a 1920s carved celluloid dance purse

What to Wear to a Party in West Egg

The Love Vintage Fair‘s first event in Sydney was this past 15 – 17 March, and of course I had no intention of missing it – unless I was out of the country I’ve attended every one since they started, and have had some absolutely wonderful finds. Dealers from other states come in with some of their best stock, and it’s a chance to catch up with old friends and meet new people with the same interests.

I didn’t intend to enter the vintage fashion competition on Friday night – I’ve just changed positions at work and have been quite busy, was planning on going out the Horden Pavilion after work and so would have to change there, and it takes quite a bit of preparation to pull the right pieces out of where they’re stored. 1920s pieces are now verging on the 100 year mark that puts them in the “antique” category and they have to be stored with care. I wasn’t sure if I was in the right frame of mind to pull together the right look. But when I found out there was a 1920s category…well, I knew I wouldn’t be able to attend and be around others looking stunning in my beloved era, feeling out of place in a modern frock!

The theme was 1920s Gatsby glamour, with the new movie coming up, so I decided to run with that. There’s a lot to be said with more understated, elegant daywear, or even the lovely soft afternoon frocks that one would wear to a garden party or similar event. I toyed with the idea of chiffon with a capeline, but in the end the idea of a wonderful, OTT Gatsby Party frock was too tempting – we don’t get that many chances here in Sydney to pull out the stops!

So what would one wear to a party in West Egg at Jay Gatsby’s? The novel was published in 1925 but was set in 1922, when hemlines hadn’t risen to the just below (or if you were daring, above) the knee heights of the mid to second half of the decades. New Yorkers tended to favour shorter hems in the 20s than the height of Parisian fashion dictated, but still you would have had longer evening gowns at one of his parties than was depicted in either the 1974 movie or in Baz’s latest. I didn’t want to be overly pedantic about the year, though – the general idea was to create the light-hearted, extravagent party outfit that caught a sense of one of his soirees.

1920s beaded dance dress, French made

 

There’s that wonderful line at one of his parties about the dress he sent a girl who had torn her own – it arrived from “Croiriers” (a fictional store), and was gas blue with lavender beads…a colour combination that so evokes the beautiful beaded gowns and striking palette of the era. So I decided to go with one of the French beaded dance dresses on a cotton base – this lovely one with the flowers climbing up a trellis. Since I bought it, my mother has spent many hours stabilising and repairing the beadwork all by hand – we want it to last another 85 years at least!

Early 1920s headdress

 

Once that was established, the next step was what to wear on my head. I hesitated just slightly as this headdress is one of the more theatrical pieces I own – indeed, it came out of a large collection of 1920s headpieces allegedly made for a woman who lived in California, who – while not an actress herself – purportedly had many of them made by the same people that did cinema costuming. It has rather a Mucha vibe to it, and is very much a late teens – early 20s piece.

I could have gone silver to tone with the diamantes and the clear crystal on the dress beads, but thought I’d pick up on the gold beading motif with these gold repro shoes.

Reproduction 1920s shoes with Louis heel.

 

Once that was decided, then this gold sautoir that my mother bought me as a gift from Online Antiques at a past fair was the natural choice of jewelery. No earrings, as the dangles on the headdress are statement enough! Just plain gold bangles.

Gold beaded sautoir (left)

For other accessories, I had a pinkish, raspberry beaded and fringed 1920s bag, and this fabulous feather fan – I have no decent photos of it (must document it), but it consists of three ostrich feathers with extensions that are coloured in an ombre cream to pink effect with a celluloid handle. These feather fans were a very popular accessory in the 1920s and are purely decorative – you couldn’t raise a breeze with this one, but they’re marvelous for dramatic gestures!

1920s feather fan with celluloid handle

The final touch was a lavish arctic fox stole – I thought about going with a white assuit shawl, but thought that if I was going to be extravagant and dramatic, I might as well go the limit.

As usual I wore vintage undergarments – the foundation is so essential to the whole look – and was amused when I was getting changed out there that my subconscious seems to have been in the driver’s seat. Instead of picking up the 1950s seamed stockings I usually wear, in haste I’d grabbed my genuine vintage 1920s silk stockings. My subconscious had decided I really was not going to cut corners!

How was it received? Well, that’s the subject of my next post about the Fair itself – that, and the wonderful people we met there, and the gorgeous things we found!

 

Enter the Nouveau Flapper

The barefoot bohemian flapper – courtesy of Nouveau Flapper Leigh, one of the New Zealand contingent

Hallo and welcome to the new blog! I thought it was time to move to a rather easier blogging platform – fond as I was of Jazz, Gin and the Cat’s Meow, I’ve been ready to move on to a new format. I’ve been spending a good deal of time in microblogging lately and thoroughly enjoy

the tumblr vintage community, but I  have missed the ability to write in more depth about the world of the 1920s and the contemporary Australian vintage scene – and there’s so much there to explore! So I’ll continue to share images through the Anything Goes tumblr,
and you’ll see more of the stories behind those fabulous photos, illustrations and objects here.

It’s been an exciting period for the Antipodean Nouveau Flappers – the Napier Art Deco Weekend was its usual fabulous self, and I look forward to uploading the story and photos of the people, vintage and location that combine to make it one of the most wonderful  vintage and Art Deco events in the world. We’ve also just had the Love Vintage Fair here in Sydney, which as always was a chance to hunt for treasure while catching up with lots of vintage community friends.

I’ll be making a move soon and will be staying with my darling friend Jill and her husband for a while as I save a deposit/hunt for my own apartment, so all that wonderful Art Deco will be on the road over here and the cocktail cabinet will be restored to its rightful home. Jill, as followers and friends might remember, is my vintage and Art Deco partner in crime – she’s the the one with the ideal 1920s figure, so I enjoy buying for her things I can’t wear myself! She’s already planning the Art Deco themed parties for when I move in.

I’ve also moved to a new job at the museum – more project and research/writing based, which of course delights me – I spent a lot of time last year after the publication of my book speaking to the media and lecturing on the Titanic and Belle Époque   fashion, and this move partly stems out of all that.

Anyway, enough about me…lets get back to the 1920s! There’s so much to talk about – everything from the joys of finding a Florence Walker hat to the wonderful world of celluloid dance purses. I’m planning on updating and expanding some of my earlier pieces on subjects like fringed dresses and wire wigs, and sharing some of the results of research in other areas. And as always, I love to hear from you with comments, corrections and questions.

Crank up the Charleston and grab a Sidecar from that passing waiter’s tray – it’s time to go back to where the band never winds down and the gin never goes warm, where you can roll your stockings down and kick your louis heels up!