Category Archives: Uncategorized

This is how my collection REALLY looks

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At the moment, for the first time in four years I have my ENTIRE vintage clothing collection in one place. For one thing this is an incredibly weird feeling. There’s something about my own collecting habits that mean there is a satisfaction to have it split up (so I don’t realise quite how much I’ve collected).
Anyway! As it is all together (bar a few pairs of shoes and some jewellery still at my mums) I thought I would share some pics of it all.
If anyone is interested in further details about anything in the pics do ask away : )

Brand spotlight: Karina’s bags

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When I’m not buying/ looking for original vintage pieces I’m always hunting for something that is a little bit different, and a little bit out of the ordinary. Something  that makes a statement. There are a few contemporary brands that really appeal to me in this respect. Amongst my favourites are Tatty Devine, Miss L Fire and Get Cutie.
Today I’m going to introduce another brand I particularly like for the “out of the ordinary” factor. Karina’s bags.
I online “met” Karina through facebook and was instantly fascinated by this amazing lady, who not only had worked for one of my favourite 70s brands (Miss Mouse) but also regularly shared interesting tid bits relating to fashion history through her facebook page. It is thanks to Karina that I have found out about a number of my favourite early 20th century textile designers.
But what makes Karina’s bags different and why is this not just another “handmade company”? Karina often uses original vintage fabrics and/ or vintage frames for her designs. Creating items that reference the past without reproducing it.
Its all about a hybrid fusion of ideas, new and old coming together to make something that is not only unique but also a talking point. One of my favourite items she currently has for sale is a fabulous bag using Linton Mills tweed that was originally woven for Chanel. This is what I mean about the “talking point” nature of the bags.
Here are a couple of my favourite pieces that are currently on her website:
The bag using Chaneltweed. Want!
One of Karina’s decalIphone covers.
Amazing deco esqueblack clutch or handbag
Applique handbag madewith an original 1920s frame
Not only does Karina produce a collection, but she also offers bespoke bags, have a look on her gallery for some wonderful examples.
Here are a few from the archives that are also particularly appealing:
Bag using 1939 world fair fabric
Bag using Grayson Perry scarf fabric
Last year Karina produced a number of commeorative pieces for the jubilee, still wish I had purchased myself one of these!
I think this quote from Karina’s website really exemplifies where her inspiration comes from:
“Over the years, so many things have inspired me. In particular, the harmonious colour palette of Luibov Popova, Russian artist and fabric designer, 1889-1924. Elsa Schiaparelli, for the sheer volume of work and the skill with which she executed it. Rosalind Russell in “His Girl Friday”, 1940, for her quirky panache and Marlene Dietrich, for having the audacity to wear beautifully tailored men’s suits combined with handmade bags and shoes from Italian artisan Massaro, a popular look now, but she wore it in 1932, long before Yves Saint Laurent created his “Le Smoking” range!”

Items on Karina’s website start at just £15 for a phone cover. Everything Karina makes is an individual item, so if you see something you like, get in there quick!
Visit Karina’s bags here!

An interesting Horrockses dress: round 2

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It’s incredibly rare that I ever admit I am wrong, but today I concede to the fact I am.
As any regular readers of my blog will know I am pretty obsessed with the brand Horrockses. In 2011 I did some pretty in-depth research into the delightful dress below which had once been owned by Lucienne Day. I had always suspected with its complicated construction that this dress had been designed by John Tullis. On Wednesday I found concrete proof that I had infact got the designer of the dress incorrect : o!!!
 
Hampshire museums service
Dress accession no: C1999.146.2
Photo © Liz Tregenza
If you are interested in the full story behind the dress (ignoring the part about John Tullis!) youcan read it here.
So how did I find out I was wrong? I was visiting the AAD at Blythe House, and decided to have a look through some of the sketchbooks that had belonged to Betty Newmarch who was one of Horrockses fashion designers (along with Marta Pirn anD John Tullis). These three sketchbooks were filled with a veritable wealth of information and have allowed me to date a number of dresses I own more accurately. In the book dated Summer 1956-57 I came across this sketch.
     
IT’S THE ORIGINAL SKETCH AND FABRIC SAMPLE FOR THE DRESS!!!!
As an interesting aside the sketches were not actually drawn by Betty Newmarch, but by her sketch artist Patricia Hunter. Sadly, as of yet I have not found any information about Hunter, but it would appear most of the distinctive sketches associated with Horrockses were infact drawn by her. I suppose I had always assumed that the fashion designer would complete the sketches themselves in this period, but it would appear not!
So back to the dress, what I also found interesting was that there were quite a number of these extravagant pique cotton dresses scattered through this sketch book, and it appears that when dresses were left plain this was a “go to” fabric for Horrockses.
                      
                              
This is another example of a similarly delightful sundress and bolero using white and yellow pique cotton. A housecoat later on in the sketchbook (also made from this pique) is illustrated as being “made exclusively for Simpson’s Picadilly”. It is interesting to note that a number of dresses had certain shop names written above them, suggesting that they were produced exclusively for a particular shop.
So what has this taught me? The value of research, for sure and also that your instincts (however strong) aren’t necessarily right.
Sketchbook accession number: AAD/1995/16/5/1